LIVE IT TODAY: Thursday, September 11, 2025
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GOD'S DECLARATION TO YOU TODAY
I am merciful to you; be merciful as I am merciful.
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 | Luke 6:27-38
Jesus said to his disciples:
"To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.
"Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you."
EVERY DAY QUESTION
What struck you? Challenged you? Inspired you? What questions did it raise?
GOING DEEPER
The Radical Mercy of the Father
Jesus’ words here are not polite suggestions for better manners. They are a radical unveiling of the heart of God. In the first century, the norm was reciprocity: love those who love you, repay favors, protect your own. Enemies were despised and curses returned. But Jesus explodes that cycle. He calls His disciples to love enemies, bless persecutors, and give without expecting return. This is not natural—it is supernatural. It is nothing less than the life of the Father made visible in His children.
The command to “be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” reveals the key. Mercy (eleos in Greek) is not mere pity; it is steadfast, covenantal love that stoops down to heal. The Father pours His kindness even on “the ungrateful and the wicked.” To live as His children means mirroring that same radical mercy.
Notice the imagery at the end: “a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing.” This would have evoked a vivid marketplace scene for Jesus’ hearers—a seller filling grain into a customer’s garment-fold. The generous merchant presses it down, shakes it to make room, and heaps more until it overflows. That is God’s measure of mercy. And that is the measure we are to extend to others.
Parents, this Gospel cuts straight into our daily lives. Our homes are where grudges form, where sharp words wound, where judgment and impatience come easiest. Jesus calls us to break that cycle—not tomorrow, but today. Mercy begins in how we speak to one another, how we forgive, how we serve even when it’s not returned.
This doesn’t mean being doormats. It means choosing the Father’s way over the world’s. Imagine if our children grew up seeing us forgive quickly, bless those who wrong us, and give without calculating return. Imagine if they heard us pray over them by name, asking God to fill them with His radical mercy. That is how homes become schools of discipleship.
The world says “measure carefully, protect yourself, repay in kind.” Jesus says “measure with mercy, give without return, love beyond reason.” That is the difference between living as mere human beings and living as children of the Most High.
“By refusing forgiveness to our brothers and sisters, our hearts are closed and their hardness makes them impervious to the Father’s merciful love” (CCC 2840).
LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS
Enemies in My Life: Who is hardest for me to forgive or show kindness to, and what step is Christ asking me to take today?
Mercy at Home: How can our family culture shift from cycles of criticism or grudges to a rhythm of quick mercy?
Overflowing Measure: Where do I tend to “measure tight,” and how can I practice the overflowing generosity of the Father?
FAMILY LIVE IT
Make some time today to gather together and, going around, each person name one area where they find it hardest to forgive or show kindness.
Then pray over each person by name:
“Lord Jesus, You are mercy itself. Pour Your Spirit over [Name]. Free them from bitterness, silence the lies of the Enemy, and fill them with the overflowing mercy of the Father. Give them strength to forgive, courage to bless, and joy to love even those who hurt them.”
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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