of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
WEEK THIRTY TWO – TUESDAY – NOVEMBER 14, 2017 THE HUMBLE SERVANT (LK 17:7-10)

WEEK THIRTY TWO – TUESDAY – NOVEMBER 14, 2017 THE HUMBLE SERVANT (LK 17:7-10)

Meditations

Prayer – O Jesus, let me serve you with a generous spirit and a humble heart.

Imagination – (Picture Jesus with his disciples.)

Context:

Jesus pierces deeper into his disciples’ hearts. He probes their inner thoughts and demands that they root out any self-righteousness.

Gospel Text: (Read slowly, possibly aloud.)

If a man has a servant who ploughs the field and herds the sheep, will he say to him when he comes in from the field, “Sit down immediately for your supper?” Will the owner not say, “Prepare my supper first. Serve me, while I eat and drink. Afterwards, you can eat and drink.”

Does he thank the servant for doing what is commanded? Not at all. So, when you do all these things that are commanded, just say “We are unprofitable servants. We just do that which has to be done.”

Thoughts: (Read all. Ponder the ones that attract you.)

  1. The owner is not rich. He has just one servant who works both outside in the fields and in the house.
  2. This servant is totally faithful. He does all his work in both places.
  3. Jesus does not correct the disciple’s failure. He explains Kingdom’s full challenge.
  4. The servant has two responsibilities. He must complete all his tasks and consider himself “unprofitable”.
  5. This can happen only in the Kingdom. The greatest saints saw themselves as totally unworthy.
  6. The saints understood that God’s reward was so great and their labors were so small.

Affections: (When one touches your heart, use your own words.)

  1. Help me, O Lord, to be your servant.
  2. I will be faithful in the exterior tasks and in my interior prayer.
  3. Let me rejoice! To serve you is my greatest privilege.
  4. When all is done, let me honestly say that I am an unprofitable servant.
  5. My harvest is due more to your seeds than to my diligence.
  6. O Jesus, serving you is more a favor than a task.
  7. My work is so little and your rewards are so great!

Resolutions: (Possibly you might want to make your own)

  1. This day, I will be faithful to all that God desires of me.
  2. At the end of the day, I will rightly call myself “an unprofitable servant.”

Thought for the Day (To recall your meditation)

We are unprofitable servants. We do what needs to be done.