St. John Bosco, priest
H. Francisco J. Posada, L.C.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our King, Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Lord, may I believe in You more and more each day so that I may commit myself to love You with all my heart and show You my love in the small details of my daily life.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to Mark 4:26-34
At that time, Jesus said to the crowd: “The Kingdom of God is like what happens when a man sows seed in the ground: the nights and days go by, and without his knowing how, the seed germinates and grows; and the earth, by itself, produces the fruit: first the stalks, then the ears, and then the grains in the ears. And when the grains are ripe, the man takes up the sickle, for the time of harvest has come”.
And he said to them, “To what shall we liken the kingdom of God, and by what parable shall we speak of it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when it is sown, is the smallest of seeds; but when it is sown, it grows into the largest of shrubs and puts forth branches so large that birds can nest in its shade.”.
And with many other such parables he was expounding his message to them, according to what they could understand. And he spoke to them only in parables; but to his disciples he explained everything privately.
Word of the Lord.
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
Every great work begins with small details because if we do them well, later it will be easier for everything to go well. So it is with the grain of wheat that was planted well; this first act helped the earth to make it grow.
This planting of the grain of wheat is similar to our faith because it is something that is at the base of our spiritual life since, if we did not believe, nothing else would make sense. The growth of our faith takes place little by little as God takes care of it until it is ready for harvest.
The other part of the Gospel shows how small gestures in the beginning become great works later on. An example of this is Don Bosco and his Salesian congregation. It all began with his life as a poor child in a humble family and a priest who taught him some basic things; then his entry into the seminary and his dreams, something normal and everyday; later the first moments of his congregation when he was already a priest and was accompanied by a small group of young people, until today when St. John Bosco is one of the best known saints in the world and the Salesians are a very large congregation that includes the Sisters of Mary Help of Christians and does so much good. This is how the seed grows, without anything spectacular, until it becomes a big bush.
«The seed is neither yours, nor yours, nor mine. The seed is sown by God and it is God who gives the growth. I am the sprout, each one of us can say. Yes, but not by your merit, but by the seed that makes you grow. And what do I have to do? Water it. Water it. So that it grows and reaches that fullness of spirit. This is what you have to give as a testimony. How can this seed be watered? Taking care of it, taking care of the seed and taking care of the sprout that begins to grow! Taking care of the vocation we have received. As one cares for a child, as one cares for a sick person, as one cares for an elderly person. Vocation is cared for with human tenderness. If in our communities, if in our presbyteries this dimension of human tenderness is missing, the sprout remains small, does not grow, and perhaps withers. Care with tenderness.»
(Address of H.H. Francis, December 2, 2017).
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
Ask God, before going to sleep, to increase my faith for the next day.
Farewell
We thank You, Lord, for all Your benefits, You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
