One Afternoon Sermon

~~~ 1 Corinthians 7:25-31 ~~~ Psalm 45 ~~~ Luke 6:20-26 ~~~

Luke gives us his version...the Sermon on the Plains.

He, like Matthew, has blessings and woes. 

Luke also focuses on the physical and emotional.

Was this whole sermon just a ploy to conjure up some sort of reaction?

Was Jesus just trying to see if anyone was really listening.

Was he trying to generate some conversation among the disciples?

Was Jesus trying to create a scenario where everyone 

was included and excluded at the same time? 

His language was upsetting to the normal person who was listening.

He was speaking to all yet speaking to none.

What was he talking about?

Why was this an important sermon to give?

Why was it important to hear?

Why is it important for us to hear today?

Jesus has just chosen his small group of ordinary men

 to be his apostles and then he begins to look up

at them giving this complex sermon.

I wonder if any of them were having second thoughts?

How could they follow someone they could not understand?

How could they be an apostle for someone

 who's teachings they themselves 

could not explain or repeat?

Was he really blessing those in poverty 

and condemning those with abundance?

Blessed are you who are poor,

for the Kingdom of God is yours...

...But woe to you who are rich,

for you have received your consolation.

So much to include in one afternoon's sermon.

The new apostles must have been feeling very inadequate.
God never wants us to feel like we are not prepared...
not smart enough...not good enough.
He wants us to trust that if he sends us out
on a mission he will be with us.
He will put the necessary words on our lips.

Jesus was looking at the apostles.
Was he telling them
what not to be concerned about.
Is the message for us today too?

If we follow Jesus we will not be spared
from poverty, hunger, sadness, or being hated.

If we follow Jesus we don't have to be wealthy or happy...
people may actually hate us and speak ill of us.

None of this matters as long as you keep
your eyes fixed on the Lord.

There is no promise of an easy life
just because we are believers.
The promise is eternal life.
The promise is you have been saved by our Creator God.
The promise is you are loved beyond measure.

He Blesses us no matter what our situation.
God is Love.
~~~Peace~~~

Blessings for 2014

~~~ Happy New Year~~~
~~~2014~~~
~~Numbers 6:22-27~~Psalm 67~~Galatians 4:4-7~~Luke 2:16-21~~

This is how you shall bless...
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and give you peace!

In Biblical times the words in Hebrew had very concrete meanings.
The Hebrew word for bless is 'barak' which literally means 'to kneel'...
A blessing is gift brought to another on bended knee.

The Hebrew word for 'keep' is 'shamar' which literally means 'to guard'...
A related word is 'shamiyr' which means 'thorn'.
In an effort to protect their sheep
 a shepherd would construct a corral of thorn branches.
This was a way to 'guard' their sheep.

God surrounds us guards us and protects us
letting the light of his face shine down upon us.
While we are in his protection
we will also experience his kindness and peace.

May this year bring greater blessings than you could imagine.
We begin this new year with his blessings.
May your heart be filled with peace, joy, and love.

!!!Happy New Year!!!

'Trail Mix' Lesson

~~~ Hebrews 6:10-20 ~~~ Psalm 111 ~~~ Mark 2:23-28 ~~~

 

Observing the Sabbath as special and holy.

 

'...As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.'

 

Jesus and his disciples are passing through a field of grain.

They are hungry, so they eat what is available...

the tips of the grain.

It is their 'trail mix' of the day.

There is just one minor problem; it is the Sabbath.

Jewish law has strict guidelines for keeping the Sabbath set aside.

Keeping the Sabbath holy is the fourth commandment;

so how is it that Jesus appears to ignore this law?

 

Jesus so often challenges the Pharisees, today is no exception.

Is it more important to follow the letter of the law

or to act for the good of the person?

 

In this case Jesus chose the later...

it was better for his disciples to eat for their

journey was long.

Of course Jesus knew the Pharisees were intently watching his every action.

So picking the grain to eat was not overlooked.

 

Jesus quickly refreshes their memory with the story of David.

David actually ate of the bread set aside solely for temple use.

This would have been considered far worse an infraction.

So it was not about what they ate or that they ate this grain.

It was only about when they ate.

It seems somewhat trite in today's world.

The Sabbath was to be a day of rest.

Picking grain would have been considered work.

 

How about today?

Just to attend Sunday services we get into our car and drive.

For some the very act of driving is their work.

Driving a vehicle is their job.

If we follow the logic of the Pharisees just going to the church building

would be in violation of the law.

 

 

The Pharisees prided themselves on knowing every letter of the law.

They were the authorities.

They were the ones who were appointed to interpret the meaning of the law.

Thus the plucking of grain on the Sabbath

was in violation of the law.

 

The laws were very black and white for the Pharisees,

 but not so with Jesus.

Jesus saw the bigger picture.

 

Within the boundaries of laws were real people.

Real people cannot always be held to the letter of the law.

Sometimes there are extenuating circumstances when a person decides

to make a choice outside of the law.

Not above the law just outside the strict interpretation of the law.

 

Perhaps keeping holy the Sabbath has more to do with your mental attitude...

is your intention to at least give back to God one day a week.

At least one day of the week to stop and consider all that God has done for you.

 

All during the week we are harvesting the grain.

When we set aside the Sabbath each week we can take the opportunity

to open our hand and look at what we have.

 

The Sabbath should be used to retreat if possible from the

extreme business of our daily lives.

This Sunday when you attend Mass bring with you the

tiny grains you have collected during the previous days.

It may be a time to leave them at the altar.

It may be a time to thank God for just the smallest

single grain held tightly in your hand.

 

Walk with Jesus through the fields

and you are sure to find tiny grains of blessings.

Ancient Blessings

~~~ Numbers 6: 22-27 ~~~ Psalm 67 ~~~ Galatians 4:4-7 ~~~ Luke 2: 16-21 ~~~

 

 

The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!

 

 

Today's readings focus on God's Blessings the perfect mind set at the beginning of a new year. The readings are a reminder for us to be mindful of the many ways

in which we are the beneficiaries of God's blessings.

 

Perhaps if we direct our attention to receiving blessings

during the up coming year we will be much happier.

Our expectations of God blessings

may just help us to being more open to the possibility.

 

May God bless us in his mercy.

 

God has blessed in more ways than we can imagine.

God continues to bless us in ways we cannot even detect.

 

God blessed us with the birth of Jesus.

We too have been adopted as sons and daughters of God himself.

Can anything match that blessing?

 

'...As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts...'

 

More blessings unseen with the naked eye.

 

All who came into direct contact with Jesus were blessed.

The shepherds, the wise men, Mary and Joseph themselves.

They were each blessed with the gift of wonder and awe.

 

 

I once heard that the older we become the less we are effected

by wonder and awe.

If that is true then we must make a point to look

for the blessings

of wonder and awe in our life.

Our days are filled with blessings

great and small.

 

Look for the blessings in your life during 2013.

Most people avoid the number thirteen for different reasons.

Let's turn any negative feelings we may have about

this number by focusing on our

Blessings.

May the New Year

~2013~

be filled with abundant blessings.

Look for the Hidden Blessings

~~~ 1Cor 7:25-31 ~~~ Psalm 45 ~~~ Luke 6:20-26 ~~~

 

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:
"Blessed are you............"

 

Life is funny; the more you have the more you want.

There is always something more we can convince ourselves we 'need'.

 

The reading today focus on blessings.

Many famous and wealthy people are not happy with their life.

They have everything money can buy...houses, cars, exotic vacations,

cosmetic surgical procedures.

Yet the one thing they cannot seem to purchase is peace of heart.

 

We are being invited to day to look at our life from a different viewpoint.

That is; 'How is our life filled with blessings from God?'

 

God blesses each person according to their own needs.

It does not matter if you are married, single, widowed,

ruler, pauper, farmer, factory worker.

 

We all have blessings given just to us.

 

The readings today place our blessings in the balance scale.

So many times in my life God has surprised me with unexpected blessings.

Getting a new position at work, bringing a special person

into my life at just the right time,

showing me a solution to a problem are just a few examples.

 

Sometimes we cannot see our blessings until they disappear.

Once they are gone we realize

they were indeed a blessing we sadly took for granted.

When you are in turmoil it is much harder to see those blessings.

 

Why would someone who just lost all of their belongings

in a hurricane view it as blessing?

But surprisingly some are able to view even that situation as a blessing.

They are able to concentrate on what they do have;

mainly their life and the lives of loved ones.

 

Often what we perceive as the important blessings

turn out to be burdensome.

Luke is saying be aware that things have a way of changing.

Do not get caught up in believing your blessings

can or should only look a certain way.

Instead become a person who can weather all circumstances

with the focus on the all-inclusive blessings.

The package deal, blessings come with pain and sorrow.

 

"Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!

 

For you will truly realize just how blessed you are

if you can make all things blessings.

 

 

I friend once told me to look for the hidden blessings each day.

How wise are her words.

This is a much better way to live.

Having more and more material things does not give us a blessed life. 

 

There are blessings in your life right now...

some may be like tiny sparks while others may be larger than life itself.

Can you see them?

Will you look for them?

How will you respond to the blessings of today?

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:
"Blessed are you............"

Pearls of Wisdom

"I Wisdom, dwell with experience, and judicious knowledge I attain." Proverbs 8:12

Wisdom is of divine origin and is often personified as a woman.

Wisdom...what does it really mean?

The Canticle of Sirach says, Happy the man who meditated on wisdom and reflects on knowledge. Wisdom simple yet complex...attainable yet allusive.
Is wisdom reserved for scholars of the time? Can we come to acquire wisdom? The Saints did, but can we? Must we become philosophers? As adults we even grow wisdom teeth which usually end up being extracted, since they crowd the other teeth. We consider our elders to be repositories of societal wisdom.

In the first Letter of Saint John it is written..."As for you, the anointing that you received from him remains in you, so that you do not need anyone to teach you. But his anointing teaches you about everything...remain in him" 1 John 2:27 Does that mean wisdom will come in spite of ourselves?

While wisdom may be difficult to define it is innately recognized by others. Wisdom is a deeper understanding of what really matters.

Famous people like Einstein have been labeled as having great wisdom. Ancient Buddhism is firmly rooted in wisdom. Wisdom is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It seems that we value what wisdom holds for us. We are surrounded by knowledge, google wikipeadia, but wisdom patiently lies in waiting.

Today I pray for a deeper understanding of wisdom to always know the difference.
Ask God to lead you in the path of wisdom toward greater peace and happiness in your life.

I offer this prayer to you written by one of my favorite authors, Joyce Rupp.

A Prayer for Openness

Remember the Holy One is with you. Bring to mind this loving presence within you and around you as you pray the following:

1. Touch your fingertips to your forehead saying: Open my mind to remember your presence.
2. Touch your fingertips to your mouth, saying: Open my mouth to speak your wisdom.
3. Touch your fingertips to your heart, saying: Open my heart to extend your love.
4. Hold both hands out, open, palms up, saying: Open my hands to serve you generously.
5. Holding arms wide open, saying: Open my whole being to you.

Make a deep bow to the loving presence in you.

I chose a picture of Hot Air Balloons to create this Kaleidoscope

because wisdom lifts my heart and mind to greater heights.

Blessings

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus we also celebrate the birth of a new year. A new year filled with hopes for something better. We always hope for something better. I guess that is a good thing if we truly strive to be better in our lives.

We pray today for God to be gracious and bless us. We ask for blessings upon this new year. we ask for blessings for ourselves. It is only with the blessings of the Lord God that we can ever hope to be a better person.

We pray today for our world to be renewed in the peace only God can call forth.

We pray today for God to let his face shine upon us and be gracious to us.

We pray with the understanding and proof sent by God through the Spirit into our hearts that we are no longer slaves but daughters and sons. If we are daughters and sons then we are also heirs, through God. We affectionately cry out, "Abba, Father!"

We pray for God in his kindness and mercy to begin all good things for us in this new year and

to bring them to fulfillment in his time.

May all these blessings fo the Almighty Father remain in us and bring us joy and contentment.

I have appointed peace your governor, and justice your ruler. Is. 60:17

May the peace of God born in Jesus Christ be the future for which we hope and toward which we strive. (adapted from the Magnificat)

Other scripture inspiration from Numbers 6:24-26 and Galatians 4:6-7