Clothed in Love

Readings 082026 

Memorial Saint Bernard, Abbot and Doctor of the Church

St. Bernard taught

There is a journey every soul must take,  

a quiet unfolding of love in four movements.  

At first, we love God for what He gives —  

the blessings, the comfort, the answered prayers.  

But grace nudges us forward,  

until we love God simply for who He is—  

holy, faithful, steady in mercy.

And as His love settles deeper,  

we begin to love ourselves in God,  

seeing our worth through His eyes,  

not our own.  

From there, love ripens into its final stage —  

we love others with God’s own heart,  

a love that pours itself out.

A friend once told me  

about “religious people” —  

there are those who love 

the ceremony, the liturgy, 

the preacher, the show.  

And most of them forget 

the One they are

to truly love and worship.

His words remind me  

without true love,  

religion becomes noise.

Jesus tells a story  

that brings this truth into sharp focus.  

A king enters his banquet  

and finds a man without a wedding garment.  

The invitation was free,  

but the garment required a changed heart.  

The man is silent —  

because he wanted the feast  

without the transformation.

Many are invited,  

but few are chosen.

And the chosen are simply those  

who let love mature —  

from gifts,  

to God,  

to self in God,  

to others through God —  

until Christ Himself becomes the garment  

we wear into the Kingdom.

Prayer

Lord, 

Dress my soul in the garment 

of Your grace.  

Let my heart seek Christ 

above all things.  

Make my life 

a quiet offering of love.  

Clothe me today in the

 beauty of Your holiness.

Amen

St Bernard, pray for us.

When the Shepherd Calls My Name Again

 

Readings 081926 

In the quiet truth of my own story,  

I know this much—  

God has been with me. 

Long before I listened,  

long before I followed,  

long before my heart learned how to be still.  

His voice was there,  

steady as morning light,  

but I refused to hear it.  

I wandered.  

I strayed.  

I walked paths that were never mine.  

Yet the Shepherd never stopped searching.  

Never stopped seeing.  

Never stopped restoring.  

Because God Himself shepherds His people—  

with justice for the wounded,  

mercy for the weary,  

and a generosity that overturns everything 

we think we deserve.  

His shepherding is not distant.  

It is personal.  

Protective.  

Sustaining.  

It is the hand that lifts,  

the voice that calls,  

the grace that gathers us home.  

And in the goodness of that grace,  

He welcomes us  

with the same love,  

the same mercy,  

the same overflowing kindness—  

no matter when we finally turn toward Him.  

So today I strive—  

to walk closer,  

to listen deeper,  

to follow more faithfully.  

Because the Shepherd who never left me  

now leads me  

into the peace I once refused to see.  

Prayer

Shepherd of my wandering soul, 

draw me close again.  

Speak Your steady voice 

into the quiet places of my heart.  

Lift me from the paths 

where I have strayed too long.  

Wrap me in the mercy 

that keeps finding me.  

And lead me forward 

by the generosity of Your grace.  

Amen