Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 9, 9-13

Jesus said to his Apostles:
“Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves;
so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.
But beware of men, 
for they will hand you over to courts
and scourge you in their synagogues,
and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake
as a witness before them and the pagans.
When they hand you over,
do not worry about how you are to speak
or what you are to say.
You will be given at that moment what you are to say.
For it will not be you who speak
but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
Brother will hand over brother to death,
and the father his child;
children will rise up against parents and have them put to death.
You will be hated by all because of my name,
but whoever endures to the end will be saved.
When they persecute you in one town, flee to another.
Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel
before the Son of Man comes.”

Be shrewd and simple

1. Like sheep amid wolves.  You should know that not everyone is good and that there are always people who seek to harm you. You will obviously make friends and enemies in your life; that’s part of life and we must accept it. Jesus was the greatest person on earth, but nevertheless many didn’t like him and tried to kill him. Then, we can’t suppose that everybody is going to love us! Remember that wars were started because of envy and people who contributed a great deal to humanity were destroyed because of envy. I think it’s important that you learn to be prudent in what you say and publish, as well as being smart about who you relate to.  Many problems are avoided by giving yourself the gift of saying “no”. You don’t need to go to everywhere you are invited to for fear of people getting angry or offended. When you die, none of those who’ve felt offended will go and lie with you in the same grave. 

2. Beware. Be very careful of people who want to manipulate you and take away the beautiful gift of freedom.  There will always be people who will say “I was there”, ” you are what you are today thanks to me”. With all due respect, there are even parents who are manipulative like that. Years go by and they will say “I am your mother. I’m your father”, “and you’re leaving me to take care of your children after all I’ve sacrificed for you”. Of course, this manipulation causes guilt. Honor your parents because it is important to do so, but don’t create a feeling of “eternal indebtedness”.

3. The Spirit. Never abandon prayer and never stop asking God for wisdom. Learn to look at those around you and always ask God for light. Beware of those closest to you, that’s where betrayal comes from many times, and learn that not everyone has to know everything about you. Be prudent and don’t expose yourself unnecessarily, because not everyone around you has good intentions. Abandon yourself into God’s arms and God will never let go of you.

Always remember that something good is on the way!

God bless you and protect you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.