he owned.” —St. Athanasius
Show me, Holy Spirit, in some small way, how to apply your Holy Scriptures to my life.
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge … until the destroying storms pass by.
—Psalm 57:1 (NRSV)
As he concludes the short Life of St. Paul the First Hermit, St. Jerome writes: “I would like to ask the wealthy, ‘What did this old man ever lack, naked as he was? You drink from jeweled cups, but he was satisfied with the cupped hands that nature had given him…. He was clothed with Christ despite his nakedness. You who are dressed in silks have lost the garment of Christ. Paul, who lies covered in the vilest dust, will rise again in glory…. I beg you, whoever you are, to remember the sinner Jerome. If the Lord would grant him his wish, he would rather choose Paul’s tunic, and his rewards, than the purple robes of kings, and their punishments.’”
Dear God, guide me today as I try to live only for what matters in eternity.
For your immortal spirit is in all things. Therefore you correct little by little those who trespass, and you remind and warn them of the things through which they sin, so that they may … put their trust in you, O Lord.
—Wisdom 12:1–2 (NRSV)
“You will probably laugh at me and say how obvious such things are. But, until I closed my eyes to the vanities of this world, I did not see or understand who lived within my soul or what my soul deserved. If I had understood then, as I now do, how this great King lives within this palace of my soul, I would not have left Him alone so much. I would have stayed with Him and not let His house get so dirty. It is wonderful that He whose greatness could fill a thousand worlds should confine Himself to so small a space, just as He was pleased to inhabit His most holy Mother’s womb. As our Lord, He has perfect freedom, and because He loves us, He fashions Himself to our measure.” —St. Teresa of Avila
I will not neglect You, today, Lord. Help me be mindful of Your presence in my life.
The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.
—Zephaniah 3:17 (NRSV)
“By bringing Himself low in this way, God shows His infinite greatness. Just as the sun shines at the same time on the tall cedars and on each little flower as if it were the only one on earth, in the same way our Lord is concerned particularly for every soul as if there were none other like it.” —St. Thérèse of Lisieux
I love how You love me!
Today is the Feast Day of St. Antony the Great
St. Antony taught: “Let Christians care for nothing that they cannot take away with them. We ought rather to seek after that which will lead us to heaven, namely wisdom, chastity, justice, virtue, an ever-watchful mind, care of the poor, firm faith in Christ, a mind that can control anger, and hospitality. Striving after these things, we shall prepare for ourselves a dwelling in the land of the peaceful, as it says in the Gospel.” —As recorded by St. Athanasius
What in the world am I clinging to, God?
Be still, and know that I am God.”
—Psalm 46:10a (NIV)
“[I]n practice … there is only one vocation. Whether you teach or live in the cloister or nurse the sick, whether you are in religion or out of it, married or single, no matter who you are or what you are, you are called to the summit of perfection: you are called to a deep interior life perhaps even to mystical prayer, and to pass the fruits of your contemplation on to others. And if you cannot do so by word, then by example.” —Thomas Merton OCSO
I want to know You today.
If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
—1 John 1:6–7 (NRSV)
St. Catherine of Siena recalled the words of Christ: “Forgiveness comes, then, through the soul’s desire to be united to Me, the infinite Good, according to the measure of love attained by the recipient’s desire and prayer. A person receives as much of My goodness as he gives to Me.”
I want to walk in Your light today.
