LIVE IT TODAY: Saturday, February 28, 2026
Love beyond what feels natural—reflect My mercy even toward those who wound you.
LIVE IT TODAY: Saturday, February 28, 2026
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GOD’S DECLARATION TO YOU TODAY
Love beyond what feels natural—reflect My mercy even toward those who wound you.
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 5:43-48
Jesus said to his disciples:
"You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies,
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father,
for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good,
and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers and sisters only,
what is unusual about that?
Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."
EVERY DAY QUESTION
What struck you? Challenged you? Inspired you? What questions did it raise?
GOING DEEPER
Divine love exceeds instinct and mirrors the Father’s mercy.
Jesus overturns the accepted boundary of love. The command to love neighbor was clear, but the cultural assumption that enemies could be excluded went unchallenged. Christ expands the horizon: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
This is not sentimentality. The Greek word for love here is agapē—self-giving, willing the good of the other. It does not depend on affection or agreement. It is rooted in decision, not emotion.
The reason is startling: “that you may be children of your heavenly Father.” In biblical thought, to be a child is to resemble. The Father gives sun and rain indiscriminately. His generosity does not fluctuate with human behavior. Mercy flows from His nature.
Perfection here does not mean flawlessness but completeness—wholeness in love. To love only those who love us is ordinary. Even tax collectors manage that. The Christian life is not defined by ordinary affection but extraordinary mercy.
This presses deeply into the domestic church. Families inevitably experience hurt—sharp words, misunderstandings, disappointments. The call to enemy-love often begins not with strangers but with those closest to us when relationships strain.
Children learn the shape of God’s love by watching ours. When we pray for someone who wronged us, when we refuse to rehearse grievances, when we bless rather than curse, we mirror the Father.
Love that excludes is human. Love that extends is divine.
Build saint-forming homes by practicing mercy even when it costs you pride, pray over your children by name that they may learn to bless those who hurt them, and act boldly in the power of the Holy Spirit, choosing agapē over resentment and completeness over convenience.
“By this power of the Holy Spirit we can forgive those who sin against us.” (CCC 2843)
LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS
In My Heart: Is there someone I resist loving because they have hurt me?
In My Home: How do we speak about those who oppose or offend us?
In My World: Where can I model mercy that surprises others?
FAMILY LIVE IT
Make some time today to gather together and, going around, name one person you can pray for who has been difficult or hurtful.
Then pray together aloud. As parents, place a hand on each person and pray over them by name, asking that they know God’s love personally, be freed from the Enemy’s lies that justify bitterness, be strengthened to overcome resentment, and be filled with courage to love as the Father loves.
Daily Challenge: Offer one sincere prayer today for someone you find hard to love.
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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