God Has a Plan: Spend 5 with Jesus for Friday, September 8, 2023

It is good that you exist. Not only is it good that we exist, but God God has a plan for us. And if you can remember both of these things, your life will become full.

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God Has a Plan

Transcript (A New Feature!)

Each time we record something, we will provide a transcript of the recording. Enjoy!

Hello and welcome to Spend Five with Jesus for Friday, September 8th, 2023.

Today is the birthday of the Blessed Mother, and it is a special day for us to celebrate.

By the way, Spend Five with Jesus is our daily reflection. I realize it hasn’t been daily as of late. We had some things that kind of made that a challenge for us, but hopefully we are back together in looking at things. A new feature, the recording will feature a transcript, which is one of the improvements we’ve made to this, but it also means that maybe it won’t be quite as formal as it was when it was written in advance and then recorded.

So today we celebrate the birthday of Mary. Why is today an important day? Why do we celebrate birthdays at all? Well part of it is an awareness that we need to hear again and again. I think it was Sister Miriam James at the SEEK conference last year that said something that I’ve often repeated. It is good that you exist. It is good that you exist.

Even when we sin, it is still good that we exist, even though the sin is not something that’s good. God still loves us when we sin, even though God does not love the sin. So there is a certain part of celebrating a birthday or celebrating someone who is alive, that people who love and care for that person, well they want to acknowledge that something wonderful has happened in the life of that person, that it is good that they exist.

But today’s time with the Blessed Mother, as we celebrate her birthday, helps us to remember something maybe a little bit more, namely this. Not only is it good that we exist, but God God has a plan for us. God has a plan for us. God has a plan for the world. Let that sink in for a minute. God has a plan. And that’s what we encounter in the readings that we could choose today for Mass. God has a plan.

In the first reading from the book of the prophet Micah, we read this. The Lord says, “You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel.” It’s a promise. It’s a plan. God has a plan. I know it can be the case that sometimes it doesn’t seem like there’s much of a plan. Or if there is a plan, it’s not a very good one.

There’s so much that really is difficult in our lives. There’s so much that’s hard in our lives. There are accidents, there are illnesses, there is violence, there is war, there are broken relationships, there’s brokenness in ourselves. But truth be told, what we hear today from the prophet Micah is this plan for our salvation. That all of those things we don’t like, all of those things that are not so great are not the final word on the story.

That the final word on the story is the salvation of Jesus extended to all of us. It was God’s plan. And God’s plan is one that even when things go bad, God’s plan is such that he can bring good from those things that are not so great, not so good. Today, think about the plan that God has for you and ask for the grace to accomplish that plan in your life. And ask the Blessed Mother to pray for you so that you can realize what it is that God’s plan is. Happy birthday, Blessed Mother, Mary, the Mother of God, and happy day to each one of you as you seek to discover the plan that God has for you.

On the friar, you can listen to our homilies (based on the readings of the day) and reflections. You can also ask us to pray for you or to pray for others. You can subscribe to our website to be informed whenever we publish an update.