Praying with St. Paul...

One of my favorite Scripture verses is the topic of the reflection in Praying With Saint Paul edited by Father Peter John Cameron, O.P. There is comfort in this and reassurance in the workings of the Living God.

Baby Talk

by Father William M. Joensen

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit;
there are different forms of service, but the same Lord; there are
different workings but the same God who produces all of them
in everyone.
[1Cor 12: 4-6]

Good babysitters and daycare personnel come at a premium these days. There is something gifted about the person who can overcome the sadness and fear experienced when mom or dad drops a child off and steps away. Part of the task is to redirect the child's attention to something colorful, curious,entertaining in that moment--some partial good that can distract the child from his or her own sadness, the awareness of the absent good. There is something charismatic about the manner of a worthy babysitter, the creativity of a devoted daycare provider. Who they are is not a diversion, a surrogate, but a participation in--a reference to--the love and presence of the parent. Trust and peace are engendered not simply in the learned awareness that mom or dad will return at the end of the day; rather, because the caretaker allows the longing for reunion to be a source of expectation, hope, and joy.

The Spirit is no surrogate, but the alter ego for Christ's activity of mutual service, secure belonging, and enduring presence. The Spirit does not level difference into an uninflected monotone, but parses and punctuates gifts for the good of everyone who is to produce and partake in the varied activity of Spirit.

The one who seek to fill himself first ends up only being full of oneself. In contrast, our primary work is to be an ongoing refraction of the Spirit's sufficiency. We communicate the tenderness of God who is always present as parent, lover, friend. We realize that no one is meant to be more that a heartbeat away from the cadence of God's compassion, the embrace of mercy. Child of God care is the consecrated service produced in everyone generated by god--the God whose sameness is not something profane, but the point of departure for diverse gifts to be expressed.

Spirit of the living God, your presence wells up in me as I will to witness on your behalf. Endow me with strength; counsel me with creativity and insight; grace my gestures and speech with your gentleness and love. do not abandon me, but draw me ceaselessly into the company of the Father and the son, the same God now and always.

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And the reassurance of a Loving Father that God is the same now and always. For what more could we ask?

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Thanks be to God!

Novena for Life V

"Putting away falsehood, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, for we are members one of another. ~~Ephesians 4: 25~~

Let us pray:

Resting Only in Your Truth


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Thanks be to God!

Novena for Life IV

"[Abraham] did not doubt God's promise in unbelief; rather he was empowered by faith and gave glory to God and was fully convinced that what he had promised was also able to do." ~~Romans 4: 20-21~~


And so we pray.

To Love Through Amazement

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Thanks be to God!!

A Visit With St. Paul

I have neglected my reading of the reflections on St. Paul. Thought today I would begin again and try to be more diligent. Only time will tell. The message of hope in this reflection is one I feel compelled to share because, although, every year this season brings us most vividly to the Hope we all have in a bright future, this year seems to demand Hope be a part of who we are. It is imperative the we manifest this hope in all we do and say and live. Please "listen" to Sister Mary Thomas Noble, O.P. from Praying With Saint Paul.

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O Blessed Hope!

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"We await the blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of
the great God and of our savior Jesus Crist, who gave himself
for us to deliver us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for
himself a people as his own, eager to do what is good."

(Ti 2: 13-14)

***

What part does hope play in my life? Do I hope mainly for things or for people? Or do I hope for events? As a child I once hoped for a rubber ball with all my heart. It was exactlly the size I wanted and had swirls of colors on it, all the right colors. I showed it to my mother in the store. It cost twenty-five cents. She pointed out to me several bigger, better balls, but I couln't have cared less. I knew what I wanted. No other ball would do. When I tore the wrappings off the little rubber ball on the morning of my eighth birthday and tossed them on the breadfast table, I know an unadulterated and absolute content such as I have rarely experienced since I dashed outdoors with my sister before school and threw it, threw it, threw it back and forth across our front lawn in a kind of ecstasy. Hope fulfilled! Such a small hope, just my size. God would like to stretch our longing hearts to hold much more, even himself. Will we let him do it? "We await the blessed hope..." Do we? "...the appearance of the glory of the great God, and of our Savior Jesus Christ..." How high do we set our sights? Do we have hopes to match God's hopes for us? His is a radiant hope. There is glory ahead for us, there is deliverance, there is an indescribable purity to be achieved only through his blood. Each one of us would be totally, uniquely his, were he to have his hopes fulfilled. Our sights would be set on doing "what is good" beyond all our wildest imaginings, empowered as we should be as "his people." His hopes for us will lift us to the blessed vision of himself. Where he will hold us, and we shall not fall.

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O God, stretch my heart wide with blessed hope, to hold the all that you would give me--your very self!

I find as I reflect on this that my hope and expectation are pretty limited. Perhaps I fear that my hopeful expectations will not be realized and disappointment will insue. The lesson for me is to have high expectations. If the results seem less, they are better than none at all and if they are greater than hope for what joy I can experience. I should be hope-filled, not just hopeful.

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Thanks be to God!

Praying with St. Paul...

Nothing Missing
Father John Dominic Corbel, OP

"May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lor be with all of you."
~2Thessalonians 3:16~

Sunday afternoons in the fall were my father's favorite time. They were set aside for the Cleveland Browns. In those years the Browns had Fran Ryan, Paul Warfield, Leroy Kelly, and of course, the Great Jimmy Brown taking care of business. These afternoons were peaceful times for me. Not because there wasn't excitement or suspense or the occasional disappointment. There was plenty of that. But no matter how tight the game became I always knew that between the Browns and my father there was nothing missing. Everything necessary was in place to bring us victory.

Could you compare a Sunday afternoon's football game with the peace of the Lord? Sunday is the Sabbath. It is the day the Lord looked out on the world he had made and said that it was very good. There was nothing missing.

When the Apostle prays that the Lord of peace may give us his peace, he is praying that the Lord who is complete goodness in whom there is nothing missing who lacks for nothing, may communicate to us that same security and completion.

This prayer that the Lord may give us peace at all times and in every way can't be granted to us in this life if we mean by peace the actual experience of the invulnerable serenity and infinite perfection that belongs to God as God. But all the same, we know in faith that there is nothing missing. The Lord is with us and so, even if we are hungry or thirsty, if we are in trouble, or even if our favorite football team is losing again, or if we face hunger or nakedness or the sword, still there is nothing missing. We have what we need to win eternal life. Everything. The Lord is with us. There is nothing missing

Lord Jesus, our lives are often full of stress and it is often hard to
feel your presence with us. Help us to know that you have given us
everything we need to be joyful with you for ever.

Nothing left to be said! Have a Peace-filled day!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!