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January 24

"The chief exercise of prayer is to speak to God and to hear God speak in the bottom of your heart."

St. Francis de Sales

Today's Reflection:

Prayer is the gateway to friendship and intimacy with God. Do you have a regular and consistent time of prayer? Are there ways you can improve your prayer time? What one step will you take today?

January 23

"[She] kept all these things in her heart."

-Luke 2:51

Today's Reflection:

Prayer is the answer. Prayer is what the Blessed Virgin Mary did when she faced the contradictions of her life as Mother of the Messiah. It was in her heart that Our Lady found the grace and consolation she needed. In our barren times, how do we need to pray more, not less?

Dearest Mary, Mother of God, pray for us!

January 22

"True charity consists in putting up with one's neighbor's faults, never being surprised by his weakness, and being inspired by the least of his virtues."

-St. Therese of Lisieux

Today's Reflection:

Can we love our neighbor as we love ourselves even when he is irksome, irritable, annoying, or just plain grumpy? How do we show the true face of God's love despite the battle raging within us.

January 21

"No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it."

-1 Corinthians 10:13

Today's Reflection:

Our faith, our confidence, and our hope must be placed in God. How, then, do we apply this in the face of challenges?

January 18

"Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law."

-Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2271

Today's Reflection:

Human life is sacred. How do we allow this Church teaching to move us forward with faith and confidence in the public square to proclaim this truth?

January 17

"The ultimate solution for restoring and promoting justice at all levels lies in the heart of each man." -Fr. Francis Fernandez

Today's Reflection:

It is in the heart that injustice comes into existence. Examine your own heart in this regard. Seek the sacrament of penance and resolve to practice justice in the areas in which you have been remiss.

January 16

"Blessed are those that hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall have their fill."

-Matthew 5:6

Today's Reflection:

We must do more than agree with Church teaching on issues. We must form our conscience according to them, and we must let Church teaching move us forward with faith and confidence into the public square to proclaim the truth at every opportunity. How do your actions indicate your beliefs about the sanctity of life? How can you bring greater justice into the contemporary culture?

January 15

"As long as matters are really hopeful, hope is a mere flattery or platitude; it is only when everything is hopeless that hope begins to be a strength at all. Like all the Christian virtues, it is as unreasonable as it is indispensable." -G.K. Chesterton

Today's Reflection:

There is no hope without uncertainty. Perilous times, difficult circumstances, tenuous situations, and heartrending trials form the crucible in which hope is tested, refined, purified, and proven. Ponder this fact? How does it speak to you in your current circumstances?

January 14

"We have to uphold the right of all men to live, to own what is necessary to lead a dignified existence, to work and to rest, to choose a particular state in life, to form a home, to bring children into the world within marriage and to be allowed to educate them, to pass peacefully through times of sickness and old age, to have access to culture, to join with other citizens to achieve legitimate ends, and, above all, to enjoy the right to know and love God in perfect liberty."

-St. Josemaria Escriva

Today's Reflection:

How are you actively participating in activities that speak for the poor, the weak, the disenfranchised, and the forgotten? During this week when we uphold the dignity of all human life, especially the unborn, how can you do more?

January 13

"Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit...and the door that gives access to the other sacraments." -Catechism of the Catholic Church 1213

Today's Reflection:

In what specific ways can you live the grace of your Baptism?