Saturday, February 29, 2020

A Friend

When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives means the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing, and face us with the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares.

~ Henri Nouwen

Friday, February 28, 2020

1st Sunday of Lent

Lent is a time for intense spiritual reflection.  This is especially true for our RCIA candidates as they begin their final steps towards conversion.  But this call to conversion isn’t only for the RCIA candidates.  It is for all of us.  In the Catechism of the Catholic Church conversion is defined as “A radical reorientation of the whole life away from sin and evil, and toward God.”  For most of us this is an exercise we must undertake every day.  The Catechism goes on to say “Christ’s call to conversion continues to resound in the lives of Christians.  This second conversion is an uninterrupted task for the whole Church who, ‘clasping sinners to her bosom, [is] at once holy and always in need of purification, [and] follows constantly the path of penance and renewal.’  This endeavor of conversion is not just a human work.  It is the movement of a ‘contrite heart,’ drawn and moved by grace to respond to the merciful love of God who loved us first” (CCC, 1428).

The theme for our Holy Father, Pope Francis’ Message for Lent 2020 is from 2 Corinthians 5:20, “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”  The Holy Father writes, “The fact that the Lord once again offers us a favourable time for our conversion should never be taken for granted.  This new opportunity ought to awaken in us a sense of gratitude and stir us from our sloth.  Despite the sometimes tragic presence of evil in our lives, and in the life of the Church and the world, this opportunity to change our course expresses God’s unwavering will not to interrupt his dialogue of salvation with us.”

In today’s gospel, Matthew 4:1-11, we see evidence of this choice at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry.  After forty days of fasting in the desert, Jesus is confronted by the devil who tests him with three temptations:  turning rocks into bread, throwing himself off the parapet of the temple and the promise of all the kingdoms in the world if Jesus will worship him.  Jesus rejects all the temptations and passes the test.  Jesus did not come into the world seeking glory or power or wealth for selfish reasons.  In Mark 8: 36 Jesus asked his followers and disciples, “What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life”?  Jesus came into the world to save us from the bondage of sin because of God’s overwhelming love for us.  Pope Francis says, “May we not let this time of grace pass in vain, in the foolish illusion that we can control the times and means of our conversion to him.”
God our Father,
in the desert your Son Jesus struggled forty days
with the demands of his mission,
and he overcame all temptations.
In these forty days of Lent
convert us; turn our hearts
to the peace of your forgiveness,
the light of your love,
and your concern for people.
Let us find the life and the joy
which Jesus brings us,
and inspire us to share it with others.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Amen

Thursday, February 27, 2020

May You ...

• May you fall into your own arms.
• May you speak the words you need to hear.
• May you have gratitude with each breath.
• May you build dreams with faith.
• May you embrace your soul with kindness.
• May you bring wisdom from your past.
• May you choose peace instead of anger
• May you see the light in your darkest night.
• Stumble upon yourself when lost.
• May you uncover courage beneath these fears.
• May you accept mistakes with humility.
• May you practice forgiveness to heal wounds.
• May you see the beauty of your imperfections.
• May you find love within your own heart.

Dodinsky

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Not Going That Way

As you travel through life there are always those times
When decisions just have to be made,
When the choices are hard, and solutions seem scarce,
And the rain seems to soak your parade.

There are some situations where all you can do
Is simply let go and move on,
Gather your courage and choose a direction
That carries you toward a new dawn.

So pack up your troubles and take a step forward -
The process of change can be tough,
But think about all the excitement ahead
If you can be stalwart enough!

There might be adventures you never imagined
Just waiting around the next bend,
And wishes and dreams just about to come true
In ways you can't yet comprehend!

Perhaps you'll find friendships that spring from new things
As you challenge your status quo,
And learn there are so many options in life,
And so many ways you can grow!

Perhaps you'll go places you never expected
And see things that you've never seen,
Or travel to fabulous, faraway worlds
And wonderful spots in between!

Perhaps you'll find warmth and affection and caring
And somebody special who's there
To help you stay centered and listen with interest
To stories and feelings you share.

Perhaps you'll find comfort in knowing your friends
Are supportive of all that you do,
And believe that whatever decisions you make,
They'll be the right choices for you.

So keep putting one foot in front of the other,
And taking your life day by day...
There's a brighter tomorrow that's just down the road -
Don't look back!
You're not going that way!

~~ Author Unknown

Tuesday, February 25, 2020

Spring Planting

We are now beginning to prepare the soil for the spring planting. As we prepare to enter the Lenten season, we will also be preparing spiritually for the future. Here are some thoughts on planting and reaping:

If you plant honesty, You will reap trust.
If you plant goodness, You will reap friends.
If you plant humility, You will reap greatness.
If you plant perseverance, You will reap victory.
If you plant consideration, You will reap harmony.
If you plant hard work, You will reap success.
If you plant forgiveness, You will reap reconciliation.
If you plant openness, You will reap intimacy.
If you plant patience, You will reap improvements.
If you plant faith, You will reap miracles

But, if you plant dishonesty, You will reap distrust.
If you plant selfishness, You will reap loneliness
If you plant pride, You will reap destruction.
If you plant envy, You will reap trouble.
If you plant laziness, You will reap stagnation.
If you plant bitterness, You will reap isolation.
If you plant greed, You will reap loss.
If you plant gossip, You will reap enemies.
If you plant worries, You will reap wrinkles.
If you plant sin, You will reap guilt.

So be careful what you plant now, It will determine what you will reap tomorrow. The seeds you now scatter will make life worse or better your life or the ones who will come after. Yes, someday, you will enjoy the fruits, or you will pay for the choices you plant today.

Sunday, February 23, 2020

Be Here Now

Thomas Merton entered the monastery in Kentucky when he was 27 years old. He was accidentally electrocuted in Bangkok 27 years later on December 10, 1968, at the age of 54. Merton reacquainted Christianity with its contemplative roots. His writings inspired many, including myself, to return to le point vierge, “the virgin point” of pure poverty and nothingness in God’s presence, which can only be found in the now.

Be Here Now

If you watch your mind, you will see you live most of your life in the past or in the future, both of which Jesus warns us against. That’s just the way the mind works. If you are to experience the ever-present and ever-coming Christ, the one place you have to be is the one place you are usually not: NOW HERE or “nowhere.” Everything that happens to you happens right now; if you can’t be present right now, nothing new is ever going to happen to you. You will not experience your experiences; they will not go to any depth in your soul. You really won’t grow unless you’re willing to live right here, right now—to be present.

How do you be present? Jesus describes it rather profoundly: “You must love the Lord your God with your whole heart, with your whole soul, with your whole mind, and with your whole strength” (Luke 10:27). Whenever all of these parts are working together at the same time you are present. He finishes by saying “Do this and life is yours!” (10:28). I like to say that prayer happens whenever all of you is present—body, mind, soul, spirit, emotions—all together. That’s hard work. This is the core and constant meaning of all spiritual practice, no matter what religion: how to be here now! Then you will know what you need to know to go forward.

Usually we have to be shocked into it, I’m sorry to say. Great love does it. When you are deeply in love—with anything—you tend to be present to the Now. Someone has said, “To be a saint is to have loved many things”—many things—the tree, the dog, the sky, the flowers, even the color of someone’s clothing. You see, when you love, you love, and love extends to everything all the time and everywhere. When you love, you’re much more likely to be present. What this moment offers is the grace of God.

Saturday, February 22, 2020

Our Human Nature

“Our nature is not to go forward all the time. It has its to’s and fro’s.” – Blaise Pascal

We prefer straight, unrelentingly, upward paths and the slightest dip is often enough to throw us into confusion.

We diet for eight days and fill up on the ninth and then berate ourselves as though the eight days don’t count, as though they never happened.

“Look at me. I’m a failure. How come? I was doing so well.”

And the answer comes back: “Because it’s in our nature to forever gain a little, and forever to lose a little. Life has a lot of two steps forward and one step back.”

The spiritual journey is no exception, because we make the journey as who we are … human beings … not as what we would like to be, escapees from a frail, inconstant humanity.

For eight days we set aside time to prayer. And on the ninth we set aside time for a mindless sitcom.

But the journey is all the steps, even the backward ones. It’s no in our nature to go forward all the time.

It’s certainly no what God expects. So why are our expectations higher than God’s?


- John Kirvan in “Raw Faith”

Friday, February 21, 2020

7th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today’s gospel, Matthew 5:38-48, is the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount.  In these ten verses, Jesus gives us the ultimate challenge for Christian living. These are the standards we must meet to fulfill our obligations in the Kingdom of Heaven.  Jesus tells us we must:

· offer no resistance to evil people
· turn the other cheek
· If someone wants your shirt, give them your coat as well
· go the second mile
· give your money away to anyone who asks for it
· love your enemies
· pray for the people who hurt you
· finally, be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.

I don’t know about you, but I know that I am far from achieving this level of perfection.  Here is the good news; the perfection Jesus is talking about is not what we usually understand as perfect (without flaw).  Scripture scholars tell us that the word St. Matthew used here was telos, a Greek term that means mature, fully-grown or adult.   It can also mean reaching the end, achieving a goal, a purpose or complete.

God does not expect us to be flawless.  God does expect us to strive for completeness, for holiness, for spiritual maturity in the Kingdom.  In his collection of essays, What’s Wrong with the World (1910), G. K Chesterton wrote, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried.”  Our challenge is to try, not once or twice and then give up.  We should wake up every morning with the intention to live the Christian ideal.   And if we fail, we should pray that God will give us the opportunity to try again.

God our Father,
in your Son Jesus Christ
you have shown us your tenderness
and accepted us, sinful people,
as your sons and daughters.
Share your heart with us,
help us be merciful and understanding people,
that we may learn from the way you have treated us
to accept everyone without conditions,
to forgive and forget all hurts,
so that we become more like you.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Amen

Thursday, February 20, 2020

The Foot Path of Peace

To be glad of life because it gives you a chance to love and to work and to play, and to look up at the stars; to be satisfied with your possessions but not contented with yourself until you have made the best use of them; to despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness, and to fear nothing except cowardice to be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts; to covet nothing that is your neighbors except his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners; to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friend and every day of Christ, and to spend as much time as you can with body and with spirit in God’s out-of-doors. These are the little guideposts on the Foot Path Of Peace.

Henry Van Dyke

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Primordial Souls

Some mystics taught that the human soul comes from God and that the last thing that God does before putting a soul into the body is to kiss the soul. The soul then goes through life always dimly remembering that kiss, a kiss of perfect love, and the soul measures all of life’s loves and kisses against that primordial perfect kiss.

The ancient Greek Stoics taught something similar, that souls pre-existed inside of God and that God, before putting a soul into a body, would blot out the memory of its pre-existence. But the soul would then be always unconsciously drawn towards God because, having come from God, the soul would always dimly remember its real home, God, and ache to return there.

In one rather interesting version of this notion, they taught that God put the soul into the body only when the baby was already fully formed in its mother’s womb. Immediately after putting the soul into the body, God would seal off the memory of its pre-existence by physically shutting the baby’s lips against its ever speaking of its pre-existence. That’s why we have a little cleft under our noses, just above center of our lips. It’s where God’s finger sealed our lips. That is why whenever we are struggling to remember something, our index finger instinctively rises to that cleft under our nose. We are trying to retrieve a primordial memory.

Our souls dimly remember once having known perfect love and perfect beauty. But, in this life, we never quite encounter that perfection, even as we forever ache for someone or something to meet us at that depth. This creates in us a moral loneliness, a longing for what we term a soulmate, namely, a longing for someone who can genuinely recognize, share, and respect what’s deepest in us.

Monday, February 17, 2020

Life is an Opportunity


Who's at Risk?

This is a very simplistic story, but a powerful message.

A mouse looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package; what food might it contain? He was aghast to discover that it was a mouse trap!

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning, "There is a mouse trap in the house, there is a mouse trap in the house." The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell you this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me; I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mouse trap in the house." "I am so very sorry Mr. Mouse," sympathized the pig, "but there is nothing I can do about it but pray; be assured that you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow, who replied, "Like wow, Mr. Mouse, a mouse trap; am I in grave danger, Duh?" So the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected to face the farmer's mouse trap alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house, like the sound of a mouse trap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. She returned home with a fever.

Now everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. His wife's sickness continued so that friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock.

To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well, in fact, she died, and so many people came for her funeral the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide meat for all of them to eat.

So the next time you hear that someone is facing a problem and think that it does not concern you, remember that when the least of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

Friday, February 14, 2020

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

I really enjoy watching reruns of Law & Order; especially the programs from the 1990s with Jerry Orbach playing the role of Detective Lennie Briscoe.  What I appreciate about Law & Order is its realistic portrayal of the struggles people in the criminal justice system experience every day.  What is clear in these programs is that law is an organic and constantly changing entity. The good guys don't always win, the defense and prosecution teams often must compromise, juries are unpredictable, and interpretation of the law is a challenge.  The biggest struggles appear to be between human intent and the spirit of the law.  An issue that often seems to hang in the balance besides guilt or innocence is that of compassion and mercy.

The kingdom of heaven has laws too.  They are the Ten Commandments and the Laws of Moses found in the first five books of the Old Testament.  The kingdom of heaven also has traditions that infuse all scripture.  In today's gospel, Matthew 5:17-37, Jesus tells his disciples and he tells us that he came to fulfill the law and the words of the prophets.  He proposes a new order, a new way of looking at the world built on what came before. His fulfillment of the law sets a new precedent. 

In the kingdom of heaven, it is not good enough for us to observe the letter of the law like the scribes and Pharisees.  Jesus asks us to embrace the Spirit of the law, to look beyond the actual words and internalize the values that underpin the law.  The law says, “you shall not kill.”  Jesus says control your anger, the emotion that often causes killing.  Do not demean other people by calling them fool or imbecile.  Do not let anger and hatred destroy your relationships.  If we carry hatred in our hearts, we exclude ourselves from the kingdom as we read in 1 John 3:15, “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.”  Seek reconciliation with your brothers and sisters.   And finally, remember that in the end we must be ready to undergo the scrutiny of the Spirit of God as St. Paul tells us in our 2nd reading today, “For the Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10).

Lord God, loving Father,
in your Son Jesus you have shown us
how we should seek and fulfil your loving will.
Dispose us to respond to your love
from the depth of our heart
and to be faithful to you in all we do.
Help us be respectful of one another
and attentive to the needs of people,
even when they remain indifferent and thankless,
that we may help to ban evil from this world
and bring to it your love and mercy.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Thursday, February 13, 2020

This is Life

A son and his father were walking on the mountains. Suddenly, his son falls, hurts himself and screams: "AAAhhhhhh!"

To his surprise, he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain: "AAAhhhhhh!"

Curious, he yells: "Who are you?"
He receives the answer: "Who are you?"

Angered at the response, he screams: "Coward!"
He receives the answer: "Coward!"

He looks to his father and asks: "What's going on?"
The father smiles and says: "My son, pay attention."

And then he screams to the mountain: "I admire you!"
The voice answers: "I admire you!"

Again the man screams: "You are a champion!"
The voice answers: "You are a champion!"

The boy is surprised, but does not understand. Then the father explains: "People call this an ECHO, but really this is LIFE. It gives you back everything you say or do.

Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart. If you want more competence in your team, improve your competence. This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life; Life will give you back everything you have given to it."

Your Life is not a coincidence. It's a reflection of you!

Wednesday, February 12, 2020

Searching

In the search for me,
I discovered Truth.

In the search for Truth,
I discovered Love.

In the search for Love,
I discovered God.

And in God,
I have found Everything.

Tuesday, February 11, 2020

Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes

Today we celebrate the fact of the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Bernadette Soubrious at Lourdes, France, on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees Mountains. Between February 11 and July 16, 1858, Mary appeared to fourteen year old Bernadette at the grotto of Massabielle, eighteen times. The young girl was instructed by the apparition to bathe and drink from a spring that began to flow the following day. Since then the bath at Lourdes has been associated with miraculous healings. The site of the apparitions attracts over three million pilgrims a year. Of some five thousand reported cures at least fifty-eight have been declared miraculous by church officials. In 1907 Pope Pius X made the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes a feast of the universal Church.

$86,400

Imagine that you had won the following prize in a contest: Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400.00 in your private account for your use.

However, this prize has rules, just as any game has certain rules.
The first set of rules would be:
· Everything that you didn't spend during each day would be taken away from you.
· You may not simply transfer money into some other account..
· You may only spend it.
· Each morning upon awakening, the bank opens your account with another $86,400.00 for that day.
The second set of rules:
The bank can end the game without warning; at any time it can say, Its over, the game is over! It can close the account and you will not receive a new one.

What would you personally do?

You would buy anything and everything you wanted right? Not only for yourself, but for all people you love, right? Even for people you don't know, because you couldn't possibly spend it all on yourself, right? You would try to spend every cent, and use it all, right?

ACTUALLY This GAME is REALITY!

Each of us is in possession of such a magical bank. We just can't seem to see it.

The MAGICAL BANK is TIME!

Each morning we awaken to receive 86,400 seconds as a gift of life, and when we go to sleep at night, any remaining time is NOT credited to us.

What we haven't lived up that day is forever lost.
Yesterday is forever gone.
Each morning the account is refilled, but the bank can dissolve your account at any time.... WITHOUT WARNING.

SO, what will YOU do with your 86,400 seconds?
Those seconds are worth so much more than the same amount in dollars.

Think about that, and always think of this:
Enjoy every second of your life, because time races by so much quicker than you think.
So take care of yourself, be Happy, Love Deeply and enjoy life!

Here's wishing you a wonderful and beautiful day.
Start spending!

Monday, February 10, 2020

Knowledge

Knowledge of the poor and needy is not gained by pouring over books or in discussions with politicians, but by visiting the slums where they live, sitting by the bedside of the dying, feeling the cold they feel and learning from their lips the causes of their woes.

~ Frédéric Ozanam

Friday, February 7, 2020

Sin

According to Christian teachings, the normal collective state of humanity is one of “original sin.” Sin is a word that has been greatly misunderstood and misinterpreted. Literally, translated from the Greek in which the New Testament was written, to sin means to miss the mark, as an archer who misses the target, so to sin means to miss the point of human existence. It means to live unskillfully, blindly, and thus to suffer and cause suffering. Again the term, stripped of its cultural baggage and misinterpretation, points to the dysfunction inherent in the human condition.

Eckhart Tolle in “A New Earth, Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose” p. 19

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

There is an ancient fairy tale about a king with several daughters who asks each of them how much they love him. The youngest daughter answers that she loves him as much as salt because salt is indispensable.  The king is insulted by her answer because salt is the “cheapest and commonest thing that comes to table” and everyone, even poor people have salt.  He decides that she does not love him enough and so he banishes her from his kingdom.  Later, when she has become the queen of another country (this is a fairy tale); she has the opportunity to host her father at a banquet.  She serves her father a meal prepared without any salt which he cannot eat.  She then confronts him with his cruelty and he begs her forgiveness because he now recognizes the value of salt.  And they all lived happily ever after.  By the way, this story is one of the inspirations for Shakespeare’s play King Lear which does not have such a happy ending.

Today’s gospel, Matthew 5:13-16, encourages us to look beyond the superficiality of our secular world, and be salt of the earth and light of the world.  How ordinary!  Salt is so common and yet so essential.  Today as in the time of Jesus salt is used for flavoring, preserving and healing.   Our Christianity should flavor our lives and the lives of those around us like salt flavors food.

We take light for granted.   The sun rises and sets without any effort on our part.  And when we need more light we simply flick a switch and light happens.  However, this isn’t the kind of light Jesus is talking about.    In John 9:5 Jesus tells us that he is “the light of the world.”  We cannot simply ignite our own light at will like flicking a light switch.  Our light must shine from within.  Our light should radiate the light of Christ working in our lives. 

In today’s first reading, Isaiah 58:7-10, the prophet tells us how to become salt and light for our world.  “Share your bread with the hungry, shelter the oppressed and the homeless; clothe the naked when you see them, and do not turn your back on your own. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.”   This is a huge challenge.  Let our prayer today ask Jesus to kindle His light in us so that our light will rise in the darkness.

O God of justice,
you have called your Church
to be the salt of the earth
and the light for the world.
Let the light of your own justice
shine in our lives,
so that we can do good works
and give you praise and glory.
We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
AMEN.

Thursday, February 6, 2020

Life

We may never get what we want,
We may never want what we get,
We may never have what we like.
We may never like what we have.
Still we Live and Love.

This is life.

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Being Honest

If you have a solid spiritual life, you realize that nothing really disconnects you from others. Then it is a matter of courage to be yourself and to be honest about who you are. This means:

• To admit the hard things about yourself
• To be clear about hard things others must hear
• To not mislead anyone
• To not live a secret life
• To abandon false fronts and false pride
• To be clear about your intent
• To tell the truth
• To not hide from difficult moments
• To give up being “nice” all the time
• To state your needs and wants without shame
• To not cover or lie for anyone

The truth does, in fact, make you free.

Pat Carnes Ph.D.
“The Betrayal Bond”


Monday, February 3, 2020

Am I a Polar Bear?

A young polar bear cub approached his mother one day and asked, "Mom, am I a polar bear?"
"Of course you are," she replied with a smile.
"OK," said the cub, and padded off.

Later, he found his dad out by the iceberg. "Dad, am I a polar bear?"
"Sure you are, son!" said his dad, wondering a bit at why his son would ask such a silly thing.

The next day, the cub asked the question again and again.
"Are you and mom polar bears?  You are?  Well, then, does that make me a polar bear?  Pure, 100% polar bear?"

Finally, his parents couldn't stand it any longer.  "Son, you're driving us crazy with this question!  You are a polar bear!  Why do you keep asking?
The cub looked up and confessed, "Cause I'm FREEZING!"

And then there's me.  Sometimes I go to my Father, and I say, "Am I really your child?  Are you really my Father?  Because sometimes I doubt, and other times, I don't act much like you.  And I'm not sure if I'm the kind of person you would want to call your child.  And sometimes things don't go well for me, and I have pain and anger and is that ok for one of your children?"  And then, though I can't see it, I can feel it -- the warm hug, the reassuring smile, the affirmation of son-ship.  I don't have to be perfect, I'm not expected to never feel pain or worry or care.  But I'm expected to know whose I am, and that I belong.  And that for whatever extravagant, outrageous reason, I've been loved and adopted by the One True God.

Even polar bears get cold.  And even Christians, the adopted children of God, fail and fear and falter.  But we are still His.

Praise God!

Saturday, February 1, 2020

A Prayer by Thomas Merton


My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that, if I do this , You will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone.