It is 02nd July 2015. The readings are from Gen.22.1b-19 and the Gospel from Mt. 9:1-8. The first reading is a soul moving story of the sacrifice of Abraham of his son Isaac. The willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son is a model for us all. Abraham bound himself to the will of God. Isaac carrying wood reminds us of the willingness of Jesus carrying the wood of the cross to do the will of the Father. This spontaneous willingness comes through a deep faith and self-surrender. It is a kind of binding to God’s will so as to go through the anguish silently for the glory of God. “Abraham bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar…” (Gen.19:9). Bind us Lord to your will. Bind us so tight that we do not experience the anguish and pain not to make the sacrifice blemish. We need to pray for this binding ourselves to offer our very selves as a sacrifice to God. The responsorial Psalm invites us to follow God telling, “I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.” (Ps.114:9). The Gospel presents Jesus having power over the conscience of human beings. Jesus has the power over nature and demons. The followers accepted the power over the nature, rejected the power over demons and the power over the conscience divided them all. The way we react to Jesus differs from person to person. Yet, Jesus not only heals us but also knows us. We need to know that we are bound by the sin in our sickness. Unless and until we ask for forgiveness from Jesus on a daily basis, we remain a sinful sick person all through. Time has come to surrender our very selves to Jesus so as to please God. May the Lord bless you.