Ordinary Time

Pause

As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud [person] is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down you cannot see something that is above you.

from Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (1952)

Listen

Although he was a Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered. After he had been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for everyone who obeys him. He was appointed by God to be a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.

Hebrews 5:8-10

Think

Christian monks and nuns traditionally take vows of poverty (giving up wealth and material possessions), chastity (committing to remain single and live in community), and obedience (obeying both God and the people in charge of their religious order). I once asked a monk how he felt about these vows. Why were they necessary? And why those three?

He shrugged and said, “Well, the three things humans are most tempted to idolize are sex, money, and power. When I took those vows, I was promising that I would never let my desire for any of those things get in the way of my love for God.”

That conversation helped me realize that I had spent a little too long asking myself, “How can I follow Jesus without giving anything up?” Instead, I’ve started trying to ask, “What is getting in the way of my following Jesus, and how can I prepare myself to change that?”

Catherine Healy

Pray

Dear God, it is so easy for me to wander down the path of my material wants, bodily cravings, or willful desires. Help me keep my eyes on the path that leads to you, and help me pay attention to Jesus, who walks beside me as my guide. Amen.

Go

When the dreams you’re dreamin’ come to you,

when the work you put in is realized,

let yourself feel the pride,

but always stay humble and kind.

from “Humble and Kind” by Lori McKenna (2015)