June 30, 2026 // Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time // Optional Memorial of the First Holy Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Matthew 8:23-27 

Reflect on the Word // 

Just as suddenly as I noticed the casual tone of the crowd of tourists filling the little European church, I felt Him say to me, Will you help Me?

It was an answer to a prayer I had made earlier: Please fill Your beautiful churches with people who cherish You. His answer came in what should have been silence after Communion. I struggled to understand how such a church could be such a lonely place for Him, echoing not with prayers but with street-level voices, not speaking to Him. He knew well how I longed for any of these tiny, forgotten European sanctuaries to be lifted and brought back home.

I felt His similar tone in the Gospel today: “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26) I could sense His compassion in the ache of my heart amid those embattled waters that dare to terrify me. 

His question cut me to the core, for it was a reminder of Who He is: the One Who is worthy of my complete confidence. And just as His voice brought calm to the chaos of the waters, it healed me even as it rebuked. The constancy of His Voice reminds us that even when He seems to be sleeping, He is still in the boat—and that is not far. 

The Gospel proclaims a “great calm” at His voice (Matthew 8:26). Do we ask Jesus to come to us as the Lord and Prince of Peace—in His total freedom—and to act and speak into our lives as He wills? Do we recognize His presence within us, no matter what storms may rage around us? 

Relate to the Lord // Give Jesus permission to speak to you, to speak into your life today. Pay attention for His practical and personal inspirations.