Do You Have Faith in Yourself?

~~~ Habakkuk 1:12-2:4 ~~~Psalm 9 ~~~ Matthew 17:14-20 ~~~

...if you have faith the size of a mustard seed,

you will say to this mountain,

‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.

Faith seems to be the key for how well we live what we believe.

The apostles were frustrated in the gospel today
with their lack of healing powers.

The child's father was frustrated because his son was not being healed.

The apostles were even embarrassed with their inability to perform.

 Jesus even seems a little frustrated with the apostles.

Jesus says, if you have just a tiny seed of faith it is sufficient.

If...in other words they did not even have that much faith.

They believed in the power of healing for Jesus,

but they could not support the same level of faith for themselves.

The power of believing in yourself is something

we know to be true.

This is half of the effort in anything we master.

If you think you can then you can, as the saying goes,

and sadly the opposite is also true.

The apostles had great faith in Jesus but lacked faith in themselves.
As we know watching someone else doing a task
and doing it yourself are not the same.

Nothing will be impossible for you.

While faith is very important is has a partner
that we sometimes forget about, trust.
Faith and trust go hand in hand.
We must trust that whatever is lacking in our faith
God will make up the difference.

If we fail to activate our trust level
then doubt begins to creep into our heart.

I think this might have been the problem with the apostles;
they did not let their trust in God's assistance
make up for their inadequate faith.

Faith and trust do not just happen within our heart.
We must exercise them daily; initially in small matters.
Gradually we will build up to larger more important situations.

All things are possible for God
 we must consciously place our trust in him.

Practice your faith daily;
trust in him with your whole heart.

Blessings in believing our faith can grow.
Blessings in believing that trusting in God is of great importance.
All things are possible with faith and trust.
~~~Peace~~~

How Much...How Long?

~~~ Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest ~~~

~~~ Nahum 2:1, 3; 3:1-3, 6-7 ~~~ Deuteronomy 32:39b ~~~ Matthew 16:24-28 ~~~

"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me..."

Is it really necessary to deny yourself
and take up your cross to follow Jesus?
Why isn't is sufficient to do one or the other?

How is it possible to deny yourself?
What do you deny?
How much...how long must you
deny yourself?
Following Jesus is not a pleasant path to follow;
it is not easy to deny yourself.

It is very difficult to pick up your cross
and then be expected to drag it around with you.

Why can't we just acknowledge our cross and go on down the road?
Why must we be required to keep it with us?

Taking up your cross is not like a young child
 carrying around their security blanket.
On second thought, carrying our cross
might serve the exact same purpose.

Our cross is our security blanket; we have been saved by the cross...
the cross that Jesus carried for the sins of the whole world.

Denying yourself is not the same as going on a fad diet.
Denying yourself is not giving up chocolate candy.
Denying yourself is not sleeping on the floor.
Denying yourself is not walking for miles across the desert.

Denying yourself is to accept that God is in control of your life.
Denying yourself is to let God work through you.

The backpack you casually sling across your shoulders
 may not be the same as taking up your cross.

But whenever you are carrying something across your shoulder
 think about how you are denying yourself.

When you are carrying a heavy bag of groceries think
 about the cross you carry compared
to the one Jesus carried.

Blessings sometimes come in disguise...
through denying yourself...
through cheerfully carrying your cross.
~~~Peace~~~

Indelible Ink

~~~ Jeremiah 31:31-34 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-23 ~~~

God no longer needs to take his people by the hand.
He no longer must give them signs in the desert.
From now on he guides and leads us from the inside out...
he has made his way into our hearts.
He writes his loving laws in our hearts with his own unique font.

I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

I try to imagine just what this font of God's might look like, if I could see it.
Is it the same for each person or is it a font chosen for each person?
Perhaps it is plain with very straight lines or could it be slanted
with smooth curves on the ends?

I do want God to write in my heart.
But do I have a choice? Is it a prepackaged deal?
Do I need an interpreter as for sign language?
How will I know for sure God has written in my heart?
What if I am not able to understand his words?
Is there a chance that his words will fade away with time?
Will I grow too old and no longer be able to see his words?

Create a clean heart in me, O God.

A clean heart is necessary if I am ever going to be
 able to decipher what God has written on my heart.
The wonderful thing is that God is also the one
who can cleanse my heart.

A cleansed heart may be much like
 I cleaned my old chalkboard in my classroom on Fridays.

The kids would get a bucket of clean water
and rags to wipe down the blackboard from top to bottom.

They looked so clean and ready for the chalk written
 words to appear on Monday morning.

If our heart is like sand paper the words may be distorted...
If there are smudges from previous mishaps
 the message may be too blurry to read.

God is here to keep our spirit steadfast
to give us the willing spirit we long for
deep within our soul.

If we come to him with a clean heart
 his words will materialize within our heart
 and we will without a doubt know who he is.

We are Blessed with a loving God who always keeps his word.

I want God to write on my heart with his indelible ink.
I want God to write on my heart in his special font.
I want God to write on my heart
 the words he has chosen for me...the words I most need to hear
...the words that will lead me ever closer to his side.
May his Peace be in your heart today.

The Multi-Tasking Messiah

~~~ Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord ~~~

~~~ Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 ~~~ Psalm  97 ~~~ 2 Peter 1:16-19 ~~~ 

~~~ Matthew 17:1-9 ~~~

The second letter of Peter gives a description of his personal experience.
He was there, he went up the mountain with Jesus.
Peter saw Jesus transform right before his eyes.

Jesus did not dress up in his best white tunic for his transfiguration.
He simply went to the mountain top and presented himself to the Father.
He even brought his friends along, but they were not there to minister to him.
They were there to be eye witnesses to the majesty of God the Father.

...eyewitnesses of his majesty...
...voice come from heaven...

How were they able to get all of the details of such an event?
We have a better chance of remembering those events
 that have strong emotion connections.
Fear is one such emotion;
we remember well things that frighten us.

Jesus was the prime multi-tasker.

Moses, representing the law and Elijah,
representing the prophecies
appeared one on either side of Jesus.

Jesus came to save us, to secure eternal life on our behalf.
He also came to make the law perfect,
to fulfill all that the prophets had spoken about the Messiah.

He brings his closest friends with him to witness the glory
 God had in store for not only him but for each of us.

His entire countenance and physical being
 became brilliant right before their eyes.

How could they not experience fear?
It was the equivalent of seeing a ghost only they knew
 Jesus was a real person.

The dark cloud came over them and out of this cloud
came the voice of the Father
loud and clear.

“This is my Son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

God the Father was validating
his Son by flanking him with Moses and Elijah.
Both of these men had had great relationships with the Father.
The disciples were having a great relationship with Jesus.
God wanted this connection to be solidified;
carried into the future for generations to come.

God wanted the three apostles to see
what God had in store for all who believed.
God wanted them to see just how close he was to Jesus.

Today I invite you to consider just how close Jesus is to you.
He Blesses us with his
 glory on this day of Transfiguration.

~~~ Peace~~~

Where is Your Heart?

~~~ Jeremiah 30:1-2, 12-15, 18-22 ~~~ Psalm 102 ~~~ 

~~~ Matthew 14:22-36 or Matthew 15:1-2, 10-14 ~~~

It is not what enters one’s mouth that defiles the man;

but what comes out of the mouth is what defiles one.

What you are eating is not putting words in your mouth.

The words you speak originate from deep within 

before they tumble off the tip of your tongue.

Spicy foods does not make you speak in such a manner.

Chocolate cake will not make you speak words of love and kindness.

It would be amazing if the foods you ate could

 help you manage the words you spoke in the future.

...this people honors me with their lips, 

but the hearts are far from me.

Matthew 15:8

This addresses the more serious problem.

Where is your heart?

While this verse is not included in today's Gospel

 I believe it is pertinent to connect the readings together. 

When the apostles were caught in the storm at sea

 their words were saturated with fear.

“It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.

The apostles had not yet aligned their hearts with their lips.

They had doubts because Jesus was not in the boat

with them at that very moment.

Peter came close to drowning; he proclaimed faith in Jesus,

but his heart did not completely believe.

Peter knew who Jesus was and he 

still functioned under the shadow of doubt.

Peter got out of the boat because Jesus called for him to come.

Just as Peter had asked.

Peter heard Jesus...Peter saw Jesus...Peter began 

walking on the water toward Jesus.

The weight of Peter's doubt allowed him to sink into the waves.

His heart was not faith-filled enough to keep him buoyant. 

We must get our hearts not just our lips connected to Jesus.

Peter began to feel that what he was doing was impossible and so is was...

he began to sink deeper into the sea.

We know that Jesus would have never let Peter drown.

He does wait, however until Peter cries out to Jesus...

 “Lord, save me!”

Where are you on the Faith continuum of one to five?

One meaning you have great difficulty believing

 and five meaning you believe all things are possible with God? 

Where would you be in order to call out to the Lord to save you?

Peter was near drowning. His life was in peril.

Sometimes God waits nearby for us to call out to him,

but he is never too far away to rescue.

Blessed to be saved.

~~~Peace~~~

Alone to Pray

~~~ Saint John Vianney, Priest ~~~

~~~ Jeremiah 28:1-17 ~~~ Psalm 119 ~~~ Matthew 14:22-36 ~~~

...he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.

When it was evening he was there alone.

Jesus wants to be alone, 

but instead he responds to the needs of the crowd.

He feeds the five thousand, heals many present there,

shares some teachings and finally sends them home.

He also sends the apostles to take the boat

 to the other side of the sea.

At last he can retreat, he has some time alone.

He could have remained there along the edge of the water, 

but instead he makes the solitary walk up the mountain side. 

He goes alone to pray.

Perhaps he is in prayer with the Father concerning

 the brutal murder of his cousin, John.

Perhaps he is in prayer for the five thousand 

whom he had so generously fed.

Perhaps he was in prayer to regain his own spiritual strength.

It takes a great deal of energy to speak to such a large crowd of people.

He had to project his voice so those on the edges

of the group could also hear.

He had to speak over crying children and whispering adults.

Each step up the mountain carries Jesus closer

 to a private place where he could pray undisturbed.

He has so very little time for undisturbed prayer. 

This time is precious to him.

Even the apostles cannot come to interrupt his prayer time;

for he purposefully sent them out on the water.

Jesus models for us the value of private personal prayer...

undisturbed prayer when possible.

In reality we might see his whole public ministry as a prayer,

but Jesus took time out, time away for his prayer.

His prayer was the intimate conversation of a Son speaking to his Father.

Perhaps they needed no formal spoken words.

Perhaps they simply communicated with their

 mutual love for one another.

Sometimes when we pray we feel inadequate ill prepared..

not having the 'right' words to say.

I invite you to consider taking the time to go away

to a secluded place for private undisturbed prayer.

It is in the silence and stillness that God can speak to us best.

Close you eyes and be in his presence;

this is prayer...words are not necessary nor required.

The storm came and the apostles thought they were alone,

but Jesus was just a few steps away.

He was coming out to meet them on the crest 

of each swell of the sea.

Jesus calmed the storm and as they reached the other side

the crowds began to come; many just to touch the tassel of his cloak.

Many were healed from the strength he gained 

from his time on the mountain.

Prayer gives us strength too.

Prayer in any setting is good, but there is great value in

 private time with the Lord.

We are Blessed with a God of miracles...

a God who models for us our higher calling.

The call to greater holiness.

~~~Peace~~~

When Free Means Free

~~~Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time~~~

~~~ Isaiah 55:1-3 ~~~ Psalm 145 ~~~ Romans 8:35, 37-39 ~~~ 

~~~Matthew 14:13-21 ~~~

When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist,

he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. 

Jesus had known John the Baptist his whole life...

they were cousins...they were friends.

Jesus withdrew in a boat where he could grieve in privacy.

In his grief Jesus experienced tremendous compassion.

People came to the beach front. They came to the water.

They wanted to hear his inspired words.

His deserted place turned out to be the place 

of the great miracle of the loaves and the fish.

He fed more than five thousand that day. 

They freely come. They pay no money. No one is turned away.

All are welcome...all are fed.

They have no lengthy paperwork to fill out before eating.

They do not have to prove they are deserving of the bread and fish.

Jesus invites us all to come; all who are thirsty,

all who are hungry.

...listen, that you may have life.

I will renew with you the everlasting covenant...

Jesus keeps on giving. 

The stream of cool water never runs dry.

The basket of bread never appears empty.

There is always plenty of leftovers.

The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs...

Nothing can keep us from the love of God.

He is rich in goodness and kindness.

We are all invited to come...to freely partake
of the goodness of the Lord.

Have you ever rejected something offered to you for 'free'?
I have, because it was something I did not need or I did not want.

This is close to what happens when someone passes up
the invitation from Jesus to Come to him. 

If you were thirsty would turn down
 a cup of water offered to you?

Those who reject Jesus' offer may not be rejecting him
they may not be able to identify
that they are even thirsty.

God Blesses us with his miracles;
they are free of charge.
The deserted place turned into a place of plenty...
a place where love is nourished...
a place where grace and compassion flow freely.
~~~Peace~~~