19 March 2024 - Only By Grace Reflections
#OnlyByGraceReflections #CFC #CouplesforChrist #FeastofStJosephSpouseofMary
NOTE: Please click the Subscribe key on YouTube and press the black notification bell to receive the daily reflections. Or, open in YouTube for easy access. View and Like. Thank you.
Show More
TOPIC: DO YOU REALIZE THE BLESSING THAT ST. JOSEPH BRINGS INTO OUR FAITH AS CHILDREN OF GOD?
First Reading: Second Samuel 7: 4-5a, 12-14a, 16
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 89: 2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29
Second Reading: Romans 4: 13, 16-18, 22
Verse Before the Gospel: Psalms 84: 5
Gospel: Matthew 1: 16, 18-21, 24 or Luke 2: 41-51a
In our gospel today, God chose a man who would be the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to pastor Him, to provide for His needs, and to protect Him from all harm, together with our Blessed Mother Mary.
Not every man can take the responsibility of being accountable for a child not of his own flesh and blood. Being a father is definitely a calling, a vocation that needs a personal commitment to fulfill, to sacrifice and to do whatever it takes to bring up a child to have a good life.
St. Joseph is a model of what a father should be -- someone who finds his strength in humility, who works silently to provide for his family, and courageously protects his child and spouse from all adversaries as long as he lives. Because of him, Jesus and Mary were able to fulfill their roles respectively. We are all blessed because of St. Joseph!
Saint Joseph, in fact, “concretely expressed his fatherhood” by making an offering of himself in love “a love placed at the service of the Messiah who was growing to maturity in his home,” writes Pope Francis, quoting his predecessor St Paul VI.
When we feel alone and in need of someone to welcome us, let us remember St. Joseph and ask for his intercession. We can rest assured that he will welcome us into his home, and his heart just like Jesus!
This is the 1422nd installment of our CFC contemplation series focusing on the daily liturgical readings.
[NOTE: As we
