Miracles on the Sabbath

~~~ Colossians 1:24–2:3 ~~~ Psalm 62 ~~~ Luke 6:6-11 ~~~

 

The Lord of the Sabbath cures the crippled hand of a man.

He does this within the temple right before the glaring eyes of the elders.

 

“I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath
rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?”

 

Basically the scribes and the Pharisees did not want Jesus to be seen

as more desirable than they were.

They did not want any competition on their 'holy' ground.

They were the important men of the temple, not this non conformist.

They felt Jesus had come just to stir up trouble for them.

He was undermining their positions of authority.

 

 

Jesus made known the power and the glory of God the Father

with each miracle he performed.

God was manifesting his glory through Jesus.

 

 ...God chose to make known the riches of the glory...

 

The scribes and Pharisees wanted the honor and glory for themselves.

They had established themselves as having the final word

concerning the temple rules and laws.

Jesus demonstrated a message of hope; the scribes and Pharisees

had no clue what that meant.

 

...the knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ,
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

The scribes and the Pharisees could not see

beyond their own understanding much less the mystery of God.

They were so consumed in finding fault

with Jesus that the hidden treasures remained hidden to them.

In their stubbornness they prevented

 themselves from what was being revealed before their eyes.

 

The person of Jesus was giving them a view of who God really was,

but most of them never opened their eyes long enough to see.

 

I know people today who have no hope because

they refuse to open their eyes.

They want to remain bitter and critical.

They want to blame God for all that is not going as they want it to go.

When you keep your heart locked up with anger and bitterness

the hope from the Lord waits outside.

 

May our blessings today come in the form of praying

for those who have no hope in their life.

May we be the tiny spark of hope they are longing for now.

Wisdom to be a Disciple

Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

~~Wisdom 9:13-18b~Psalm 90~Philemon 9-10, 12-17~Luke 14:25-33~~

 

Who can know God’s counsel,
or who can conceive what the LORD intends?

 

This is an excerpt from Solomon's prayer for wisdom.

Solomon prayed for wisdom that he might carry out God's plan accurately.

Solomon is praying for wisdom

because he is fully aware of the workings of wisdom.

How she has been beside those who are faithful to the Lord.

Wisdom has protected them from destruction...

Abraham, Lot, Jacob, Joseph, and Israel. 

 

Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.

 

It is important that we remember to pray for the gift of wisdom.

Wisdom is the only gift of the Holy Spirit that has an entire

book of the Bible dedicated to it;

therefore it must be necessary.

 

 

 

It takes the grace of wisdom to carry your cross day in an day out.

This is the requirement in being a follower of Jesus.

You cannot be a real disciple if you cannot carry your cross.

There is no escaping the trials and tribulations of life.

 

Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.

 

Following Jesus requires something greater

than possessions and even family ties.

We are being called to something greater in following the Lord.

It takes wisdom to be able to discern what the Lord is asking of you.

 

...anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple.

Paul writes to Philemon from his prison cell.

He has given up everything to follow Jesus...even his freedom.

He continues his ministry through his letters and his personal messengers.

 

The Lord will make available to you the necessary wisdom

to make the best decisions...

Will you seek his wisdom or will you

simply forge ahead and suffer the consequences? 

 

Blessings in the prayer of Solomon...

giving God credit for all good things are in heaven.

God gives wisdom and sends the Holy Spirit to us.

Picking the Grain

~~~ Colossians 1:21-23 ~~~ Psalm 54 ~~~ Luke 6:1-5 ~~~

 

...persevere in the faith, firmly grounded, stable,
and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel...

 

Persevering in faith is really what the whole Christian walk is about.

We must ground ourselves firmly in the Biblical message of hope.

Striving to maintain this belief in hope requires

exercising our faith every day.

The Gospel message is given stability in the overarching theme of love.

 

...the Lord sustains my life.

 

It takes great faith to admit that it is the Lord who keeps us alive.

It is the Lord who gives us our next sustaining breath.

It is the Lord who contracts our heart for it's final beat.

 

 

Jesus had the authority to demonstrate and explain

the true meaning of the Sabbath.

 

“The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

Jesus brought to fruition the new creation. The Pharisees

were deeply rooted in the old ritualized laws of the Sabbath.

In the eyes of the Pharisees Jesus

went about continuously breaking the rules of the Sabbath.

He healed on the Sabbath and today he has the audacity

to allow his disciples to pick grain.

Picking grain on the Sabbath was doing work;

strictly forbidden on the day of rest.

 

Were the disciples 'working' or were they

eating which was allowed?

If they were working, who were they working for

...who was paying them? 

The disciples needed nourishment as they traveled from town to town.

Picking this grain was not in violation of any law at that time.

The Pharisees had added layers upon layers of rules 

based on their own fancy;

 far from how God intended the Sabbath to be kept holy.

 

They had one thing  in mind...to trap Jesus.

To the Pharisees this was a game a sport...how can we catch him today.

Will I be the one who catches him in the most serious violation.

 

Jesus was raised as a true Jew he knew how to keep the Sabbath holy

as commanded by God through Moses.

All things concerning worship were permitted on the Sabbath...

Jesus was performing a religious service.

He was traveling to spread the message of salvation.

 

Today we pray for peace, especially in Syria.

O God, hear my prayer. 

 

Blessings in spreading the message of peace to others.

Fashion, Wine, and Fasting...

 

~~~ Colossians 1:15-20 ~~~ Psalm 100 ~~~ Luke 5:33-39 ~~~

 

What is the real issue here?

Is it fasting, torn cloaks, or old wineskins?

Are these all examples of repentance?

Limiting food consumption...wearing tattered clothing...drinking old wine...

 

Can you make the wedding guests fast
while the bridegroom is with them?

No one would fast while attending the wedding feast.

No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.

No one would wear their mended cloak to the wedding feast.

...no one pours new wine into old wineskins.

The finest wine would surely be served at the wedding feast.

 

Jesus is the bridegroom...Jesus is the new cloak...
Jesus is the new wineskin.

 

 

The scribes and the Pharisees are always stuck in the past.

They are always influenced by the letter of the law.

 

Jesus consistently makes them walk away scratching their heads,

wondering about just what he meant.

 

...all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.

 

Jesus had a new message to deliver, it could not
be patched on to a new cloak.

It was too different, it would never match.

 

This new message Jesus came to proclaim was the new wine.

This new wine was too wonderful to even consider

putting it into the old wineskins.

The old laws were not capable of safely holding this new message.

 It was beyond the reaches of the local laws.

 

There was a proper time and reason to fast

not just because it had always been practiced.

Fasting is not about starving yourself. Fasting is more about
 the intention of your heart.
Fasting can be viewed as a spiritual cleansing...a method
to remove that which is not of true importance.
Fasting requires you to place your mind over your body.
Fasting done with intention can result in a deeper relationship with God.

Paul says in his letter to the Colossians 

...all things were created through him and for him. 

He reconciles all things to himself and in him all things are held together.

Come with joy into the presence of the Lord. 

He is the bridegroom and we are the invited guests.
Come and be glad today;
there is a time for joy and a time for fasting. 

 

Blessings are bestowed upon us because
He makes all things new....
 ...in him all fullness dwells. 

Do You Cooperate with God?

~~~ Colossians 1:9-14 ~~~ Psalm 98 ~~~ Luke 5:1-11~~~

 

...the boats were in danger of sinking...

God enters into our circle of awareness at various times in our life.

When his presence is made known to us things happen.

Jesus brings about change when he is with us.

 

Peter had just come ashore from a disappointing day of fishing.

They had been up all night trailing the nets and came

up empty each time they checked.

This was their job. Fishing was how they supported their families.

When there was no catch, there could be no income

for their labor that day.

 

Fishing is hard work...it requires strength...

it takes muscles to pull up the nets full of fish.

Many hours were devoted to carefully checking and mending the nets.

 

Imagine Jesus now entering the picture...

He makes the request to go back out on the water.

 

When God enters into the picture things change...

people get healed, tables get overturned, men

drop what they are doing to follow him.

 

 

Jesus asks Simon, Peter, to cooperate with him.

In effect Jesus is telling Peter,

'Now that I am with you...things will be different.'

Jesus is asking Peter to trust him, to believe in him.

 

Jesus came at the end of the fishing day.

It may have been the end of the fishing day, but it was the beginning

of the rest of Peter's life.

I know that may sound a bit cliché, but its the truth.

 

Jesus is the alpha and the omega...the beginning and the end.

It does not matter if you are young or old

Jesus can enter into your life.

He can ask you to cooperate with him

 to create something new from something familiar.

 

Peter was overcome with wonder and awe at the catch that afternoon.

He affirmed the presence of Jesus and followed his directions.

 

Peter grew from that day on in spiritual wisdom

and clarity of understanding.

From that day forward Peter, with all of his shortcomings,

attempted to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.

From that day on casting the fishing nets

would never be business as usual.

 

That day the net could not contain all of the fish.

It was as if the waters had been filled with fish just for Peter to catch.

When the presence of Jesus is in your midst, prepare to be amazed...

prepare to be taken beyond normalcy...

prepare to let go and let God. 

 

The nets were being physically stressed with the

 abundant supply of fish.

The more you cooperate with God the more

you will discover about your relationship with him.

 

The presence of God in our lives is sometimes

 too much even for us to contain.

His presence stresses our previous attitudes. 

Do not be afraid 

Blessings come when God

enters into our personal space.

He comes to us

by invitation and by inspiration.

Discovered Your Purpose Yet?

~~~ Colossians  1:1-8 ~~~ Psalm 52 ~~~ Luke 4:38-44 ~~~

 

It is typical of Luke to record about Jesus healing people.

Luke was reportedly a physician; his own vocation was to heal.

Jesus came to heal young, old, male, female,
wealthy, poor, mind, body, and spirit.

 

I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,
because for this purpose I have been sent. 

 

 Jesus knew the Father sent him to become one us.

Jesus also knew he had only one purpose.

 Everything that Jesus said here on earth...

all of his actions were driven by the purpose for which he had been sent.

 

The good news of the Kingdom of God is to fully restore each individual.

Being made well in mind, body, and soul is part of this good news.

Being made completely whole as we were originally made.

 

As Jesus went about healing all those brought before him
he was compelled to proclaim the good news by his words and his touch.

 

 

He knew his purpose, but each time he healed someone
he too was strengthened. 

 Consider that just maybe Jesus being fully human,
may have benefited emotionally by his healing touch.
Yes, he knew the Father was working through him.
Yes he knew the Holy Spirit was exercising it's power...filling his being.

Jesus heals Peter's mother in law
not because of her relationship to Peter,
but because he was fulfilling his purpose.
Peter now has first hand experience;
the good news is proclaimed right in his own home.
Peter has his even more reason to proclaim the good news now.

 

 All those who come to Jesus are healed in some way.
Perhaps we are not healed in a way we desire, but healed.
Sometimes we cannot initially detect where our healing has occurred.

Jesus healed too many people throughout the Bible
 for us to think, even for a moment,
that he would not heal us and our loved ones.

 We cannot feel his physical touch...
we cannot hear the healing words pass through his lips...
but we can believe that he does heal.
Jesus is the Healer of all our ills;
This is the good news of the Kingdom of God that he must proclaim.

Have you found your purpose in life yet?


If we are to be one with the Lord we too must proclaim the good news.
The good news that God makes all things new....
nothing is impossible for God...
How are you being led to proclaim the good news?

God Blesses us daily with healing
as we make our journey through life.

His Words

~~~Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great~~~

~~~Pope and Doctor of the Church~~~

 

~~~1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, 9-11 ~~~ Psalm 27 ~~~ Luke 4:31-37 ~~~

 

"What is there about his word?"

 

Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert.

He returned after his time of prayer, fasting, and solitude
filled even more with the Spirit.

Jesus brings in his spoken words life, love, healing, compassion, truth,
justice, forgiveness, peace, abundance, happiness, correction...
The list could continue on longer.
Jesus never delivers a message of hate through his words.

I truly believe there was something very unique about even the tone
and quality of the voice of Jesus. 

Men followed him just by hearing the sound of his invitation.
Crowds gathered just to hear the words he offered them.

Demons recognized the Spirit of God cloaked in his words.
Yet there are so many today who make the choice to ignore his words...
to distort his words...to misinterpret his words.

His words are always from the source...God the Father...
Jesus, the Word made flesh.

 

 We who strive to hear his words more clearly,
 have then the responsibility to let them influence the words we speak.
 

  

...encourage one another and build one another up,
as indeed you do.

The words we speak to one another do make a difference.
Words of encouragement are much sweeter to the ears
than words of ridicule.

The words of Jesus have the power to heal and to cast out demons.
Jesus was 'the word' made flesh.
His words carry more of everything there is about God.

How are you letting the power of the words of Jesus
guide and lead you in your life?
Today allow God to bless you with his words.
His words are Spirit and Life.
May the peace of Jesus be with you.

 

Gregory the Great is known for his contributions
to the Liturgy of the Mass.

What we know as Gregorian Chant is attributed to Gregory the Great.

Saint Gregory the Great, pray for us.