Don't Take God's Love For Granted


Friday, July 21 9 St. Lawrence of Brindisi


€ Those live whom the Lord protects;
yours ... the life of my spirit.
You have given me health and life.
Isaiah 38:16

This passage from Isaiah is part of a Hymn of Thanksgiving by Hezekiah, -king of Judah. He was grateful for having recovered from being ill to the point of death. He learned the habit of not taking any of the simple gifts of God for granted. He had faced death and was given back his life. He came to know the miracle of God's loving care. He came to know how close God was to him.

Often we cruise along in life unaware of how close God is to us and how much God loves us. We do not see God near us, loving us, protecting us. But our faith and hope give us assurance that God does indeed love us more than we can even imagine.

God gives us love, life, relationships, talents, abilities, gifts for us to sustain ourselves and share with others. Like Hezekiah, we can know firsthand the bountiful love of God. We, too, can praise God in grateful prayer and song.

0 Lord, help me to appreciate your loving care.

Jean Royer



Isaiah 38:1-8, 21-22 * Isaiah 38:10-12, 16
Matthew