January 5, 2026 // Memorial of St. John Neumann, Bishop
Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s First Reading: 1 John 3:22-4-6.
Reflect on the Word //
Preserved lemons?
My daughter erupted in laughter as she took the jar out of the gift bag. The jar of cloudy liquid and softened lemons was the same shape as the candle her brother had ordered, but definitely not the right gift. I was the only one not laughing in the room, as I racked my brain in an attempt to remember the circumstances of that particular purchase. Bought online and picked up in store, he must have put the paper-wrapped item in the gift bag without checking.
It wasn’t a gag gift; it was a mistake, and definitely not the gift she had asked for.
We don’t always get what we ask for. Sometimes it is human error, but sometimes it is because we aren’t asking for the right things. In the First Letter of Saint John today we read the words, “We receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him” (1 John 3:22).
What happens when we don’t keep His commandments or do what pleases Him?
While I strive for holiness, I often simply ask for what I think I need at the moment. Heal this, solve that—I don’t ask so much as plead when I feel overwhelmed. Drowning in my commitments, bills, or worries, my focus is less on His commandments and what pleases Him, than on what I think I need in order to escape the current situation. Rather than trying to fix it, what if I could recognize His presence with me in the struggle, practicing gratitude for that unity with Him and the opportunity to grow through it all?
God wants to walk the journey with us. A sure companion as we travel a road with twists and turns and hills and valleys, He wants to accompany us along the way. When we keep His commandments and fix our focus on what pleases Him, all we want is what He wants for us. When we are finally able to search our hearts, we discover that we desire unity to His will—not a solution according to our will.
Relate to the Lord // Have you felt disappointed? Tell Jesus about it and allow Him to comfort you.
Dr. Mary Ruth Hackett is a writer, national speaker, and podcast host covering topics in psychology and faith. She holds a PhD in Educational Psychology and works at the important intersection of faith and developmental science, blending them in the original harmony God intended. Dr. Mary Ruth is the author of Daughter by Design: Discovering Your Identity as God's Beloved Daughter, and co-coauthor of Spiritual Discernment for Beginners: Learning to Hear God and Defeat the Lies of the Enemy. She is a contributing author to All She Had and our children’s devotional prayer book called Rise Up. Find out more about her here.
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