Sunday Homilies with Fr. Mike Schmitz - Episodes Tagged with “Gratitude”

07/31/22 Then What?

Ascension — Mon, 01 Aug 2022 08:00:00 -0500

Homily from the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Time and Death make most of what we live for hevel.

We are preoccupied with "done", but we are simultaneously addicted to asking "then what?". The wisdom of Ecclesiastes notes that so much of what we live for is impermanent, passing, or meaningless. Yet Jesus reveals that there is a real meaning and a real hope.

Mass Readings from July 31, 2022:
Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23
Psalms 90:3-6, 12-14 and 17
Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11

01/31/21 Hindsight 20/20: Worthless Knowledge

Ascension — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 21:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

I learned, but I didn’t grow.

Knowledge is powerful. Having lived through this past year, and looking back on what we have been through is essential. We can have learned a great number of things over 2020. But unless we are willing to act on that knowledge, hindsight will be powerless.

Mass Readings from January 31, 2021:
Deuteronomy 18:15-20
Psalms 95:1-2, 6-7, 7-9
1 Corinthians 7:32-35

12/13/20 "I Am Not"

Ascension — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 15:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Third Sunday of Advent.

No one can take from you what doesn’t belong to you.

We all have the temptation to pretend to be someone or something other than we are. To pass ourselves off as someone else…to be an imposter. We do this most often when we know the truth but live in fear of the truth. John the Baptist shows us what it looks like to know the truth and live in the freedom of the truth.

Mass Readings from December 13, 2020:
Isaiah 61:1-2, 10-11
Luke 1:46-50, 53-54
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

11/15/20 Roadmap: Checkpoints

Ascension — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 13:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.

What have you done with what you've been given?

No one ever sets out to lose. But losing is entirely possible: in business, relationships, and in the spiritual life. It is possible to lose one’s soul. No one wants to lose, but many people do. Even with a great roadmap, we need regular checkpoints to make sure we are on course and haven’t gone off track.

Mass Readings from November 15, 2020:
Proverbs 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31
Psalms 128:1-5
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6

08/02/20 All We Have

Ascension — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 17:00:00 -0500

Homily from the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Do I have an attitude of scarcity or an attitude of abundance?

All of us have gifts in our lives and all of us have real struggles in our lives. What weight do we give our blessings and what weight do we give our struggles?

Mass Readings from August 2, 2020:
Isaiah 55:1-3
Psalms 145:8-9,15-18
Romans 8:35, 37-39

06/28/20 Something to Lose

Ascension — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 18:00:00 -0500

Homily from the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

It is a gift to have something to lose.

Every good thing in our lives comes from Jesus. Since He is the source of everything, He must be more important than anything.

Mass Readings from June 28, 2020:
2 Kings 4:8-11,14-16
Psalms 89:2-3,16-19
Romans 6:3-4, 8-11

11/17/19 CompariSIN: Stealing Joy

Ascension — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 08:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.

If comparison is a thief of joy, then we have to learn how to steal it back.

In the battle to escape the comparison trap, we can become invincible to bad comparison by actively looking for the blessings, giving thanks, and inviting others into celebrating them. Because there are some things worth celebrating.

Mass Readings from November 17, 2019:
Malachi 3:19-20
Psalms 98:5-9
2 Thessalonians 3:7-12

11/10/19 CompariSIN: Incomparable

Ascension — Sun, 10 Nov 2019 08:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time.

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.

We will continue walking through this world in which people are better than us. How can we become invincible to comparison?

Mass Readings from November 10, 2019:
2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14
Psalms 17:1, 5-6, 8, 15
2 Thessalonians 2:16-3:5

11/03/19 CompariSIN: Infinitely Preferred

Ascension — Mon, 04 Nov 2019 08:00:00 -0600

Homily from the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time.

What makes them so great? What makes me so awful?

When someone else being honored or loved more than we are meets our insecurity, we are tempted to tell stories…about them and about ourselves. But when we know who we are and are grateful for what we have, we have security. And comparison is powerless.

Mass Readings from November 3, 2019:
Wisdom 11:22-12:2
Psalms 145:1-2, 8-9, 10-11, 13, 14
2 Thessalonians 1:11-2:2

10/27/19 CompariSIN: The Way of Comparison

Ascension — Sun, 27 Oct 2019 08:00:00 -0500

Homily from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

In a life of comparison, every person is a potential threat.

Comparison is the desire to be “more” than another. At the heart of that desire is fear. Vulnerability breaks through that fear.

Mass Readings from Mass Readings from October 27, 2019:
Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18
Psalms 34:2-3, 17-18, 19, 23
2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18