Peter's Correct Answer

~~~ Memorial of Saint John Vianney ~~~
~~~ Jeremiah 31:31-34 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-23 ~~~

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

In spite of Peter's tendency to speak without thinking,
this answer was very revealing.

Jesus asked Peter a serious personal question...
"Who do you say the I am?"

Jesus was Peter's friend...his leader...his teacher...
Jesus loved and respected Peter.
Jesus had faith in Peter's leadership abilities.
Jesus was a good teacher and Peter was a good student.

Peter recognized Jesus as Christ...the Anointed One.
Peter recognized him as the Son.
Peter recognized God as living.

Peter saw Jesus as much more than
who he appeared to be to the other apostles.

Peter saw him as the Son of the Living God...
the Living God.

God did not 'die' because he sent Jesus to dwell among us.

God is not dead, Jesus is his living son.
Jesus tells us that he and the Father are one in the same
therefore God is very much a living God.

Jesus trusted Peter enough to give
 him responsibility for the future of his church.

And so I say to you, you are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church,
and the gates of the netherworld shall not 
prevail against it.

Peter was given the insight
to see Jesus as both divine and human.

This insight came to Peter from the Father.
God the Father was also at work in the heart of Peter.

God is also at work within your heart.

Create a clean heart in me, O God.

It is within the context of a clean heart
 that we can answer the same question
Jesus posed to Peter...

I invite you to sit with your own answer.
Who do YOU say that Jesus is?

Can you be honest with yourself?

Can you live with your answer?
Is Jesus the Son of a Living God to you?

God is Alive!
Jesus came to live among us in a very real way.

Blessings
~~~Peace~~~

Begin with Your Heart

~~~ Jonah 3:1-10 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Luke 11:29-32 ~~~

...when the people of Nineveh believed God;

they proclaimed a fast

and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.

All the visible signs of repentance

will be useless unless one 

believes God.

Just going through the actions 

and motions of repentance is a waste of your time.

You must begin with a contrite heart.

It is through our contrite heart

that the desire and inspiration comes for us to do more.

For the people of Nineveh 

conversion of their hearts led them

into fasting, ashes, and sack cloth.

When conversion begins in the heart

no sacrifice or penance will be a burden.

A clean heart create for me, O God,

and a steadfast spirit renew within me.

A clean heart is the precursor to a renewed steadfast spirit.

Even now, says the LORD,

return to me with your whole heart

for I am gracious and merciful.

It is never too late to return to God.

We were born from the goodness of God.

Our Baptism cleanses our soul...returns it to God sparkling white.

The primary criteria for returning to God

 is making the first step toward his mercy and love.

God listens even to the slightest 

attempt to reconcile your heart to his.

He rejoices every time you get back up...

every time you begin again.

God is loving, patient, slow to anger.

God is waiting for us to turn our heart back to him.

Jonah, one chosen by God, resisted in the beginning.

God called out to him a second time.

Finally Jonah gave in to the grace God

 was sending into his heart.

God is sending this same grace

 into our hearts during this Lenten time.

He will not give up on one of us

no matter how long or how resistant we have become.

God did not create our hearts to be hard and stiff as our bones.

God created our heart to be in constant motion.

Our heart beats, pushing the blood 

of our life through every part of our body.

God wants all of us...head to toe...inside and out...

physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Now is the acceptable time to Believe...

God is waiting for you.

Take the first step his grace and blessings

are there for your assistance.

He is the one who is greater than Jonah.

Begin with your heart.

~~~Peace~~~

Why Are You Waiting?

~~~ Joel 2:12-18 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ 2 Corinthians 5:20—6:2 ~~~ 

~~~ Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 ~~~

No matter which reading you choose to reflect 

upon today the message is the same...

...return to me with your whole heart...

Repent, give alms, mark yourselves with ashes, fast,

pray to God to cleanse your heart.

God asked Adam and Eve why they were hiding 

when he came to walk the garden with them.

Today God is telling us to come to him.

He gives us permission to hide, when we are praying.

But when you pray, go to your inner room,

close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.

Now is the acceptable time...so what are you waiting  for?

God reminds us today, Ash Wednesday,

 that he wants to bless our repentant heart. 

If you have been hiding, embarrassed by your sins, 

the invitation is extended to you at this very moment.

Then the LORD was stirred to concern for his land

and took pity on his people.

The Lord is giving you forty days to return to him.

He wants to welcome you back

 into his garden where all is wonderful...

where pure spring water runs freely...

where every kind of plant and animal

 is there for your enjoyment...

where his love for you is most evident.

We join the psalmist in praying...

A clean heart create for me, O God,

and a steadfast spirit renew within me.

Your relationship with God is personal.

Today he speaks to the depths of your heart...

to the places where you keep hidden and secret.

For in your relationship with God you have no secrets.

His invitation today is to let him,

 during this time of repentance, cleanse your soul.

You do not need to question 'Where is our God?'

He is not hiding from you.

Your day of salvation is right now.

What are you waiting for?

Blessed with ashes cleanse our minds and hearts,

O Lord we pray.

~~~Peace~~~

The 'New' Crayons

~~~ Ezekiel 18:1-10, 13B, 30-32 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 19:13-15 ~~~

Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed,

and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.

It is a miracle that modern medicine has discovered

 a way to literally give a human being a 'new' heart.

Technically I guess it is not really a 'new' heart

 since it comes from a donor...

another human being

 that for some reason will no longer need their heart.

God presents us the possibility of making ourselves a new heart.

Along with the new heart you may just get the added
bonus of a new spirit too.

Do you like new things? Most people do.

I remember every summer right before school began

 shopping for those 'new' school clothes.

I still enjoy the 'new' notebooks and school supplies.

What about 'new' crayons? Nothing better.

They look so beautiful all perfectly lined up in their box,

each with that carefully point.

I actually knew an art teacher who would make the kids

 tear the paper off of the crayons,

and if that wasn't bad enough 

then they had to break them in half.

Her theory was; they would be able to use the crayons

 to create in more creative ways. Ugh!

Create a clean heart in me, O God.

The psalmist is asking God to make his heart 'clean'.

Certainly God would do a better job with our heart then we could.

God can see what really needs to be done.

Perhaps a deep cleaning will suffice.

Perhaps we don't really need a 'new' heart. 

The dentist told my friend that his teeth needed
a 'deep' cleaning, 

like beneath the gum line.

That sounds very unpleasant to me, 

but if God would just 'deep 'clean my heart

 I would be so grateful. 

“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them;

for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

Jesus wants the apostles to let the little children come to him.

The Kingdom of heaven belongs to them

 because they are the ones with the 'new' hearts.

They are the ones with the 'clean' hearts.

The older we get the more we mess up our heart.

Luckily God reminds us several times a year

to allow him to create a clean heart for us.

He does not tell us it will be a pleasant experience,

just like the dentist does not give any details

 about that 'deep' cleaning procedure.

Blessed with options...

a 'new' heart or a 'clean' heart.

Which would you prefer?

Pray with Psalm 51 and then decide.

~~~Peace~~~

Ashes of Forgiveness

 

Ash Wednesday

~~~ Joel 2:12-18 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 ~~~

 

Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

 

Saint Paul says we are ambassadors for Christ.

What does that mean especially as we begin another Lenten journey?

Every year we pray in psalm 51

for a clean and contrite heart...

a renewed spirit...

a restoration of salvation joy...

and lastly a willing spirit.

 

You may believe you have a willing spirit until the 'hammer hits the nail'

until something happens to you that causes you to stop.

Until you have personally experienced a situation where

you must admit whether or not you really can have a willing spirit.

 

When someone does something wrong against you,

it is challenging to be an ambassador for Christ.

You want retribution.

You want the wrong done to be fixed.

You often do not want to forgive the person who wronged you.

If you do not know the person it is not any easier to forgive them.

 

We are signed with ashes today as a reminder of God's mercy.

The ashes upon our forehead also serve as a reminder to ourselves

that if we are to be ambassadors of Christ we must

 emulate his same mercy and forgiveness.

 

 

If I am to be an ambassador for Christ then I must strive to model him.

This is often not an easy task.

In our frustration we sometime cry out to God,

'this is too hard'

 

Every day of Lent is another opportunity to live the gospel message

of forgiveness and repentance.

We have forty days to practice forgiveness and repentance.

Current research finds it takes at least 21 consecutive days to create a habit.

The church has given us 40 days, plenty enough time to solidify the habit of forgiveness.

 

Take baby steps, begin with the small things...the minor irritations.

Begin forgiving people you do not even know.

Forgive those closest to you; this could be the most difficult.

 

Make yourself a calendar reminder to forgive at least one person each day.

Forgive without judging...

forgive without making excuses for either yourself or the other person.

 

Above all remember that you can only change yourself.

In order to create a new habit you must be aware of what you are doing.

Creating a new habit in this case is connected to our prayer

for a clean heart.

 

Habits are things we gradually do without thinking about them.

I know I have plenty habits that I should stop.

Habits that are not indicative of my being an ambassador for Christ.

 

During this Lent I invite you to create the habit of forgiveness in your life.

When you have the impulse to lash out pause for a moment;

forgive that person instead.

Be conscious of this decision.

By the time we arrive to Good Friday our heart will

be in a better state of openness to God's forgiveness of our offenses.

 

Sustain in me a willing spirit, Lord.

A spirit of forgiveness creating in me a clean heart.

Do You Know the Answer?

~~~ Jeremiah 31:31-34 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-23 ~~~

Jeremiah leads us right into the psalm 51...

Create a clean heart in me, O God.

God revealed to Jeremiah that there would be a new covenant his people.

 "I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people."

God himself would create this new, clean heart.

A heart that desires to be steadfast...

A heart that desires to be in the presence of God...

A heart that desires to be united with the Holy Spirit...

A heart that desires saving joy...

A heart that desires to always have a willing spirit...

A heart that desires to be contrite and humbled.

God and the psalmist are very ambitious with their desires.

There is no excuse for not knowing God;

he put the desire to know him into your heart himself.

One day as Jesus is talking with the disciples he poses

an important question.

"Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"

It is easy to give answers for another person.

You are not required to have insight into what

their answer would actually be.

You just answer by what you have heard them say.

Jesus is not content

to let that be the end of the conversation;

he goes deeper.

Have you noticed how God can do that, get you to go deeper?

He is interested in your answers because he wants

you to have a relationship with him.

If you cannot answer his next question perhaps you might

examine your heart more closely.

"But who do you say that I am?"

I know you have heard this verse many times before,

but today picture Jesus standing before you.

He looks into your eyes as he asks

 'who do YOU say that I am?'

He wants to know what is in your heart.

Is his new covenant of the heart really residing within your heart?

This is a personal question...only you know the answer.

No one is going to make you proclaim your answer before others.

This personal question is a wonderful clue to how much

God desires your heart.

You do not ask questions such as this of those you do not care about.

If God did not love you he would not care who you thought he was.

God does not need us to validate who he is for his sake.

God wants you to validate who he is for you--- for your own sake.

To know who God is for you is to better love him.

To know who God is for you means to love him more.

This all relates back to the clean, contrite, and humble heart we desire;

a desire placed there by the very same God who asks the question. 

"But who do you say that I am?"

Once you can truthfully answer that question

you will ultimately have the heart you desire.

You will know without a doubt that God is for you.

You will know that you are His.