<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_extra"><div class="gmail-ajy" tabindex="0"><img class="gmail-ajz" id="gmail-:us" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/images/cleardot.gif" alt=""></div>
<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19336" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_picture" align="left"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19336" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="gmail-m_214251410967541127image-td" width="650" valign="top" align="left"><img src="http://wordonfire.imgus11.com/public/6cd5352adde2290ae096397277658644.jpg?r=830416361" alt="" style="display: block; border-color: currentcolor; border-style: none; border-width: medium; border-image: none 100% / 1 / 0 stretch; outline: medium none currentcolor; opacity: 1; margin-right: 0px;" class="gmail-CToWUd gmail-a6T" tabindex="0" width="337" height="157"></td>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19339" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_html gmail-m_214251410967541127style19339" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19339" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:0px 30px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127html_div18908" width="590" align="left"> <p style="color:white;font-family:Sorts Mill Goudy;font-size:4px;line-height:1.5">Your daily Gospel reflection...</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19342" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_text gmail-m_214251410967541127style19342" style="margin:0px;padding:0px"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19342" style="padding:30px 30px 20px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127text_div18911" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127td_text gmail-m_214251410967541127td_block" style="color:inherit;font-size:12px;font-weight:inherit;line-height:1;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:Arial" valign="top" align="left"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:26px"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;text-align:center"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-style:italic;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-weight:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:26px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:italic"><span class="gmail-aBn" tabindex="0"><span class="gmail-aQJ">Monday, December 4, 2017</span></span></span></b><br></div>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19341" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_picture gmail-m_214251410967541127style19341" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)" align="center"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19341" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:20px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="gmail-m_214251410967541127image-td" width="590" valign="top" align="center"><a href="http://wordonfire.acemlnb.com/lt.php?s=f4b404287914110dac7009c89e87fa0d&i=1406A1754A29A1266038" style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;color:rgb(237,119,34);display:block;min-width:100%" target="_blank"><img src="http://wordonfire.imgus11.com/public/7e2867fcaf0c2ddd581483e5e17f4d20.png?r=1509798502" alt="" style="display: block; border-color: currentcolor; border-style: none; border-width: medium; border-image: none 100% / 1 / 0 stretch; outline: medium none currentcolor; width: 221px; opacity: 1; max-width: 100%;" class="gmail-CToWUd" width="221"></a></td>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19337" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_html gmail-m_214251410967541127style19337" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19337" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:30px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127html_div18906" width="590" align="left"> <p style="color:black;font-family:Avenir Next;font-size:20px;font-weight:500;line-height:1.25;text-align:center;text-transform:uppercase">1st <span class="gmail-aBn" tabindex="0"><span class="gmail-aQJ">Monday</span></span> of Advent</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19338" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_html gmail-m_214251410967541127style19338" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19338" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:5px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127html_div18907" width="590" align="left"> <p style="color:rgb(237,119,34);font-family:Avenir Next;font-size:18px;line-height:1.25;text-align:center;text-transform:uppercase">Matthew 8:5-11</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row19343" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row gmail-m_214251410967541127widget gmail-m_214251410967541127_widget_text gmail-m_214251410967541127style19343" style="margin:0px;padding:0px"><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127layout-row-padding19343" style="padding:10px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-m_214251410967541127text_div18912" class="gmail-m_214251410967541127td_text gmail-m_214251410967541127td_block" style="color:inherit;font-size:12px;font-weight:inherit;line-height:1.5;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:Arial" valign="top" align="left"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:1.5"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="color:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal;text-align:start">Friends,
<span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b>today’s Gospel passage acclaims a centurion’s trust in the Lord Jesus.
</b></span><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>To trust is to have hope, to turn one’s heart to God. It means to root
one’s life, to ground and center one’s concerns in God. </b></span>And, oppositely,
to trust and to turn one’s heart to human beings means to root the
whole of one’s life, to ground and center one’s concerns, in the things
of this world, in wealth, fame, power,
honor, or pleasure.<br></span><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b><br></b></span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>What
is the center of gravity of your life? What is your "ultimate
concern’"? </b></span>The Bible consistently lays this out as an either/or. Think
of the passage in the book of Joshua, when Joshua lays it on the line
for the people of Israel: "Do you serve the Lord or some other gods?"<br></span><br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal;text-align:start"><span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b>Jesus
tells his followers, "Either you are with me or you are against me."
</b></span>Today’s Gospel reminds us that <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>we each have to answer this question with
great honesty and clarity.</b></span></span></span></div>
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