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El Shaddai Windsor Outreach, St. Alphonsus Church 85 Park Street East, Windsor, ON (2026)

10/23/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 23, 2026
. . striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:3)

Yesterday we looked at Jesus’ words on division in our households. Today, St. Paul broadens the topic to talk about divisions within the body of Christ. The Church in his day faced serious tensions, quarrels, and conflicts, and we might notice something similar today. We see people who are different from us. We may notice cliques, resentments, and divisions among church members. So how can we work toward the unity that Jesus himself prayed for?

In one short verse, St. Paul gives us two profound pieces of advice. First, we should strive “to preserve the unity of the spirit” (Ephesians 4:3). Our choices and behavior can serve to bring people closer together or do just the opposite. Our actions matter! But second, we should acknowledge that there is already a “bond of peace” among us (4:3). Jesus’ sacrifice has already united us.

We can pursue unity as we embrace “humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love” (Ephesians 4:2). On the practical level, that might involve rejecting the urge to condemn someone who hurts us and showing gentleness or patience instead. It might mean humbly listening to someone we disagree with instead of trying to correct what we see as errors.

Unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ isn’t an impossible dream. And neither is it something we create on our own. It’s a gift that we receive from God. Members of Christ’s body are already intimately united. We have one and the same “Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:6). Jesus has already broken down the biggest walls that divide us. Now, as we strive to preserve the unity Christ has already given us, we will be better able to make the daily choices that will deepen it and bring healing where divisions persist.

Jesus may have given us unity, but it’s ours to guard, preserve, and protect. It is both a gift and a mission, something that is already present and something that we still need to work toward.

“Jesus, thank you for your gift of unity. Help me work to preserve it!”

10/22/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 22, 2026

Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? (Luke 12:51)

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples that he has come not to bring peace on earth but division, even within families (Luke 12:51). This might sound shocking and harsh and hard to reconcile with other things Scripture says about him. Division, not peace? Isn’t Jesus the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6; Luke 2:14)?

Yes, Jesus’ gospel is indeed an invitation to peace with God and one another. But his gospel of peace is a call to be a disciple, to be with him and become like him. We can't coerce or force someone into this relationship. They can only enter it freely, by faith. Jesus calls each of us to make a choice, and that choice, ironically, may at times result in division.

Jesus’ declaration is actually an expression of his love and care for his disciples. He knows what lies ahead for them, and he wants them—and us—to know that choosing to follow him will sometimes put us at odds with the people we love most. He warns us so that we can be prepared, allow God to purify our own hearts, and respond to their indifference or even hostility as he did: with patience, love, and prayer.

Our closest relationships can bring us the greatest joy but also the greatest pain. When our family members or friends misunderstand us, oppose us, or dismiss us because of our faith, we can face the temptation to lash out and “give as good as we get.” Jesus knows what that opposition feels like because he faced it himself (Mark 3:21). And so he exhorts us to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) and to serve, love, and especially forgive (18:21-22).

If years pass and we don’t see our loved ones opening their hearts to the Lord, we may feel tempted to give up. But Jesus urges us to pray without ceasing. He wants us to trust that his word can—perhaps after a long time and without our knowledge—accomplish its purpose in any human heart, as it did for the “good thief” crucified beside Jesus (Luke 23:39-45).

Let’s embrace Jesus’ hard but merciful message today. Let’s ask the Lord to show us any “divided” relationships that are in need of his grace. And let’s treat our loved ones with patience, prayer, and forgiveness, as our Prince of Peace has done for us.

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.”

10/21/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 21, 2026

The Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same Body. (Ephesians 3:6)

In this passage, Paul explains something so important that it has literally changed the course of history. He affirms to the believers in Ephesus, most of whom were Gentiles, that there is no longer any division between Gentile and Jew. For centuries, Jews avoided Gentiles as unclean, and Gentiles looked down on Jews as members of an inferior religion and backward culture. But when the Holy Spirit fell on a Gentile named Cornelius—a Roman soldier, no less—God made it clear that both Jews and Gentiles are equals, “coheirs, members of the same Body, and copartners in the promise in Christ” (Ephesians 3:6; see Acts 10:1-49).

With today’s passage and others like it, Paul joined Peter, James, and the other apostles in announcing one of the most amazing—and challenging—truths of the gospel: in Christ, there are no longer distinctions between “clean” and “unclean” people. There are no divisions between those who are deemed “worthy” and those counted as “unworthy.” Everyone is a sinner and everyone can receive salvation from the Lord. So there is no room for prejudice. Or, as Paul says elsewhere, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28, emphasis added).

The world wants to divide us into categories and set us against each other, but Jesus has called us to love one another regardless of who the “other” may be. He wants us to look at our brothers and sisters in the Church and see him, in all his love and glory, as present in them. The degree to which we can do this—the degree to which we can love everyone equally—is the degree to which his Church can be a shining light to the world.

There’s nothing more attractive to a divided world than a united Church. There’s nothing more convincing about the power of God than the love and kindness shown by his people. So immerse yourself in the love of the Lord, and let that love soften your heart. Let it teach you how to love as Jesus loves. Show the world that there is a better way to live!

“Lord, give me your heart of love!”

10/20/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 19, 2026
. . rich in what matters to God. (Luke 12:21)

We don’t usually need much training in being “rich” in what matters to the world. Our natural tendencies push us to work hard so that we can afford to buy not just sufficient things but nice things as well. But to become rich “in what matters to God” (Luke 12:21)—that takes something more than training and discipline. It requires a transformation of the heart.

Think about what prompted Jesus to tell the parable of the rich fool in today’s Gospel. A man tried to enlist him as a mediator in an inheritance dispute with his brother. He wanted Jesus to help him get what he thought was his fair share of his father’s estate. But Jesus had a far different goal in mind. You can almost hear him saying,

Don’t try so hard to become rich in what matters to this world—not unless you are working just as hard to become rich in what matters to my Father.
Or, to use the imagery from his parable,

You don't need a bigger "barn" to store your excess wealth. Give it to those who have nothing!
You never hear about a saint who wished they had a bigger bank account. You never hear about a missionary who wore only the finest silk shirts or dresses. That’s because they discovered a different kind of wealth—the riches of discipleship. These are riches that “neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:20).

In prayer today, put yourself in place of the man who asked Jesus to help him become wealthier. What kind of wealth are you looking for? To what degree is it riches that matter to the world, and to what degree is it riches that matter to God? Tell Jesus about the balance between the two, and ask him to tell you what he thinks about it.

If you let Jesus see your true desires, including whatever “bigger barns” you are hoping for, he will give you a glimpse into his desires for you. He will show you what it could be like if you were more rich in what matters to him—the joys, the spiritual insights, the sense of purpose, and, yes, the challenges. And he will fill you with a deeper desire to pursue that wealth—the wealth that really matters.

“Lord, help me to desire your treasures above all else.”

10/16/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 16, 2026

You are worth more than many sparrows. (Luke 12:7)

Think of the great love that God has for his creation. He took such care when he designed the heavens and the earth that he declared that what he created was “very good” (Genesis 1:31). He is so involved in his creation that not even something as small as a sparrow escapes his notice!

But for all the care that God puts into the smallest birds, we human beings have an even more central place in his heart. He loves each of us individually as a unique, unrepeatable person fashioned in his own image and likeness. As Jesus assures us in today’s Gospel, “You are worth more than many sparrows” (Luke 12:7). God loves you so much, in fact, that he sent his only Son to redeem you by his death and resurrection.

What does it mean that we are worth so much to the God of the universe? Everything! Knowing how much he loves us can:

Give us the courage that “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
Lead us to worship him with gratitude and awe.
Fill us with the confidence to go to him for help in times of need and for mercy when we fall short of his commands.
Move us to share the good news about his love with the people around us.
Bring healing to the interior wounds we can experience in life’s ups and downs.
Isn’t it great news that the deepest longing of our hearts—the longing to be loved and accepted and cherished—finds its true fulfillment in the love of the Lord? We don’t have to go looking everywhere for this love; it’s already in us through the Holy Spirit. We don’t have to worry that we’re not deserving of love; God has already declared that we are. And we don’t have to fear that this love will fizzle out; it flows continually from the heart of the One who promised to be with us “always” (Matthew 28:20).

As you begin your prayer today, listen as the Lord tells you, “You are worth more than many sparrows” (Luke 12:7)! Then lift your eyes to heaven, and praise him for loving you so deeply.

“Heavenly Father, I am in awe of you!”

10/15/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 15, 2026

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:3)

There’s something unique about the Letter to the Ephesians. St. Paul begins most of his letters to other churches by rejoicing in the ways the recipients are living out the gospel. But rather than focus immediately on this particular church, Paul begins by lifting his readers’ eyes to “the heavens” (1:3). From there, he virtually explodes with praise for the God who has poured so many wonderful blessings upon all his people. His combination of joy and awe is so great that it can’t be contained!

Most commentators believe that Paul began Ephesians this way because he intended for his letter to be read in a number of churches around the Roman province of Asia Minor. So he focused on what is true for any church, regardless of their situation. That means he focused on what is true for you as well. So . . .

If you want to know God’s love more deeply, this letter is for you. It tells you that God loves you enough to give you “every spiritual blessing” (Ephesians 1:3). In fact, he loved you “before the foundation of the world,” before you did anything to earn that love (1:4).
If you want to encounter his mercy more fully, this letter is for you. You can let Paul show you that God has “lavished” upon you the grace of his forgiveness (Ephesians 1:8). You can encounter the grace that not only forgives you but that raises you up to be with him in heaven (2:4, 6).
And if you want to understand God’s plan and purpose for you, this letter is for you. You can let God show you that it is his “will” that you receive “adoption to himself” as his child. And it’s the great “mystery of his will” to bring all things together, including yourself, “in Christ” (Ephesians 1:5, 9-10).
And there is so much more! For the next two weeks, as we hear this letter at Mass, take just one phrase from the reading for that day, and sit with it in prayer. Ask the Lord to fill you with the same joy that Paul knew, the joy of knowing “the riches of his grace” (Ephesians 1:7).

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” (Ephesians 1:3).

10/13/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 13, 2026

I will walk at liberty, because I seek your precepts. (Psalm 119:45)

Wait a minute! Aren’t “precepts” the opposite of “liberty” (Psalm 119:45)? Doesn’t freedom mean doing whatever you please, whenever you please, regardless of rules and restrictions? Not really.

Imagine you run into a stranger who hands you a flute. You seem to like music, he says. Take this flute. Go ahead, and feel free to make music with it! Without instruction, you probably wouldn’t be able to do much with it. But if someone taught you the methods or “precepts” of how to play—where to put your fingers, how to blow into it, how to read music—you would then have the chance to exercise the “freedom” of a musician, especially if you put in the time to practice. You would willingly restrict your freedom to do whatever you want with the flute so that you could learn to play it skillfully.

When St. Paul says, “For freedom Christ set us free,” he is talking about that kind of freedom: the freedom to do something beautiful, the liberty to do what pleases the Lord (Galatians 5:1). God didn’t make us free so that we could ignore his commands; he knows they are what guide us to reach our full potential. They are what set us on the path of excellence.

Excellence at what? Love of God and love of our neighbors.

Jesus delivers us from sin so that we can “walk at liberty” and become like him (Psalm 119:45). We are free to look out for someone else’s needs before our own. We are free to sacrifice on someone else’s behalf. The more this happens, the more like Jesus we become. It will look different for each one of us. A contemplative monk grows in loving in a different way than a young father does. A corporate executive conforms herself to Christ differently than someone living in a nursing home. But for each of us, true freedom comes as we receive the grace to live up to our potential.

Remember, loving isn’t accomplished in a single moment or gesture. It happens over time and with practice, just as every rehearsal enables the flute player to play even more beautifully.

“Father, thank you for setting me free to live in a way that pleases you!”

10/12/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 12, 2026

Christ set us free. (Galatians 5:1)

In today’s first reading, Paul uses the story of Hagar, a slave of Abraham and Sarah, to illustrate his insistence that by his cross, Jesus has set us free from every kind of slavery. For the Galatian Gentiles he was writing to, this included freedom from having to follow the Law of Moses. There was no need for anyone to convert to Judaism in order to become a full Christian. Everyone—Gentile and Jew alike—is saved by the grace of God. No one needs to do anything other than repent, believe, and be baptized.

The debate about Gentile and Jewish believers has been long settled in the Church, and the message of freedom in Christ continues to resonate. But there remain so many voices telling us that we need to do more in order to be “saved.” These voices try to convince us that we need to pray in a certain way or for a certain amount of time each day if we want to be truly pleasing to the Lord. Or that we have to lead a perfectly virtuous life. Or that we have to keep up with every current Catholic trend or influencer.

But none of this is necessary. As Paul wrote, Jesus has set us free “for freedom,” not so that we would fall under a different kind of bo***ge (Galatians 5:1). He is the only One who can release us from the curse of sin. He is the only One who can destroy the power death once had over us. And he is the only One, through the power of his Spirit, who can convince us that God’s love for us is merciful, eternal, and unconditional.

Now, set free from sin and death, we can learn to renounce the destructive habits that have kept us from growing in holiness. We have been set free from sin and are now free to love the Lord and other people!

So celebrate your freedom in your prayer today! Proclaim that Jesus has redeemed you from darkness and sin and death. Tell him how grateful you are that he has set you free—and that you want to live in the freedom he has won for you.

“All praise to you, Lord Jesus, for your gift of freedom!”

10/11/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 11, 2026

The Lord of hosts will provide for all peoples a feast. (Isaiah 25:6)

We often hear today’s first reading at funerals because it points our attention toward the heavenly banquet, when God will “destroy death forever” and “wipe away the tears from every face” (Isaiah 25:8). We also pray for our deceased loved one who was “nourished at the table of the Savior,” as he or she feasted on the Eucharist.

So if Holy Communion is a feast, that means that we don’t have to wait until we die to join in the banquet! We can experience a foretaste at every Mass. Every time we receive the Body and Blood of Christ, our Lord gives himself fully to us. Jesus has destroyed the “veil” that once separated us from him. There is no “web” of sin to hold us bound (Isaiah 25:7). He holds nothing back; he offers us his very life! He pours out forgiveness for the sin that weighs us down, comfort in sadness, strength for our journey, and joy in place of the “reproach” of despair (25:8).

God has prepared an extravagant banquet for us. Now it’s up to us to join in the feast. Will we accept his invitation eagerly, or will we give in to indifference, like the guests in today’s Gospel? Invited to a wedding banquet by a king, they were distracted by their own affairs and refused to go. They missed out on so much and settled for so little!

Jesus is inviting you to a banquet today—to the greatest banquet in the world. Like the king in today’s Gospel, he is prepared to nourish you on the finest of foods—his own Bread of life! What do you need to receive from him? Don’t be afraid to ask as you come forward to receive him with humble gratitude, confidence, and expectation. He will give himself to you completely. He may even surprise you by giving you more than you ask. God longs to provide for all peoples—and that includes you!

“Thank you, Lord, for preparing a feast for me today. Jesus, I receive you!”

10/10/2026

TODAY'S WORD OF GOD - October 10, 2026

You who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (Galatians 3:27)

Why do some schools require their students to wear uniforms? One reason is that a uniform is a great equalizer; in a very tangible way, it places every student at the same level. And because the student’s identity is rooted in that school, they feel a sense of belonging and kinship with everyone else wearing the same clothing.

In today’s first reading, Paul says that when we were baptized, we clothed ourselves with Christ (Galatians 3:27). He goes on to say that this “clothing” is so integral to who we are that it transcends all our differences and makes us equal in Christ. It doesn’t change just our outer appearance; it transforms us on the inside because we are filled with Jesus’ presence. That’s why Paul could declare, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (3:28).

Paul wrote those words to a community that had been struggling. Some members were making distinctions between Greek and Jewish believers and insisting that the Greeks should be circumcised and follow the laws of Judaism. But Paul argued that Christ was the great equalizer. Through their Baptism, both Jew and Gentile had been joined together in Christ. Since that identity united them as God’s children, they didn’t need any other bond (Galatians 3:26).

As a Church, we are even more diverse today than the first-century Christians. Yet for all our differences, we are all wearing the same “uniform” because we are all clothed with Christ and filled with the same Spirit.

We may tend to focus on our differences more than on what we have in common. But that’s not how God sees us. Today in prayer, ask for the grace to see yourself and other believers the way he sees you—as his very own children, wearing the most beautiful clothing imaginable: the clothing of Christ!

“Father, help me to treasure the unity you have won for us in your Son!"

El Shaddai Windsor Outreach

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