Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year C
August 7, 2016
Gospel: Lk 12:35-40
Jesus said to his disciples: “Gird your loins (*) and light your
lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready
to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom
the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird
himself, have the servants recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. And
should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way,
blessed are those servants. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had
known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be
broken into. You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the
Son of Man will come.”
(http://www.usccb.org)
The difficult words
(*)To gird your loins means to get dressed and be
ready.
This week’s spotlight
The psalms
We find the psalms in the Bible, in the Old Testament.
They are the prayers that the Jewish people would sing to praise God, to thank
him, to ask him for forgiveness, or to beg him for help. Jesus and Mary prayed
the psalms faithfully. We should pray them, too. During the Mass, the
Responsorial Psalm is the congregation's reply to the First Reading. We sing
the refrain together.
"Thy kingdom come"
"Thy kingdom come” is one of the things we ask
for in the Our Father, the great prayer of Christians. What is God’s kingdom?
It is a world where everyone obeys God’s will, where people are happy, and where
there is no suffering and death. It is the world as God wants it to be. One
day, Jesus will return and the kingdom will come in its fullness. In the
meantime, we can start building the kingdom now through our good works and our
love for others.
Reflection
Waiting for God in joy!
When we want something, we don’t like to wait for it.
We hate traffic jams, long lines, slow connections, and meals that take a long
time to prepare. Still, we often have no choice but to wait - and waiting can
be very good for us! It can teach us to be patient and help us to prepare our
hearts for what we most desire. Our joy in receiving grows greater when we have
to wait. This is especially true when we are waiting for the arrival of someone
we love. When a guest is coming to your house, you begin to feel joy and
excitement even as you help to prepare for the visit. This is the kind of joy
we should feel as we get ready for the coming of Jesus. Jesus asks us to
prepare for the joy of eternal life by having a hopeful heart and by watching
for signs of his presence in our daily lives. What are the deepest hopes of
your heart? Are you living for the joyful love that will last for ever?
Discussion questions
1.What does Jesus tell his followers about God?
2.What does God promise?
3.Why does Jesus tell his followers to be ready?
After
receiving Holy Communion,
you can say this prayer silently to yourself. If you
have not yet
received your First Communion, you can still say this prayer because of your desire to
receive Jesus.
Father, through Jesus, in
communion with the whole Church, I thank you for coming into my heart. May this
communion in the body and blood of your Son deepen my desire for the joy that
will never end. I am waiting in hope for the coming of your kingdom!
This week…
Tell God what you desire
This week, take a moment during
your morning prayers to tell God about the desires of your heart, your hopes,
your dreams, your requests...
Welcoming God today
Maybe you will have the
opportunity this week to welcome a friend or a relative into your home. Take
time to really prepare for his or her visit. You can clean up your room,
prepare a welcome sign, or make a little gift .
Crossword Puzzle
Source: usccb.org
- Magnifikid - sermons4kids.com – rclblectionary.com
–usccb.org/bible/readings-audio.cfm