August 27, 2020

Thursday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time

Readings for Today

Saint Monica—Memorial

“Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” Matthew 24:42

What if today is that day?! What if you knew that today was the day our Lord would return to Earth in all His splendor and glory to judge the living and the dead? Would you act differently? Most likely we all would. We’d probably contact as many people as we could and inform them of the imminent return of the Lord, go to confession and then spend the day in prayer.

But what would the ideal response be to such a question? If, by a special revelation from God, you were made aware of the fact that today was the day the Lord would return, what would the ideal response be? Some have suggested that the ideal response is that you go about your day as if it were any other day. Why? Because ideally we are all living every day as if it were our last and we are daily heeding the Scripture above. We strive, every day, to “stay awake” and be ready for our Lord’s return at any moment. If we are truly embracing this Scripture, then it matters not if His return is today, tomorrow, next year or many years from now.

But this call to “stay awake” refers to more than just the final and glorious coming of Christ. It also refers to every moment of every day that our Lord comes to us by grace. It refers to every prompting of His love and mercy in our hearts and souls. It refers to His continuous gentle whispers calling us closer to Himself.

Are you attentive to Him coming to you in these ways every day? Are you attentive to the infinite number of ways He is seeking to enter your life more fully? Though we do not know the day on which our Lord will come in His final victory, we do know that every day and every moment of every day is a moment of His coming by grace. Listen for Him, be attentive, be watchful and stay awake!

Lord, help me to seek Your voice and be attentive to Your presence in my life. May I continuously be awake and ready to hear You when You call. Jesus, I trust in You.

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Saint of the Day – Saint Monica

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Image: The Second Coming of Christ window at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Charleston, SC.