Sunday September 11, 2022

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DISCOVER TODAY: God is doing everything — even the impossible — to lead everyone to repentance and healing.

Good News Reflection for:

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 11, 2022

Today’s Prayer:

Beloved Lord, Your love covers my life with Your mercy. You don’t let my sins keep you from continuously looking for me. Give me a thankful heart, sensitive to all the wonderful things with which You have surrounded me. Amen.

Subscribe to Today’s Saint Quote & Prayer:
gnm.org/SaintQuotes/

Today’s Readings:

Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14
Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 17, 19
1 Timothy 1:12-17
Luke 15:1-32
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091122.cfm
USCCB Podcast of the Readings:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2022-09-11-usccb-daily-mass-readings

Recovering the lost

This Sunday’s Gospel reading is an assurance of God’s desire to regain what has been lost. Our Lord is a God of reconciliation and renewal. He pursues those who have strayed from the truth. Why? Because he cares — he cares more than we do about the people we know who are “lost sheep” or “lost treasures” like the coin in this parable.

Think of the people who have been lost to you because they have abandoned you. God cares and is pursuing them to bring healing to the relationship, and he will continue his efforts even until they take their last earthly breath (sometimes the healing comes after death).

Think, too, of people who are neglecting their faith on this 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Jesus is a Good Shepherd who will never give up pursuing them. Why? Because their value to your family and the Church is important! Their absence is depleting the strength of the community. And God, who is the source of the life of the community, is doing everything possible — well, even the impossible — to lead them to repentance and healing and a safe return.

However, we cannot leave it all up to God. He works through us. Only when we’ve tried and our influence is nil does God say, “Let go. Trust that I am continually working on the problem.” We can believe that Jesus is still chasing after them, even though they hide from him. He is not far from them, even though they push him away.

If there is something else we can do to invite them back into the sheepfold, but we don’t, someday we will have to explain to Jesus why we didn’t. Why did we fail to love as much as he loves them? Why did we let them stray away without researching how we could help them? Have we done anything to push them away?

No matter how difficult it gets as we partner with Christ to bring others back to the sheepfold, the most important thing we can do is keep loving them unconditionally. Hopefully, they will see in us the love that Jesus is offering to them. Let’s make especially sure that others feel our Christian love on this 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Questions for Personal Reflection:
Who are the lost sheep and missing treasures of your family and your parish community? What will you do this week to reveal Jesus and his merciful love for them? Is there a parish ministry or an evangelization program that you could join to learn how to better help others turn to Jesus?

Questions for Family & Community Faith Sharing:
When the lost are not ready yet to turn to Jesus or return to us or to the Church, how do our attempts to give them Jesus prepare them for an eventual conversion? Why is it worth trying, even if we don’t see any fruits for our efforts? Even if it includes sacrifice and extra humility on our part?

Thank you for reflecting with us on this 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time!

© 2022 by Terry A. Modica

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