I bet that if you were living in the time of Jesus you would have a lot of questions. Some of the things that Jesus did and said were different than the current way of doing things and might have seemed strange. For instance, in today's Gospel, we see that people are questioning why the disciples of Jesus do not fast. Fasting was a very common practice at this time, and it was deeply embedded into the lives of the people. It would seem strange to everyone that Jesus' disciples would not participate in the same fasting. But just like everything Jesus did and said-there is a deeper meaning, a deeper teaching. Jesus came to show us the way, the truth and the life.

Jesus coming changed everything, and it is clear that you can't keep on living as if He never came. Things about our lives need to change in light of the fact that Jesus entered our world to save us. Doing those things would be as ridiculous as pouring new wine into old wineskins. It just doesn't make sense to do that! There will be a time and place for fasting, but for right now, the disciples are walking side by side with Jesus. You don't fast at a wedding - you celebrate. Jesus is very clear that there will be time for fasting; its just not right now. All His examples lead us to recognize that Jesus is in their midst and because of that, things look a little different. 
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When we look at our own lives, we can see ourselves as the wineskins. Jesus is pouring new abundant wine into our hearts every day, and because of this, we need to change. We can't have this new wine poured into the old wineskins of our hearts. It just won't work. But Jesus gives us new wine and new wineskins. He can make all things new. Even when it seems ridiculous or strange, God can do all things. 

The Church has seasons of fasting and seasons of feasting. How do you practice each?

What do you want the Lord to make new?

​What in your life do you know you need to change because the Lord has come?

"He makes all things new."

"God can do all things."

"Jesus changed everything."

Fridays are typically days of fasting (feast days excluded). How do you fast on Fridays? Or how you can begin to fast?

Sundays are feast days, days of celebration. How can you feast on Sundays?

What an amazing set of readings we have for this Sunday in Ordinary Time. We are going to meditate on this passage from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, but I highly recommend going and reading all of the readings if you didn't already because they tie together beautifully. 

There is something uniquely painful about any time that we are left alone or forgotten. When we realize that, for one reason or another, someone for whom we care deeply does not care for us in a similar way, it is painful. At the core of who we are is a desire to be seen, a desire to be loved, and a desire to be cared for. 

The inverse of that, of course, is also true. Put in a positive way, when we are truly seen, known, and cared for, it is a powerful thing. When there is someone who sees us—the good, the bad, and everything in between—and loves us exactly as we are, that is powerful. We all desire to be loved like that and we all deserve to be loved like that. We are created for relationships of love, and whether that is lived out in our lives now and during the rest of them in friendships, religious community, marriage, family, or any other legitimate way that God brings us people who love us and know us, those relationships give us the experience of being seen and known. 

In today's reading from Isaiah, we hear of a moment when the Israelite people are being promised again that they will be seen, known, and loved. This book contains a lot of struggle, as the people deal with an exile from their promised land and the lack of fulfillment of God's promises to them for a kingdom of their own. They hear this good news from Isaiah and oh how good it must have sounded: He will come for you! I will not stop speaking out for you and fighting for you, God is saying, until you are back in relationship with me because I delight in you. 

This is a profound key to the spiritual life of the Christian: living in relationship with God is not first about our action but His. God takes the initiative to come after us, and we simply allow ourselves to be seen, to be loved, and to be delighted in. 

Flash forward to today's Gospel, of course, and we see this action on God's part happening. At a wedding, which symbolically reminds us of the promise of God in this reading and throughout the Old Testament that God will wed himself to his people, Jesus begins the public ministry by which he will bring all people back into an intimate, personal, and real relationship with the Father. We are his people, his bride, who will be able to be in a relationship of love and intimacy with God for all of eternity, beginning right here and now. 

For you and I today: how do we respond to God's initiative? He is looking at us and saying: I will not be silent in your life! I delight in you, I love you, and I desire for you to be my bride, my people, the ones who are close to me forever. Are we responding to that call, and letting God's action be fruitful in our lives? 

God has not stopped working in the world, and he will not. He is seeking you and I; let's allow ourselves to be found. 

How are you responding to God's initiative in your life? How can you do a better job of hearing him and then responding? 

In what ways are you seeing the fruitfulness of God's love in your life and the lives of those around you?

What is your relationship with God like today? What holds you back from truly being deeply in relationship with him each day?

"Thank you Jesus."

"You are good, Lord."

"Come, Holy Spirit."

It's not too late to make a resolution for the year or too early to begin thinking about Lent. In a journal or somewhere that you write things down, jot down some notes of the relationship you are feeling called to enter into with God this year. Maybe you feel like he's asking you to be closer to him, or maybe he wants to do something new. Then, take those words or ideas to prayer: how can the next few weeks or months be about truly encountering him and entering into that relationship you desire to have?

​God gets your problems. Jesus faced the same temptations we have to deal with every day, and He overcame them. He doesn’t boast about the fact that He is greater than any sin or temptation; instead, Jesus gives us the grace to overcome our own temptations and sins. 

Do you ever feel like you’re having a rough time with something and you just want someone to understand what you’re going through? Have you ever opened up to a friend and they just can’t fully sympathize with your struggles? Do you ever need help getting through a rough patch, whatever it may be?

Well even if a friend or loved one is there for you, even if you feel like you have a handle on what is going on in your life, God fully and completely understands what is going on. He does not judge or condemn your struggles, even if it is with sin and falling into temptation. He knows that you are not perfect, and He loves you. He gives you the helps you need to make it through the hard times and find peace in your heart.

Jesus knows what it feels with to face sin. He knows what it feels like to lose a loved one, to be rejected by His peers, to feel forgotten or unwanted, to be hungry and thirsty. He knows pain. Still, Jesus never sinned, never turned away from the Father, and has given us the tools to do the same. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we have the Scriptures where God speaks to us now, even though we can’t necessarily hear His voice with our ears. He still speaks to your heart. His eternal words can break through and give aid to whatever situation you are dealing with, they cut straight to the heart and bear fruit in your life wherever you allow them.

Jesus knows what it’s like to be you. He knows what you are feeling and thinking and all He wants is to love you, even if you can’t feel it. Hear what He wants to tell you as your friend, brother, Savior, and God, in whatever is you have to deal with, through reading His word and letting them guide your life. Confidently approach God in prayer with where you are and be let His word go to your heart. Listen to Him who loves you and wants to help you and follow His words to find true peace.

In what ways are you struggling right now? Invite Jesus into that difficulty and see what it is he has to say about what you're facing. 

What are the particular challenges against sin you are facing at the moment? How can God's grace help you fight that battle today?

Who are the people in your life who can be there for you? If you are looking for new  or better community, take some time to invite God into that challenge and ask him to reveal to you the community you are looking for. 

"Jesus, I trust in you."

"Fill me with your grace."

"Your word is alive."

Reach out today to a friend / mentor / family member who leads you closer to Jesus and set up a time to get together with them and seek the true friendship they offer.

​They say that “an elephant never forgets.” But I do forget, a lot!

Today’s psalm response is “Do not forget the works of the Lord.”

When I’m having a frustrating day, I forget how patient the Lord is with me.

When I’m upset because something else is going wrong, I forget how good the Lord is to me.

When a family member is suffering, I forget about all of the times the Lord has healed in the past.

When I can’t figure something out, I forget all of the things the Lord has taught me.

I am always forgetting the works of the Lord.

So why is it important to “remember the works of the Lord”? It’s important because we will always experience suffering in the world. We will always have unanswered prayers. We will always desire to be closer than we are to the Lord. We will always have frustrating, angry, impatient moments in our lives.

There will always be times of trial, so we need to remember what the Lord has done to ensure that we continue to turn to Him in times of need.

We need to remember the times on the mountaintop when we’re sitting in the valley. We need to remember the joy we’ve experienced in the midst of sorrow. We need to remember His hope in the midst of our despair.

Remember the works of the Lord. Remember the goodness of God. Remember the glory of the His Resurrection. Remember the feeling of His Spirit in your soul. Remember.

What have you forgotten that the Lord has done for you?

Where can you be more aware in your life of the goodness of the Lord?

How can you share with others the glory of the Lord?

"I remember your works O Lord."

"I praise you Jesus for all you've done for me."

​"I love you Lord."

Write down the good things the Lord has done for you today, this week, this month, this whole year! Create a physical reminder for yourself so you don't forget the good works of the Lord!