Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
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Today's Word
"Whose image is this and whose inscription?" - Matthew 22:20 Full readings at USCCB
Real Talk
Some religious leaders try to trap Jesus with a question about paying taxes to Rome. Either answer gets him in trouble, either with the government or with the crowd. Jesus asks to see a coin, points out whose face is on it, and says give Caesar what's Caesar's and God what's God's. Nobody can argue with it, and nobody walks away with the gotcha moment they wanted.
That answer actually applies to your whole week, not just money. Some stuff genuinely belongs to "Caesar," meaning school, homework, chores, the normal demands of being a person with a life. None of that is bad. The real question is whether God's actual claim on your time is still getting anything real, or whether it's become whatever's left over after everything else is done, which for most people is basically nothing.
Today's also World Mission Sunday, when the whole Church prays for missionaries specifically. Most people will never leave the country for their faith. But the question underneath missionary work is the same one from the coin: what image does your life actually carry most visibly, and is it the one you'd pick if you were being totally honest about it?
Missionaries don't get anything out of the deal that Caesar would recognize as worth it. That's exactly what makes their choice a useful mirror for your own, smaller version of the same question.
Your Challenge
Interior: Look at your actual schedule for this week, not the one you'd describe to someone, the real one. Circle what belongs to God and what doesn't. Be honest about which category is shrinking.
One Prayer
Lord, show me what wears your image in my life and what doesn't, and give me the guts to give you your actual share. Amen.
You are not alone. Submit your intentions and they'll be carried to Holy Hour this Sunday.
Take to Holy Hour