Not Just Another Prayer

~~~ Jonah 4:1-11 ~~~ Psalm 86 ~~~ Luke 11:1-4 ~~~

 

Lord, teach us to pray...

 

This request may have been what gave the disciples

 the strength to carry on after his death.

They knew Jesus prayed,

they had witnessed him in prayer.

They had seen his posture of prayer,

 but they did not hear the words he prayed.

 

Jesus is often depicted as kneeling or leaning

against a rock while in prayer.

He usually goes away to a secluded place.

He tries to minimize distractions...he focuses

 his eyes up toward the Father.

 

Jonah may have known how to pray, but he wanted

God's answer to be aligned to his own answer.

This is mostly dangerous and a arrogant.

Why should we think the answers to our

prayers must match the outcome we have envisioned?

 

 

There is this one line of the Our Father

that I sometimes want to skip...

'...thy will be done...'

 

It is so difficult to surrender to God my preferences.

There are so many things I would prefer to change, but then

I would be revolting against the will of God.

 

Jonah goes so far as to let anger fill his heart

because he does not want to see the mercy of God

come over the city of Nineveh.

But the LORD asked, “Have you reason to be angry?”

Did Jonah have any right to be angry?

God seems to indicate in the negative.

The God of mercy and forgiveness saw the people change their hearts.

Their hearts became transformed and they were changed.

 

I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God,
slow to anger, rich in clemency, loathe to punish.

 

In praying the Our Father slowly and intently we can

experience the true nature of our God.

 

I invite you today to pray this perfect prayer, the Our Father,

 given to us by Jesus himself.

Focus on each phrase as if it were the first

time you were hearing the words.

Then pray it as if it were the last time

you would pray this prayer.

 

Blessings in allowing the Our Father to change your heart.

We are part of 'thy kingdom come'.

Are you up to the challenge?

Itchy, Dirty, and Hungry

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

 

After spending three days in the belly of the fish Jonah

 would now promptly obey God's directions.

 

His message resulted in sackcloth, ashes, and fasting...

basically they were uncomfortable, dirty, and hungry.

Their skin felt itchy and scratchy...they smelled of burnt rubbish...

their stomachs were growling.

 

Are any of these things really necessary?

How did these actions make a difference for their soul?

Is it really advantageous to deprive the body to achieve

a deeper spiritual experience.

When we are repentant it may be worthwhile

to be physically reminded that our sins should make us feel uncomfortable

a bit unclean...soiled, and hungry to be reunited with God.

 

The closest thing we have to sackcloth today would be burlap
unless you actually get a real potato sack from the farmer's market.
Sackcloth is rough loosely woven fabric. It has no body and does not drape.
It would not be used to enhance ones figure or appearance.
You can hide the flaws of your body under a sackcloth.
Odd because we cannot hide our sins from God.
Sackcloth is cheap it is reusable you can recycle it.
In Biblical times sackcloth was worn as a sign of mourning.
It was made of black thick goat's hair.

To sprinkle or to sit in the ashes was symbolic of grief,
humiliation, or penitence.
 

Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth
and call loudly to God;
every man shall turn from his evil way
and from the violence he has in hand.

God had a plan to save the city, but he never said to wear sackcloth
 or to douse yourself with ashes.
The King ordered the entire city to show their repentance.
He took the lead...he did not just issue the order
 and return to his royal chambers.
He led by example.
Ultimately God saved the city of Nineveh...
our God is a merciful God.

Is it in your best interest to wait until the final hour to repent?
God Blesses us even in desperate times.

Who is My Neighbor?

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

 

~~~ Jonah 1:1–2:1-2, 11 ~~~ Jonah 2:3, 4, 5, 8 ~~~ Luke 10:25-37 ~~~

 

Who do you consider to be your neighbor?

 

There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?

 

The lawyer could repeat the laws very well.

He knew how important it was to keep the commandments,

but Jesus goes deeper into the meaning.

He uses three well known characters of the that time.

 

He presents the scene for this attorney...

A crime has been committed.

A man has been brutally beaten and robbed by some local thugs.

 

Three different individuals see this badly injured man

on the side of the road...

a priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan.

 

 

The priest could not touch this bleeding man

because it would result in his being made unclean.

Blood was unclean thus the priest would not be allowed into the temple.

 

All priests are Levites but not all Levites are priests.

 

The Levite who comes to pass this victim is not a priest.

The other Levites assisted the priests, similar to what a deacon might today.

They prepared the offerings and cared for matters of the sanctuary.

To a lesser degree the Levites were supported by the temple

 worshippers as were the priests.

This Levite did not consider it his responsibility

to take care of this stranger.

 

This is a trap we can easily fall into today.

We are witness to people every day who are less desirable than we like.

We see with our eyes but in our heart we do not feel responsible.

 

Both the priest and the Levite were caught up

in letting the strict interpretation of the law

take precedence over caring for this injured person.

They were unable to see him as their neighbor.

 

They saw him only with their eyes and not with their heart.

They did not allow themselves to feel compassion for him.

They could not begin to consider him as their neighbor.

 

Finally Jesus uses a Samaritan to drive home the point of his story.

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.

 

Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”

 

What frightens you when you begin to define

 who your neighbor really is...?

 

How can we break our stereotypical view of our neighbor?

It is more about who we chose to love as our neighbor

 than about how to love our neighbor.

Blessings in stepping out of the shadow of stereotyping.

I can learn to love better.

Fan the Flames of Faith

Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

~~Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4~~Psalm 95~~2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14~~Luke 17:5-10~~

 

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

 

Jesus is 'word' made flesh. He spoke to us his eternal words of life.
All that he said and did while walking and teaching
among the people came from the Father.
A single word from him is more than enough to work a miracle.
We have been given the gift of faith so that when we
hear his voice we may believe.

...the just one, because of his faith, shall live.

Even in our darkest times,
 when we may feel abandoned our faith
 in the words of God will give us strength to persevere.
We have many instances recorded for us in the Bible
as proof that even just a tiny seed of faith will be better than none.
 

 ...God did not give us a spirit of cowardice...

 

The seventy two disciples returned exhilarated...
 Bursting to give testimony
of exactly what they were able to accomplish because of their faith.

...do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord...

When was the last time you shared your personal testimony?
 How have you experienced God working in your life
 because of your faith?

 

 

 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

Jesus replies simply that if you have faith even as tiny as a mustard
seed you can do great things. 

Since faith is a gift from God it is up to the receiver as to how it will be used.
As with any gift you can just keep faith in the box or save it for later. 

 I suggest that the more you use your faith the stronger it will become.
You can increase your own faith...just by using it.

Every time we tap into this gift of our faith all that
we can do is thank God.
The more faith you have the more faith your will have going forward.

 Blessings come in exercising our faith as often as possible.

Joy of Discovery

~~~ Baruch 4:5-12, 27-29 ~~~ Psalm 69 ~~~ Luke 10:17-24 ~~~

 

The seventy-two disciples who left with nothing returned

to share their surprising experiences.

Even though they took nothing with them

they were able to see great results.

“Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.”

 

They return filled with excitement and joy like a child

first discovering a bird's nest or a butterfly emerging from its cocoon.

When was the last time you experienced that kind of joy?

 

Before leaving there is no way they could have imagined

all that God would accomplish through them. 

Because they were obedient and trusted in the Lord

he was able to use them for good.

 

Each pair returned to find that they all had had similar experiences.

Now Jesus must remind them amidst their rejoicing just

how these things came to fruition.

 

...do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you,
but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.

Jesus reminds them that their 'power' was given to them from him.

 

 

God is still sending out men and women to share his message.

He still makes his presence a reality though those whom he sends forth.

 

As we have seen in the Gospel readings there are no special

requirements to do this work.

It is not about the individual person it is about being the instrument of God.

It is about believing, inviting, and allowing God to work through you.

 

Jesus was quick to remind the disciples that what they

 accomplished was the work of God the Father.

 

We can do all things when we allow God to work through us.

 

The disciples were blessed because God was with them.

Blessings come to us when we walk with God.

One word of caution...give God the credit.

Teach Us to be Insturments of Your Peace

 

Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi

~~~ Baruch 1:15-22 ~~~ Psalm 79 ~~~ Luke 10:13-16 ~~~

 

Saint Francis of Assisi took the words of Jesus to heart.

He literally took nothing for the journey.

There has been much written about the life of Francis.

He is one of the most beloved of the Saints.

He is most often pictured with nature especially the animals.

Lord make me an instrument of your peace...

is one of his most popular prayers.

 

We are now blessed with Pope Francis, who has made it very

apparent to the world he fully embraces the example of Saint Francis.

 

Today the message of caring for the poor is more important

 than the acquisition of wealth.

Pope Francis has demonstrated to us in many ways

he values a simple pious life

as opposed to the typical pomp and circumstance

surrounding the papacy. 

 

 

Whoever listens to you listens to me.
Whoever rejects you rejects me.
And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.

The scripture readings today are calling us back

 to the root meaning of the Gospel message.

 

The first reading is taken from the book of the prophet Baruch.

You may not be familiar with this Old Testament book of the Bible.

 

Just before the beginning of today's reading are these words 

Pray that the LORD may give us strength, and light to our eyes...(v.12)

 

This chapter is a confession of guilt.

We have sinned in the LORD’s sight and disobeyed him.

We have not listened to the voice of the LORD, our God,

so as to follow the precepts the LORD set before us.

 

God is the only one who will judge not only our actions,

 but also the personal intentions of our heart.

We can pay lip service to the Gospel message

of caring for the poor and trusting in the Lord.

But what is the cover of a book if all the pages are missing?

 

Justice is with the Lord, our God;
and we today are flushed with shame...

 

I do not believe shame or embarrassment is the best motivator.

Shame did put Adam and Eve in fig leaves after

 they were disobedient to God.

 Being remorseful for past offenses,

 however, is an important factor effecting our future decisions.

A component in the formation our personal moral code.

 

Saint Francis walked away from the wealth

of his family and embraced poverty.

His conversion of heart brought him more wealth than any

amount of money could have represented.

 

Saint Francis and Pope Francis call us to find a new balance

in our heart...a real sense of humility and simplicity.

 

Today let us join together in praying for Pope Francis

 as he brings to light in our world

 the peaceful loving message of Saint Francis.

 

Blessings come in loving and welcoming

our sisters and brothers with open arms

just as Saint Francis modeled with nature and the animals.

 

Saint Francis of Assisi,

pray for us.

Teach us to be Instruments of Peace.

No ATM, No Fast Food, No Wal-Mart!

 

~~~ Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5-6, 7b-12 ~~~ Psalm 19 ~~~ Luke 10:1-12 ~~~

 

Have you ever considered how much courage

the first disciples had to muster up?

 

Jesus calls them together, pairs them up,

and sends them out to places they were unfamiliar with.

 

Go on your way;
behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.

 

Hearing those words would have made me question whether

 or not I should be going anywhere.

Were they really like lambs? Lambs do not have the

reputation for being very bright.

Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way.

 

They are to bring nothing with them. Jesus was asking them

to completely trust his guidance for this trip.

There was no ATM, no fast food, and no Wal-Mart along the way.

And to make matters worse they were not to stop

and socialize with anyone along the way.

Their directive was to go directly

to the destination he had chosen for both of them.

 

Maybe they did not even get to chose their own partner.

Jesus wanted them to follow his example.

 

If you are doing the work of the Lord

 then you must believe that he will give you all that you need.

 

 

I have written on the gospel previously, but today

as I read I notice something new.

 

Each pair was to bring a priceless gift.

‘Peace to this household.’

 

They were to bring peace to each household.

Today, peace is not something we can take for granted.

For many people peace is not a reality.

 

Those disciples that went ahead of Jesus carried with them his peace.

Only his peace can be shared so freely.

Whatever you  extend out to others will be returned to you in kind.

 

They gave peace to the people and the people housed and fed them.

They sat at the table together and the visitors shared the message from Jesus.

‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.’

 

The message was clear, to the point, and delivered

in the cup of peace.

Those who were attuned to the grace of peace

 were able to receive the message.

If you are in the fight you are hardly in a position

 to hear the echoes of peace.

 

Today is holy to the LORD your God.

 

It is the day peace came to dwell at the table of strangers.

Peace brings peoples together, you do not need gourmet food,

flashy coins, or fancy sandals for your feet.

 

Do not be saddened this day,
for rejoicing in the LORD must be your strength!

 

Blessings come from carrying his peace with you.

You are also sent out to bring his peace to others...how he does trust you.