“Since all our love for God is ultimately a response to His love for us, we can never love Him in the same way He loves us, namely, gratuitously. Since we are fundamentally dependent on God and in His debt for our creation and redemption, our love is always owed to Him, a duty, a response to His love. But we can love our neighbor in the same way that He loves us, gratuitously—not because of anything the neighbor has done for us or because of anything that we owe him, but simply because love has been freely given to us. We thereby greatly please the Father. God the Father tells Catherine [of Siena]: This is why I have put you among your neighbors: so that you can do for them what you cannot do for me—that is, love them without any concern for thanks and without looking for any profit for yourself. And whatever you do for them I will consider done for me.”
– Ralph Martin, p. 261
Morning Offering
“We find rest in those we love, and we provide a resting place for those who love us.”
– St. Bernard of Clairvaux
St. Therese de Lisieux…
Daily Message from Pope Francis – January 24th
“Unity is above all a gift, it is a grace to be requested through prayer. Each one of us needs it. In fact, we know that we are incapable of preserving unity even within ourselves… The root of so many divisions that surround us — between people, in families, in society, between nations and even between believers — it is inside us… Therefore, the solution to these divisions is not to oppose someone, because discord generates more discord. The true remedy begins by asking God for peace, reconciliation, unity.”
Pope Francis
Daily Devotion – The Right Priorities
“Why do you kick at My sacrifice and My offering which I have commanded … and honor your sons more than Me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel My people?” – 1 Samuel 2:29 NKJV
Eli had been a dedicated priest, faithfully serving God and His people. Then, something changed. Something so serious that God removed his family from the line of priests. What happened? As people chosen to be His priests, Eli and his family had been given specific responsibilities. They were called to represent God, speak His words, and enforce His standards.
But the Bible says that Eli’s sons had become “corrupt” (v. 12). They took advantage of their role as priests for personal gain, committed “very great” sins, and “abhorred the offering of the Lord” (v. 17). The sad conclusion? “They did not know the Lord” (v. 12).
This was unacceptable for men chosen to be God’s representatives. Yet Eli continued to tolerate their behavior and “honor” his sons more than God Himself (v. 29).
The Bible declares that God wants us concerned about our families. He certainly wanted Eli to care about his sons. The problem was that he had the wrong priorities. He had failed in his responsibility to be “a faithful priest” who would do what was in God’s heart and mind (v. 35).
Any of us can be guilty of mistakes like these. This is why we need to be sensitive to the Spirit, careful to obey God’s Word. Let’s be people of prayer, seeking to please God. Seek first His kingdom. Be committed to being His representatives, always serving Him.
Prayer
Father, serving You is my highest priority. Purge me of selfishness and sin. May others see Jesus through me. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Extended Reading
1 Samuel 2
Daily Reflection – January 24th
Minute Meditation – January 24th
The great spiritual problem of the day is being “like fish out of water.” A life without spiritual regularity drifts through time with little to really hang onto when life most needs an anchor. Instead, we often get caught up in someone else’s agenda most of our lives. We put the cell aside for work and its never-ending deadlines. We forget the cell when we need it most and make play a poor substitute for thought and prayer. We think that we can run our legs off doing, going, finding, socializing, and still stay stolid and serene in the midst of the pressure of it all. And then we find ourselves staring at the ceiling one night and thinking to ourselves, “There must be more to life than this.”
—from the book In God’s Holy Light: Wisdom from the Desert Monastics
by Sister Joan Chittister
Saint of the Day – January 24th
Francis was destined by his father to be a lawyer so that the young man could eventually take his elder’s place as a senator from the province of Savoy in France. For this reason Francis was sent to Padua to study law. After receiving his doctorate, he returned home and, in due time, told his parents he wished to enter the priesthood. His father strongly opposed Francis in this, and only after much patient persuasiveness on the part of the gentle Francis did his father finally consent. Francis was ordained and elected provost of the Diocese of Geneva, then a center for the Calvinists. Francis set out to convert them, especially in the district of Chablais. By preaching and distributing the little pamphlets he wrote to explain true Catholic doctrine, he had remarkable success.
At 35, he became bishop of Geneva. While administering his diocese he continued to preach, hear confessions, and catechize the children. His gentle character was a great asset in winning souls. He practiced his own axiom, “A spoonful of honey attracts more flies than a barrelful of vinegar.”
Besides his two well-known books, the Introduction to the Devout Life and A Treatise on the Love of God, he wrote many pamphlets and carried on a vast correspondence. For his writings, he has been named patron of the Catholic Press. His writings, filled with his characteristic gentle spirit, are addressed to lay people. He wants to make them understand that they too are called to be saints. As he wrote in The Introduction to the Devout Life: “It is an error, or rather a heresy, to say devotion is incompatible with the life of a soldier, a tradesman, a prince, or a married woman…. It has happened that many have lost perfection in the desert who had preserved it in the world.”
In spite of his busy and comparatively short life, he had time to collaborate with another saint, Jane Frances de Chantal, in the work of establishing the Sisters of the Visitation. These women were to practice the virtues exemplified in Mary’s visit to Elizabeth: humility, piety, and mutual charity. They at first engaged to a limited degree in works of mercy for the poor and the sick. Today, while some communities conduct schools, others live a strictly contemplative life.
Reflection
Francis de Sales took seriously the words of Christ, “Learn of me for I am meek and humble of heart.” As he said himself, it took him 20 years to conquer his quick temper, but no one ever suspected he had such a problem, so overflowing with good nature and kindness was his usual manner of acting. His perennial meekness and sunny disposition won for him the title of “Gentleman Saint.”
Saint Francis de Sales is the Patron Saint of:
Authors
Deafness
Journalists
Writers
Verse of the Day – January 24th
“Let us hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope, for he who made the promise is trustworthy. We must consider how to rouse one another to love and good works.”
Hebrews 10:23-24
Meditation of the Day for January 24th
“Scattered about the entire earth, your mother the Church is tormented by the assaults of error. She is also afflicted by the laziness and indifference of so many of the children she carries around in her bosom as well as by the sight of so many of her members growing cold, while she becomes less able to help her little ones. Who then will give her the necessary help she cries for if not her children and other members to whose number you belong?”— Saint Augustine, p. 90