Daily Reflection for Thursday, December 02 2021
Peace and Blessings, Friends and Parishioners,
We encourage you to reflect on Thursday's readings at this link:
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120221.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: Isaiah 26:1-6
Responsorial: Psalm 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a
Gospel: Matthew 7:21, 24-27
Our reflection on Thursday’s readings:
But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. Matthew 7:24-25
“What would I have done without my faith?” is an expression I have said many times, especially after a challenging situation and life experience. I am realizing that the origin story of this expression is in the Gospel reading today. Jesus says to his disciples, “everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.”
I wonder if Jesus had a sense of what the disciples’ lives were going to be like if they continued to follow Jesus. He already saw signs of doubt as they wavered during their formation process; struggling to understand Jesus’ teachings of loving thy neighbor, feeding the poor, and clothing the sick. Jesus was preparing the disciples who were so very human and imperfect for the difficult journey ahead. What would they have done without their unwavering love and zeal for the Resurrected Jesus? Where would I be without their faith?
My mother inspired me greatly. She was a woman of great faith; even through life’s challenges, she seemed to pass through them with such grace and strength. She would say to me from time to time, “Margie, do you believe in prayer? Prayer is so important.” Her faith supported her when she found herself widowed at 48 years old and with the full onset of Alzheimer’s in her 70’s. Where would I be without her faith?
I was a high school student in the early 1980s when I read of the four women missionaries who were murdered in El Salvador. The story penetrated my heart. I was heartbroken by how they died and inspired by the lives they led. Their story continues to be one I return to when I am in need of grounding. Where would I be without their faith?
I stand on the shoulders of many faith-filled persons. It is a faith that has been passed on to me. Each person and each generation added to the foundation of my faith and have helped me build my house solidly on rock. It did not begin with me, and it will not end with me. Where would I be without my faith? is a question that invites me to reflect on the grace granted me when going through life’s experiences, AND it also invites me to recall the many generations that came before me that made answering this question even possible.
May you build your house on rock as the next generation is depending on it.
Margarita Solis-Deal