In today’s reading the Lord speaks to His people through the Prophet Jeremiah. In Jeremiah 2:23 the Lord says. “Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk-in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you.” The Lord was calling the Israelites to obey His commands to receive a blessing.

However, instead of following God’s commands and getting a blessing, the people did as they wanted. It is not only them, but us as well. If we follow God’s commands, we may have saved ourselves from pain and suffering. Why is it hard for us to follow the Lord? The bible tells us the reason for this is our sinfulness. Everybody is born sinful. St. Paul calls us this the nature of the flesh. Today, the Lord is calling us to sit at His feet in personal prayer, hear His voice and obey His commands. He is calling us to recognize the nature of sin and disobedience within us and to say no to it. The psalmist recalls what happened to the Israelites when they did not obey the call of the Lord. “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness,where your ancestors tested me; they tried me, though they had seen what I did” (Ps. 95:8-9). The people saw what miracles and wonders the Lord did for them when He led them out of Egypt, but they could not remain faithful to the Lord and His commandments.
In today’s Gospel proclamation, the Lord Jesus warns His audience not to ignore this invitation of the Lord to seek His face, hear His voice and listen to His commands. The Lord says in Luke 11:21-23, “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armour in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.” When we are not strong in the Lord, even a small problem or difficulty can disarm us. We can fall to pieces each time we face a crisis. We become like this man the Lord Jesus speaks of; who is overpowered by attacks and is robbed of his things. But if we have sat in the presence of our Father and spent time with Him daily through personal prayer, we will be able to face even the toughest storms because He will carry us through. St. Paul speaks of this in Ephesians 6:10-11, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”

Prayer: Abba Father, I pray for the grace to fight my battles on my knees. Clothe me with Your armour that I may overcome what comes my way. Amen.