Prayer for the Week (March 30-April 5, 2025)

/in /by

Let us pray to God our Father that we experience the joy of his lasting forgiveness: God, when we have lost our way, when we seek false happiness in the dark land of sin, you send your Son to search for us and bring us back to you.  Through the Holy Spirit, let us feel deeply that you are looking forward to welcome us with joy, and to restore us in your life and love. Give us the humble courage to return to you, our God and Father forever.

Amen.

Claretian Publications

Sunday Reflection (March 30, 2025)

/in /by

Sunday Reflection upon 2 Corinthians 5:17-6:1 

God has taken the initiative and reconciled us and the world to God through Jesus Christ. From God’s perspective, reconciliation has already been accomplished; however, it is a different story from our perspective. We experience the brokenness of relationships and the brokenness of this world. Since we are not as reconciled with one another as we could be, Paul urges us to engage in a ‘ministry of reconciliation.’ This is not just a call to action but a responsibility that we must take up as God’s chosen. We are empowered to be agents of change in this ministry.

As ambassadors of Christ, the Holy Spirit nurtures Christ within us and among us so that we represent Christ to the world. The Holy Spirit guides us in reconciling with others, giving us the necessary wisdom and strength. We establish friendly relations where there has been hostility. As God has taken the initiative to reconcile us, may we take the initiative to announce God’s reconciliation with humankind. God has entrusted us, as Christ’s Church, with the ministry of reconciliation. May we bring peace, love, and forgiveness in the hope of reconciliation into the human experience. Let’s take the initiative to reconcile with others, understanding that forgiveness is not just a part but a crucial element of this process.

 

Sunday Sermon March 30, 2025

/in /by

Devotion March 26, 2025

/in /by

Devotion March 25, 2025

/in /by

Sunday Reflection (March 23, 2025)

/in /by

Sunday Reflection upon Luke 13:1-9 

God takes deliberate steps to nurture us to repentance and fruitfulness, patiently guiding us toward a life of righteousness and love. But there is a limit. We bring misery to ourselves and others when we fail to take responsibility for our sins and failures and do not repent. Once we have done something, it cannot be undone. We cannot change the past but improve the present and future. We can foster healing and restoration with God’s grace and guidance, which is his direction and support in our journey of repentance.

God grants us opportunities for spiritual growth in love, kindness, and mercy to bring healing and restoration to our relationships and as much healing and restoration as possible to the world of conflict, warfare, and division. God has given us time in the hope that we will bear fruit. God works with us to wake us out of our slumber, our state of spiritual complacency or inaction, so that we rise and take action that leads to repentance.

Prayer for the Week (March 23-March 29, 2025)

/in /by

Let us pray that God give us the courage to repent and turn to him and to people in love: Patient God, we are reluctant and slow to make the change of heart we need. Give us the time to understand the extent of your mercy and your love which your Son Jesus showed us in its fullness in his suffering and death. Recognize your own Son in us and accept us in our poverty.  Raise us up and change us so that we proclaim your persistent love through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Claretian Publications

 

                                                    

                   
                                                                                         
               

                                   

                         

Sunday Sermon March 23, 2025

/in /by

Sunday Reflection (March 16, 2025)

/in /by

Sunday Reflection upon Luke 13:31-35 

Jesus uses a poignant metaphor to depict God’s nurturing nature. He compares God to a protective hen, longing to gather us under divine wings of care. This comforting image stands in stark contrast to our human response. Despite God’s invitation to healing and restoration, we often act unjustly, unfairly, cruelly, or with violence, essentially crucifying Jesus once again.

The Holy Spirit is crucial in our transformation, empowering us to nurture and protect, especially the most vulnerable. The Spirit hovers over us, shaping Christ within us and among us. As we grow from spiritual chicks to spiritual adults, imitating God’s nurturing nature as revealed in Jesus Christ, we can contribute to a world where deceit, lies, and violence no longer hold sway. This approach of imitating God as revealed in Christ is a hopeful and optimistic vision we can work towards.

Prayer for the Week (March 16-March 22, 2025)

/in /by

Let us pray to our seemingly invisible Father in heaven:  Invisible God, with the incarnation of your Son, Jesus Christ, we see a reflection of you in your Son.  You also give us the Holy Spirit, who enables us in prayer and in the search for your truth.  In our worship, strengthen us to know your purpose for us and the world.  Amen.

Prayers for the Seasons of God’s People, alt