TGIMMMarry

June 21
[media presentation below] GospelThink Saturday, June 21 MATTHEW 6:24-34 Trust in the Lord. Prayerthoughts a. I have to worry somewhat about food and clothing. But am I placing too much concern on those externals? b. God takes care of the living things of the world. God will take care of us if we try to follow what God wants. c. Thinking about my death often comes up in the Lord’s words. I need not worry about it if I have placed the Lord to be part of my life. d. The Lord addresses me as you of “little faith.” Do I think of my belief in God as much as I should? e. God knows what we need, and will help us as we try to help ourselves. The point is my trust in God. Am I aware that the Lord truly cares about me and is helping me be the person that I know I should be? f. The idea is that I must put the Kingdom and the moral conduct set up by Jesus to be first in my life, and then everything else will fall into place. g. God will work with me today as I place myself continually in God’s presence. h. My prayerthoughts… Today, I will formulate my own prayer of trust in what the Lord has done and will do for me.
Some Thoughts on the Liturgy OUR FREE WILL + The Gospel gives an important distinction as we live our lives - if we serve the master called mammon, we will be victims of worry and anxiety, and we will believe in luck which ultimately will always run out - and we despair - but if we serve God, we may have all the worries and anxieties of life, but we will seek God at the same time, and God will help us see that everything that happens to us is for good + In the Christian understanding of things, there is no such thing as luck - Jesus points out such a fact even in nature - God is truly in charge of everything that happens - God takes care of the grass of the field and the birds in the sky and the beautiful flowers that no human being can create - Jesus says: how much more will God be interested in human beings, taking care of them, directing their lives toward the good + In God’s understanding, everything fits into the pattern - God will work with us as we try to accomplish what we want to accomplish, giving us the chance to choose what we want - at the same time, God allows things to happen in our lives which change, alter or enhance the desires we have, thus bringing about the make-up of our lives - it seems as though we are choosing, and at times it seems as though we are governed by outside forces that have nothing to do with what we want - but what is actually happening is that God is working with us as we go about our choices at every juncture in our growth - and it is all for our good + But there is a catch - God will bring good out of every situation, it is true - but there is something that cannot be overlooked - you and I have a free will, and we can pursue our dreams at will - but we must make God part of our free will - Jesus says that as we go about doing what we’re doing in life Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all of these things will be given you besides. + Right there is our problem: we use our free will, but we don’t seek the Kingdom of God first - the New Testament’s first great prophet Paul the Apostle realized that - and he struggled with that throughout his life - we don’t know what that “thorn in the flesh” was that he spoke of in the first reading today - but we are certain that Paul understood it to be a weakness that he had, that his free will had caused - and he struggled with it throughout his life, but he knew that eventually God would help him take care of it - God would help him understand the hardships and would be with him - he realized that when he was weak, he was strong because the Lord was with him no matter what + What it means is that we keep doing what we do in life - we live and move, we raise our families, we help our grandkids, we make money to support ourselves, we take care of the people in our lives that we must, we enjoy life and relax at times - but we do all of those things with the kingdom of God in mind Seek first the kingdom, Jesus says + Free will is essential for us to be free in this world, but the Lord tells us to choose freely to control that free will by always seeking the Lord’s will as we use ours.
MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: "Marry Me" -- Train GETTING THE NERVE

The Gospel

MATTHEW 4:12-17

MATTHEW 4:12-17

When Jesus had heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulon and Naphtali, that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled. … From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Gospelthink: I began my ministry with the thought of repentance, asking you to change. Have I listened to the Lord and truly repented for my sins?

"Forever can never be long enough for me to feel like I’ve had long enough with you. Forget the world now; we won’t let them see. But there’s one thing left to do: now that the weight has lifted, love has surely shifted my way. Marry me, today and every day. Marry me. If I ever get the nerve to say 'hello' in this café, say you will. Together can never be close enough for me. You wear white and I’ll wear out the words 'I love you.'"

The group Train speaks of marriage and the proposal of marriage in th

eir song "Marry Me." It is an interesting story because the perfect marriage that he sings of is only in his mind: he must first get up enough nerve to talk to her.

When we study the life of the human Jesus, knowing that his incredible task was the redemption of humankind, we have to be interested in how he began the process. What were his feelings? How did he even go about starting it? What would it lead to, and what would it involve? Matthew's Gospel tells us that he went right to the task. It was as if he said, "Now is the time to begin; John prepared for it; it's the perfect time. I will begin it by telling the people to repent." The message was difficult enough; but it may even have been more difficult to begin to do it.

The excellent music video that accompanies Train's song "Marry Me," begins with married couples who talk about their involvement with each other at the beginning of their marriages. In every instance, they talk of the courage to begin the process of discovery of the other person. Train's song contains a double lesson: the one is the essence of marriage that will last "forever," the first word of the song. The second is the nerve it takes to begin the commitment.

Both are important for us. Because most of us get married, we must know what we are getting into, and completely understand that the word we use will be the word "forever." Too often we have not understood what it means.

The thought of "gaining the nerve" to begin the process is also something to consider. It certainly applies to the commitment of marriage, as the song and video show. But it also pertains to life in our world: if we want to accomplish any goal, we must have the courage to begin.

One of the problems of putting ideas into action is procrastination--what our dictionary defines as consistently putting something off. It is a fault that can destroy ideas and even ruin lives. If there is something that we can do for others or for ourselves, something that will help us be better people, we must first begin to carry it out. Once we have begun, then we can refine it, develop it, and put it into practice. But to bring it about, we must begin to bring it about.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, we are eternally grateful to you for bringing about our redemption. As we study how Jesus achieved it, we learn the human lesson of how to accomplish our goals in life. Give us the continual grace to learn from him. Be with us, we pray.

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: If we want to accomplish anything in life, we must have the courage to begin.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. The message of the meditation centers in on beginning something. In your opinion, what were the thoughts of the human Jesus as he began his public ministry?
2. Jesus begins his ministry in a place different from John the Baptist because of Herod's arrest of John. From the very beginning, Jesus had to be concerned about persecution. Why would Jesus' message be such a problem for secular rulers?
3. Considering Jesus' message, what is your definition of "repentance"?
4. The meditation mentions that the first word of the song is "forever." The word should be said only with a permanent commitment. Give some examples of things that must be done "forever."
5. The song speaks of the permanent commitment of marriage. In your opinion, what is absolutely necessary for a couple before marriage can take place?
6. Text analysis: why is it so difficult to "get the nerve to" talk to a person of the opposite sex?
7. Analysis: why can a married couple never "wear out the words, 'I love you'''?
8. What is your understanding of Jesus' redemption of humankind? (See Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, numbers 599-618.)
9. Obtain a copy of the video of Train's song "Marry Me" and study the beginning dialogue of the couples. What is a common element in each of the stories?
10. In your opinion, do most couples who get married really understand the meaning of "forever"? Yes or no and why?
11. Given all the external preparations that are given to marriage especially in the Western world, do you think that the couple is really thinking about the real meaning of marriage as they prepare? Yes or no and why?
12. What does the song "Marry Me" teach young people?