Being like Jesus – Prayer is our treasure!
The Son of Man – Being like Jesus – Prayer is our treasure! – Lectio Divina
Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast July 1, 2014
Dear Vincentian Family: This week we celebrate 2 National Celebrations. Today is Canada Day and July 4 is Independence Day. In cities and towns close to the border these are often celebrated together. In Fort Niagara there is a re-enactment of the war of 1812. It is one of my favorite places to be on Canada Day. We are truly blessed to have USA as our neighbour and friend all these years. Pray for a lasting peace and let it begin with each of us. Always celebrate your national holidays with prayer and thanksgiving.
The Son of Man – Many people live in fear of God. They don’t know him. They have not experienced the love. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “The Son of the Living God.” (Matthew 16:15-16). We have to teach our children of the love we possess. We do not have to become famous; we just have to be ourselves. Jesus came as man, son of the living God for us and because of God’s love for us. God is not disappointed with us and is always ready to forgive. His love has no end. We are generally the ones who breaks the relationship. We are created in the image of God; He loves us and knows we are great. Our job is to bring this love and delight of who we are to all those we serve. Let them feel the love of the Son of Man through our loving service.
Being Like Jesus – “Blessed are the pure of heart, they shall see God!” (Matthew 5:8) These words from Jesus are a guide for us to serve and indeed a challenge. It means we become like Jesus and always look for the purity in others. This helps us to bring the joy of Christ. It means judgement is non-existent and love flows freely. We do not visit and look at our watch. It is time to be like Christ to those in need. Our hearts become poorer when we see Christ in those we serve and when they can feel the love of Christ through us. Giving of ourselves as a mimic of Jesus is pure glory and thanks giving for all we have. Visiting the prisoner, is seeing the broken suffering Christ kept away from family friends and many times wanting to change. They are often reaching out for the love we may talk about. Show them the love with our presence. We do the same when visiting the sick, lonely and all in poverty. The visit is with Christ and by Christ, if we try to follow His teachings and examples. We may not always get it right, but we can start over and that is the beauty of following Jesus.
Prayer is our Treasure – “For where your treasure is there will be your heart.” (Matthew 6:21). This is a beautiful and insightful teaching of Jesus. This is a part of the Sermon on the Mount. I believe, we as Vincentians should reflect on this often in both Mathew and Luke. It is an awesome opportunity to enter into searching self-reflection. We caution ourselves to refrain from looking at others with spiritual blindness. How we see the world reflects our hearts. Therefore if our treasure is prayer, we can remove prejudice, envy, and deceit, to name a few. We need to look at the world as illuminated by the light of Christ. Storing treasurers in heaven for ourselves and focusing on prayer in our lives is the best way to see where our treasures are. Prayer gives us the pure love of Jesus who leads us to the Father and Holy Spirit. This is our heavenly treasure.
Lectio Davina – Accept the embrace of God by reading, listening, meditation, and praying the word of God. I use the upcoming Gospel for Sunday to reflect. The Gospel is meant to be read out loud. Read several times to see God’s will. Let it speak to you. You could also join with a spouse or a friend to take turns reading out loud. Reading out loud helps the word stick to us. We know we are not always with Him, but He is always with us. When practicing Lection remove things from your mind and clear it focusing only on the Word and the message you receive. Once you are in a good place say, “Speak Lord your servant in listening.” Hear God speak to you and pray on the message always bringing this joy to others. Jesus draws us to Him. We are His disciples and we too, must draw others to Him by our Faith and actions. Never stop believing. Prayer will be answered, in God’s time. Believe!
Pray for our Vincentian Family and pray for our priests, bishops, seminarians and Pope Francis. On Friday June 27 it was world day of prayer for priests. The Rosary Luminous mysteries were prayed together by the Faithful. If you forgot it is not too late. Pray for our priests.
Blessings,
Lynn
About Lynn:
Lynn L’Heureux is Special needs co-coordinator & Advisor of the Society of St Vincent de Paul Calgary Alberta Canada.
Her newsletter is translated into 3 languages, hopefully soon to be 4. They have a group which brings the prayer into China and it is translated into Mandarin and other Chinese dialects.
Subscribe to her weekly newsletter Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast (English and Spanish) by sending an email to calgaryssvpadm@gmail.com
Tags: Canada, L'Heureux, Society of St. Vincent de Paul, SVDP