The Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time

Opening Prayer

Good and Gracious Father,

Each day YOU give us life,

we are faced with choices to make.

YOUR Word gives us guidance,

to teach us how to live, love and pray.

May we continue to seek YOUR ways,

so we may please YOU with our choices.

Journal/Reflection Questions

Joshua 24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b

• When have you experienced good fortune when choosing to serve the Lord? Have you ever been punished for serving the Lord?
• Did you, like the Israelites free choose your faith/religion? Why or why not?  How do you take ownership of it today?

Ephesians 5:21-32 (or Ephesians 2a, 25-32)

• In what ways do you see the relationship of the Church & Jesus similar to the marriage relationship? How has it been similar or different in your personal experience?
• What do you think Saint Paul would tell us to do about the current discussions about marriage today?
• What do you think he would say about picking and choosing what one believes or doesn’t believe about the Church? What point is he trying to make to us?

John 6:60-69

• What about the church is hard for you to accept?
• What do you have difficulty accepting or agreeing with…a belief of the church or church law?

 

General Questions for Journaling

• How do you feel when you come out of a church service? What emotions are present?  Be honest.
• What can you do to sustain the “joy of the Lord” throughout the week?
• On a scale of 1-10 would you say you are a good decision maker?
• Is it easy or difficult for you to make choices?
• Do you make a choice and live with it, despite the consequences or outcome or do you change your mind often? How does this affect your spirituality/relationship with Jesus?
• How does choosing God affect your other decisions in relationship with your spouse, your job, your hobbies, etc.
• When entering into a relationship with a friend or potential spouse, how much emphasis did you, do you put onto faith compatibility?
• Have you ever wanted to leave the church, give up faith? What caused you to want to leave it behind?
• How would your life be different if you left your faith behind?

Closing Prayer

Leader:  How can we forget how you created us from nothing?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

Leader:  How can we forget how you provide for all of our needs?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

Leader:  How can we forget how you wipe away our iniquities?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

Leader:  How can we forget how you heal us and make us whole?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

Leader: How can we forget how you died so we might have eternal live?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

Leader:  How can we forget how you love us and choose us each day?

ALL:  Lead us Lord, we choose YOU!

 

Challenge for the Week:   We can get bogged down with daily responsibilities or consumed with the negative news we hear about around the world.  This week seek out places where you see good things happening.  Create a list of news stories or positive things you witness in your daily routine.  Open your eyes to others around you who are “serving the Lord” with their kind words or generous actions.  Sometimes we get caught up in what someone looks like or external circumstances and we don’t really see the goodness within them.  Good things are happening all around us…take notice and celebrate them!