Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle C

“The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.” - Psalms 98

Have you ever had a song stuck in your head?

I have had the song “Shallow” stuck in my head for months. The fascinating thing about this phenomenon is that we never get songs truly stuck in our heads that we know really, really well. The reason songs get stuck in our heads is due to the Zeigarnik Effect.

This effect has to do with our brain’s compulsion to solve problems. The brain views a song that is only partially heard or remembered as an unfinished task. This causes the brain to loop the incomplete segment to try and resolve the task, leading to the song playing repeatedly in our mind. I do not know most of the words to “Shallow,” so my brain gets stuck in a problem-solving loop trying to work out the rest of the lyrics through repetition. 

I think we can get caught in the same problem in the spiritual life. When we do not know the Lord well or find ourselves distant from Him due to busyness, sin, or bitterness, we get caught in a loop of feeling disconnected. We keep trying the same things over and over again without success. They say the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again expecting different results.

Too many of us suffer from spiritual insanity. We need change.

There is a line in one of the verses of the Responsorial Psalm this Sunday, where the Psalmist acclaims, “Sing to the LORD a new song” (Psalms 98:1, cf. Isaiah 42:10). When we are singing the same tired song over and over again, we cannot expect to see or experience anything new. If we want to see the saving power of the Lord, we need to start singing a new song in our hearts.

There are unhelpful spiritual habits that you need to let go of in order to make space to try something new. There are patterns of sin and temptation you need to combat and get rid of through prayer, accountability, and the Sacraments.

The Lord is not finished with you. 

He did not design you to be stagnant.

He wants to bring you into something new.

“People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.” - Matthew 9:17

If we change the wineskins of our lives and habits, the Lord will bring the fresh wine and our hearts will overflow with the abundance of the wedding at Cana. This week, get the old spiritual song out of your head and sing a new one.

What “old song” have you been singing in your spiritual life? Are there patterns or habits that keep you stuck in a loop of disconnection or frustration?

How has God revealed His saving power in your life? Can you recall moments where His grace broke through your struggles?

What does it mean for you personally to “sing a new song to the Lord”? How might this look in your prayer life, relationships, or daily routines?

Are there areas where you have been resistant to change? How can you invite God to create something new in those spaces?

How can gratitude help you break free from spiritual stagnation? What are three things you can thank God for today?

I am praying for you. Please pray for me and my family, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, October 12th, 2025, the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle C: Psalms 98:1, 2-3, 3-4.