Daily Reflection for Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Peace and Blessings, Friends and Parishioners,
We encourage you to reflect on Wednesday’s readings at this link:
http://usccb.org/bible/readings/031120.cfm
If you prefer to use your own Bible, the readings are:
First Reading: Jeremiah 18: 18-20
Responsorial: Psalm 31: 5-6, 14-16
Gospel: Matthew 20: 17-28
Our reflection on Wednesday’s readings:
“Into your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God.” Psalm 31: 6.
When I was young and heard the verse “Into your hands I commend my spirit”—the words of the dying Jesus, said to me, “I surrender. I’ve had enough. Please stop the suffering and let me die. I’m defeated. I surrender. I give up.”
As a Christian—a follower of Jesus—I commend my spirit to God. I am indeed surrendering and asking that the Lord’s will be done in my life, in my world. Here and everywhere.
Commending my spirit to God also means giving up. Faith tells me that God will redeem me. He will forgive my faults and save me. By acknowledging my weaknesses and faults, I am indeed surrendering and giving them up to God. Giving up is directional and metaphorical. I am giving up. Giving my life, my spirit to God.
But commend can also mean “to present” and “express an approval of.”
Matthew 20: 27-28 says, “whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus tells and shows us the way to be Christian. What am I commending / presenting to God by my actions here on earth? Can my Christian life on earth be worthy of commendation and approval in spite of my human weakness? With God, all things are possible.
Jesus devoted his life to showing us the way to the Father. In the most famous prayer, which Jesus taught us, we ask, and we plead, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” We pray that the will of God will be done everywhere.
Following Christ is not the easy road. Jesus said we “will drink of the cup.” He showed us the way when He faced hatred, injustice and violence from others in a peaceful and loving way. He didn’t fight, yell, or hurl insults. Instead He loved their souls and asked the Father to forgive them.
God Bless You+
Ruth Mytty