The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday in the Second Week of Ordinary Time, Year II, 15 January 2024
1 Samuel 15:16-23 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Mark 2:18-22
God our Father,
teach me to be innovative
in witnessing you,
in proclaiming you,
in making you present
in this fast changing world
but at the same time
still rooted in you,
obedient to you;
how sad that in our Church
today with so many efforts
in the guise of "creativity"
that led only to empty novelties
pretending to be attuned with the time,
many have slowly desecrated
our liturgy, our celebrations
and worst, put into question
the relevance of our
long held beliefs and teachings
on faith and morals;
while we have to embrace
change happening in the world
and in the Church,
may we not forget it is YOU,
dear Lord, whom we seek,
whom we desire,
whom we aspire
not the social influencers
nor rock stars nor
any celebrities;
teach us to innovate in our ways
that are still rooted in you
and your precepts
not with technology nor
with new thoughts;
may we learn to understand
your Son Jesus Christ's words
in today's gospel:
“No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak. If he does, its fullness pulls away, the new from the old, and the tear gets worse. Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”
Mark 2:21-22
Forgive us, dear God,
for all the novelties we have
brought even into our worship
and teachings that have detached
us more from you
and one another;
instead of fostering
openness and inclusivity,
the opposite had happened
because to win more people
is first of all to remain faithful
and obedient to you
which King Saul of Israel
had forgotten:
But Samuel said: ”Does the Lord so delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obedience to the command of the Lord? Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission than the fat of rams.
1 Samuel 15:23
This New Year,
lead us back to you,
God, through our leaders
in the Church
who are faithful to you
in prayers,
in liturgy,
in teachings;
innovative
like Jesus Christ
who fulfilled your
Laws of Old
in the New settings.
Amen.
lordmychef.com 