Daily Thought For June 18, 2020

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Great Insight On The Lord's Prayer

 Lectio

 Matthew 6:7–15

Meditatio

 “Our Father …”

 In today’s Gospel, Jesus, the master pray-er, teaches us how to pray. In this lesson, he shows us the connection between prayer and our relationships. He assures us that we do not need to multiply words in order to be heard, for the simple yet profound reason that God is “your Father [who] knows what you need before you ask him.” Yes! God is our Father! As our Parent, God loves us and takes care of us. Would our relationship with God be different if we believed more deeply that he is our loving and caring Father?

 Jesus then teaches us to pray, “Our Father …” With this single word, “our,” Jesus reveals our relationship with one another. God is our Father; we are all sisters and brothers. What a vast family we have—siblings everywhere! Everyone we read about in the newspaper or pass on the street is our sister or brother. Everyone with whom we live or work is our sister or brother.

 This truth can change the way we regard and treat one another. With this faith vision, we recognize others as our brothers and sisters, worthy of love and respect. Then, peace and harmony can flourish among us. It is not surprising, however, that our human weaknesses get in the way and damage or break our relationships. Thankfully, Jesus gives us the key to healing these relationships: forgiveness. He also stresses how important forgiveness is when he teaches us that our heavenly Father will forgive us only if we forgive one another.

 Sometimes it can seem impossible to forgive or to ask for forgiveness. Our only recourse is prayer: asking God for the grace. We might even need to ask for the grace to want to forgive. We can trust that God will hear our prayer. Gradually we will begin to be able to forgive others or to ask for forgiveness. Our relationships with God and with others will deepen and flourish.

Oratio

 Jesus, when you taught us how to pray you also revealed how connected we are to our heavenly Father and to one another. Thank you! What a gift to be a child of the Father and a brother or sister to everyone. I do not always remember that we are related, and I need your help to acquire this wonderful faith vision. At times I do not treat others with love and respect. Please give me the grace to ask forgiveness and to forgive others when they hurt me. May our unity and love flourish so that we may experience a foretaste of heavenly love.

 Contemplatio

 Our Father, fill my heart with love and forgiveness.


Daughters of St. Paul. (2011). Ordinary Grace Weeks 1–17: Daily Gospel Reflections. (M. G. Dateno & M. L. Trouvé, Eds.) (pp. 192–193). Boston, MA: Pauline Books & Media.

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