LIVE IT TODAY: Tuesday, August 26, 2025
A GREAT WAY TO BEGIN TODAY!
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GOD'S DECLARATION TO YOU TODAY
Let My mercy cleanse you from the inside out.
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 23:23–26
Jesus said:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin,
and have neglected the weightier things of the law:
judgment and mercy and fidelity.
But these you should have done, without neglecting the others.
Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel!
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You cleanse the outside of cup and dish,
but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup,
so that the outside also may be clean.”
EVERY DAY QUESTION
What struck you? Challenged you? Inspired you? What questions did it raise?
GOING DEEPER
Inside Out Holiness
Jesus' words are sharp, exposing a religious culture obsessed with outward compliance while rotting inwardly. These Pharisees were masters of appearing righteous—tithing even the tiniest herbs—while failing to practice the very heart of God’s law: judgment, mercy, and fidelity.
To “strain out the gnat and swallow the camel” is a biting image. In Jewish law, both were considered unclean—but gnats were tiny and camels enormous. Jesus is revealing how easy it is to obsess over spiritual trivialities while ignoring glaring sins of pride, greed, or indifference to others.
This Gospel is a mirror. How often do we focus on getting Mass attendance “done,” or checking religious boxes, but neglect the deep transformation Christ is calling us to? How often do we focus on our kids’ external behavior, but fail to shepherd their hearts?
Jesus isn’t against outward actions—He’s after integration. He wants wholeness. Authenticity. Hearts aligned with His. Holiness that radiates because it's real.
Parents, this starts with us. The pressure to appear spiritually strong can keep us from letting God heal what’s messy or broken. But holiness isn’t the absence of weakness—it’s the courageous surrender of it. When we let Christ clean the inside, our words, our tone, our parenting, our marriage—everything changes.
Start at home. Begin today. Ask your spouse and kids for forgiveness if needed. Confess your struggles. Pray out loud. Speak truth in love. Take each other's hand and call on the Name of Jesus together—not to impress, but to invite real grace into real life.
“Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart…” (CCC 1431)
LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS
What Matters Most:
Where might you be focusing on lesser things while neglecting deeper conversion?
Interior Cleansing:
What area of your heart is God inviting you to open to His mercy today?
Family Restoration:
How can you intentionally lead your family from performance-based faith to genuine, Spirit-led love?
FAMILY LIVE IT
Make some time today to gather together and, going around, affirm how each person reflects an inner beauty or integrity that blesses your home.
Then, pray over each person by name:
that the Holy Spirit cleanse and heal every wound or hidden area of shame, and flood them with joy, light, and freedom to live wholly for Christ from the inside out.
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.
ENTER THE RIDE OF A LIFETIME: LifeTimeRide.com
Then: Listen to the moving song, Ride Of A Lifetime:
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THIS MONTH'S LIVE IT TODAY is made possible by the generosity of the Drs. Jeff and Rachel Elmore Family
Turning Point Chiropractic | 353 Elm Street, Suite B Perrysburg, Ohio 43551 | 419-874-4840
WE WANT TO PRAY FOR YOU!
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