Scripture for meditation: Jeremiah 31:3
“I have loved you with an everlasting love, and constant is my affection for you.”
Scripture for reflection: Luke 20:17
... But he looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written: “‘the
stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’?”
Psalm 118
Give thanks to the
Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, For His love
endures forever. Let the sons of Israel say: “His love endures forever. Let the
sons of Aaron say, “His love endures forever.” Let those who fear the Lord say:
“His love endures forever.”
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in men: it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
The nations all encompassed me; in the Lord’s name I crushed them. They compassed me, compassed me about; in the Lord’s name I crushed them. They compassed me about like bees; they blazed like a fire among thorns. In the Lord’s name I crushed them.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
I was hard-pressed and was falling, but the Lord came to help me. The Lord is my strength and my song; He is my savior. There are shouts of joy and victory in the tents of the just.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
The Lord’s right hand has triumphed; His right hand raised me. The Lord’s right hand has triumphed. I shall not die; I shall live and recount his deeds. I was punished, I was punished by the Lord; But not doomed to die.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
Open to me the gates of Holiness: I will enter and give thanks. This is the Lord’s own gate where the just may enter. I will thank you for you have answered and you are my savior. The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the work of the Lord, a marvel, in our eyes. This day was made by the Lord; we rejoice and are glad.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
O Lord, grant us salvation; O Lord, grant success. Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes. We bless you from the house of the Lord; the Lord God is our light.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
Go forward in procession with branches even to the altar. You are my God, I thank you. My God, I praise you. Give thanks to the Lord for his is good; for his love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, for He is good.
Meditation on Psalm 118: Psalm 118 begins by giving thanks to God for His goodness because “His love endures forever.” The love God has for us is infinitely greater than our minds can fathom, our hearts desire, our intellects imagine. One quality of God’s love is that it never changes. He is our unchangeable Friend. Because of our fickle nature, we sometimes think that God’ love for us is somehow different than before. So much has happened in our lives. There are too many sins to count; too many times we have disappointed Him to remember. In spite of anything and everything, His love for each of us is as strong and tender now as the day we were born, and the moment we were baptized in the innocence of His Spirit.
The prayer we pray together at the Sanctus before the consecration at Mass is taken from the end of this psalm: “Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes.” The Blessed Sacrament is the sign and the reality of God’s permanent, unchangeable love for man.
God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son. God continues to so love the world that He continues to send us His Son, Jesus, in the Holy Eucharist. To see the Sacred Host is to cherish the words of God speaking to you now: “I have loved you with an everlasting love, and constant is my affection for you.”
There is nothing more Jesus could do to prove His love for us. To thank Him is to give Him great praise. He is the most appreciative Person who ever lived. His heart was deeply moved by the leper who returned to give Him thanks, as you have done today. Gratitude to God is joy to the soul. If we lack joy, it is because we forget all that He has done for us and all the love He has for us.
Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament continues to be the “stone rejected by the builders.” Many do not believe in His Eucharistic presence; others who do believe reject His appeal for love and personal devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, either through indifference or erroneous thinking.
Your belief and presence before Him today consoles His
Heart for those who reject Him. For this reason it is all the more important
that you come back and remain faithful to your holy hour; for one person like
you who truly loves Him in the Eucharist can make up for many who reject Him.
(Come to Me in the
Blessed Sacrament, Fr. Vincent Martin Lucia, Apostolate for Perpetual
Adoration, Mt. Clemens, Michigan)
A Spiritual Communion
by St. Pio of Pietrelcina Padre Pio celebrated Mass daily, and at various times during the day, he would pause and pray, making a spiritual communion. |
My Jesus, I believe that you are truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to possess You within my soul. Since I am unable at this moment to receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as being already there, and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen http://www.padrepiodevotions.org/pioprayers.asp |
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