Any part of our hearts in need of healing?

The hypocrisy scale is over the top in today’s Gospel. Each day this week these particular Pharisees have been not only seeing the glass regarding Jesus, half empty, but in today’s account, they are no longer seeing the glass! There is some validity in keeping the Sabbath day holy as I shared yesterday, but today they have thrown that out as well.

The issue today is that when Jesus entered the synagogue he saw a man “who had a withered hand” (Mark 3:1). Of course, Jesus is going to heal the man and on cue, the Pharisees are crouched to see if he is going to do so as well, on the sabbath. Jesus then asks a revealing question: “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than destroy it” (Mark 3:4). Crickets… not a peep from the Pharisees.

Jesus gave them an opportunity to see not only their hypocrisy but revealed to them the darkness of their own hearts. Jesus is about to heal this man, “to do good on the sabbath” and the Pharisees, not only don’t see the gift of this man’s healing and so allow themselves to find healing from their own hardened hearts, but they leave to plan to destroy Jesus’ life. They choose to do evil on the sabbath and justify it by condemning Jesus for healing a man’s hand.

Why such hardness of heart? We aren’t given that insight. In some way they may be threatened by Jesus as King Herod was when he heard of the announcement of Jesus from the Magi from the east. An encounter with Jesus demands a choice, because he is the truth, he is the light that reveals the darkness. It can be easy to see the darkness in others like the Pharisees today.

The man’s hand is restored, and the Pharisees have just left seething with steam coming out of their ears. Each of us are now are invited to step into the scene. Are we willing to step into the synagogue with Jesus? He is facing you right now. His eyes have softened, they are inviting and loving you right in this moment. Is there a healing that you need? Is there a part of your heart that is hardened or wounded that you are willing to share? Is there any unforgiveness, sadness, anxiety that may be constricting your heart?

If you are willing, take that step, open your heart to your Lord and Savior this morning in your own unique way and trust him to reveal to you where we could use a healing or if you know, ask him.

Photo: My view each morning before as I start my day. I have been blessed with a lot of healing heart to heart time with the Divine Physician over the past year and a half.

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, January 17, 2024

May we bring some of the sabbath into today.

“May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to our call” (Ephesians 1:17-18).

When we seek God first in all we think, say and do we will experience more peace in our lives. Taking time to begin our days by opening our heart and mind to God, receiving, resting, and abiding in his love helps us to have eyes to see a little more clearly than if we get up at the last minute and rush into the day at breakneck speed.

We see the importance of this in today’s Gospel. The Pharisees are following Jesus and his disciples to catch him breaking the law so they can bring charges against him. Jesus and his disciples are walking on the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a key identifying feature for the Jewish people.

The Sabbath is a day of rest in which the people are to remember his saving act of freeing them from their slavery in Egypt, honor God and his covenant with his people, and it is also a remembrance that God is the creator who rested on the seventh day and so made this day holy in which no work was to be done. The sabbath rest is one way to help the people to remember who they are as human beings created in God’s image and likeness.

Unfortunately, these Pharisees are seeking to subvert the law for their own agenda. Instead of having the eyes of faith to see God in their midst, on the Sabbath they are seeking to find a way to trap the One who is seeking to heal and save them from their scrupulosity. Jesus does not disregard the gift of the sabbath but seeks to restore it to its proper order as he heals on the Sabbath and allows his disciples to feed themselves when they are hungry. In Jesus saying, “the Son of Man is the lord even of the sabbath” (Mark 2:28) he is harkening back to the dignity of humanity who has been created very good.

We have been created very good. We are God’s beloved daughters and sons. May we give ourselves some time to begin this day in stillness and be grateful for the gift of this day, the gift that we have a God that loves us and wants the best for us, and return throughout the day no matter our schedule to give ourselves moments of rest and renewal, to spend time in God’s presence to be still, to be loved, and to be a light to others that we meet.

Photo: Looking up to the heavens and taking some deep, slow breaths is a good way to rest and reset!

Link for the Mass readings for Tuesday, January 16, 2024

The Holy Spirit is the new wine that will grow within us if we are willing to change.

God is not a tyrant. God is not checking his list and checking it twice to see who’s naughty or nice. God is not teeing up the football to pull it up at the last second as we are running up to kick it. God does not ask us to walk onto a rug and pull it out from under us.

Anything that God requires of us, asks of us, and the boundaries he establishes for us are done out of love for us. God wills our good and wants the best for us. God knows what will make each and every one of us in our own unique way fulfilled, to have meaning, joy, and experience freedom, love, and wholeness in our lives. God has a purpose for our lives that aligns with his will for the unity of all of humanity and creation.

It is from this context that we can understand our readings and the Bible as well. Saul is being corrected by Samuel because he was not obedient to God’s command. You cannot be partially obedient, as Saul was attempting to justify when he said that he obeyed the LORD and fulfilled the mission. Samuel showed that Saul had not done so (See I Samuel 50:8-23).

In the Gospel, Jesus gives the imagery of changing the old wine skins to new ones otherwise the old ones will burst as the wine ferments and expands. Newer and flexible skins are necessary (Mark 2:18-22). The new wine we are to receive is the life of the Holy Spirit within us, that can only breath and expand when we are willing to be flexible, to change and to grow. We can only change and grow when we are obedient to God.

Unfortunately, when many of us hear the words change, obedience, or discipline, we cringe or constrict. Yet, even in the natural, material world, there are many examples of the positive effects of a willingness to change, establish boundaries, order, discipline, and obedience. Resistance happens when we are operating under a false belief or apparent good that distorts our freedom. Freedom is not doing what we want, when we want, how and whenever we want. Those are examples of a freedom of indifference that leads us down the path of attachment, addiction, and slavery to sin.

God today is inviting us to experience a freedom for excellence. To have the freedom to play any instrument fluently, we need to be obedient to the teacher, discipline ourselves to practice, and be open to correction. Partial obedience, not being diligent with our times of practice, resisting guidance and correction, will limit our freedom to play. This is true in so many other areas of the arts, sports, occupation, relationships, family, and our spiritual life.

I still have the same guitar my father gave me when I was about seven. I still can’t play any music because I was not willing to discipline myself to play it and so I do not have the freedom to play any music. I have been obedient and put in the time and energy, discipline and sacrifice necessary to be ordained a deacon and blessed to have been serving as a deacon for these past ten years.

The bottom line is, do we trust the one who is guiding us? In this case, do we trust God that he has our best interest in mind? If we do, then we will be more likely to be obedient to his will, trust in his guidance, make the sacrifices necessary, and follow where he is leading us. That is what Jesus and Mary did, what the saints did, and what we can do, one step, one yes at a time. Easy? No. With his Son, Mary, the saints, still doing and willing to help us, as well as each other accompanying and supporting us, possible? Yes.

Photo: Rosary walk last night, St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, Boynton Beach, FL.

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, January 15, 2024

“Speak, your servant is listening.”

God.

Even if we believe in God, do we make the time to think or ponder about God? Doing so may be difficult because there are so many diversions and distractions and we can be busy, busy, busy, and anxious about so many things that we can even take each other for granted, those who we see in a concrete and tangible way right before us.

We, being finite and so small, how can we even begin to comprehend God? He is transcendent and infinite, meaning he is not just another being among the many beings of creation. He is not even a supreme being. God is the foundation, the creator, the redeemer of all of creation. All that God has created has come to be as an outpouring of his love. Nothing would exist, we would not exist, without God. And even though he seems so far beyond our reach, God is closer to us than we are to ourselves!

Jesus helps us to understand this truth when he gives us the Lord’s Prayer. The first line tells us so much: “Our Father who art in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). The words who art, meaning who is, in heaven while we are here on earth, represents the reality that he is so beyond us. God transcends all space and time, and yet… Jesus begins this prayer, that we have been saying generation after generation since he taught his apostles and others, that the One who is in heaven is our Father. We are to address and relate to the infinite God not as some impersonal, random force, but as Father. In a healthy and whole sense, that is an intimate and close relationship.

How do we then relate to “Our Father, who art in Heaven”? The first reading and the gospel can be of help.

The young Samuel who has been dedicated by his mother Hannah to serve in the temple at Shiloh has woken up three times hearing, who he thought was the priest, Eli, call his name. Eli confirmed that it was not he who spoke. He then guided Samuel that if his name was called again, to say, “Speak, for your servant is listening” (I Samuel 3:10). Which Samuel does and God speaks.

God can speak to us directly or as Joseph and Mary experienced through the intercession of angels. This happens most often as with Samuel, Mary, and Joseph in times of quiet. As St. Mother Teresa taught, “God speaks in the silence of the heart.” It is not so much that we have to go looking for God because as the foundation of our being and our loving Father, he is already inviting us to encounter and experience him. Our very desire to seek him is our first awareness of his invitation to enter into a relationship with him. What is needed is that we learn to stop and listen, and then like Samuel, come to know and distinguish his voice.

We can also come to know God through the guidance of others. In our Gospel today, John the Baptist points his disciples to Jesus and says, “Behold the Lamb of God” (John 1:36). There are people in our lives that have experienced the voice of God, developed a relationship with him, and they can guide us as John did.

Some other ways that I have experienced God speak to me in the silence of my heart has been through my own personal reading of the Bible, times of prayer and meditation, hearing his word proclaimed in Mass, through Jesus, present in the Eucharist, through music, in experiencing the beauty of creation, spiritual direction, and experiences with many others who have guided me. None of these experiences have been booming, mystical encounters. Most have been quiet urgings, prods, and invitations.

The other challenge is that we hear so many voices inside and outside of our minds that we need to develop and discern whose voice we are listening to. Understandably, when Samuel first heard his name called, he would think it to be Eli. It took a bit for Eli to also recognize what was happening. Discerning God’s voice in the midst of so many voices in our world today is a challenge.

The enemy and the liar also seek to undo and destroy us. He and his demons will do the opposite of God and the angels. They will entice and tempt us to choose apparent goods that will lead us away from God and what will truly make us happy, then condemn us for doing so and seek to get a hold in our minds to continue to isolate us.

The voice of the Father, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and his angels, convict us when we are doing or choosing something that leads us astray, but the choice is still ours to make as well as receiving the consequences. No matter what, God is right beside us to catch us when we fall, forgives us, and heals us when we are willing to come back to him. As soon as we do, he will embrace us with open arms.

There is no limit to the ways that God communicates to us. He knows us best and he knows what will open our hearts and minds to him most. What we need to do is learn to slow ourselves down, be willing to take some deep breaths, be still, say, “Speak, Lord your servant is listening”, continue to be still, listen in the moment and throughout the day and each day and allow God to happen!

As we more consistently do so, we will begin to discern better the deceptive voices of the enemy, be able to renounce them, and free ourselves from his grasp. We will also recognize God’s voice, experience his forgiveness, healing, and love and will be freer to live lives of meaning, fulfillment, and joy and help others to do the same.

Photo: St. Mary’s Chapel, St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, Boynton Beach, FL., one of my favorite places to pray and listen for God’s voice.

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, January 14, 2023

Are we willing to follow Jesus as well?

Jesus said to him, “Follow me” (Mark 2:14).

Jesus said this to Levi also known as Matthew. As with Peter, James, John, and Andrew, there was no convincing, no preambles, or lengthy arguments, just “Come and see”, “Come and follow me, and I will make you fishers of men”, or as with today, “Follow me.” Each of these men did just that, they followed Jesus’ call and remained with him for the next three years and also were willing to give their lives for Jesus.

They did not start perfect, sin free, and ready to go. They were imperfect, were sinners, were not the best and the brightest, nor were they worthy. What all four had in common was that they heard the command of Jesus, and they were willing to follow him.

Jesus was criticized for calling Matthew and for eating with him and his friends. In doing so, Jesus was not condoning their sinful behavior, he respected them as human beings with dignity and worth first and foremost. He saw them as beloved children of his loving Father who needed help, redirection, forgiveness, and healing. His response to his critics was: “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mark 2:17).

Matthew and the other apostles did not answer their call just once. Each day they had to make a decision to walk away or to continue to follow Jesus. In their daily commitment, persistence, and trusting Jesus even when they did not understand him, they grew in their relationship with Jesus and were transformed. We receive the same call this morning. Jesus is saying to each of us, “Follow me.” As with Matthew and the Apostles, so with us, this is a unique call to be loved by him first and foremost. We are invited to breathe, rest, receive, and abide in his love.

This is an incredible invitation to start every day. To allow the loving gaze of the Divine Physician to rest upon us, the same eyes that looked upon Matthew, look at us. This can be as we first open our eyes, over a cup of coffee, or sitting in a quiet place we have created for ourselves. Jesus calls us in this moment and invites us to receive his love. As this becomes a part of our daily rhythm, as we begin to experience and rest in his love, we will begin to feel safe and secure in a way that nothing material can provide and nothing else but him can fill. As this foundation of love begins to grow within us, then we can begin to heal, acknowledge and confess our sins, and begin to distinguish between the voice of the enemy who wishes us ill or the voice of Jesus who seeks our freedom.

The liar asks us, “Are you worthy?” Our savior asks us, “Are we willing?”

Painting: Caravaggio’s The calling of St. Matthew

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, January 13, 2024

Are we willing to see his star?

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage” (Mt 2:1-2).

This account from Matthew has much for us to ponder as we draw closer to the end of the Christmas season and begin another year together.

The magi – the wisemen, astrologers, three kings as the magi are represented in different accounts and song were watching, for they saw “his star at its rising.” As soon as the star rose, they looked upon it and knew it was a sign of “the new born king of the Jews.” And then they followed the star. They left the place of birth, their homes, their comfort to do this baby homage. This baby who was not a king of their people but another people in another land.

They faced no danger that we know of on the way, although this was no easy journey. The only danger that comes is when they approach King Herod and they no longer can see the star. Herod is “greatly troubled” by this announcement of the promise of the king of the Jews in his territory for unlike John the Baptist, Herod is not willing to become less so that Jesus can become more.

That the Christ is to be born in Bethlehem is revealed by the chief priests and the scribes, but that the new king has been born is unknown to Herod or to them. Herod, nor the priests, or scribes are aware of this new birth until the magi had told them, even though they had the scriptures. Their hearts and minds were closed to the truth because they were unwilling to do what the magi did, do him homage and surrender their lives to this newborn king.

Upon the magi’s leaving King Herod, they saw the star again, and the magi followed it with great joy. They followed it and came upon the house in which Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were staying. “The house”, no longer a cave or a stable. When Joseph and Mary first came to Bethlehem, they were refused entrance into any home or inn. At some point someone was willing to allow them shelter and a place to stay.

The magi came to Jesus and did him homage and gave them their gifts. Then were warned in a dream to not return to Herod. They honored the newborn king and not King Herod, and they left for their country by another way.

On this day as we celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany with this account from Matthew, we can just endure this story or pass it off as a nice tale we hear each year. Or, like the Magi, we can allow our hearts and minds to come alive with the wonder and gift we have been given. We can assess where we find ourselves right now. Are we more like Herod or the magi? Are we closed to moments of wonder and the divine light leading us or are we watching and praying to see the invitation that Jesus offers us in our lives at the beginning of and throughout each, and every day? It is easy to slip into a life of business, of just doing one thing after another, and we miss the star rising in our hearts that is leading us to experience a deeper relationship, a deeper experience of the king of our lives.

We are invited this morning to open our hearts and minds to the newborn king. We are invited to slow down and enter an ongoing and growing relationship with him. We have an opportunity to invite this newborn king to have access to all of us, that we may, like the magi, prostrate ourselves before him and surrender our whole lives to him.

Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We have seen his star, and it is rising from the depths of our souls and into our hearts. Are we willing to see this Light, are we willing to follow and be transformed by this Light, and are we willing to radiate this Light to others?

Jesus is the Light that invites us to be loved, to receive his love, and allow it to touch our pain, our wounds, our fears, and our insecurities, that we may rest and abide in his love. As we do so, we can learn how to breathe again, our shoulders can come out of our ears, we can be still and if need be, let the tears flow, so we can be healed, so we can be made whole again, so we can live our lives as a people who hope, dream, and wonder in this new year.

Photo:  A beautiful day enjoying the radiance of the light back in October.

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, January 7, 2023

Acknowledge and ponder that you are a beloved daughter or son of God.

On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased” (Mark 1:10-11).

Jesus was not baptized because he needed to repent. He did so as a foreshadowing of his taking upon himself our sins on the Cross. Just as the heavens were torn open and the Holy Spirit comes down and God the Father speaks, we are on sacred ground ourselves in experiencing the presence of the Holy Trinity.

Jesus in coming to earth “opened up heaven for us in the humanity he assumed” (St. Irenaeus). This imagery of the heavens being torn open is similar to the veil separating the deepest part of the temple, the Holy of Holies, where God was believed to dwell, being torn open when Jesus was crucified.

Because of and through Jesus there is no longer any separation between us and the Father other than what we allow to stand between us and separate ourselves from him. Jesus, being called the Father’s beloved Son, is a reminder to us that we are his beloved children. This is a truth we need to stop and ponder regularly so that we remember who and whose we are.

And when we are dealing with the challenges that arise, John’s words from today’s first reading are for you, “Beloved: Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (John 5:5).

When we truly believe in Jesus, we can experience the truth that we are the Father’s beloved daughter and son, and we are victorious. Victorious! We need to continue to remember that. The challenge is when we let the whisperings of the enemy rest anywhere near us. As we notice them, we are not to argue or dialogue with the enemy, get down on ourselves, but instead just renounce him and his lies, and open our hearts and minds again and again to Jesus our savior, our healer, defender, and friend.

As we breathe deeply regularly and invite the love of Jesus to fill us, not only does our lung capacity increase, but our faith will also increase. We will also experience and know that we are loved and redeemed! When we rest, receive, and abide in God’s love, acknowledge and accept that we are his beloved children with whom he is well pleased, we will live lives experiencing freedom, peace, and joy.

Photo: Jesus wants to share his love and joy with us, and we will experience these gifts when we are willing to slow down enough to receive them! One of Egret Landing’s residents sharing the light and joy of the Christmas Season, seen while on my Rosary walk a few nights ago.

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, January 6, 2024

Spend some time with Jesus.

In our gospel readings, over the past few days we have experienced Jesus’ initial encounters with who will become his apostles. Andrew encountered Jesus and was moved by his experience during their time together and then went to tell his brother Peter about Jesus.

Today, Philip is found by Jesus, and Jesus asks Philip to follow him. Apparently, he does, and something happens because in the next scene Philip has found Nathaniel and shared with him: “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”

Nathanael hesitates as he first hears this news. What pulls him up short, even though Philip has just shared with him that Jesus is the one who is to fulfill the promise of Moses, is where Jesus is from as revealed when he asks, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”

The Pharisees also resisted believing in Jesus because of where he was from. Despite Nathanael’s hesitancy, he trusted Philip enough to “come and see.” Unlike many of the Pharisees, when Nathanael heard Jesus say that he had already seen him under the fig tree before they met, Nathanael let go of his prejudgment and believed.

Through the Apostles who came, saw, and believed, Jesus began his Church. As they came to know Jesus, like Nathanael, each had to let go of preconceptions that limited their understandings of Jesus. Also, their limitations as finite human beings held them back. Through their trust and belief, and commitment, they deepened their relationship with Jesus, and they were transformed, made new.

Jesus met them where they were in those first encounters, and slowly but surely, with fits and starts, missteps and misunderstandings, they grew and matured. Jesus has found and calls us as well.

Like his Apostles and those who continued and continue to follow Jesus through each generation since then, we too can come and see. We can see and experience him in his word alive in Sacred Scripture, personally in our time of daily prayer and meditation, as well as proclaimed during the Mass. We can encounter him intimately and are transformed by him in the Eucharist and the sacraments. We encounter him in our serving and love of one another and in our sharing of the experiences we had with him as Andrew and Philip did.

Jesus has come to be with you right now in this moment. He has found you just as he found Philip. I invite you to read today’s gospel passage slowly (John 1:43-51). You can read once or a few times, and then slow and deepen your breath, close your eyes, and allow yourself to enter the scene you just read.

Allow yourself to enter Jesus’ memory, invite him to lead you as you walk up to stand by Philip and Nathanael. Spend some time in silence with Jesus now. See Jesus turn his face from them and look to you. Is there anything or any thoughts that may be causing you to hesitate as did Nathanael? What does Jesus say to you? How do you respond? What happens next? Do you stay with Philip and Nathanael, or does Jesus lead you off to the side to talk? This time is for you and him to spend together, to get to know one another better. These questions are only guides to get you going. You can use some or all, or disregard some or all. Trust in Jesus, he will lead you. Enjoy!

Photo: Last night’s Rosary walk, Egret Landing, Jupiter, FL.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, January 5, 2023

Behold the Lamb of God and follow him.

John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God” (John 1:29).

John confessed earlier when asked if he was the messiah that he wasn’t. John knew who he was in the plan of God’s salvation. He did not claim to be more than he was but accepted his position as the one who would prepare the way for the messiah. Here he is doing just that with two of his disciples. Not seeking to hold on to them so that they would follow him but pointing to Jesus as the one to follow and give their lives to.

Andrew, one of the two of John’s disciples, would have picked up on the reference regarding the lamb of God right away. This is the lamb that would be sacrificed at the Passover meal each year. How that referred to Jesus, Andrew, Peter’s brother, and who would become one of the Twelve Apostles, would come to understand later as he experienced Jesus’ passion, death, resurrection, and ascension.

Jesus gave his life for us, not just so that we could exist, not to race through life at breakneck speed, but to live a life of meaning, purpose, fulfillment, service, in balance, and abiding in God’s love. This is not to mean that we won’t suffer. It means that as we surrender our lives to Jesus and his timetable, even when challenges arise, we can experience his peace in the midst of what we are going through.

Often, we miss John’s invitation to, “Behold the Lamb of God” because we are not paying attention, we are distracted or diverted, we are “anxious and troubled about many things.” We need to catch our breath and slow down more often than we allow ourselves to.

I have shared a lot in these morning texts about the importance of slowing down – breathing, resting, receiving, abiding in God’s love, and only a few days ago, thinking I was writing that too much. I need the reminder, as I believe we all do. Life goes too fast and so many of us hop on board the train of life that whizzes by and we are barely hanging on with one hand. That is not how God intended or wanted us to live.

One reason we may not to slow down is we aren’t ready, willing, or able to face the pain of our past nor surrender our will to Jesus and invite him to reveal to us what we need to let go of. Slowing down is not easy but with the love of God our Father is possible. We will not be crushed by what we fear to see. We will be loved, forgiven, and healed.

Berating ourselves for not slowing down does not help. We need to give ourselves permission to be kind and patient with ourselves. The thing about slowing down, is we need to slow down to slow down and that takes consistency and time of repeatedly doing so. The good news is that you have already begun the process of doing so.

A good place to ground our efforts, is to set up a sacred space in our homes that we can go to everyday, ideally the same time and same place each day. It doesn’t have to be amazing or perfect, it can and ought to be simple. Some place comfortable to sit and something to focus on like a statue, picture, candle, a view outside… The point is that you have a place to go where you can be still, focus, breath, and pray.

Best to start small and build from there. 5-10 minutes is good. A simple prayer you can start with is, “Jesus, please help me to slow down.” You can also follow John’s invitation, “Behold the lamb of God.” Behold Jesus in your imagination as Andrew did in person and follow his lead. Then just sit with Jesus and breathe. And bring either of these prayers back up when your mind drifts away. You can also start simply and slowly and stay with the sign of the Cross or the Our Father. The point is not to seek a mystical experience, not to grasp at anything. The point is to be still with Jesus. As Mary shared with me, when you show up each day, God will happen! That is true whether you experience something or not!

Creating for ourselves a sacred space and showing up there daily is a good anchor point to start with each day, and from there, we have made an intention to slow down as the first decision and action of our day. We have invited Jesus to help us, and then we can carry that intention and Jesus with us through the rest of the day and return anytime we need with a simple closing of your eyes, slowing down of our breathe, and calling on his name or short passage from Scripture. Jesus will help us to put the pieces of a balanced lifestyle together.

Remember, Jesus loves us as we are right in this moment. Nothing needs to be changed before he helps us other than inviting him to be with us and be still enough to experience him in the moment and then, one breath at a time, allow him to happen in our lives, and he will lead us step by gentle step, as Andrew and the other disciple of John did. They spent an afternoon with Jesus and their lives were transformed. Ours can be too!

Behold, trust, and spend some time with the Lamb of God!

Photo: Quiet Rosary evening walk last Monday night.

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, January 4, 2024

Unconditional love is possible when we allow God to bestow his love on us.

“See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are” (I John 3:1).

Sometimes, or too many times, this truth that John is sharing with his community and with us this morning is hard to receive but these words are true. God bestows on us his love as we are right now in the moment. He is not waiting for us to do anything right, to be perfect, and/or to say the perfect prayer. Our Father just wants to love us as we are right now as we are in this moment. He loves us more than we can mess up, he loves us when we sin and even in the act of our committing sin, and he loves us more than we can imagine.

God also loves us uniquely in the way we are in most need. The key is that he loves us on his terms not ours. He knows what we need, the deepest desires of our hearts and souls. He loves us unconditionally and infinitely.

The challenge is, that our concept of what love is, has been distorted by influences of the enemy and the fallen world around us. So as the country singer, Johnny Lee, sang in 1980, we are, “Lookin’ for love in all the wrong places.” We are looking because God made us to be loved and to love in return, that is our deepest yearning and hunger: to be loved, to belong, to be seen, to be heard, and to be understood.

Time and again though, we fall because we grasp like Adam and Eve did. We want to determine love on our terms, on our conditions, believing that if we can be in control, we can be safe and won’t be hurt. The problem is that authentic love is to be received and it is just not about feelings, emotions, sentiments, comfort, or security. All of those come from the reality of love, but the foundation must be grounded in the unconditional love of God.

Authentic love is about being vulnerable to another. It is not about grasping but about receiving. It is not a presenting of ourselves in a false way that we believe another wants us to be but a willingness to be ourselves and risk that we will be rejected or accepted as we are, with our imperfections as well as our positive attributes. Love is also about sacrifice, our willingness to give ourselves to another, to be there for them. As St. Thomas Aquinas taught, “Love is to will the good of the other as other.”

Even if we have a correct understanding of love, we are still finite and have a limited point of view. Unconditional love is a love that we cannot learn on our own. We must experience God’s love to transcend our finite understanding of love. May we make time consistently to be still and allow God to bestow his infinite love upon us. Then we will remember who we are, his beloved children. And as we remember, may we see each other as God sees us, with his infinite love.

Photo: Sanctuary at St Gabriel Catholic Church, Windsor, CT

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, December 3, 2023