General Theme:
Means of perseverance
 
General Objective:
To grow in our relationship with God through prayer
 
Objective of the week:
To reflect on the prayer of David

​Dear Brothers and Sisters:
 
In our continuing catechesis on prayer, we now consider the prayer of David. Called by God to become King of Israel, David was deeply formed by his early experiences as a shepherd, which he would draw upon in leading his people. The young David was also a lover of music and poetry, and it was from his lyrical appreciation for the wonder of God’s creation that his prayer was born.
 
We see this reflected in the many psalms traditionally attributed to his authorship. David – as pastor and king – prefigures Jesus the Good Shepherd and universal King, whose prayerful relationship with his heavenly Father sustained his whole life.
 
David, for his part, was both saint and sinner, full of contradictions, yet in his vocation of leadership he was constant in prayerful dialogue with God. Our lives too are often marked by contradictory forces and incoherent impulses, but if, like David, we persevere in prayer – whatever our own vocation and the difficulties we may face – we will come to know the closeness of the Lord and be able to share this joy with others.”
 
Prayer: it is the hardest ‘easy’ thing in the world. Anyone can do it, at any time, for any reason. Yet somehow, we struggle to pray obediently and effectively. David is a powerful example of a man who knew how to pray. Let´s be reminded of the words of Charles Spurgeon: “The power of prayer can never be overrated…If a man can but pray he can do anything. He who knows how to overcome with God in prayer has Heaven and earth at his disposal.”   
 
This week we will pay attention to King David, one of the most effective prayerful persons in the Bible.  We will pray with the Book of Psalms. From Monday to Friday, we will focus on five petitions from David. They may challenge us in our prayer life and remind us of the most significant needs.

Psalm 25:7-8,11-12,18
Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good. Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great. Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?  He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.Look on my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins.
 
Psalm 50:3-15,23
Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him,    and around him a tempest rages. He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people: “Gather to me this consecrated people, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” And the heavens proclaim his righteousness, for he is a God of justice. “Listen, my people, and I will speak; I will testify against you, Israel: I am God, your God. I bring no charges against you concerning your sacrifices or concerning your burnt offerings, which are ever before me. I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the insects in the fields are mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats? “Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High, and call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” Those who sacrifice thank offerings honor me, and to the blameless I will show my salvation.”
 
Luke 15:17-24
“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. Dor this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
 
Today we are invited to learn from David who is so transparent and honest in front of God of his sinfulness. He showed us a concrete expression of authentic humility and contrite of heart. How beautiful if we have the heart like David willing to respond to God's invitation. A God who is ready to listen to our prayers. Let us submit our guilt to Him. So that we will be forgiven. As we ask forgiveness, we need not only to fix our eyes on our sins but also to our sinfulness in offending our loving and merciful God who is always waiting to embrace us again.

• Are you willing to learn from David's humility and true contrition? Why?           
• How often do you approach the sacrament of reconciliation?

Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek:  that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
 
Psalm 63:1-3
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life,    my lips will glorify you.
 
John 6:60, 66-69
On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
 
Matthew 6:5-6
And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
 
David has given us the image of how blissful we are when we are in the presence of God. It is only God who suffices all our innermost desires, who can quench our parched soul, and can give us true peace and joy. In all the challenges that we are facing, we must be in the house of prayer and hold on to Christ who is our real freedom and security. That is why when we pray, let us go to the deepest room of our hearts and beg the Lord's mercy and forgiveness from all our transgressions for it is He alone who can strengthen us in moments of our frailties to persevere our journey in life.
 

• What is my attitude when I am challenged by  the difficulties in life, am I grateful to face them believing that God is at my side or feeling ungrateful and unfair of having them?
• How do I cherish my moments in prayer?

Psalm 36:5
Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.
 
Matthew 9:27-31
As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” Yes, Lord,” they replied. Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.
 
Ephesians 2:4
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
 
Our heart is full of gratefulness for your great love for us shown through your mercy, Oh Lord. Blind as we are, you took us and healed us. Your touch of mercy, Lord is so deep and endless and You are moved by the faith we have in You. Help us in times of our unbelief Oh Lord. Help us to see how great our God and Your Mercy are. It is your mercy that sustains us and sets us free. We cannot fathom it.
 

• How grateful am I for God’s mercy?
• Am I moved by His love and mercy, how? 

Psalm 41:5,11-14
Even I have said, “Lord, take note of me; heal me, although I have sinned against you.
“But you, Lord, take note of me to raise me up that I may repay them.” By this I will know you are pleased with me, that my enemy no longer shouts in triumph over me. In my integrity may you support me and let me stand in your presence forever. Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from all eternity and forever. Amen. Amen.
 
1 Peter 5:7-11
Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you.
Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. To him be dominion forever. Amen.
 
Our relationship with others are not perfect as misunderstandings and conflict of interests are ever present. Through perseverance in prayer, the Lord guides us to settle our differences physically and spiritually among those whose ideas/beliefs do not align with ours. With His grace and guidance, let us seek to be more aware of the occasions of sin where we are overpowered by our anger, pride or greed. To seek God, is to let go of our self-righteousness and allow ourselves to be filled with humility and be firm in our faith to not fall for the devil’s snares.
 

• Are we aware of our disposition towards those who seem to oppose or disagree with us?
• How can we remain steadfast in faith in the times when our relationship with others are challenged by certain circumstances?

Psalm 25:4
“Teach me your ways, O Lord; make them known to me. Teach me to live according to your truth, for you are my God, who saves me. I always trust in you.”
 
Psalm 16:1-11
Keep me safe, my God,  for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;  apart from you I have no good thing.” I say of the holy people who are in the land,  “They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.” Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more. I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods or take up their names on my lips. Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me. I keep my eyes always on the Lord. with him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,  nor will you let your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
 
John 8:31
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.
 
John 16:12-15
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”
 
Our present generation can mislead us with so much information from social media that invites us to “go with the flow”, since it's popular and what is favored by many. This can influence how we live our lives since we know that the journey in life is always about choices, about decision-making.  David’s prayer for guidance in life teaches us that it is always through our prayer and connection to God-humbly asking Him each day to teach us His ways, that we can truly be guided. Guidance is more than just the right decision in life – it is also the right mindset and thinking. “Lead me in your truth and teach me,” David prays in Psalm 25:5, recognizing that it is not just the decision, but the truth, that is important. As Jesus said in Jn 8:31-32 “If you remain faithful to my word, you will truly be my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Praying for guidance in life is to seek His will each day and to obey it. It’s a total trust in the Lord that His ways are far better than ours.
 

• Do you seek God’s will each day and dispose to obey it?
• In seeking for the truth, do you examine your conscience regularly?

This week, as we continue to deepen our prayer, Moses could be our teacher through the book of Exodus.
 
   Pope Francis in the catechesis about the prayer of Moses (June 17,2020) explained to us how Moses prays. He says:
 
   “Thus, the manner of prayer most proper to Moses is through intercession (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2574). His faith in God is completely at one with the sense of fatherhood he feels toward his people. Scripture habitually portrays him with his hands outstretched toward God, as if to form with his own person a bridge between heaven and earth. Even in the most difficult moments, Moses does not feel inclined to set his people aside. They are my people.  He does not reject God nor his people. Both of them, the people and God, and he is in the middle. He does not sell out his people to advance his career. He does not climb the ladder; he is an intercessor: for his people, for his flesh and blood, for his history, for his people and for the God who called him. He is the bridge. What a beautiful example for all pastors who must be ‘bridges´. This is why they are called pontifex, bridges. Pastors are the bridges between the people they belong to, and God, to whom they belong by vocation. This is what Moses is: “Lord, forgive their sin, and if you do not forgive, blot me from the book you have written. I do not want to advance at the expense of my people.”
 
   And this is the prayer that true believers cultivate in their spiritual life. Even if they experience people’s shortcomings and their distance from God, these prayerful people do not condemn them, they do not reject them. The intercessory attitude is proper to the saints who, in imitation of Jesus, are ‘bridges’ between God and his people. Moses, in this sense, was the first great prophet of Jesus, our advocate and intercessor (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2577). And today, too, Jesus is the pontifex; he is the bridge between us and the Father. And Moses is the figure of Jesus who today prays for us, intercedes for us.
 
   Moses urges us to pray with the same ardour of Jesus, to intercede for the world, to remember that despite all its frailties, it still belongs to God. Everyone belongs to God. The worst sinners, the most wicked people, the most corrupt leaders, are children of God, and Jesus feels this and intercedes for everyone. And the world lives and flourishes to the blessing of the righteous, to the prayer for mercy, this prayer for mercy that the holy, the righteous, the intercessor, the priest, the bishop, the Pope, the layperson, any baptized person unceasingly raises up for humanity, in every place and time in history.
 
   Let us think of Moses, the intercessor. And when we want to condemn someone and we become angry inside — getting angry can do good, but condemning does no good – let us intercede for him or her; this will help us a lot.”

Exodus 3:1-12
Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he said, “I am the God of your father,[a] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you[b] will worship God on this mountain.”
 
 
Luke 5:27-32
After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
 
We are the Moses of this present time. We are in the desert of our present realities: struggles, difficulties, sinfulness, shortcomings, and limitations. But in the midst of these, "God calls" us.He also calls us in the middle of our daily routines. Like the call of Jesus to Levi. God calls us for something greater for our lives. Especially as  VD disciples . For God wants us to be truly happy on something greater that comes from Him. How wonderful if we can recognize the "trust" of God in our lives. To become "bridges" and "intercessors" in order for the people around us can encounter the saving power of God in their lives.
 

• Are we sensitive enough to the calling of God as we face our personal struggles and the struggles of the world?
• Are we willing to leave everything behind in order to follow Jesus?

Exodus 15:1-18
' Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD : “I will sing to the LORD , because he has won a glorious victory; he has thrown the horses and their riders into the sea. The LORD is my strong defender; he is the one who has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will sing about his greatness. The LORD is a warrior; the LORD is his name. “He threw Egypt's army and its chariots into the sea; the best of its officers were drowned in the Red Sea. The deep sea covered them; they sank to the bottom like a stone. In majestic triumph you overthrow your foes; your anger blazes out and burns them up like straw. “Your right hand, LORD , is awesome in power; it breaks the enemy in pieces. You blew on the sea and the water piled up high; it stood up straight like a wall; the deepest part of the sea became solid. The enemy said, ‘I will pursue them and catch them; I will divide their wealth and take all I want; I will draw my sword and take all they have.’ But one breath from you, LORD , and the Egyptians were drowned; they sank like lead in the terrible water. “ LORD , who among the gods is like you? Who is like you, wonderful in holiness? Who can work miracles and mighty acts like yours? You stretched out your right hand, and the earth swallowed our enemies. Faithful to your promise, you led the people you had rescued; by your strength you guided them to your sacred land. The nations have heard, and they tremble with fear; the Philistines are seized with terror. The leaders of Edom are terrified; Moab's mighty men are trembling; the people of Canaan lose their courage. Terror and dread fall upon them. They see your strength, O LORD , and stand helpless with fear until your people have marched past — the people you set free from slavery. You bring them in and plant them on your mountain, the place that you, LORD , have chosen for your home, the Temple that you yourself have built. You, LORD , will be king for ever and ever.” '
 
Luke 1:67-80
'John's father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he spoke God's message: “Let us praise the Lord, the God of Israel! He has come to the help of his people and has set them free. He has provided for us a mighty Saviour, a descendant of his servant David. He promised through his holy prophets long ago that he would save us from our enemies, from the power of all those who hate us. He said he would show mercy to our ancestors and remember his sacred covenant. With a solemn oath to our ancestor Abraham he promised to rescue us from our enemies and allow us to serve him without fear, With a solemn oath to our ancestor Abraham he promised to rescue us from our enemies and allow us to serve him without fear, so that we might be holy and righteous before him all the days of our life. “You, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High God. You will go ahead of the Lord to prepare his road for him, to tell his people that they will be saved by having their sins forgiven. Our God is merciful and tender. He will cause the bright dawn of salvation to rise on us and to shine from heaven on all those who live in the dark shadow of death, to guide our steps into the path of peace.” The child grew and developed in body and spirit. He lived in the desert until the day when he appeared publicly to the people of Israel.'
 
The Lord called Moses to guide His people from the hands of the Egyptians who were oppressing them. He showed him His marvelous deeds when He was liberating them. Moses and Zechariah glorified God because they witnessed God's saving power.
 
We are like Moses and Zecchariah who have many inadequacies for the task of serving the Lord when we look at our limitations, but let us continually listen to Him and fix our eyes on Him and we can let go of our limitations and He can act in us.
 

• What must I do when I feel inadequate to serve the Lord? How do I impel the power of God's mercy and love that enable me to respond to His invitation?

Exodus 32:1-14 
When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods[a] who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods,[b] Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’  “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
 
John 17: 9-11, 20
I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of[a] your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message.
 
   Our prayer is affecting us inwardly and will always invoke us to do what is right and what is  good in truth and justice. In Genesis, Moses pleaded to God for His mercy to forgive His people Israel from their stubborness and misconduct.  Jesus, in the Gospel of John, prays and pleads to the father for the unity and the will of his disciples to choose what is eternal.  The commonality of the prayer of Moses and Jesus is to pray for the people God entrusted to them, be patient with them, be quick to forgive them, and guide them to what is eternal. 
 

• Who are those people God is entrusted to you?  Are you praying for them? Are you patient with their process? We are all invited to follow the example of Moses and Jesus.

THURSDAY
“Prayer: a meeting with God”​

Exodus 33: 7-11
7 Moses used to pitch a tent outside the camp at some distance. It was called the tent of meeting. Anyone who wished to consult the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. 8 Whenever Moses went out to the tent, the people would all rise and stand at the entrance of their own tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. 9 As Moses entered the tent, the column of cloud would come down and stand at its entrance while the Lord spoke with Moses. 10 On seeing the column of cloud stand at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise and bow down at the entrance of their own tents. 11 The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a person speaks to a friend. Moses would then return to the camp, but his young assistant, Joshua, son of Nun, never left the tent.
 
Luke 10:38-42
38 As they continued their journey he entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. 39 She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. 40 Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” 41 The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. 42 There is a need for only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”
 
To spend time with God is a choice that we are given over the many choices that we can take in an hour, day or week. Moses dedicated a place and a time to meet with God, just as Mary has chosen to remain at side of Jesus to listen to Him.Through prayer we build our relationship with God.
 

• Do I choose to spend quality time with God? In what way can I make time and spend it with Him in prayer?

Numbers 11: 4-6, 10-18 
Now the rabble among them fell victim to their desires again, and the people of Israel said, “Who will give us meat to eat? 5 We remember the fish we ate freely in Egypt, along with the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is fading away, all we ever see is this manna.”
10 Moses heard the people weeping, each family at the entrance to their tent. The Lord became exceedingly angry, and Moses was greatly displeased. 11 Moses said to the Lord, “Why are you torturing your servant? Have I not found favor in your sight, that you would burden me with this whole people? 12 Did I conceive this entire people? Did I give birth to them that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your arms like a nurse carries a small child to the land that I have promised to their ancestors?’ 13 Where can I get enough meat to give to all this people, for they cry to me saying, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ 14 I cannot carry this entire people by myself; they are too burdensome for me. 15 If this is the way that you are going to treat me, and if I have found favor in your sight, then please put me to death right now so I do not have to keep looking upon my misery.”
16 But the Lord said to Moses, “Bring me seventy men from among the elders of Israel whom you know to be elders and leaders of the people. Bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them stand there with yourself. 17 I will come down and speak to you there. I will take some of the Spirit that is upon you and put it upon them. They will carry the burden of the people with you, so that you do not have to carry it alone. 18 Say to the people, ‘Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow you will eat meat. You cried out in the hearing of the Lord, saying, “Who will give us meat to eat? We were better off when we were in Egypt.” Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will eat it.
 
 
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercy and the God of all consolation. He consoles us in all our afflictions and thereby enables us to console others in their tribulations, offering them the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God.
For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so too, through Christ, do we receive our consolation.  If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation. If we are being consoled, it is to help us to console you and give you the patience and the strength to endure the same sufferings that we endure. Our hope for you is unshaken, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, you also share in the consolations.
 
As Verbum Dei missionary disciples, we are invited by God to be in constant dialogue with Him, in good times and more so in bad times-like in moments when we feel discouraged or disappointed like Moses. Accompanying people, bringing them to know and love God, can be a challenging mission. But God revealed to us through the experience of Moses, that He journeys with us, and He will address our difficulties with His mighty hand. We just need to express what is in our heart, to speak to God face to face like Moses did. St. Paul assures us further, that our God is a God of consolation who consoles us in our afflictions, thus, we in turn, can console the afflicted.
 

• Do we place our hope and trust in the Lord especially in the moments of afflictions? Are we aware that we are called to console the afflicted as God has been consoling us in all our afflictions?

General Theme:
Means of perseverance
 
General Objective:
To grow in our relationship with God through prayer
 
Objective of the week:
The prayer of Abraham

We continue our reflection about means of perseverance. For the following weeks we will focus on prayer taking as our point of reference main characters in the Bible that will help to evaluate or revise our personal way of praying. In that way they will teach us how to pray.
 
This week we will focus on the prayer of Abraham.
Pope Francis in his catechesis on “The prayer of Abraham” (June 3, 2020) highlights the figure of our “father in faith” (Rom 4:18), he says:
 
“Abraham is thus the man of the Word. When God speaks, man becomes the receptor of that Word and his life the place in which it seeks to become flesh. This is a great novelty in man’s religious journey: the life of a believer begins to be understood as a vocation, thus as a calling, as the place where a promise is fulfilled; and he moves in the world with the power of that promise, which one day will be fulfilled. And Abraham believed God’s promise. He believed and he set out without knowing where he was going — thus says the Letter to the Hebrews (cf. 11:8). But he had trust.
Reading the Book of Genesis, we discover that Abraham experienced prayer in constant faithfulness to that Word, which periodically appeared along his path. In short, we could say that in Abraham’s life faith becomes history. Faith becomes history. Indeed Abraham, with his life, with his example teaches us this path, this path in which faith becomes history. The God of Abraham becomes “my God”, the God of my personal history, who guides my steps, who does not abandon me; the God of my days, companion in my adventures; the God Providence. I ask myself and I ask you: do we have this experience with God?  Let us think about this a bit.
 
Let us learn from Abraham to pray with faith, to dialogue and to argue, but always willing to accept the Word of God and to put it into practice. With God, let us learn to speak like a child with his dad: to listen to him, to reply, to argue. But transparent like a child with his dad. This is how Abraham teaches us to pray.”

Genesis 12:1-7  
1 The Lord said to Abram: Go forth[a] from your land, your relatives, and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you. 2 [b]I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the families of the earth will find blessing in you.[c]
4 Abram went as the Lord directed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 [d]Abram took his wife Sarai, his brother’s son Lot, all the possessions that they had accumulated, and the persons they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 [e]Abram passed through the land as far as the sacred place at Shechem, by the oak of Moreh. The Canaanites were then in the land.
7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said: To your descendants I will give this land. So Abram built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him.
 
Matthew 12:49-50
Then he pointed to his disciples and said, "Look! Here are my mother and my brother! Whoever does what my Father in heaven wants is my brother, my sister, and my mother."
 
IMVDMFa 3.30
Our mission begins from the experience of prayer, where God, also through his Word, transmits to us his same Life and Love until we become sons and daughters, brothers and sisters in Jesus. Our prayer or intimate and loving dialogue with  God nourishes our vocation and mission to live and preach the Gospel.
 
Abraham displayed a true and authentic "Obedience" to God. This is the result of Abraham's faithfulness in listening to the words of God. He puts the Word of God as the center of his prayer. How much I desire to have such kind of obedience to God. How beautiful to hear Jesus calling us, my sister, my brother, and my mother.
 

• Am I faithful in listening to the words of God as a VD disciple? How?

Genesis 15:1-7 
After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield,[a] your very great reward.[b]” 2 But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” 4 Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” 5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring[d] be.” 6 Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. 7 He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.”
 
Luke 1:34
“How can this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
 
In Genesis 15:1-7 Abraham freely expresses to God how he felt at the current situation -after being promised by God an heir, a huge descendants and a great nation- he cannot figure it out and somehow felt discouraged with his condition yet he remained righteous and God reassured him the promised He made with him.  In Luke 1:34 as Mary expresses her feeling when the angel delivered the message of blessing and great responsibility, the angel clarified to her on how it would come and she understood and believed. It’s okay to express and ask God straight of how we are feeling and on what is disturbing us and God will surely help us to gain peace. Like Abraham and Mary they were consoled by God after expressing their true feelings and perception.
 

• Do you express yourself freely to God in prayer? What hinders you from opening up to God?

Genesis 17: 1-8
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said: I am God the Almighty. Walk in my presence and be blameless. 2 Between you and me I will establish my covenant, and I will multiply you exceedingly.
3 Abram fell face down and God said to him: 4 For my part, here is my covenant with you: you are to become the father of a multitude of nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham,[b] for I am making you the father of a multitude of nations. 6 I will make you exceedingly fertile; I will make nations of you; kings will stem from you. 7 I will maintain my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout the ages as an everlasting covenant, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 I will give to you and to your descendants after you the land in which you are now residing as aliens, the whole land of Canaan, as a permanent possession; and I will be their God.
 
Acts 26: 12-18   
'“It was for this purpose that I went to Damascus with authority and orders from the chief priests. It was on the road at midday, Your Majesty, that I saw a light much brighter than the sun, coming from the sky and shining round me and the men travelling with me. All of us fell to the ground, and I heard a voice say to me in Hebrew, ‘Saul, Saul! Why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself by hitting back, like an ox kicking against its owner's stick.’ ‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked. And the Lord answered, ‘I am Jesus, whom you persecute. But get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant. You are to tell others what you have seen of me today and what I will show you in the future. I will rescue you from the people of Israel and from the Gentiles to whom I will send you. You are to open their eyes and turn them from the darkness to the light and from the power of Satan to God, so that through their faith in me they will have their sins forgiven and receive their place among God's chosen people.’ '
 
Mission is associated with responsibility to fulfill. It is accompanied by obedience and goal. But a goal is impossible to achieve without persevering obedience. Abram was called by God to make Himself be known to everyone. Abram as His servant must change his old life worthy to proclaim about his God. (Gen. 17: 1-8) Abraham was able to succeed his mission because he was faithful to God who appeared and made a covenant with him.
This can also be associated with Paul who was called by the Lord to proclaim His kingdom to all men to open their eyes from darkness. (Acts 26: 12-18). Abraham and Paul have something in common because of their deep encounter with the Lord, they both accomplished the mission.
How privileged we are to know our God who has been introduced to us by our parents and significant others. Everything has already been revealed and simplified for us to grasp at our God who is our Father, Creator, Redeemer, and Guide.
Prayer is an act of believing in God. It is an essential tool to persevere the mission. It invokes the Holy Spirit to empower us to face our difficulties and confusions with faith and trust in God. A man who prays never walks alone, but God walks with him hand in hand.
 

• How do I trust God when I am troubled and confused?
• Do I believe that listening to the Word of God is also my personal encounter with Him?

Genesis 17:15-20
17 Abraham fell face down and laughed as he said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah give birth at ninety?” 18 So Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael could live in your favor!” 19 God replied: Even so, your wife Sarah is to bear you a son, and you shall call him Isaac. It is with him that I will maintain my covenant as an everlasting covenant and with his descendants after him. 20 Now as for Ishmael, I will heed you: I hereby bless him. I will make him fertile and will multiply him exceedingly. He will become the father of twelve chieftains, and I will make of him a great nation.
 
Hebrews 11:1
Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.
 
Indeed the way we think is not how God thinks. Yet in prayer, we can listen to the Word of God, we can speak to Him of what’s in our mind and hearts. To persevere through prayer, brings us to a closer encounter with God and a deeper understanding of His Word. What God promises will come true, we may not see now but we can believe without seeing. This is faith.
 

• How is my faith in God's Word to believe in Him day by day?

Genesis 18:20-32
'Then the LORD said to Abraham, “There are terrible accusations against Sodom and Gomorrah, and their sin is very great. I must go down to find out whether or not the accusations which I have heard are true.” Then the two men left and went on towards Sodom, but the LORD remained with Abraham. Abraham approached the LORD and asked, “Are you really going to destroy the innocent with the guilty? If there are fifty innocent people in the city, will you destroy the whole city? Won't you spare it in order to save the fifty? Surely you won't kill the innocent with the guilty. That's impossible! You can't do that. If you did, the innocent would be punished along with the guilty. That is impossible. The judge of all the earth has to act justly.” The LORD answered, “If I find fifty innocent people in Sodom, I will spare the whole city for their sake.” Abraham spoke again: “Please forgive my boldness in continuing to speak to you, Lord. I am only a man and have no right to say anything. But perhaps there will be only 45 innocent people instead of fifty. Will you destroy the whole city because there are five too few?” The LORD answered, “I will not destroy the city if I find 45 innocent people.” Abraham spoke again: “Perhaps there will be only forty.” He replied, “I will not destroy it if there are forty.” Abraham said, “Please don't be angry, Lord, but I must speak again. What if there are only thirty?” He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty.” Abraham said, “Please forgive my boldness in continuing to speak to you, Lord. Suppose that only twenty are found?” He said, “I will not destroy the city if I find twenty.” Abraham said, “Please don't be angry, Lord, and I will speak just once more. What if only ten are found?” He said, “I will not destroy it if there are ten.” '
 
Luke 11:5-10
5 Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.
9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
 
There are many people, concrete situations… we can pray for it. God was listening to Abraham when he was pleading for Sodom. Others need our prayers. It's important to pray for each other. In that way we can be missionary disciples because in our prayer we think of many people who are far from God, searching for him or in need of him.
 

• Do I pray for people believing that God listens to my sincere prayer for them?

Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!

We continue the catechesis on prayer. Someone said to me: “You talk too much about prayer. It is not necessary.” Yes, it is necessary. Because if we do not pray, we will not have the strength to go forward in life. Prayer is like the oxygen of life. Prayer draws down upon us the presence of the Holy Spirit who always leads us forward. For this reason, I speak a lot about prayer.

Jesus gave us the example of continual prayer, practiced with perseverance. Constant dialogue with his Father, in silence and in recollection, was the fulcrum of his entire mission. The Gospels also report his exhortations to the disciples, that they pray insistently, without growing tired. The Catechism recalls three parables contained in the Gospel of Luke that underline this characteristic of Jesus’ prayer (cf. CCC, 2613).

First of all, prayer must be tenacious: like the character in the parable who, having to welcome a guest who arrived unexpectedly in the middle of the night, goes to knock on the door of a friend and asks him for some bread. The friend responds, “No!” because he is already in bed — but he insists and insists until he forces his friend to get up and give him some bread (cf. Lk 11:5-8). A tenacious request. But God is more patient than we are, and those who knock with faith and perseverance on the door of his heart will not be disappointed. God always responds. Always. Our Father knows well what we need; insistence is necessary not to inform him or to convince him, but rather it is necessary to nurture the desire and expectation in us.

The second parable is that of the widow who goes to the judge so that he may help her obtain justice. This judge is corrupt; he is a man without scruples, but in the end, exasperated by the insistence of the widow, he decides to please her (cf. Lk 18:1-8) ... He thought: “But, it is better to resolve this problem and get her off my back rather than she continuously come before me to complain.” This parable makes us understand that faith is not a momentary leap, but a courageous disposition to call on God, even to “argue” with him, without resigning oneself to evil and injustice.

The third parable presents a pharisee and a publican who go to the Temple to pray. The first turns to God boasting of his merits; the other feels unworthy even to enter the sanctuary. God however does not listen to the prayer of the first, that is, of the proud ones, while he does grant the prayer of the humble (cf. Lk 18:9-14). There is no true prayer without a spirit of humility. It is precisely humility that leads us to ask in prayer.

The teaching of the Gospel is clear: we need to pray always, even when everything seems in vain, when God appears to be deaf and mute and it seems we are wasting time. Even if heaven is overshadowed, the Christian does not stop praying. A Christian’s prayer keeps stride with his or her faith. And many days of our life, faith seems to be an illusion, a barren struggle. There are moments of darkness in our life, and in those moments, faith seems to be an illusion. But the practice of prayer means accepting this struggle too. “Father, I pray and do not feel anything… I feel like my heart is dry, that my heart is arid.” But we have to continue, with this struggle in the tough moments, the moments in which we feel nothing. Many saints experienced the night of faith and God’s silence — when we knock and God does not respond — and these saints were persevering.

During these nights of faith, those who pray are never alone. Indeed, Jesus is not only a witness and teacher of prayer; he is more. He welcomes us in his prayer so that we might pray in him and through him. And this is the work of the Holy Spirit. This is why the Gospel invites us to pray to the Father in Jesus’ name. Saint John provides these words of the Lord: “Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (14:13). And the Catechism explains that “the certitude that our petitions will be heard is founded on the prayer of Jesus” (n. 2614). It gives the wings that the prayer of mankind has always desired to possess.

How can we fail to recall here the words of Psalm 91, laden with trust, springing from a heart that hopes for everything from God: “he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday” (vv. 4-6). It is in Christ that this stupendous prayer is fulfilled, it is in him that it finds its complete truth. Without Jesus, our prayer risks being reduced to human effort, destined most of the time to failure. But he has taken on himself every cry, every groan, every jubilation, every supplication ... every human prayer. And let us not forget the Holy Spirit who prays in us; it is he who leads us to pray, he leads us to Jesus. He is the gift that the Father and the Son gave us to foster an encounter with God. And the Holy Spirit, when we pray, is the Holy Spirit who prays in our hearts.

Christ is everything for us, even in our prayer life. Saint Augustine used to say this with an enlightening expression that we also find in the Catechism: Jesus “prays for us as our priest, prays in us as our Head, and is prayed to by us as our God. Therefore let us acknowledge our voice in him and his in us” (n. 2616). This is why the Christian who prays fears nothing, he or she trusts in the Holy Spirit who was given to us as a gift and who prays in us, eliciting prayer. May the Holy Spirit himself, Teacher of prayer, teach us the path of prayer.
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• During this week, each day we can pray on one of the passages reflected in this catechesis from Pope Francis.

Luke 11:5-8
'And Jesus said to his disciples, “Suppose one of you should go to a friend's house at midnight and say, ‘Friend, let me borrow three loaves of bread. A friend of mine who is on a journey has just come to my house, and I haven't got any food for him!’ And suppose your friend should answer from inside, ‘Don't bother me! The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.’ Well, what then? I tell you that even if he will not get up and give you the bread because you are his friend, yet he will get up and give you everything you need because you are not ashamed to keep on asking. '
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• Do I discover God´s patience towards me and others? In what moments?
• Is His patience motivating me to go to Him every now and then?

Luke 18:1-8
'Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to teach them that they should always pray and never become discouraged. “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people. And there was a widow in that same town who kept coming to him and pleading for her rights, saying, ‘Help me against my opponent!’ For a long time the judge refused to act, but at last he said to himself, ‘Even though I don't fear God or respect people, yet because of all the trouble this widow is giving me, I will see to it that she gets her rights. If I don't, she will keep on coming and finally wear me out!’ ” And the Lord continued, “Listen to what that corrupt judge said. Now, will God not judge in favour of his own people who cry to him day and night for help? Will he be slow to help them? I tell you, he will judge in their favour and do it quickly. But will the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes?” '
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• Jesus wants us to constantly pray and never get discouraged. Am I faithful to always pray?
• Do I go to Him when I´m discouraged or feel down and depressed?

Luke 18:9-14
'Jesus also told this parable to people who were sure of their own goodness and despised everybody else. “Once there were two men who went up to the Temple to pray: one was a Pharisee, the other a tax collector. “The Pharisee stood apart by himself and prayed, ‘I thank you, God, that I am not greedy, dishonest, or an adulterer, like everybody else. I thank you that I am not like that tax collector over there. I fast two days a week, and I give you a tenth of all my income.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even raise his face to heaven, but beat on his breast and said, ‘God, have pity on me, a sinner!’ I tell you,” said Jesus, “the tax collector, and not the Pharisee, was in the right with God when he went home. For all who make themselves great will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be made great.” '

• Do I pray acknowledging my shortcomings, limitations, imperfections...?
• Do I discover God as the person who loves me as I am or do I think that He will love me more when I present to Him a list of achievements?​ 

Psalms 91:4-6
'He will cover you with his wings; you will be safe in his care; his faithfulness will protect and defend you. You need not fear any dangers at night or sudden attacks during the day or the plagues that strike in the dark or the evils that kill in daylight. '
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• Do I believe that God is my protector? Do I feel secure in his hands?

Romans 8:26-28
'In the same way the Spirit also comes to help us, weak as we are. For we do not know how we ought to pray; the Spirit himself pleads with God for us in groans that words cannot express. And God, who sees into our hearts, knows what the thought of the Spirit is; because the Spirit pleads with God on behalf of his people and in accordance with his will. We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose. '
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John 14:25-26
' “I have told you this while I am still with you. The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and make you remember all that I have told you. '

• The Holy Spirit has an important role in our discipleship. Do I identify Him guiding my prayer and leading me to live Jesus’ life?
• ​In what concrete moments of prayer or personal situations can I say that He is redirecting my life towards Jesus?