August 11, 2013: 19th Sunday in ordinary time

Try to make an extra effort to do your best using your special gift God has given you. (In this picture, Sister Charles Van Hoy practices math facts using a deck of cards with the child she tutors after school at Educational/Family Services in West Terre Haute.)

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Gird your loins and light your lamps
and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding,
ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks.
Blessed are those servants
whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.
Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself,
have the servants recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.
And should he come in the second or third watch
and find them prepared in this way,
blessed are those servants.
Be sure of this:
if the master of the house had known the hour
when the thief was coming,
he would not have let his house be broken into.
You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect,
the Son of Man will come.” (Luke 12:35-40)

Do you remember being faithful to practicing your music and then feeling the satisfaction of an amazing performance? Think about a time when you kept up with your school work and then were rewarded with a good grade. Recall your contribution to team success after weeks of personal and team training.
Jesus invites us to always try our best. In our parable this week, Jesus says “Blessed are those servants” who are prepared.

Action:

This week, choose one of your involvements (class, sport, art, music, friend, and so on), and each day make an extra effort to do your best using this special gift God has given you.