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Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A)

Advice, bible, Blog, Catholic, Christian, Cycle A, lectio divina, Ordinary Time, Patreon, philosophy, Prayer, Psalm, reflection, Psalms, psalm, Religion, scripture, theology, weekly, SundayMANNA - Food For ThoughtCatholic, Jesus, Christ, faith, God, Church, Pope, rosary, Vatican, Christian, Roman, mary, ministry, advice, inspirational, Prayer, pray, religion, bible, religious, atheist, atheism, agnostic, agnosticism, theology, saints, holy, lifeteen, prolife, pro, life, teen, focus, podcast, usccb, net, ministries, manna, food, for, thought, mannaf4t, f4t, vlog, blog, youth, young, adult, OC, Orange, County, California, CA, socal, southern, patreon, come, Spirit, Matt, Matthew, Zemanek, Jenna, Mish, DiBernardo, Saint, Timothy, weekly, psalm, reflection, scripture, psalm 63Comment
Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A)

“My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.” - Psalm 63

I have a vivid memory of being twelve years old in East LA.

I was staying at a friend’s house for the weekend, which for some reason included venturing down to LA from our hometown in the mountains to a junkyard. I do not remember why we were there, but after a few hours my friend and I were sent to grab lunch. We followed the directions we were given to a taco stand a few blocks away. As we devoured our tacos on the walk back, we found two fried jalapeños in our bag. As soon as we could say “double-dog dare,” my friend and I each ate one.

Up until this moment, I had never eaten anything particularly spicy. Needless to say, we had bitten off more than we could chew. It was already a hot, humid summer day outside, and now my face felt like it was on fire. We had nothing to drink, because we were told they would have drinks for us at the auto yard when we got back. So, we ran back as fast as we could, choking back tears and pain, only to find warm Pepsi waiting for us to drink. Without thinking, we each chugged warm, carbonated cups of regret as the soda amplified the tingling in our mouths and throats. My mouth burned for three more miserable hours until I got home and had a cold glass of milk. I hate milk, but I welcomed it like my very salvation that day.

This season of life has been a shock to many of our systems. In the midst of COVID, division, and an election season, we can cling to control, opinions, candidates, and other things that we think will make everything better. Nothing will fulfill us or satisfy our thirst for hope but Jesus. We cannot quench it on our own, and if we try we will likely only made it worse.

What if you received this time as a gift?

What if God is using this to help you trust Him?

What if you accept that God will satisfy every desire of your heart?

Every time you take a drink this week, invite God to relieve you of your anxiety, worry, doubt, depression, despair or hopelessness. Turn every sip into a prayer. Invite the Lord who promised “living water” to the woman at the well (John 4) to quench your thirst.

We are praying for you this week.

See you in the Eucharist.

Matt

MANNA is a ministry creating blogs and podcasts to encourage and inspire others to grow in relationship with Jesus Christ and live out their Catholic faith.