DAILY- HOMILY

July 17, 2014
Thursday 15th Week in Ordinary Time

Is 26: 7-9, 11, 16-19 / Ps 102: 13-14ab and 15, 16-18, 19-21 / Mt 11: 28-30

Reading: Is 26: 7-9, 11, 16-19
Let the righteous walk in righteousness. You make smooth the path of the just, and we only seek the way of your laws, O Yahweh. Your name and your memory are the desire of our hearts. My soul yearns for you in the night; for you my spirit keeps vigil. When your judgments come to earth, the world's inhabitants learn to be upright. Yahweh, your hand is lifted up, but they fail to see that. Let them see your zeal for your people, that they may be put to shame. Let your enemies be burned in the fire of your anger. For they sought you in distress, they cried out to you in the time of their punishment. As a woman in travail moans and writhes in pain, so are we now in your presence. We conceived, we had labor pains, but we gave birth to the wind. We have not brought salvation to the land; the inhabitants of a new world have not been born. Your dead will live! Their corpses will rise! Awake and sing, you who lie in the dust! Let your dew fall, O Lord, like a dew of light, and the earth will throw out her dead.

Gospel: Matthew 11: 28-30
[Jesus said to the crowds,] "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

Reflection:
Coffee break with Jesus: I am very fond of the title for this passage from Matthew, "The Gentle Mastery of Christ." It captures the very essence of how I regard my Lord for he knows you and me. He takes the initiative to seek us and reveal himself to us. He waits for us. He understands us. He always invites you and me to have coffee breaks with him. This is the message that enfolds in the Gospel today - "Come, my dear friend, let's have coffee." Although coffee is just the excuse for the break, it is the break that allows us to pause from our being overwhelmed by the pressures of work and the problems of daily living. What makes me love coffee breaks is the notion that I am in the company of a loved one or a friend as I choose to step out from my frenzy and hectic routine or worse from an experience of hurt and burden. Prayer time can be our YES to Jesus' invitation to have a break. We know that we cope better with all the worries and problems of life whenever we choose to spend time with him. Over "cups of coffee", we talk about solutions and strategies. But more than these, the mere presence of our dear Friend journeying with us and telling us that, "My yoke is easy and my burden light," comforts and consoles and brings peace and yes, salvation. Let us enjoy and look forward to our "coffee breaks" with our Lord because he always treats us to "unlimited coffee" - "the coffee" of hope, peace and love.

Prayer Requests:
We pray ...
... for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn
... for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary
... for families who are in need of healing
... for world peace and reconciliation
... for birthday intentions - OP Reyes

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

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