First reading Proverbs 21:1-6,10-13
On wickedness and virtue
Like flowing water is the heart of the king in the hand of the Lord,
who turns it where he pleases.
A man’s conduct may strike him as upright,
the Lord, however, weighs the heart.
To act virtuously and with justice
is more pleasing to the Lord than sacrifice.
Haughty eye, proud heart,
lamp of the wicked, nothing but sin.
The hardworking man is thoughtful, and all is gain;
too much haste, and all that comes of it is want.
To make a fortune with the help of a lying tongue,
such the idle fantasy of those who look for death.
The wicked man’s soul is intent on evil,
he looks on his neighbour with dislike.
When a mocker is punished, the ignorant man grows wiser,
when a wise man is instructed he acquires more knowledge.
The Just One watches the house of the wicked:
he hurls the wicked to destruction.
He who shuts his ear to the poor man’s cry
shall himself plead and not be heard.
Responsorial Psalm 118(119):1,27,30,34-35,44
Guide me, Lord, in the path of your commands.
They are happy whose life is blameless,
who follow God’s law!
Make me grasp the way of your precepts
and I will muse on your wonders.
I have chosen the way of truth
with your decrees before me.
Train me to observe your law,
to keep it with my heart.
Guide me in the path of your commands;
for there is my delight.
I shall always keep your law
for ever and ever.
Gospel Luke 8:19-21
‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God’
The mother and the brothers of Jesus came looking for him, but they could not get to him because of the crowd. He was told, ‘Your mother and brothers are standing outside and want to see you.’ But he said in answer, ‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and put it into practice.’
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Listen and do
“My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and put it into practice”. Jesus regards those who listen to the word of God and put it into practice as His family. Therefore, we should honestly ask ourselves if we “hear the word of God and put it into practice”?
To hear the word of God is not just to allow it to go in one ear and go out the other. We need to listen to God’s word in the Bible by prayerfully reading a passage and asking, “What is the message that God has for me? Is He trying to tell me something through this parable, this phrase?” It is not for us to skim the surface but to listen with our hearts because God speaks to us personally through His word. Let us also not be contentto merely listen but to put God’s word into practice and make it come alive in our lives. May we have the desire to hear His word and the will to put it into practice.
Reflective question:
Do I listen and put the word of God into practice?
Do I listen and put the word of God into practice?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
