40 DAYS FOR LIFE: DAY 6, Daily Devotional

Daily Devotional by: Fr. Frank Pavone

Love those who cannot repay you

SCRIPTURE:

"Jesus said to the chief of the Pharisees who had invited him to dinner: 'Whenever you give a lunch or dinner, do not invite your friends or brothers or relatives or wealthy neighbors. They might invite you in return and thus repay you. No, when you have a reception, invite beggars and the crippled, the lame and the blind. You should be pleased that they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid in the resurrection of the just.'" -- Luke 14:12-14.

REFLECTION:

"Eschatology" is the study of the "last things" --death, judgment, heaven and hell. Our faith speaks of these matters in order to train us to think of them as real. The more we do that, the more strength we find to shape our lives today in such a way that death and judgment will bring us to the joys of heaven. I call it "eschatological realism," that is, the habit of taking into account today the "last things" in a way that's just as real and influential on us as today's weather.

Jesus advocated "eschatological realism" in the passage quoted above. He said that a consideration of what we would receive on the day of the resurrection should influence whom we invite to our next dinner party.And what he said also applies to our pro-life work. After all, the principle is the same. Just as we should be happy that the beggars whom we welcome to dinner cannot repay us, so we should be happy that the unborn children, for whom we speak and work and fight, also cannot repay us.

"You should be pleased that they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid in the resurrection of the just."

The unborn are even less able to repay us than the beggars and the crippled and the lame and the blind. At least these people know that we are loving them, and can say "Thank you" and can pray for us. But the unborn cannot do any of those things.Indeed, love for the unborn is the most selfless form of love. Nothing comes from them in return.

PRAYER:

Lord, your words open to me the real meaning of my actions, and they give me the strength and motivation to participate in this special campaign for life. Yes, I want to love the children who cannot love me back. They do not know that I am coming to the place where their lives are threatened, and that I am praying and sacrificing to save them. But you know it, O Lord, and on the day of the resurrection, they will know it too. I look forward to embracing them on that blessed day of the victory of life. Meanwhile, throughout these 40 days and throughout my life, grant that I may love them well! In Jesus' name, AMEN.

Comments

  1. Jean,

    Thanks for sharing this daily prayer. I'm not able to get out to pray at the mill, so this really helps.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You're welcome, Susan.
    I post this for the benefit of those who are unable to get out to the abortion mills and pray for whatever reason. Some of the strongest prayer warriors are homeschooling moms, those with chronic health problems, and those who are working during the day carrying out the everyday duties of their vocations. Not all of us are called to be there, but we are all called to pray (and fast in our own unique way) for an end to abotion and sins against life. We are all called to pray for those who are entrapped in the culture of death.

    ReplyDelete

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