First Reading: Wisdom 7:7-11
I prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. I preferred her to scepter and throne, and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her, nor did I liken any priceless gem to her; because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand, and before her, silver is to be accounted mire. Beyond health and comeliness I loved her, and I chose to have her rather than the light, because the splendor of her never yields to sleep. Yet all good things together came to me in her company, and countless riches at her hands.
The author of the Book of Wisdom shares that the Wisdom that comes from the Spirit is a gift. We must pray diligently to receive it. This prayer will also help make us better prepared to accept the gift of Wisdom when we receive it. The value of that gift surpasses all earthly treasures.
Have you every prayed for Wisdom or discernment?
How did you experience God’s response?
Second Reading: Hebrews 4:12-13
Brothers and sisters: Indeed the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. No creature is concealed from him, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.
We have all experienced the power of words to hurt, to heal, to comfort, to discourage or to encourage. If human words can do such things, imagine the power of God’s living Word! It cuts to our very souls and strips away everything that shields us.
What power have you experienced in God’s Word?
Gospel: Mark 10:17-30
As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother." He replied and said to him, "Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth. "Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him," You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For human beings it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God." Peter began to say to him, "We have given up everything and followed you." Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."
God wants us with his whole being and desires that we want him with the same single-minded intensity. God created us for himself and, though he created all things and they are good, he doesn’t want any created thing to take a higher priority in our lives than him. He wants us to give ourselves entirely to him. Anything that we want to hold onto is a distraction from that full on commitment. Knowing him and loving him with our whole heart is essential to full union with him.
What “loves” stand in the way of your full abandonment to God?
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