January 4 - Genesis 7-8 & Mark 1:40-45

We are not to associate ourselves with evil - period. Sin leads to only one thing - death. The story of Noah illustrates that perfectly. Not a story to be taken as History, but as a faith reality. Just as you can not play with fire without getting burned, so you can not play with sin without causing death. Not simply death as in physical death. The death that sin causes can also be seen in the dying of friendships, love, mercy, care, etc. God does not forget us and will bring us to his blessings in this life if we remain attentive to him just as he cared for Noah, his family, and all creation. We need to hear God's promise to Noah, "Never again will I curse the ground because of human beings, since the desires of the human heart are evil from youth; nor will I ever again strike down every living being, as I have done." God knows who we are, do we know whose we are?

The Leper kneels down before the Lord. This is an act of worship. So in our celebration of the Mass, we need at times to kneel before the Lord as our acknowledgment of who he is for us. The healing of the Leper is not only a gift for him but for us. This miraculous cure tells us that Jesus is indeed the Messiah, the Son of God and he desires good for us here and now. Miracles do still happen, but sometimes they don't. Neither way is a sign of God's love for us. He loves us. Miracles are there as a gift of faith to us and to those who hear or know of them. God will's life for us. Good life. Know in your heart today that God will's this to be a blessed day for you.