Daily Gospel Meditations - Saint John Society

What does it take to lead others in the faith? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Do you sense you are accountable to the Lord and to others in the way you conduct yourself? Would you need to grow in the ways of faith, or in the ways of prudence? Who are the ones Jesus is asking you to watch over? How are you guiding them, and what is the proper food they need at this time?

The danger of mistaking the voices of society for conscience - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Am I giving in to this temptation to some extent, caring too much for how people view me, while neglecting how I am walking before God? Is my admiration for the saints consistent with my openness to the voice of God directed to me by the saints and prophets in my own time?

The capacity to look into our spiritual blind spots - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What aspect of Jesus' character do you find especially inspiring, as it stands in contrast with a hypocritical attitude? What is the Lord inviting you to work on?

A twisted understanding of religion - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Do you see any of these problems being a possible distortion of your faith life? When do those symptoms surface and why? What is the Lord saying to you in this regard?

Will only a few people be saved? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How is it that Jesus combines being merciful and demanding? Why do you think He needs to keep both elements together? How is Jesus inviting you to work in your own salvation? How have you grown stronger already? What do you still lack?

What does it mean we are not supposed to call anyone “father”? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.To what extent have good leaders been key in your own faith journey? Do you see situations in which you or others could be giving too much importance to those faith leaders, in a way that is not healthy or helpful? If you are responsible for others, are you exercising that responsibility in a spirit of humility and service?

Why was the question on the greatest commandment a test? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How central is friendship with God to your own life? How would you assess your love for people around you? And where does that love spring from?

The parable of the wedding guests - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What are the obstacles people need to overcome to respond to God's call? What are some excuses that are used to justify our rebellion against God? How is Jesus asking you to respond?

The parable of the laborers of the last hour - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What does Christ's invitation to work in his vineyard mean for you? Do you experience it as a blessing or as a burden? What is the true motivation for serving him that Jesus wants you to find?

The spiritual danger of possessions - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Are there things you need to be more detached from? Think of situations in which being detached from material things has helped you grow spiritually. Have you experienced the grace of a higher love that helped you become more detached?

The calling of the rich young man - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Has your faith in Christ helped you grow in your sense of orientation, morally speaking? What has helped you, or could help you, discover the commandments as a path of freedom? Have you ever encountered Jesus, or someone who reflected Jesus to you, in such manner that you discovered a deeper way to live the commandments?

Why did Jesus say He didn't come to bring peace but division? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Are there unnecessary conflicts in your life, conflicts that Jesus would want you to eliminate? On the other hand, are you avoiding tensions or conflicts that you shouldn't avoid if you want to keep the fire of your mission and your identity alive in your heart?

Why is Jesus' blessing of children significant? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Why is this gesture of Jesus significant to you? What does Jesus want you to rediscover through it?

Mary's inner freedom - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What do you find striking about Mary's words and actions in this gospel? What elements here lead you to think of Mary as someone who was ready for heaven, even as she walked this earth? What does the Lord want you to learn from her example?

On forgiving daily annoyances - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Have you experienced patient acceptance from God and from others? How are you reacting to the faults committed by those around you? What is the attitude Jesus would want you to develop in this regard?

How should we exercise fraternal correction? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Who am I responsible for? What am I doing for their spiritual well-being? Why has the Lord given the Church that authority? What did Jesus intend us to gain from it?

On spiritual infancy - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What are the elements of a child's heart that Jesus wants you to keep or recover? What is the Lord teaching you about true greatness and humility? Are there things you need to take more seriously, and others you may need to take with a grain of salt?

The mysterious payment of the Temple tax - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What calls your attention in Christ's character, as it comes through in these lines? Why do you think He acted the way He did? What was important to him? What is He trying to tell you, in the particular circumstances you are living through now?

“Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What are the things that constitute your treasure? What does it mean to be vigilant, in your particularcase? In what ways is the Lord inviting you to exercise your responsibility over others?

How are we to understand Jesus' strong reaction against his generation? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Why do you think Jesus reacts so strongly in this gospel? I gave a few reasons, but you may reflect on this a bit more and come to your own conclusions. How would your life look and feel different if you had a deeper faith?

Why does Jesus insist on the cross if He brings good news? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What do you need to deny in yourself, or the cross you need to take up, in order to follow Jesus more closely? What would you gain if you took up that cross?

“You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.” - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What were those God-moments that enabled you to understand statements of faith in a different way? Why did Jesus want to give spiritual authority to the Church? And what is the significance of the Church in your faith journey? Have you experienced the challenge Simon underwent – having received gifts from God, but still suffering from the weakness of a wounded human nature?

Why did Jesus show his glory to the disciples? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What calls your attention about Christ's transfiguration? What are the most significant moments of light that you've had in recent times? What did the Lord want you to discover through them?

Facing dangerous waters - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here fortoday's readings.Reflecting on your own life, has the Lord pushed you cross through dangerous waters at times? How was it like? Did you discover God's providence and grace, guiding you? How do you feel now about that experience?

Why did Jesus want the crowds to stay longer? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What do you admire in Jesus' attitude in this passage? Have you been through situations in your life that resonate with this passage?

The dangers that stem from greed - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Are you able to recognize when some requests or impulses are not compatible with your mission? Why do you think it can happen to us that things that cannot provide a true purpose for life may suddenly become all we aspire to? Were there moments in which the Lord led you to realize that you had to aim higher, that some partial goals you were going for were not enough to satisfy your desire for greatness?

A spiritual reading of the Baptist's passion - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Enter the soul of Herod in this meditation. Can you relate to the way in which he feels pressured to act in a way he doesn't want to act? How so? Have you experienced the freedom that Christ can give you? What is that freedom like?

Why did people in Nazareth reject Jesus? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Is the sin of envy keeping you from growing spiritually? Have you discovered this vertical element in your life and that of others: the action of the Holy Spirit? How has God assumed the natural qualities you have, while purifying them, and giving them a broader scope?

The parable of the net - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Can you read situations familiar to you in this image of the net gathering fish of every kind? What elements or situations you find yourself in require vigilance and purification, because they are not compatible with life in Christ? Which are those elements that Jesus wants you to assume and redirect toward the Father's glory?

The parables of the treasure and the pearl - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.When and how did you discover the reality of God's kingdom as the highest value? What situations tempt you to look back?

What does it mean that Jesus is the resurrection and the life? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.In what ways have you seen people's lives expand when they come close to Jesus? How has your own life expanded by walking with him? What stands out to you in the lifestyle of these three holy siblings? In what way is Jesus calling you to imitate them?

The mustard seed and the yeast - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How do these parables resonate with your own journey of faith? What were those small beginnings like? How did you grow from there? How is the Lord calling you to grow his kingdom where you are at right now?

How are we supposed to gain from prayer? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How is the Lord inviting you to renew your prayer, based on the Our Father? What fruits of prayer have you observed in seasons of perseverance? What are some of the elements that are comprised in the Father's will for you?

The parable of the wheat and the weeds - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.

Why Jesus did not completely reject the request of James and John - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What is the kind of greatness you are looking for? Are you allowing your heart to dream of great things? Or are you completely dominated by discouragement and self-doubt? How has Jesus guided you by providing a better scope for your desires and dreams?

Why did Jesus teach the crowds only in parables? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What could be keeping you from understanding the gospels more deeply? What steps in your faith journey enabled to you better understand Christ's teachings? Why is it that you couldn't get the kingdom of God before taking those steps?

The parable of the sower - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Are there graces that God is asking you to be open to, or to protect to a greater degree? What makes the soil of your heart change from one type to another?

Why did Jesus ask Mary not to hold on to him? - Fr. LucasLaborde. Click here for today's readings.What elements in this encounter with Christ reflect your own spiritual condition? What do you seek most passionately? If Jesus said to you: “Do not hold on to me,” what would that refer to? What has led you, in different moments, to recognize Christ's presence and voice?

What does the sign of Jonah mean? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How are you receiving the signs that God has given you? What are those signs, the providential encounters, the transformed lives, the responses to prayer? And then think of Christ as the great sign. What calls your attention about the person of Jesus, about his words, teachings, and actions?

Martha and Mary: the one thing necessary - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Where is most of your activity stemming from right now? What could be the one thing, the mission or pathos, that could provide unity to your life? How is Jesus inviting you to bring greater balance to your life?

The key of Christ's resilience against criticism - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How do you respond to challenging situations? What is the fruit of countering evil with goodness? When you find yourself in some trial, what would Jesus want you to focus on?

Why does Jesus claim to be Lord of the sabbath? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Could we be doing the same? Could we be placing discipline and sacrifice and efficiency above love of God and others? Are there situations in your life that resonate with this one? On which aspect of the commandments do you need to focus: the sacrificial, discipline aspect, or the core aspect of seeking God and loving others?

How can we find rest bearing Christ's yoke? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What makes you feel weary and burdened? What is the yoke Jesus is inviting you to take upon yourself? In what way can you come to Jesus today? What does He want you to learn from his heart?

Why only the childlike receive the Son's revelation - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What is the source of your identity and your joy? What have you received from Christ? Are there areas of your life in which you still choose to rely on your own wisdom, more than on God's?

Why did Christ reproach the towns where He conducted his mission? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.How does God want you to use the graces and blessings He is giving you at this time? Are there ways in which self-complacency can pose a spiritual danger for you?

How can Jesus ask us to love him more than family? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.So, how does this passage resonate with you? What are the conflicts you need to accept as part of your journey as disciple? Are there tensions, however, that don't result from faith, but rather from your sinfulness? What does it mean for you to place Christ above other relationships? What aspects of Christ's message are well received by those around you, and what aspects might find more resistance?

The parable of the Good Samaritan is connected to all of Christ's teaching - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What do you find distinctive about Christ's love? Has someone been an image of Christ for you in this way? How can you manifest this kind of love at this time in your life?

The temptations that stem from fear - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What do those fears tell you about what you love and value most? How can you start challenging those fears, so as to place your Christian identity as the most important thing in your life?

The paradox of a peaceful conquest - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What examples of simplicity and shrewdness do you find most inspiring in Christ and in the saints? What skills or virtues is Jesus encouraging you to cultivate, so that you can bear fruit in your mission?

How are we supposed to bring the gospel to others? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.What is your experience of living in the kingdom of God? How would you explain the novelty of living in Christ to others? In what ways does your life reflect the message of the gospel? Have you ever seen this played out – you or someone you know being an instrument of Christ to bring salvation to others?

Why did Jesus send his disciples on a mission? - Fr. Lucas Laborde. Click here for today's readings.Have you experienced that distinctive union of wisdom and power in Christianity? Why did God decide to count on us as messengers?