Because God Promised
Dearest Father, Thank You that just because You promised, all my heart's desires are fulfilled. As written in today's First Reading.
Get SpeakChrist Diaries straight into your inbox to help you reflect on and live the rich life in Christ today.
But these have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in Him, you may have life (John 20:31 GNBDK) - the rich and satisfying life in Christ. (John 10:10 NLT)
Today's Readings
First Reading: Genesis 23: 1-4, 19; 24: 1-8, 62-67
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 106: 1b-2, 3-4a, 4b-5
Alleluia: Matthew 11: 28
Gospel: Matthew 9: 9-13
Reading 1
Genesis 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67
[1] Now Sarah lived to be 127 years old.
[2] She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her.
[3] Then Abraham got up from beside his dead wife and said to the Hittites,
[4] “I am a foreigner and an outsider among you. Give me a burial site among you so that I can bury my dead.”
[19] After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan.
[1] By now Abraham was old and well along in years, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.
[2] So Abraham instructed the chief servant of his household, who managed all he owned, “Place your hand under my thigh,
[3] and I will have you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I am dwelling, [4] but will go to my country and my kindred to take a wife for my son Isaac.”
[5] The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to follow me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the land from which you came?”
[6] Abraham replied, “Make sure that you do not take my son back there.
[7] The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me from my father’s house and my native land, who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—He will send His angel before you so that you can take a wife for my son from there.
[8] And if the woman is unwilling to follow you, then you are released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”
[62] Now Isaac had just returned from Beer-lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negev.
[63] Early in the evening, Isaac went out to the field to meditate, and looking up, he saw the camels approaching. [64] And when Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac, she got down from her camel
[65] and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?” “It is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veil and covered herself.
[66] Then the servant told Isaac all that he had done.
[67] And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah as his wife. And Isaac loved her and was comforted after his mother’s death.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (1b) Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Who can tell the mighty deeds of the LORD,
or proclaim all his praises?
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Blessed are they who observe what is right,
who do always what is just.
Remember us, O LORD, as you favor your people.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Visit me with your saving help,
That I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
rejoice in the joy of your people,
and glory with your inheritance.
R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
[9] As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him.
[10] Later, as Jesus was dining at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with Him and His disciples.
[11] When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
[12] On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
[13] But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Dearest Father,
Thank You that just because You promised, all my heart's desires are fulfilled. As written in today's First Reading.
Genesis 24:7 BSB
[7] The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me from my father’s house and my native land, who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—He will send His angel before you so that you can take a wife for my son from there.
In other version it says here:
Genesis 24:7 EASY
[7] The Lord, the God of heaven, took me away from there. He took me out of my father's house. He took me away from the land where my family lives. God made a serious promise to me. He said, “I will give this land to your descendants.” Because God has promised this, he will send his angel to go in front of you. When you arrive there, you will find a woman to marry my son.
Because God promised to give Abraham and his descendants the land he is living on right now, Abraham was sure, without a shadow of a doubt, that God would guide his servant to get a wife for his son Isaac from among his kinsmen, another of his desires covered in God's promise.
What faith. What trust in God!
That's the faith that pleased God so much and made God make him the Father of many nations who will have the same faith as him.
Galatians 3:6-7 EASY
[6] Think about our Jewish ancestor Abraham. We know this: ‘Abraham believed God. As a result, God accepted Abraham as right with him’. [7] So you should understand who Abraham's children really are. It is those people who trust God.
Without a shadow of a doubt.
Hebrews 11:1 EASY
[1] This is what it means to trust God: We will be sure about the things that we hope for. We will be sure in our minds about things that we cannot even see.
Because God promised, then we can trust that He will fulfill and complete what He started from the beginning.
Philippians 1:6 EASY
[6] I know that God has begun to do good things in you. And I am sure that he will continue to work in you. Then, on the day when Jesus Christ returns, his work in you will be finished.
All your hopes and dreams? They are yours already. You have received them as soon as you prayed for them. If you believe.
Mark 11:24 EASY
[24] So I tell you this. When you pray to ask God for anything, believe in him. Believe that you have received that thing. Then you will have whatever you have asked for.
Abraham believed. Because God promised.
And his son Isaac and Rebekah found love because God promised Abraham and Abraham trusted in God.
I was walking this morning and I suddenly had this desire to have a pizzeria that would serve good sourdough pizza. My favorites are Roman al taglio, Napolitana, and Detroit styles.
It all started when I saw a video of this pizza truck manned by a woman who makes simple yet good wood-fired Napolitan Pizza with vegetables from their own farm!
She helps her chef and farmer husband serve breakfast in their breakfast restaurant with fresh produce from their farm and then she goes to her pizza truck and sells wood-fired Napolitan Pizza which she loves.
She said they don't do it for profit. They just want to share the goodies they produced from their land and, hopefully, more people will come visit their place.
Wow. I've just started desiring to have Eden Garden Retreat Resorts which will offer a safe place where Your people can enjoy nature and good produce from the earth with my integrated farming and vegetable garden with a bakeshop that makes yummy Sourdough goodies. All natural.
A pizza truck is a good addition to this bucket list. Cause I love eating good pizza. That's why I wanted to bake them.
As you can see, my desires are all jumbled and varied and all over the place.
I don't want to start something that I can't finish. Which I'm often prone to do.
So I'm just surrendering all these desires to God and trust Him to make them come about in His own time and in His perfect way.
I'm like Daniel, that baker that I shared in SpeakChrist Lovenote, who left his office life to find freedom to do what he likes to do: bake, garden, and make music.
Me? I want to bake, garden, and write about God's goodness in my life and the rich and satisfying life He gives me as I live in Christ.
I want to live the life I love supported by work I enjoy, blessing and inspiring God's people. Just as Justin Welsh wrote in one of his Substack Notes.
I don't know how all these desires will come about for me.
I just know that they're already mine and in the fullness of time, I'll be able to be, do, and have all of them.
Because God promised.
And I believe in Him.
If you want to live life with the assurance of all riches and satisfaction because God promised, live in Christ. Join me in our SpeakChrist RichLife Club. We'll do it together. St. Katharine Drexel, pray for us.
Live the RichLife in Christ today 🤟
Because God promised,
He'll do for you everything good He's promised you.
If you trust and believe,
Then you can receive.
Free 🎁 for you.
Because God promised,
He’ll surely do it.
Just as He promised.
Just as you believed.
Say Amen! 🙏
Genesis 24:7 EASY
[7] God made a serious promise to me. He said, “I will give this land to your descendants.” Because God has promised this, he will send his angel to go in front of you. When you arrive there, you will find a woman to marry my son.
Now Your Turn
(Questions to ask yourself when scripture journaling)
What verses spoke to me strongly and powerfully from the scripture readings?
What is God saying to me in these verse or verses?
What does God want me to do today?
Journal prompts of the day
What are the desires of your heart?
What are the promises God has spoken to you?
Will you trust God to do as He promised you?
Let us pray:
Thank you, Father, that I can trust You to complete all that You have begun in me as I surrender all my desires to You, because You promised. In Jesus’ Name.
This is it for now. Until next time.
Vivo dives vitae in Christo. Live the RichLife in Christ.
P.S
Join our SpeakChrist RichLife Club
Helping dreamers, like me, live the RichLife in Christ daily so we can go from being tired doubters and dabblers to becoming thankful believers and doers consistently achieving what God wants us to be, do, and have, without struggle, becoming God’s sources and symbols of blessing, extremely blessed and blessing others.