November 10, 2017

St. Leo the Great

Rom 15: 14-21

I myself feel confident about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another. Nevertheless on some points I have written to you rather boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast of my work for God. For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and as far around as Illyricum I have fully proclaimed the good news of Christ.

Thus I make it my ambition to proclaim the good news, not where Christ has already been named, so that I do not build on someone else’s foundation, but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him shall see, and those who have never heard of him shall understand.”

New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.

God’s Spirit at Work

The apostle Paul reminds us today that, in so many positive ways, we are in fact “full of goodness.” He suggests that I pay attention to what Jesus is accomplishing through my attitudes and actions. Insignificant as these may seem at the time, who knows what practical “signs and wonders” I might be able to bring about as I go about my daily routine.

So how can I use my time and talents to help a family member who isn’t doing so well? In school or at work today, how might I reach out to a friend in need? Most often it isn’t the “great deeds” that make the difference. Rather my attitude and outlook shape my interaction with others in very practical and sometimes surprising ways. When all is said and done, it really isn’t about me at all. It’s about how I let God’s good grace help me make thoughtful decisions, especially in the ways I reach out to those I meet. Sometimes it isn’t what I say to someone else; rather it’s about how the other person “hears” and “understands” my words and actions. Pay attention during today’s encounters and conversations to the practical ways the Spirit of God is at work!

—The Jesuit prayer team from the Jesuit Community at St. Camillus in Wauwatosa, WI.

Prayer

Jesus-
You are the way, the truth, the life.
Show me the way that I may go.
Teach me your truth, that I may know.
Give me your grace, that I may grow
Eternally. 
Amen.

—Ted Tracy, SJ