Hello everyone! Heyo! Welcome back to Scattering Flowers with Elise and Miles, a podcast where you read the daily Gospels and the Saint of the Day.
Let’s get started! Today is Monday, August 17th, and the Gospel reading is Matthew 19:16 through 21, and the scripture to reflect on is Matthew 19:21.
Jesus said to him, If you would be perfect, go sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.
If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it?
What would you buy?
Now think about that thing you might buy, and what if someone else asked you to give all that stuff away?
What would you do?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus was testing the man to see what was more important to him, God or his money.
And the man decided that his money was more important.
If we want to be Jesus' follower, then we have to make sure that God is most important and do whatever he tells us to do.
Jesus said that when he comes back to Earth, he will reward people who gave up things for God, and he will give them a hundred times more than they had in the first place.
What’s one million times one hundred more?
Today is World Honeybee Day, and the Saint of the Day is Saint Ambrose.
He is the patron saint of candle makers.
Get it?
‘Cause the bees wax makes candles.
Ambrose was born in Gaul about the year 340.
He was of a noble family.
He received a good education in Rome and became a poet and a famous speaker.
When he moved to Milan, he was appointed governor.
The voice of a child marked him out to the people of Milan as their bishop at the age of 34.
Ambrose gave his riches to the church and to the poor.
He was an eager student of the Holy Scriptures and the writers of the Church.
He defended the Church against Arian heretics of his time and led the Emperor Theodosius and his queen to penance.
At the age of a young man, Saint Augustine heard him speak and was converted by his sermons.
He admitted Augustine to the Church.
Ambrose was an example of a zealous shepherd of souls.
His heart was filled with a gentle love for the poor.
Ambrose died in the year 397.
He left us many important writings on the dioceses of the Holy Faith.
Let’s pray.
In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Dear God, help us to keep you first in our lives, or make things more important than you.
Help me to study your word to gain knowledge for your love for us.
Saint Ambrose, pray for us.
Amen.
In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Thank you so much for listening.
We’ll be back tomorrow, scattering more flowers.
See ya.