Reflections
Psalm 71: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15-17 (Read)
the hand of the wicked.”
This Psalm is known as a
prayer in the evening of life.
The psalmist looks back,
recalls how he has tried
to remain faithful to God,
his life’s companion.
“You are my hope, Lord;
my trust, O God, from my youth.
On you I depend since birth;
from my mother’s womb
you are my strength.”
In the difficult moments of
old age, the psalmist begs God
to come to his aid, and resolves
to praise God with all his might.
“My mouth shall proclaim your
just deeds, day after day your acts
of deliverance.”
The Psalm recalls for us the words
of the prophet Jeremiah, who says,
“Before I formed you in the womb
I dedicated you, a prophet
I appointed you.” Jeremiah draws
strength from the Lord; God makes him
a “fortified city, a pillar of iron.”
(Jeremiah 1:5, 18)
And in the Psalm the writer pleads
with God, “Be my rock and refuge;
my stronghold to give me safety;
for you are my rock and fortress.”
In Jeremiah’s struggle against kings
and priests, he obtains assurances that
the Lord is with him to deliver him.
The Psalmist seeks the same guarantee
from God – “In your justice rescue and
deliver me.”
In today's Gospel, our Lord Jesus
was able to pass through the midst of
the angry crowd that threatened him
that day in Nazareth. (Luke 4:30)
Our psalmist too is threatened
by an adversary and petitions God,
“My God, rescue me from the power
of the wicked, from the clutches of the
evil and violent.”
And for us too, the source of our
ability to weather those spiritual trials
that we face in our own lives comes
from God our Father. His works are mighty,
and His justice is available for the asking,
“I will speak of the mighty works of the Lord;
O God, I will tell of your singular justice.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist says that from his mother's womb God was his strength.
Describe how you as a child of God derive strength and hope from the Lord.
2. The psalmist cries out to God to rescue him 'from the hand of the wicked,
from the clutches of the evil and violent.' Speak of how you have been
delivered by the Lord from the clutches of the evil one.
He is my daddy. I saw a video of my one year old great grandson walking around a little tiny toy chair trying to figure it out. He walked around it several times and finally stopped and sat down on it only to go boom on his bottom, I laughed so hard. The Lord laughs at me trying to figure so many things in my life out only to sit down on my bottom and He is just laughing at me tenderly and lovingly as I did with my great grandson. His love gives me the strength for life's challenges.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I recognize His presence in me I am reassured I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. I am a temple of His Holy Spirit and He never leaves me. His love conquers fear of the evil one, for I belong to God and I have conquered the evil one because God in me has conquered Satan and all the demons roaming around this world we live in.
"Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man..." (Psalm 71:4). My deliverance from the clutches of the evil one is an ongoing process. Some days I am strong and resilient against temptations and fears. Other days, I am easy prey, falling instantly into insecurity and even despair, at the first accusation. He is the master of lies and knows how to use falsehoods to stir up angst in my soul.
ReplyDeleteAt one of these low moments, just a few days ago, the Lord sent me a weapon with which I could fight back. It was a prayer written by Sister Faustina Maria Pia, SV of the Sisters of Life. I encountered it while using the Hallow Catholic Meditation app. The prayer puts the focus on TRUSTING God, especially when we don't understand the point of the trials we encounter.
In one of her dark times, the Lord helped this young, American nun write a Litany of Trust. It was so powerful for me that I had to write it down and share with as many people as I can.
Paraphrased, the prayer is as follows:
Response: Deliver me, Jesus
From the belief that I have to earn your love
From the fear that I am unlovable
From the false security that I have what it takes
From the fear that trusting you will leave me more destitute
From all suspicion of your words and promises
Front the rebellion against childlike dependency on you
From refusals and reluctances in accepting your will
From anxiety about the future
From resentment or excessive preoccupation with the past
From restless self-seeking in the present moment
From disbelief in your love and presence
Front the fear of being asked to give more than I have
Front the belief that my life has no meaning or worth
From the fear of what love demands
From discouragement
Response: Jesus I trust in you
That you are continually holding me, sustaining me, loving me
That your love goes deeper than my sins and failings and transforms me
That not knowing what tomorrow brings, is an invitation to lean on you
That you are with me in my suffering
That my suffering, united to your own, will bear fruit in this life and the next
That you will not leave me orphaned, that you are present in your church
That your plan is better than anything else
That you always hear me, and in your goodness, always respond to me
That you give me the grace to accept forgiveness and to forgive others
That you give me all the strength I need for what is asked
That my life is a gift
That you will teach me to trust you
That you are my Lord and my God
That I am your beloved one
Amen.
The way I encountered this prayer is proof that the Lord always provides a way to thrive amidst the storm.
As the old grey sunset of my life is approaching I become more anxious about everything as if somebody is chasing me from behind. I have been fearful and I was weak and negative and vulnerable due to my handicaps. I was not happy to deal with my physical limitation which limited me to be involved in our community. I was ready to compromise with the world.
ReplyDeleteI liked to do things such as excessive shopping, and watching tv shows late until 2 am. Even if my upside down life caused me to be deathly tired, I found some comfort in it. I kept trying to justify my wrongdoing which caused some damage to my health.
To some extent I became lazier and lost interest in volunteering to help those in need.
I neglected to read the Word and pray the Rosary. I found many excuses for not doing my regular chores faithfully.
Therefore the word of God was not in me. Therefore there was no life in me.
The Lord seemed to be far away. I felt I was deserted, forgotten.
I felt as if I fell into the deep pit.
Finally I realized I was being attacked by the evil one. He is clever in subtle ways. He creeped in and built a stronghold in my thoughts and mind.
At that point I cried out to God and I called for the Holy Spirit to help me and show which areas of my life where the door had been opened to satan. I needed God's power more than ever.
He broke through the devil’s stronghold on me. He set me free. I was delivered from the clutches of the devil’s hand. How thankful I am! I am delivered by God’s power. I am a new creation now.
By his grace and mercy I am saved.
I also wrote in my journal on Matthew 4: 1-11, and I wanted to share how Jesus resisted the evil one, how our Lord won the victory.
He left an example for us to follow Him.
"As I stand in the midst of this wilderness with Jesus when he was famished with hunger, weak after fasting for 40 days, I was hungry having only a desire for food. The devil's whisperings were agreeable. It seemed no harm to us.
I have heard what Jesus said clearly.
'It is written, one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.' And when the devil tempted Jesus the second time, our Lord resisted, 'Again it is written, do not put the Lord your God to the test.' And the third time Jesus, 'Away with you, satan, for it is written, Worship the Lord, your God, and serve only him.' I saw the devil leaving Jesus. That’s how he won the battle of temptation against the evil one. The way to win over temptation is the word of God. I witnessed how amazing it is.
Through this scripture I have learned once again how Jesus resisted all the devil’s temptations
because Our Lord knew the scriptures, the word of God, and at the same time he also obeyed God’s word. And I have realized that knowing and obeying the word and worshipping, praising God, would be our armor of God for us to resist the devil’s attacks. In doing so Jesus set the example to follow when we are tempted.
And also He showed us that He was really the Son of God through this wilderness of testing and how He was able to overcome temptation.
We also can overcome temptation from the devil by using Jesus’ words and prayers.
Jesus knew that evil is real because the evil ones are the fallen angels fighting against God, trying to destroy innocent human's souls to drag them down to Hell. God on the other hand gives us eternal life. We humans must be on guard at all times against the evil one’s subtle attacks.
I have been there. There were times I was victimized by the devil's sweet talk. But God has given me the strength and courage to resist whenever the devil creeps into my mind and thoughts.
I will not be fooled by him. I know my weapon is the word of God.
Thank you Jesus for showing us how to defend ourselves against the devil's lies.
But never forget that we need to be constantly on guard against the devil’s ongoing attacks. Evil is real, existing among us."