What Really Matters

   Once again I'm reminded that most of what we worry and concern ourselves about is not nearly as important as we may think.

   As I sit here with the love of my life lying in a bed in ICU I realize how trivial most things really are.   I wish I could always remember this truth; I don't like the reminders. 

   I thank God and give Him all praise and glory for the fact that we will get through this crisis.  She will be fine and our life together will go on.

   This is what truly matters.   All else is smoke and mirrors.   Love of family,  love of God and love of others is what we should be most concerned with.   The rest may need our attention from time to time but should never take the focus from our love and our faith in our Lord and His love for us. 

   Many prayers have been and continue to be offered for my wife's recovery.   God hears them all and I know she is safe in His hands.  Nothing else really matters. 

I place her in your care Lord.

I know you love and care for her. 

Thank You for the many blessings we have been given. 

Thank You for the blessings yet to come. 

AmenI 

Do Not Fear

   “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship.” (Romans 8: 15)

Jesus spoke often about fear.  On numerous occasions He told the apostles and others to be not afraid; to fear not.  When we fear, we lack confidence in His words.  Of what should we be afraid if He is with us?  Nothing can separate us from His love and mercy.

   Fear is something we are meant to overcome in our life.  We will all experience it; the key is our response.  If we allow, Satan will use our fear to pull us from God; to make us believe that we are abandoned and unloved.  If we rebuke him and turn to God in our fear He will calm our anxieties and remind us of His presence and His love for us.  Jesus says it perfectly, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both body and soul.” (Matt 10: 28).  Be afraid only of the one who can steal us away from God; turn to God and Satan will flee.

   Fear is one of the strongest of our emotions.  Our fear can either strengthen our faith and dependence on the Lord or it can destroy it.  Fear can rule our life, or we can overcome our fear; the choice is ours.  With God, we can be unafraid.

   “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  (Matt 28: 20)

Tested

   “My son, if you come forward to serve the Lord, remain in justice and fear, and prepare yourself for temptation.” (Sirach 2: 1)

   We are promised many blessings when we choose to serve God.  Peace in this world is not among them.  Over and over we see in scripture that those who choose God will suffer temptations, trials and difficulties.  We may find some peace but there will also be trials and hardships.

 

   Any goal worth achieving requires diligence and hard work.  Success in most all endeavors includes sacrifice and suffering.  No matter the prize being sought, there will be a cost.  Unless we are willing to accept the cost, experience the pain and make the sacrifice we can’t receive the reward.

   Consider the sacrifices our Lord made.  He was rejected by the ones He came to save.  He was betrayed by one of His apostles and abandoned by the others.  He was brutalized, beaten and nailed to a cross, suffering a death reserved for the worst of criminals.

   Now consider that the sacrifices, pain and death of Jesus was for our benefit; to pay the debt of our sins and offer us salvation.  Should we not expect to share to some degree in payment?  Certainly Christ’s sacrifices were enough; nothing else was required.  But I offer any pain, discomfort, and sacrifice to Him in honor and thanksgiving for all He has done for me.

   Gold is tested in fire; Christians are tested in the crucible of temptations, difficulties and sacrifice.  Pray that we have the faith and strength to pass the test.

   “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”  (2 Cor 4: 8 - 10)

Lord, You sacrificed all for our salvation.

May our trials and sufferings be a sharing in that sacrifice.

May we always give you praise and glory.

May we offer our all to You.

Amen

The Pride Within

   “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 15: 18)

   We are prideful.  We look to the good things we’ve done and take credit for them rather than giving the glory to God.  We see the evil we do and take pride that we are not as bad as many others rather than seeking the forgiveness and mercy of God for our wrong-doings.

   Satan was able to tempt Adam and Eve by promising them they would become like God, knowing what is good and what is evil.  Their sin was one of pride; a desire to become like God.

   Society teaches us pride.  There are awards and banquets for those who do well.  Trophies line the halls of schools and university buildings as a sign of school pride and a sense that some are better than others.  Recognizing achievements is a good thing, but we so often forget that without God we could achieve nothing.

   I’m always pleased when I see or hear someone who is being celebrated for their accomplishments give the credit and glory to God.  It’s heartening to know that they understand their talents are a God-given gift.  But this is not the norm, it is a rarity.  And those who acknowledge our Lord are often laughed at and belittled for their faith.

   Our pride is within us always, it will never fully depart.  Satan uses it against us just as he did against our parents in the Garden of Eden.  We can overcome pride but only through God’s grace.  Even then there is the danger of taking credit for our victory rather than giving glory and praise to God.  Pride once again rearing its' ugly head.

   Pride is the forerunner of virtually all sin; humility is the antidote.  Give God the glory and recognize that we are capable of nothing without Him.

Lord our pride is great.

We take the credit when it is Yours.

We believe we can do all things.

Teach us that nothing is possible without You.

Amen

Don’t Delay

   Time is a wonderful thing.  When used wisely it gives the opportunity for success in many things.  When wasted, time takes those opportunities away.  They may come again but we can never be sure.

   We think time is ours to use and in many ways it is.  But time is a limited resource.  When young we think we have many years ahead of us.  We believe we have a lifetime to correct our mistakes.  This may be true, but we have no way of knowing the length of our lifetime.  It may be many years or only a few seconds.  Accidents, misfortunes and illnesses do not consider the age of those affected; they simply happen.

   One of the greatest tragedies of not using time wisely is the loss of one’s soul.  Each day the opportunity is there to turn to God and yet many put it off.  St. Augustine once said, “O Lord, help me to be pure, but not yet.”  This is the attitude many take in their relationship with God.  They want salvation and want to go to heaven, but they don’t want it to interfere with the earthly joys and experiences of this world.  They believe they will have enough time to seek God when they are too old to do anything else.

   It’s easy to see why the average age in many churches is much older than the population at large.  Growing older reminds us of our mortality; something youth tries to ignore.  Sadly, many of those who are planning to find God and seek His forgiveness later in life will never have that opportunity; only God knows the number of our days.

   There are many things that we can safely put off for a few days or even years.  Seeking God is not one of them.  God is eternally loving and forgiving; He wants us to come to Him.  But we must reach out and take His hand.  Tomorrow may not come; this moment may be all we have.  Don’t waste it.

Father, You want us to come to You.

Your love and mercy is always before us.

Give us the wisdom to accept them today.

That we may not lose all by delay.

Amen

Evil In The World

   In today’s society it’s very easy to believe that there is more evil than there has ever been.  We see sexual excesses and depravity; we see babies killed in the womb on a whim.  We see wars, starvation and terrible injustices.  No one seems to care.

   There is no doubt that there is a lot of evil in the world.  We see more of it than any generation before because we have news organizations showing it to us twenty-four hours a day.  Still I wonder if it’s truly worse than ever before.

   “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Gen 6: 5).  Mankind had become so evil that God decided to eliminate them entirely.  Only Noah found favor with God and through him humanity was saved from destruction.

   Sodom and Gomorrah was so evil that only Lot and his family were found worthy to be saved.  The rest were destroyed.  “Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;” Gen 19: 24).

   Throughout scripture we see the evil man has done and the punishments imposed because of it.  The Israelites suffered slavery and exile when they turned from God and His ways.  Evil was everywhere when Jesus lived.  The Romans were cruel oppressors; the priests and religious leaders cared more for their own status than for God and His people.  The greatest evil of all was perpetrated; the crucifixion of our Lord.

   Great evil exists today just as it has always has.  There is no reason to think it will be any different tomorrow.  Yet, there has remained a remnant of faithful; Noah during his time, Lot and his family in Sodom and Gomorrah.  As Christians we are the faithful remnant of our time.  We fight the good fight against evil and wait in expectation for the return of our blessed Lord, Jesus Christ.  Only then will evil be truly destroyed.

Lord, there is so much wrong in the world.

Help us to fight it where we can.

Strengthen us to overcome what can be overcome.

Come again soon in Your glory.

Amen

Windows of the Soul

   Our soul is like a house with windows clouded by the wants, desires and priorities in life.  The light of God is lessened by the dirt and grime on those windows.  My biggest regret is not thoroughly cleaning them many years ago to let the light of God shine through.  The brilliance of His light makes all else seem trivial and fair less important.

   As a young man, I had no faith.  I barely knew of God and faith had not yet entered my life.  Through the grace of God I found faith and joined the Church.  Still my faith was young and insecure.  I lacked understanding and even the real desire to learn more.  I had found faith but had yet to let it grow within me.

   My faith began to increase over the years, but I was still a novice in faith.  I didn’t devote the time and effort needed to make it grow.  A Navy career and a second civilian career took most of my time.  I was wrapped up in worldly matters.  I worked hard to succeed in my Naval career and put in many hours to grow and develop my career in the business world.  Sadly, my priorities were focused on secular concerns rather than the spiritual.

   I began to recognize that I was missing something that no amount of hard work in any profession could satisfy.  I needed more.  My turning point began when I attended a retreat focused on Christ and His will for our life.  At that retreat I finally understood that if my faith were to grow I would have to make it a priority.  If I were to better know and love God and increase my faith it would have to become the main goal in life.

   I’ve come to realize that all that went before is as ashes; nothing could compare with the joy and peace found in getting to know my God at a deeper level and allowing Him to increase my faith as He wills.

Lord, faith is a gift.

You give it to those who ask and seek it.

Fill me with the faith that overcomes all things.

Amen

The Journey Home

   When we think of a long journey we normally think of airplane schedules and traveling at high speed far above the earth.  We get where we are going much quicker that way but there are trade-offs involved.  The view from an airplane window at thirty-thousand feet can be incredible but we lose many of the small details of the world we are flying over.  Those details are an important part of the journey.

   I think of the hardships experienced by early explorers on their trek into the unknown.  By sea on sailing vessels or on land by covered wagon many challenges were faced each day.  Storms at sea and on land could delay or even destroy the dream of seeking new places and new lives.  Ships sank in the rough waters, killing all on board.  Blizzards or dust storms took the lives of entire wagon trains in the westward movement in this country.  In many cases lives were lost, dreams never fulfilled.

   Our journey is a spiritual one that can’t be taken via airplanes, trains or even cars.  We must face the daily challenges within ourselves; challenges that can’t be overcome by any means other than self-awareness, prayer and faith in our Lord.  Those who explored new lands and new places faced constant struggle and dangers.  The trials we may face on our way to God are no less real and, at times, no less dangerous.

   When we embark on our journey to God we begin a life-long effort to reach our destination.  We can’t stop along the way and say we’ve gone far enough; we must continue if we are to achieve our goal.  There are joys and dangers in any worthwhile journey.  Our trip will be beautiful and fulfilling as well as difficult at times.  Early explorers sought a better life and risked all to find it.  We seek a heavenly home and risk all to get there.

Father we seek our home with You.

Watch over us on our travels.

Show us the way.

Lead us home.

Amen

God’s Mercy

   “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord; though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” (Isaiah 1: 18)

   Many of the sins I’ve committed are like scarlet, red like crimson.  Still God has forgiven them through His love and mercy.  It’s hard for me to comprehend a God of perfection who is so generous with one who is so far from perfection.  I don’t deserve His love or forgiveness, but still He loves me and forgives my failings.  My God is an awesome God.

   We may think we have sinned so greatly that forgiveness is not possible.  This is Satan tempting us to doubt God’s mercy and love for us.  He would have us believe that God will quit loving us if we commit too many sins; he says that God doesn't love a sinner.  God says otherwise.  There is nothing we can do that will cause God to stop loving us.  Even if we reject Him completely He will continue to love us.

   God comes to us seeking our love; He wants to forgive our sins and welcome us into His family.  We are the only one who can stand in His way of doing so.  Satan can’t stop His love, sins can’t revoke His mercy.  We must choose to accept or refuse God and His love, no one can make that decision for us.  Our heavenly Father waits for our return; the angels rejoice at our choice of salvation.

   Sins will happen; we can’t avoid them no matter how hard we try.  We are a flawed race without the ability to save ourselves.  Jesus came to overcome our flaws, to accept our sinfulness upon Himself and to die in place of us.  Only through Christ can our sins become white as snow.

Father, Your mercy is endless;

Your love eternal.

Forgive us our sins.

Give us the grace to avoid sin.

Amen

The Spirit of Lent

   In a few weeks we will celebrate Easter.  This is an appropriate time to put aside earthly matters and pay more attention to the spiritual.  A time to realize that we will never be at home in this world.  Our home is in heaven if we choose to accept it.

   The Church identifies this period as Lent, forty days of fasting, sacrifice and repentance for our sins.  Forty days to contemplate the gift of salvation given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ.  Forty days to remember the suffering He endured for our salvation.  He was rejected by those He came to save; betrayed by one of His chosen apostles and abandoned by the others.  Finally, He was brutally beaten, forced to carry His cross through the streets of Jerusalem and crucified.  His death paid the price for our sins.

   A time to sacrifice and fast; a time to remember that we are dust and unto dust we will return.  A time also of thanksgiving that God loved us so much that He chose to become man and suffer in our place in order to open the doors to heaven.

   Let’s take the time over the next few weeks to look deeply within ourselves.  Seek God in prayer and contemplation; look to Him for guidance and strength.  Make the effort to truly live the spirit of Lent; a spirit of sorrow and repentance for our sins; a spirit of thanksgiving for all Jesus sacrificed for us; a determination to amend our lives fighting to avoid sin wherever possible; and a spirit of the joy we will celebrate on Easter Sunday.

Lord, help us to seek You in all things.

Help us to focus on the suffering of Christ for us.

To thank Him for His many sacrifices for us.

Lead us to follow His example in our own life.

Amen

Everyday Blessings

   God blesses us in so many ways.  Unfortunately, we don’t often notice most of them.  We are looking for the eye-catching, awesome blessings that occasionally occur but ignore the daily blessings we are granted each day of our life.

   I woke up this morning; some did not.  I felt rested and comfortable when I awoke; many slept fitfully and awoke in pain.  I live in a comfortable home with heat, air-conditioning and hot and cold running water; many struggle to stay warm and suffer from a scarcity of decent water.  I had a good breakfast and will have lunch and dinner; many woke up hungry and will remain hungry throughout the day.  These are just a few of the ways God has blessed me and most of the people I know.  Yet we not only accept these blessings but expect them and rarely take the time to thank the Lord for them.

   My wife and I share a love that grows deeper each day and has for nearly fifty years.  Many don’t know love in their life or have lost the love of their life.

   I have found God and have faith that He is the answer to everything.  I have the comfort and joy of knowing that God has prepared a place for me when this life is over.  Many are searching and refuse to accept God; they struggle to find happiness in earthly pleasures that are temporary at best.

   We see the sunrise and sunset, hear the birds singing, enjoy a soft gentle rain, feel the warmth of the sun on a spring day and the cool of the breeze come autumn.  So many blessings each day; so many things God gives us.  We are undeserving of the many gifts of God, yet He continues to bless us.  Why are we so vain, and self-possessed that we feel they are due to us?  We are so blessed, yet fail so often to thank Him for His many gifts.

Lord, you give us so much.

In our arrogance we feel they are owed to us.

May we give You praise and glory.

May we thank You always for Your many blessings.

Amen

I AM

   “God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’”  (Exodus 3: 14)

   This was the answer God gave when Moses asked His name.  He is all, He is everything.  The universe and everything in it exists because of His love.  Each of us continue to exist solely because God wills it.  Should He ever forget us we would cease to be.

   We often try to impose human logic and expectations on the will of God.  We question why an evil person prospers when the good suffer poverty and hunger.  We ask why God would allow a child to die.  We want God to think and act as we would wish; we want answers that we will never receive in this life.

   God’s purpose in all things is incomprehensible to us.  We may understand in part but our understanding will always be incomplete.  If we believe we have reached the point of knowing God and all His ways, we are lost; the one we know is not God for He is unknowable.  “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!  If I would count them, they are more than the sand.”  (Psalm 139: 18)

   To learn more of God is a worthy goal; to fully know Him is not possible.  I strive to increase my knowledge of our Lord and His ways knowing that I will never completely know and understand.  In faith, I am confident that His ways are the right ways though I may never know why.

Father, Your ways are so far above my own.

I am not capable of fully knowing You.

Give me the humility to accept my limitations.

Give me the faith to always trust in You.

Amen

Easter Season

This week the Easter Season begins.  Ash Wednesday will again remind us that we are dust and unto dust we shall return.  On that day we will begin a period of self-examination, sacrifice and penance.

   This week always brings the question, “What will I give up for Lent this year?”  Each of us must decide what importance we place on making a sacrifice for the one who sacrificed His life for us.  It is good to share in some way in sacrifice; to offer a bit of suffering to our Lord who suffered so greatly for us.

   I would hope that the choice we make is one that we have truly thought about and one that will require some faith and determination to achieve.  A few thoughts for consideration:

* Give up jealousy.  Thank God for the blessings He has bestowed on you and others.  Don’t count the cost, count the blessings.

* Give up anger.  When you feel anger rising stop, say a prayer and ask for the strength to forego your anger.

* Don’t give up anything; instead add something.  Go to daily Mass at least once during the week.

* Spend time with Jesus in the Eucharist.  Sit before Him and contemplate the pain and suffering He endured for you.

* Go on a retreat.  Take some time away from everything and focus completely on God and your relationship with Him.

* Take the time to visit a sick friend or shut-in.  The nursing homes are full of people who never have a visitor.  The few moments you might give to them would be a tremendous blessing.

   The list could go on and on but there is only one point to remember.  This is your Lenten offering; this is your gift to Jesus in recognition and thanks for the gift of your salvation.  What is the value of your soul?  That should guide you when deciding what you will sacrifice for Lent.

Lord guide us through this Easter Season.

Help us recognize all that was sacrificed for us.

May our Lenten sacrifice bring us closer to You.

Amen

All Have Sinned

   “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” (Luke 18: 13)

   How easy it is to see the sins of others while ignoring our own.  Why is it that we can readily see the splinter in our neighbor’s eye but ignore the log in our own?  We are appalled at the angry outburst of one whom we have hurt by our own insensitivity but see no fault in ourselves for causing the hurt.

   We are all sinners, but somehow our own sins seem less obvious or destructive than those of others.  We are willing to condemn the liar while forgetting the times we have “stretched” the truth in the things we’ve said.  Sometimes it almost seems as though we look for sinfulness in others, almost hoping to find it.  Do we perhaps see another’s sins as lessening our responsibility and fault for our own?  After all, if everyone does it, how bad can it be?

   As we look around it is not difficult to find sin in others in which to be offended.  At some point we need to look in the mirror and see the sinner who looks back at us.  There is every likelihood that the very sins that offend us the most are some we have committed ourselves.

   We are too often upset and offended by the sins of others while never considering that our sins are perhaps upsetting and offensive as well.  Thankfully, God forgives our sins.  Our challenge is to recognize that God also forgives all those who repent of their sins.  Even more of a struggle is to love those who sin against us and leave judgement to the Lord.

Father, no one is without sin.

 You forgive all who are sorrowful for their sins.

May I forgive those who sin against me.

May I recognize my own sin and repent.

Amen

“Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”  (John 8: 7)

Seek Perfection

   “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”  (Matt 5: 48)

   Jesus told the crowd that they must be perfect as God is perfect.  Only God is perfect so how can we be perfect?  Many of Jesus’ teachings are not easily understood and this is one of them.  Yet, through prayer and contemplation we can perhaps gain greater insight.

   This teaching would seem an impossible task.  We are sinful and can never achieve perfection in this world so how can we become perfect as God is perfect?  The answer is that we can’t; not in the sense we usually think of perfection.  Our concept of perfection normally includes accomplishing a goal to perfection.  At its’ simplest, bowling a 300 game is a good analogy.  We’ve not reached perfection if we’ve left even one pin standing throughout the game.

   I believe there is another way of perfection; a perfection of desire.  Realizing that we are faced with an impossible goal we have two choices.  We can become discouraged and quit trying or we can recognize our limitations and continue to strive to achieve the goal.  If we truly desire to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect and do everything humanly possible to do so we have perfect desire.

   In our struggle in this fallen world there are things that simply aren’t possible.  Our God is a loving and merciful God; I believe and have faith that our honest desire and effort to achieve perfection will be welcomed by Him.  We will never be able to reach the goal in this life, but through faith, prayer and desire we can do our best and perhaps succeed in the life to come.

Father, only You are perfect.

I cannot reach that goal in this world.

But I believe my sincere desire to do so pleases You.

Help me to continue to seek perfection in all things.

Amen