Computer Cud    Vatican II asks us to read the Bible every day,   'to have a burning love'   for the Word of God           Resolution

This plan follows the Sunday liturgy:  reading + psalm + reading + gospel               From  www.simplebible.info              Previous Bible Blogs 

O Holy Spirit, may these passages give me hope, wisdom, compassion, courage and peace for my daily life     Chinese text

  Reading:  Exodus 1 

About 300 years after the time of Joseph, 
when the Israelites had grown to a huge number,
the Egyptians began to see the Israelites as a danger to Egypt.

So they forced the Israelites into slavery
and made their life miserable.

The Egyptians forced the Israelites to make bricks
and build cities.

But the more the Israelites were oppressed,
the more they increased in number.

So the Egyptian king told the  Israelite midwives
to kill all new-born boys.

But the midwives let the baby boys live
and God was pleased with the midwives and blessed them.

Pharaoh then ordered all Israelite baby boys
to be drowned in the river.

Reflection: 
Slavery still exists today, involving children as well as adults, numbering up to 21 million people

Prayer: Dear God, please stop people, especially children,
from being used as slaves

Reading: Psalms 35-37

O Lord, please save me from people who slander me,
you who rescue the weak from the strong,

you whose love is so precious,
you in whose light we see light.

We believe that if we find our delight in you,
you will grant our heart's desire.

And so we commit our lives to you,
confident you will help us in time of trouble.

Reflection:
May my delight in God be as strong as my delight in using the internet!

Prayer: Lord, please increase my delight in you ...by knowing you and loving you more

Reading:  Ephesians 1 
(using ideas from The Message, the Bible translation of Eugene Peterson)

God the Father raised Jesus from death, and put him on the divine throne

Jesus is the C.E.O. of  the universe, in charge of everything, from galaxies to governments. No one and nothing is exempt from his rule

At the center of everything is the church.
It is Jesus' body, in which he speaks and acts

Reflection: 
Another way of putting the above words: Jesus is the Omega Point

Prayer:  Jesus, help me understand how the church is the heart of the world, pumping your life and love to all parts of the world

Reading:  Luke 4

Jesus, with the power of the Spirit in him, returned to Galilee.
He taught in local prayer halls. His reputation spread

He came to his home town of Nazareth and went to the prayer hall
on the Sabbath day as he usually did

He stood up and read these words from the prophet Isaiah:
"The spirit of the Lord has been given to me. He has sent me
to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to prisoners,
to give sight to the blind, to set the downtrodden free"

Jesus then sat down and said to the people in the prayer hall "These words from Isaiah are being fulfilled today even as you listen"

Reflection:
Luke often emphasizes the role and power of the Holy Spirit in the ministry of Jesus and of his followers. One reason why many Christians, even many Christian leaders, feel "powerless" is because the Holy Spirit is not as active in their lives as he should be. The Holy Spirit has been downloaded at Baptism and Confirmation, but has not been fully installed!

Prayer: Jesus, please help me be more open to the power of your Spirit.
O Holy Spirit, please be fully installed in my life!