BY THE FINGER OF GOD
"Listen to My
voice; then I will be your God and you shall be My people. Walk in all the ways
that I command you, so that you may prosper" (Jer 7:23).
We need the best
protection, which comes by the Finger of God and brings lasting security to our
lives. Scripture tells us that true peace, joy, and security come to those of
us who trust in our Heavenly Father and obey His word. The struggle between
choosing to do good or bad, yielding to our own will or God's will, God's way
or our own way, cannot be won by human strength or will power alone, no matter
how many motivational speakers we listen to.
Today in the Gospel
of Luke, Jesus makes it clear that there are no neutral parties. We are either
for Jesus or against Him, for the kingdom of God or against it. We can live in
a kingdom of truth and light or in one of sin and darkness. If we want to live
in freedom from sin, then our homes, our lives, and all we possess must be
occupied by our Savior, Jesus, who is the Master of our homes, hearts, minds
and wills.
As we heard from
the prophet Jeremiah, "Listen to My voice; then I will be your God and you
shall be My people. Walk in all the ways that I command you, so that you may
prosper" (Jer 7:23).
The Invitatory is
traditionally used as a "wake up" song for Morning Prayer in the
Liturgy of the Hours, calling us to pay attention to the word of God. "Oh,
that today you hear His voice:/ Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,/ as on
the day of Massah in the desert" (95:8).
When we "wake
up," what do you and I listen to?