The Litmus Test

~~~ Saints Peter and Paul ~~~

~~~ Acts of the Apostles 12:1-11 ~~~ Psalm 34 ~~~

~~~ 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-19

“But who do you say that I am?”

I never get tired of this question

 coming in our cycle of daily readings.

It is a question that we can answer every year

 because we are not the same person today 

as we were last year.

This question was first posed to Peter by Jesus.

Peter, walked with Jesus...

witnessed his miracles first hand...

Peter ultimately is the one who denies Jesus.

Peter is frail, yet it is Peter who recognizes

 who Jesus truly was in real time.

Somehow Jesus saw something deep within the soul of Peter...

Jesus saw a goodness and honesty in Peter's character.

Jesus recognizes that the only way Peter

could have known who he was 

had been revealed to him by God the Father.

God prepared Peter to be named the head of the church.

...you are Peter,

and upon this rock I will build my Church,

and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. 

Peter answered the question Jesus asked.

Jesus may not be questioning you,

but you too must answer this same question.

If you do not answer the question you will never 

be sure you are convicted in your faith.

Being able to verbalize to yourself 

and to others 

who Jesus is to you

 is the litmus test of being a Christian....

and for me being a Catholic.

Jesus and Paul never actually met face to face.

Paul eventually came to know

 without a doubt who Jesus truly was.

God the Father

touched the heart of Paul and after that

 he never turned back to his former ways.

Conversion is real.

Knowing who Jesus is for you is real.

Make every day the day

 you answer who Jesus is for you.

Confirm it in your heart.

It is real.

~~~Peace~~~

Looking Forward

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
~~~ 1 Kings 19:16B, 19-21 ~~~ Psalm 16 ~~~
~~~ Galatians 5:1, 13-18 ~~~ Luke 9:51-62 ~~~

"I will follow you wherever you go." 

Making the personal decision to follow Jesus
 requires one to look forward.

Jesus was always moving toward
 the cross on the hill...
toward securing salvation for all people.

His actions were in preparation, not just for him
 but his followers too.

When one makes the choice to freely follow Jesus
 it must encompass the will to live the life of Christ.

If one is not willing to live the life of Christ,
then why bother to follow him?

If one is not willing to live the life of Christ
are you really following him?

How committed are you to following Christ?

In our Baptism we were claimed for Christ...we are his.

Elijah claimed Elisha by draping his cloak
around Elisha's shoulders.

Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him.

The cloak passing from Elijah the prophet, to Elisha,
symbolizes the passing of prophetic authority.
Elisha freely made the choice to follow Elijah.

Elisha left his former life;
 embarking on a new life with the prophet, Elijah.

Jesus tells us if we are to follow him
 we must take up our cross.
We must take up our own cross.
No one is standing in the wings with your cross.

Your personal cross is the cloak
given to us as we choose to follow Christ.

Elijah's cloak was a call to ministry for Elisha.

Choosing to follow Christ prepares
us to wear the cloak while taking up our cross.

"I will follow you wherever you go." 

Choosing to follow Christ does not include
 wearing a super hero cloak.

Choosing to follow Christ does include
taking up your cross every day.

...guided by the Spirit...

Follow Christ...make the choice
that ensures your life will be more meaningful.

We are invited to follow Christ.
Please, take up your cross, grab your cloak
 and come with Jesus.

~~~Blessings beyond your imagination~~~

~~~Peace~~~

Heart Graffiti

~~~ 1 Kings 21:17-29 ~~~ Psalm 51 ~~~ Matthew 5:43-48 ~~~

So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.

The only way for us to even come close to perfection

 is if we purge all hatred from our heart.

This purging must be done on a consistent basis.

If we are not vigilant when it comes to hatred

 it eases its way into the walls of our heart.

How often do you pay attention to the pictures hanging

 on the wall that you pass all day long?

Eventually you do not even notice.

The same is true of hatred...eventually you do not

 notice that hatred is there.

Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Be merciful, O Lord, because hatred

 has become the graffiti painted on the walls of our heart.

Be merciful, O Lord, because we too often

 believe it is necessary to combat violence with violence.

Be merciful, O Lord, because we do not 

find enough space in our heart for love.

Justice is for God to administer.

We should not try to read the mind of God,

because our mind is too limited.

Sadly our world today is on overload with hatred.

We can only change the world of hatred

by being a reflection of God's pure love.

If we practice modeling God's pure love;

then we are on the path to perfection.

Graffiti often resembles art work,

but it still defaces the structure.

Hatred may seem justified;

but it still spoils the purity of your heart.

May you choose love over hatred

in all circumstances.

~~~Peace~~~

Peace Over Anger

~~~ Saint Anthony of Padua~~~ 

~~~ Priest and Doctor of the Church ~~~

~~~ 1 Kings 21:1-16 ~~~ Psalm 5 ~~~ Matthew 5:38-42 ~~~

“Why are you so angry that you will not eat?”

Anger has a strange way of clouding our judgement.

Anger is often responsible for our bad behavior.

In the passage from Kings today a wife plots and succeeds

 in having another person killed just to keep her husband happy.

Anger which is allowed to get out of control 

becomes the controlling factor in a person's life.

Anger too often leads someone into a state of great sinfulness.

Anger leads one to loose the ability to see 

beyond the source of the anger.

Anger, however, is not always negative.

There is a time and a place for anger.

Dealing with anger is critical if we are to maintain

 a healthy emotional state.

Anger is healthy when it's energy is directed 

toward accomplishing something worthwhile.

So what do you do with your anger?

Does it control you or do you control it?

But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.

Jesus is the master peace maker.

He advocated peace to be the primary focus of our actions.

Killing someone you were angry 

with may have been the norm in ancient days.

Jesus did not accept an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

He wanted peace not violence in all circumstances.

Thou shall not kill...

There was no excuse for killing just 

because another person made you angry.

Unfortunately the world we live in today

may need to have another lesson from Jesus

 on exactly what peace means.

If Jesus truly lives in us...

if we have put on Christ...we must control the way

 our anger manifests itself in our life.

If you have issues with anger I urge you to get help.

Uncontrolled anger has the potential to ruin

 your life and those around you.

Destructive, out of control anger eventually 

diminishes your quality of life.

Let peace be the motivating factor in how you 

choose to live your daily life.

When anger does rear its head 

channel it into some form of positive actions.

Blessings of Peace!

Be Ready to Dance

~~~ Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~~~

~~~1 KGS 17:17-24 ~~~ Psalm 30 ~~~

~~~ Galatians 1:11-14A, 15AC, 16A, 17, 19 ~~~ Luke 7:11-17 ~~~

You changed my mourning into dancing;

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

On the surface the readings today seem to be about death.

The widow's son dies while she is hosting

 the prophet Elijah.

Even Elijah is scratching his head; 

questioning God's timing.

We know that God's plan is bigger than ours.

We know that sometimes we do not understand 

God's plan to take a loved one. 

We struggle so many times with the death of a loved one.

The loss of her son for this widow was devastating.

He was literally her last hope.

She was dependent on her only son 

for her future.

For this widow it is literally life and death.

Elijah feels her pain.

Elijah has great compassion for his hostess.

He takes it upon himself to plead 

on her behalf to God.

God responded to Elijah...

he turned the widow's mourning into dancing.

 I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.

God worked through Elijah...

God breathed life back into the child.

Miracle? Yes. God is the one who gets the credit.

Elijah surrendered himself to God.

God used Elijah as his representative.

God worked through Elijah.

 I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.

Jesus, followed by a great crowd, 

encounters another widow mourning the loss of her son.

Both Jesus and the widow come face to face, 

along with their respective crowds.

The two crowds had no idea what they 

were about to witness.

The funeral procession is halted 

through the compassion of Jesus.

Jesus touches the coffin and calls for 

the young man to rise.

Then Jesus carries him, 

as he was talking, to his mother.

These two crowds witnessed the power 

of God over death.

Yes, they were all filled with fear.

Even in their fear they were compelled to glorify God.

“A great prophet has arisen in our midst, “

and “God has visited his people.”

We know God is with us.

God is with us in our darkest times.

God is with us when it seems our mourning will 

never turn to dancing.

We have been promised that on the last day 

we will be raised from the dead.

We will have eternal life in heaven.

Our mourning will be turned into dancing.

We too can experience the joy of the two widows.

Blessing as God teaches us to dance.

~~~Peace~~~

Trust the Shepherd's Love

~~~ Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ~~~

~~~ Ezekiel 34:11-16 ~~~ Psalm 23 ~~~ 

~~~ Romans 5:5B-11 ~~~ Luke 15:3-7 ~~~

The Lord is my shepherd; 

there is nothing I shall want.

Jesus is the good shepherd even though 

he was never a shepherd himself.

He did not even single out a shepherd to follow him.

Yet he views himself as a good shepherd.

A good shepherd we learn would leave

 his entire flock in search of one lost sheep.

This would be counter-intuitive to our initial reaction.

We might be inclined to focus

 on the rest of the flock thinking one lost

 out of the whole would not be too bad. 

That would be us reasoning with our head...our intellect.

But God gives a different perspective...

God values the one lost sheep 

just as much as he values the whole flock.

God proves his love for us

in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

The actions of Jesus give proof 

that he lets his heart guide his actions.

The one lost sheep is just as important

 to Jesus as the rest of the flock.

He leaves in search of the one who wandered away

 while the rest of the flock gets support from the whole flock.

The good shepherd does not abandon

 the whole flock for the one who is lost.

The flock stays together because the shepherd 

has led them to a lush green pasture.

The shepherd sees that they are safe

 before leaving in search of the lost one.

Today I invite you to look at your 

reflection in the mirror...

reminding yourself that if you 

are ever the one who is lost 

Jesus is out there looking for you.

I myself will look after and tend my sheep.

We are cared for, gathered, rescued,

 fed, led, protected, and most 

of all cherished by the 

Sacred Heart of Jesus.

How can we ask for anything more?

Trusting in the Lord to Bless us as part of his flock.

...he refreshes my soul.

~~~Peace~~~

Learning to Love More

~~~ 2 Timothy 2:8-15 ~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ Mark 12:28-34 ~~~

Teach me your ways, O Lord.

If we are to learn to love God
the way he truly deserves
we must look to him for instruction.

Jesus loves us completely...unconditionally.

Loving God includes being so convicted
 that we do not hesitate to acknowledge him in our life.

Loving God includes freely speaking his name.
Loving God includes putting his will above our selfish wants.

Teach me your ways, O Lord.

Be proud to proclaim your love of God.
Loving God first results in greater love for others.

The golden rule is applicable because God loved us first.
If we do not have the love in our heart from God;
it is not possible for us to love others.

Loving God and neighbor is worth more
than anything else we would consider.

When it comes to loving God and neighbor
 there is no need to be creative.

Love is pure when it begins
 with the source of all love...God.

The closer we are to God the faster
 we will learn how to love better.

The love God has for us
does not pick and choose.

The love God has for us
does not have boundaries.

The love God has for us
actually does not have conditions.

Teach me your ways, O Lord.

The more frequently we can practice
and extend unconditional love the closer
we are to the Kingdom of God...that is heaven.

If there is any 'ticket' to enter into heaven
 it is Love.

Jesus is the best teacher
 when it comes to learning to love.

We can all improve our ability to love.
We are Blessed to have the best teacher of love...Jesus.
Practice more love.

~~~Peace~~~