October 24

St. Anthony Mary Claret

Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath. And a woman was there who for eighteen years had been crippled by a spirit; she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect. When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, "Woman, you are set free of your infirmity." He laid his hands on her, and she at once stood up straight and glorified God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath, said to the crowd in reply, "There are six days when work should be done. Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day." The Lord said to him in reply, "Hypocrites! Does not each one of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger and lead it out for watering? This daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now, ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day from this bondage?" When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated; and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him (Luke 13: 10-17).

Sometimes we can get so caught up with ourselves in our own selfishness that we get upset when we see someone else do a good service. Like maybe a teammate has an awesome game and helps us get a great win. Everyone else is happy but I am jealous that he is getting the credit, etc. This is weakness. God wants us to rejoice and be strong.

Heavenly Father, I praise You for the great deeds done by my brothers, sisters and friends.

Impact Sports: Do I refuse to give up even when losing badly? Do I still encourage my teammates?

Impact Life: Do I give lame excuses for failing to serve others?