holy martyrs

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Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that we have all sinned against God through our disobedience against Him, and we have disappointed God many times in our respective areas in life. Yet, the same Lord our God still continues to love us, and He still shows His patience and kindness, His ever generous love and commitment to the Covenant which He had made with each and every one of us. We must not take all the love which He has shown us all for granted, and we have to be thankful and appreciative of the many opportunities which He has constantly given to us because He wants us all to be reconciled to Him.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Hosea in which the Lord spoke to His people, the Israelites living in the northern kingdom known also as Israel, and listed down all the complaints and the grievances against all the wickedness and all the sins which they had committed against Him, in their refusal to obey the Law and the commandments which He had given and taught them to follow. The Lord told them all that His anger was blazing against them, against all those who had defiled His Name and the sanctity of His sanctuaries and dwelling places, all the wicked deeds they had committed in worshipping pagan idols and false gods instead of embracing and loving their one and only true God, the One Who had always provided for them in times both good and bad.

The prophet Hosea was sent to the people of Israel towards the end of their existence as an independent kingdom and entity, approximately two and a half centuries after the once united Kingdom of Israel had been divided between the descendants of David in Judah and the rebel regime in the northern regions. At that time, the rising power of Assyria was ascendant, and it would come to pass that everything which the Lord had predicted and warned against His people in Israel, would indeed happen, as soon after, the Assyrians with their mighty armies and forces came to defeat the Israelites and conquered their cities and kingdom, destroying Samaria and bringing the people into exile in distant lands. Their disobedience and their wickedness, their refusal to follow and obey God’s Law led them to ‘return back to Egypt’, which was in fact an allusion of their renewed enslavement by the forces of the Assyrians just as once they had been under the yoke of the Egyptians.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the time from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the works of the Lord were highlighted to us, in how He miraculously healed the man possessed by a demon, which made him dumb and mute. The Lord showed His power and compassion towards the man, and drove out the demon from within him, which led to an almost immediate ridicule and criticism from the Pharisees who were there, accusing Him of colluding with the prince of demons in doing so. They hardened their hearts and minds because they refused to accept the fact that their ways and actions, their understanding and knowledge of the Law of God could have been wrong or mistaken, and they accused the Lord of wrongdoing because they did not want to admit their weakness and imperfections.

Yet, despite all of that, we heard how the Lord still continued on with His ministry, caring for the people, performing His miracles, signs and wonders regardless, reaching out to those who are poor and needy, those who have no one else to turn to, those who have been neglected and were facing challenges and difficulties in life. He showed pity on them, as we heard how they were described as sheep of the flock without a shepherd. And this highlights what the Lord has done for His people, that He embraced each and every one of us as a loving Shepherd and Guide, as the One Who will lead us all into the path of righteousness and virtue, out from the darkness and wickedness in this world. He wants us all to be reconciled to Him and to find our path out of the destruction and damnation awaiting us if we continue to remain in sin.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions, who were persecuted, made to suffer and eventually were martyred in China. At that time, missionaries went to China to bring the Christian faith to many people who have not yet known the Lord, proclaiming the Good News of God to more and more people. However, the Christian faith and the missionaries were seen with great suspicion and even treated with hostility by the government and officials who saw them as threats to their power and control over the people. The government persecuted the Christian missionaries and local converts sporadically and systematically at times, forcing them to abandon their faith in the Lord at the threat of great sufferings and torture.

St. Augustine Zhao Rong himself was a Chinese soldier who accompanied Bishop John Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, a French missionary from the Paris Foreign Mission Society who was persecuted, arrested and then eventually martyred in the capital in Beijing. This experience among others led him to be a Christian convert himself, and eventually he became a diocesan priest serving the local Christian community, facing many challenges and hardships during his missions and works. Eventually, like many other Christians at that time, he was martyred about two centuries ago amidst an intense episode of persecutions against Christians. We remember this day the great courage and faith which St. Augustine Zhao Rong and the many other holy martyrs, the Holy Martyrs of China, have shown in their faith, dedication and commitment to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore strive to do our best to follow in the great footsteps of the holy martyrs, St. Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions in martyrdom, the Holy Martyrs of China. All of us should realise how much we have been blessed and loved by God, and by calling on us, and by us following Him and embracing His love, His compassion and kindness, we should always do our best to glorify Him and His Name in all things, and we should continue to live in the path of righteousness and justice, no longer distracted and misguided by sin and evil. Let us all be the great examples and inspirations for one another just as the holy martyrs had inspired us all in our own lives. May God be with us always and may He bless us in all of our good endeavours and works, all for His greater glory. Amen.

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Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Matthew 9 : 32-38

At that time, as the two blind men were going away, some people brought to Jesus a man who was dumb, because he was possessed by a demon. When the demon was driven out, the dumb man began to speak. The crowds were astonished and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

But the Pharisees said, “He drives away demons with the help of the prince of demons.”

Jesus went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom; and He cured every sickness and disease. When He saw the crowds, He was moved with pity; for they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are only few. Ask the Master of the harvest to send workers to gather His harvest.”

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Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Psalm 113B : 3-4, 5-6, 7ab and 8, 9-10

There in heaven is our God; whatever He wishes, He does. Not so the hand-made idols, crafted in silver and gold.

They have mouths that cannot speak, eyes that cannot see, ears that cannot hear, noses that cannot smell.

They have hands but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk. Their makers will be like them; so will all who trust in them.

O Israel, trust in YHVH; He is your Help and your Shield! You, family of Aaron, trust in YHVH; He is your Help and your Shield!

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Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Hosea 8 : 4-7, 11-13

Without My approval they set up kings and without My blessing appointed leaders. With their silver and gold they fashioned idols to their own ruin. To Me, Samaria, your calf is loathsome; and My anger blazes against you. How long will you remain defiled? The calf is yours, Israel, a craftsman has made it; it is not God and will be broken into pieces. As they sow the wind, they will reap the whirlwind. Stalk without flower, it will never yield flower, or if they do, foreigners will devour it.

Ephraim built many altars; but his altars made him more guilty. I wrote out for him the numerous precepts of My law; but they look on them as coming from foreigners. They offer sacrifices to Me because they are those who eat the meat; but YHVH does not accept their sacrifices, for He is mindful of their sin and remembers their wickedness. They will return to Egypt.

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Saturday, 6 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the need for each and every one of us as Christians, as God’s holy people to be truly obedient to God and to follow Him wholeheartedly in all of our lives. It is part of our Christian obligation and calling for us to do what God has commanded and told us all to do, and to leave behind our past, sinful way of life which are not in accordance with God’s will. If we profess to be a Christian, as someone who believes in Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, and yet, in our attitudes and behaviours, in our words, actions and deeds, we do things that are contrary to our beliefs, then we are truly hypocrites and no better than unbelievers.

In our first reading today, we heard the continuation of the passage from the Book of the prophet Amos in which after almost a week hearing about the anger of God and the punishments which God would bring upon His people, the Israelites living in the northern kingdom of Israel, we now heard of the promises of God’s salvation and redemption for His people, the same ones that He had chastised and punished. In what we have heard in our first reading passage, the Lord promised that He would restore all the destroyed places and towns of His people, restoring them into His favour and blessing, giving them once again the promises and inheritance that He has given to their ancestors, but which those ancestors and people had spurned and rejected out of disobedience and sin, through their stubbornness and wickedness.

God showed His love, compassion and mercy to His beloved ones, just like that of a father caring for his children, and we are all truly God’s beloved children, the ones whom He had created out of love, taken upon Himself to be His own people, to be loved and cared dearly by Him, and to receive the fullness of His grace and love. But at the same time, because we as His children had become wayward and disobedient in our way of life, in our actions, words and deeds, then just like a father disciplines his children to ensure that the children grew up well and did not turn out to be a delinquent and failure, thus, God, our loving Father, Creator and Master had also disciplined us, chastising us and making us to understand that as His beloved children, His disciples and His followers, all of us must adhere to His ways and act according to His Law and commandments.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the parable which the Lord Jesus presented to His disciples and followers, and to all the people listening to Him, telling them about the wine and the wineskin, and the cloth used to patch a hole in a piece of cloth. In both parables, the Lord spoke about how new wine must be stored in new wineskin, while old wine must be stored in old wineskin, while new cloth should be used to patch a new piece of cloth, and correspondingly, an old cloth ought to be used to patch a hole in an old cloth. All these were meant to deliver the message that the old ways were meant to be lived in the manner how they were in the past, but with the advent and the coming of the new truth and revelation of the Lord, the people had to adopt the new path and ways shown to them by the Lord Himself.

Just prior to the Lord speaking in these parables, the disciples of St. John the Baptist had been asking the Lord the question about why they and the Pharisees followed strictly the laws of fasting that were dictated by the Jewish laws and customs, but the Lord’s own disciples did not follow the same ways, and instead embarked on their own path as shown by the Lord. This was when the Lord used the parables to explain that, in truth, while the laws and customs practiced by the people of God had been done and practiced for a long time, but in the end, what God desired from His people is something that is better than all those obedience to the laws and customs of the past, which were imperfect and even misunderstood by the people of God, which led to them not doing as the Lord had wanted them to do, and also failing to realise the true intention and purpose of such laws.

For example, the law on fasting is meant to teach the people of God to restrain themselves in their lives so that they might learn temperance and resist the temptations of worldly desires and pleasures, and that they may come to focus better and more on the Lord, their God and Master. However, many among the people of God, especially those of the Pharisees instead carried out their fasting with the intention to be seen and praised by others around them, by making their fasting well-known and such a pompous activity that it had become deviant and misled from the true path which God had wanted His people to walk through. Instead, they fell into the path of temptation of their own ego, ambition and desire, and the Lord wanted to tell them that this was not the way that they and all of us ought to take in our lives.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Maria Goretti, great and holy servant of God, a champion of virtue and chastity, compassion and mercy, whose life while short, was truly filled with virtue, and her martyrdom, in defending her virtues and righteousness, her purity and sanctity, is something that has inspired many people of her generation and afterwards. St. Maria Goretti was born in a rather large family with seven children, with St. Maria Goretti herself being the third of the seven children. Her family was poor, and after her father passed away when she was still young, her mother had to bring them to live with another family, the Serenellis, in order to provide for her many children. It was at this household that the young and pious St. Maria Goretti encountered Alessandro Serenelli, the son of the owner family.

At one time, when the young St. Maria Goretti, who was only eleven years old was outside the house, and there was no one else in the house, Alessandro Serenelli came to her and threatened to stab her with his awl if she did not do as what he wanted, and Alessandro was intending to rape her. St. Maria Goretti refused to obey Alessandro’s commands and demands, struggling and screaming, pleading with Alessandro in vain that it was a great sin against God to do as he had planned to commit. In a fit of anger, Alessandro choked and then stabbed St. Maria Goretti a total of fourteen times, and then a few more times afterwards before running away after witnessing what he had done. St. Maria Goretti passed away shortly afterwards in the presence of her mother and family in the hospital, but before she died, she told her mother that she has forgiven Alessandro and wanted to have him in Heaven with her.

Through the years afterwards, when Alessandro was arrested shortly after the event, it was told that St. Maria Goretti appeared to Alessandro himself in prison in a dream, and eventually this made him to repent from his sins, begging forgiveness from the mother of St. Maria Goretti, who forgave her and later on, the same Alessandro after he was released from his incarceration, eventually became a lay brother of the Capuchin Franciscan friars in the community, living in the monastery, ever repentant and regretful of the vicious deeds he had done, and committed the rest of his life in prayerful and dedicated life to God. He also attended the canonisation ceremony of St. Maria Goretti together with her mother. In this story of St. Maria Goretti, her courage and martyrdom, we are all reminded of what we are all expected to do as Christians, to live courageously in faith, and to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore renew our commitment henceforth to the Lord our God, doing whatever we can so that in our every words, actions and deeds, in our every moments in life, we will always be truly worthy of the Lord. Let us all continue to walk ever more faithfully in God’s path, remembering the love and mercy that He has shown us, and like St. Maria Goretti, let us all show the same love and mercy to one another, and love the Lord our God with all of our strength and might, now and always, that one day, we may truly be worthy to receive the fullness of inheritance that God had promised to all of us. Amen.

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Saturday, 6 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Matthew 9 : 14-17

At that time, the disciples of John came to Jesus with the question, “How is it, that we and the Pharisees fast on many occasions, but not Your disciples?”

Jesus answered them, “How can you expect wedding guests to mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The time will come, when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then, they will fast.”

“No one patches an old coat with a piece of unshrunken cloth, for the patch will shrink and tear an even bigger hole in the coat. In the same way, you do not put new wine into old wine skins. If you do, the wine skins will burst and the wine will be spilt. No, you put new wine into fresh skins; then both are preserved.”

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Saturday, 6 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Psalm 84 : 9, 11-12, 13-14

Would, that I hear God’s proclamation, that He promise peace to His people, His saints – lest they come back to their folly.

Love and faithfulness have met; righteousness and peace have embraced. Faithfulness will reach up from the earth while justice bends down from heaven.

YHVH will give what is good, and our land will yield its fruit. Justice will go before Him, and peace will follow along His path.

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Saturday, 6 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Amos 9 : 11-15

On that day, I shall restore the fallen hut of David and wall up its breaches, and raise its ruined walls; and so built it as in days of old. They shall conquer the remnant of Edom, and the neighbouring nations, upon which My Name has been called.” Thus says YHVH, the One Who will do this.

YHVH says also, “The days are coming when the plowman will overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes overtake the sower. The mountains shall drip sweet wine and all the hills shall melt. I shall bring back the exiles of My people Israel; they will rebuild the desolate cities and dwell in them.”

“They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will have orchards and eat their fruit. I shall plant them in their own country and they shall never again be rooted up from the land which I have given them,” says YHVH your God.

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Saturday, 22 June 2024 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Paulinus of Nola, Bishop, and St. John Fisher, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Thomas More, Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops) or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded clearly that as God’s holy and beloved people, each and every one of us must always be guided by God in all of our ways, in all of our words, actions and deeds, or else, we will find that it is easy for us to be persuaded, tempted and swayed into evil and wicked path in life, into actions that are contrary to the will and commandments of God. We will be dragged by all those temptations and wickedness into the ways that lead us into destruction and eternal damnation, rather than righteousness and salvation in God.

In our first reading today, we heard from the second Book of Chronicles of Israel and Judah in which the story of the development in the kingdom of Judah during the reign of King Joash of Judah was told to us. In the earlier passage yesterday before today’s passage, we have how this king by the grace of God had been saved from the massacre done by her grandmother, Queen Athaliah of Judah who usurped power from the House of David. We heard how God restored him and the House of David to power through the efforts and works of one faithful priest, Jehoiada, who helped and guided King Joash throughout the early years of his reign, ensuring that he and the people obeyed the Lord’s commandments and Law, and to live righteously and faithfully in God’s path.

However, as we heard in today’s first reading passage, the moment the faithful Jehoiada passed away, King Joash was persuaded by his courtiers, nobles and advisors to carry out actions and practices that were against God’s Law and commandments, and the people once again began worshipping pagan gods and idols once again as they had done before. The people slipped once again back to their old wicked ways because they allowed themselves to be tempted by the many temptations, pressures, coercions and the allures of worldly pleasures, fame and glory being present all around them. All these were the reasons why God then raised the son of Jehoiada, named Zechariah to speak up against the King.

But neither Zechariah nor the other prophets sent by the Lord to His people were able to persuade the King and all the others who had veered off from the path of righteousness and virtue. And not only that, but as we heard, the King and the others plotted against Zechariah and stoned the righteous man of God at the courtyard, committing murder against the Lord’s servant, a truly heinous and wicked act, and especially for the King, it was a total lack of appreciation and gratitude that he committed against the late Jehoiada, who had helped to shelter and protect the King himself in his youth, and raised him back to power, when this same King slaughtered Jehoiada’s son when the latter tried to advice and remind him to stay true to the Lord’s path as he should have done.

Eventually, the retribution would come for the wicked, as the King and his forces, presumably all those who have committed the murder of Zechariah and led the people of God into sin, were crushed and routed by the forces of the Aramaeans, who wounded the King, and eventually, this same King Joash would be plotted against and killed by the other officers who disagreed with him, much in the same way that he had plotted the death of Zechariah, Jehoiada’s son. It was also mentioned in the Scriptures that he was not given burial in the place reserved to the kings of Israel and Judah, which was a clear sign that the king’s wickedness and vile actions were truly abominable and despised even after his death.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the words of the Lord Jesus telling His disciples, followers and all the people clearly that one cannot be the servant of both God and Money. The Lord told all of His disciples and followers that they all should not be worried about anything in this world, stating how the birds of the air and others were well taken care of, and no amount of worrying or planning could change anything in our lives. The Lord wanted to let us all know, and remind us that all of these worries and desires, all the attachments and considerations we have for the many worldly and material things all around us can often prevent us from truly being able to love and commit ourselves to the Lord wholeheartedly.

The Lord also reminded each and every one of His disciples, and hence all of us, that we are truly beloved and precious to the Lord, our God, and all of us should not worry because God Himself will always provide for us, and even in the challenging times and moments, we are all never truly alone as the Lord will always be by our side, protecting and guiding us, helping and supporting us all along the way. And even if we have to face difficulties, trials and challenges in our path, we must always have faith in the Lord, because in the end, no matter what, we shall have part in the eternal glory and true happiness which we can only find in the Lord alone, and which the world cannot give or provide us. No amount of worldly glory, possessions, ambitions or things can truly satisfy us or last forever.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us should also heed the good examples of the holy saints, our predecessors, whose feasts we are celebrating today, so that we may be better able to live our lives in accordance to God’s will, to His Law and commandments. St. Paulinus of Nola was the Bishop of Nola in the region of Campania in today’s Italy, well known for his great virtue and holiness, while the two saints, St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher were two great martyrs of the period known as the English reformation, at the time when the Church in England was torn apart due to the actions of the then King who separated the Church there from the Universal, One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church due to the disagreements he had with the Pope and the Church.

St. Paulinus of Nola was born into influential and powerful senatorial Roman family at the time of the late Roman Empire, at the time when the Christian faith had been accepted and in fact became the most common faith and belief throughout the Roman Empire. He eventually became the governor of the region and province of Campania, and was remembered as a just and great administrator, who was also concerned about the well-being of the people under his care, building up shrines and hospices, and all these was before St. Paulinus was even baptised yet. Eventually, he chose to be baptised as a Christian, and became a priest, and finally as a bishop, where he continued to do many good and wonderful works for the people of God, caring for the physical and spiritual well-being of the people in his dominion, and becoming great role model and example for all of them.

Meanwhile, both St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher were martyred for their dedication and commitment to God, in refusing to obey the King’s order to abandon their faith in the Holy Mother Church, and instead follow the King’s rebellion in establishing the independent Anglican church. St. Thomas More was the powerful chancellor of the Kingdom, while St. John Fisher was the respected and powerful Bishop of Rochester, who was also an influential advisor to the King and his court. Back then, King Henry VIII sought to divorce his wife, Queen Catherine of England without success, as he was seeking for a son to be his heir. The marriage between the King and the Queen had produced a daughter, and by the then standards and even today’s standards, such a marriage should not and cannot have been dissolved. But the King insisted on, and eventually declared the independence of the Church in England from the Pope and the Universal Church.

This led to the divisions in the Church in England, with many were being forced to obey the King and to show their fealty to him and the new Anglican church. However, St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher were among those who refused to do so, and they were prominent especially because of their prominent positions and their firmness in refusing the King’s demands for them to recant their faith and obedience to the Holy Mother Church. St. Thomas More chose to resign his chancellorship and remain faithful to the true Church and teachings of Christ rather than to submit to the King’s demands. Both him and St. John Fisher faced a lot of trials, tribulations and sufferings, before they were martyred as the first ones among many others who would follow in their footsteps in the years and decades after in the persecutions against those who remained faithful to the Church.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having witnessed and heard the great lives of these holy saints and martyrs, let us all therefore do our best so that in our own respective lives, we may continue to live our lives worthily as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, so that in all the things that we say and do, we will always do our best to put God first and foremost in all things. We are all reminded that we should not allow the temptations and wickedness of this world to distract and mislead us down the path of ruin and damnation, and we are reminded to remain ever strong and faithful in our journey towards the Lord. May God be with us all, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 22 June 2024 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Paulinus of Nola, Bishop, and St. John Fisher, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Thomas More, Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops) or Red (Martyrs)

Matthew 6 : 24-34

At that time, Jesus said to the people, “No one can serve two masters, for he will either hate one and love the other; or he will be loyal to the first and look down on the second. You cannot, at the same time, serve God and money.”

Therefore, I tell you, not to be worried about food and drink for yourself, or about clothes for your body. Is not life more important than food; and is not the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow, they do not harvest, and do not store food in barns; and yet, your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more worthy than they are?”

“Can any of you add a day to your life by worrying about it? Why are you so worried about your clothes? Look at how the flowers in the fields grow. They do not toil or spin. But I tell you, that not even Solomon, in all his glory, was clothed like one of these. If God so clothes the grass in the field, which blooms today and is to be burnt in an oven tomorrow, how much more will He clothe you? What little faith you have!”

“Do not worry, and say : What are we going to eat? What are we going to drink? or : What shall we wear? The pagans busy themselves with such things; but your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Set your heart, first, on the kingdom and righteousness of God; and all these things will also be given to you. Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”