The Mobile of Family

~~~The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph~~~

~~~ Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14 ~~Psalm 128~~ Colossians 3:12-21 ~~~
~~~ Luke 2:22-40 ~~~

Saint Paul gives us the necessary qualities
 for every family to strive toward...

Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, 
humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one body.
And be thankful.

If we can treat all members of our family with compassion, kindness,
forgiveness, and love we would all have better
a relationship with one another.

This is often more difficult than we think.
The dynamics within families and among individual members
can become strained...unkind words burst forth
and the great chasm is created.

Unfortunately years can go by with family members
 being estranged from one another.

Over all put on love...
Families must first of all love one another
even when it does not come easily.

The family unit is like a delicately balanced mobile.
If one part of a mobile becomes entangled with another part
it causes the whole mobile to be out of balance.
If you have ever watched a mobile move
in space it is a beautiful balance of dance...peace.
Each level of a mobile depends on the other
levels to be in harmony.

So it is with family...
when one member does not bear
 with another in heartfelt compassion.

May the Lord's Holy Family
 teach us to be more loving
 to our own family members.
Come, Let us Adore Him.
~~~Peace~~~

How Do You Measure?

~~~ Daniel 9:4b-10 ~~~ Psalm 79 ~~~ Luke 6:36-38 ~~~

 

 

O LORD, we are shamefaced...
for having sinned against you.

But yours, O Lord, our God, are compassion and forgiveness!

 

The prophet Daniel writes words appropriate for us today.

We are shamefaced for the many offenses we have committed against God.

We face our weaknesses and short comings.

We must admit where we need to improve for the future.

The main reason we are able to face our sinfulness is because we believe

our God is compassionate and forgiving. 

 

Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.

 

In addition to the Ten Commandments given to Moses by God,

Jesus is consistently giving us little kernels of advice.

Keeping the commandments is important, but there is more we can be doing.

He gave us the perfect prayer...the Our Father.

Now he is speaking to us about how we should live our lives.

 

If we live according to these simple phrases

we will find keeping the commandments to be much easier.

 

When I was young there was a children's program called Romper Room.

Mr. 'Do Bee' was regular character.

Today Jesus is giving us some simple 'Do Bees' and 'Don't Bees'.

Jesus knew that that the more often he could give us

 these nuggets of guidance the more likely

we would be to remember them later.

Just as the creators of Romper Room were delivering

little reminders for proper behavior.

 

 

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be merciful...
Stop judging...
Stop condemning...
Forgive...
Give...
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

How would you characterize your ability to measure goodness out to others?

There is never a time when you have given enough goodness.

You can always extend a greater abundance of goodness to others.

Practice just for today...

challenge yourself to give more goodness to those you meet.

You are Loved beyond measure!