Luke 4:1-13

‘Know yourself!' is an ancient piece of Greek wisdom. Do I know myself and my temptations? Am I a perfectionist, or lazy? Do I desire to get noticed and praised? Am I hoarding the gifts and talents God has given me instead of putting them at the service of others? Do I focus on the best in people, or get myself angry over their flaws? Do I love only those who love me? Have I a closed mind so that I miss out on the surprises and graces of each new situation? Do I judge others rather than try—as Ignatius suggests-- to put a good interpretation on what they say or do? And so on. Where am I ignoring the grace God is offering me?

Jesus knows me better than I know myself: he loves me as I am. But he also works, often through others, to help me become aware of the ways I can spoil things. He wants to make me more compassionate and easier to get along with. I ask him, in the words of the liturgy, to help me grow in love.