Balam Loza, LC
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)
What do you want from me, Jesus? I come to listen to your words and ask you to show me the path I must follow. I do not want to do my own will but Yours because in the end You are the one who shows me the way to happiness and I want to be happy. No doubt it was not easy for Peter and he failed you many times, but like Peter, I want to put myself in your hands and listen to your voice that calls me and sends me to fulfill a mission. «Speak, Lord, your servant is listening».
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew 16:13-19
At that time, when Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he put this question to his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of man is?” They answered him, “Some say that you are John the Baptist; others, Elijah; others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Then he asked them, “And who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter spoke up and said to him, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Then Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon, son of John, for this has not been revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven! And I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church. The powers of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”.
Word of God
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
«Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah!» Vocation is a gift from God, rather than a burden or a burden, it is a cause of the greatest joy for the person who hears its name and responds to God with all the strength of his heart. But what is vocation? Vocation is the call that Jesus makes to each person, it is the mission in life that God assigns to each person. And the most important thing is not to discover which is the best or the most complicated, but the one to which I am called.
It's a bit like sports. The important thing is not which sport is the most or least extreme, which is the most expensive or the most intense, but the most important question is, which one is for me? And it may be the rarest sport, but if that sport is the one in which I can fully realize myself, it is the best sport for me. Now, whatever sport it is, there will always be a challenge, difficulties to overcome, victories and also defeats to get up from. But the important thing is not how many times you fall or you make mistakes, the important thing is to reach the goal, to overcome the challenge.
Thus St. Peter discovered and heard what his sport, his vocation, was. He saw the challenge and set out to conquer it. Undoubtedly he did not know everything and throughout the Gospel we can see how many times he made mistakes, how many times he failed his master. But all that does not matter because he was a man who knew how to learn from his mistakes, who knew how to listen, who knew how to trust in Jesus, who knew, in short, how to always look to his ideal and not grow weary. Although at times it may seem that we cannot be authentic Christians in today's world, we should not be discouraged because if Jesus signed us up for his team it is because he knows that we can. All we have to do is always look to the ideal and keep running.
«he Gospel account of his profession of faith and the subsequent mission entrusted to him by Jesus shows us that the life of Simon, the fisherman of Galilee - like the life of each one of us - opens up and blossoms to the full when he receives from God the grace of faith. Then, Simon sets out on the road - a long and hard road - that will lead him out of himself, out of his human securities, above all out of his pride mixed with courage and generous altruism. In this journey of liberation, the prayer of Jesus is decisive: “I have prayed for you (Simon), so that your faith may not be extinguished”.
(Homily of H.H. Francis, June 29, 2016).
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.
Today I will take a moment to be in front of the Tabernacle and listen to what Jesus may be asking of me.
Farewell
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.
