Parent Child God Relationships

~~~ Hosea 11:1-4, 8E-9 ~~~ Psalm 80 ~~~ Matthew 10:7-15 ~~~

When Israel was a child I loved him, 

out of Egypt I called my son.

The more I called them,

the farther they went from me...

Every parent can identify with these writings 

of the prophet Hosea.

Kids can sometimes be hard 

headed and stubborn.

They often choose 

to ignore the calls of a parent.

Many times a child will inadvertently hurt their parents...

at times you will be ignored...or dismissed.

This is what is happening between God and Israel.

Israel is acting like a spoiled child...a regular brat.

God has provided everything...

he taught them, loved them, fed them, 

even healed them;

they still act out, and turn away.

God is, understandably, not happy with Israel.

Many a parent has learned the hard lesson...

the more they do for their child the less 

the child appreciates and the more distant they become.

I will not give vent to my blazing anger...

God is God. He responds as God.

As you enter a house, wish it peace.

...let your peace come upon it;

if not, let your peace return to you.

Jesus sent the apostles out with nothing.

 The knowledge they had learned from walking

 among the people with him was all they needed.

He told them to take nothing

 for the journey...no material items.

What they were to bring to the people 

had nothing to do with tangible things.

He wanted them to bring his peace...

his love...his compassion...his promise of salvation.

The Good News was to come in the form of peace.

It was to settle over the house like a gentle breeze.

In a good house it would be well received.

If it came back to you then you would know

 it was not a worthy house.

They were not to get angry or defensive 

about their blessing of peace if it was not well received.

They were to simply move on to the next house.

Shake the dust from your feet...do not hold a 

grudge against the person...move on.

Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.

Stay in the present...let go of the past...

do not fret over the future.

I invite you to live in the present...

let the the peace of the Lord envelope you.

~~~Blessings~~~

Dusting Your Heart

~~~ 1 Kings 2:1-4, 10-12 ~~~ 

~~~ Psalm (1 Chronicles 29:10, 11AB, 11D-12A, 12BCD) ~~~

~~~ Mark 6:7-13 ~~~

Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you,

leave there and shake the dust off your feet

in testimony against them.

Each year when this gospel comes up

 it has a new and deeper meaning to me.

...shake the dust off your feet...

I don't know about your house, but in mine 

dusting is a constant issue.

I should dust more often...truth be told.

It accumulates in every nook and cranny. 

It accumulates high and low.

It even can accumulate on vertical surfaces.

It is everywhere.

Dusting needs routine and scheduled attention.

Which reminds me of our spiritual life.

We have things in our heart that are just like dust.

They accumulate until one day you can literally

 write your name there...right in your heart.

  Sometimes before we realize what we

 have done we write the name of someone else.

We write the name of someone else in our own dust!

How does this happen?

We should be able to recognize our own dust.

But most dust all appears the same.

Jesus had such good advice for the disciples.

Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you,

leave there and shake the dust off your feet

in testimony against them.

Leaving may not take away the dust

 but it may give you time to regroup.

The disciples shook off the dust 

so that they could move on to the next community 

with a clean attitude.

Sometimes in life it is better to leave the dust behind

in order to move forward.

Dust may not amount to much.

 But it has been known to be the cause 

of violent sneezing attacks accompanied

 by a runny nose and red itching eyes.

It is best to keep your dust under control.

Sweep it out of your heart,

so that you can move forward with a 'dust free' heart.

If you have dust in your heart

ask God to help you sweep it away.

Don't let dust become so thick 

that you become used to having it there.

Your heart is no place for dust accumulation.

Blessings as you dust.

~~~Peace~~~

Cause for Bright Eyes

~~~ Saint Pius of Pietrelcina, Priest ~~~

Padre Pio

~~~Ezra 9:5-9 ~~~TOBIT 13:2, 3-4A, 4BEFGHN, 7-8~~~

~~~ Luke 9:1-6 ~~~

...mercy came to us from the LORD, our God,

who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his holy place;

thus our God has brightened our eyes...

You are invited to recognize and accept God's mercy for us.

The mercy which comes from God is greater than you can imagine.

When the mercy of God is allowed to live in your 

heart your eyes too can be brightened.

There is a saying that the eyes are the window to the soul.

Your eyes reveal much about your state of mind.

Consider the eyes of one who is happy...

they seem to dance and twinkle.

In contrast consider the eyes of one who

 is grieving, in pain, or depressed...

they are often dull, distant, and fixed.

Everything about your relationship with God gives

cause for your eyes to be bright.

The love and mercy you receive from God 

must escape from your soul as joy.

...shake the dust from your feet...

Whatever seems to rob you of joy;

turn and walk away.

What you cannot change you must leave behind...

just as Jesus advises the Apostles.

There are many times,

if you could just remember these six little words

your day would be much better.

I leave you today with these beautiful words of Padre Pio...

Prayer is the best weapon that we possess.

It opens the heart of God.

Don't allow any sadness to dwell in your soul,

for sadness prevents the Holy Spirit from acting freely.

In the spiritual life, you must take one step forward each day

 in a vertical line, from the bottom up.

Pray, pray to the Lord with me, 

the whole world needs prayer...

You are Blessed with numerous resources 

to help you shake the dust from your feet.

Today you have Saint Padre Pio...

pray for us.

~~~Peace~~~

Celebrating Pope Francis' visit to America.

Cause for happiness that shines 

brightly from your eyes.

Take Nothing for the Journey

~~~ Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr ~~~ 

~~~ Hebrews 12:18-19, 21-24 ~~~ Psalm 48 ~~~ Mark 6:7-13 ~~~

...take nothing for the journey... 

Jesus sent out the disciples to spread 

the good news...to heal and teach.

He did not want them to be concerned with their stuff.

He wanted them to rely completely

 on what he knew was in their hearts.

He wanted them to believe in themselves 

because he believed in them.

Do you believe in yourself?

Do others believe more in you than you believe in yourself?

These few words resonate with me right now

 for a very different reason.

Being at the bedside of my dying father in law,

 you came to know what it means on a different 

level to take nothing for the journey.

When you are dying you soon come to accept 

that you make the journey alone;

 there is nothing material you can take with you.

Jesus wanted the disciples to cling to what they had learned from him.

Their material belongs would be distractions...burdens.

When you are dying it is the love, care and compassion

 that you feel in your heart that matters...nothing else.

Actually it is a beautiful thing to take nothing for the journey.

To trust that whatever you need God will provide.

There is a certain amount of freedom 

if you can leave everything behind.

Jesus also told the disciples 

...shake the dust off your feet...

This is also true when you are dying...

whatever issues you may have had

 with others you must lay to rest.

When you are dying 

the Kingdom of God is at hand for you.

Blessings come to us in all situations;

even in keeping vigil beside the dying loved one's bed.

~~~Peace~~~

Are Your Feet Dusty?

~~~ Hosea 11:1-4, 8E-9 ~~~ Psalm 80 ~~~ Matthew 10:7-15 ~~~

Although these words were spoken by God about Israel
I find them meaningful for us today too.

I drew them with human cords,

with bands of love...

It is not the heavy yokes of our burdens...

it is not the chains of our sinfulness...

God draws us with kindness and love.
God draws us with flesh and blood.
His blood and the blood of his mother, Mary.

Jesus is like the umbilical cord connecting us to God our Father.

Without the umbilical cord the developing embryo would not

be able to grow...there would be no nourishment.

With no life line of blood the fetus will die.

So it is with God he draws us with bands of love

to be near him is to have nourishment and life.

My heart is overwhelmed...

How can we not be overwhelmed
at the great love God has for us, his people.
God sent Jesus to live among us to show us
the very human cord of his love.
Jesus, surrounded by the Father's love draws us into his circle...
into his compassionate heart.

Whenever we meet opposition toward this God of love
we must not condemn; instead we must say
a prayer for the person...

 ...shake the dust from your feet.

and move on.

You cannot be static with God in your life.
You cannot be content with how many people agree with you.
You cannot stop moving on...you cannot remain stuck in the past.

Shaking the dust from your feet is leaving behind
 that which does not bring you into a closer relationship with God.

Leaving behind with compassion, as opposed to
bitterness and hatred.

Shaking the dust off is almost a peaceful action.
I do not consider shaking to be a violent.
There are many times in our life
where it is best to be able to 'shake off the dust' and move on.

Perhaps this is how we should consider forgiveness.

The little things we hold on to would be easier to release
 when they are like tiny specks of dust.

Keep walking and let God love through you...

Today I invite you to 'shake off the dust'.
Whatever you need to let go of now is the time.
Don't let the dust become dry hardened mud.

I dare you to let your heart be overwhelmed
with God's great love for you.

Let him Bless you with his human cords
and his perfect bands of love.

~~~ Peace~~~

Mercy...Leave the Dust Behind

~~~ Ezra 9:5-9 ~~~ Response: Tobit 13:2  ~~~ Luke 9:1-6 ~~~

 

...mercy came to us from the LORD, our God,
who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his holy place;
thus our God has brightened our eyes...

 

The mercy of God is extended freely to us.

Giving us passage to his heavenly home. We, like Ezra,

fall on our knees in thanksgiving for his mercy. 

Even though we are wrought with sinfulness our God

 brings us up from the depths.

How can we begin to express our thanks to the Lord?

 

We have been brought into the family of the Father.

We are loved and cared for as a child of the Father.

 

 

Now he sends us out just as the twelve apostles were sent out.

 

 “Take nothing for the journey,
neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money,
and let no one take a second tunic.

 

God wants us to rely solely on him.

We do not need to take anything else with us.

Especially we do not need to take any guilt

 or shame about our shortcomings.

 

God gives us all that we need, because we now share

 in his glory and power.

We are children of the light.

 

We must go out into the world doing the work of God.

Our attitude being, that God does work through his chosen ones.

He will take care of not only our physical needs, but also

 our emotional and spiritual needs.

 

...shake the dust from your feet...

 

As you go out to the people shake off all prejudice,

judgment, criticism, and doubt. 

 

If God is to use you for his greater honor and glory

you must rid your heart of all blockages.

Your heart must be free.

You must take nothing but his love out to the people.

 

Blessings come in freedom from all worldly things.

Free to concentrate on allowing God to be the center of our life.

Through his mercy we can leave all behind;

even the dust from our feet.

Shake off the Dust

~~~ Acts 13: 44-52 ~~~ Psalm 98 ~~~ John 14: 7-14 ~~~

"They shook the dust from their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium."

Things were going well...the good news was spreading among the Gentiles...and then the Jews came along and began to incite the prominent women of the city, and stirred up a persecution against Paul and Barnabas. These circumstances caused them to leave...

"They shook the dust from their feet..."

Sometimes when things are negative and you are feeling persecuted the best you can do is move on leaving the problems behind. To me the message of shaking the dust from your feet is to let everything go carry nothing from the past ahead with you.

Free yourself from the unwanted burdens;

 the useless baggage and move on into your future.

If you leave behind even the tiny particles of dust you can begin with a fresh outlook. It often serves no purpose to carry around those things that no longer serve a purpose in your life.

If the dust is gone the slate is also cleared. What is written in the dust can be blown away even if it is on your feet. When we walk we are either walking toward something better or walking away from something no longer satisfying.

Dust is not permanent...dust is not solid...you cannot build upon dust...

When we are faced with disappointments and are hurting we can make the decision to

'shake the dust from our feet' and let it go.

Holding on to 'dust' takes more energy than it is worth.

Next time things start to bug you or get under your skin...

'shake off the dust' and save your energy for better endeavors.

Holding grudges only keeps you feet covered in the dust.