As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him. While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples. The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" He heard this and said, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, ´I desire mercy, not sacrifice.´ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."

Introductory Prayer: Lord, I come here today knowing the importance of this prayer time spent with you. You are the center of my life and I truly want to use this moment to deepen my knowledge and love for you.

1.  "He Saw a Man Named Matthew Sitting at the Customs Post."  Although Christ ascended into heaven over 2000 years ago, he continues to be present in his modern day saints and apostles. Concretely, Christ wants to touch peoples' hearts through you. He wants you to forget about yourself so as to become that which he is: a gift to others. A gift that does not expect anything at all in return, just as Jesus gave himself for us. He gave himself up so that we could share this joy with him eternally. This love, however, cannot be confined just to our families and friends. The love of God has no barriers or borders.

"Authentic love is not a vague sentiment or a blind passion. It is an inner attitude that involves the whole human being. It is looking at others, not to use them but to serve them. It is the ability to rejoice with those who are rejoicing and to suffer with those who are suffering. It is sharing what one possesses so that no one may continue to be deprived of what he needs. Love, in a word, is the gift of self" (John Paul II, Vatican City, 1994).

 2.  "Why Does Your Teacher Eat with Tax Collectors and Sinners?"  We have all been created in the image and likeness of God and therefore every individual deserves our full charity and respect. Seen through the eyes of Christ, every person on this earth is a soul in need of salvation. And Christ is asking us to be the ambassadors of his love to touch all of these souls and bring them closer to heaven. It is our love that matters the most, and only a sacrificial and generous love can penetrate the cold and indifferent hearts in today's world. In the end, we will be judged on our love.

 "Believers have a duty to treat all men and women as brothers and sisters in the one human family; prejudice and enmity have no place in true religion and can never be justified on religious grounds"  (John Paul II, address to the ambassador of Great Britain, Vatican City, 1995).

 3.  "I Desire Mercy, Not Sacrifice."  So often we express our love for God in our words and in our prayers, but how little we show it in our lives. God wants you to express your love for him precisely through your love for your neighbor. How? The details of service at home, a smile or complimentary word said to a friend, a hidden act of charity to someone you would naturally rather avoid, and the list could go on and on. In short, we need to continually see others through the prism of the eyes of Christ, and even more importantly we need to love them with the heart of Christ.

Conversation: Lord Jesus, please help me to pray as St. Paul did, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." I ask you now to take over my heart, my mind and all I do so that you can think and love and pray in me.

Questionnaire

1. What am I doing in order to grow in the knowledge of Our Lord's example of charity? Does my own life reflect this example?

2. What aspect of my charity needs the most attention?

3. What can I do concretely in order to grow in charity and become more like Christ today?