Father Rick’s Two-Minute Homily for Thursday, 11th Week in Ordinary Time
June 20, 2024, Matthew 6:1-6,7-15
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062024.cfm
Our Father – Love of God and His Children
A son asks his father, “Dad, can I have money to go to the movie with my friends?” “Dad gives his son some money for the movies. A couple of days later, the son asks, “Dad, can I have the keys to the car?” Dad hands over the keys. This behavior can go on for some time. The son’s relationship with his dad is pretty shallow. He knows Dad will give him what he needs, but he doesn’t know his father or his father’s heart.
You see, he and his sister haven’t talked for some time. They don’t even say hello, goodbye, or goodnight. It is breaking Dad’s heart. Sometimes he wants to cry at dinner. It breaks our Heavenly Father’s heart too. That is the heart of His Son that was pierced by our unwillingness to forgive another from our hearts. Yet, he provides “our daily bread faithfully. We breathe, have food and water, and all the securities of life.
There is more to the bread than our physical sustenance. Jesus wants to give us the bread from heaven that lives forever. The Bread of Life we eat can do everything in us: forgive our enemies, heal our wounded hearts, and make us whole again. God’s mercy is so incredible! My sister/brother doesn’t have to change to embrace the Lord’s mercy for me. All I want is to heal the wounds of Jesus’ heart I caused in them.
Gospel Challenge:
It will delight my soul to say good morning to someone estranged and bring honor and gladness to my Heavenly Father. Let the bread you eat do the work for you. He’s a gift. All you have to do is ask. “Help me, Jesus, to want to forgive.”
Fr. Rick Pilger, IC
