Who Do You Pray With?

~~~ Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time ~~~
~~~ Ezekiel 33:7-9 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Romans 13:8-10 ~~~~
~~~ Matthew 18:15-20 ~~~

 ...where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them.

There are so many ways for us to join with others in prayer.
Jesus is careful not to stipulate that those
praying together must be in physical contact with each other.
He dos not say they must be in the same place...
under the same roof.
We only need make the intention to join with
others in common prayer.
We can join together in prayer at a specific time
to pray for a specific intention.
I have been asked to join others in prayer on a certain date.
Many times we observe a moment of collective silence
to remember and pray for victims of a public tragedy.
It does not matter what the reason is that spurs us to prayer;
it only matters that we join together in prayer.
Jesus promises to give us his presence when we join together in prayer.

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

The voice of the Lord is most often heard during our time of prayer.
When praying with others our faith is strengthened
 as each person shares their rewards of praying.

God spoke to his people through his prophets.
Today who is to say that God does not speak
 to us through our friends especially the ones
we come together with in prayer.

Who do you pray with?
Do you pray with your spouse or significant other?
Do you pray with your children?
Do you pray with your friends?
Do you ever pray with strangers?

Is God able to speak through you?
Are you willing to be God's mouthpiece?
You may be the only voice of God another person ever hears.

When we come together to pray we come together
 to share our fears and our hopes.
We come together in prayer to share our story.

In prayer we invite God to be with us...
we believe that he is listening.

Praying with others does make a difference.
There is strength in numbers even when praying.

Praying with others keeps you focused
 on the intentions of the other person for that time of prayer.

If you have others to pray with then surely you are Blessed.
You are Blessed because you have friends
that share your belief in the power of prayer.

~~~ Peace~~~

Are You Fooling Yourself?

~~~ 1 Corinthians 4:6B-15 ~~~ Psalm 145 ~~~ Luke 6:1-5 ~~~

Who confers distinction upon you?
What do you possess that you have not received?

Paul is reminding the Corinthians that they are confused
 by their own good fortunes.

They are mesmerized by their own
accomplishments and not on the workings of God.

We may find ourselves in a similar state when we are successful in life.
We often need to be reminded that all comes from God.
Whatever we may do well in our life proceeds
 from the gifts we have been given by God.
If we use those gifts well we may have success,
if we misuse the gifts it may be to our eventual destruction. 

It is true, we can better ourselves and improve our gifts. 

The real question we need to ask ourselves is...
what is our purpose?
How do we envision using our gifts?
Do we see gifts making life better for ourselves
at the expense of others or do we see our gifts
 making life better for others?

Jesus walked through the field of grain...

Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath,
his disciples were picking the heads of grain,
rubbing them in their hands, and eating them.

All that Jesus did while living among us as one of us
was for the well-being of others.

He was not restricted by the execution of the precise letter of the law.
One does not starve just because it is the Sabbath.
One does not allow another to suffer just because the Sabbath
requires one to 'rest' from certain activity.

Compassion is more important then the keeping
of rituals, laws, or customs. 

The scribes and the Pharisees were stuck.
They were chained to the exact keeping of the laws.
Compassion for another human being was a foreign concept for them.
The had to maintain their public position on matters
concerning the keeping of the Sabbath.

They felt superior and confident that they were
 correct and that Jesus was wrong.

They were satisfied with who they were.
They saw no need to change.
Paul is facing the same situation with the Corinthians...
They were quite satisfied with who they had become.

Paul had to shake them up a bit just as Jesus did walking
through the field of grain with the apostles
plucking, rubbing, and eating
on the Sabbath. 

We must never become satisfied with who we are
 because there is a chance we can be better.

God us constantly calling us to reach higher.
We can never be perfect so we must always
 strive toward perfection in the Lord.

We are Blessed to never lose sight of who is the giver of all gifts.

We can always improve.
~~~Peace~~~

Keep the Mysteries Alive

~~~ 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 ~~~ Psalm 37 ~~~ Luke 5:33-39 ~~~

Thus should one regard us: as servants of Christ

and stewards of the mysteries of God. 

Servant...a person who performs duties for others...
a devoted and helpful follower or supporter.
We are servants because Jesus himself came to serve.
He modeled for us exactly what it means to have a servant's heart.
He tells us I come to serve not to be served.
(Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45)

We serve Christ by caring for the poor, the meek, the humble...
those who have no one to speak on their behalf.
We are servants of Christ when we reach out to the marginalized.

Steward...someone who protects or is responsible...

As stewards we are to preserve and protect the Gospel message of love.
As stewards we are to support and maintain
what has been passed down to us in tact.
We must guard the whole message
not just the parts that feel good.

 ...it is of course required of stewards
that they be found trustworthy.

When you are given charge over something that is precious
 and valuable you must be of strong character.
One of the highly treasured qualities is trustworthiness.
If you cannot be trusted how can you be put over the mysteries of God?
In order for mysteries to exist there must be trust.

What an awesome responsibility to be given charge over a mystery.

A mystery, something that we cannot understand or even really explain.
How does one care for a mystery?
Saint Paul carefully preserved the mysteries of God.
He passed it on to others.
He held the mystery in a special place in his own heart.
He went about preaching and teaching with passion.
And many came to believe, because Paul was trustworthy.
He was not seeking his own glory.
He was working for the Lord.

You cannot care for something or someone very well
 if you do not also love.
Serving comes out of loving.

Serving also comes out of duty.

A good steward must trust as much if not more than they love.

We are Blessed to also servant and steward
of the mysteries of God.
We do not understand. we cannot see,
but we spread the good news.
We keep the mysteries of God alive.
~~~Peace~~~

One More Time

~~~ 1 Corinthians 3:18-23 ~~~ Psalm 24 ~~~ Luke 5:1-11 ~~~

...let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you...
...all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God.

Paul is establishing the correct hierarchy of our existence.
Humans are not in the position to be taking credit
for those things which matter the most...
the world, life, death, the future.
We are not privy to the knowledge of such things.

We do not need to give praise and glory to other fellow humans,
because all belongs to you because you belong to God.

Complicated and humbling packaged together.
Streamlined by knowing the truth.
What is the truth?
The truth is we cannot take credit for anything.
It is all about God.

It always has been and always will be about God.
The Corinthians were fooling themselves.
They were being too impressed by mortal humans.
Paul needs them to look beyond.
Paul wants them to see the one who really is responsible.
Paul wants them to see God as the source.

To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.

Peter has been fishing all day and his nets are empty.
In his wisdom based on his years of fishing experience, Peter determines
 it is time to come ashore for the day.

Jesus, on the other hand, sees this decision as foolishness
 and instructs the crew to go back out and cast
their nets into the sea one more time.

Peter says okay, Jesus, whatever you say.
Just because you are Jesus.
Peter was probably thinking it was foolish
 not to mention a waste of time.

In obedience the nest was cast and to their
 amazement they could not keep the fish from coming.

The net filled almost beyond its breaking point.
Every thread was stretched to its full capacity...such foolishness.

We are invited to go beyond what our years of wisdom tells us.
We have a God that loves to surprise us.
We have a God that wants us to work together with him.

Peter threw out his net and God provided the abundant catch.
With God there is always more.
He keeps on giving encouraging
us to think on a larger scale.

He has given us everything. We belong to him.
Blessings in throwing out the net.
~~~Peace~~~

Active or Passive?

~~~Saint Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church~~~

~~~ 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 ~~~ Psalm 33 ~~~ Luke 4:38-44 

...neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything,
but only God, who causes the growth.

He who plants and he who waters are one...

For we are God’s co-workers; 
you are God’s field, God’s building.

Who are you? One who plants or one who waters?
Does it matter? In the end it is God who causes the growth.
Honestly I am not very good at planting or watering
 if you take this concept literally.
I seem to have black thumbs. I either over water
 or under water the few plants we have.
Even cactus plants are at risk under my care.
So I cannot take these verses literal.

But I do admit to loving the idea of being God's co-worker.
How about you?
Are you interested in working alongside of God?
Are you willing to go out into the field?
Are you okay with God coming to check your plants?

You are a part of the whole process. Did you know that?
It really does not matter if you are an informed active participant
or just meandering along each day.

It is much more beneficial if you are an active participant.

You may be the one who prepares the soil.
The one who turns over the crusted top layer.
You are part of the whole process.

You may be the one who carefully places the young plant into the soil...
The one who looks upon the plant with hope
for what it will become.

You are part of the whole process.

You may be the one who fills the watering can.
You may be the one who sprays the plant with refreshing cool water.
You may be the one who ignores the plant depriving it of water.
You are part of the whole process.

No mater what you do, no matter what you fail to do...
there can only be growth through the workings of God himself.

The question is...do you want to be a part
 of the good or a part of the negligent?

Some plants flourish in spite of poor soil.
Some plants flourish in spite of water deprivation.
God is the one who causes all growth.

He invites us to be co-workers with him.
What an honor and a privilege to even be included.

Will you plant?
Will you walk away?
Will you water?
Will you ignore?
Either way you have a role to play in this whole process.

Blessed to be a co-worker with God.
The closer you are to him the more you will be amazed.
~~~Peace~~~

The Spirit Scrutinizes

~~~ 1 Corinthians 2:10B-16 ~~~ Psalm 145 ~~~ Luke 4:31-37 ~~~

The Spirit scrutinizes everything...

Scrutinize...examine or inspect closely and thoroughly.

The Spirit gives meaning and understanding to all things.

Paul says no one knows what pertains to God except the Spirit of God.

If one has been given this Spirit of God

 then they have a deeper understanding of God too.

Jesus came into this world already filled with this Spirit of God.

We should not be surprised that his words were 

more filled with the Spirit than any other.

We are given evidence here through the response 

of those who heard him speak.

Jesus had a different command of the language

 than even the most learned around him.

They were all amazed and said to one another,

“What is there about his word?

They questioned their own reactions.

They could not explain what they were hearing and feeling.

For when the Spirit is guiding your thoughts and words 

you too begin to scrutinize all your thoughts, words, and actions.

You see things with new eyes.

You hear things with more definition.

You act more from the heart where the Spirit of God resides.

You are a changed person...no longer your former self.

The Spirit of God is active. 

Scrutiny is a verb; it implies action.

When the Spirit of God comes upon you 

you can not be passive.

Actually you don't even want to be passive.

You want to live with more passion...

speak with more conviction...

act with more compassion...forgive more frequently...

love better than ever before.

It was the Spirit of God that made 

people question the words spoken by Jesus.

Are you willing to allow this same Spirit of God

 to speak through you?

I sincerely hope you can answer, "Yes".

May the Spirit of the God rest upon you.

May the Spirit of God reside in your soul from this day forward.

~~~Peace~~~

Rejected at Home

~~~ 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 ~~~ Psalm 119 ~~~ Luke 4:16-30 ~~~

They rose up, drove him out of the town...

Jesus came home, went to synagogue as was the custom,

 read from the Isaiah scroll, amazed and infuriated 

the elders so much they were enraged.

They were so angry that he would dare put himself in a category

 with the great prophet Elijah that they tried to push 

him off the edge of the cliff.

Clearly they were not ready to hear him publicly 

identify with the words he read.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me...

Imagine putting yourself in the synagogue hearing

this young local boy making such claims before the whole assembly.

I might have also had reservations.

I remember when I returned home after a year away at college;

I really thought I knew so much.

I wanted to share my new found knowledge, 

but there was resistance.

No, my family did not run me out of the house

 or think of pushing me down the stairs, but there was resistance.

Jesus met with resistance from the very beginning, 

but he did not let that stop him.

Jesus had the wisdom given to him from God. Jesus knew 

the prophet Isaiah was speaking of him.

The 'anointed one' was in the midst and they rejected him 

as someone who was speaking out of line.

They never even heard the rest of the prophecy concerning the poor.

...to bring glad tidings to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to let the oppressed go free,

and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.

In effect Jesus is saying to the men of Nazareth, 

you missed your chance for to see the workings of God among you.

It takes the wisdom of the Spirit before we can learn to 

care about the poor, the captives, the blind, and the oppressed.

Even then it is not so easy or convenient to take action.

We live in a world where taking action can put one in great danger.

We live in a world that has forgotten who put us here.

We live in a world where most think they deserve everything.

We have forgotten.

We are the poor.

We are the captives.

We are the blind.

We are the oppressed.

We are poor because we are not rich in the spirit of God.

We are captives of our own desires to the 

exclusion of God's plan for us.

We are the blind because we do not see all 

that is possible for us to become.

We are the oppressed because we live surrounded in fear.

Jesus may have fled his hometown 

but his message of love kept them thinking.

The elders did not like what they heard from Jesus.

I can imagine many days later they were still sitting

 around discussing what had happened.

What about us?

We must pray for greater wisdom from the Holy Spirit.

It will then be possible for us to have abundance, 

freedom, restored vision, and to be released. 

May we be Blessed with true wisdom

that can only come from the Holy Spirit.

~~~Peace~~~