Why XLT

    by David Mares


     While receiving Jesus in the Eucharist at Mass is the most powerful encounter we can have with our Lord, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is an incredible opportunity to grow in relationship with Him. This is why we have Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, to prolong the time we spend with Jesus in the Eucharist, because we desire for more time with Him. XLT is a devotion focused simply on that, growing deeper in our relationship with Jesus. XLT combines praise and worship, a message proclaiming the Word of God, and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, where Jesus, present in the Eucharist, is placed on the altar for us to adore. Praise and worship is a powerful form of prayer since music has a way of reaching into the depths of our hearts. When we praise God, walls around our hearts come crashing down. When we sing to Him, every part of our being reaches out to God, who is reaching back to us to embrace us. We begin XLT with praise and worship so we can fix our gaze on God and surrender to Him. Next, we spend time listening to a message, giving us something to reflect on, and allowing God to speak to each of us on the focus of the message. Finally we adore our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, interspersing praise and silence. To grow in any relationship, you have to learn to give and receive, to speak and to listen. This is why both praise and silence are important, we sing to God our love for Him, and in the silence, He speaks His love to us. Finally, we are sent out with songs of thanksgiving, for what God has done for us, but most importantly for who He is and His love for us, so that we can carry that gratitude and continue to deepen that relationship in our everyday lives.

     Pray with us, and deepen your relationship with God with us! XLT is so important to us as a Church because we gather as a community. This is what distinguishes the liturgy of Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament from our adoration chapel, the community - each one of you! I cannot wait to pray with all of you when we can fill up our church again, but in the meantime, I invite you to join us for XLT through our livestream. You’ll still be able to praise God from the depths of your heart, listen to the message, and spend time in prayer with God. We won’t have as much time for silence during our livestreams, since I understand many of you are at home, maybe have little ones running around (like I do!), keeping in mind that the prayer is different not being in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. In every season of life, God still calls us to seek a deeper relationship with God, whatever that may take. This livestream is our opportunity for that. Join us at youtube.com/sttimothymesa on Thursday, August 6th at 7 PM!