Daily Gospel Reflection for August 3, 2015

Today’s Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21

Jesus has just heard that his cousin, John the Baptist, has been beheaded. In His humanity, Jesus must have been heartbroken because all He wanted to do was go somewhere quiet where He could be alone and pray, but the crowds followed Him.
Knowing that the people were hungry for His presence and teaching, “He had compassion on them,” even though He wanted to be alone. He cured the sick who had followed Him and performed a miracle of multiplying a paltry amount of loaves and fishes.
What great love our Lord has for us and how much He teaches us by His actions. Even though He is busy and very much in demand, Jesus shows us that it is important to go “to a place apart” and pray. This is the only way to recharge our spirit. But our prayer must be combined with service and sacrifice for those who need our time, presence, and love.

Ponder:

Are you resolved to seek out “a place apart,” whether in your heart or in a physical space, so that you can pray and be recharged to carry on the work God wills for you?

Pray:

Dear Lord, help me to recognize and enter into the quiet places where I may be with You. Refresh me so that, filled with the Holy Spirit, I may carry out Your work.

We thank our friends at The Word Among Us for providing our gospel reflection team with copies of Abide In My Word 2015: Mass Readings at Your Fingertips. To pray the daily gospels with this wonderful resource, visit The Word Among Us.

Copyright 2015 Terry McDermott