“WARM WITH GOD’S LOVE”
Lenten Reflections
26th February 2018.
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MONDAY, SECOND WEEK OF LENT
Reading 1: Dan 9:4-10 We hear a national act of sorrow by the people of God fortheir having violated their covenant and rebelled against God and his commandments.
Res. Psalm: Ps 79:8-11,13 “Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.
Gospel: Lk 6:36-38 Jesus pleads with his followers for compassion, pardon, andgenerosity towards all peoples
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DO NOT JUDGE
Lent is a time of leaping up in faith, of restoration as children of God. In the first Reading, we have Daniel, who is the first to receive visions of the coming of the Son of Man. Daniel beseeches God on behalf of his people, whose sins are a sad litany of failure, unfaithfulness, and forgetfulness in the presence of the enduring mercy of God. The good news of Luke from the sermon on the plain is Jesus’ clear command to the disciples, to us, “to be compassionate as our Father is compassionate.” These two lines of scripture could be the meditation for all of life. This endeavor we are about in Lent is not small or merely singular. It is about salvation and the re-creation of earth, about God’s compassion being let loose on earth so it covers us, like a quilt that brings peace and the sleep of the just, where children can be safe and all can dwell secure. It is about the coming of the Kingdom of God into history, transforming everything, undercutting evil, and shaking sin and death to their foundations. What is fascinating about God is His recognition of our human condition, our frailty, our inability to do anything by our own power. He’s got the whole world in his hands, with all its peoples. But he made them free and they sin, they refuse his love. But he never gives up hoping in us. Our sighing comes before him, and he has mercy. That’s the way it is. That’s the way he is.
Jesus’ statement: “Stop judging and you will not be judged,” shows us his heart of compassion. He invites us to strive to be non-judgmental in every way. The world needs more people who are non-judgmental and non-condemning. We need more people who know how to be true friends and love unconditionally. The divine mercy must be our measuring stick for our own actions. "Forgive and you will be forgiven."
Prayer: Lord, give me a non-judgmental heart. Help me to love each person I encounter with a holy love and acceptance. Give me the true love and friendship of others so that I may trust and enjoy the love You wish me to have. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen
Lenten Act: Pray today for those who have authority, especially over you in some way, in the business world, in family life, in the Church. May God grant them patience with others, correct judgment, and especially patience with themselves. "Love your neighbor and forgive them,” for you also have received love and forgiveness. (Lk6:38)