Loving God and your neighbour is not just what we believe — it is what we are asked to live. Salvation is not a gift offered to those who think all the right things, but to people whose lives reflect the truth God reveals. It isn’t enough that you know what the right thing is if you don’t actually do it. So, in the middle of this summer’s “Ordinary Time”, go and love God. Make space to pray from …the beach or the boat or in your own backyard. Pray for people He has asked you to carry. Connect with neighbours, stop for someone in need, give some of your time or money to someone who needs it more than you. Salvation isn’t just something we get, but something that gives our lives away at the same time. It’s a beautiful life, now and into eternity….

For the desire to participate in God saving us and the whole world, we pray to the Lord.

Text: CCCB #CatholicYYC

Too often, our ideas of abundance are informed by worldly understandings of wealth. The instructions Jesus gives to His disciples stand in contrast to any hope or expectation we have that following God means a guarantee of material excess. Jesus sends the disciples out two by two, and asks them to rely on the provision of those who receive them, offering care and healing in exchange for room and b…oard. If people reject them, Jesus tells them to shake the dust off their feet as they leave town and move on to the next community. We aren’t supposed to find our security in the size of our savings accounts, but in the promise of God’s call and provision. What can we do this week to lessen our trust in our own wealth or capacity, and to increase our trust in God? How can our increased dependence on God be a gift for others as well as for ourselves?

For trust in God’s provision, and generosity with what has been given to us, we pray to the Lord. #catholicyyc #sundaymass

God created us with desires and longs to see us satisfied. Because of sin and brokenness, we often learn to satiate desires with things that don’t ultimately satisfy. Built over time into habits, we can spend long seasons of our lives settling for things that leave us wanting. This is the heart of addiction, and we are all addicted to something: food or TV, control or self-righteousness, drugs or alcohol. On this feast of the Body and Blood of Jesus, we read about the miracle… of feeding the five thousand. While the disciples would send the people away to find food, Jesus insists on giving the people what they need. When the leftovers are gathered, the Gospel says: “They all ate and were satisfied.” Think of one area in your life where you are constantly eating or seeking but are never satisfied. Ask God to help you identify the heart of that desire, and seek out the supports you need to feed the desire in a way that truly satisfies you and Him.

In the first reading, the mystery of the Trinity is explained with a beautiful and simple image: while God was creating the world, Wisdom (a frequent name for the Holy Spirit) was “His delight day by day, playing before Him all the while, playing on the surface of the earth; and I found delight in the human race.” Read that again and let it sink in. The persons of the Trinity played through creation, found delight in one another and in what and who they created. What if our w…itness to the world was that we played well together, and delighted in our families and in all of God’s people? What if Christians had a reputation for play and delight? May it be so, because we walk out of here and live it with God’s blessing and grace to help us.