Moses struggles on a hilltop to keep his hands up in prayer while a battle rages down on the field.  The fight's outcome depends on Moses' effort in prayer.  Our prayers also make a real difference in the lives of others and of the world.  Inspired by Scripture, which is living and active, our time in prayer gives new life to our ordinary tasks and interactions.  

Jesus heals ten lepers but only one comes back to thank him.  An image of sin, their leprosy is cured when they are on the way to see "the priests."  Jesus appreciates the gratitude of the Samaritan who returned after being cured and finds fault with the other nine.  Constant gratitude is a way of loving our Lord and of assuring our own increase in saving faith. 

The Sermon on the Mount is the core of Jesus's teaching on how to live with faith.  At once challenging and comforting, Jesus's vision of faith calls us to a radical dependence on God and detachment from all other goods.  At the heart of faith is an unshakable trust in God's infinite love for us.  This conviction frees us to live without fear and to strive for virtue without anxiety.  To have a living faith, however, takes personal prayer: times in which we apply the basic truths of our faith in God to the concrete circumstances and concerns of our current lives.    

Jesus' parable of the talents is an image of Christian life.  God has invested a lot in each one of us.  Like the servants who eagerly trade with their talents to make them fruitful, we want to accept all the opportunities and challenges that our Lord has entrusted to us.  Too often it is easy to resent life, focusing only on the difficulties, and end up like the third servant who buries his talent out of laziness and fear. 

St. Paul expresses God's intent that "all men be saved."  In his providence, God counts on his apostolic Church to fulfill this divine desire.  He is always looking for "laborers" for the vineyard.  The parable of the unjust steward reminds us to be grateful guardians of God's gifts and to be shrewd in pursuing our noble ends. 

Christ's Triumph on the Cross defeated sin and death.  It was a triumph of love over selfishness.  This victory needs to be repeated in our own lives, in our own carrying of the Cross.  Sin and selfishness have to be defeated in us and this entails the acceptance of suffering and sacrifice; in a word the acceptance of the Cross.   Suffering is inevitable in life, but whether it is redemptive and sanctifying or futile and permanent is truly up to us.  

Jesus takes five loaves and two fish from a boy and multiplies them to feed a crowd of thousands.  When we trust him, Jesus takes our good will and our meager personal resources and similarly multiplies them to help us and others.  Fortunately, faith is something we can grow in by choosing to do so.  It is a free human act.  By admitting our limitations and weakness and then confidently trying our best to do his will, Jesus makes up the difference between our insufficiency and the great things he wants us to do.   

The readings for this Sunday's Mass relate the fruits of humility.  Growth in humility is worth the effort.  St. Theresa of Avila offers sound advice on how to advance in this essential Christian virtue. 

Jesus walks on water in the midst of a storm.   Peter joins him in a great act of daring and trust.  This Gospel scene contains lessons of prayer, trust, and union with Christ on the cross. 

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Christ expresses his burning desire to "cast fire on the earth."  This is a call to an intense Christian life.  To be men and women on fire for the love of God and others, we should look out for self-centered and lukewarm habits and mindsets.  Prayer, mortification and a generous plan for each day help to ignite the fire of God within us.