The Coming Year Is Safe In God's Hands

The Coming Year Is Safe In God’s Hands Something to think and pray about this week-as shared in “Sacred Space” A year of grace is ending, and a new one is beginning. Before I ponder what the new year may bring, let me light my lamp and look back on the past year. There I can discover the deft touches of God, and this will give me confidence that the year now unfolding will be equally rich. I try first to notice some of the good things that came my way. ‘From God comes all that is good’ (James 1:17). I will find God in the good! God shares his goodness lavishly, as the sun shares its warmth and light. So many good things have come my way: life itself, health, friendship, times of joy and happiness, kindnesses, special graces, a sense of God. (I remember to include Sacred Space!) As the psalmist says in admiration, ‘You crown the year with your goodness’ (Psalm 65:11). I become grateful for all the good given me, and for the good I did myself. But not all has been good! Misfortunes, illnesses, suffering in one shape or another came my way. My reflection deepens as I notice how in at least some cases, good has come from bad situations. God’s hand works delicately to bring good out of the evil we create. This is shown dramatically in Jesus’ Passion, and it radiates through every day. God accepts what we do badly, then sets to work to integrate it into the divine story. For this I thank God again. The coming year is safe in God’s hands. Text taken from Sacred Space

In The Wake Of Christmas There Is More To Give And Celebrate

It is December 26 and sadly people are saying “Finally, Christmas is over!” Some fresh trees, still decorated, are set at the curb for the trash along with the balled up wrappings and torn boxes. Even gifts that that the receiver deemed useless are now perishing and taking up space in the garbage can. Just days after Christmas decorations for Valentine’s Day line the shelves in the stores and the remnants of a retailer’s heaven, rather than symbols of Christ’s birth, has whittled down to a small markdown table or isle. Just before New Year’s Day there is barely a hint of joy left in voices and the cheer that filled houses just last week are no more. Gone in many households are the ongoing implementations of charitable acts, kindnesses toward a neighbor or stranger, and the excitement of being a model of Jesus, and the one to step forward to love and forgive a trespasser has all but died away. It’s as if a storm has hit us and left in its wake only fragments of evidence of a rush of a holiday season. Some feel relieved of stressed filled days, hastened purchases and sometimes obligatory cooking and preparing for a visit all for a single day or night with family and friends. The extra chairs rented for some churches in the hopes that people would come to worship may have depleted their surplus and now in hindsight recorded as an unnecessary expense. Does the world realize that 4 weeks prior to Christmas we should have been preparing our hearts, our homes, and our attitudes for a life change. Did we feel The Holy Spirit through our daily prayers, requests for needs and petitions of thanksgiving? Did we experience transformation from the fruit of our good works to a degree that it became a habit without any thoughts to remind us to be upright, decent and moral? Did our sacrifices of selflessness and eye opening humble experiences charge and change us, peaking on Christmas Day? Did we spend time in prayer, reflecting on what the birth of Christ means in our lives and what effect His birth has upon our ultimate demise? Every year the Catholic Church celebrates Liturgical Cycles and Holy Days. In particular, during the Advent and Christmas season the church, the people, have an opportunity to celebrate, worship, and grow in spirit and in our relationship with God, Jesus and The Holy Spirit. Every year following Christmas Eve the church celebrates and honors the Nativity of the Lord, the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, The Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, The Epiphany of the Lord, and The Baptism o f the Lord. Where is it that we are spending our time that may be keeping us from participating in these beautiful masses and days of reflections? Christmas is not over! Christmas should live on in our spirits! Christmas was the reminder that God gave us His Son so that we might be saved! What becomes of our spirit in the wake of Christmas and everyday of our lives tells God a lot about us. He knows when you’ve been sleeping. He knows when you’re awake. He knows when you’ve been bad or good. When your tree no longer has the fresh fragrance of pine and when the decorations are put away until next year, don’t pack the joy, peace and love of your spirit in a box, share that gifts of these graces everyday! In the wake of Christmas there is more to give and celebrate!

A Christmas Prayer

A Christmas Prayer Dear God, We are thankful that on this Day/Eve of Christmas we, along with millions of people around the world, are celebrating together the miraculous birth of Your Son, Jesus Christ. We are grateful for our family and friends who have safely traveled near and far to be together on Christmas. Our decorations and beautiful lights serve as gentle reminders of the star filled night of Your son’s birth. The Christmas tree which represents eternal life is in the midst of our homes putting Christ at the center of our lives --and we pray --together --for His presence every day of the year. Tonight/today we gather around the tree to share the gift of giving and honor Jesus on this glorious holy night/day. We thank you Lord for blessing us with food to eat, and acknowledge our gift of abundance while so many others have less or none. We pray that the less fortunate are not forgotten and have received blessings from others who are near them. We pray that we become compassionate people that will serve one another and please you. We offer this tradition tonight/today that we share with each other to keep alive the “true meaning of Christmas” for generations to come. For it is through Christ’s birth and resurrection that we have hope of reuniting with all those who have gone before us -- and who will go after us to their rest, especially . . . [name all the departed], and all others who have gone to their rest in the hope of rising again. Dear Jesus, We pray that through God’s grace they are in Your midst celebrating the mystery of your birth, for everyday in Heaven is Christmas and that every person who passes from this earth will be in your presence. On this Holy night/day we pray together for the world to be at peace and united in love and that the spirit of Christmas will live on in our daily lives. Jesus, we ask this in your name, Amen!

Our Daily Graces

Our Daily Graces “How can this be?” How many times in our lives have we asked the question, “How can this be?” How can this be that I have been cured? How can this be that I have a surplus of money? How can this be that our offer was the one that was accepted? How can this be that I passed my test when I felt unprepared? How can this be that she forgave me my worst grievance? We should not look to ourselves for the answer, but rather look to God. His answer will always be the same. You have found favor with God. Everyday there are many graces to be noticed and thankful for. If our heart and spirit are quieted, prepared and well versed in God's word,our eyes will have no problem noticing the wonderful daily graces granted us all. Luke 1:26-32,34-38 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’ But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.

The Gifts of Prosperity, Nourishment and Endurance

The Gifts of Prosperity, Nourishment and Endurance How often have we found ourselves short of money, food and even patience? If we put our trust in God we will see that our last single dollar in our purse or wallet can last a week. If we have faith in the Lord the meal we have can feed 3 more. If we rely on and imitate Jesus the patience we lacked can be replaced with love and tolerance. God always has compassion, abundance and love for us. In return we must have compassion for others, share our abundance and above all love one another. When we act in this way, we will always recognize the gifts of God’s prosperity in our lives, the abundant nourishment He provides, and our hearts will be filled with peace, joy and endurance. Matthew 15:30-32,34-37 Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them, so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel. Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.’ Jesus asked them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ They said, ‘Seven, and a few small fish.’ Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all of them ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full.

Receiving Grace With Awe And Glory

Receiving Grace With Awe And Glory When we ask God for something do we come to Him humble of heart knowing we are asking for more than we are worthy of receiving? Let’s face it, we are sinners. Even on our best day there are things we’ve done that have yet to translate in our hearts and spirit into the sin that it is. When asking something of God, we can, at the very least, ponder over everything that is honest and immoral. With humility and on bended knee we can safely admit our transgressions, trespasses, unworthiness and ignorance before the Lord. God is always waiting for us to come to Him at our best, in our idleness and when in need. We will receive His graces and blessings even with our blemishes. However, it is not “what” we receive, but “how” we receive it. We may not be worthy to receive God’s graces on our lives; but we can make ourselves ready to receive them with awe and glory. Matthew 8:5-11 When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress." And he said to him, "I will come and cure him." The centurion answered, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and the slave does it." When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, "Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven."