Daily Reflection – 9/26/2023
Sacred Scripture
Then his mother and his brothers came to him but were unable to join him because of the crowd. He was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and they wish to see you.” He said to them in reply, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it.” (Luke 8:19-21)
Reflection
Are you feeling alone because you have no family? Don’t.
Are you searching for a better moral compass in a world that seems to have gone awry? There is one that outshines all others.
With the holidays just around the corner, do you wonder whether you will be invited? You will.
The only hitch is that there is a cost.
Today’s scripture does not illustrate a diminishment of the blood family of Jesus. Jesus is quite aware of the blessing of being His own kin, part of His own family. For that reason, He makes this statement as a way of inviting everyone present to see themselves as an intimate member of His family.
Jesus wants to invite all people to share His familial bond.
He tells us that the true definition of family has God as its Father and its children are those “who hear the word of God and act on it.” The family is not first and foremost determined by bonds of earthly kinship, but rather by the bonds of spiritual kinship formed by Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection for us and our salvation.
Understood in this light, this passage reveals a framework for an authentically human and relational spirituality, a spirituality of communion. We are made members of the very family of God through Jesus Christ and His saving Incarnation. We are his mothers, brothers and sisters, as we live His Word and walk in His Way.
The message is simple but profound; God is a God of love and relationship. He has invited us into an intimate and eternal communion of love.
His spontaneous response is powerful: all men and women who do the will of God are His family, and each are related in the Spirit to each other. It is a beautiful proclamation to those hurting, isolated and longing for love and a call for people to recognize that all people are our brothers.
Ah, but there is a fee. Not for God’s love, that is eternal. But to be and remain a member of His family, there is a cost. It requires a total commitment to the will of God. That’s because when God speaks, His words are powerful and transforming. And acting on His words will change our lives.
Our hearts and minds must be blended and forged in the crucible of commitment to Christ. Our hearts and minds must reflect that in our words and our actions. Always.
If we are willing to step forward, claiming to be part of that special family, then we change in the way we react to one another. No more disparaging others. Nope. No more diminishment of another. Nope. No more judging another. Nope. No more sarcasm or catty comments. Nope. No more differentiating another because he/she is different than we are. No more grudges, no more withholding forgiveness, no more anything that is contra to the love of Jesus Christ.
Reflect, today, upon the invitation of Jesus to be a member of His intimate family. Hear that invitation and say “Yes” to it. And as you say “Yes” to this invitation, be ready and willing to let His voice and His divine will change your life.
Prayer of The Day
“Lord, I accept Your invitation to become a member of Your intimate family. May I hear Your voice speak and act upon all that You say. Jesus, I trust in You. “
Daily Note
In these verses, Jesus gives to those with ears to hear and eyes to see, a key insight – familial relationships touch upon, model and make present an eternal mystery into which each of us who are baptized are invited –God’s family. Understanding this insight, and living it, is the key to spiritual life.
