Thoughts and Reflection
Today we read in Timothy that Paul reminds us that suffering is part of what we should expect from living the Christian life. Many people that Paul trusted left him. But the Lord never did. It is important for us to realize that we should rely and trust in the Lord rather our frail friends that come and go.
We also started the book of Refelation. This should be considered the same as the book of Daniel and it is filled with symbolism. There are numbers that are significant such as twelve and seven. It is thought that the desciple John wrote the book of Revelation at the end of his life.
In chapter one, we read how we should approach Mass and adoration — with reverence. In chapter two, Jesus promises “to him who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” The tree of life is the Eucharist itself that is given to us each Mass.
About This Project
For the year 2022, I decided that my New Year’s Resolution was to read the whole Bible following the Bible in the Year plan presented by Fr. Mike Schmitz. It is a big and bold undertaking. You can follow along by subscribing. Feel free to look at previous day’s post and comment. It’s something we can all learn from together!
Daily Readings
Revelation 1
1 A revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him so that he could tell his servants what is now to take place very soon; he sent his angel to make it known to his servant John,
2 and John has borne witness to the Word of God and to the witness of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw.
3 Blessed is anyone who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed those who hear them, if they treasure the content, because the Time is near.
4 John, to the seven churches of Asia: grace and peace to you from him who is, who was, and who is to come, from the seven spirits who are before his throne,
5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the First-born from the dead, the highest of earthly kings. He loves us and has washed away our sins with his blood,
6 and made us a Kingdom of Priests to serve his God and Father; to him, then, be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.
7 Look, he is coming on the clouds; everyone will see him, even those who pierced him, and all the races of the earth will mourn over him. Indeed this shall be so. Amen.
8 ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
9 I, John, your brother and partner in hardships, in the kingdom and in perseverance in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos on account of the Word of God and of witness to Jesus;
10 it was the Lord’s Day and I was in ecstasy, and I heard a loud voice behind me, like the sound of a trumpet, saying,
11 ‘Write down in a book all that you see, and send it to the seven churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.’
12 I turned round to see who was speaking to me, and when I turned I saw seven golden lamp-stands
13 and, in the middle of them, one like a Son of man, dressed in a long robe tied at the waist with a belt of gold.
14 His head and his hair were white with the whiteness of wool, like snow, his eyes like a burning flame,
15 his feet like burnished bronze when it has been refined in a furnace, and his voice like the sound of the ocean.
16 In his right hand he was holding seven stars, out of his mouth came a sharp sword, double-edged, and his face was like the sun shining with all its force.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead, but he laid his right hand on me and said, ‘Do not be afraid; it is I, the First and the Last; I am the Living One,
18 I was dead and look — I am alive for ever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and of Hades.
19 Now write down all that you see of present happenings and what is still to come.
20 The secret of the seven stars you have seen in my right hand, and of the seven golden lamp-stands, is this: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lamp-stands are the seven churches themselves.’
Revelation 2
1 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus and say, “Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives among the seven golden lamp-stands:
2 I know your activities, your hard work and your perseverance. I know you cannot stand wicked people, and how you put to the test those who were self-styled apostles, and found them false.
3 I know too that you have perseverance, and have suffered for my name without growing tired.
4 Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make: you have less love now than formerly.
5 Think where you were before you fell; repent, and behave as you did at first, or else, if you will not repent, I shall come to you and take your lamp-stand from its place.
6 It is in your favour, nevertheless, that you loathe as I do the way the Nicolaitans are behaving.
7 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches: those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of lifeset in God’s paradise.”
8 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Smyrna and say, “Here is the message of the First and the Last, who was dead and has come to lifeagain:
9 I know your hardships and your poverty, and — though you are rich — the slander of the people who falsely claim to be Jews but are really members of the synagogue of Satan.
10 Do not be afraid of the sufferings that are coming to you. Look, the devil will send some of you to prison to put you to the test, and you must face hardship for ten days. Even if you have to die, keep faithful, and I will give you the crown of life for your prize.
11 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches: for those who prove victorious will come to no harm from the second death.”
12 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Pergamum and say, “Here is the message of the one who has the sharp sword, double-edged:
13 I know where you live, in the place where Satan is enthroned, and that you still hold firmly to my name, and did not disown your faithin me even when my faithful witness, Antipas, was killed among you, where Satan lives.
14 “Nevertheless, I have one or two charges against you: some of you are followers of Balaam, who taught Balak to set a trap for the Israelites so that they committed adultery by eating food that had been sacrificed to idols;
15 and among you too there are some also who follow the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
16 So repent, or I shall soon come to you and attack these people with the sword out of my mouth.
17 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches: to those who prove victorious I will give some hidden manna and a white stone, with a new name written on it, known only to the person who receives it.”
18 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Thyatira and say, “Here is the message of the Son of God who has eyes like a burning flame and feet like burnished bronze:
19 I know your activities, your love, your faith, your service and your perseverance, and I know how you are still making progress.
20 Nevertheless, I have a complaint to make: you tolerate the woman Jezebel who claims to be a prophetess, and by her teaching she is luring my servants away to commit the adultery of eating food which has been sacrificed to idols.
21 I have given her time to repent but she is not willing to repent of her adulterous life.
22 Look, I am consigning her to a bed of pain, and all her partners in adultery to great hardship, unless they repent of their practices;
23 and I will see that her children die, so that all the churches realise that it is I who test motives and thoughts and repay you as your deeds deserve.
24 But on the rest of you in Thyatira, all of you who have not accepted this teaching or learnt the deep secrets of Satan, as they are called, I am not laying any other burden;
25 but hold on firmly to what you already have until I come.
26 To anyone who proves victorious, and keeps working for me until the end, I will give the authority over the nations
27 which I myself have been given by my Father, to rule them with an iron sceptre and shatter them like so many pots.
28 And I will give such a person the Morning Star.
29 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”
Revelation 3
1 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Sardis and say, “Here is the message of the one who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know about your behaviour: how you are reputed to be alive and yet are dead.
2 Wake up; put some resolve into what little vigour you have left: it is dying fast. So far I have failed to notice anything in your behaviour that my God could possibly call perfect;
3 remember how you first heard the message. Hold on to that. Repent! If you do not wake up, I shall come to you like a thief, and you willhave no idea at what hour I shall come upon you.
4 There are a few in Sardis, it is true, who have kept their robes unstained, and they are fit to come with me, dressed in white.
5 Anyone who proves victorious will be dressed, like these, in white robes; I shall not blot that name out of the book of life, but acknowledge it in the presence of my Father and his angels.
6 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”
7 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Philadelphia and say, “Here is the message of the holy and true one who has the key of David, so that when he opens, no one will close, and when he closes, no one will open:
8 I know about your activities. Look, I have opened in front of you a door that no one will be able to close — and I know that though you are not very strong, you have kept my commandments and not disowned my name.
9 Look, I am going to make the synagogue of Satan — those who falsely claim to be Jews, but are liars, because they are no such thing — I will make them come and fall at your feet and recognize that I have loved you.
10 Because you have kept my commandment to persevere, I will keep you safe in the time of trial which is coming for the whole world, to put the people of the world to the test.
11 I am coming soon: hold firmly to what you already have, and let no one take your victor’s crown away from you.
12 Anyone who proves victorious I will make into a pillar in the sanctuary of my God, and it will stay there for ever; I will inscribe on it the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which is coming down from my God in heaven, and my own new name as well.
13 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”
14 ‘Write to the angel of the church in Laodicea and say, “Here is the message of the Amen, the trustworthy, the true witness, the Principle of God’s creation:
15 I know about your activities: how you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were one or the other,
16 but since you are neither hot nor cold, but only lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth.
17 You say to yourself: I am rich, I have made a fortune and have everything I want, never realising that you are wretchedly and pitiably poor, and blind and naked too.
18 I warn you, buy from me the gold that has been tested in the fire to make you truly rich, and white robes to clothe you and hide your shameful nakedness, and ointment to put on your eyes to enable you to see.
19 I reprove and train those whom I love: so repent in real earnest.
20 Look, I am standing at the door, knocking. If one of you hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to share a meal at that person’s side.
21 Anyone who proves victorious I will allow to share my throne, just as I have myself overcome and have taken my seat with my Father on his throne.
22 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” ‘
2 Timothy 3
1 You may be quite sure that in the last days there will be some difficult times.
2 People will be self-centred and avaricious, boastful, arrogant and rude; disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, irreligious;
3 heartless and intractable; they will be slanderers, profligates, savages and enemies of everything that is good;
4 they will be treacherous and reckless and demented by pride, preferring their own pleasure to God.
5 They will keep up the outward appearance of religion but will have rejected the inner power of it. Keep away from people like that.
6 Of the same kind, too, are those men who insinuate themselves into families in order to get influence over silly women who are obsessed with their sins and follow one craze after another,
7 always seeking learning, but unable ever to come to knowledge of the truth.
8 Just as Jannes and Jambres defied Moses, so these men defy the truth, their minds corrupt and their faith spurious.
9 But they will not be able to go on much longer: their folly, like that of the other two, must become obvious to everybody.
10 You, though, have followed my teaching, my way of life, my aims, my faith, my patience and my love, my perseverance
11 and the persecutions and sufferings that came to me in places like Antioch, Iconium and Lystra — all the persecutions I have endured; and the Lord has rescued me from every one of them.
12 But anybody who tries to live in devotion to Christ is certain to be persecuted;
13 while these wicked impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving others, and themselves deceived.
14 You must keep to what you have been taught and know to be true; remember who your teachers were,
15 and how, ever since you were a child, you have known the holy scriptures -from these you can learn the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
16 All scripture is inspired by God and useful for refuting error, for guiding people’s lives and teaching them to be upright.
17 This is how someone who is dedicated to God becomes fully equipped and ready for any good work.
2 Timothy 4
1 Before God and before Christ Jesus who is to be judge of the living and the dead, I charge you, in the name of his appearing and of his kingdom:
2 proclaim the message and, welcome or unwelcome, insist on it. Refute falsehood, correct error, give encouragement — but do all with patience and with care to instruct.
3 The time is sure to come when people will not accept sound teaching, but their ears will be itching for anything new and they willcollect themselves a whole series of teachers according to their own tastes;
4 and then they will shut their ears to the truth and will turn to myths.
5 But you must keep steady all the time; put up with suffering; do the work of preaching the gospel; fulfil the service asked of you.
6 As for me, my life is already being poured away as a libation, and the time has come for me to depart.
7 I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith;
8 all there is to come for me now is the crown of uprightness which the Lord, the upright judge, will give to me on that Day; and not only to me but to all those who have longed for his appearing.
9 Make every effort to come and see me as soon as you can.
10 As it is, Demas has deserted me for love of this life and gone to Thessalonica, Crescens has gone to Galatia and Titus to Dalmatia;
11 only Luke is with me. Bring Mark with you; I find him a useful helper in my work.
12 I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
13 When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, and the scrolls, especially the parchment ones.
14 Alexander the coppersmith has done me a lot of harm; the Lord will repay him as his deeds deserve.
15 Be on your guard against him yourself, because he has been bitterly contesting everything that we say.
16 The first time I had to present my defence, no one came into court to support me. Every one of them deserted me — may they not be held accountable for it.
17 But the Lord stood by me and gave me power, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed for all the gentiles to hear; and so I was saved from the lion’s mouth.
18 The Lord will rescue me from all evil attempts on me, and bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
19 Greetings to Prisca and Aquila, and the family of Onesiphorus.
20 Erastus stayed behind at Corinth, and I left Trophimus ill at Miletus.
21 Make every effort to come before the winter. Greetings to you from Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers.
22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
Proverbs 31:8-9
8 Make your views heard, on behalf of the dumb, on behalf of all the unwanted;
9 make your views heard, pronounce an upright verdict, defend the cause of the poor and the wretched.
