Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
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August 5, 2022August 7, 2022
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Wis 18:6-9
Heb 11:1-2, 8-19 or
Heb 11:1-2, 8-12
Lk 12:32-48 or
Lk 12:35-40
GROW AS A DISCIPLE | PRAY, STUDY, ENGAGE, SERVE
GROW: I remember the first time I moved: A suitcase or two fit in the back of my dad’s lime-green Delta 88 as my parents dropped me off at college. Four years later, it took that plus a large black chest. The next move required a U-Haul; then came marriage, a family, and a moving van. I may not store my treasure in barns like the man in last week’s readings, but at times it feels that way. It’s natural to accumulate more “stuff” as we grow older. But in today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us that we won’t take any of it with us when we make the move to our final destination. Rather than focus on our possessions, he encourages us to be vigilant, remain faithful, and live in service to others. In doing so, we will store up “an inexhaustible treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”
GO EVANGELIZE | PRAYER, INVITATION, WITNESS, ACCOMPANIMENT
GO: Few things throw me into a panic like unexpected company. I have taken to at least cleaning the kitchen counter and bathrooms before going on a trip so the house will look presentable should something befall me and others have to come in with food or aid! We truly do not know the day or the hour, and the Gospel today encourages us to apply a little of that spring cleaning to our souls. Each day presents a new opportunity to prepare for the day we meet Jesus. If we’ve been out of touch, we can get reacquainted through prayer. If we feel weighed down by things we’ve done or said, we can bring them to the Lord through the sacrament of reconciliation. We can witness to our belief in God’s promise of eternal life by putting people above possessions and supporting one another as we seek to live as Jesus taught us.
ACTION: Today’s psalm response is: “Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.” Count your blessings and write a few of them down, giving thanks to God for each of them.
