The Sound of Love

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

Psalm ninety-five from yesterday
and today's psalm are connected to one another.

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

Yesterday we are told that hearing
God's voice is a good beginning point.
If we are deaf to God's voice we
will be missing a huge part of living.

Being 'deaf' to the voice of God usually means
we value ourselves more than we should.
Perhaps we are under the impression that we
alone have our lives under control.

God's voice can seem distant and faint...
too much trouble...
Why bother to listen for God?

The next part of this verse goes deeper;
'harden not your hearts'.
Ouch! We are warned about the possible abyss
when we are not attentive to God's voice.
The longer we refuse to acknowledge his voice
the more rigid our heart becomes.

The more rigid our heart the more likely
we are to completely miss God's voice.

I cannot speak for others,
 but I want to hear his voice.
I would love nothing more than to close my eyes
 and hear the beautiful voice of God.
Of course if that ever happened it would
 be very frightening.

 I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.

It's odd that we must be reminded that God is God...
that he is who he claims to be...
He is our God.
The one who made us from nothing...
the one who loves us beyond measure...
the one who knows us from deep within our soul.

It is this God who must remind us
 to 'hear his voice'.

His voice is the voice
 of truth, justice, kindness,
mercy, forgiveness, and above all
his voice is the voice of Love.

God's voice must be the sound of Love.

God is love...
He created us out of this Love...
He calls us to live in this Love...
to be this Love.

The voice of God's Love
is given to us to share with our neighbors.

It is widely held that you can only give
of that which you possess.

We have been blessed
with this incredible gift of his Love.

It is in hearing God's voice that we can truly learn
 to love ourselves; because he loves us.

As we love our neighbors as ourselves
 it's really God's love that we are sharing.

God is love!
The love that we choose to share
comes to us through his great love for us.

You shall love the Lord your God 
with all your heart, 
with all your soul, 
with all your mind, 
and with all your strength.

How can this be difficult when we are literally
returning to God that which he has given to us?

I invite you to spend some time as soon as possible
contemplating how you return God's love back to himself.

Just maybe it is best measured
 in how you love others.

Lent is surely the perfect time
to reflect on God's love for you personally.

Every drop of blood he shed was
out of his love for us.

Surrounded by Blessings
~~~Peace~~~

The Uniqueness of God

~~~ Deuteronomy  3:25, 34-43 ~~~ 

~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ Matthew 18:21-35 ~~~

The fifth book of the Bible is Deuteronomy.

It sums up many rules and laws.

It also stresses the uniqueness of God.

The uniqueness of God is made visible to us in many ways

most importantly through the life of Jesus.

God is so unique that he sent his son down

 to be a witness for us.

Jesus did not just witness to this uniqueness,

 his actions were the ultimate living proof.

But with contrite heart and humble spirit

let us be received...

During the season of Lent it is precisely 

our faith in the uniqueness of God

 that draws us to desire a contrite heart...

a time for us to practice humility before God.

So let our sacrifice be in your presence today

as we follow you unreservedly...

It is through our personal humility

 that we choose to make sacrifices before God.

Only you can decide what constitutes a sacrifice for you.

It is only with the spirit of humility 

that we can unreservedly follow the Lord.

Is it possible to be 'all in' in serving

 the Lord with your whole heart?

It is possible to hold back parts of your heart

 while unreservedly following the Lord?

And now we follow you with our whole heart,

we fear you and we pray to you.

What does it mean to you to follow God

 with your whole heart?

How do you know you are actually using your whole heart?

Using our whole heart means we must tap

 into the uniqueness of God.

The very uniqueness that invites us to forgive

 those who trespass against us no matter how many times it takes.

The very uniqueness that causes us to seek God's mercy.

...deal with us in your kindness and great mercy.

Deliver us by your wonders...

Deliver us by your wonders...

brings us back to honoring and believing

 in the uniqueness of God.

It is often to our benefit that God's 

ways are not our ways.

May your Lent be blessed 

with the wonders of the uniqueness of God.

~~~ Peace ~~~

One Conversation

Third Sunday of Lent

~~~ Exodus 17:3-7 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ 

~~~ Romans 5:1-2, 5-8 ~~~  John 4:5-42 ~~~

Most of us are familiar with the woman at the well.

She came to the well late in the day.

She came for water as she did most days.

This was her normal routine.

She was not expecting to meet anyone at the well, 

surely not a man and absolutely not Jesus.

Imagine what was going through her mind 

when this Jewish stranger spoke to her.

Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink."

Some might say she was the least likely 

person for Jesus to befriend.

He saw something within her...she had longing in her heart.

She came for water but got so much more.

Following her conversation with Jesus 

the Samaritan woman left her water jugs and ran back to town.

The woman left her water jar 

and went into the town and said to the people, 

You might say she left everything behind 

once she learned about this Jew called Jesus.

Do you remember some others in the Bible

 who left everything behind to follow Jesus?

(I think they may have left their nets on the beach.)

"Come see a man who told me everything I have done.

Could he possibly be the Christ?"

This woman can now extend the invitation to 

'come as you are...'

Jesus was eager to come into her town...

eager to meet her neighbors.

She was not someone who ever went 

around enthusiastically engaging others.

This conversation with Jesus

changed her life forever.

Drawing water from the well 

will never be the same for her.

Now she understands the meaning 

of  'living water'.

What are you willing to leave behind?

Who will you tell to 

'come and see'?

Whatever we leave behind

must be as a result

of what we learn from Jesus.

Jesus comes to each one of us...

when you are least expecting him.

Be Blessed this week.

~~~Peace~~~

Sold for Good

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

Here comes that master dreamer!

Joseph's brothers mocked him
by calling him 'the master dreamer'.

We all have dreams.
Why is Joseph different?

Joseph was the youngest of the brothers.
He was born late in the life of his parents.
Perhaps he reported the mischievous behavior to their father.

They were able to find many reasons to tease and taunt him.
When Jacob made Joseph a beautiful new colorful tunic
that was it. The brothers had had enough.

Joseph had recently shared with his father
and his brothers two dreams.

“Look, I had another dream,” he said; “this time, 
the sun and the moon and eleven stars 
were bowing down to me.” Genesis 37:9

They were primed for evil to enter into their hearts.
Once they were away from their father
they began to actively plot his death.

The brothers refused to accept the dreams of Joseph.
He was the laughing stock of his brothers.

Little did they know what God
had planned for their little brother.

Because they were distracted from killing their brother
 by an approaching caravan of Ishmaelites.

Ultimately they sold Joseph into slavery.

For them this was a win win.
They got rid of him and his wild dreams.
The added benefit earned them
some extra money in the deal.

Because of their evil plot, Joseph
was able to save his people
 including his own family
from certain starvation.

Remember the marvels the Lord has done.

What if your worst enemy was the very person
God would use to save your life one day.

How would you feel?

What if you had the opportunity to save
your worst enemy...
Would you do it?

Joseph saw the doom of the great famine in a dream.
He could have kept it to himself and done nothing.

Joseph was given the grace
to understand that God was using him. 

God wanted to save the people from starvation;
it was Joseph who was tasked to tell the King.

The King had learned to listen to Joseph.
More often than not he interpreted his dreams
in the long run to the benefit of the King.

God continues to do great things for his people...
this includes you and me.
God continues to use individuals to bring
about his Divine plans for us.

Be open, God may be planning to use you
in a very unique way.

Now is the time to pray for the grace
to see how and where God wants to use you.

God spoke to Joseph in his dreams.
What do you dream?

Blessed even in your dreams.

~~~ Peace ~~~

Who is God Seeking

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

Jesus scolded the scribes and the Pharisees 

for not being who they claimed to be.

He warned the people to not be fooled

 by their behavior...

their actions were not even aligned 

with their own words.

All their works are performed to be seen.

These holy learned men shrouded

 their true selves in fine clothing.

They become their own diversion.

But nothing can be hidden or disguised before God.

God looks deep within...

God sees the 'pimples' in our soul.

God is not impressed 

with your position at the banquet table.

God seeks those who desire 

a humble and contrite heart.

God seeks those who...

cease doing evil; learn to do good.

This is precisely what we are called 

to do each year during Lent.

We have forty focused days 

to catch ourselves doing evil...

none of us are perfect...we are all sinners.

We have forty focused days 

to learn to do good.

Now is the time to do some soul searching.

Now is the time to stop sinning...at least

 make the serious intention.

Do you really want to do good?

Or is it only when people are watching you?

Jesus shows us the way.

We do not have the task to discover 

what being 'good' means.

God is seeking you.

Help Him find you faster 'do good'

for He already knows who and where you are today.

Blessings 

turn away from evil and do good.

~~~Peace~~~

Light of Hope

~~~ Second Sunday of Lent ~~~

~~~ Genesis 12:1-4A ~~~ Psalm 33 ~~~ 

~~~ 2 Timothy 1:8B-10 ~~~ Matthew 17:1-9 ~~~

Jesus called Peter, James, and John to follow him.

They had no idea that when they followed him

 up this mountain they would be stunned 

by what happened to their leader.

They climbed the mountain to witness 

the blinding light of the divine glory of Jesus.

...he was transfigured before them; 

his face shone like the sun 

and his clothes became white as light.

They were given a glimpse of heaven.

God also sent down Moses and Elijah.

Moses, chosen by God to lead the people to the promised land.

Elijah, one of the greatest Jewish prophets.

When we look at the sun our vision is greatly effected.

You might call it a sunburn of the eyeball.

If the sun is brightly shining in your face you instinctively

 want to protect your eyes from the light.

The human eye is very sensitive to bright light.

During the Transfiguration the face of Jesus 

was as bright as the sun.

The three apostles with Jesus must have initially reacted 

by turning away or covering their eyes.

Subsequently they saw a dark cloud...

heard the voice of God and succumbed to fear.

Jesus immediately responds to their reaction.

He comes to them...

Jesus came and touched them, saying,

"Rise, and do not be afraid."

When we take our last breath many people

 have reported seeing a bright light.

This bright light seems to be an invitation to come closer.

If this is the light from the face of God

 it might explain why there is an experience

 of peace and not fear.

The Transfiguration gives us hope.

"Do not tell the vision to anyone 

until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead."

Let this second week of Lent

bring you closer to realizing that Jesus 

will never leave you or abandon you.

The Transfiguration is the Light of Hope.

~~~ Blessings & Peace ~~~

Story Time

~~~ Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25 ~~~ Psalm 138 ~~~ 

~~~ Matthew 7:7-12 ~~~

As a child my mother read to us every

 day right after lunch.

It was nap time 

for the little ones and 'rest' 

time for the older ones.

She read from this big book 

with a short story for each day of the year.

By the time she reached 'the end' the little ones 

were usually asleep.

Today most young parents have minimal time

 to actually read to their children.

As a child I used to hear from the books

 of my forefathers

that you, O LORD, always

 free those who are pleasing to you.

Esther, in her time of distress,

 is able to recall the goodness of the Lord

because as a child she was read to 

by the adults in her life.

What we hear as young children 

is able to be internalized more easily.

As young children we still have a pure unbiased heart.

Esther draws strength from 

the words she remembers hearing as a child.

If you have the occasion please read Bible 

stories to any child you love.

God the Father is the best parent.

He gives us all that we need.

Which one of you would hand his son a stone

when he asked for a loaf of bread,

or a snake when he asked for a fish?

God listens and answers to our prayers.

He is not ever trying to trick us.

When his answers seem to be a 'stone' or a 'snake'

it is only because he has something better in store for us.

...how much more will your heavenly Father

 give good things

to those who ask him.

If you need a visual during Lent to remind 

you to turn away from sin,

 find a large 'stone' and keep it near you.

Look at that 'stone' remembering...

 God gives you so much more.

Esther received valuable memories from her childhood.

The Gospel today reminds us all to 

believe that we have God as our Father.

Blessed to seek, find, and receive.

~~~Peace~~~