“May the working of your mercy, O Lord, we pray, direct our hearts aright, for without your grace we cannot find favor in your sight.”

(Collect for Mass, Saturday March 16, 2024)

Discernment During Prayer; a side note

I am going to do something a little different in this post. My normal method of “bible study” is to take the readings from the daily (not Sunday) mass (all of them including the collect which calls us all together, and the gospel acclamation, which preps our hearts for the gospel reading) and write down what pops out to me from each part. Then I string them together to see what the Holy Spirit is trying to impress upon my heart. I will add it is important to invite the Holy Spirit along as I sometimes hurry and forget to do, but otherwise my human/emotional side can take over and attempt to justify myself in any struggles I may be having.

The voice of the Holy Spirit is gentle. It may convict us of a truth and we will not feel offended or shamed. Any offense or shame is not coming from God. It is important to note this and you can learn more about the hundreds of years of teachings on the discernment of spirits from many resources here.

Judgement and Emotions

How often I get pulled into the weeds of human emotions. Our emotions are important part of our humanness and serve a purpose, but how often we put them in the driver’s seat, when our human will should be directing the navigation of our person. Hopefully, that will is aligned to the truth, and not just “whatever serves me best right now”.

“Let us destroy the tree in its vigor; let us cut him off from the land of the living so that his name will be spoken no more”

(Jer 11:18-20)

What jumps out at me in these readings is that human beings are often put off by the truth and annoyed at others who seem to exemplify what gets in the way of what they want. Yesterday’s reading in Wisdom 2:12-22 gives us a in depth picture of the inside of the “wicked” mind and heart. Ugly stuff. Am I exempt?

“You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

from John 7:40-53 (today’s gospel)

I must remember that I look to God’s grace to overcome anything I am struggling with and to “set my heart aright.” This includes–and highlights–this gospel, where the Pharisees are so eager to get rid of Jesus (who Nicodemus points out they haven’t even heard him speak yet) that they throw Nicodemus under the bus because he is trying to reason with them saying “Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?” That didn’t go over well. They ask him (sarcastically I imagine) if he is from Galilee too, because nothing from Galilee is going to be appreciated or accepted. This reaction seems so ridiculous looking on, but it calls me to examine how often have I disregarded someone’s point of view because of where they are from, what political party they identify with, or because they are just different from me?

Jesus Sought To Heal Those Who Felt Inadequate

Right now our prayer group is studying Pope Francis’ Catechesis on hope. We randomly chose chapters that appealed to us. One of the two chapters I chose was about forgiveness. It begins with

Who is this who even forgives sins?

Lk 7:49

Jesus upsets the leaders of the church because when he heals the man lowered down through the roof, he begins with the place he needs healing the most, his spirit of inadequacy. Pope Francis reminds us that this kind of suffering is exactly where Jesus seeks to give liberation and healing. He reminds us that this is done only through the mercy of God (as our collect above reminds us.)

“Let the malice of the wicked come to an end, but sustain the just”

Psalm 7

As I go about my day today, Lord, help me to extend your mercy to anyone who seems to be needing liberated from the feelings of inadequacy, and reject any feelings of annoyance, remembering that it is only through your grace that I myself am loved and forgiven.

“Blessed are those who keep the word with a generous heart”

Luke 8:15