Handiwork of the Devil

~~~ Deuteronomy 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 ~~~ 

~~~ Psalm 23 ~~~ John 8:1-11 ~~~

Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; 

for you are at my side.

The two stories from these readings

 so beautifully complement one another.

The first reading features Susanna, 

who was wrongfully accused of adultery.

Her accusers were ready to pick up their stones 

and pummel her to death with them.

She was definitely plunged into the dark valley.

Two men came forward claiming they had seen 

her in the garden with another man. 

Ultimately they were proven to be lying

when questioned by Daniel

 by their own conflicting information.

If you decide to lie you risk the power of truth.

If you lie you eventually erode more

 and more good from your heart. 

These two accusers lost touch with how their lies 

would impact their own lives.

God came to the side of Susanna;

she was found innocent.

Deception is always the handiwork of the devil.
Deception by design masks truth and beauty.

Deception is like taking a black marker and scribbling
 on something that would otherwise be clear.

The gospel brings us the woman caught in adultery.
She is thrown down into the dirt right at the feet of Jesus.
These accusers claim to have caught her in the act.

While we know their goal was to trick Jesus
we do not know if they were hiding half of the truth.

What if they set up this woman?
Could they have paid a man to seduce her
for the prime purpose of catching her in the 'act'? 

Unlike Susanna this nameless woman
was brought directly to Jesus.
He was to be her judge.
He was the one who would pass the
judgement for her to be stoned.

Her accusers were not expecting Jesus
 to turn the tables on them.

Instead giving the green light for this poor woman
 to be stoned to death he writes in the sand.

Whatever Jesus wrote in the sand that day resulted
in the elders quickly and quietly turning away.

Suddenly they no longer wanted
to stick around for the customary stoning.

Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; 

for you are at my side.

This woman too was walking in the dark valley.
She too feared for her life as she knelt in the dirt.
She trembled with anticipation of the
first stone to pelt her bare skin.

Instead she heard the voice of Jesus...
"Let the one among you who is without sin 
be the first to throw a stone at her."

Who among you is without sin?

As we approach Holy Week I invite you to take
one last examination of conscience.

Maybe you can hold a stone and meditate
on the words of Jesus from this Gospel.

Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

From now on do not sin any more...
it is never too late to begin again.
Jesus offers words of mercy and encouragement.

Jesus walks in the dark valley with you.
He is slow to anger abundant in grace.
You are never alone.

~~~Peace~~~

Discovering A Safe Place

Saint John Neumann, Bishop

~~~ 1 John 3:11-21 ~~~ Psalm 100 ~~~ John 1:43-51 ~~~

...we belong to the truth...

...a great light has come upon the earth...

...I saw you under the fig tree.

Jesus saw Nathaniel under the fig tree...

What does one do while sitting under a tree?

There are discoveries to be made

 under the protection of the fig tree.

Perhaps you will find a piece of fruit...

a seed may capture your attention.

Under the fig tree is a safe place to pause for prayer.

A place to meditate on how you 

belong to the truth because Jesus has saved you.

Even in the cool shade of the fig tree we are still part of the light.

You are kept in the light of his truth.

In this state we rest in prayer under the fig tree.

You may not find a great monument 

marking your place under the fig tree 

but it is always available for you.

Sitting under the fig tree is a place of shade...

a place of safety...

a place to sit quietly listening for 

the still small voice of God.

There is no duplicity in him.

Jesus is waiting for you to take a moment 

from your daily tasks to sit

 in the quiet shade of his fig tree.

When you are still and your mind becomes quiet 

Jesus enters into your heart.

He draws you to his light and truth.

Just like Nathaniel, you too can be changed 

while resting under the fig tree.

It only takes a glimpse from Jesus

 for his light to reach your soul.

Nathaniel walked away from his time 

under the fig tree a changed person.

He had questioned whether or not anything good 

could come from a small insignificant town...

Jesus is the one who came from that town of Nazareth.

I invite you to sit awhile under the fig tree...

allow Jesus to gaze upon you and you too will be a changed person.

Get up and follow Jesus he has plans for you...

there is work for you to do in the vineyard.

~~~Spreading Peace~~~

~~~2017~~~

Truth or Silence

~~~ Deuteronomy 13:41C-62~~~ Psalm 23 ~~~

~~~ John 8:12-20 ~~~

“I am the light of the world.

Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness,

but will have the light of life.” 

God sheds light where darkness prevails...
Susanna was sentenced to death
after two men lied about the facts.

Daniel, inspired by God,
had the men questioned separately.
He suspected that their individual stories would be different.
Both men had stories that contradicted each other.

Daniel shows how the light of the truth
saves those who hope in the Lord.

The two who lied about Susanna were they
themselves sentenced to death.

The light of life over shadows the darkness of lies.
Lies do not support life, it is in truth that life survives.

...even if I should judge, my judgment is valid,
because I am not alone,
but it is I and the Father who sent me.

In our court rooms today we have testimonies
 from witness stories that often do not match.

It is the duty of the jury to make a decision
based on the testimonies heard.

Jesus does not struggle with who is telling the truth
because his insight is validated by God the Father.

The Light sees through lies...
The Light invites us out of the darkness.

No one can testify on behalf of Jesus
except the Father.
The elders were bothered because
 they could not verify the testimony of Jesus

Blessed always in the truth.

Choose to speak words of truth
or opt for silence.

~~~Peace~~~

Testimony of Eternal Life

~~~ 1 John 5:5-13 ~~~ Psalm 147 ~~~ Luke 5:12-16 ~~~

If we accept human testimony,

the testimony of God is surely greater. 

We live in a world where the concept of truth

 is covered with skepticism.

We have learned to question everything we are told.

Now days we must also question what we see.

There is very little area of our life that cannot be manipulated.

Over time the prolific manipulation of the truth

makes us weary as we search for the truth.

In our court rooms those who testify 

promise with their hand upon the Bible

 to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth...

This too holds less and less a basis for truth.

It seems that all things can be modified without our knowledge.

We have become masters at slanting the truth...

at omitting details of the truth.

And this is the testimony:

God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

God is the truth...his words are truth.

Some have become conditioned to question

 the truths within the pages of Scripture.

We have difficulty knowing with confidence when truth is present.

The Spirit is the one who testifies,

and the Spirit is truth. 

We were born with this Spirit of truth

 embedded within our soul.

Over time it becomes increasingly 

difficult to access this place of truth.

All of creation testifies to the truth of God.

Jesus came to live among us a testimony for eternal salvation.

Jesus testifies in Spirit, water, and Blood.

When you feel that all truth is lost,

remember the one truth of our eternal life.

This one truth is already within your soul.

God never lies to us.

God only speaks words of truth.

God blesses us with life...now and forever.

Speak words of truth

revealed to us through the Spirit.

Be a person of truth...

believe the promised truth of your eternal life.

Blessings of Testimony in the Spirit.

~~~Peace~~~

Jesus, Our King

~~~ Solemnity Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe ~~~

"You say I am a king. 

For this I was born and for this 

I came into the world,

to testify to the truth. 

Everyone who belongs 

to the truth listens to my voice."

As we come to the end of this liturgical year we are
reminded that Jesus is our King.

A typical king rules over his kingdom
where all are subject to him.

Our king is the ruler of our hearts.
His kingdom is the universe and all that is a part of it.

Our king is ruler over all.
Our king rules over our hearts in wisdom and truth.

The ancient peoples could not comprehend Jesus as a King.
He did not dress as a King.
He did not act as a King.
He did not think of himself as a King,
in the traditional manner.

Today we celebrate Jesus as our King
as we approach the threshold of Advent.
The time of waiting for the birth of Jesus
gives us time to prepare our heart to receive our King.

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, " says the Lord God,
"the one who is and who was and who is to come, the almighty."

Our God is both the beginning and the end.
Our God is continuous...motion...
creation...truth...love...goodness...and mercy.

Our God will never change.
He is everything that was, is, and will come to be...
He is God the Almighty.

Today we praise him as King and Ruler.
We give him thanks for sustaining us for all ages.
We wait in hope for all that is to come for us.

Our God is a Mighty God;
who cares for you by name.
No earthly king knows all of his subjects,
but our God has counted every hair on your head.

This liturgical year closes but our King
remains ever present in our hearts.

Let us begin to prepare our heart
for the birth of our infant King, Jesus.

Blessings from the One who is, was, and is to come.

~~~Peace~~~

Truth and Kindness

~~~ Hebrews 8:6-13 ~~~ Psalm 85 ~~~ Mark 3:13-19 ~~~

Kindness and truth shall meet.

Jesus is the the truth and he expresses it
 best through his kindness.
It is his kindness that gives credence to the truth.
In Jesus there should have been no reason
 to question his intentions concerning the truth.
Everything he said and did was rooted in the truth.
His kindness far surpassed anyone's expectations.
And yet in spite of truth and kindness many still did not believe.

I will put my laws in their minds

and I will write them upon their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they shall be my people.

Jesus called all of his disciples to the mountain with him.
They had to work to climb up to where he would
single out twelve to be his apostles.

He took care to give those twelve his truths.
He took time show them his kindness.
He wrote upon their hearts his one law...his law of love.
Most of them took this truth into their hearts,
one did not. He chose to squander the truth
and the kindness he was given.

One chose to turn away from the truth.
One chose to deflect kindness in exchange for selfishness.

Where are you when it comes to truth?
How much kindness is in your heart?

I hope that you allow God to write his truth
and his kindness upon your heart each and every day.

You are Blessed with one undeniable truth.

God loves you.

Let him write it on your heart.
~~~Peace~~~

Searching for What Is...

~~~ Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time ~~~

~~~ Isaiah 5:1-7 ~~~ Psalm 80 ~~~ Philippians 4:6-9 ~~~

~~~ Matthew 21:33-43 ~~~

...whatever is true, whatever is honorable,

whatever is just, whatever is pure,

whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,

if there is any excellence

and if there is anything worthy of praise,

think about these things.

We should keep this passage visible in every room of our home.
We should carry this passage on our person everywhere we go.
We should have it scrolling across our computer screens.
It should be embedded on our smart phones.
Why, you may ask?
Because we live in a world where our attention
 is constantly being presented with the total opposite.
Each time we turn on the television we rarely initially
see anything that is lovely, pure, or excellent.
We must search for the truth even from our news reporters.
Our justice system at times causes us to scratch our heads in disbelief.

Today Paul may be telling us that as Christians it is our duty,
our joy, and our responsibility to search for
truth...honor...justice...purity...beauty...graceful...and excellent.
Where can we find those things worthy to be praised?

These are things we must give our minds, hearts, and souls to feed upon.
For if we can feed on these things they will flourish within.
Whatever we can nurture within is sure to come out.

If we cannot find these wonderful things as Paul describes then
it is up to us to be those things to others.
We must live in truth.
We must live with honor.
We must carry justice in our heart and actions.
We must be pure, clean and not harmful in any way.
We must be lovely, beautiful; not to be confused with frills and lace. 

We must be gracious, merciful and kind in every manner.
We must strive for excellence; not necessarily perfection.
We must be the best we can be expecting to improve.

Then the God of peace will be with you.
He is the bearer of blessings and grace all the days of your life.
All that he is is worthy of our praise.
All that he creates is worthy of our praise.
All that is loved and redeemed by him is worthy of praise.

We must hold ourselves accountable to these
words written by Saint Paul.
They were not just for his intended audience that day
they were written for us to hear now on this date in time.
These words were written to nourish our souls today.

Perhaps you can only pick one to focus on each week
 that will be enough.

Get into the habit of focusing on the things that are good.
Keep these words where you can see them often.
The world can be a better place...
it begins with you and me.

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Blessings from all that is gracious and honorable in your life.
~~~Peace~~~

Truth Cannot be Held Hostage

~~~ Isaiah 6:1-8 ~~~ Psalm 93 ~~~ Matthew 10:24-33 ~~~

He touched my mouth with it (the hot ember) and said,

“See, now that this has touched your lips,

your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.”

Touched by an angel from God with a red hot ember. 

This is a frightening image.

Lips are tender, sensitive easily burned with food or drink that is too hot.

To purge one from wickedness takes extreme measures.

Once the wickedness is removed from your being;

that is when you can speak with purity of heart.

Once you have a clean heart then you can answer

'here I am...send me...I will go'

If God had indeed counted every hair on our head,

 why would he do that and then let us perish?

God's plan for our life never includes our destruction.

With pure lips we can speak his words of light and love,

because it him speaking through us.

God has only his chosen ones to speak on his behalf today.

Guess what? That would be you and me.

We must not be silent...we must speak up.

...do not be afraid...

Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed,

nor secret that will not be known.

What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light;

what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.

Everything that comes from God that is of God

 must be revealed to others.

In some countries, even today, the Gospel message

 must be spoken in the underground 'safe' areas.

We live in a country where freedom of speech is valued...protected.

When the kingdom of heaven is brought to its full fruition

nothing will be held back from us.

We will know those things which now

seem to be hidden in the darkness of our existence.

The truth cannot be held hostage it will be made visible.

What is said in darkness must be spoken in the light.

The apostles did not remain locked up

 in the upper room they went out into the towns and villages.

What they whispered among themselves

 Jesus made perfectly clear to them.

There was no longer a need to keep anything quiet.

They were given the courage to broadcast the Gospel message.

They used every available means to tell the story.

This is exactly why we have the message in out hearts today.

The apostles overcame their fear and we can too.

Never be afraid to let others know you are a believer...that you love God.

Never be afraid to look for the presence of God.

Let your words and your actions reveal what is in your heart;

it is so much easier that way.

Blessed to be released from fear and darkness.

Step into the light and say,

Here I am Lord...take me...I will go.

~~~Peace~~~

Devoted Living Stones

~~~Fifth Sunday of Easter~~~

~~Acts of the Apostles 6:1-7~~Psalm 33~~

~~1 Peter 2:4-9~~John 14:1-12~~

We are the living stones...set here to thrive...
here to tell the story.

Do not let your hearts be troubled.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.
He prepares a place for us; a room just for you.
You would only prepare a room for the living.
If we are with God and if he is with us
then we are among the living.
Being alive is more than our narrow concept
of what it means to be alive.

Do not let your hearts be troubled
because he is with you in good and in bad times.

...we shall devote ourselves to prayer

and to the ministry of the word.

Where God is there is life...
there is reason to have a devotion to prayer.
For he tells us what we ask for in prayer shall be given to us.

God is in the living word it belongs to him.

If we are to be alive as living stones then we too
 must devote ourselves
to a life of prayer.
If we are to be with God we must devote
ourselves to the ministry of the word...
that is to spreading the message.

We are chosen and precious.
We have been called out of darkness into his light for a reason.
We live in his light to announce his praises.

We are a people of his own.

Blessed to be alive today.
~~~Peace~~~

Consecrated in the Truth

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 20:28-38 ~~~ Psalm 68 ~~~ John 17:11b-19 ~~~

 

Paul prepares his followers for his certain departure.

He warns them that they will have trials and hardships; that is part of life.

He reminds them to stay strong...

be vigilant

 

Paul gives them over to the Lord for safe keeping.

God has actually always been the one who was providing for them;

it just appeared to them to be coming from Paul.

God was indeed using Paul as his vehicle in spreading his message.

 

I commend you to God
and to that gracious word of his that can build you up
and give you the inheritance among all who are consecrated.

 

Paul is emphasizing the power of the words of Jesus...

words that can inspire, strengthen, heal...

Words they should continue to hold close to their hearts.

Words they should let permeate into the whole being.

If they do as Paul is suggesting,

 they will no longer need him to show the way.

He reminds them of one last important truth...

‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

Giving is better than receiving,

 even though we all enjoy receiving occasionally.

 

 

In the Gospel today we see Jesus preparing to leave and praying for the community.

Jesus is praying through the Father for all of us.

This is an intercessory prayer from Jesus for us.

 

Whenever you are plagued with thoughts that you are forgotten;

remember this passage from the Bible.

Jesus prayed for you.

 

In his prayer he states how he protected and cared for the people.

Jesus brought to earth the words of God the Father.

Now he is asking the Father to bless us in a special manner...

to consecrate us...more exactly to consecrate us in truth.

 

Consecrated to be used as God sees fit to use us.

We are no longer here just for ourselves we are here for God's use.

Set apart for truth.

This is overwhelming if we do not allow the words,

his words, to reign in our hearts.

 

'...Consecrate them in the truth.
Your word is truth.'

 

We are given a special consecration

to go forth proclaiming the sacred words of Jesus.

For when we use his words to give to others we are giving him as well.

The Father and the Son are one with the Word.

As you sent me into the world,
so I sent them into the world.

 

Just as God the Father sent forth Jesus to spread the good news,

Jesus now sends us to follow in his footsteps and do likewise.

 

We do not belong to the world;

we belong to God in heaven...Jesus left us the plan to join him there.

 

The Easter Blessing of consecration in the truth.

We have been set apart by Jesus for God the Father.

Let us rejoice and be glad!

Confronted by Truth

 

~~~ Isaiah 50:4-9a ~~~ Psalm 69 ~~~ Matthew 26:14-25 ~~~

 

'...Morning after morning
he opens my ear that I may hear...'

 

This is our call, to begin each day in prayer.

If we begin with the intention of listening for the voice of the Lord;

each day would unfold in a greater joy.

 

'...you who seek God, may your hearts revive!'

 

Our hearts would be in a constant state of revival

 if we would but keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

I recently read some beautiful advice...

No matter what situation we find ourselves in

see only Jesus.

 

Before the night of Passover, Jesus it seems,

has already made arrangements to dine at a friend's.

There he can have a private quiet meal with his closest followers.

 

“Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?”

The apostles were concerned about making all of the necessary

for the feast day, but Jesus was one step ahead of them.

They were willing to complete the requirements for the Passover feast,

but it was taken care of for them by Jesus.

 

I find this to true in my life as well.

When I am anxious about some approaching responsibility;

God shows up ahead of time and gets everything in order.

 

 

Jesus is always willing to make one more attempt

at getting and keeping out attention.

 

Even if we are on the brink of making a serious mistake

Jesus makes time for us...

he invites us to dine with him...

he confronts us with the truth.

 

Jesus confronts Judas with the truth of his betrayal

during their intimate Passover meal together.

While the others present may not have understood what Jesus was saying;

Judas surely got the message.

Jesus allowed Judas to excuse himself from the group.

Jesus did not command him to leave the meal.

 

Jesus always confronts us with the truth.

I invite you to pause and reflect to day on this question.

 

Are you willing to hear what Jesus has to say to you?

If we begin each day listening to the Lord,

 the truth will not catch us by surprise.

Glory and Praise Forever

~~~ Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92, 95 ~~~ Daniel 3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56 ~~~ John 8:31-42 ~~~

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."  

 To be a true disciple of the Lord requires great sacrifices.

To be a disciple of Jesus means that you are his student;

one willing to learn from the master teacher.

IF you are a true disciple you accept the teachings of Jesus...

in accepting these teachings you imitate them in your own life.

We are eager to be a disciple of Jesus because we believe that he is the one true God.

We believe that he has a covenant with us...

a covenant of salvation...our salvation.

The three young men written about in the book of Daniel

were willing to be thrown into the fiery furnace instead of worshiping false gods.

They believed that God would come to their assistance for their steadfast faith.

God did send an angel to protect them from the consuming fires.

Their salvation brought forth joyful songs of praise for all that God had done.

Glory and praise for ever!

  

 These three young men called out for all of creation to bless the Lord.

They had such faith as to speak out praises for the Lord

even as they circled in the scorching flames.

There certainly was nothing they could do or say that would have adequately

thanked the Lord for their lives.

So that brings us to where we are today; just days before Holy Week.

How can we begin to thank God for saving us from the flames of sin?

The simple answer is to give him praise and glory.

All we can really do is be thankful and humbly accept his generous mercy.

The most we can do is to constantly strive to live the life

even partially as he intended us to live. 

To live as his disciples...to live in love, mercy, and compassion.

Though we may walk through the burning flames

we will not be harmed because God will protect us.

He will walk beside us protecting us, leading us out of the fire.

May we forever sing the praises of the Lord fro he has been good to us...

he has done great things for us.

 We give you Glory and Praise almighty God.

Protect us from the flames of sinfulness.

Amen.

Misleading Appearances

~~~ Jer. 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13 ~~~ Psalm 36 ~~~ Matthew 13:10-17 ~~~

"...Two evils have my people done:
they have forsaken me, the source of living waters;
They have dug themselves cisterns,
broken cisterns, that hold no water..."

It is so easy to be misled by the appearances of things.

Jeremiah is talking about the wells the people have dug that are defective.

They appear to be collecting water but in reality

they are broken and the water is being wasted.

Recently I was filling the kitchen sink with hot soapy water to wash the dishes.

I thought I had placed the stopper correctly into the drain.

However, a few minutes later when I returned to the kitchen

the water had all drained out.

Initially it appeared to be retaining the water; it was only later

when the water was gone that I checked the stopper.

We can be fooled into thinking because something looks right that it is right.

It reminds me of the saying you can not judge a book by its cover.

The people listening to Jeremiah were confused they missed the true living waters becasue they were too busy digging their faulty broken cisterns.

"...they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand..."

Too often when we are off doing our own thing we miss what is most important.

Where is your living water today?

Are you focusing your attention on the faulty well?

Are you confused?

Are you missing the crack in the cistern?

Are you losing precious living water?

"But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear."

Do you have the desire to really see and to really hear?

How long will you be fooled by imitations?

As a child I wanted to prove my daddy wrong. Whenever he said I would not get something accomplished I worked harder than ever to prove him wrong.

Maybe that was his real motive I never asked him.

Jesus is lamenting the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah.

"...You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted
and I heal them."

Today we are in a much better situation; our eyes and ears have

access to the truth.

We can see if we but open our eyes.

We can hear if we but open our ears.

The question for us is once you see and hear, then what?

Is it good enough to just be able to say I see and hear?

Seeing and hearing comes with some responsibilities.

We must in effect keep the cisterns in good repair.

We must be vigilant of even the tiniest crack.

For left unattended a tiny crack can eventually become more serious.

Jesus used parables because they are timeless in their ability

 to convey their message.

We are reminded that keeping the faith is not a one time deal.

Keeping the faith alive requires daily maintenance...

payiny attention to the little details.

Lord, grant us the grace to see and hear the truth in all situations.

Truth...Audible Light

~~~~ 2 Tim. 2: 8-15 ~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ Mark 12: 28-34 ~~~



I could not but help thinking about attorneys in a courtroom arguing

their client's side of the case...'stop disputing about words'.

We are a culture of words...we love words...we use words for all sorts of reasons...

we even create our own words for local things.

Paul goes on to say, 'This (disputing) serves no useful purpose

since it harms those who listen'.

Okay I am probably guilty of using words that harmed someone else;

even if it was unintentional. We are indirectly harmed by words heard

from the media and those in authority positions.

Pause for a moment to examine the words you use and

the intention with which you have spoken them.

We can become confused and misled by the words of others.

We can be deceived by the words of others.

Paul completes his thought with some advice.

"Be eager to present yourself as acceptable to God,

a workman who causes no disgrace,

imparting the word of truth without deviation."

"...Imparting the word of truth..."

Herein lies the tricky part; that is what is the truth. It seems pretty easy to think that what you hear or read is mostly the truth, but in reality that is not always the case.

Flash back to the courtroom scenerio for a moment...

Which side is representing the truth?

It is often hard to decipher.

I have gotten numerous emails passed on to me that look and sound true,

only to discover through further checking that they are indeed false.

Speaking the truth takes great virtue and a strong character.

The truth is not always what others prefer to hear.

Which leads me to the exchange between Jesus and one of the Scribes from today's gospel recorded in Mark. Jesus uses words of truth to answer the scribes question,

...the Lord our God is Lord alone...

The scribe recognizes the words spoken by Jesus as truth...

A rare occasion when these opposite sides so readily agree.

The words used by Jesus resonated as truth directly to the heart of the scribe.

The words of Jesus were transparent with truth even if they fell on deaf ears

or were not fully comprehended by the listeners.

Speak words of truth, but temper them with compassion.

For words spoken in haste can leave vicious bite marks.

Let your words be the audible lights of truth.

Jesus Prays for You

~~~ Acts 20: 28-38 ~~~ Psalm 68 ~~~ John 17: 11b-19 ~~~

" Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me,
so that they may be one just as we are one."

Are you paying attention to what is happening here in John's Gospel?

Jesus is praying to the Father; no surprise, except this time he is praying for us.

Jesus is praying for each of us. He is lifting us up to the Father.

He is speaking on our behalf. Almost giving testimony as to why the Father should she hear his prayer.

Jesus is asking the Father not to take us out of the sinfulness of the world, but to protect us from Satan, "...keep them from the Evil One."

Jesus is asking God the Father to extend his power over the evil one so as to keep us safe. Jesus knows that whatever he asks in the Father's name will be granted.

Jesus is confirming through his prayer for us that we do not belong to this world. We were created to be in heaven with the Lord. God placed a longing actually a holy longing to be reunited with him.

He gave us a hunger to be reunited with him in heaven.

Jesus is honoring his Father as being all powerful, even over the 'evil one'.

Jesus consecrates us in truth; not human truth but the truth that is from God.

In truth we can find the joy that our heart desires.

The truth is that we can only find true joy in loving God.

How awesome it is to think that before our physical existence Jesus was already interceding on our behalf.

Next time you are in a state of mind where you may think nobody cares

return to this passage and trust that Jesus himself prayed for you before the Father.

May this Truth calm your weary heart.

May you experience the Peace of the Lord.

Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa

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

Mea Culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa...

through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault...

At the beginning of every Mass we, in unison with the community, admit our guilt. We and we alone are responsible for our actions good or bad, positive or negative. Even though we recite these words of guilt together we present ourselves indiviually before God's holy altar.

Here I am Lord admitting I have mud on my face. Admitting I have been caught with my hand in the candy jar. We are tattling on ourselves, only because we profess to also believe in the mercy of God.

It's as if we are saying, 'Ahhh, God, I know I have not been the best person so many times, but remember you promised...' And now comes the pleading like a little child...'you promised forgiveness and you also promised mercy.' We look up at God with sad puppy dog eyes trusting in his attentive forgiveness. At the same time we are secretly hoping that we will not be required to actually name our sins. After all God is all knowing therefore he already knows.

Have you ever thought of your sins from the generic perspective? I think I probably have at least once or twice. We even try to rationalze them away.We did this or acted that way because...well you know, it just happened. 

We rarely feel as if we are in the courtroom swearing on the Bible 'to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth'. We are masters at deception...deceiving even  ourselves. We would much rather look out at others than inside our own heart.

We diligently join the psalmist in praying, 'Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.' The flip side of this plea ties us back to the 'Golden Rule'. Jesus tells us, 'Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.'

If we treat others with the mercy of God then we too will find favor with God, who is the giver of gifts. Grace will be given to us overflowing; poured into our laps.

"For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you."
Be generous in all things, but especially forgiveness and mercy. This is the only way we can ever hope to be perfect as our heavenly Father. Forgiveness is the only way to maintain wholeness within your heart and soul.

When you recite the penitential rite at the opening of every Mass, don't just mouth the words, but rather speak them in the spirit of true mercy.

Mercy gives the benefit of the doubt to the other person.

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa,

ushers in the grace for God to 'manifest the motives of our hearts.' (1 Cor.4:5)