What would Jesus think of your life?

Repent (National Mall: Washington, DC, USA) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Gift: Fear of the Lord (Wonder and Awe) – With the gift of wonder and awe (fear of the lord), we are aware of the glory and majesty of God. A person with wonder and awe knows that God is the perfection of all we desire: perfect knowledge, perfect goodness, perfect power, and perfect love.

Reading:  Thus says the LORD: This shall not stand, it shall not be!  (Isaiah 7:7)

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“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon,^* they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes.”  (Matthew 11:21)

Observation:  In the first reading, the book of Isaiah is recounting the salvation of the places that found favor with God, because of their connection with his chosen people, and because it was His will that the towns of David’s lineage be saved.  In the Gospel, Jesus is talking about some other towns that have fallen out of favor with God because of their lack of repentance.  He says that these towns will be punished if they don’t repent, and they should if they recognized the power of God working in their midst through the person of Jesus Christ..

Personification:  Self-Control  In order to stand firm in the faith of our Fathers and find favor with God, I must remember that I am chosen, but I also must remember to repent.  Such great miracles have already been done in my life, through the power of Jesus Christ who is still working in our midst.  I should never stop repenting of my past evil ways, so that I can know that God’s grace is with me and he can continue to use me to build up His kingdom.

Prayer:  Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner…I ask this, as always, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit.  Amen!

Related articles

• Jesus Reproaches Unrepentant Towns (tvaraj2inspirations.wordpress.com)
• “Jesus upbraided them because they did not repent” (worryisuseless.wordpress.com)
• Personal Reflection On Gospel Matthew 11:20-24 (catholicjules.net)