Hear and Observe

~~~ Joel 4:12-21 ~~~ Psalm 97 ~~~ Luke 11:27-28 ~~~

While Jesus was speaking,
a woman from the crowd called out and said to him,
“Blessed is the womb that carried you
and the breasts at which you nursed.”
He replied, “Rather, blessed are those
who hear the word of God and observe it.”

The woman in the crowd was on the right track.
She recognized Jesus as someone special
maybe even holy or anointed.
She was grateful even for the one who
brought nourishment to Jesus.
She was appreciating Mary, whom she did never met.

Did she know that holiness
gave birth to a greater holiness?

The woman was so confident in her conviction
about Jesus that she called out so everyone
around her could hear her words.

He replied, “Rather, blessed are those
who hear the word of God and observe it.”

The census information about Jesus and his birth parents
was no longer important.
Who nursed him and cared for him
 was not important.

Jesus does not deny her prayer of praise;
He tells her there is more.
His very words are spirit and life.

His physical presence is less important than
the message he is delivering.

Jesus was in fact honoring his mother without
using her as an example.
Mary heard the word of God
and observed it.
No one has given us a better example
of what it means
 to hear and observe the word
than the Blessed Mother.

~~~Peace~~~

Hold On to Goodness

~~~ Joel 1:13-15; 2:1-2 ~~~ Psalm 9 ~~~ Luke 11:15-26 ~~~

...it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons...

The evil in our world today seems to be overpowering any good,

yet there are many people who still believe in God.

When Jesus was presented with evil spirits 

possessing the soul of a person he only need raise 

a single finger to cast away the evil.

A single finger contained enough power and goodness

to send the evil spirits fleeing in the opposite direction.

The crowds are jealous and in their jealousy they are confused.

They accuse Jesus of drawing his power directly from Satan.

To me this does not make any sense...

Why would you engage evil to get rid of evil?

Jesus demonstrated that his power was coming from God.

No other assistance was required.

Jesus is one with the Father there is no 

separation of power.

Therefore if God is all powerful 

then it follows that Jesus too is all powerful.

Evil spirits are no match for the power of God's goodness.

It is the pure goodness of God that makes it possible 

to make evil spirits turn away.

As long as this goodness from God remains fresh and alive

the evil spirits are hesitant to return.

It is possible for you to be an active participant

 in warding off the evil spirits.

One way is through your prayers.

Your daily prayers keep the goodness 

of God like a pool of spring water.

Spring waters are moving, bubbling, teaming with energy.

This is how your prayer life must be if you are to keep 

the evils spirits away from your soul.

Evil does not want to exert extra energy to soak up a soul.

Evil searches for those who are spiritually frail...

Evil comes into the unsuspecting soul.

Hold on to the 'finger of God'

that is truly all you need.

If you do find yourself in a battle with evil spirits

remember it just takes one finger of God

to bring you into his care.

We have never been promised by God

 that all evil would be erased from the world...

But we have been promised

 that he will always be there for us.

Take refuge in your prayer life;

for it is there that you will find the 'finger of God'.

Blessings of protection from all evil.

~~~Peace~~~

The Open Door

~~~ Malachi 3:13-20B ~~~ Psalm 1 ~~~ Luke 11:5-13 ~~~

And I tell you, ask and you will receive;

seek and you will find;

knock and the door will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks, receives;

and the one who seeks, finds;

and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

You are most likely very familiar with this text

 from the Gospel of Luke.

In this passage a visitor arrives late and the host does not have 

any bread so he goes to a neighbor's house.

The host believes his neighbor to also be his friend

until he fails to unlock the door.

Instead the neighbor calls out his excuses 

for not getting out of bed.

It is often during difficult times in our life 

when we discover those who are our true friends.

Sometimes we are surprised...

We can be surprised by those who do not respond,

and surprised by those who do respond.

It seems that those we thought were friends are unpredictable.

This is precisely where Jesus enters into the picture.

Jesus is your friend...

Jesus is reliable...

Jesus will always be there for you.

Jesus gives freely of himself to you.

Jesus opens his heart to love you.

Jesus never leaves the door closed.

Jesus is never too tired to be there for you.

Jesus wants you to find him...he wants to take care of you.

For everyone who asks, receives;

and the one who seeks, finds;

and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

The eternal love Jesus has for you is there for the asking.

A true friend's love is a mere drop in the bucket

compared to the love Jesus has for you.

Open my heart, Lord so that I may know

 the great power and strength of your love.

No door can separate you from the love

 and friendship of Jesus.

You have a friend in Jesus forever.

~~~Peace~~~

Bringing Peace to Your Soul

~~~ Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary ~~~

Alternate Readings were used today

from Acts and the Gospel of Luke.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, 

my spirit rejoices in God my savior, 

for He has looked with favor on His lowly servant.

Today we are reminded to pray the Rosary.

There are many people around the world who find 

comfort in praying the Rosary.

The Rosary consists of simple prayers that are repeated 

on each of the beads.

This repetitive prayer allows one to 

meditate upon the mystery for that decade.

The mysteries of the Rosary are...

Monday - Joyful

Tuesday - Sorrowful

Wednesday - Glorious

Thursday - Luminous

Friday - Sorrowful

Saturday - Joyful

Sunday - Glorious

This is a suggested order to pray the Rosary.

This allows you to use all of the mysteries 

of the the life of Jesus for reflection.

I offer to you this lovely prayer to the Blessed Mother.

Lord Jesus Christ,

you chose the Virgin Mary to be your mother,

a worthy home in which to dwell.

By her prayers keep us from danger

and bring us to the joy of heaven,

where you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, 

one God, for ever and ever. 

As the Holy Father stated in his remarks to the families...

God sent Jesus into a family.

God sent Jesus into the womb of the 

Blessed Mother, Mary.

A mother is always receptive to the needs of her children.

The Blessed Mother is available to intercede 

on your behalf to her son, Jesus.

Praying the Rosary can bring peace into your heart.

Praying the Rosary allows one's soul to rest in the Lord.

Praying the Rosary keeps you in relationship with Mary.

If it were not for Mary's 'yes' 

we might be living a very different life...

in a very different world.

I invite you to pray the Rosary as often as you can

so as to call to mind the great mysteries...

to affirm your faith in the greatness of God.

Truly nothing is impossible for God...

Mary is just one of the most visible realities of this greatness.

Mary, Mother of the Rosary,

pray for us...

keep us safe...protect us from evil.

~~~Peace~~~

Be Passionate

~~~ Jonah 3:1-10 ~~~ Psalm 130 ~~~ Luke 10:38-42 ~~~

Blessed are those who hear the word of God

and observe it.

Jonah was resistant, but God does not give up on anyone.

God had a job for Jonah. 

A job that he was chosen for...hand picked.

Jonah had to be plunged into darkness and isolation

 in the belly of a large fish before God could get his attention.

How difficult is it for God to get your attention?

Do you also resist?

Are you stubborn 

with sticking to your own agenda?

Jonah heard God the first time,

but like our children he applied his selective hearing.

Hearing the word of God is hardly adequate,

especially when he has a task for you.

The gospel today gives us the familiar story of Martha and Mary.

Jesus is their friend. It is a safe and relaxing 

time for him to visit in their home.

Martha, as you know, is busy with the details 

of serving their special guest.

Mary, on the other hand, is mesmerized by the presence of Jesus.

She does not want to leave him alone.

She wants to be as close to Jesus as she can be;

so she sits at his feet.

Absorbing every word he speaks

 so that she can hold it near to her heart.

She does not want to miss hearing his message.

Mary is willing to hear and observe

all that Jesus has to share.

How often, if ever, are you in that same state of mind?

When are you that passionate about 

your relationship with Jesus?

There is need of only one thing. 

Mary has chosen the better part

and it will not be taken from her.

There is only one thing that matters...

your relationship with Jesus...

everything else will fall into place.

If you are anxious about your life

the missing piece may be

a deeper closer relationship with God.

Jonah was in darkness. 

He was experiencing sensory deprivation

but God was with him.

Mary chose to isolate herself from stress and anxiety.

Mary chose to sit at the feet of Jesus.

When you are that close to Jesus

no one nor anything can harm you.

There is need of only one thing...

God blesses you with his presence.

~~~Peace~~~

Left to Die Alone

~~~ Jonah 1:1-2:1-2, 11 ~~~ Psalm Jonah 2:3, 4,5,8 ~~~

~~~ Luke 10: 25-37 ~~~

You will rescue my life from the pit, O Lord.

Jonah was tossed from the boat, swallowed by a big fish

and the stormy seas became calm.

The mariners on the boat were spared because 

Jonah admitted he was the most probable cause of the disturbance.

God will open Jonah's eyes while he is overboard...

outside the safety of the boat.

Jesus uses a Samaritan, 

in the gospel, to drive home the point of his story.

Who will stop to care for the victim on the side of the road?

Not the priest, nor the Levite, but the Samaritan is the one 

who renders aid to the stranger.

Samaritans were the enemies of the Jews in that time period.

This does get the attention of the young lawyer.

The Samaritans, in the eyes of a Jew, were lesser human beings.

They were considered to be like 'dogs'.

Jesus is always drawing us to something bigger...

He paints the picture of the Samaritan as acting with kindness

 and compassion toward this injured stranger.

It is the Samaritan who is showing how to love beyond.

Who are you most like...

do you cross to the other side of the road

to avoid that which makes you feel uncomfortable?

What frightens you when you begin to face the question,

 Who is your neighbor?

It is up to you to take a closer look at all of your neighbors,

not just the ones who share similar life views.

The Samaritan showed great mercy in caring for this stranger.

They did not know one another and yet the Samaritan

 left extra financial aid to be used in his absence. 

God calls us to look farther than our eyes can see.

Looking farther requires to look through 

the unfiltered eyes of the heart.

Can you see through these unfiltered lens?

Blessings to show mercy to those left on the side of the road...

the less fortunate...those left to suffer deteriorate...

those left to die alone.

~~~Peace~~~

If...Then

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

~~ Genesis 2:18-24 ~~ Psalm 128 ~~ Hebrews 2:9-11 ~~ 

~~~ Mark 10:2-16 ~~~

...what God has joined together,

no human being must separate.

Traditional marriage between one man 

and one woman 

has recently been challenged.

God made each man and each woman

 in his likeness...

to love and serve him...

to be loved by him...the creator.

Same sex couples are given

 the same blessings by God.

Marriage to me will always mean 

a union between man and woman..

male and female. 

It is the concept and interpretation 

of the word marriage that I want to preserve.

The union between two persons of the same sex 

may certainly be blessed by God,

but perhaps we should have called

 this union something special...a new word.

We create new words for the English language every year.

By using the same word it seems 

to imply that it is the same relationship...

clearly it is a completely unique and different relationship.

May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.

The Lord blesses all the days of our life no matter who we are...

no matter who we love.

He also blesses us throughout our lives.

We receive blessings for each stage of our life,

for at each stage we need different blessings.

Blessings to find the right partner...

Blessings to grow together in relationship...

Blessings to foster and rear a family...

Blessings for our aging years...

Blessings for the surviving spouse.

These are just a few of the days of our lives.

If we love one another, God remains in us

and his love is brought to perfection in us.

This verse gives us much to for reflection.

This is an 'if...then' verse...

cause and effect.

Love is the critical link...

If we do not love all people than God's love 

can not be brought to perfection in us.

God is love.

We have this same love in us..

how can we deny it to others?

This post only reflects my personal perspective

on the meaning of marriage.

It is not meant to judge or condemn anyone.

God blesses all the days of your life

just as he blesses the days of all of his creatures...

men and women.

~~~Peace~~~