The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Monday, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Doctor of the Church, 15 July 2024
Isaiah 1:10-17 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Matthew 10:34-11:1

On this blessed Monday,
your word "bring" invites me
to examine what I bring:
“Trample my courts no more! Bring no more worthless offerings; your incense is loathsome to me” (Isaiah 1:13).
Jesus said to his Apostles: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword” (Matthew 10:34).
Teach me, O Lord,
to bring your peace and justice,
to bring your truth and light
so that I may bring that
much-needed balance
we are searching in life.
Like St. Bonaventure,
help me to bring myself before
You, dear God in prayers,
to immerse myself in your words
in the scriptures
so that I may bring together
the ideal and practical,
the spiritual and material.
Many times, O Lord,
we bring our very selves,
it is our ego and pride
we love to bring everywhere
for everyone to see,
forgetting that
we must first bring
You back into our hearts,
bring You back into our minds,
bring You back into our lives
so that we can finally
bring out the best
worship of You.
Amen.