Monday, January 9, 2023

Psalm for Sunday, January 15, 2023


Reflections 


Psalm 40:  2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10   (Read)

“He put a new song into my mouth.”

Our psalmist David waits for the Lord,
to reach out to Him, to make God hear 

his cry.  We are like that.  We are weak 
on our own; we need the Lord’s strength 
to be delivered from our sinful ways.

As the prophet Isaiah says, God is our
strength 
(Isaiah 49:5).  We put our trust
in Him.  Our God is an awesome God.
“Many shall look on [our God] in awe
and trust in the Lord.”  We are called to be
God's holy people, as St Paul tells us 

(1 Corinthians 1:2).

Our psalmist says, “He put a new song into
my mouth.” In response we sing a new song
unto the Lord.  For us, having waited for
the Lord, it is no longer the same old tune
or the same old us.   We are in fact a new
creation, singing out the good news.
Where does our joyful spirit come from?
It comes from the Lord, and we are called
to share what He has given us and to do
His will.

We are called to follow Christ.
Obedience isn’t an unpleasant chore for us;
instead, as the Psalm tells us,
“To do your will is my delight.”

Amen


 

Discussion Questions for Reflection

1.  The Psalm Response this Sunday is, "Here am I, Lord;
I come to do your will."  Speak of how you discern God's will
in your life, and tell how you are carrying out what God wants 

you to do.

2.  Our psalmist David says, "God put a new song into my mouth."  

Have you too had a conversion in your walk with the Lord?  Tell of 
your own experience.


1 comment:

  1. J Kim5:48 PM

    Prayer to the Blessed Mother TO INTERCEDE for us is powerful. Within the various forms of Marian devotions and novenas, is what's called The Miraculous 54-day Rosary Novena. This novena began after a young girl named Fortuna Agrelli was graced with an apparition of the Blessed Virgin and given this devotion to spread to others, as she was healed from illness. There are 27 days of rosaries said in petition, followed by 27 days in thanksgiving. Part of the prelude to this daily regimen, is invoking Mary as "Queen of the Most Holy Rosary" and the words, "... O Holy Queen, dispenser of God's graces, and Mother of all who invoke thee, thou canst not look upon my gift and fail to see its binding..."

    I find the words compelling. As I offer a spiritual bouquet to Mary, she cannot not do; in other words, her heart of mercy causes her to take my prayer to Jesus and to plead on my behalf. And if my wishes are not in line with God's will somehow, I believe the Holy Spirit nudges me to change for what I ask. Occasionally, this has happened as I petitioned for something for my children. I might have been praying for one success, but the request seemed to change in my mind to a different kind of success.

    Currently, I have felt called to say my very first 54-day novena; I am on day six. I look forward to the miracle answers that I know I will receive. Part of what I seek, is the answer to how to carry out God's will for me this season. What exactly to do? Where to begin? How to muster the strength? How to know when to speak and write, when not to?

    This week's Psalm response says, "Here am I, Lord. I come to do your will." In truly meaning those words, I feel it's important to follow Mary's example in submission to God. She is known for her famous "Fiat" in response to the angel Gabriel's announcement that she would become the Mother of God. She said "yes" to help carry out God's plan, even when she didn't fully understand what it would entail.

    I aspire to model that level of faith -- to be able to respond even as the Psalmist does, "I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart." (v.8/9 depending on translation)

    I am a work in progress...

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