• Jesus offers a path to God’s mercy…
• … a humble heart.
•  “… for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”        Luke 18:14  

• Persist in prayer.
• Continuing to pray demonstrates faith and trust.
• God will hear and answer.

• Give glory to God.
• He heals us and is present among us.
• Be thankful for all we have been given.
• Have faith in Jesus’ message.
• Is our faith strong enough to recognize Jesus’ saving action in our lives?

• Jesus tells us that even very tiny amounts of faith can be very powerful.
• Faith is necessary to be a disciple of Christ.
• Faith can enable us to do as God commands.
• Faith can be its own reward.
• Can we live the faithful life of stewardship Jesus asks of us?

• Jesus tells us wealth and status can be impediments to reaching heaven.
• We place too much importance on holding onto these temporal possessions.
• We cannot serve both God and mammon, as noted in last Sunday’s Gospel.
• All that we have is given by the grace of God.
• All we have is to be used to honor and glorify God.
• All we have is to be used, in part, to care for those who are in need.
• Will we be like the rich man and “not listen” to God’s message?
• Where do we recognize Lazarus in our lives?
• What should we do about it?

• Handle the affairs of temporal life with an eye toward eternal life.
• Trustworthiness is an important virtue, in the handling of all things.
• Those who can be trusted in small things can also be trusted in great things.
• Jesus teaches that His laws must always come first.
• His priorities must be our priorities.
• Putting anything above Him, but especially wealth will put us in conflict with ourselves.
• This, we cannot resolve.
• Can we resist the temptation to try to “have it all”?

• There is always an opportunity in life for forgiveness and redemption.
• No matter what one has done, Jesus in the Sacrament of Reconciliation is always available for forgiveness.
• There is always hope.
• When we turn to Jesus, He will run to greet us.
• We are truly important to Him and He will not let us down.
• Jesus is, indeed, out looking for us, calling to us.
• Can you hear Him?

• Jesus tells us that discipleship is not easy.
• Sometimes we will experience rifts in relationships.
• Frequently we must make sacrifices to live in accord with God’s will.
• Jesus tells us to think carefully of how we are conducting ourselves, lest we neglect to prepare for potential pitfalls ahead of us.
• We must not let anything get in the way of what Jesus wants us to do as His disciple.
• Not relatives who object, nor possessions which give us comfort should hinder our forward progress in discipleship.
• Are you looking forward?

• Everything we are and have comes from God.
• Let not social status or earthly possessions ever lead you to think otherwise.
• Humility, not pride, is what God asks of us.
• Be generous to others who cannot repay you.
• Be generous to those in need and those who are less able.
• You will be held in high esteem by your God and you will be rewarded mightily.
• What position at the banquet table will you take?

• The passion for mission Jesus noted in last week’s gospel is revisited today.
• Jesus tells us that we must work hard to join Him in heaven.
• We must be strong, persistent and dedicated to our mission.
• It is not enough to passively seek proximity to Jesus.
• Instead, he wants us to actively and passionately engage.
• We must seek the Father’s will and then live it, as He did.
• What is it that gets in your way of taking those daring steps?

• Jesus speaks with passion and intensity about His mission.
• His mission was not to smooth over or tolerate compromise between God’s will and the preference of individuals.
• Nor was it to accept indifference or a lukewarm attitude in His followers.
• His mission was to challenge complacency and creature comforts.
• People must make a choice between what they want and what God wants.
• Jesus offered his life for his mission in the baptism of fire that was His crucifixion.
• Are you willing to make the sacrifices to ignite a passion for your mission?

• Jesus encourages us to follow Him in faith and our relationship with others.
• It is so easy to get caught up in things that keep us from our obligations to our God and to each other.
• His promises must always be kept before us, so as to never forget that our salvation is at hand.
• We must live as if He is coming at any moment.
• We prepare for His coming by always being good stewards of all He has given us, in wealth and talent.
• What are we responsible for? Are we paying attention?

• God wants us to focus our lives on Him first.
• We often focus on worldly wealth.
• But in God’s eyes, wealth comes with grace, prayer and charity toward neighbor.
• Focus on self distracts us from our mission to care for and bring Jesus to others.
• This charity will store up heavenly treasure.
• And what could possibly be more valuable for our immortal souls?

· Jesus tells us that His Father wants us to ask for His help.
· He wants us to recognize His greatness, His love for us and His endless mercy.
· When we ask the Father for His help, we recognize our place – as His child.
· When we boldly ask for the Father’s help, we profess our faith in His benevolence.
· When we persist in our request we demonstrate our trust.
· Will you ask the Father?
· He is waiting for your petition.

• The worries of life must be kept in perspective.
• We must first attend to our relationship with Jesus.
• The peace of doing God’s will in your life will overshadow the tensions of worry.
• Tasks must be completed but only after we have set our mental house in order.
• Nothing must take the better part of our existence away from us.
• What in your life must be put in order?

• Jesus teaches us the meaning of mercy and love of neighbor.
• The life we now live is a prelude to eternal life.
• How we live it now is how we will live it in the future.
• Our love of God is demonstrated in our love of neighbor.
• Your neighbor is everyone around you.
• Jesus will tend to your wounds to help you better love and serve Him and your neighbor.