With Everything

The WORD today (see http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/060718.cfm) reminds me that I should love God with everything I have. 

They say that if you won't do your best, don't do it at all. Just as important as what you do is how you do it. You should give your best. You should give your all - no matter how simple what you are doing is. Doing your best means you give your all - all you have, all you've got. You cannot control the outcome of everything, but you can control how you do it. You can control how much effort you give as you do it. This is true in different things in life, but especially in loving God. 

God deserves our best, and we should give him that. We should give God our everything. 

In the gospel, Jesus himself said that:

Hear, O Israel! 

The Lord our God is Lord alone!

You shall love the Lord your God 

with all your heart, 

with all your soul, with all your mind, 

and with all your strength.

He wants us to love God with everything - all our heart, soul, mind and strength. He wants our whole being. He wants all of us, including all our imperfections. He wants us to love him and offer him everything, because only then can we experience his great love and power. He wants us to love him and surrender to him everything. We need not be holy as we love him. He accepts us as we are. And as we love him and give him everything, he will fill us with everything of his. And as this happen, we will feel his love and power and we will be transformed to be more and more like him. 

In the first reading, we are reminded that we should be a workman with no disgrace. We should love and serve God well. The best way we can. By giving him our all. Not just in service to him, but in all aspects of our life. 

Loving God with all we've got is not easy. But it surely is necessary for us to realize and experience all his love as well. And still in the gospel, we see the second greatest commandment and a concrete way if how we can love God - by loving our neighbor. We should concretize and live our love for God. We should make it real by loving others. We should make it real by being God's ambassadors here on earth and by making God's love more real and more alive. 

Do I love God? Is he first in my life or do I have more important priorities? How do I live my love for him? Do I serve him through others? Do I give him the best I can, in all aspects of my life? Is my life pleasing to Him?

May we give God our everything, and make his love more real and alive in this world.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for your reminder of how I should love you. Lord, i am sorry for the times i don't love and serve you with all I have. Sorry for holding back my actions for you. Sorry for giving excuses - that I'm busy, that i'm tired, that I do other good things anyway. Help me surrender to you. Help me love you, not the way i want to love you, but the way you want me to love you. As I surrender, as I love you, I ask that you make me more and more like you. Help me make your love more alive and more real in this world as I love others. May you be pleased with me, my actions, and how I love you.  Amen.

Blessed Day!

In Christ,

-g-

Daily Readings

June 7, 2018

Thursday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 356

Reading 1 2 TM 2:8-15

Beloved:
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David:
such is my Gospel, for which I am suffering,
even to the point of chains, like a criminal.
But the word of God is not chained.
Therefore, I bear with everything for the sake of those who are chosen,
so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus,
together with eternal glory.
This saying is trustworthy:

If we have died with him
we shall also live with him;
if we persevere
we shall also reign with him.
But if we deny him
he will deny us.
If we are unfaithful
he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny himself.

Remind people of these things
and charge them before God to stop disputing about words.
This serves no useful purpose since it harms those who listen.
Be eager to present yourself as acceptable to God,
a workman who causes no disgrace,
imparting the word of truth without deviation.

Responsorial Psalm PS 25:4-5AB, 8-9, 10 AND 14

R. (4) Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
he teaches the humble his way.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.
All the paths of the LORD are kindness and constancy
toward those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
The friendship of the LORD is with those who fear him,
and his covenant, for their instruction.
R. Teach me your ways, O Lord.

Alleluia SEE 2 TM 1:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel MK 12:28-34

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
"Which is the first of all the commandments?"
Jesus replied, "The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.