What is the Lord going to do for us next week?
This may seem like a silly question, because He has already done it.
Do we remember? Do I remember? What has God done for me?
This week I was praying with a friend over FaceTime, and my prayer was to remember. “Lord, help us to never forget what You have done for us! You will bring us out of this great trial. We will triumph in You. Help us to remember, in gratitude — every day…Every moment. Please help us to remember.”
Jesus knew how important remembering is. We saw this in the readings throughout this week, beginning with the Resurrection of Lazarus on Sunday. It is beneficial to remember this story of Lazarus in the light of another one in the Gospel of Luke. Jesus told a story about a rich man who neglected a poor man, (named Lazarus), at his door. He never saw him. Both men died, and Lazarus was in the bosom of father Abraham, while the rich man was in Gehenna. The rich man, unable to participate in this beatitude because he never saw and he never heard, pleaded with Abraham to warn his brothers — surely they shall see and hear! “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And [the rich man] said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ [Abraham] said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead’” (Luke 16:30-31). Do we see the irony?
Part of remembering is looking and listening, noticing and hearing. Humans are capable of listening without hearing. We are capable of hearing without doing. We are capable of seeing without believing. We all have these amazing senses that are meant to help us learn, not only in the mind, but in the heart. It is here that we choose to remember, where we choose to live in gratitude.
What did the Pharisees and those who killed Jesus forget? We are reminded in this week’s daily Mass readings.
–They forgot about their ancestors, who grumbled against the LORD in the desert, yet through the repeated intercession of Moses were saved from pestilence and death (cf. Num 21:4-9).
–They forgot about Susanna, who “trusted in the Lord wholeheartedly” (Dan 13:35) when she was falsely accused.
–They forgot about Daniel, strong in the Holy Spirit, who spoke out and defended her (cf. Dan 13:45-46).
–They forgot about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who refused to serve a false god, even if it meant facing a painful death in the furnace (Dan 3:17-18).
–They forgot about Nebudchadnezzar, the pagan Babylon king, whose heart turned when he saw the power of God, and exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any God except their own God” (Dan 3:95).
And finally, they forgot the prophets, especially Jeremiah and Ezekiel, both whom we read today and tomorrow in the daily Mass readings:
–They couldn’t see that what they were doing, and what they were about to do, is what their ancestors did to Jeremiah: “All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. ‘Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him’” (Jer 20:10).
–They couldn’t see that Jesus was the fulfillment of the prophesy of Ezekiel, “My dwelling shall be with them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD, who make Israel holy, when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever” (Ezek 37:27-28).
Do we remember? Do I remember? What has God done for me?
“Remember the marvels the LORD has done” (Ps 105:5).
“In my distress I called upon the LORD and cried out to my God; From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears” (Ps 18:7).
Lord, help us to remember that You dwell with us in our hearts, right here, right now. You have made Your dwelling with us; You are one with the Father, in the Holy Spirit, and You are tabernacled in our hearts. We implore You to help us to remember!
You are the way.
You are the truth.
You are the life.
You alone bring us out of the darkness. You are calling all people to Yourself. May we be one in You. May we abide in You, in sickness and in health. May we carry our Cross with You, knowing that You lead us into eternal life of peace and joy.
May we remember the marvels You have done in our personal lives, and live in hope and gratitude for what You are about to do. Amen.
2uolord 
Reblogged this on 2uolord and commented:
Thinking about the Holy Week to come and I want to repost this.
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This is so pure and serves as an amazing remind of how much “amnesia” the world can create in itself but to remember God and everything he does is the way to heal all things. It’s so deep yet simplistic, I can’t even wrap my mind around it. To sit and be still has power to for what seems like a moment to bring light to what we really are blessed with in life. I enjoyed reading. Thank you!
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Amen! Thanks for your comment.
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