Given and Received

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 22:30; 23:6-11 ~~~ Psalm 16 ~~~

~~~ John 17:20-26 ~~~

Father, they are your gift to me.
I wish that where I am they also may be with me...

Have you ever considered yourself as a gift to another person?
The first year my husband and I celebrated Christmas
as a married couple I wrapped up a big box
put a big bow in my hair
and put my chin on top of the back of the box.
I joyfully announced that I was his Christmas gift.
We were poor newly weds spending
 the holidays away from our families.

We still laugh about that time today some
forty years after the fact.

Jesus is telling the Father, with much joy,
that we are his gift.
He is so excited with his gift
 that he does not want to leave us behind.

We often hear people speak about not being able
 to take this or that with them when they die.

These things are mostly referring to our material
worldly possessions.

Here Jesus is speaking about taking us with him.
When you truly love another separation is painful.
Jesus knows that we belong with him
just as all gifts are for the recipient.

Gifts are chosen specifically for the intended receiver.
It is no different when it comes to the gift
 the Father chose for the Son.

You and I were chosen to be given to the Son...
we are his gifts.
We were not chosen haphazardly.
We were chosen by Divine intention.

This time of year we have many occasions to give
 a gift to someone...weddings, graduation, birthdays...

As you are shopping for the next gift consider,
 for just a moment the very gift that person
 is not just to you but for Jesus.

The Father gave all of us as gift to Jesus...
even those who we would not consider as gift.

Father, they are your gift to me.
I wish that where I am they also may be with me..

I can only imagine how Jesus spoke of us
with great enthusiasm and joy.

God the Father could not have chosen
a better gift for Jesus than to give him you.

Blessed to be given and received in love.
~~~Peace~~~

Our All-Inclusive God

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 8:26-40 ~~~ Psalm 66 ~~~ John 6:44-51 ~~~

“Do you understand what you are reading?”

For twenty five years I taught reading.

Reading is not just about the ability to call out the words.

Reading is about comprehension...understanding.

If there is no understanding there is no reading.

The best way to insure comprehension

 is for the reader to learn to create a picture 

of what the words mean.

Grab a children's picture book and you will see
that the illustrations bring the text to life.

If we can picture something then we can gain deeper understanding.

It is true that a picture is worth a thousand words.
Sometimes all we need for understanding is the picture...
the words are not sufficient.
God sends an angel to send Philip out
 at the precise moment for his path to intersect that of the eunuch.
God sets in motion the conversion of this eunuch,
someone who exists on the edge.
Eunuchs are different; they have been rendered sterile.
God seeks out all peoples no matter their physical condition.
This Ethiopian eunuch was different from
the Jewish people, he was a person of color.
God's love is all inclusive. 

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him...

This sentence almost leaves the impression
that we are standing on the sidelines waiting for the signal to enter.

God the Father draws each person to himself.
There is no exact timeline. It is not an art or a science.
It is gift...the gift of faith.

This gift of faith is always there, always being offered to us.
Some walk on by as if they are not interested.
Some pretend the invitation does not exist.
Some think the invitation is for others and not themselves.
Sometimes we are given the gift,
but we do not understand its significance.
Some accept the gift; only to toss it aside later.

And then there are those who accept the gift
and hold it close to their hearts.

Once we have this gift our desire
 is to wrap ourselves around it until it comes near suffocation.

But once we come to Jesus,
 we can no longer be content to keep
 it hidden from plain sight.

Blessing often come in the form of a teacher
 to help us understand the gift.

The eunuch was given Philip, a Spirit-filled teacher.
Who is your trusted teacher?
Who helps you understand the words of Scripture more fully?

The more understanding we have
 the more we are able to express our appreciation.

~~~ Peace ~~~

The All Inclusive Prayer

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 22:30; 23:6-11 ~~~ Psalm 16 ~~~ John 17:20-26 ~~~

 

The glorious Easter season is coming to a close.

But rather than an ending it is the beginning of our life in the Spirit.

God will never leave us alone.

 

In the Gospel today Jesus continues his prayer for us.

He can feel the breath of the one who will betray him

 yet he prays for you and me.

He could have spent his last hours isolated calming his fears

anticipating his own painful death,

but instead he chooses to pray for us.

 

He models for us the power of prayer in all circumstances of our life.

 

 This prayer for is so long that the church breaks it into two Gospel readings.

This prayer is so profound that we must take at least two days to reflect on the words.

Perhaps we will not ever truly appreciate the meaning of this prayer.

 

Jesus was on earth and was subject to the restraints of time,

but he is also of heaven where there is no time.

Since he is one with the Father he exists in both dimensions simultaneously.

 

His prayer is for us just as real and timely as if we were

present in that upper room.

We are given the privilege of hearing Jesus

intercede to his Father on our behalf.

 

 Long before our actual existence

Jesus prayed that we could actually be with him.

He almost longs for all of mankind to appear at once as one with him.

 

 Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying:
“I pray not only for these,
but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
so that they may all be one...

 

It is both humbling and comforting to reflect on these words of Jesus.

His conversation with the Father raises us up...

gives us his glory.

He longs for us to be united with him for all eternity.

 

I envision Jesus reaching out into the future during this prayer,

 drawing all of us to him;

binding us with himself to the Father.

He wants us to share their intimacy of oneness.

A great surge of humanity being absorbed into this person of Jesus,

because he chose us to be his own.

He wants us to share in the richness of the friendship he has with the Father.

He gives us access to our eternal inheritance...

the unconditional love of the Father.

 

Today we have available all inclusive resort vacations;

through Jesus we have something much more.

Jesus prays the all inclusive prayer,

that we will one day partake in his glory. 

 

He prays that we may be brought to perfection...wholeness.

A perfect wholeness that can only come through uniting ourselves with him.

 

 

Father, they are your gift to me.

 

How can we possibly be a gift to Jesus?

There is nothing that we have to give him

except our frail human existence.

 

This is what he seems content in having;

us just as we are.

God the Father gives us to Jesus and Jesus sees us as gift.

What more could we ask for than to have Jesus intercede on our behalf to the Father?

I can think of nothing else.

So I ask myself, 'how have I packaged myself as gift for Jesus'?

Am I more focused on the ribbons and wrapping paper or the content of my heart?

More for future honest truthful reflection.

Won't you join me in cherishing

each word of this prayer from the lips of Jesus.

You just might no longer feel the need

 to wrap yourself up for Jesus.

Sustenance for Body and Soul

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

~~~ Ex 16: 2-4, 12-15 ~~~ Psalm 78 ~~~ Eph 4:17, 20-24 ~~~ John 6:24-35 ~~~

Jesus said to them,
"I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst."

Verse thirty-five from this sixth chapter of John says it all...

Jesus is the bread of life.

It is he who is our food. most importantly our food for the soul.

Every time I hear this passage from Exodus of God feeding

Moses and his people in

the desert with manna from heaven I get this vision...

While all of the people are asleep God sends down dew as moisture;

which is much needed in the desert.

But then God covers the ground with 'Frosted Flakes'.

When the people get up in the morning the bright sunshine

glistens on the flakes and the sugar particles sparkle.

I am being funny, but it is such a real picture.

The appearance of this manna is not the point; the point is God

gave the people bread or manna to eat.

He led them through the desert but he never abandoned them.

This food for their body also fed their soul

because it gave them hope.

These 'frosted flakes' kept them believing.

It kept them believing that Moses was being led by God.

It kept them believing that they were right to follow to stick with him.

Today we can look back at this time and see the connection with what

Jesus is saying in the gospel today.

He is the 'bread of life'.

God sent Jesus down from heaven...his gift to us...

so that he could die on the cross and become our spiritual food forever.

Whether we are walking through the desert

or along the seashore we have the gift of

the eternal bread of life.

Each time we come to Mass the bread we bring to the altar is changed

by the power of the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ.

It becomes the bread of life.

We are spiritually fed, our soul is nourished with so much more

than we bring to the altar.

Our small offering is returned to us a life giving source for our soul.

In the desert God sent the manna from heaven to feed their bodies,

but in turn their souls were also fed because they believed.

When we receive the consecrated bread...the Eucharist we are fed spiritually,

but our bodies are also fed, at least symbolically.

God transforms the bread we bring into his very own

bread of life.

The people in the desert grumbled and became disgruntled as time progressed.

God fed them in spite of their belligerent attitudes.

No matter what is happening in my life I know I can always come to the table

of the Lord and be fed by his body and blood.

He is the 'Bread of Life' for me.

 I cannot imagine my life without this gift.

Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof,

but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.

Only say the word and my soul will be fed.

I believe that you are the

"Bread of Life"

and I thank you for giving us this gift of sustenance.

First Be Reconciled

~~~ Kings 18: 41-46 ~~~ Psalm 65 ~~~ Matt. 5: 20-26 ~~~

I heard today's gospel verses with new ears. As I have written before scripture is truly the living word of God. It meets us wherever we are...it takes us to new heights and depths of understanding.

The words I most often remember hearing from this gospel are...

"Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift."

Those words had always made an impact on me because it shows how directly connected we must be with our prayer life and our daily life,

We cannot just come to church and pretend all is right in our lives

when we are harboring ill feelings toward another.

If you know that someone is holding something against you;

it just might be up to you to make the first move.

You may be the one who has to reach out in forgiveness and understanding.

And this is often very hard to do...

believe me I know I have been in that place.

I previously thought this passage was referring to actual hatred.

Yes, I know we are to love one another so I usually let this gospel

tumble down beside me.

Hating someone is really not in my nature, no matter how upset I am.

But today the words that popped out to me were those from earlier in the passage...

"...whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment..."

Anger...what is the driving force behind anger? Why do we hold on to it?

How does it serve us? Is it ever justifiable?

Being angry does not mean that you are ready to kill someone, but it tarnishes your soul. Anger makes you less likely to appreciate even your own relationship with God.

Anger gets in the way. Anger is like a huge weight attached to your heart and soul.

Anger is so huge that we have classes for anger management. Anger left to run unbridled can result in serious consequences. Road rage comes to mind.

Taking one's anger into the car and acting it out

behind the wheel can literally kill someone.

What an awful thought.

Anger cannot be left to its own outcomes, because it has no built in controls.

Anger is like a snowball rolling down hill. It keeps gaining speed and increasing in size until it either hits bottom or crashes into a larger obstacle.

Anger must be controlled from without through a conscious effort and hard work.

Uncontrolled anger can lead us to a place we would otherwise never have ventured.

People say love is blind; well anger takes this concept of blindedness to a whole different dimension.

"...leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled..."

Leaving your gift at the altar requires you to think about the other person. Leaving your gift at the altar means leaving your ego there as well. If you do not leave your gift of yourself then reconciling with another is more difficult.

Reconciling without your self means setting aside your agenda, your feeling...your ego. Do not carry anger with you to the altar. It will only make you feel like a hypocrite on the inside; even if only you know.

Anger cannot become a part of one who is completely in love with God.

For our wel-being of mind body and spirit we must train ourselves to let go of anger.

Anger deeply held for years can cause serious health complications.

If you are troubled with anger issues seek guidance. It may take professional counseling. Don't let anger eat up your insides and tarnish your heart.

 The greatest commandment is love

because it is both

easy and difficult to love

depending on the circumstances.

"...be reconciled...
and then come and offer your gift."

Anger shatters your gift before you are able to give freely of yourself.

Overshadowing Joy

~~~ Acts 18: 9-18 ~~~ Psalm 47 ~~~ John 16: 20-23 ~~~

"...your grief will become joy."

Even a devout Christian has difficulty waiting patiently for the joy when in the midst of a time of grief. There are times when you cannot se 'the light' at the end of the tunnel. There are times in grief when you fell trapped inside of a dark cave.

The light of joy must be one of faith. We are asked to believe in this joy through our faith in the promises of God.

"...she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy

that a child has been born into the world..."

Just last night I caught the end of a program spotlighting the struggle and pain of unwed mothers who make the difficult decision to give up their child for adoption.

Having dear friends who just adopted I was compelled to listen as each of these mothers struggled with making the choice. Each of them admitted from their heart they knew giving up their baby was in the best interest of the child. Parallel to their child's best interest was their emotional pain and profound sadness for themselves.

While they were joyful at having given birth to a beautiful healthy child their personal emotional anguish was great. I pray for these women and the courage they have for not terminating their pregnancy. Once you see your child giving him or her up for adoption takes great love.

The adoptive parents too experience emotional pain of waiting for the birth mother's final signatures. It is not until all signatures are obtained before the adoptive parents can breath a sigh of relief and thanskgiving.

Adoptive parents acknowledge tremendous gratitude

for the great gift they have received.

"But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice,

and no one will take your joy away from you."

This scripture verse is one of comfort for anyone who is mourning and grieving the loss of a loved one. Jesus was talking to the apostles as they were sad about his leaving them. Jesus is saying to them don't be sad it will be alright...I will see you again and when that does happen it will truly be a glorious time.

Jesus closes this section with more words of assurance...

"Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father

 in my name he will give you."

When you are grieving hold on for the Joy.

Ask for joy to be born into your heart.

Wait for the Joy to overshadow the pain.

The All-Inclusive Gift

Today is the traditional day we celebrate the Magi's arrival to the Christ child. We have created a wonderful scenario around this event. And whether or not you buy into the whole following the star business the message is still powerful to me.

Jesus came to be the Savior to all of us. Jesus came so that we all might have eternal life.

Mary and Joseph traveled away from their home for the birth of Jesus. He was born in a poverty painted environment. The poor shepherds came as they were tending their sheep. The angels sang from on high. And then the three wise men arrived bearing gifts worthy of a king. They brought fine kingly gifts to a baby...a baby that would bring salvation to all.

These three wise men also represented the richness available to us if we believe and follow Jesus. If we but 'Come and See' as we have heard in the last couple gospels. These three wise men were from very different backgrounds than the shepherds...

You see eternal life is an all inclusive deal. The gift of salvation is an all or nothing package.

John tells us in today's reading from his first letter Chapter 5:11-12, "...God gave us eternal life, and this life is in the Son. Whoever possesses the Son has life; whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life." John is speaking with passion for what he knows to be truth. He wants his readers and listeners to catch his wave of passion. He says I am writing these things because I want you to know that you have eternal life. He is sharing the Good News!

You cannot believe in something you do not know anything about. He is pumping up their faith and our faith. We too need to be reminded of the promise of our eternal life.

It is a challenge to believe in something that would last for eternity. We have nothing concrete with which to compare eternity. There is no reference point. What does eternity mean to you?

We measure everything by time. Even if we look to the heavens for the meaning of eternity we are fooled. Scientists today have learned, through powerful telescopes, so much about our Universe. We now know stars are born and die daily. So even they cannot represent eternity to us.

Today as we are reminded of the three wise men let us also remember that the promise of eternal life is for all who believe without exception. Rejoice in this truth!

The original picture is of the Resurrection.

This kaleidoscope image reflects to me the magnificent light of eternal life.