LIVE IT TODAY: Monday, January 5, 2026 | Memorial of St. John Neumann, Bishop
I come to you as Light in your darkness, calling you to turn toward Me and live in My Kingdom now.
LIVE IT TODAY: Monday, January 5, 2026 | Memorial of St. John Neumann, Bishop
A GREAT WAY TO BEGIN TODAY!
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GOD’S DECLARATION TO YOU TODAY
I come to you as Light in your darkness, calling you to turn toward Me and live in My Kingdom now.
INVOCATION
Come, Holy Spirit! Through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother Mary, open my heart to hear and receive all that You desire for me. Draw me ever more deeply into the Love and Life of the Blessed Trinity!
GOSPEL | Matthew 4:12–17, 23–25
When Jesus heard that John had been arrested,
he withdrew to Galilee.
He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea,
in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,
that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet
might be fulfilled:
Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles,
the people who sit in darkness
have seen a great light,
on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death
light has arisen.
From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say,
“Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
He went around all of Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness among the people.
His fame spread to all of Syria,
and they brought to him all who were sick with various diseases
and racked with pain,
those who were possessed, lunatics, and paralytics,
and he cured them.
And great crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, and Judea,
and from beyond the Jordan followed him.
EVERY DAY QUESTION
What struck you? Challenged you? Inspired you? What questions did it raise?
GOING DEEPER
Christ does not wait for the world to be ready; He brings readiness by His presence.
Matthew carefully situates the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry in Galilee of the Gentiles—a borderland marked by mixture, instability, and spiritual neglect. This is not an accident of geography but a revelation of God’s strategy. Light does not begin in the safe center; it breaks first into the margins. Those “sitting in darkness” are not merely confused, but settled—habituated to shadow. Into this environment, Christ arrives.
The prophecy from Isaiah is fulfilled not by force but by presence. The people see a great light. Light in Scripture is not an abstraction; it is the manifestation of God’s nearness. Darkness is not argued away—it is displaced. Jesus’ choice of Galilee reveals that the Kingdom advances not by retreat from brokenness, but by entering it.
Jesus’ first words are decisive: “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The Greek verb metanoeite (from meta = beyond, nous = mind) signals a total reorientation of life—vision, allegiance, and direction. This is not mere moral adjustment, but a summons to live from a new center. The Kingdom is not coming someday; it is already pressing in.
Matthew then shows what this Kingdom looks like in action: teaching, proclamation, healing. Truth is spoken. Good news is announced. Bodies and lives are restored. The Kingdom touches the whole person. Crowds follow because grace is tangible, not theoretical.
On this Memorial of St. John Neumann, Bishop, the Gospel takes on added clarity. Neumann, a tireless missionary bishop, brought the light of Christ to immigrant communities often overlooked and underserved. He entered linguistic, cultural, and spiritual borderlands with humility and perseverance, convinced that Christ’s Kingdom must be made present through catechesis, charity, and sacramental life. Like Jesus in Galilee, Neumann did not wait for ideal conditions; he brought the Church to the people.
This Gospel speaks directly to the domestic church. Our homes are often Galilees—places of mixture, stress, unspoken wounds, and imperfect faith. Christ does not ask us to resolve every darkness before He enters. He asks us to turn toward Him together. Teaching, healing, and proclamation begin at home when parents invite Christ into ordinary routines and difficult conversations.
We parents are called to lead this metanoia within our families—to turn first ourselves, and then to guide our children toward the Kingdom already at hand. We do not fear darkness; we bring Christ into it. We pray over our children by name, trusting that the same light that dawned in Galilee and guided St. John Neumann still rises in our homes today.
“The Kingdom of heaven was inaugurated on earth by Christ.” (CCC 567)
LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS
In My Heart: Where is Christ inviting me to a deeper metanoia—a real change of direction rather than a small adjustment?
In My Home: What area of our family life most needs Christ’s teaching, healing, or authority right now?
In My World: Where might God be calling me, like St. John Neumann, to bring the light of the Gospel to the margins?
FAMILY LIVE IT
Make some time today to gather together and, going around, name one place in your family life where Christ’s light is needed most.
Then, one by one, pray over each person by name, asking for an outpouring of grace to know God’s love personally, freedom from the whispers and lies of the Enemy, strength to overcome temptation, and joyful courage to live the Gospel concretely each day.
Daily Challenge:
Choose one deliberate act today that reflects metanoia—turning toward Christ through forgiveness, repentance, or trust—and let His Kingdom take root there.
DAILY PARENT & GRANDPARENT BLESSING
LORD JESUS CHRIST, let Your holy anointing be upon each of our children, grandchildren, and godchildren this day and week, including all to whom they are called in vocation, and all future generations! In Your Sacred Name we claim them for You! We renounce all whispers, lies, and influences of the Enemy! We pray right now that each know Your loving Presence, be forged in virtue, and be flooded with an abundance of Your Holy Spirit to live fully their identity and mission in You now and through all eternity, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother! Amen.
PARENT BLESSING PROJECT: bit.ly/ParentBlessing
GOING VERTICAL
“Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
Just as the vertical beam upholds the horizontal beam of the Cross, so too does undistracted, dedicated daily turning to God as our lifeblood uphold and strengthen every part of life. Start with just three minutes. Wait patiently for the breakthrough beyond the noise. Let Him speak.
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