Our Ministries
27 Jan

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Blessed are the Poor in Spirit

Jesus spoke to the crowds many times throughout his public ministry. At times, there were conversations that happened one on one while breaking bread together. Sometimes He spoke to twelve of His closest friends. Other times He spoke to a crowd that was as far as the eye could see.

The one thing all these moments had in common is that He always spoke truth to the people. This Sunday, we get to hear and focus on the Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew when He spoke to the multitudes.

Many people are familiar with the Beatitudes. You can find artwork of them that you can hang in your house and prayer cards that can be passed out to people. Some may also know all of them by heart, but the question we should ask ourselves is, “What do they mean, and am I living them out?”

Do we understand what it means to be poor in spirit? Is it something we look at through a positive lens, or is it something we tell ourselves is for other people?

I have wondered at times if I live out the Beatitudes in my life. At times, I can say yes. Other times the answer is no, but I always try.

I desire to be poor in spirit and recognize my need for God. I desire to be a voice for righteousness and justice. I desire to show mercy and forgiveness to all. I desire to love others unconditionally even when I am being persecuted. I desire to be more like Jesus.

John 3:30 says it best, “He must increase; I must decrease”. That is what the Beatitudes is about. They are all characteristics of Jesus and how He lived. The Beatitudes are giving us a road map to becoming more like Him.

I encourage you to sit with the Beatitudes this weekend. With Lent approaching in less than a month, this is a good time to begin to focus on what we would like our Lenten journey to look like.

Instead of waiting until Ash Wednesday to begin praying more, begin that today. Pick one of the Beatitudes below and live it out with joy. It’s never too soon to commit to diving deeper into our beautiful Catholic faith.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.

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