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Thursday, July 8, 2010

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Hosea 11:1-4, 8-9
Psalm 80:2-3, 15-16
Matthew 10:7-15

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father-healer

"Yet, though I stooped to feed My child, they did not know that I was their Healer." —Hosea 11:4

Do you think your heavenly Father wants to heal you? Does He want to heal you completely? Does He want to heal you now? Many people are not sure how to answer these questions. They know that their Father loves them and can heal them. Yet they don't know if or when He will heal them. They know there are many factors in healing, and this makes them unsure if their Father will heal them.

We should not let the many factors in healing overshadow the loving, healing, present Fatherhood of God; rather, our Father's love should make us almost forget the complications surrounding healing. We should be like little children who, when hurt, run to their parents for healing and think of little else.

Our heavenly Father is trying to make us so aware of His love that everything else fades into the background. He is drawing us to Him "with human cords, with bands of love" (Hos 11:4). He fosters us "like one who raises an infant to his cheeks" (Hos 11:4). Our Father stoops to feed us and wants to help us more than we want help (Hos 11:4). May we translate all this tender, fatherly love into the assurance that our Father is our Healer.

Prayer:  Father, may I expect healing from You now.

Promise:  "Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, expel demons. The gift you have received, give as a gift." —Mt 10:8

Praise:  Receiving the Eucharist daily has kept Lou's heart open to trust in God's fatherly love, and to remind him to daily offer himself again to his Father.

Reference:  (The Paul Jansen Discipleship Center in Peebles, Ohio is the headquarters for retreats that equip you to imitate Christ in His character and mission. It is also the future home of the Guadalupe Bible College. There is a great need and opportunity for you to assist in this work of the Lord through your time, talents, and treasures. If you hear the Lord calling you to help, call 937-587-5464 or 513-373-2397 to find out how.)

Rescript:  †Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, December 29, 2009

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