Up next in 10
Welcome to our daily encounter with the Word of God! Today’s readings invite us to reflect on the power of intercession, the gift of forgiveness, and the strength of prayer. We’ll meditate on the Book of Genesis (Genesis 18:20-32), the Letter to the Colossians (Colossians 2:12-14), and the Gospel of Luke (Luke 11:1-13).
First Reading (Genesis 18:20-32):
In this powerful scene, Abraham intercedes with boldness before God for the city of Sodom. In a compassionate and persistent dialogue, he pleads for mercy based on the presence of the righteous. This moment shows us God’s merciful heart and the strength of intercessory prayer.
Abraham teaches us to pray with faith and trust for others and for the world. God listens and responds with mercy.
Second Reading (Colossians 2:12-14):
St. Paul reminds us that through baptism, we were buried with Christ and raised by faith. Jesus canceled our debt and set us free from sin. The new life we receive in Him is a gift of grace and should be lived with gratitude and commitment.
This reading strengthens our Christian identity as redeemed children walking in the light.
Gospel (Luke 11:1-13):
In today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches His disciples how to pray by giving them the Our Father. He encourages prayer that is trusting, persistent, and intimate with the Father.
Jesus assures us that those who ask, receive; those who seek, find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened. The greatest gift of all is the Holy Spirit, which the Father gives generously.
Reflection and Call to Conversion
Today’s readings invite us to build a deep and sincere life of prayer: intercessory like Abraham, rooted in faith and forgiveness as Paul teaches, and trusting as Jesus shows us. God always hears the sincere heart.
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:04
[Music]
0:07
Reading from the book of Genesis. In
0:10
those days, the Lord said to Abraham,
0:12
"The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah
0:14
grew great, and their sin was very
0:16
grave. I will go down to see whether
0:19
their deeds are in keeping with the
0:20
outcry that has reached me." From there,
0:23
the men went to Sodom, while Abraham
0:26
remained in the presence of the Lord.
0:28
Then Abraham approached and said, "Are
0:31
you really going to destroy the
0:32
righteous with the wicked? If there were
0:34
50 righteous people in the city, would
0:37
you destroy them? Would you not spare
0:39
the place for the sake of the 50
0:41
righteous who live there? Far be it from
0:44
you to do this, to put the righteous to
0:46
death with the wicked, as if the
0:48
righteous were equal to the wicked. Far
0:50
be it from you. Would not the judge of
0:53
all the earth do justice?" The Lord
0:56
replied, "If I find 50 righteous people
0:58
in Sodom, I will spare the whole city
1:01
for their sake." Abraham continued, "I
1:04
am being bold to speak to my Lord, I who
1:07
am dust and ashes. If there were five
1:10
missing from the 50 righteous, will you
1:12
destroy the whole city for the sake of
1:14
five?" The Lord replied, "I will not
1:18
destroy it if I find 45 righteous people
1:20
there." Abraham persisted and said,
1:24
"What if there were 40?" He replied, "I
1:27
will not do it for the sake of 40."
1:30
Abraham again insisted, "Let not my Lord
1:33
be angry if I speak again, what if there
1:36
are only 30 righteous?"
1:38
He replied, "Neither will I do it if I
1:41
find 30." Abraham again insisted, "Since
1:45
I have dared to speak to my Lord, what
1:47
if there are 20 righteous?" He replied,
1:51
"I will not destroy it for the sake of
1:53
20." Abraham said, "May my Lord not be
1:56
angry if I speak just once more. What if
1:59
there are only 10?" He replied, "For the
2:02
sake of the 10, I will not destroy it."
2:05
The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
2:14
[Music]
2:17
Reading from the letter of St. Paul to
2:19
the Colossians. Brothers and sisters,
2:22
you were buried with Christ in baptism.
2:25
You were also raised with him through
2:27
faith in the working of God, who raised
2:29
Christ from the dead. You were dead in
2:31
your sins, and your bodies were not
2:33
circumcised until God brought you to
2:35
life with Christ and forgave us all our
2:37
sins. There was a debt against us, but
2:40
he canceled it despite the legal
2:43
obligations and eliminated it by nailing
2:45
it to the cross. The word of the Lord.
2:49
Thanks be to God.
2:51
[Music]
2:59
Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
3:01
Christ according to St. Luke. Glory to
3:04
you, Lord. Jesus was praying in a
3:07
certain place. When he finished, one of
3:10
his disciples asked him, "Lord, teach us
3:12
to pray as John taught his disciples."
3:16
Jesus answered, "When you pray, say,
3:19
'Father, hallowed be your name. Your
3:22
kingdom come. Give us each day our daily
3:25
bread, and forgive us our sins, for we
3:28
also forgive everyone who is in debt to
3:30
us. And do not lead us into temptation."
3:33
And Jesus said to him, "If one of you
3:36
has a friend and goes to him at midnight
3:37
and says to him,"Friend,
3:39
lend me three loaves, for a friend of
3:42
mine has come to me on a journey, and I
3:44
have nothing to set before him." And he
3:46
answers from inside, "Don't bother me. I
3:49
have locked the door, and my children
3:50
and I are in bed. I cannot get up to
3:53
give you the loaves." I tell you, even
3:55
if he doesn't get up to give them
3:57
because he is your friend, at least
3:59
because of his impertinence, he will get
4:00
up and give you as much as you need.
4:02
Therefore, I tell you, ask and you will
4:04
receive. Seek and you will find. Knock
4:08
and it will be open to you. For everyone
4:11
who asks receives. Everyone who seeks
4:13
finds. And to everyone who knocks it
4:16
will be opened. Would any of you, a
4:19
father, if his son asks for a fish, give
4:22
him a snake? Or if he asks for an egg,
4:25
give him a scorpion? If you then being
4:28
evil know how to give good gifts to your
4:30
children, how much more will the Father
4:32
in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those
4:34
who ask him? Word of salvation. Glory to
4:38
you, Lord.
4:42
[Music]
4:48
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
4:51
imagine yourself standing before a
4:53
powerful king surrounded by his riches
4:55
and armed guards. You are a simple
4:58
subject dressed in humble clothes with
5:01
hands calloused from work. Normally you
5:04
would never dare approach such majesty.
5:07
But suddenly this king looks at you and
5:09
says, "Come here my son, my daughter.
5:12
Tell me what is in your heart. Ask me
5:15
for whatever you wish." This image
5:18
transports us to the heart of today's
5:20
readings where we discover the
5:22
extraordinary mystery of prayer, our
5:24
ability to dialogue intimately with
5:26
Almighty God. In the first reading, we
5:29
witness one of the most extraordinary
5:31
conversations recorded in scripture.
5:33
Abraham, a mere human being, is
5:36
literally negotiating with God over the
5:38
fate of Sodom and Gomorrah. Perhaps
5:41
there are 50 righteous people in the
5:42
city, Abraham argues. And when God
5:45
agrees to spare the city for 50
5:47
righteous people, Abraham dares to go
5:50
further, what if five of the 50
5:52
righteous are missing? What audacity?
5:56
What intimacy? Here is a man who not
5:58
only speaks to God, but who feels free
6:01
to question, to intercede, to insist.
6:04
Abraham continues his heavenly bargain.
6:07
40, 30, 20, and finally 10 righteous
6:12
people. And at each step of this
6:14
journey, God patiently responds,
6:16
demonstrating a divine willingness to
6:18
hear and consider the pleas of his
6:20
faithful servant. This scene reveals
6:22
something profound to us about the
6:24
nature of prayer. It is not simply a
6:27
monologue where we pour out our worries
6:29
into the air, hoping someone is
6:31
listening. It's a dialogue, a real
6:34
conversation with a God who is genuinely
6:36
interested in our concerns and in the
6:37
others for whom we intercede. But let's
6:40
notice something else in Abraham's
6:42
prayer. He's not praying for himself.
6:45
His concern is for the righteous in
6:46
Sodom, for the innocent who might perish
6:49
along with the guilty. Abraham teaches
6:52
us that true prayer often takes us
6:53
beyond ourselves, expanding our hearts
6:56
to embrace the needs of others. How
6:58
often are our prayers focused
7:00
exclusively on our own needs? God, give
7:03
me this. Help me with that. There's
7:06
nothing wrong with bringing our personal
7:08
needs to God. He wants to hear about
7:10
everything that concerns us. But
7:12
Abraham's prayer challenges us to expand
7:15
our vision, to intercede for others, to
7:18
become participants in God's work in the
7:20
world. Moving on to the second reading,
7:23
Paul offers us a revolutionary
7:25
perspective on our standing before God.
7:28
You were buried with Christ in baptism
7:30
and raised with him through faith in the
7:32
working of God.
7:34
What a radical transformation. We are no
7:37
longer strangers or distant subjects.
7:40
Through baptism, we have been united
7:42
with the very life of Christ. Paul
7:45
continues with a powerful image. God
7:48
cancelled the document of debt that
7:49
stood against us by nailing it to the
7:52
cross. Imagine an ancient registry
7:55
office filled with documents of unpaid
7:58
debts. Each of us would have a
8:00
considerable stack of papers listing our
8:02
failures, our sins, our inadequacies.
8:06
But Paul tells us that God took all
8:08
these documents and nailed them to the
8:10
cross with Christ. This truth completely
8:13
transforms our understanding of prayer.
8:15
We do not approach God as desperate
8:17
debtors begging for mercy. We approach
8:21
as beloved children whose debt has
8:23
already been paid, whose position in the
8:25
family is already secure. This changes
8:28
everything about how we pray. It is this
8:31
truth that Jesus teaches in the gospel
8:33
when his disciples ask Lord teach us to
8:36
pray. Jesus answer the Lord's prayer is
8:41
revolutionary in its simplicity and
8:43
intimacy. It begins with father not oh
8:46
almighty and awesome God but father a
8:50
word of intimacy trust and family. Our
8:53
father in heaven hallowed be your name.
8:56
This first petition sets the tone for
8:58
the entire prayer. We begin not with our
9:01
needs, but with the recognition of God's
9:04
holiness. It's as if we were saying,
9:07
"Father, first and foremost, we want to
9:09
honor who you are. Your kingdom come,
9:12
your will be done on earth as it is in
9:15
heaven." Here lies the essence of
9:18
Christian prayer, alignment with God's
9:20
purposes. We are not trying to convince
9:23
God to do our will, but asking that his
9:25
perfect and loving will be manifested in
9:27
our earthly reality. Only then does
9:30
Jesus teach us to bring our needs. Give
9:33
us this day our daily bread. Note the
9:36
simplicity of this petition. We don't
9:39
ask for riches or luxuries, but for
9:41
enough for today. There is a humility
9:44
here, a recognition of our daily
9:46
dependence on God. Forgive us our sins
9:50
as we also forgive everyone who is
9:52
indebted to us. What a profound
9:55
connection Jesus establishes here. Our
9:58
vertical relationship with God is
10:00
intrinsically connected to our
10:01
horizontal relationships with others. We
10:04
cannot expect to receive forgiveness if
10:06
we are not willing to offer it and lead
10:09
us not into temptation. This is a prayer
10:12
of humility acknowledging our weakness
10:14
and need for divine protection. We pray
10:17
this not because God would tempt us to
10:19
evil, but because we recognize that
10:22
without his grace, we are vulnerable to
10:24
the seductions of the world. But Jesus
10:27
does not stop with the Lord's prayer. He
10:29
continues with a parable that reveals
10:31
even more about the nature of persistent
10:34
prayer. A man goes to a friend's house
10:36
at midnight, asking for bread for an
10:38
unexpected visitor. The friend initially
10:41
resists, but finally grants the request
10:44
because of his persistence.
10:46
Ask and it will be given to you. Seek
10:49
and you will find. Knock and the door
10:52
will be open to you. Jesus promises.
10:55
These are not magic formulas but
10:57
invitations to a persistent and trusting
10:59
relationship with God. Prayer is not a
11:02
heavenly slot machine where we insert
11:04
our petitions and wait for the desired
11:06
results. It is a growing relationship of
11:09
trust and intimacy. And then Jesus
11:11
offers the most touching analogy. Which
11:14
of you fathers will give a stone to
11:16
their son who asks for bread? Or if he
11:18
asks for a fish, will give him a
11:21
serpent? The image is clear. If we being
11:24
imperfect know how to give good gifts to
11:26
our children, how much more will our
11:28
heavenly father give good things to
11:30
those who ask him? My dear brothers and
11:33
sisters, these readings invite us to a
11:35
revolution in our prayer life. Like
11:38
Abraham, we are called to a bold
11:40
intimacy with God, not hesitating to
11:43
bring our deepest concerns, especially
11:45
our intercessions for others. As Paul
11:48
reminds us, our standing before God has
11:51
been radically transformed. We are not
11:53
spiritual beggars, but adopted children
11:56
into the divine family. This truth
11:59
should imbue our prayers with confidence
12:01
and expectation. And as Jesus teaches
12:04
us, prayer is simultaneously simple and
12:07
profound. Simple enough for a child to
12:09
pray our father, yet profound enough to
12:12
sustain a lifetime of spiritual growth.
12:15
Imagine what it would be like if each of
12:17
us fully embraced this truth. If we
12:20
prayed not with fear or formality, but
12:22
with the confidence of beloved children.
12:25
If we interceded for others with the
12:27
persistence of Abraham. If we aligned
12:30
our wills with God's will, trusting in
12:32
his goodness and wisdom, what a
12:34
transformation this would bring to our
12:36
personal lives, what an impact it would
12:39
have on our families, our workplaces,
12:42
our communities. Prayer is not an escape
12:45
from reality, but the means by which
12:47
God's reality invades and transforms our
12:50
daily existence. So today, I invite you
12:53
to rediscover the power and privilege of
12:55
prayer. Begin each day by talking to
12:58
your heavenly father. Intercede for
13:01
others with the boldness of Abraham.
13:03
Pray with the simplicity and confidence
13:05
that Jesus taught. Remember that your
13:08
debts were canceled on the cross and
13:10
that you approach God as beloved
13:12
children. And as you pray, remember
13:14
Jesus promise. Everyone who asks
13:17
receives. He who seeks finds. And to him
13:20
who knocks the door is opened. Not
13:23
always in the way we expect or at the
13:25
time we desire, but always according to
13:27
the perfect love and infinite wisdom of
13:29
our heavenly father. May the Holy Spirit
13:32
teach us to pray as Jesus prayed. May
13:34
our hearts be enlarged to embrace the
13:36
needs of the world. And may we
13:38
experience daily the joy of an intimate
13:40
relationship with the one who loved us
13:41
first. May the grace of our Lord Jesus
13:44
Christ, the love of God the Father, and
13:47
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be
13:49
with you all today and always. Amen.
13:52
[Music]
14:01
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
14:04
battle. Be our protection against the
14:06
wickedness and snares of the devil. May
14:09
God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
14:12
thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by
14:15
the power of God, cast into hell Satan
14:19
and all the evil spirits who prowl
14:21
throughout the world seeking the ruin of
14:23
souls. Amen.
14:28
[Music]
14:45
[Music]