June 21
Our Lady of Matarieh
at Grand Cairo
Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today's Gospel: Matthew 10:26-33
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| Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. |
He knew exactly what they
were afraid of.
Jesus was sending His
disciples out into a world that was not going to welcome them. He knew what was
coming: the resistance, the rejection, the moments when standing up for what
you believed would cost you something real. And before they took a single step,
He looked at them and said, Do not be afraid. Then He dismantled the fear piece by piece.
Are not two sparrows sold for
a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father knowing
it. Even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid. You are
worth more than many sparrows.
God tracks sparrows. God
counts hairs. If He maintains that level of attention to the smallest details
of creation, do you honestly believe He loses track of you the moment things
get uncomfortable? The moment someone pushes back? The moment the room goes
quiet when you say what you believe?
And then Jesus said the line
that makes everyone sit up straight:
Everyone who acknowledges me
before others, I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies
me before others I will deny before my Father.
Fear has tried to silence me
more than once in my life. At a job years ago, I prayed my rosary every morning, walking the floor before our day began, praying for the safety of the workers
and the success of the man who owned the business. One day, he called me into
his office and told me to stop. I never stopped. I just kept going quietly, counted my Hail Marys on my fingers and under my breath because nobody tells
me to stop praying for them. Another time, an email arrived in my inbox, written
in a foreign language, a masked figure holding a weapon, my name on it. I read
it. I blocked it. I kept going. If they hated Jesus, they'll hate the people
who love Him. Jesus told us that straight out. I figured I was in good company.
Fear never won a single round with me because I decided a long time ago that I
would rather spend eternity with Jesus than one comfortable moment pretending I
don't know Him.
Our Lady acknowledged Jesus
before everyone, and it cost her everything a mother can lose. She stood at the
foot of that cross in full public view when everyone else had scattered and hid
behind locked doors. She didn't calculate the risk. She didn't weigh the
consequences. Because that is what love that has no fear in it looks like.
Something to sit with today:
Has fear ever tried to
silence you about your faith or love for the Lord, and in that moment, did you
speak or did you stay quiet? What would you do differently today?
Rosary Man Jim 🌹
Freely given. Freely shared.
