He Creates Joy

~~~ Isaiah 65:17-21 ~~~Psalm 30 ~~~ John 4:43-54 ~~~

We are at the mid point of our Lenten journey;
 the readings are filled with joy.
Jesus came so that we might have eternal life...
that we might be saved from our own weaknesses.
He indeed came to make all things new.
The old ways were no longer sufficient; he gave us more.
God the Father wanted more for us because he loves us.

Thus says the LORD:
Lo, I am about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
The things of the past shall not be remembered
or come to mind.
Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness
in what I create...

Wow! There will always be rejoicing and happiness
 in what I create.
Notice he said always,
 not sometimes or occasionally, but always.
In our world today we lose sight of joy.
Happiness is often too hard to grasp, or so we feel.

Jesus is about to be crucified and he wants us
 to find joy in his dying for us.
He wants our laughter and joyful singing rather than our tears.

No longer shall the sound of weeping be heard there,
or the sound of crying...

He makes all things new in heaven and on earth.
He wants us to look forward to his new creations...
the things of the past remember no more.
His new creation...eternal life...
washes away our past sins.

You changed my mourning into dancing;

O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.

It is in dying that he secured for us our heavenly home.
In heaven there is only the glory and joy of God.
There will be no more sadness...no more weeping,
but dancing and singing his praises.

Jesus returns to Cana, where he performed his first miracle
changing water into wine.
This visit would be different;
he was able to grant the healing of the soldier's son.
At the very moment he spoke the words of healing
 the child was given new life.

The father realized that just at that time 
Jesus had said to him,
“Your son will live,”

There was nothing but joy and happiness;
that was the only possible response.

Jesus restored the child's life.
Jesus is our Life.
We are his new creation.
We are constantly given the opportunity to become his new creation .
There is no end to what God can create in our lives.

I invite you to pray that God will open your heart
to become his new creation.
All things are possible with God.
There is still time to have a good Lent.
A Lent where you are changed into a new creation.
It is possible to live in joy.
Blessing come in sharing the joy of the Lord.

Do it today...rejoice in his new creation.

It is you!

What Does He See?

~~~Fourth Sunday of Lent ~~~

~~1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a~~Psalm 23~~Ephesians 5:8-14~~John 9:1-41~~

Does looking the part get you in the door?

Jesus sent Samuel to choose the next leader from the family of Jesse.
The Lord explains to Samuel to not be influenced by appearances...
 ...the LORD looks into the heart.

Who else can look into the heart?
We know there is no one other than God.
Just as the Samaritan woman discovered
at the well Jesus knows the inner depths of our heart.
Perhaps Jesus knows our heart even better than we know ourselves.
We try to hide even from ourselves.
That may sound crazy, but think
about how you keep things hidden inside.

Lent is the perfect time for us to ask the Lord
to reveal more of who we really are to ourselves...
to reveal our most harmful sins.

While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
It is this Divine light that makes all things visible.
Jesus brought light into the life of each person
 he touched while he was on Earth.
He healed mind body and spirit for the glory
of God the Father.

Psalm 23 is probably one of the most frequently quoted...
The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

The shepherd is extremely protective of his sheep, almost to a fault.
It is his main focus...the well-being of his flock.
He is vigilant over each and every one of the sheep.
If one is lagging behind he encourages him to join the others.
If one is injured he stops to attend to him.
If one happens to get lost he leaves the others
to find the one who has strayed away.

What kind of person would do that today?
Who looks out for us to that extent?
We do know the answer. There is only one who does
although we cannot see him. Jesus.

As each day of Lent passes...

Ask yourself if what you are doing today is getting you
closer to where you want to be tomorrow.
Author unknown

Lent is a journey...the shepherd is out there looking
for any of his lost sheep.
He leads us out of darkness into the light.

This wild and crazy God who loves us will never give up.
He will keep searching for each and every lost sheep.
His desire is for his flock to be all together.

Our wild and crazy God looks into your heart
 and sees your true self.

So very Blessed to live as Children of the Light.

Peace.

Responding Appropriately

~~~ Hosea 6:1-6 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Luke 18:9-14 ~~~

My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled...

A sacrifice is the act of giving up something
 that you want to keep especially to get or do something else.
A sacrifice is a loss or something you give up,
usually for the sake of a better cause.

We can make sacrifices for many different reasons.
But often we gain something in return for the sacrifice.
Parents routinely make sacrifices so their
children can have a better life.

We sacrifice our selfish ways, our prideful thoughts and actions
so that we may have this closer relationship with God.
We would be nothing without him and yet we find ways to ignore him.
We find ways to close him out of our lives.
It happens before we even realize he is missing.
Do you ever feel as if you have replaced God
with something else in your life?
This exactly what happens when we sin;
we replace God with what we want
 to do instead of listening to him.

For it is love that I desire, not sacrifice,
and knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

More than anything else God wants us to love him.
We can make one sacrifice after another,
 but God simply wants us to love him.
The best way to love God more is to get to know him better.
The best way to get to know God better is to spend
more quality time with him.

But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’

The tax collector came to the temple
with his heart already in the state of repentance.
He came, not to brag about who he was or what he had done;
he came to seek God's mercy.
He came to spend more time with God.
He came to learn how to love God more
in response to his mercy.

During Lent there is great emphasis on our being repentant,
but every Mass begins with a penitential rite.
We begin the celebration of his death...
of our salvation with repentance.
We call to mind how God has loved us
and how we have failed to respond. 

This is how we fall into sin,
 we do not respond appropriately to God's love for us.

If we could consistently love God in return as much as he loves us
then how could we step into a life sin?

Perhaps we can never love God enough.
Loving him with our whole mind, body,
and soul may not be possible.

Just maybe loving our neighbor as ourselves
bolsters our ability to love God more.

The more time you spend with God
the better you will be at responding appropriately.

We are Blessed not by what we sacrifice,
but rather by how much we can love.

I invite you to take time this weekend to consider
how well you have responded to his love.
For it is love that he desires above all.
Peace.

Is Your Soul Collapsing?

~~~ Hosea 14:2-10 ~~~ Psalm 81 ~~~ Mark 12:28-34 ~~~

...you have collapsed through your guilt.
Take with you words,
and return to the LORD...

The burden of guilt is truly heavy.

When thinking of the word collapsed, what visual comes to your mind?
Structures can collapse as well as people.
Sometimes it is advantageous to have an object that is collapsible.
It is easier to transport a collapsible table, for instance.
We can suffer from a collapsed lung which impairs the ability to breathe.

The most vivid memory I have is the unbelievable
collapse of the World Trade Center towers.

Collapsed is usually the result of some previous action or event.
Cause and effect are in play, even if the cause is not clearly evident.

Today the prophet Hosea speaks of guilt causing us to collapse.
How much guilt do think it would take?
It is the guilt associated with a grave sin?
Is it the guilt associated with many sins?
Is it the guilt associated with the length of time one carried the guilt?

It is true that our sins gradually
weigh us down until we do ultimately collapse.
We may collapse in our sin because
we realize how greatly we have offended God.
The God who loves us in spite of how we treat him at times.

If we love God with our whole mind, body, and soul it is natural
that we would collapse in his presence.

Being totally exhausted in repentance we collapse to the floor;
humbly giving up ourselves to him.

When a person is 'slain' in the Spirit they collapse
falling down to the floor.

When we are touched by God
the power of the Spirit is overwhelming.

Yes, something as invisible as the power of the Spirit
can affect your physical body.

Collapsed before God allows all of our trust
 to be placed in him.
Ours words of remorse remain
 with us even as we collapse from our guilt.

The mercy and forgiveness of
God make it possible for us to stand up.

Jesus wants us to blossom and take root.
Jesus wants us to be fragrant with our love for him.
Let this fragrance linger in the space around you.

Our guilty conscience may temporarily cause us to collapse,
but Jesus is with us...he will help
us to stand up once again.

How can we not return to him when he is standing right here?
Blessed even as we are collapsed by our guilt.
Peace.

Turn Around

~~~ Jeremiah 7:23-28 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Luke 11:14-23 ~~~

They walked in the hardness of their evil hearts
and turned their backs, not their faces, to me.

The prophet Jeremiah paints a very grim picture
of those who have turned away from God...
away from the light.
It is the very hardness of their hearts
that gives them reason to turn from God's presence.

Our body language speaks volumes about how we are feeling
 and what we may be thinking.
As sinners we do not just casually turn our face from God
we turn our entire body the opposite direction.
Turning your body away from someone
 is a sign you wish to ignore them completely.
Little children use this posture all the time.

While we can physically turn away we can also turn away
through our emotions and our hearts.
Turning away, however, does render the person deaf.
We can hear voices coming from behind us.

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

Sin plunges us into darkness deprived of the light of God's face,
but it does not close our ears.

What is causing you to turn your back on God?

Sometimes we turn our backs on issues out of fear
or in order to give ourselves a false sense of protection.

It is like burying your head in the sand...
We are ignoring our own participation in sin.
Jesus did not come down to Earth because
everyone else was committing sins;
he came because I was sinning and because
you were sinning.

Our language is filled with idioms,
but when it comes to our relationship with God
we must be open and honest.

We do not have time to remain hard hearted.
We do not have time to turn our backs on the Lord.
We do not have time to be stiff-necked and rigid.

We must relax ourselves into the hands
of God so that he can transform us.
God has great plans for you.
Will you cooperate with him?

If today you hear his voice, do not turn away.
If today you hear his voice run toward him.
!!!Turn around!!!
He is there to embrace you.

We are so Blessed there is no reason
to turn our backs on God.

Peace.

Self-Fulling Prophecy

~~~ Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9 ~~~ Psalm 147 ~~~ Matthew 5:17-19 ~~~

In motivational circles we often hear about the self-fulling prophecy effect.
It is very common for athletes to visualize themselves
crossing the finish line first and even standing
on the podium receiving the gold medal.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.

For many years the prophets had been telling of the coming of the Messiah.

God the Father sent down Jesus while we were still in sin
to save us to redeem us.
He fulfilled all of the prophecies beyond comprehension.
The prophets only had a small portion
of just how great Jesus, the Messiah would be.

Jesus was so much more than just the fulfilling of a prophecy.
He had to tell the people, look I am more than what
you have been previously told.

Jesus was the fullness of all prophecies.
No human being would have been capable of this completion.

Jesus came to us to bring all prophecies
of him to the heavenly realm.
That which is out of our comprehension.
God is greater than the sum of all
that the prophets could reveal.

Jesus is about wholeness and completeness.
He wants us to find our wholeness and complete happiness in him.

Truly it is only in him that our soul can find rest.
It is only in him can we be complete.

If there is something missing in your life...
come to Jesus...
there you will find all of your answers.

Blessings and Peace.

Breaking News...You are Saved!

Solemnity of the Annunciation

~~Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10~~Psalm 40~~Hebrews 10:4-10~~Luke 1:26-38~~

Mary's 'yes' to the angel Gabriel
is the most profound and unique sign God could ever have given us.

Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!

God, sending Jesus to be one of us is an extraordinary and miraculous sign,
proving just how much he loves us.

We should not be surprised, because everything about God is extraordinary.
His miraculous signs abound beyond our comprehension.

God is miraculous even we do not have the visible evidence.

We too may want signs.
But we only want signs of the positive things in life.
We do not want signs of impending catastrophes.

Here we are well into Lent.
Why would a passage about signs be necessary?
Why in the depths of repentance
would we need to hear of Mary's Annunciation?

I believe that the Annunciation is the sign given to us
from God that he has every intention of saving us.
He plans to keep his covenant with us...we are his chosen people.

The Father sends the Son to redeem the sins of all of mankind.
Emmanuel was coming. We have ample reason
 to be hopeful in our time of repentance.

Sacrificing lambs and turtle doves are not sufficient
offerings for the sins of the whole world.
It would take a person...one unique person...to atone for these sins...
Jesus is the only one chosen for the task.
We are Blessed through the offering of the
Body and Blood of Jesus Christ
once for all.
One person,
One life,
One death
sufficient for all of eternity.

Thank you is simply not adequate.
Peace.

Water...Not Just a Symbol

~~~ 2 Kings 5:1-15ab ~~~ Psalm 42 ~~~ Luke 4:24-30 ~~~

The prophet said...

“Go and wash seven times in the Jordan,
and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean.”

The water of the Jordan River would not be known for its purity or clarity.
It is mentioned 175 times in the Old Testament.
It is the river where John baptizes Jesus.
It is the river of holiness.
In the New Testament the Jordan River becomes the place
where people went to confess their sins.
The River Jordan was the water of soul cleansing.

God knows we rely heavily on things which
we can identify with our senses.
Today the prophet has the diseased man
wash in the waters of the Jordan.
He is instructed to not just take a casual dip in the water,
but rather to wash himself seven times.

Seven, the number of perfection and wholeness.
In Biblical times bathing was not customary as it is today.

So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times
at the word of the man of God.
His flesh became again like the flesh 
of a little child, and he was clean.

It is initially a child that makes the suggestion for
Naaman to make a visit to the prophet Elisha.

God says unless you become like little children
you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

The healing of Naaman comes first from the outside.
As his body is renewed, like that of a child,
 his soul is also cleansed and changed.

It is in the river waters of the Jordan in the land of Israel
that profound healing takes place.

Everyone is welcomed to the cleansing, healing,
living waters of God.

Every year hundreds of pilgrims flock to the Jordan River.
They come searching for and believing in the healing powers of this water.
For some plunging into theses waters they emerge spiritually renewed.

They come out a new person.
The same thing can happen to us during Lent...
we can emerge from these forty days as a new person.
It is not necessary to travel to the banks of the River Jordan.

We are the children God came to save.

Our spirit of true repentance will leave our soul renewed.
The grace and blessings of God will refresh our soul.

Jesus, as the Living water, has the power
to not just cleanse the outside of the body,
but he also cleanses the soul of the individual.

The whole person is brought together
in a way unique only to God.
Repenting, just as loving, requires the mind, body, and the soul.

I invite you to consider the long connection
our bodily and spiritual wholeness has to the element of water.

Water is more than just a symbol...
it is rich in meaning.
Peace.

In the Heat of the Day

~~~ Third Sunday of Lent ~~~

~~Exodus 17:3-7~~Psalm 95~~Romans 5:1-2, 5-8~~John 4:5-42~~

...the water I shall give will become in him
a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

The Samaritan woman came to the well as she routinely 

did to draw up water from the well.

It was a gathering place for the whole community.
She came alone in the heat of the day.
She was an outcast; she isolated herself.
Most others did not come to the well in the middle of the day,
 but rather in the cool early morning.

She may not have even been thirsty at that particular time,

but she came to carry the water back to her home for later.

It was her only choice, she would need water for later in the day.

She had no idea this day would not be like every other day.

Her routine was about to be changed forever.

The woman at the well was given grace 

as she listened to the words of Jesus.

His words flowed into her heart and soul and she was satisfied.

The thirst she did not identify was satisfied.

All living creatures need water to survive.

Without water a person quickly becomes dehydrated.

We find this woman dehydrated by her previous life of sin...
she had had at least five previous partners not necessarily her husbands.

 Jesus satisfies our thirst with living water.

Water that quenches our thirst for all of eternity.

This living water is not felt and has no taste.

Jesus comes to relieve us from our own dehydration.
He offers us water that will never subside...
water that will always satisfy our thirst.

Jesus met this woman at the well...
the well was a central meeting place...the well was significant.
Things happened at the well...friendships were made.
Even marriages took place at the well.

Jesus, a Jewish male, reaches out to this Samaritan woman.
He breaks open all social boundaries.
Jesus never let perceived boundaries prevent him
from reaching out to a soul in need.

The next time someone asks you for a drink...
who knows it just could be Jesus reaching out to you.

Blessed as Jesus comes to us when we are attempting to be invisible.
The woman at the well did not intend to meet anyone that day.
What a surprise God had in store for her.

Her soul was saved through her encounter 

with the source of the water...

Jesus Christ.

Peace.

Forgiveness is the Key

~~~ Micah 7:14-15, 18-20 ~~~ Psalm 103 ~~~ Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 ~~~

‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;

I no longer deserve to be called your son.’

We deserve things based mostly on our actions.

I am not sure that as a parent I could believe

 that my child would not deserve to be called my child.

The parable of the prodigal son is often heard because 

we need to see the picture of unconditional love.

We need to hear the words of the father.

We need to see the remorse of the son as he returns.

We need to hear the older son's words of resentment.

Parental love, sibling rivalry, and family connection

 is no different today than it was then.

Sometimes our kids are more like homing pigeons.

Coming home should be a safe place.

The son felt he no longer deserved to be called his father's son,

but the father felt his son deserved more.

The father felt his son deserved to be welcomed and forgiven.

This is what the older son could not grasp.

He could not understand that the celebration 

was nothing compared to the forgiveness.

Thank goodness God does not grant us forgiveness 

based on whether or not we deserve it.

If that were the case would any of us ever be forgiven?

On the flip side we should never feel that we deserve to be forgiven.

This is the challenge facing most of us...

Do we forgive when the other person does not deserve 

to be forgiven?

This is what God calls us to do.

This takes courage and determination.

As this second week of Lent comes to a close;

who in your life still needs to be forgiven?

I invite you to carefully consider that person whom you feel 

does not deserve your forgiveness.

Even if you do not see that person make 

the decision to forgive them today.

The father of the prodigal son forgave his son 

way before the son comes crawling home.

This is evident because of the 

swiftness with which he orders the celebration.

This is evident because the father rushes out to meet his son.

He does not wait for his son to reach the front door.

God is not waiting for you to come to him he is 

already coming out to meet you.

Forgiveness is not about deserving to be forgiven...

at least not with God.

The prodigal son also had to learn how to forgive himself...

he had to accept his father's open arms.

God wants us to have a future full of hope and happiness.

If you also want that for yourself, 

forgiveness is the key.

We are so Blessed with a God who forgives

whether or not we deserve it.

Return to him.

Peace.

Salvation Steps Out of Rejection

~~~ Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a ~~~ Psalm 105 ~~~ Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46 ~~~

Both readings today foreshadow the death of Jesus.

Joseph and the son of the vineyard owner were both rejected.

Joseph was rejected by his own brothers.

They were jealous of him thinking that he 

was favored by their father.

The son of the vineyard owner 

was likewise rejected by those employed by his father.

They had no respect even for the boss's son.

They saw him as a threat to their share of the profits.

They plotted to give themselves a greater portion 

of the inheritance by killing the primary heir.

There is no coincidence that the church gives 

us these parallel readings today.

Joseph is rescued from the well and eventually is reunited 

with his father and brothers.

For many years they were separated.

Their father, so grief stricken oven the loss of his youngest son,

 was sad and depressed.

The brothers concede to their guilty conscience

 and spare the life of Joseph.

But evil still resided in their heart.

Now they are overcome with greed;

they decide to sell their own brother.

They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver.

Monetary greed is also the motivating factor

 for the workers in the vineyard.

But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
‘This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’

Perhaps what we should be considering is how God always provides.

God arranged for Joseph to be sold into slavery 

so that later he would be in a position to save 

his entire family from starvation.

Rejection is not always the worst possible situation.

Sometimes the one who is initially rejected later

 is found in the key position.

To answer the call of God to be a better person often 

requires us to exercise great self control.

Joseph had to face his brothers again 

knowing how much they wanted him 'out of the way'.

Ultimately he made the choice to forgive in spite of his understanding.

To a certain extent we have all participated in the killing of Jesus.

He, with this knowledge, chose to forgive us.

His forgiveness gave us so much more than bread for the next day.

His love and mercy does more

 than fills our growling stomach.

He wants us to join him in heaven for all eternity.

Jesus was rejected as the corner stone and becomes 

THE most important person of all time.

Most of us have an innate fear of rejection,

but it is not necessarily a negative.

Rejection did not stop Joseph 

and it certainly did not stop Jesus from saving us.

You might say rejection was part of the plan 

from the very beginning.

Without the rejection there may not 

have been a salvation.

We could say...

Rejection led to our Salvation.

Rejection is equal to our Salvation.

Salvation stepped out of Rejection victorious in the end.

Blessed beyond words or feelings.

Blessed even if rejected by loved ones.

Peace.

Lent the Season of Hope

~~~ Jeremiah 17:5-10 ~~~ Psalm 1 ~~~ Luke 16:19-31 ~~~

Today marks the beginning of a new season, Spring.
Lent is about change and change is most evident during the springtime.
You cannot help but notice the difference in all of nature.
Grass grows green again, flowers appear on bare tree branches,
wild colorful flowers cover the roadsides.
A time to appreciate new life.
The animals give birth to new offspring
now that the warmer days have arrived.
It is joyous time of the year.

In spite of this life giving season we are in Lent.
Lent, a time to take an inventory of how
we might bring the life of Spring into our soul.

If one who stays in the winter darkness of sin we are told today..

He is like a barren bush in the desert
that enjoys no change of season...

How sad it would be to have not experience the seasonal changes.
Even in the most temperate of climates there is some change.
I invite you to look at the season of Spring as the season of hope.

Hope...a feeling of expectation and desire
for a certain thing to happen.

We all hope to see the beauty of Spring.
We all hope in the Lord, because he has promised us salvation.
Our resurrection will be the most glorious springtime ever.

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose hope is the LORD...

The poor man, Lazarus, lying alone in the gutter of the street covered in sores
cannot appreciate the changing of the seasons.
He does not begin to appreciate the cycle of beauty
which comes with new each season.

He experiences no joy in the natural world.

The rich man passes him by, relishing in the finer things of life.
But he too misses the joy of hope.
He sees no reason to need hope...it does not serve him.
He has no feelings expectation and desire for he
 dresses well and dines sumptuously each day.

It is only in torments of the afterlife does the rich man experience hope.
He longs for just a drop of water from the finger tip of Lazarus.

The great chasm between Lazarus and the rich man
 is the valley without hope...
the space void of Springtime...
the place where life is no longer a possibility.

We can use our time of Lent to turn over the soil of our hearts
 so the hope of Springtime save us from the chasm.
We have been blessed with all we need
to have the experience of Springtime in our hearts.

We have a God who blesses us for having hope in him.
He will meet and surpass all of our expectations.
He is the Hope of the World.

May the Springtime of Hope strengthen your soul.
Peace.

Chosen to be a Father

Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary

~~2 Samuel 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16~~Psalm 89~~Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22~~Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a~~

Today we pause our Lenten observances
to remember Joseph, the spouse of Mary,
the earthly father of Jesus.

Joseph was able to move forward in his life for one simple reason;
he had the faith to trust in God.
This faith could not have evolved over night.
He was obviously a man of faith for many years.
The Bible calls him a righteous man.
He was a man God chose to be the head of the household.
Mary trusted God, but she also had to have trust in Joseph.
She was a woman; it was important
that she have a husband to provide for her and her child.

It was Joseph who took care of the needs of the family.

Whenever I think of Saint Joseph I also think of those men who are fathers today.
Those men who have biological children...
those who have fathered children and walked away...

those who are fathers with no biological connection.

Joseph was not physically related to Jesus, but that did not keep
 him from loving and caring for Jesus.

I can imagine that Joseph and Jesus had a very loving relationship.
Perhaps a model father son relationship
even though God the Father watched from heaven.

It is not until the Baptism of Jesus do we hear
 the voice of God the Father claim Jesus as his son.

In our society today the role of the father has been diluted.
Diluted because we have so many missing fathers...
missing from their children not only physically but emotionally as well.

Today as we especially look at Saint Joseph let us pray for all fathers.
Pray for those fathers who are deceased, for those who are struggling,
for those who are separated because of military duty.
Let us pray for those fathers who strive to be the best dad they can be...
for those who are confused but keep on loving their children.

Joseph loved Jesus and Jesus loved Joseph
there is no doubt.

Thank God for your father...
Forgive him if he was not the best father.
Love him for how he loved you.

Saint Joseph, pray for all fathers.
Give them the strength and courage to be more loving and caring.
Let them come to believe and trust in their heavenly father, God.

Fatherhood is not just a biological title.
God Bless all fathers.
Peace.

Slippers

~~~ Isaiah 1:10, 16-20 ~~~Psalm 50 ~~~ Matthew 23:1-12 ~~~

The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

If we humble ourselves before the Lord 

admitting our sinfulness he will 

make all things white as snow...white as the lamb's wool.

If we swallow our pride and obey his commandments;

we shall eat the good things of the land.

Conversely, if we resist and fight against the Lord

his mighty sword will slay you.

I recently heard that it is better to put on your slippers 

than to try to carpet the whole world.

I think this has a connection to the message for today.

To humble oneself is to put on your slippers 

realizing that you can only change yourself.

If you want the world to be a better place 

then you must begin with yourself.

It is only in pride that we believe

 we can or should make everyone else change.

Our responsibility is to make ourselves the best person we can be;

this is how to generate a greater change.

It is true that one person can change the world;

but only if that person changes first.

Jesus led us by example in so many ways 

throughout his public ministry.

We must live the words of the Gospel message 

before we can look at how others are living.

The Holy Father, Pope Francis, understands this very well.

His words and his actions are beautifully aligned.

His actions reflect his words...

his words are reflected in his actions.

What we say and do should compliment each other.

There should be no tension between our actions and our words.

Jesus is not fooled by the scribes and the Pharisees.

...they preach but they do not practice.

If we all look intently at ourselves during this Lent 

then we will all have on our slippers 

and there will no longer be the need to carpet the whole world.

Whatever you think needs to be changed in the world

begins with how you make the change yourself.

We are Blessed to be able to change.

Lent is a time for changing...

yourself.

Peace.

Give...Forgive...Receive

~~~ Daniel 9:4b-10 ~~~ Psalm 79 ~~~ Luke 6:36-38 ~~~

Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, 
shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.

Generosity...
The truth is that when we are giving to others
we are not thinking about ourselves.
Giving to others requires that you
focus on the other, even if just for a short time.

It is easy to give if we are not trying to judge at the same time.
Is it possible to give without judging?
Do we automatically judge before we make the decision to give?
These are tough personal questions.
Some give for their own greater glory...
wanting to be held in higher esteem for their giving.
This is not the manner in which Jesus speaks of giving.

Jesus gave of himself every day.
The genuine gift of giving should be without
 expectations of personal returns.
Jesus is saying that what we receive
will be based on what we give.

It is worth noting that in this passage forgiveness is closely linked to giving.
This is interesting since the more you are willing to forgive
 the greater gift you are really giving yourself.

While this is not a post on forgiveness
we see it here paired in the same breath with giving.

It is good for us to consider, during this time of Lent,
 just how generous God has been to us.

His generosity has preceded our generosity in all instances.
His advice today is about how he expects us to be generous to others.

What he gives us is so incredible that it is overflowing,
spilling onto our laps...running down to the floor.

How can we be blind to the benefits of giving?

Scrooge had to have a near death experience before his heart was opened.
What will it take for us to realize the gift in giving?

The best way we can thank God for his generosity with us
 is to do likewise for others.

Be more generous from this day forward
 and experience this overflowing of grace from God.

Forgiven and Blessed.
Pass it on!
Peace.

Surrounded by His Glory

~~~ The Second Sunday of Lent~~~

~~Genesis 12:1-4a~Psalm 33~2 Timothy 1:8b-10~Matthew 17:1-9~~

The Transfiguration...
Jesus took three of his closest friends up to a high mountain.
God, the Father, shows up with a couple of his
long time buddies...Moses and Elijah.
Something monumental was about to happen.

Jesus revealed to them the definition of hope.
His transfiguration proved that the apostles
should not despair in the coming days.

No matter how bad things would become in the days ahead
the glory of Jesus would prevail.

Jesus changed before his mortal friends,
before the prophets of old as well as his heavenly Father.

For only the second time recorded in the Bible
God the Father spoke from the cloud...

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased;
listen to him.”

Understandably the apostles were frightened by the voice coming form the cloud.
Jesus immediately touched them and calmed their fears.

The Apostles were never the same after this experience.
They came to believe that there was reason to have hope in Jesus.
He had been about his Father's business of healing and teaching.
Now he was taking it a step farther...
he was showing them the glory to which
they would come to hold close to their hearts.

Today we are being reminded, this second Sunday of Lent,
that we must return to the Lord
so that we too may participate in the glory of Jesus.

If today you hear his voice do not waste any time repent now.
We have been given the vision of the glorious radiance of the Lord.

We are blessed to have hope
 that we are being invited to join him in his glory.

Do not be afraid to change.
Raise up your eyes Jesus is there for you...
he has been raised form the dead.
Hope in the Lord for he is near.
Peace.

Keeping Our Side

~~~ Deuteronomy 26:16-19 ~~~ Psalm 119 ~~~ Matthew 5:43-48 ~~~

The Covenant...
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD:
he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways
and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees,
and to hearken to his voice.

In the Bible, covenants with God were taken very seriously.
God never breaks a covenant he enters into with his people.
A covenant, like any other formal agreement, is not one sided.
Both parties come to an agreement to mutually honor their promise.

God wants us to be in relationship with him
 so much that he is willing to make these outlandish promises to us.
He made this covenant with us before we were even conceived.
Maybe it is because of this covenant that we have
a burning desire to seek his face.

Would you be willing to enter into a covenant
sight unseen with anyone else?
It might be a stretch for most of us.

Jesus gives us instructions on how to keep our side of the covenant with God.
The Gospel of Matthew begins with the
Beatitudes and then moves into a series of teachings by Jesus.

Today's teaching deals with how we view our enemies.
Keeping our side of the covenant with the Lord
requires certain attitude adjustment concerning our enemies.

...love your enemies,
and pray for those who persecute you...

Part of the covenant to being God's people states that we are to
observe his statues, commandments, and decrees.
Jesus was the Word made flesh...he was the living voice of God...
today we are reminded that we are to love those
who we would rather treat otherwise.

It goes against our gut reaction to love
those who would try to harm us in any way.

Keeping the commandment to love thy neighbor
 as thyself was never designed to be easy.

If our covenant with God is ever broken
 it is because we make the choice to ignore our part of the agreement.

Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!

We are blessed to be included in a covenant with the Lord.
It is up to us to keep our side as well.
It is time to honestly look at what God requires
on our part to keep his covenant healthy.

Peace.

Control, Alt, Delete...Anger

~~~ Ezekiel 18:21-28 ~~~ Psalm 130 ~~~ Matthew 5:20-26 ~~~

...whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment...

...be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.

Anger is only one letter away from Danger...
did you ever notice that before?

Anger may have a place in certain situations,
but all too often we let anger take control when it is not necessary.
Things said and done in anger often come back to haunt us.
Later we regret what we have said or done in a fit of anger.

Words spoken in anger is like spitting out bolts of lightning.
Whoever they strike may just be an innocent bystander.

On any given day at any given time how would
you rate your frequency of angry emotions?
How often are you angry?
Is anger your first response to any given situation?

The readings today give us lots to think about when it comes to anger.
When we let ourselves get into the habit
of responding in anger it is much harder to control.

Allowing anger to take root in your heart is like letting
the weeds take over your front yard.
The more weeds the less likely the desired grass will flourish.
The more anger in your heart the less likely
the goodness of God can shine forth.

I invite you to honestly consider the presence of anger
 in your heart during this Lent.
Just like the picture above, even the smallest threads of anger
will obscure the holiness God desires for us.

Anger leads us to many other sins.
Anger leads to rage which causes us to hurt those we love the most.

The following quotes may give you some food for thought today...

"Just because you are given the opportunity to get angry,
doesn't mean you have to."

"For every minute you are angry you lose
sixty seconds of happiness."

"Make your anger so expensive that no one can afford it,
and make your happiness so cheap,
 everyone can get it for free."

"It is better to cry than to be angry
because anger hurts others,
while tears flow silently through the soul
and cleanses the heart."
Pope John Paul II

We are Blessed to have the most understanding and forgiving God.
A God who is slow to anger and rich on kindness.
How can we be more like Jesus?
Replace your anger with love...
Control, Alt, Delete
anger from your life as quickly as possible.
It is possible to gain more from love than from anger.
Peace.

Esther's Humble Prayer

~~~ Esther c:12, 14-16, 23-25 ~~~ Psalm 138 ~~~ Matthew 7:7-12 ~~~

Queen Esther did not hesitate in her anguish to lay face down on the ground.

As a ruler, it would be more likely for her subjects 

to assume this position before her.

In this posture of submission Esther voices her prayer.

She sheds all that marks her as queen...

her royal robes, her precious perfumes...

"My Lord, you alone are our King. Help me, 

who am alone and have no help but you, 

for I am taking my life in my hand..." 

Esther knows in her heart

 that even though she and her people have gone astray

 God in his goodness will hear her plea to be spared.

She does not know that years later Jesus will encourage

 all of us to speak our needs directly to him.

Esther's prayer continues...

Be mindful of us, Lord. 

Make yourself known in the time of our distress

 and give me courage...

Save us by your power, and help me, 

who am alone and have no one but you, Lord. 

You know all things.

Some form of these words 

have been in my heart on several occasions.

I have longed for God to make himself known 

to me, especially in times of darkness.

Esther does not despair; she places her trust in God.

God does give her the courage to go before the King, 

even though, poetically, she faints standing in his presence.

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

The psalm refrain sums up the prayer of Esther.

If we come to God in prayer asking for what we feel

 in our heart he will answer us.

The posture of Esther's prayer, while not necessary,

may have confirmed for herself the sincerity of her plea.

God, of course, does not need us in any specific position to pray.

He promises to answer our prayers no matter how 

or where we pray. What matters most is that we are praying.

Blessed to have a God who wants to listen to our prayers.

Even more blessed that he wants to answer these prayers of ours.

Come before God with your prayers.

Peace.

Fasting...a Choice

~~~ Jonah 3:1-10 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Luke 11:29-32 ~~~

...they proclaimed a fast
and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.

The story of Jonah is very well known.

During every Lenten time we are reminded of how Jonah resisted God.

How he came close to defying God and how that worked out for him.

Well I am sure it is not necessary to recap the whole story for you.

Today I want to draw our attention to the fasting...

especially the great and small.

The words great and small were 

not referring to those who were short or to little children.

Instead these words were meant to include

 those who were powerful and wealthy 

as well as those who were the common people.

No one is to be exempt from repenting in the town of Nineveh.

This is true for us today...

we all must repent...no one is excluded.

We have all sinned against our God.

We have all fallen short of our quest for holiness.

There was a reason for their fast...

they had a certain amount of expectancy.

There is usually a reason for one to enter 

into a voluntary fast, joined with intentional prayer.

Because fasting is not easy it helps to begin with the purpose in mind.

Fasting to save your town was a great incentive for the people of Nineveh;

but what about for us here and now.

We must listen for God to tell why he is calling us to fast.

For clarity, I am speaking of fasting from solid food.

We can also fast from other things, like the internet or television etc.

To be most effective fasting should be combined with a time set aside for prayer.

There will be many temptations to break the fast.

Fasting like silence allows us to listen more intently to God.

It removes one major distraction...food.

Is your desire to eat greater 

than your desire to have a closer relationship with God?

We are so used to getting satisfaction from what we eat.

If we compare the satisfaction from eating to that of praying

eating will usually take the lead.

Whenever I consider fasting I think of the millions of people

 worldwide who, by no choice of their own, are forced into fasting.

If there is not enough food available then fasting 

becomes the norm rather than the exception.

Fasting is not the norm for most of us.

We must willingly want to enter into a fast.

It is easier to fast when you are away from your normal routine...

like on retreat, isolated from readily available food.

If you choose to fast at home there is the added temptation

 to just go into the kitchen and find something to eat.

If you turn on the television you will bombarded with adds about food.

If your intention for fasting is in response to repentance then

ask God to help you persevere in your fast.

Consider fasting with a group or at least one other person.

Be prepared for the mental, emotional, and physical effects of fasting.

The hunger pains you will experience

 pale in comparison to what Jesus suffered for our sins.

Remember to drink plenty of fluids and or juices.

Fasting allowed the people of Nineveh 

a heightened awareness of the presence of God 

and it can do the same for us today.

I invite you to seriously consider fasting during this Lent.

You determine to what extent you can fast;

it might just be omitting one meal a day.

Start small and gradually increase your fast.

Fasting shifts our focus to be more mindful

 of what we are doing with our life.

Fasting is one of the many tools 

available to us as we strive to a closer relationship with God.

During this Lenten time take the invitation to fasting

 more seriously than you have in the past...

actually take charge of it.

We are blessed to live in a country where food is plentiful.

We are further blessed to freely give up this food. 

There may be wisdom in fasting;

it just might be good for your overall health.

What if fasting actually extended your life?

Would you be more inclined to skip a few more meals?

My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit...

Peace as we proceed deeper into this Lent.

Make good use of these 40 days.

Words Not Required

~~~ Isaiah 55:10-11 ~~~ Psalm 34 ~~~ Matthew 6:7-15 ~~~

So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.

All living things are created to produce and to bear fruit.

The word of God is living and also produces fruit.

Chapter 55 of Isaiah is titled 

An Invitation to Grace.

God does not want us to worry about the things of this world.

He wants us to trust him.

He wants us to listen to his word.

He sends down the rain to water the land.

He makes the seed sprout into grain for bread.

He does not expect us to understand all that he does.

He is there behind the scenes

 just as the lighting and the sound technician

 is to a stage production.

His ways are not our ways and they never will be.

God thinks and acts on a much grander scale than we possibly could,

even if we wanted to.

God does not have limits, but we often attempt 

to place boundaries around him.

God is limitless and boundless

 in his capacity to cover us with his grace.

It is through this grace that we are able to 

live in a manner that gives him glory.

 ...do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

We seem to rely on the crutch of our words during prayer,

when in reality it would be just as effective to

merely sit in the presence of the Lord and open up our heart.

Lord, search the depths of my heart for you

 alone can fill my longings.

You know everything that I need to thrive.

I believe your grace is sufficient to carry me each and every day.

Blessed to be given the words of the Lord's prayer.

These words serve as a reminder that I am here to do your will.

I am here to strive to live up to your expectations of me.

Even though at times it seems that I do indeed babble;

I love you with my whole mind, body, and soul.

No words are required for God to hear us.

Peace.

Same or Different

~~~ Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18 ~~~ Psalm 19 ~~~ Matthew 25:31-46 ~~~

‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Whatever you did for the least you did for me...

So many times we judge those who we believe are beneath

 us for whatever reason...

the color of their skin...the way they speak...the clothes they wear...

their actions...body piercings or tattoos.

We look for people who are like us and ignore everyone else.

It is a challenge to intentionally seek out those who are different.

Even when we travel at home or abroad we look for similarities.

But have you ever considered that people are looking 

at you the same way?

We make value judgments and act accordingly.

During this time of Lent I think God is inviting us 

to look at those who do not 'match up' to our liking and to reach out to them.

If we can reach out to those who are least like ourselves

we just may find that we are getting closer to serving the Lord himself.

Let the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart
find favor before you...

It is the perfect time to keep our words in check;

to let only words of kindness, understanding, 

forgiveness, and compassion

come from our lips.

It is the perfect time to examine how we let our heart love.

Is our heart confined and restrained?

Is our heart open and accepting?

If we are striving for a greater holiness in the Lord 

then we are called to be more accepting and less comparative.

We are each created in the image and likeness of God;

it is precisely this image that we are loving when we care for others.

The challenge for us today is to see others as God sees them

not simply whether or not they are 'like us'.

The stranger, the naked, the prisoner are all

 the picture of God made man.

How do you treat them?

Blessed to be who I am becoming today.

Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life...

not just for me, but for everyone.