In the Margins

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

Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.

If we are to be holy we must follow the words of the Lord.

It boils down to how we treat others; not surprising.

The words of the Lord are Spirit and Life.

His words refresh the soul...rejoice the heart...and endure forever.

Being holy is within our reach...

treat others as if you were caring for Jesus himself.

If you keep that in your heart and mind it will be easier.

Can you imagine being sinful in the presence of the Lord?

Yet we fail to see the face of Jesus in those around us.

It is so easy to dismiss this or that person for whatever reason.

‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did

for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Being holy requires us to put the needs of others before our own.

It is naturally our first instinct to take care of our own needs,

but the words of Jesus say something different.

Those who selfishly do only for themselves will be 

separated from those who do for others.

This seems easy, but it is a concept 

we must be reminded of often.

Do you want to be on the right side of Jesus?

That is where you will find those who found their way to being holy

 by ministering to the needs of those less fortunate.

From time to time we may find ourselves among

 those who are on the fringes.

God is always there disguised as one of them.

He blends in to everyone except 

those who are striving to be more holy.

The journey to holiness is mostly along the margins.

It is along the margins where we can find Jesus.

The margin is where we write notes to our self.

Write this note in your margin...

Whatever you do for the least, you do for Jesus.

...highlight it in yellow...bold the font if necessary...

do whatever it takes to make you take notice...

Save it as a reminded message on your phone...

whatever it takes to make you notice.

Blessings along the edge 

where we can find our way to becoming holy.

~~~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.

Your Personal Mosaic of Holy

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

I am sure you have all seen one of those photo mosaics. A photo mosaic is a one large image made out of hundreds and thousands of tiny images collected from several sources. They have software programs now that will take your images and arrange them for you into a specific picture. The beauty of a photo mosaic is that are only able to appreciate the image when you step back away. If you are too close it is harder to see the larger image because the eyes want to pick out the individual pictures.

This is how I see today's gospel as one large photo mosaic of Jesus. Every time we feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit an imprisoned, or do anything for a person in need we are adding a tiny snap shot to the photo file. This file collects pictures as we go through life. We do not select the pictures for this folder. The criteria is predetermined for our advantage. We may not even be aware when a photo gets dropped into this special folder.

'...whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine you did for me.'

At the end of our life, when we stand before God our photo mosaic will be revealed to us. The compilation of the tiny photos of good that we did for another will be arranged into our own personal picture of God. The tiniest pictures when carefully placed together with the others will depict how each of us proclaimed the word of God with our actions.

'...whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine you did for me.'

This will be your unique picture of God, no two will look alike. No two will look alike because while you may engage in the same good deeds as another; God alone can look into your heart and see your real intention.

I can just envision some of the magnificent stained glass windows I have seen of Jesus, Mary, God, the Holy Spirit, and much more. I would hope to be creating a photo mosaic of similar color, beauty, and design.

In the Leviticus reading today Moses is sharing with the people a message from God. This message to 'Be Holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy' fits nicely with my analogy of collecting life images of good. If we have the desire to be holy then it follows that we will be more conscious of our actions. If you are living a life striving to be holy your perspective on situations will change. As this perspective changes you begin to see things in a more Godly way. When you see things in a more Godly way your actions will follow. When your actions follow more tiny pictures will be tucked away into your special photo folder. Tucked away to later reveal your glorious photo mosaic of the Divine.

'...whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine you did for me.'

As we strive during Lent to be a better person, keep in mind God sees all. He will use, for your benefit, even the smallest thing you do to bring glory to him. You are creating your personal mosaic of your personal God through what you do for others.

What do you want your mosaic to look like? How many 'pictures' will it take to create the picture you want God to see?

The whole picture will not come into focus until the end of your life.

There is no limit to how many pictures can be included into your photo mosaic file.

In the end God will arrange them into something beautiful and holy.

He is the most creative designer,