Tuesday in the Third Week of Lent
SPINACH DAY
Daniel,
Chapter 5, Verse 19
Because
he made him so great, the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Whomever he willed, he would
kill or let live; whomever he willed, he would exalt or humble.
The “He” we are talking about is King
Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel here explains to Nebuchadnezzar’s grandson that
"the Most High God" gave Nebuchadnezzar power and greatness, which
allowed him to do whatever he wanted as king. But God proved to Nebuchadnezzar
that only God was really in charge, by making him live in the wild with the
animals for seven years and forcing Nebuchadnezzar to acknowledge God. Yet,
says Daniel, Belshazzar, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, failed to learn the same lesson and become humble.
Only humble leaders can be secure in their own power.
Only secure leaders give power to others. But what does it mean to be
secure? Using the analogy of personal finance, let’s look at what’s missing
from the lives of insecure leaders. This will help us better understand where
security comes from and why it matters. Paupers, debtors, and hoarders lack the
real or perceived financial security necessary to give generously to others.
·
Leaders without purpose are like paupers. Paupers have no source of income
aside from the financial assistance they receive from someone else. Penniless
and dependent, they’re clearly unable to help others financially. They have no
passion, low energy, and little drive to grow in influence. Usually, their only
source of power is the position they have been given by somebody else. In terms
of personal authority, they’re impoverished.
·
Leaders without authenticity are like debtors.
Debtors may have
nice salaries, but their expenses exceed their income. They’ve maxed out credit
cards and taken out hefty loans. Consequently, they’re stuck paying exorbitant
interest rates on the amounts they have borrowed. In an upside-down financial
situation, they’re in no position to give generously to others. Someone deeply
in debt may appear wealthy, even though they’re secretly on the verge of
bankruptcy. The closer you inspect their life, the more signs of dysfunction
you see. Similarly, inauthentic leaders may seem to have all the tools to lead
with excellence. However, they are missing the crucial component of moral
authority. They do not practice the values they preach, and they prefer to keep
others at arm’s length to hide their shortcomings.
·
Leaders without humility resemble
hoarders. Hoarders
are sitting on a pile of wealth, but they think only of protecting it rather
than of sharing it with others. They have the plentiful resources but are
unwilling to part with them. Having put their talents to work, they enjoy a
significant amount of power. However, they’re worried about others taking it
from them or gaining more of it than they have. So, instead of using their
influence to empower others, they keep it for their own benefit.
As
leaders, we can only lift others up when we’re standing on a firm foundation.
Purpose, authenticity, and humility give us a secure, stable base from which to
lead. Purpose is the answer to the question: why do you want to lead? The best
leaders have a purpose that is greater than they are. Their “why” involves more
than accumulating money or seeking self-actualization. They see leadership as a
calling rather than a career, relishing the opportunity to use their unique
talents to accomplish something significant that will outlive them.
Authenticity means being comfortable in your own skin. Authentic leaders have
self-awareness, self-respect, self-confidence, and emotional maturity. They
prize integrity above image, and they seek to build trust with others on the
basis of their personal character. Humility is often wrongly associated
depreciating and downgrading ourselves. However, true humility flows out of
gratitude and comes when we credit God for our blessings and others for our
successes. As Rick Warren teaches, a humble leader doesn’t deny his strengths;
he’s simply honest about his limitations. Humble leaders feel no need to
trumpet their status, are unthreatened by criticism, and revel in the
accomplishments of others. They put their pride aside so that others have room
to shine.
EPISTLE, iv. Kings v. 1 15.
In
those days: Naaman, general of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man
with his master, and honorable: for by him the Lord gave deliverance to Syria:
and he was a valiant man and rich, but a leper. Now there had gone out robbers
from Syria and had led away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid,
and she waited upon Naamaii’s wife. And she said to her mistress: I wish my
master had been with the prophet, that is in Samaria: he would certainly have
healed him of the leprosy which he hath. Then Naaman went in to his lord, and
told him, saying: Thus, and thus said the girl from the land of Israel. And the
king of Syria said to him: Go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.
And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand
pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment, and brought the letter to the king
of Israel, in these words: When thou shalt receive this letter, know that I
have sent to thee Naaman my servant, that thou mayest heal him of his leprosy.
And when the king of Israel had read the letter, he rent his garments, and said:
Am I God, to be able to kill and give life, that this man hath sent to me, to
heal a man of his leprosy? mark, and see how he seeketh occasions against me.
And when Eliseus the man of God had heard this, to wit, that the king of Israel
had rent his garments, he sent to him, saying: Why hast thou rent thy garments?
let him come to me, and let him know that there is a prophet in Israel. So
Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of the house of
Eliseus: and Eliseus sent a messenger to him saying: Go, and wash seven times
in the Jordan, and thy flesh shall recover health, and thou shalt be clean.
Naaman was angry and went away, saying I thought he would have come out to me,
and standing- would have invoked the name of the Lord his God, and touched with
his hand the place of the leprosy, and healed me. Are not the Abana and the
Pharphar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel, that I may
wash in them, arid be made clean?
So,
as he turned, and was going away with indignation, his servants came to him,
and said to him: Father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, surely,
thou shouldst have done it: how much rather what he now hath said to thee:
Wash, and thou shalt be clean?
Then
he went down, aiid washed in the Jordan seven times: accord ing to the word of
the man of God, and his flesh was restored, like the flesh of a little child,
and he was made clean. And returning to the man of God with all his train, he came,
and stood before him, and said: In truth, I know there is no other God in all
the earth, but only in Israel.
GOSPEL. Luke iv. 23-30.
At
that time Jesus said to the Pharisees: Doubtless you will say to Me this similitude:
Physician, heal Thyself: as great things as we have heard done in Capharnaum,
do also here in Thy own country. And He said: Amen I say to you, that no
prophet is accepted in his own country. In truth I say to you, there were many
widows in the days of Elias in Israel, when heaven was shut up three years and
six months, when there was a great famine throughout all the earth. And to none
of them was Elias sent, but to Sarepta of Sidon, to a widow woman. And there
were many lepers in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet: and none of them
was cleansed but Naaman the Syrian. And all they in the synagogue, hearing
these things, were filled with anger. And they rose up and thrust Him out of
the city: and they brought Him to the brow of the hill, whereon their city was
built, that they might cast Him down headlong. But He passing through the midst
of them, went His way.
Lenten
Calendar[3]
Read: The Seven
Penitential Psalms, Day One:
(During times when we wish to express
repentance, and especially during Lent, it is customary to pray the seven
penitential psalms. The penitential designation of these psalms dates back to
the seventh century. Prayerfully reciting these psalms will help us to
recognize our sinfulness, express our sorrow and ask for God’s forgiveness.)
Today we will
focus on Psalm 6.
Reflect: Read this
reflection on Psalm 6—Prayer
in Distress.
Pray: “Have pity on me,
LORD, for I am weak; heal me, LORD, for my bones
are shuddering.” (Ps 6:3, NABRE)
Act: In this psalm, the
psalmist proclaims his weakness before God, with tears and sighing. Yet he
lifts his prayers to the Lord, confident in the Lord, who is merciful.
Listen
to a recording of
Psalm 6 as you read along with your Bible.
It’s not just Popeye who will be strong to
the finish on Spinach Day, but
everyone who chooses to celebrate the day by consuming some of this leafy green
plant will get to join in the health benefits as well! Packed with nutrients
such as Iron, Vitamin A and Calcium, spinach is known for being a healthy part
of a balanced diet – but do we eat enough of it? If not, why not try a new
recipe on Spinach Day? Sauté it in olive oil and a little bit of garlic – or
what about a baby spinach salad with mozzarella cheese, avocado slices and
crispy bacon crumbled on top? Delicious! You can purée spinach up and hide it
in soups and pizza sauces for the finicky eaters in your life who might not eat
it straight up. So, no excuses – get your leafy greens down you on Spinach Day!
Modern man and the media often portray persons that
fast as deranged, passé or even ignorant. However, fasting and bodily
discipline are truly the marks of a man or woman of mature intellect which has
mastery over not only the mind but also the body and spirit. St. Paul put it in
stronger terms, “put to death therefore what is earthly in you (Col. 3:5).”
Jesus has also said, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and
take up his cross and follow me.” Christ knew we become attached to created
things and to the pleasure they bring us. St. Augustine said that sin begins as
a turning away from God and a turning toward lesser goods. When we sin, we
don’t choose evil. We choose something less than God and His will. Our bodies
want more than they need, so we must give them less than they want. Our bodies must
be subject to our reason—or our reason will soon be subjected to our bodies.
St. Paul went even further. “I pommel my body and subdue it” (1 Cor. 9:27).
Nevertheless, our goal should be to let our reason/soul cooperate with the Holy
Spirit.
Ø
The
soul can try and mitigate the urges of the body. Things that look good, taste
good and feel good are stimulating and addictive. Most of us live life with our
body in the driver’s seat. The soul just can’t compete. And so, the soul tries
to negotiate reasonably, and encourages moderation.
Ø
Or,
the soul can choose to reject the body and abhor anything associated with
materialism. The soul-driven person would then rebel against society’s shallow and
false veneers. Simplicity and ascetism become the ultimate goals of the soul.
Ø
The
third scenario is not a compromise between the first two. It is an entirely new
approach, where the body and soul learn to work together. The soul neither
leans towards the body nor rejects it. It
does not react; it pro-acts. In a proactive position, the soul directs and
channels the body’s inclination in a constructive way. In this last approach,
instead of repressing the body’s needs, the soul views them as an opportunity
to serve God in a whole new way.
Using the third approach we should fast with a purpose
like Moses or Elijah for example before going into God’s presence or to
strengthen us or for the benefit of others. Jesus fasted not because He needed
to, but as a model for us. We should make self-sacrifices in an effort to make
others happy or out of love for our God to share in his plan of salvation. By
dying to self, daily, we prepare ourselves for our own moment of death.
Saints are veterans of the spiritual war that continues to rage in this world. Their insights, born of long experience in combat with the Enemy, can make us wise and strong in battle.
·
God has fashioned and shaped only one enmity, and that an
irreconcilable one, which will endure and even increase, until the end: It is
that between the Virgin Mary and the Devil, between the children and servants
of the Blessed Virgin and the children and accomplices of Satan; so that the
most terrible of the enemies of Satan created by God is Mary, his Blessed
Mother. ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT
·
Men do not fear a powerful, hostile army as much as
the powers of hell fear the name and protection of Mary. ST. BONAVENTURE
·
You, O Lady, by the simple invocation of your most powerful name,
give security to your servants against all the assaults of the Enemy. ST.
GERMANUS
·
By invoking the name of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under
Pontius Pilate, Satan is driven out of men. ST. IRENAEUS
·
We are all inclined to sin, my children; we are idle, greedy,
sensual, given to the pleasures of the flesh. We want to know everything, to
learn everything, to see everything. We must watch over our mind, over our
heart, and over our senses, for these are the gates by which the Devil
penetrates. See, he prowls round us incessantly; his only occupation in this
world is to seek companions for himself. All our life he will lay snares for
us; he will try to make us yield to temptations. We must, on our side, do all
we can to defeat and resist him. We can do nothing by ourselves, children. But
we can do everything with the help of the good God. Let us pray Him to deliver
us from this enemy of our salvation, or to give strength to fight against him.
With the Name of Jesus, we shall overcome the demons; we shall put them to
flight. With this name, though they may sometimes dare to attack us, our
battles will be victories, and our victories will be crowns for heaven, all
brilliant with precious stones. ST. JOHN VIANNEY
"Read
these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things
that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a
father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will
only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so
you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in
the end you will be a more worthy soul."
I
forbid you to think any more about it. — Instead, bless God, who has given back
life to your soul.
Daily Devotions
[2]
Goffines Devout Instructions, 1896
[5] Hahn, Scott, Signs of Life; 40 Catholic
Customs and their biblical roots. Chap. 27. Fasting and Mortification.
[7]
Thigpen, Paul. Manual for Spiritual Warfare. TAN Books.
[8]http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-point-1.htm
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