Month: March 2019

NOTE:  For all of the Sunday’s of Lent I would like to suggest that we spend some time in prayer and reflection…like a mini-retreat.  My hope is that it will help us dive deep into this season of grace and set a course for the week ahead…and more!

When it rains it pours! Recently I had just sat down for a one-on-one meeting in my office. Minutes into our discussion I heard the familiar “ding-ding” of my cell phone—another text message. Then another. This was followed by a knock at the door and with a head pop in, “gotta minute? Oh I’m sorry – I did realize…”. Then the computer signals a new email and off course, the cell phone can’t resist.

I got up, and my colleague said, “it’s ok, check it…it might be something important.” But I scribbled a note and put in on the outside of the door. IN A MEETING. I went to the computer and turned the volume off and put my phone on silent/no vibe.

Why? I wanted to listen to him! It could all wait. I was in a meeting and he was most important and what we were about was the focus. 

There are so many distractions in our lives…and we jump to them. We’ve become like Pavlov’s dog. Ding… and we can’t resist. Email? Got to read it NOW…no matter what we’re doing.(Maybe there is a reason it wasn’t Pavlov’s cat?)

This Second Sunday of Lent offers us an opportunity to put a note on the door of our heart…to silence our cell phones…let our emails wait…so we can listen to Him.  Today’s Gospel reminds us how distractions can lead us to missing what’s right in front of us. Transfiguration! We are all like Peter, James and John—we’ve been invited to this spectacular moment— this revelatory encounter between Jesus, Moses and Elijah, and we get distracted. How quickly does our focus shift?

Our relationship with God is the ground of our faith and in turn, our life.  Communally and personally our focus needs to first be on Him…listening to Him, Learning from Him, which eventually becomes truly loving Him.  Loving Him above all else. But with all of the distractions – how do we listen?

Here are a few things to reflect on today as we block out 24Hours news, March Madness, Netflix, Pundits, the vast army of anonymous cyber commenters, Facebook status updates and uploads and the inner voices that lead us from our deepest truest selves (to name a few).

We listen to Him in Worship.  It isn’t about obligation or putting your time in…its about going to the assembly of the faithful and putting ourselves in God’s time.  It is for us and for God…for God to speak to us…for us to speak to God and for each of us to share how it is going on the journey.  This is NOT a solo expedition. Soooo How is my/our worship?  If we really love this God of the universe who came to be one of us, not JUST like us, but truly one with us, how are we doing with worship?  Are we going?  Are we there? Are we entering into the revelatory encounter with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

We listen to Him through personal prayer. First we need a place and a time for our encounter.  How is that going?  Is it still just a desire or a reality? Second we need focus. Just like the note I had to put on my office door, our one-on-one time is sacred. We need to focus on the encounter…to be about what we are about.  AND it is not just about us pouring out our list of needs or talking about ourselves.  It is about LISTENING TO HIM. If we quiet ourselves and open our ears and the ears of our heart, we will be able to hear the loving voice of God…speaking just to you (and me).

We need to listen to Him in Each other.  I like to call it the Tabernacle of the self and the tabernacle of other. Is our encounter with each other merely transactional, quid pro quo? What can you do for ME? Our do we recognize that the very presence of God is within us and the person we encounter.  The tabernacle of the self/other.  How am I doing at reverencing others – genuflecting to the other? Honoring them as an IMAGO DEI..like me made in the image and likeness of God? 

This is part of the disciples call.  The first true tabernacle was our Blessed Mother Mary.  She housed Him in her womb – the incarnate mystery within.  She brought Him forth to the world.  The WORD made FLESH. And at the Wedding Feast of Cana, another revelatory encounter, she told the wine stewards and water carriers to “DO WHAT EVER HE TELLS YOU.” (John 2:5).  As disciples we are called to Follow…to DO…but before that, before we can know what to do we have to “DO” something very challenging.

We have to listen to Him.

Sun in my area of the country is like water to the thirsty! The sunrise on Wednesday was spectacular. As I drove into to the office the vibrant colors were spilling over the horizon.

When I got to my office someone was in there with their smart phone taking a photo of its glory. “I hope you don’t mind, (I didn’t) but I just had to capture this moment. It’s awesome”. It was.

Of course this got me to think…who made that sun?  Who painted that sky?  Who made us creatures stop in our tracks, if but for a moment to revel in His glory?  Believer or “unbeliever” alike, know in their heart of heats the answer to that question. Try to deny it or ignore it or put it on the sidelines of life to imagine that we are the captains of our own destiny – and what does He do?  He paints the sky! He lets us know He is alive and well and RIGHT IN FRONT OF US.

JOB was faithful. Despite his faithfulness, he suffered cruel loss and painful defeat.  Nearly inconsolable.  During this Lent, it may be good for us to see how God flips the script on JOB and those who counseled him.  No matter where you are in this journey from this life to the next, the One who painted an unrepeatable sky this week has you in mind…maybe…just maybe the spiritual lesson for us is to do the same.  Let us keep Him in mind.

Read JOB 38-40 to see the great dialogue with God and Job.

I have always been against the death penalty.  How can taking a like do anything to restore the life of the one murdered?  Does it really give satisfaction?  Can death like this be healing or restorative?  Wednesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom placed a moratorium on the death penalty in his state.

Here is an excerpt from the CNN report on Newsom’s decision:

Newsom noted that there are 737 people on death row in California — 25 of whom have exhausted their appeals — meaning that the state is tasked with “executing more people than any state in modern American history; (lining) up human beings every single day for execution for two plus years…”It’s a very emotional place that I stand in,” he said, noting that the subject was once “an abstract question” for him, but now he is “the backstop” for any execution that takes place in California. “And so I am expressing this is not from (a) paradigm of politics. It’s not a situational conversation for me. This is about who I am as a human being. … To me this is the right thing to do.” Citing a National Academy of Sciences report estimating that 1 out of every 25 people on death row is innocent, Newsom said he could not countenance the odds of putting an innocent person to death.

I’m with you Governor Newsom. Neither could I…and neither can I.  I cannot support any legislative action that could take innocent life.  Not on political or even religious ground.  But to use Gov. Newsom’s own words:  “This is about who I am as a human being. … To me this is the right thing to do.”

I pray that Gov. Gavin Newsom would apply the same moral countenance to the 160,000 innocent lives that are annually on the abortion death row in California. 100% of them are innocent. How about a moratorium for this Governor Newsome?

I applaud you today. I promise more than applause when you show that human courage to do the right thing. 

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,and before you were born I consecrated you -Jeremiah 1:5

For years I have loved watching Jeopardy…it’s a family thing. I can remember yelling my answers – never in the form of a question – fighting over who said it first.  Good times! Some times.  

Recently, Alex asked one contestant what they would do with their winnings. One contestant replied, “I have always been intrigued by faith, all kinds of faiths. What people believe and how they believe…so I would like to go to Jerusalem, Bali, Rome, India and some other places to see all about faith.” So I hit my buzzer and rang in, “What is not sure about his plan Alex?”

What is faith? What causes belief?  The heart of it all is TRUST in the one believed.  That TRUST leads to a deep and abiding LOVE.  It is not faith in a place. While they may be great destinations or touchstones of spiritual experience, they are not the real deal.  The real deal is faith in God, creator, all-knowing, all-powerful, eternal, immortal, all-loving…who spared nothing to be known by us and loved by us.  This is the object of our Faith….this is what we believe.  It is this that is the foundation of our TRUST.  It is in this communal and personal relationship that we hope. 

I do agree with the Jeopardy contestant in this context.  Faith and belief take us on an incredible journey.  The longest and shortest one at the same…it is about 10 to 14 inches…a journey from the head to the heart. Faith, Hope and Love…great journey to the heart of God.

Here is our challenge as believers: Are we believable? When someone encounters us, are we a threshold to their encounter with Jesus? Does their trust in us lead to a trust in the promises of God? This is our mission as disciples…to be His reflection.

PS.  Praying for you Alex! #beatcancer

1 John 4:7-21

God’s Love and Christian Life.

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is brought to perfection in us. This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us, that he has given us of his Spirit. Moreover, we have seen and testify that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world. Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him and he in God. We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us. God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.17In this is love brought to perfection among us, that we have confidence on the day of judgment because as he is, so are we in this world.

There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.

We love because he first loved us.

If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.

This is the commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

I remember taking the Prayer Test in 3rd Grade, as my class was preparing for our First Holy Communion. We needed to pray the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be. Sr. Rose Irma called us individually to her desk to recite these prayers by “heart”.I knew I would ace it. I must have thought to myself “I know these prayers…mom taught me these before First Grade…I am a Third grader…I got this.”

Well, my name was called and I made my way to her desk. No, I didn’t freeze. I didn’t forget. I just did it too fast! Sr. Rose Irma made me do it again. Slow down and do it again.

Wise woman. Today’s Gospel reading from St. Matthew we hear Jesus teaching his disciples how to pray…“This is how you are to pray…”

You know, thinking about that 3rd grade experience, I can see that it taught me so much more than memorization.

1. We do not pray into the ether…we pray to OUR FATHER. We connect by heart to the One who loves and cares for us more than we can realize.
2. There will always be tests…something will always call us to the desk…something will always be infront of us that is beyond our control. But it is not beyond Our Father’s control.
3. Slow down…don’t panic, don’t be anxious…we’re not in this alone. We walk this road together and with an All-powerful God.
4. Do it again…don’t give up. Keep praying to OUR FATHER no matter what. Some tests last a long time….I only took the SAT once…it was way too long. God is with us…we need to be with Him in the good times and the bad.
5. Sooooo….Today….pray the Our Father….slowly, thoughtfully, intimately and calmly…by Heart.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

“This is how you are to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
–MT 6: 7-15

Jesus is tempted in the desert.  Reflecting on this, I noticed one difference between the account in Luke and Matthew.  At the end of Matthew’s temptation in the desert, Jesus is ministered to by Angels. “Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.” Mt: 4:11.

All of a sudden I found myself saying, “Oh sure, Jesus gets angels…what about me?”  No sooner had those words passed through my mind that I had a V-8 moment.  “Duh. He has set his angels over you.”  Angels. It is one of those faith realities we are soon to forget, too often reluctant to tap into, and rarely discuss…most likely because common culture has made angels look so silly and purposeless. But angels are real and are real powerful.

Angels…yes God has set His angels over us.  They are His messengers.  Individually they internally “TEXT” us and guide us to the love of God.  Maybe we need to talk to our guardian angels again?  Jesus was ministered by angels after His temptation.  Where could we use this auxiliary participation in our daily walk?  Angels help remind us of the God who loves us and call us to Himself.  They are part of the message of Hope. They focus our gaze on the Heavenly Father, just like Jesus.  That is the Mt. 411.  

More on Angels?  Go to: https://www.scripturecatholic.com/angels/

NOTE: For all of the Sunday’s of Lent I would like to suggest that we spend some time in prayer and reflection…like a mini-retreat.  My hope is that it will help us dive deep into this season of grace and set a course for the week ahead…and our lifetime.

I don’t know about you, but every time I have read the temptation accounts, I have pictured a victorious Jesus emerging from the desert, having defeated the devil’s ploy of the senses, devotion and power, walking off getting ready for the proclamation of the Kingdom.  Kinda like a John Wayne Jesus! Nevermore would he need to worry about the devil, evil, the pull of darkness and self-direction.  Not so.

This was the first time I read the account from Luke and noticed the three words that end the passage.  “When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.”  The devil, evil and temptation would not take a holiday while the Savior set out to introduce the message of Salvation to a waiting humanity.  Satan would be there too and would seek his chances and opportunities. He would wait for a time.

Interestingly enough, I take some comfort knowing that Jesus was faced with temptation.  Even though he never secums to sin, He knows what it is like to live in this world.  Jesus knows what it’s like to be distracted…to have the pull toward self-interest…to want to throw in the towel and even walk away.  But what made all the difference for Jesus is in His focus.

While sin attempts to distract, pull and frustrate, Jesus consistently recalibrates His glance.  He focuses on the Father.  Jesus’ reply to Satan’s temptations show His intimate connection with His loving Abba. “One does not live on bread alone.” and “You shall worship the Lord, your God, and him alone shall you serve.” and “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”  What is the lesson for us? The Body…not as important as the eternal relationship!  The opinion of others not as important as devotion to God!  And finally faithfulness over the emptiness of selfishness.  Every time, Jesus looks to the Father.

Where do we look?  Lent reminds to be like Jesus, to look to our Father.  Our heavenly Father loves us completely, eternally and particularly.  He calls us to abundance in Him. Today, let us really take some time and reflect on two things: Temptation and Eternity.   One is earth bound and fleeting.  The other never-ending.  Let’s be like Jesus and look to the Father…not for a time, but forever!

Suggested Scriptures:  Luke 4: 1 – 13, Psalm 42, Psalm 71, Psalm 139

Yesterday was International Women’s Day.  At least that’s what came over the radio as I drove.  My mind started free-floating…International Women’s Day? Is there an International Men’s Day (don’t be silly)… then I started thinking of Pancakes and a big stack of them…then I realized it was the first Friday of Lent and I really should fast. But they weren’t beef pancakes!

Back to the women…It dawned on me how blessed I have been by women in my life.  As a child I was educated by women religious for three different orders.  Each were incredible and gifted.  The Siters of St. Joseph, Mercy and St. Benedict each gave me a love of learning and a love of God. To this day, the incredible explanation of the Eucharist by Sr. Mary Alice Reed, SSJ (RIP) when I was in eigth grade was leaps and bounds over the Roman Seminary! The names Pena, Knox, Hovis, Mooney, Emling, Helinsky and the formitable Miss Maxwell (Mullen) are etched in my memory — each helped bring out something in me that I could not see.

There is one woman, above all, who introduced me to the most important reality in my life…my Mother.  Why?  Not only did she give me life, she introduced me to Jesus Christ and Faith in Him. She gave me something greater than life. She gave me faith that leads to eternal life! Some years ago I realized that it was my mother who introduced me to Jesus. She taught me to pray. She told me more about following Him in how she faced the joys and sufferings of life. She practiced what she loved…God. I would not know Jesus without her. I wrote her a letter of thanks…that was 22 years ago.

Two questions: 

Who introduced you to Christ?  (THANK THEM!) Who or how are you introducing Christ to others?  (DO IT…if necessary say something! –St. Francis.)

if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved…. But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? And how can people preach unless they are sent?…Thus faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
Romans 10: 9-17

Momma Bird with her favorite son! (Take that Matt, Charlie and Freddie! Mary you are safe!)

Today is the first Friday of Lent. Traditionally a day of penitence and reflection. Psalm 51 sets a mood for both. I would like to suggest diving deep into this Psalm today and to reflect with gratitude on a particular reality. Two days ago we were reminded that “we were dust and to dust we would return”. But even with this truth, God loves dust! God in his incarnate Son, sacrificed his Glory for dust. Dust has worth! If dust has such worth in the eyes of God, who are we to diminish it!

Today, let us seek God’s forgiveness for our weakness, our failings, our stumbling, our lack of intentional faith…and at the same time give God thanks for all the blessings with which we have been blessed. Mercy and Grace!

PSALM 51A Heart Contrite and Humbled, O God, you will not spurn.

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness. In your compassion blot out my offense. O wash me more and more from my guilt and cleanse me from my sin. My offenses truly I know them; my sin is always before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned; what is evil in your sight I have done.

That you may be justified when you give sentence and be without reproach when you judge. O see, in guilt was I born, a sinner was I conceived. Indeed you love truth in the heart; then in the secret of my heart teach me wisdom.

O purify me, then I shall be clean; O wash me, I shall be whiter than snow.

Make me hear rejoicing and gladness,that the bones you have crushed may revive. From my sins turn away your face and blot out all my guilt. A pure heart create for me,

O God, put a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, with a spirit of fervor sustain me, that I may teach transgressors your waysand sinners may return to you. O rescue me, God, my helper, and my tongue shall ring out your goodness.

O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall declare your praise. For in sacrifice you take no delight, burnt offering from me you would refuse; my sacrifice, a contrite spirit. A humbled, contrite heart you will not spurn.

In your goodness, show favor to Zion: rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Then you will be pleased with lawful sacrifice, holocausts offered on your altar.