Yes Lord I am Yours and I Love You above all. I love You more than my inclinations towards sin. I love You above all who are closest and dearest to my heart. Yet Lord I am far from perfect and too often fall short. I am constantly tempted as wanton desires rage within me. When challenged, insulted or simply not allowed to speak my ‘peace’ Pride takes over and I react by lashing out! How then can I ever hope to be perfect as my Heavenly Father is perfect?
You O Lord have opened my eyes to see that the road to perfection is not the destination but in the journey. The narrow road I must take is by way of the cross. And so I am perfected through and in You my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. By my faithfulness in knowing and living out Your Word and Will in my life. And loving my neighbour as You have loved me. Who is my neighbour? All… whom God our Father has caused His sun to rise on and the rain to fall! How then can I denigrate a fellow child of God? How can I entertain lustful thoughts over any of His children? How can I not forgive my sister and brother? How can I withhold mercy and love from any of His children? After all I am a fellow child of God so loved by Heavenly Father. Amen
First reading
Deuteronomy 26:16-19 ·
You will be a people consecrated to the Lord
Moses said to the people: ‘The Lord your God today commands you to observe these laws and customs; you must keep and observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
‘You have today made this declaration about the Lord: that he will be your God, but only if you follow his ways, keep his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and listen to his voice. And the Lord has today made this declaration about you: that you will be his very own people as he promised you, but only if you keep all his commandments; then for praise and renown and honour he will set you high above all the nations he has made, and you will be a people consecrated to the Lord, as he promised.’
Gospel
Matthew 5:43-48
Pray for those who persecute you
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’
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