Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

Let this be written for the generation to come,
    and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
“The LORD looked down from his holy height,
    from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
    to release those doomed to die.

So Jesus said to them,
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me. 
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him.”

Do you recall the post I made last week? Who is it that you look up to? Do you want to be looked up to yourself? Keep that post in mind with today’s readings.

I also want to share with you Bishop Barron’s homily from Sunday morning. I’ve listened to it a couple of times now – not because I didn’t understand the first time but because it really packs a powerful message. Here it is for you to listen to today.

Have you ever watched the movie “The Princess Bride”? One of my family’s favorite lines from the movie is the wedding scene where the Bishop starts his homily…”Wuv. Twu Wuv.” Well, today my twu wuv celebrates her birthday. Happy Birthday Sarah. As I was reading the “readings for the day”, I’m not sure why but my mind wandered back to the day I that I knew Sarah was my twu wuv. It was the summer of 1983, following my shortened trip with YCM to New York City. Sarah and I were not dating at the time but she wanted to go to Hays (Kansas) to spend time with her Aunts, Uncles and cousins. She had no way of getting there so I volunteered to drive her. We were having a great time, just two friends with nothing better to do. One day there we were encouraged to go hear her cousin practice at the local college for an opera she was performing in. As we met with her cousin, her cousin was trying to set her up with another gentleman from that school. I had a feeling wash over me that “ticked” me off that someone was trying to set Sarah up on a date and it wasn’t me. In the process of me being ticked off, it was like a veil was lifted from in front of my eyes and I saw Sarah in a completely different light. I’m here to tell you it was a feeling like I’d never felt. I can also tell you that that same day – in the basement of her Aunt Nellie’s house, as we were talking about the rest of the week, I leaned over and kissed Sarah for the first time and let’s just say things have worked out for us since then. I love my wife even more now than I did after that “wave” rushed over me. I hope she has a great day celebrating her birthday.

Do something great for our Lord today – buy your wife some flowers…and your Mother-in-Law (Mr. Krull – can a brother get a deal?). Even better than that, do something that makes them look up to you!

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.