From the Gospel according to Mark
Mk 12:28-34

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
“Which is the first of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, “The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
“You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Pay attention to the gifts

In today’s Gospel, when the Lord responds to the scribe, He begins by saying, “Hear, O Israel,” before continuing with “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart…”Therefore, the first step is to “listen” to how much God loves me, so that I can respond to the One who loves me above all things by loving Him in the same way.  

We must learn to listen, because by listening, we come to know, and by knowing, we can love. The Word helps us listen to God and know Him—it is the primary means, which is why prayer is so important. But throughout the entire day, I can remain in a state of “listening to God,”  being attentive to all the gifts I receive from Him. I begin to discover a Father who is present in everything and everyone, who works miracles for me every day, and I find myself falling more in love with Him. My immediate response will be to love as He wants me to love—by loving my spouse as He loves me. And then, my children, family, friends…  

Today’s challenge is to pay attention to God’s gifts every minute. You’ll see how it changes your day.  

Applied to Married Life:

Carlos: This morning, I woke up in a bed. Thank You, Lord, for giving me a warm and comfortable place to rest. Next to me was my wife, waking up around the same time. Thank You, Lord, for giving me Your daughter, so that I may live a love of communion with her, just as You do.  

I get up and freshen up. Thank You, Lord, for this running water—hot, clean—allowing me to wash myself, feel refreshed, and smell nice. Now clean and ready, I step out of the room and check on the kids. They are still asleep. Thank You, Lord, for entrusting these children to me, so that I may exercise Your fatherhood over them. I look at them with the love that comes from my daily self-giving—providing for them, dressing them, educating them, helping them grow into faithful men and women of God.  

I open the fridge—it’s full, with everything we need for a family breakfast. Thank You, Lord, for our daily bread, which we share every morning, along with laughter, stories, and plans for Sunday…  

Then we get ready for Mass. The kids take forever, we’re running late—thank You, Lord, for these opportunities to grow in patience. We arrive at church. An immense *Thank You, Lord,* because You give Yourself to me, to my wife, to my children—to fill us with You, with Your love, to make us part of You. A family in the Spirit…  

Afterwards, we take a walk—my wife and I talking, embracing… Thank You, Lord, for this suitable help, for someone to listen to, someone to share my heart with, someone to help and to ask for help, someone in whom I find rest every day.  

(And this way, the entire Sunday goes on…)  

Today, I have learned to recognize You and love You, Lord.

Mother,

I need to pay attention to the gift in every moment. Help me see it. Even in what seems negative, teach me to do as You did—to keep these things in my heart until I discover the gift. The love God has for me is astonishing—I just need to learn to recognize His love in everything and everyone.  

From the Gospel according to Luke
Lk 11:14-23

Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute,
and when the demon had gone out,
the mute man spoke and the crowds were amazed.
Some of them said, “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons,
he drives out demons.”
Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven.
But he knew their thoughts and said to them,
“Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste
and house will fall against house.
And if Satan is divided against himself,
how will his kingdom stand?
For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons.
If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul,
by whom do your own people drive them out?
Therefore they will be your judges.
But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons,
then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
When a strong man fully armed guards his palace,
his possessions are safe.
But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him,
he takes away the armor on which he relied
and distributes the spoils.
Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

For Nothing

We feel strong, confident in our own criteria. We build our own safety nets—financial security with some savings and a house, physical well-being with a bit of exercise, health by watching our diet, emotional stability by placing our hopes in weekend plans, vacations, and shopping, sentimental balance with an occasional retreat and some resolutions, and even spiritual security by easing our conscience with Sunday Mass.  

And when we’ve built our little castle, we realize that nothing really works. I don’t feel secure, venting through exercise isn’t enough, my resolutions are useless, and my hopes let me down again and again because vacations turn into one argument after another.  

Then comes the alternative: the transforming union with the Lord and embracing the greatness of my marital vocation. And suddenly, everything falls into place. Peace comes—the longed-for peace, the one the heart won’t rest until it finds. The Lord sweeps away all my self-made defenses, and I surrender to Him with joy, placing myself at His service—whatever He wants, wherever He wants, whenever He wants. And when I don’t… I crash. Then I ask for forgiveness and return to the right path.  

Applied to Married Life:  

Marta: What happened to all that anxiety, that constant distress, all those fears? Our life is exactly the same—we have the same problems as anyone else, the same differences, the same sins in our hearts to fight against… but the rough edges of our life have disappeared.  

Juan: We’ve learned to see life as a gift from God, to see each other as a gift from God, to rely on His mercy… We’ve placed everything in His hands. He is far stronger than all our difficulties and sins. He is King over everything and everyone. And He loves us infinitely. He has brought us complete joy, just as He promised.  

Marta: Blessed be the Lord.  

Juan: Blessed be forever.  

Mother,

Spouses who are not with Jesus Christ are against Him, and if they do not gather with Him the fruits of Love, they scatter their gifts and their entire lives. Let us allow the One who is stronger to enter our lives and take away all those false securities we relied on.  

Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen.

From the Gospel according to Luke
Lk 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.

Experience of Love  

What must Mary’s experience of love with the Holy Spirit, her Spouse, have been like on the day of the Immaculate Conception of the Son of God? The Holy Spirit is also the author of the union between spouses. May we have a pure heart like Mary’s, so we may be docile to the Holy Spirit.

Applied to Married Life:  

Andrés: There are moments when we are very united, but there are still times when we grow distant from each other. It’s a shame, but it’s the reality.
Carmen: Yes, because we haven’t yet given our full “yes” to total self-giving, as the Virgin did from the very beginning.
Andrés: It’s a shame that we don’t allow the Holy Spirit to do His work. He would know exactly what to do between us. Let’s keep striving to surrender our self-love. What do you think?Carmen: It’s worth it, yes.

Mother,

Give us the determination to say “yes” to our self-giving as spouses, slaves of the Handmaid of the Lord. Thank you, Blessed Mother, for your precious “yes.”

From the Gospel according to Luke
Lk 4:24-30

Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth:
“Amen, I say to you,
no prophet is accepted in his own native place.
Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel
in the days of Elijah
when the sky was closed for three and a half years
and a severe famine spread over the entire land.
It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,
but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.
Again, there were many lepers in Israel
during the time of Elisha the prophet;
yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”
When the people in the synagogue heard this,
they were all filled with fury.
They rose up, drove him out of the town,
and led him to the brow of the hill
on which their town had been built,
to hurl him down headlong.
But he passed through the midst of them and went away.

Too Earthly?

They didn’t believe in Jesus because He seemed too “earthly.” It seems that, in order to have faith in the mediation of others, we need them to come from far away or to appear very holy in our eyes. What we see as “normal” seems incapable of being a channel for the supernatural. We struggle to see God in the ordinary.  

But the truth is that my marriage is sacred. The truth is that my spouse is a minister of God’s grace to me. The truth is that my spouse is the suitable help God has placed in my life so that we may reach Him together. But because I see faults and sins in him/her, I fail to recognize this. The consequence? God cannot work miracles if I do not believe in the mediation He has placed before me.  

I must truly believe it, because God seeks to speak to me especially through my spouse.

Applied to Married Life:  

Paco: Lucía, I don’t understand why you don’t want to pray with me. We’ve been told that prayer in marriage is essential.  

Lucía: Paco, I see you praying a lot, but then your life isn’t consistent with all that you pray. Honestly, I’m a little tired of so much hypocrisy. I don’t see that your prayer is making any difference, and to be honest, I’m starting to dislike your overly spiritualized and detached way of living.  

Paco: Sorry, but you’re not any better than me. You have a strong character, little patience, you’re tense, and always on edge…  

(Paco prays, and the Lord speaks to him: “Paco, why do you resist the message I want to give you through your wife? It’s true that you pray a lot, but you put little effort into making her happy. Treat her as if she were Me, because the way you treat her is the way you treat Me.” Paco heard the Lord’s voice through Lucía.)  

Paco: Lucía, sit here with me. I can see you’re uneasy, that you’re not comfortable with me. I’d like to understand why and how I can help.  

Lucía: Paco, I feel alone, confused… (*And she continues explaining…*)  

Paco: I understand, Lucía. You feel like I demand too much from you, that I expect perfection, but what you really need is to feel loved as you are. You need to be at ease with me, without worrying about whether I’m judging you… I’m sorry, Lucía. I want you to know that I love you as you are, including your shortcomings. I love you just as you are, and I will show you.  

Lucía: Now I do feel strong enough to try praying with you. Will you help me?

Mother,

Queen of the Family, pray for us.  

Mother of Conjugal Love, pray for us.