Any true disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ must heed the Word of God (first reading) taken from Sirach also known as Ecclesiasticus. For without a doubt having served long enough you will be tested in fire and some chosen like I have been, in the furnace of humiliation. Be steadfast and cling to our Lord Jesus Christ who will never leave you.
Indeed these words are true. While I held steadfast in my faith and love for Him, I did not stay put in where I was. I needed time to heal and recollect. The Lord taught me patience and humility. That God my Father loved me dearly with all my faults and shortcomings. That I should love God our Father’s other children, naughty, prideful and however stubborn they may be; just as He loved me! We can be assured that our Lord Jesus Christ, will make crooked paths straight and He will always be by our side.
His grace is sufficient for us, we can love just as He loves us. Amen
First reading
Ecclesiasticus 2:1-11 †
The chosen are tested like gold in the fire
My son, if you aspire to serve the Lord,prepare yourself for an ordeal.
Be sincere of heart, be steadfast,and do not be alarmed when disaster comes.
Cling to him and do not leave him,so that you may be honoured at the end of your days.
Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient, since gold is tested in the fire, and chosen men in the furnace of humiliation.
Trust him and he will uphold you,follow a straight path and hope in him.
You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; do not turn aside in case you fall.
You who fear the Lord, trust him,and you will not be baulked of your reward.
You who fear the Lord hope for good things,for everlasting happiness and mercy.
Look at the generations of old and see:who ever trusted in the Lord and was put to shame?
Or who ever feared him steadfastly and was left forsaken?
Or who ever called out to him, and was ignored?
For the Lord is compassionate and merciful,he forgives sins, and saves in days of distress.
Gospel
Mark 9:30-37
Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me
Jesus and his disciples made their way through Galilee; and he did not want anyone to know, because he was instructing his disciples; he was telling them, ‘The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men; they will put him to death; and three days after he has been put to death he will rise again.’ But they did not understand what he said and were afraid to ask him.
They came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the road?’ They said nothing because they had been arguing which of them was the greatest. So he sat down, called the Twelve to him and said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all.’ He then took a little child, set him in front of them, put his arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’
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