March 10
Thursday of the First Week of Lent
Permission to reprint, podcast, and / or stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #A-739865. All rights reserved.
Give a Mass Offering
Mass Intentions
7:45 AM – Robert Sr., Phyllis & Kris Reid / Family
Prayer for Spiritual Communion
My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there, and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
Readings
First Reading
Esther 4:12, 14-16, 23-25
Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish, had recourse to the LORD. She lay prostrate upon the ground, together with her handmaids, from morning until evening, and said: “God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you. Help me, who am alone and have no help but you, for I am taking my life in my hand. As a child I used to hear from the books of my forefathers that you, O LORD, always free those who are pleasing to you. Now help me, who am alone and have no one but you, O LORD, my God.
“And now, come to help me, an orphan. Put in my mouth persuasive words in the presence of the lion and turn his heart to hatred for our enemy, so that he and those who are in league with him may perish. Save us from the hand of our enemies; turn our mourning into gladness and our sorrows into wholeness.”
Responsorial Psalm
Psalms 138:1-2ab, 2cde-3, 7c-8
R. (3a) Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple
and give thanks to your name.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
Because of your kindness and your truth;
for you have made great above all things
your name and your promise.
When I called, you answered me;
you built up strength within me.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
Your right hand saves me.
The LORD will complete what he has done for me;
your kindness, O LORD, endures forever;
forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
Gospel Acclamation
Psalms 51:12a, 14a
R. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory!
A clean heart create for me, O God;
give me back the joy of your salvation.
R. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory!
Gospel
Matthew 7:7-12
Jesus said to his disciples: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asked for a loaf of bread, or a snake when he asked for a fish? If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.
“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets.”
“Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.”
Reflection
One of the three Lenten practices that we are to engage in is prayer. We are fully aware of the ins and outs of prayer. We know that when we pray for something, it may be answered in the way God wants, not what we want. It is important to remember that God’s purview is much more comprehensive than ours. We see in our readings today that God’s will is for us to be complete and whole and to pray often for the things we want, but we need to pray with great faith and with God’s plan in our minds and hearts.
In the first reading, we encounter Esther, a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus. As one of the exiled Jews, Esther’s heritage has been kept secret by her uncle, Mordecai. She becomes queen when Ahasuerus divorces his current queen, Vashti, who does not obey his order to appear before him and his courtiers. Haman, one of the king’s advisors, seeks the death of Mordecai and all Jews because of his jealousy of Esther. Knowing that Haman is about to carry out the extermination of all of her fellow Jews, Esther prays all day, from morning to evening, asking for help. God answers her prayers, and the Jews are saved. The events of the book of Esther are celebrated in the Jewish feast of Purim. In this case, the prayers of Esther helped both herself and the Kingdom of God.
In the psalm, we find that the Lord answers those who call for help. When we ask in faith, God helps us as he helped Esther. God answered our prayers when he became one of us to help us to attain eternal life in heaven through the sacrifice of Jesus.
In the gospel, Jesus tells us that we will receive good things when we pray for them because the Father is good and knows what we need. An important part of the prayer process, though, is that we must follow his guidelines as to how we live our lives. If we are following the commandments and loving our God and our neighbor, we will have a better chance of having our prayers answered in the way we want them to be answered.
Hang in there,
Deacon Dare
Would you like to receive Readings & Reflections in your inbox? Subscribe to The Daily Bread newsletter.