Pick Me Up...Hold Me Close

~~~ Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, 

Virgin and Doctor of the Church ~~~

~~~ Job 9:1-12, 14-16 ~~~ Psalm 88 ~~~ Luke 9:57-62 ~~~

Unless you become like little children you will not
enter into the kingdom of heaven.

The readings today are connected with one implied theme...
the state of being like a child.
A child has no actual knowledge of the many
things their parents do for them.
A child does not know how their favorite
foods appear on their plate.
A child does not know the decisions made
for their safety and protection.
A child does not know just how much
their parents love them.
The above is presupposing all is as it should be
 in the parent child relationship.

Job speaks of God in much the same manner...

Should he come near me, I see him not;
should he pass by, I am not aware of him;
Should he seize me forcibly, who can say him nay?
Who can say to him, “What are you doing?”

Just as a young child would not question her parents;
we should not question God.

The psalmist cries out to the Lord.

Daily I call upon you, O LORD;
to you I stretch out my hands.

To you I stretch out my hands...just like a little child...
Our prayers are the same as a child reaching up to their parent.
Pick me up...hold me close...wrap your arms around me.

Is this not the same sentiment with which we pray to God?
We long for his presence...his touch.

“I will follow you wherever you go.”

Just as the little child follows close to her mother and father.

A child has complete trust in their parents.
Saint Therese used this image as a model
for her spiritual journey.
She saw herself as a little child
dependent upon God the Father.

She believed with her whole heart that God
would take care of her.

She became a Doctor of the Church by living a simple life...
embracing the little way...by being childlike.

Take a moment today;
place yourself in the loving embrace of God.
It is so easy to follow Jesus if your hand is in his hand.
When you are near to the Father he can easily pick you up.

Saint Therese, pray for us...
teach us to cherish your little way.
God is the parent we all wish we had...
the perfect loving parent.
Blessed in our walk together with the Lord.
~~~Peace~~~

As a Little Child

~~~ Ezekiel 2:8-3:4 ~~~ Psalm 119 ~~~ Matthew 18:1-5, 10, 12-14 ~~~

Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.

Think about your experiences with little children.
Children rely completely on the parent to fulfill all of their needs.
Children can do nothing for themselves.

A child comes into this world as pure love.
A child comes with joy.
A child comes with arms open wide.
A child comes without judgement.
A child comes without fear.
A child comes without hate or prejudice.
A child comes with a smile from ear to ear.
A child comes to climb in your lap.
A child comes to be held up to your cheek.
A child comes to be caressed.
A child comes to be cherished.
A child comes to be kissed.

A child is dependent on others to meet their needs.
A child is everything God wants us to be.
God wants us to run to him.
God wants us to climb up into his lap.
God wants us to feel happy in his arms.
God wants us take refuge with him.
God wants us to know we are safe with him.
God wants us to sense his great love for us.

God wants to care for us.
God wants to love us.
God wants to forgive us.
God wants to cherish us.

God wants us to come to him as little children...
completely relying on him to keep us from harm.

Those who remember how to be a child
 in the presence of God will have the Kingdom of Heaven.
Those who are meek and humble like a little child will find joy.

Those who come to God as a child will find peace and happiness.
A little child has no fears, cares, worries, or anxieties.
A little child receives love from all around them.

May we find the Blessings today that come from our own child within.
Bless your own child...validate the child's needs.
Believe God takes your little child
as something precious and holy, and sacred.

~~~Peace~~~

In His Lap...

~~~ Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~~~

~~~ Zechariah 9:9-10 ~~Psalm 145~~ 

~~~ Romans 8:9, 11-13 ~~~ Matthew 11:25-30 ~~~

...you are in the spirit,

if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. 

We seem to be of the flesh but really
we are in the Spirit because of our salvation.
Jesus promised to send down the Holy Spirit when he
returned to the Father in heaven.
If you are a believer, then you have the freedom to live in the Spirit.

But even though we may live in the Spirit
 we still carry the burdens of our life.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest..."

Today Jesus invites us to put down the fifty pound suitcase...
Take the loaded backpack from our shoulders...
Dump the rocks of bitterness and hatred from our hearts...

Today Jesus invites us to lay down all the burdens us
with the promise of receiving rest...his rest.

He wants to give us rest just as a little child
climbs up into his mother's lap.
He wants to give us rest as we lay our head against his chest.
He wants to give us rest as we close our eyes in peace.

Jesus wants us to let him carry our burdens.
He asks us to love as a child loves in return.
How difficult is that? To love like a little child.

A child runs to his parent when in need of comfort and rest.

So too Jesus is there to relieve our burdens...
to comfort us...to make things better.

Resting in the Lord is unlike resting anywhere else.
Resting in the Lord we can hear the calming sound of his heartbeat.
Resting in the Lord we are so much closer to being united with the Spirit.
For when we stand up on our own two feet again
 it is the Spirit which sustains us
it is the Spirit who restores our peace.

It is the Spirit who places in our heart
the understanding that we can return to this place
 of rest whenever we feel the need.

The one true place of rest is with the Lord.

We must get to Jesus before we can receive his rest.

Blessed by his invitation to let him take our heavy burdens.
For Jesus there is burden too great or too heavy.
May you receive peaceful rest

free from all your burdens.
~~~Peace~~~