Daily Reflection for Thursday, June 16, 2022
Peace and Blessings, Friends and Parishioners,
We encourage you to reflect on Thursday's readings at this link:
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061622.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: Sirach 48:1-14
Responsorial: Psalm 97:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7
Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15
Our reflection on Thursday’s readings:
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.(Matthew 6:8)
In today’s Gospel, we hear Jesus teaching his disciples how to pray. Today we know this prayer to be the Our Father. It is a prayer I have recited many times. I hold my husband’s hand as we pray it at Mass. Growing up, my mother had us recite the prayer, before we started a long drive for a family get away. We said the prayer with heavy hearts in the car that took us all to my father’s funeral. It is a prayer I recite often on my daily commute to work.
Yet today as I reflect on Jesus’ teaching, I connect with what Jesus says before He teaches the prayer. “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him”. The words gently rest on my heart today. Trust me. Know that I will never abandon you. Make the hard decision and trust that I will be there. All this goes through my mind as I read this passage.
Oh, how I wish I had a crystal ball. I want to know what lies ahead in the next day, the next year, and the next five years. If only I can see the future, I can make the right decisions, move in the right direction, and be ready for the next turn. My anxiety increases as I want to be in control of all that lies ahead.
Jesus’ word today stops me right in my tracks, and my anxiety loosens its grip. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him, go to Him and start with, Our Father…
May trust be your center as you pray today,
Margarita Solis Deal