Catholic Morning Offering, Monday, March 16, 2026

Starting the morning off with God is the key to strength and success in your day!

Join me in praying the Catholic morning offering, as well as hear meditations, learn about the saint of the day,  and hear today's Scripture readings from Holy Mass.

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Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.

The Morning Glory Consecration Prayer is excerpted from "33 Days to Morning Glory:  A Do-It-Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Marian Consecration" by Michael E. Gaitley, MIC, © 2011 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M., p. 137.

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Transcript

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Starting the morning off with God is the key to strength and success in your day. Good morning. Today is Monday, March 16th, 2026. Please join me in praying the morning offering prayer and prayers for our Holy Father. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen. O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day, for all the intentions of your sacred heart, in union with the holy sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, for the salvation of souls, the reparation of sins, the reunion of all Christians, and in particular for the holy intentions of the Holy Father this month, amen. Prayers for the Holy Father Almighty and everlasting God, have mercy upon thy servant, Pope Leo XV, our Supreme Pontiff, and direct him according to thy loving kindness in the way of eternal salvation, that of thy gift he may ever desire that which is pleasing unto thee, and may accomplish it with all his might, through Christ our Lord, amen. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end, amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen. Quote from Saint Paul of the Cross Take the Holy Crucifix in your hands, kiss its wounds with great love, and ask him to preach you a sermon. Listen to what the thorns, the nails, and that divine blood say to you. Oh what a sermon. Meditation of the Day an excerpt from A Year with the Bible by Patrick Madrid, page two hundred fifty one. Jesus will turn your sorrow into joy. One can only imagine the shock and bewilderment the apostles felt when the Lord told them he must go away. Though they could not understand it at the time, his departure was for their benefit. The same is true of the unexpected setbacks and tragedies we experience in this life. When I consider the times when I have been confounded by events that seemed so contrary to what I thought God wanted for me, I should be mindful that they were permitted by the Lord's inscrutable providence for my own good, as difficult as that might be to fathom. Scripture verse of the day The heart is devious above all else, it is perverse, who can understand it? I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings. Jeremiah chapter seventeen verses nine through ten. Saint of the Day The Saint of the Day from March sixteenth is Saint Abraham of Edessa. Saint Abraham of Edessa lived between three hundred and three hundred sixty AD. He was also known as Abraham of Kadunea, who was a rich nobleman from Mesopotamia. He married according to his parents' wishes, despite his desire to give himself totally to God. After the wedding ceremony he fled to a cave and hid himself, leaving only a small window to receive food. He lived there as a hermit, and after the death of his parents gave his inheritance to the poor. The Bishop of Edessa ordained him as a priest and sent him to lead a notoriously sinful city. There Abraham was beaten and maligned for three years until his prayers prevailed and every citizen came to him for baptism. He then returned to his hermitage and lived there the rest of his life. After his brother's death, his young niece was left to his care. He set her up to live as a religious in a cell next to his, which she did for twenty years until she succumbed to the seduction of a rogue hermit. She was so ashamed of her sin that she despaired of God's mercy and became a prostitute. Saint Abraham prayed for his niece earnestly for two years, then discovering her location, left his cell and came to her disguised as a suitor. When they were alone he revealed his identity to her and pleading with her throughout the night, prevailed upon her to return with him to her cell, which Abraham relocated directly behind his own for her protection. She became Saint Mary of Edessa. Saint Abraham of Edessa, pray for us. Devotion of the Month March is the month of Saint Joseph. The Church traditionally dedicates the month of March to the special veneration of Saint Joseph, whose feast day is march nineteenth. He was chosen by the Eternal Father as the trustworthy guardian and protector of his greatest treasures, namely his divine son and Mary Joseph's wife, says Saint Bernardine of Siena. He carried out this vocation with complete fidelity until at last God called him, saying, Good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord. Due to Saint Joseph's leadership of the Holy Family, he has been declared the protector and patron of the universal Catholic Church. Readings for Holy Mass for Monday of the fourth week of Lent A reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah, chapter sixty five verses seventeen through twenty one. Thus says the Lord, Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth. The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind. Instead there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create, for I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and its people to be a delight. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people. No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there, or the sound of crying, no longer shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not round out his full lifetime. He dies a mere youth who reaches but a hundred years, and he who fails of a hundred shall be thought accursed. They shall live in the houses they build, and eat the fruit of the vineyards they plant. The Word of the Lord Responsorial Psalm Psalm thirty. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. I will extol you, O Lord, for you drew me clear, and did not let my enemies rejoice over me. O Lord, you brought me up from the netherworld, you preserved me from among those going down into the pit. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. Sing praise to the Lord, you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name, for his anger lasts but a moment, a lifetime his good will. At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn rejoicing. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. Hear, O Lord, and have pity on me. O Lord, be my helper. You changed my morning into dancing, O Lord my God, forever will I give you thanks. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John, chapter four, verses forty three through fifty-four. At that time Jesus left Samaria for Galilee, for Jesus himself testified that a prophet had no honor in his native place. When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast, for they themselves had gone to the feast. Then he returned to Canaan in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death. Jesus said to him, Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe. The royal official said to him, Sir, come down before my child dies. Jesus said to him, You may go, your son will live. The man believed what Jesus said to him and left. While the man was on his way back, his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live. He asked them when he began to recover. They told him, The fever left him yesterday about one in the afternoon. The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him, Your son will live, and he and his whole household came to believe. Now this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea. The Gospel of the Lord. Prayer of Spiritual Communion In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen. My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most blessed sacrament. I love you above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot now receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace you as if you were already there, and unite myself wholly to you. Never permit me to be separated from you. Amen. Morning Glory Consecration Prayer Mary, my mother, I give myself totally to you as your possession and property. Please make of me, of all that I am and have, whatever most pleases you. Let me be a fit instrument in your immaculate and merciful hands for bringing the greatest possible glory to God. Amen. Prayer to Saint Joseph. O glorious Saint Joseph, chosen by God to be the guardian of the Holy Family, whose protection is so great, so strong, in union with the Blessed Virgin Mary and our Savior Jesus Christ, send down from heaven a blessing from God to protect us from any harm, strengthen us in body, soul, and spirit. We ask this through thy powerful intercession. Holy Family, pray for us, amen. Guardian Angel Prayer O angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God's love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard, to rule and guide, amen. Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel. Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits, who prowl throughout the world, seeking the ruin of souls, amen. The three Hail Mary's Devotion The first Hail Mary, in honor of God the Father, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, amen. The second Hail Mary in honor of God the Son. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, amen. The third Hail Mary, in honor of God, the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, amen. O my mother, preserve my soul from mortal sin during this day. Amen. Memori to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession, was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence I fly unto thee, O Virgin of Virgins, my mother, to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen. Act of Faith. O my God, I firmly believe that you are one God in three divine persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I believe that your divine Son became man, died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because you have revealed them who can neither deceive nor be deceived. In this faith I intend to live and die. Amen. Act of hope. O my God, relying on your almighty power, infinite mercy and promises, I hope to obtain pardon for my sins, the help of your grace, and the life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen. Act of love. O my God, I love you above all things with my whole heart and soul, because you are all good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you. I forgive all who have injured me and ask pardon of all whom I have injured. Amen. Prayer for the poor souls in purgatory. O gentle heart of Jesus, ever present in the Blessed Sacrament, ever consumed with burning love for the poor captive souls in purgatory, have mercy on them. Be not severe in thy judgment, but let some drops of thy precious blood fall upon the devouring flames. Merciful Savior, send thy angels to conduct them to a place of refreshment, light, and peace. Amen. Act of resignation to the divine will. O Lord my God, from this moment do I accept from thy hands with burning love and sincere contrition, with a calm and willing disposition, whatsoever death thou shalt choose to send me with its pains and griefs. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen. Starting the morning off with God is the key to strength and success in your day.