Passage of the Day:
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them. He said: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you, Matthew 5:1-12.
Reflection:
As a former high school teacher, it doesn’t take long to find out who has an attitude in your class. As the world becomes more and more politically correct, children don’t understand the concept of winning and losing. If everyone gets a certificate, prize or reward for just participating, this isn’t real life. At the end of Jesus’ list of beatitudes, there is an expectation communicated that not everyone is going to like you. Therefore, when you do face adversity, difficult situations and persecution, attitudes will be tested. How you handle this will reveal what you will need to work on.
Prayerful Action:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything, James 1:2-4.
Retracing Your Steps:
Success has a way of changing you: sometimes for the better and others for the worse. I went from a humble and meek under classman in high school to an arrogant and conceded upperclassman. While I may not have been as cocky as some of my fellow athletes, I was living far from Jesus’ beatitudes. I guess I needed by own prodigal son experience as a freshman in college to bring me back to where the Lord wanted me to be. This emptiness led me to make Jesus the Lord of my life in my second semester of college and refresh my memory of attitudes to live by.
Song of the Day:
The lyrics of Real Life by Cindy Morgan play the “what if game.” While its honorable to see life like Pollyanna, the attitudes that you come in contact with daily are far from the beatitudes. Although you can’t change others, you can begin by changing your own attitude so that when the opportunity presents itself, you can impact the lives of others.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 