He Wants to Give You More

Friday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Nahum 2:1, 3; 3:1-3, 6-7

See, upon the mountains there advances
the bearer of good news,
announcing peace!
Celebrate your feasts, O Judah,
fulfill your vows!
For nevermore shall you be invaded
by the scoundrel; he is completely destroyed.
The LORD will restore the vine of Jacob,
the pride of Israel,
Though ravagers have ravaged them
and ruined the tendrils.Woe to the bloody city, all lies,
full of plunder, whose looting never stops!
The crack of the whip, the rumbling sounds of wheels;
horses a-gallop, chariots bounding,
Cavalry charging, the flame of the sword, the flash of the spear,
the many slain, the heaping corpses,
the endless bodies to stumble upon!
I will cast filth upon you,
disgrace you and put you to shame;
Till everyone who sees you runs from you, saying,
“Nineveh is destroyed; who can pity her?
Where can one find any to console her?”

Responsorial Psalm Deuteronomy 32:35cd-36ab, 39abcd, 41

R. (39c) It is I who deal death and give life.
Close at hand is the day of their disaster,
and their doom is rushing upon them!
Surely, the LORD shall do justice for his people;
on his servants he shall have pity.
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
“Learn then that I, I alone, am God,
and there is no god besides me.
It is I who bring both death and life,
I who inflict wounds and heal them.”
R. It is I who deal death and give life.
I will sharpen my flashing sword,
and my hand shall lay hold of my quiver,
“With vengeance I will repay my foes
and requite those who hate me.”
R. It is I who deal death and give life.

Alleluia Matthew 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness;
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Matthew 16:24-28

Jesus said to his disciples,
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world
and forfeit his life?
Or what can one give in exchange for his life?
For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father’s glory,
and then he will repay each according to his conduct.
Amen, I say to you, there are some standing here
who will not taste death
until they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Cajetan, Priest
Readings for the Optional Memorial of Saint Sixtus II, Pope and Martyr, and his Companions, Martyrs

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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.

August 7, 2026 // Friday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time // Optional Memorial of Saint Sixtus II, Pope and Martyr, and his Companions, Martyrs // Optional Memorial of Saint Cajetan, Priest

Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel: Matthew 16:24-28

Reflect on the Word //

It was a Friday evening, the exhausted kind, when I encountered a lovely Dominican Sister. As we talked, I shared some of my built-up weariness and fear as I was taking a new leap in my life. I guess I had thought that I had done enough hard things for Jesus, but I was realizing that He was going to keep asking for more.

To which Sister confidently replied, “He will ask more of you, but He will also give you more.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His friends something similar: “Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 16:25). I wonder if His disciples understood the weight of this statement, this calling to follow their Friend to His Cross and then to their own martyrdoms. The more I look at my own life, I wonder if I really understand it either.

It is so radical that it has to change everything if it is true: my earthly life is meant to be lost. It is meant to be poured out, offered up, given away for God. In the end, nothing else will matter.

This is freedom, really. No wonder that my attempts to keep my life for myself make me miserable! All my anxiety about how I am going to make myself happy, satisfying all of my own desires on just the right timeline! That was never what my life was for.

Jesus speaks truly when He tells us, “What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?” (Matthew 16:26) The whole world is about all we can imagine, and yet He wants even more than that for us. He wants us to be happy, infinitely more than we ever could want it ourselves. He wants to give us everything for all eternity.

Relate to the Lord // Today, ask Him for the grace to give Him everything in return.

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About Monica Weinkopf

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Monica Weinkopf is a California girl who is learning the beauty of putting down roots wherever you are. After studying liberal arts in college, she is a full-time missionary to a college campus in Nebraska. She has always loved good books and deep talks, and these days she also likes running at sunrise, praying outside, and drinking kombucha.