First reading 1 Corinthians 3:1-9
Neither the planter nor the waterer matters, only God, who makes things grow
Brothers, I myself was unable to speak to you as people of the Spirit: I treated you as sensual men, still infants in Christ. What I fed you with was milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it; and indeed, you are still not ready for it since you are still unspiritual. Isn’t that obvious from all the jealousy and wrangling that there is among you, from the way that you go on behaving like ordinary people? What could be more unspiritual than your slogans, ‘I am for Paul’ and ‘I am for Apollos’?
After all, what is Apollos and what is Paul? They are servants who brought the faith to you. Even the different ways in which they brought it were assigned to them by the Lord. I did the planting, Apollos did the watering, but God made things grow. Neither the planter nor the waterer matters: only God, who makes things grow. It is all one who does the planting and who does the watering, and each will duly be paid according to his share in the work. We are fellow workers with God; you are God’s farm, God’s building.
Responsorial Psalm 32(33):12-15,20-21
Happy the people the Lord has chosen as his own.
They are happy, whose God is the Lord,
the people he has chosen as his own.
From the heavens the Lord looks forth,
he sees all the children of men.
From the place where he dwells he gazes
on all the dwellers on the earth;
he who shapes the hearts of them all;
and considers all their deeds.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is our help and our shield.
In him do our hearts find joy.
We trust in his holy name.
Gospel Luke 4:38-44
He would not allow them to speak because they knew he was the Christ
Leaving the synagogue, Jesus went to Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever and they asked him to do something for her. Leaning over her he rebuked the fever and it left her. And she immediately got up and began to wait on them.
At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them. Devils too came out of many people, howling, ‘You are the Son of God.’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.
When daylight came he left the house and made his way to a lonely place. The crowds went to look for him, and when they had caught up with him they wanted to prevent him leaving them, but he answered, ‘I must proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God to the other towns too, because that is what I was sent to do.’ And he continued his preaching in the synagogues of Judaea.
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To nurture a life of prayer
“When daylight came he left the house and made his way to a lonely place”. Even though Jesus was constantly with the people and busied Himself with helping each person that came His way, He made time for prayer. For Jesus, prayer is essential because He needed to be alone with God, His loving Father. Submerged in His Father’s love, Jesus received the nourishment of strength, peace and joy.
No matter how busy or tired we are, we need to make time and space to be with God. In moments when we feel like we do not want to pray, we should pray all the more. In prayer, we let ourselves be loved by God, allow Him to guide us in the decisions we need to make and receive from Him all we need to live each moment with inner peace and joy. Let us be determined to become people of prayer.
Reflection question:
How can I be more faithful in having a life of prayer?
How can I be more faithful in having a life of prayer?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
