Lord, Hear Our Prayer
/“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.
They also asked, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?”
He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb,
‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say,
‘Do here in your native place
the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’”
And he said, “Amen, I say to you,
no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you,
there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built,
to hurl him down headlong.
But Jesus passed through the midst of them and went away.
A smile is one of nature's best means of making people happy. One of the most delightful factors in a personality is a real heartwarming smile that comes from within. Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, "I like you. You make me happy. I am glad to see you." If you do not feel like smiling, smile anyway; make yourself smile. Fr. Lovasik
Pray:
Blessed Mother, you have been called "Our Lady of the Smile." I want that title, too! Please ask the Holy Spirit on my behalf to remind me to smile as sweetly and kindly as you would.
Act:
In May of 1883, St. Therese of the Child Jesus was a bedridden child who was very ill. She faced a statue of the Blessed Mother that was near her bed and prayed for cure. "Suddenly," Therese writes, "Mary's face radiated kindness and love." Therese was healed and the statue has since been called Our Lady of the Smile. On Mary's face that day was an expression of beauty, bounty, tenderness, and, above all, "a charming and enchanting smile." That smile has become a simple summary of St. Therese's Marian devotion. We are all wounded, all in need of healing. A smile has such a therapeutic effect, both on the person smiling and the person receiving the smile. Challenge yourself to genuinely and tenderly smile early and often every day this week.
The internet is a formidable force for bringing the comfort and consolation and hope of the Lord to all of us. It can be an incredibily powerful medium for community. There is an unfathomable resource for prayer here. We have on the 'net the privilege of praying for people and of being witness to the miracles brought forth when fervent, faith-filled people pray for one another.
Let's be that community of hope and faith for one another.
How about this idea? What if I pop in here every weekend, share Sunday's gospel and talk a wee bit about how we can live it and pray it in our homes? And then you tell me how we can pray for you that week? Deal?
{And please, do return and let us know how prayer is bearing fruit.}
