Reflections
Psalm 95: 1-2, 6-7, 8-9 (Read)
“We are the people God shepherds, the flock
He guides.”
The Psalm is a call to praise the Lord
and to obey Him. We are cautioned not
to “harden our hearts” as the Israelites
did at Meribah. We are not to test the Lord
as our spiritual ancestors tested the Lord
“as in the day of Massah in the desert.”
After all, we are “God’s well tended flock.”
Our Lord is a good shepherd, and we are His
sheep. As St Paul tells us in today's 2nd reading,
the love of God is “poured out into our hearts
through the holy Spirit.” For that we should
“bow down in worship, kneel before the Lord
who made us.” And when we humble ourselves
and open our hearts to the Lord, we are set free.
We are no longer constrained by the things of
this world, and we can be open to His love and
His teachings.
Today's Gospel affirms that Our Lord Jesus
is our Savior, and just as the life of the Samaritan
woman at the well was transformed by the voice
of Jesus, we too can be transformed, if we truly
listen to the Lord. Not only will He tell us
“everything we ever did,” but He will give us
that living water which quenches our spiritual
thirst.
At that point our hearts will no longer be hardened.
We will 'bow down in worship,' and as our psalmist
says, we will greet our Lord with a song of praise.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist encourages us not to harden our hearts if we
hear God's voice. Do you find it difficult sometimes to carry
out
God's will in your life even if you believe He is speaking
to you?
Give an example.
2. The psalm reminds us that we are like sheep and the Lord is
our
shepherd. Are you willing to be just an ordinary sheep among His
flock? If so, what does it mean to you to be
shepherded by the Lord?
Reflections
Psalm 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22 (Read)
"The eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear Him,
to deliver them from death."
The Psalm is praise for God’s providence,
the blessings He gives us. “The Lord fills
the earth with goodness. His works are
trustworthy.”
We may not have the faith of Abraham
(Sunday's 1st reading), but we can be sure
the Lord’s eyes are upon us – “The Lord’s
eyes are upon those who hope for His
gracious help.” As the psalmist says,
“O Lord, we have put our hope in you.”
In Sunday's 2nd reading St Paul says that
God has saved us and called us to a holy life.
The Psalmist confirms this – “We are
delivered from death, kept alive in times
of famine.” We may not be starving for
physical food, but we could face spiritual
death from sin if we were not saved by our
Lord Jesus.
“The eyes of the Lord are upon those who
fear Him, to deliver them from death.”
Remember, the wages of sin is death, and
we are all afflicted. Fortunately for us,
Christ destroyed death and brought life,
as St Paul says, so it is natural that we openly
ask for His help and His protection. He is
our shield in the spiritual battle that we
all have to fight. “Our soul waits for the
Lord, who is our help and our shield.”
If we trust in the Lord, His eyes will be upon us
so long as we count ourselves among those who
fear Him, and we can expect to receive His grace.
Through His goodness we can expect a
transfiguration of our own, and that same light
which shone from Jesus' face that day on the
high mountain can be a source of light for us
and those around us. “We have put our hope
in you, O Lord.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. As our psalmist says, the Lord's eyes are upon us, and that
is a good thing because of His saving grace. Speak of how you
depend on God's providence to preserve you as you go about
your daily life amidst the world's attractions.
2. The Psalm assures us that God's love and mercy will be
granted to us, as we place our trust in Him. Give an example of
how you have trusted in the Lord and how you have benefited
from His kindness.
Reflections 
Psalm 51: 3-4, 5-6, 13-14, 17 (Read)
“A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me”
We are all born of a sinful nature.
Just as Adam and Eve fell to temptation
in the Garden of Eden (this Sunday’s first
reading from Genesis), so too has God's
chosen one, King David, our psalmist.
David is sincerely sorry for committing
adultery and murder, two gravely sinful acts
which separate him from our loving Father.
But God in his compassion and goodness can
blot out David’s offense, no matter how grave.
David’s sins, like our own, are offensive to God
first and foremost – “Against you alone have
I sinned.”
David cries out to be rescued from his fate,
to be saved from death, which is a consequence
of his sins. David’s verses are a prayer of
repentance and recall for us the power of the
Sacrament of Confession. “A clean heart create
for me, O God; and a steadfast spirit renew
within me. Give me back the joy of your salvation.”
His words are prophetic and speak of God’s grace
that becomes available through Christ’s gift of
justification (see also Romans, Sunday's 2nd reading).
Our psalmist pleads with the Lord, "Have mercy on me,
O God, in your goodness; in your abundant compassion
blot out my offense." We are reminded here that no
sin is too big for God to forgive. And when we do fall
into deep patterns of sin, we must realize that our
wrongdoing isn't only against other people, but ultimately,
it's rebellion against the Lord himself. "Against you alone
have I sinned," is how David acknowledges this fact.
God wants to have a close relationship with us, but
unconfessed sin will always get in the way. We must
not only confess our sins openly and sincerely, but
we must work at "restoring the joy of salvation” in
our hearts.
Once we have rebuilt a solid foundation with God the Father,
no strong assault from Satan will penetrate. We can have
that very same "steadfastness of spirit" that David asks
for in the Psalm and that Jesus displays in the Gospel.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist calls upon the Lord to renew within him a 'steadfast spirit.'
Give an example of how our God has done a work in you so that you can
carry your cross with endurance, trusting in God's strength.
2. The Psalm's verses speak of how we offend God by our sins and separate
ourselves from His loving presence. Tell of how, with the help of God's grace,
you are able to obtain a right relationship with the Lord, and regain the
'joy of your salvation.'
Reflections
Psalm 62: 2-3, 6-7, 8-9 (Read)
“Only in God is my soul at rest;
I shall not be disturbed.”
The Psalm contrasts the appeal of
worldly pursuits against the tranquility
that is found in God alone.
“Only in God is my soul at rest.”
We are to open our hearts totally to
our Lord. We need not be 'disturbed'
at all by the vanity of riches or by seeking
success in wickedness and violence.
These attractions are fleeting; they
do not last; they are weightless in
their nothingness.
The one solid rock in our lives is God.
He alone is our stronghold, our salvation,
as our psalmist says. Even if a mother
should forget the child of her womb,
the Lord will never forsake us, as the
prophet Isaiah tells us in this Sunday's
1st reading.
We are all looking for inner peace, but the
world does not show us how to obtain it.
“Only in God be at rest, my soul.”
We do not put our faith in humans; worldly
success cannot last. Only in God do we put
our trust at all times, for our Lord will care
for us, clothe us, feed us, and give us spiritual
tranquility.
In the words of our Savior (this Sunday's Gospel),
“Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these
things will be given you besides.” Having put
our trust in the Lord, we pour out our hearts
before Him. “Rest in God alone my soul!”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. The Psalm reminds us not to be 'disturbed'
by worldly issues or things that are vain.
Speak about how you are doing along your faith
journey so that you put God first in your life.
2. Our psalmist sings about how we may obtain
true inner peace, "Only in God be at rest, my soul."
Explain how you are able to obtain inner peace and
healing by trusting only in God.
Reflections
Psalm 103: 1-2, 3-4, 8, 10, 12-13 (Read)
“The Lord redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.”
Our psalmist sings the praises of a divine
and loving God, who surrounds us with
compassion, pardons our sins, heals our ills.
He nurses no lasting anger; He has not dealt
with us as our sins deserve. Our duty is
to remain faithful to the Lord, and to treat
His anointed ones with love and compassion,
as He would do.
This Sunday's Gospel teaches a powerful and
difficult lesson – We are to be merciful to our
enemies by imitating the Father. The Psalm
tells us how, by being “Merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.”
Who can love their enemies, and do good to them?
It will be difficult if we allow our earthly nature
to rule us. Just as “God has not dealt with us
as our sins merit,” so must we imitate God and
have compassion on those we would typically
want to condemn.
We cannot imitate God without a share in Christ’s
divinity, and in turn being empowered by the holy
Spirit within us. Only then will we have the kind
of compassion the psalmist speaks about, “As a
father has compassion on his children, so the Lord
has compassion on the faithful.”
If we love the Lord, it will show in our hearts, and
the old things will then pass away. The Psalm says
it well: “As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He put our transgressions behind us.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our Psalm speaks of a loving and compassionate God,
who does not deal with us according to our sins. Are you able
to treat those who have harmed you in the same way? Explain.
2. The verses of the Psalm remind us of the power of the
Sacrament of Reconciliation, "As far as the east is from the
west,
so far has He put our transgressions behind us." Relate how the
Sacrament works for you to put your sins behind you.
Reflections
Psalm 119: 1-2, 4-5, 17-18, 33-34 (Read)
“Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord.”
Our psalmist is in prayer asking for many things.
He asks, "Open my eyes, that I may consider the
wonders of your law." We may not think of the
law as wonderful, but rather may consider it restrictive
and harsh, but if we learn to do His will, we find that
we are liberated, set free from the sin that drags us
down. We choose life instead of death.
The Lord reveals to us very clearly how to live a life
that is "happy" and full of peace. "Happy are those
who observe God's decrees, who seek the Lord with
all their heart."
Our psalmist petitions, "Instruct me, O Lord, in the
way of your statutes that I may exactly observe them."
We cannot do this by ourselves, without God's help.
And so our psalmist asks, "Give me discernment that
I may keep [your law] with all my heart."
Doing God's will (keeping His commandments) isn't
easy, but having received His grace, and having been
granted discernment to know right from wrong,
good from evil, we can follow Him with conviction.
Our 'yes' will mean 'yes' to the Lord, and our 'no' will
mean 'no' to the devil and his minions. And just like
our psalmist we also pray "May my ways be firm in
the observance of your laws!"
Having decided to do His will, we take delight in
keeping His statutes; they are like honey to us.
And the blessings we receive are part of what
God has prepared for those who love Him.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist affirms that those who walk in the law of the Lord,
those who observe His decrees, will be happy and blessed. Based
on your own experience, how do you seek the Lord by keeping His
commandments.
2. The Psalm's verses petition the Lord to instruct us in the way of His
statutes. Tell of how you receive guidance and discernment from the Lord
that will help you observe His law and keep it with all your heart.
Reflections
Psalm 112: 4-5, 6-7, 8-9 (Read)
“Light shines through the darkness
to the upright.”
The Psalm inspires us to have a right
relationship with the Lord
(becoming 'upright.') Having done so,
having delighted in God's commands,
we begin to imitate Him and treat our
brothers and sisters as He would do.
“Light shines through the darkness to
the upright; he is gracious and merciful
and just.” These are heavenly qualities
(being gracious, and merciful and just),
and having God's light in our hearts
inspires us to do good works,
to “conduct our affairs with justice,”
“give to the poor lavishly.”
And as we measure out a good and
generous measure, our measure is returned
to us many times over. As the Psalm says,
we will be lifted up from within; our "horn
shall be exalted in glory."
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. The Psalm's verses are in keeping with this Sunday's Gospel
and the reading from Isaiah. All three affirm that we people of
faith are the 'light of the world' and are motivated to do good
deeds.
Give an example of how your light shines through in the darkness.
2. Our psalmist speaks of a man whose 'heart is firm, trusting
in
the Lord,' whose 'heart is steadfast.' In our world today, what
makes
you firm of heart and trusting in the Lord?
