Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Reading 1 Isaiah 55:10-11
Thus says the LORD:
Just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
And do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
Giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19
R. (18b) From all their distress God rescues the just.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. From all their distress God rescues the just.
Verse Before the Gospel Matthew 4:4b
One does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.
Gospel Matthew 6:7-15
Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is how you are to pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
February 24, 2026 // Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15
Reflect on the Word //
I am standing in the workroom, pouring cream into my tea with one hand and stifling a yawn with the other, when I hear a colleague’s voice over the hum of the copy machine.
“How are you?”
I can tell from the way her brow is knitted when I turn to face her that she really wants to know.
So I am honest: I tell her that I am wrestling with the paradox of work that is simultaneously life-giving and exhausting, that I am finding it hard to keep up, that I can’t see my desk for the stacks of ungraded papers all over it, and that most of my prep happens about twenty minutes before each class.
In short, I tell her I am taking it one day at a time, although I feel I am barely managing to do that—and I certainly don’t like it.
In a perfect world, I’d have my lesson plans typed at least a week in advance and grade assignments as soon as they come to me. I’d take on several days at a time, please and thank you, and I would never feel overwhelmed. Maybe when I’ve been at this work for another ten years, I think grimly.
Yet today’s Gospel reminds me that living day to day is nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, it is a grace, the sacred rhythm of divine encounter. Among the Lord’s other simple instructions for our prayer, He commands us to implore, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). In other words, Give me only what I need for this day, Lord. That is always enough. Have I ever lacked anything I’ve needed to make it through this one day I’m living right now, today?
Seen in this light, our struggles to keep up with whatever is asked of us need not cause embarrassment or frustration, sister. Instead, they get to be privileged meeting places with our God, Who waits to fill them with Himself and answer our neediness with His tender, attentive provision.
One day at a time.
Relate to the Lord // Ask the Lord to give you the grace to be present to the present moment today.
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