“Birds sing after a storm. Why shouldn't we?” – Rose Kennedy

Some of us have been through an awful lot.  We have endured pain and hopelessness.  Now we have some choices to make.  We can allow our pasts to make us feel badly about ourselves or we can sing after the storm.  We can feel proud that we are not giving up, we are not willing to be destroyed.

The past won't change, and the bad things won't magically go away.  But we can learn to move forward.

We can put the past where it belongs, close enough so we'll never forget, and far enough away so we don't give it all of our attention.  The sun doesn't just make rainbows for other people; they're for us too.

Today let me tell myself that it's okay to feel good about myself.

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Saint Teresa of Calcutta once said, "People are hungry for God. Do you see that? Quite often we look but do not see. We are all passing through this world. We need to open our eyes and see." In today’s gospel from John 6: 24-35, the people who followed Jesus to Capernaum after the miracle of the loaves and fishes were looking for Jesus the prophet but they did not see God the Son even though he was standing right in front of them. They wanted heavenly signs like manna in the desert, but they failed to recognize the miracle of the loaves and fishes that they participated in as a sign that Jesus came from God. They wanted to satisfy their physical hunger, but they were ignoring their spiritual hunger.

The Bread of Life Jesus offered the crowd in Capernaum and the Bread of Life he offers us sustains more than our physical needs. The bread Jesus offers provides us with fullness of life. That fullness includes love, joy, peace, compassion, forgiveness, understanding and wisdom. The Bread of Life unites us with God and fulfills all our inner longings. The Bread of Life is anything that nurtures our spirits. We receive the Bread of Life in scripture, in song, in art, in relationships, in family, in community, in worship, in our belief in Jesus and in Eucharist.

Like the Israelites in our first reading from Exodus, the crowd following Jesus wanted their daily bread, bread that would not keep. Jesus wanted to offer them “food that endures for eternal life.” As Catholics, we consider the Eucharist our Bread of Life. Eucharist is our manna from heaven. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us “What material food produces in our bodily life, Holy Communion wonderfully achieves in our spiritual life. Communion … preserves, increases, and renews the life of grace received at Baptism. This growth in Christian life needs the nourishment of Eucharistic Communion, the bread for our pilgrimage until the moment of death…” (CCC 1392).

Our living God,

we hunger for lasting life and happiness

and the fulfillment of all our hopes.

Satisfy all our hungers

through your Son Jesus Christ,

our bread of life.

And when he has filled us with himself,

may he lead and strengthen us

to bring to a waiting world

the food of reconciliation and joy

which you alone can give to the full.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen

Paid in Full

One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.

He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal, he asked for a drink of water.

She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk He drank it slowly, and then asked, “How much do I owe you?” “You don’t owe me anything,” she replied, “Mother has taught us never to accept payment for a kindness.”

He said “Then I thank you from my heart.”

As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt; stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.

Years later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease.

Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. Dressed in his doctor’s gown he went in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval.

He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room. She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally, she looked, and something caught her attention on the side as she read these words:  "Paid in full with one glass of milk.”

(Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.

Tears of joy flooded her eyes as her happy heart prayed: “Thank You, GOD, that Your love has spread abroad through human hearts and hands.”

Life without Spirituality

Find Joy

A senator once took Will Rogers to the White House to meet President Coolidge. He warned the humorist that Coolidge never smiled. Rogers replied, “I’ll make him smile.”

Inside the Oval Office, the senator introduced the two men. “Will Rogers,” he said, “I’d like you to meet President Coolidge.”

Deadpan, Rogers quipped, “I’m sorry, but I didn’t catch the name.” Coolidge smiled.

Blues musician Corky Siegel says, “Life is too important to take seriously.”

A sense of humor is essential. It is one of the most important means we possess to face the difficulties of life. And sometimes life can be difficult indeed.

I see people every day with big problems: relationships breaking apart, unemployment, serious illness. Not a week goes by when I haven’t talked with someone agonizing with a suffering friend, or people who are addicted or in deep grief. Without a sense of humor about my own life, I don’t know if I could survive. I take what I do seriously, but I try not to take myself too seriously. Like the New York City cab driver who said, “It’s not the work that I enjoy so much, but the people I run into!”

Here is an experiment: look for and find as much joy as possible for one full day. Try to enjoy the people you run into, the work you do, your leisure time and your relationships. Don’t forget to enjoy yourself – and take enough time to enjoy God. Try this experiment for one full day, and by evening you may be amazed to find yourself basking in the glow of a rekindled spirit.

It just takes a day to find joy along the way.

Twin Brothers

The family had two twin boys whose only resemblance to each other were their looks. If one felt it was too hot, the other thought it was too cold. If one said the TV was too loud, the other claimed the volume was too low. Opposite in every way, one was an eternal optimist, the other a doom and gloom pessimist.

Just to see what would happen, on the twins’ birthday, the father loaded the pessimist’s room with every imaginable toy and game. The optimist’s room he loaded with horse manure.

That night, the father passed by the pessimist’s room and found him sitting amid his new gifts crying bitterly. “Why are you crying?” the father asked. “Because my friends will be jealous, I’ll have to read all these instructions before I can do anything with this stuff, I’ll constantly need batteries and my toys will eventually get broken,” answered the pessimist twin.

Passing the optimist twin’s room, the father found him dancing for joy in the pile of manure. “What are you so happy about?” he asked. To which his optimist twin replied, “With all this manure, there’s got to be a pony in here somewhere.”

Which are you??

Listen for the Bell

A friend recently told me that just up the road from his home is a field, with two horses in it. From a distance, each horse looks like any other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing.

Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him. This alone is amazing. If you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field. Attached to the horse's halter is a small bell. It lets the blind friend know where the other horse is, so he can follow.

As you stand and watch these two friends, You'll see that the horse with the bell is always checking on the blind horse, And that the blind horse will listen for the bell and then slowly walk to where the other horse is, Trusting that he will not be led astray. When the horse with the bell returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, it stops occasionally and looks back, making sure that the blind friend isn't too far behind to hear the bell.

Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need. Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are the guide horse, helping others to find their way.  Good friends are like that.  You may not always see them, but you know they are always there.

Humility by Andrew Murray

Each of us must know in our minds and believe in our hearts that even though we are different, you are like me and I am like you.

One of the definitions of humility is having an awareness of one's own character defects. To recognize and acknowledge that one has imperfections is being humble. We should never pray for ourselves unless by doing so it would help another person. To have self-importance puts self-first and this is not humble. We each have strengths and we each have weaknesses. Both the strengths and weaknesses are sacred. Life is sacred. We learn sacred things from weaknesses also. Therefore, all lives are developed through trial and error, strength and weakness, ups and downs, gains and losses - all of these are part of life and life is sacred. May the Holy Spirit let us see and know about the sacredness of life.

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today and for the next four Sundays our gospel readings are from the 6th chapter of St John’s Gospel. We begin with the miracle of the loaves and fishes and continue with reflections on the Eucharist and Jesus as the Bread of Life. Jesus feeds thousands of people to end their physical hunger and he nourishes their souls, ending their spiritual hunger.

The people following Jesus all over Galilee were looking for signs and wonders. This chapter of St John’s Gospel is full of signs, but not necessarily the signs people were looking for. In the Old Testament signs signified the “wonderful deeds of Yahweh.” They were like fireworks on the 4th of July. The rainbow after the flood was a great sign. The parting of the Red Sea was a great sign. Signs indicated big, God filled events.

The signs and miracles Jesus gave the people were more subtle. Although Jesus did perform “big” miracles such as changing water into wine at Cana, feeding thousands of people with five loaves of bread and two fishes and raising Lazarus from the dead, most of Jesus’ signs and miracles were quiet, internal changes such as healings and changes of heart. Miracles, no matter how big or how small, are transformative. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that, “The miracles of the multiplication of the loaves, when the Lord says the blessing, breaks and distributes the loaves through his disciples to feed the multitude, prefigure the superabundance of [the] unique bread of his Eucharist. The sign of water turned into wine at Cana already announces the Hour of Jesus' glorification. It makes manifest the fulfilment of the wedding feast in the Father's kingdom, where the faithful will drink the new wine that has become the Blood of Christ” (CCC 1335).

Although we cannot share in the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves, we can share in the Eucharist. Two thousand years after Jesus fed the people near the Sea of Galilee the Eucharist changes our lives, nourishes our souls and leads us to eternal life with Jesus. The Eucharist is our sign that unites us “with the heavenly liturgy” and helps us “anticipate eternal life, when God will be all in all” (CCC 1326).

O God, you open wide your hand,

giving us food in due season.

Out of your abundance,

satisfy the hungers of body and soul

and lead all peoples of the earth

to the feast of the world to come.

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.

A Spiritual Life is Natural

Conscious Contact! Coming into what is clearly a spiritual program, we may have been fearful that our own unworthiness would hold us back. We may have believed that a spiritual life and a “conscious contact” with God are reserved for a few people with saintly qualities.

What we must know is that the spiritual life is every person's right. It includes the human qualities that have brought our greatest progress. “The spirit of the thing” is an ordinary phrase, but it expresses the presence of a Higher Power in our lives.

What's most useful to know is that we can contact our Higher Power at any time, in any place. This can be extremely important when we are in very bad situations. We always have a Higher Power to pull us through and to set things right in our lives. That's our birthright as human beings.

I'll turn to my Higher Power frequently throughout the day, if only for a few moments each time. This will keep me on the right path.

~ From “Walk in Dry Places” by Mel B

Golf Balls and Coffee

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee. A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large, empty mayonnaise jar and started to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured it into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous “yes.”

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,'“ said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and favorite passions. Things, that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.”

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping faucet. Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. “I'm glad you asked”. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Past

Let us not go over the old ground, let us rather prepare for what is to come. Marcus Tullius Cicero

Sometimes we hang on to the oddest things. For instance, many of us go to a lot of trouble to hang on to old guilt, old mistakes, old loneliness, old hurts, and old crimes. We fight like crazy to keep these little darlings near and dear. If we make a mistake, we feel we don't deserve to let go of the self-punishment.

The healthy and sober thing to do is let go of the past. We can cut the chains and shackles of the past that keep us from moving forward. When we cut even one link of that chain, we begin to move more freely toward health and self-love.

Today let me understand that I'm not helping anyone by holding on to the past.

All Work is Honorable

Like a lot of high school students, he needed a summer job. It wasn't easy finding one, but Colin did what he could. When there was an opening, he worked day jobs on soda trucks. And that's what he had. That was the opening. Just occasional day jobs helping out on trucks delivering soft drinks.

But because he was there, he heard about an opening at the Pepsi plant. It was a lousy job, one of cleaning up soda syrup. No one else even wanted the job. But Colin took it.

And get this; he did such a good job there, the plant manager asked him to come back the next summer. That summer, he moved over to a bottling machine. By the end of the summer, he was a deputy shift leader.

Colin was getting an important lesson in life. One success builds on another. "All work is honorable," he later wrote. "Always do your best, because someone is watching."

From job to job, success to success, Colin moved up in the world. We knew Colin - Colin Powell - as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Gulf War, and later, Secretary of State under President George W. Bush.

From job to job, assignment to assignment, Colin Powell modeled something for us. You can use past success as a building block for future success, even if the only past success you have is mopping up soda syrup really, really well.

Slow Me Down, Lord

Slow me down, Lord! 

Ease the pounding of my heart 

by the quieting on my mind. 

Steady my hurried pace 

with a vision of the eternal reach of time. 

Give me, 

amid the confusion of the day, 

the calmness of the everlasting hills.

Break the tensions of my nerves

with the soothing music

of the singing streams

that live in my memory.

Help me to know 

the magical power of sleep,

Teach me the art of taking minute vacations

of slowing down to look at a flower, 

to chat with a friend, 

or make a new one.

To pet a stray dog, 

To watch a spider build a web,

To smile at a child, 

or to read a few lines from a good book. 

Remind me each day of the fable 

of the hare and the tortoise, 

that I may know that the race 

is not always to the swift.

that there is more to life 

than increasing its speed.

Let me look upward 

into the branches of the towering oak 

and know that it grew great and strong 

because it grew slowly and well.

Slow me down, Lord, 

and inspire me to send my roots 

deep into the soil of life's enduring values 

that I may grow toward the stars of my greater destiny. 

That I may find you, my God. 

- Wilferd A. Peterson

Mud Puddles & Dandelions

Big Mud Puddles And Sunny Yellow Dandelions

Author Unknown

When I look at a patch of dandelions, I see a bunch of weeds that are going to take over my yard.

- My kids see flowers for Mom and blowing white fluff you can wish on.

When I look at an old drunk and he smiles at me, I see a smelly, dirty person who probably wants money and I look away.

- My kids see someone smiling at them and they smile back.

When I hear music I love, I know I can't carry a tune and don't have much rhythm so I sit self-consciously and listen.

- My kids feel the beat and move to it. They sing out the words. If they don't know them, they make up their own.

When I feel wind on my face, I brace myself against it. I feel it messing up my hair and pulling me back when I walk.

- My kids close their eyes, spread their arms and fly with it, until they fall to the ground laughing.

When I pray, I say thee and thou and grant me this, give me that.

- My kids say, 'Hi God! Thanks for my toys and my friends. Please keep the bad dreams away tonight. Sorry, I don't want to go to Heaven yet. I would miss my Mommy and Daddy.'

When I see a mud puddle I step around it. I see muddy shoes and dirty carpets.

- My kids sit in it. They see dams to build, rivers to cross, and worms to play with.

I wonder if we are given kids to teach or to learn from? No wonder God loves the little children!

Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.

I wish you Big Mud Puddles and Sunny Yellow Dandelions!

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

When Jeremiah was delivering his prophecies from about 628 BC to 586 BC, the people of Israel considered God their Great Shepherd. The leaders of Israel were also called shepherds. It was their duty to care for the people of Israel just as God cared for them. The duty of shepherds was to keep their flock intact and protect it from predators and to supervise the migration of the flock and ensure they made it to market areas in time for shearing.

It is clear from our first reading today, Jeremiah 12: 1-6, that Israel’s leadership in the 6th Century BC was not doing a very good job tending their sheep. So, God, through Jeremiah, promised to appoint shepherds “who will shepherd them so that they need no longer fear and tremble; and none shall be missing.” Ultimately God sent Jesus, The Good Shepherd, who, as we are told in our 2nd reading for today from Ephesians 2: 13-18, draws us (sheep) closer to the Father through the Spirit and through the sacrifice of His blood.

Each one of us, as a disciple of Jesus, and an adopted daughter or son of God the Father, is called to be a good and caring shepherd. We all have our own flocks to tend: the people in our families, the people we work with, the people we worship with, the people we pray with, the people in our neighborhoods and the people in Peachtree City. We could also include the people in Georgia, the people in the United States and all the people in the world.

As God’s special shepherds on earth, we have a responsibility to protect the most vulnerable sheep in our world. But we also must assure that we give ourselves the time we need to nurture ourselves spiritually as well as physically. Following the example of Jesus, we must make time for prayer, for reflection and for quiet so we can hear the voice of God.

Our loving God, 

your Son Jesus has revealed you to us 

as more tender, warm hearted and compassionate 

than any mother could ever be. 

Be near to all who are wounded in life, 

care for all the little people trampled upon in our world. 

Help all those who follow your Son 

become people who can forgive and heal 

and make themselves nourishing bread 

for all who are hungry in any way. 

Help us care for one another as you care for us 

through Jesus, your Son and our Lord for ever and ever.

Amen.

Shadow

Worry gives a small thing a big shadow. – E.B. Bull

You’ve probably noticed how your shadow changes throughout the day. It may be long in the morning or evening but short when the sun is overhead. It would be a mistake to judge the size of an object by the size of the shadow. Yet many of us are afraid of our shadow.

That’s one of the reasons it is suggested that we focus our energy on the present moment. It’s what we pray for when we say, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

However, many of us live in the “shadow world” of yesterday and tomorrow. We are guilty or ashamed of what happened yesterday, and we fear what tomorrow might bring, or of what someone may think of us tomorrow, or what my boss might want because s/he wants to see me in her office.

By staying in today, in this moment, we learn that our life is much easier. Our shadow is much smaller when the sun is overhead We have spent so much of our time worrying about the past and the future. It’s a difficult habit to break. No matter what I do or think, I cannot change a moment of yesterday. No matter what I do, I cannot control tomorrow until tomorrow gets here. And then we may not be able to control anything but ourselves. Learning to do that is a lifetime job.

Lord, help me learn to live in the holiness of this moment. Let me be grateful for the blessings of now. I believe that you give us the grace necessary to handle whatever is happening right now.

Forgiveness

"I once picked up a woman from a garbage dump and she was burning with fever; she was in her last days and her only lament was: ‘My son did this to me.’ I begged her: You must forgive your son. In a moment of madness, when he was not himself, he did a thing he regrets. Be a mother to him, forgive him. It took me a long time to make her say: ‘I forgive my son.’ Just before she died in my arms, she was able to say that with a real forgiveness. She was not concerned that she was dying. The breaking of the heart was that her son did not want her. This is something you and I can understand."

Work and Family

To the world you are just a person. To a company you are just an employee.

The day you resign, your work cubicle will be replaced. Your absence missed for a day then the company forgets you. They went on to make their money for they need to, and they have no time to grieve because of the expectations they have to fulfill. Occasionally they make mistakes and it may come with a price, you have to pay.

This is why, my friends, do not mix work with family. Do not take your work home, cast your family aside and forget about giving time to your children. Because in their hearts you are never replaced, because when you are gone, every day you will be missed. If anything happen to you, it will be your family and friends crying like crazy for you. Because to them, even though you are just one person, you are their world.

So reset your priorities. Be a good worker but be a better father / mother / friend / daughter / son / sister / brother / husband / wife.

Support

Just as there are people that support us, we are a supporter to many people extending the cycle and giving back.

Behind each of us stands at least one supporter. This was once thought to be the spouse who ran the home while leaving the other spouse free to work. While this is still one valid scenario, most of us will find that we have other kinds of supporters in our lives. In some cases, our supporters are the people whose help allows us to do the things we're best at, see to our obligations, or pursue or dreams. In other cases, our support may come from the people who are there to help us through life's challenges by offering us their strength and bolstering our spirit.

Our support may come from our families and friends or from the people we hire--nannies, assistants, gardeners, healers, therapists, and advisors. Our supporters may be the mentors who help us express ourselves by listening to us as we share our thoughts and feelings. Our supporter can be the person sitting next to us at a networking meeting or the teacher from our childhood whose words still resonate in our minds. We have always had supporters around us whether we noticed them or not. No matter where the support comes from, few of us can make it through life without assistance.

As we take the time to acknowledge everyone that has every supported us, we can't help but feel grateful. Understanding our place in our human support system helps us see that just as there are people that support us, we are a supporter to many people. By gratefully accepting the expertise and assistance of our supporters, we can consciously and more easily build a life that we love. Thanks to our staff, groups, friends, and loved ones for all their support. We all need each other's support to thrive this world.

Moving Beyond Ourselves

Love immediately challenges me to break the fixation I have with myself.

~ John Powell, S.J.

Self-absorption can become habitual, and it's a seductive pastime. "How do I look?" "Was my response articulate?" "Is my wit impressive?" It's all too easy to block out the presence of others except for the purpose of comparison to ourselves. And blocking out their presence robs us of the many lessons they've come to teach us.

The ego is fragile only in proportion to the amount of undue attention we give it. And assuredly we cripple it by the focus we mistakenly believe nurtures its growth. Far better for the health of our ego to love and encourage the well being of a friend's ego.

The more we move beyond ourselves, the greater will be our personal peace and security. Happiness is the natural by-product of favoring another with loving attention.

From “Worthy of Love” by Karen Casey

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God often calls the most ordinary people to do extraordinary things. A case in point is Amos who, in today’s first reading, Amos 7: 12-15, tells us he was a shepherd and horticulturist before the Lord called him to “prophesy to my people Israel.” Elisha was a farmer before Elijah called him. Peter, Andrew, James and John were fisherman before Jesus called them and Paul was a tentmaker.

In today’s second reading, Ephesians 1: 3-14, St. Paul reminds us that God “chose us in him, before the foundation of the world.” Because of God’s great love for us, “he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will.” As His adopted children, God has revealed to us the “the mystery of his will” and we are to reveal this wisdom and insight to the people around us.

When we receive the Sacrament of Baptism, we become official members of the Body of Christ (the Church) and share in its mission to the world. When we receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, we obtain the strength to spread and defend our faith by word and action. Therefore, we are all prophets and missionaries and we all have the responsibility to lead the people we encounter in our everyday lives to the knowledge and love of God.

Like Amos, we can say, “I am no prophet. I am a teacher, a student, a mechanic, a pilot, a nurse, a banker, a stay-at-home mom, or a salesperson.” Each one of us can preach the Gospel in the way we live our lives as mothers and fathers, children, workers, students, retired people or whatever our status in life is. It does not matter what we do, the Lord calls each of us and says, “Go, prophesy to my people.” And so we can pray,

Blessed are you, God our Father,

who has chosen us in Christ

to be your sons and daughters,

set free by the blood of your Son.

Keep us free and make us live

a life that reflects the Good News

brought us by Jesus.

Make our spirit of love and service contagious,

that it may inspire people and attract them

to you, our living and loving God.

We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

Amen

Somebody

Somebody is very proud of you.

Somebody is thinking of you.

Somebody is caring about you.

Somebody misses you.

Somebody wants to talk to you.

Somebody wants to be with you.

Somebody hopes you are not in trouble.

Somebody is thankful for the support you have provided.

Somebody wants to hold your hand.

Somebody hopes everything turns out all right for you.

Somebody wants you to be happy.

Somebody wants you to find him/her.

Somebody wants to give you a gift.

Somebody wants to hug you.

Somebody thinks you ARE a gift.

Somebody admires your strength.

Somebody wants to protect you.

Somebody can't wait to see you.

Somebody loves you for who you are.

Somebody treasures your spirit.

Somebody is glad that you are their friend.

Somebody wants to get to know you better.

Somebody wants to be near you.

Somebody wants you to know they are there for you.

Somebody would do anything for you.

Somebody wants to share their dreams with you.

Somebody is alive because of you.

Somebody needs your support.

Somebody will cry when they read this.

Somebody needs you to have faith in them.

Somebody trusts you.

Somebody hears a song that reminds them of you.

Somebody needs you to send this to them, too.

"To the whole world you might be just one person, but to one person you might be the whole world."

By Somebody

Keys to Success

Awareness - know yourself

Understand "stages of life" (expectations)

Seek support - don't journey alone

Be responsible - healthy self-care

Be human - allow for mistakes

Be honest - keep looking in the mirror and beyond

Understand needs and wants

Set long- and short-term goals

Think straight

Trust your feeling

Attitude - positive, optimistic, hopeful, grateful, committed

Self-care = self-esteem = mental, physical, emotional

Spiritual care - personal prayer, community prayer, spiritual direction, scripture, spiritual literature, awareness of and respect for all of life and Creation.

Slow Down

An American racing enthusiast entered his horse in Britain's famous Epsom Downs Steeple­chase. Just before the race began, he slipped his horse a white pellet. The Duke of Marlboro, who was serving as steward, caught the owner in the act and objected. "I say, old man, really you can't do that sort of thing over here!"

"Just a harmless sugar lump," the Ameri­can assured him. He gulped one down himself. "Here, try one," he said.

The Duke took a pill, swallowed it, and seemed satisfied. As the jockey mounted, the American whispered in his ear, "Son, keep that horse on the outside and stay out of trouble, be­cause once he starts running, there ain't nothing that can catch him...except me and the Duke of Marlboro!"

Do you ever feel that way - running so fast that nothing can catch you? Our busy and full lives are too often like that; we rush here and hurry there. We eat fast food. We run our errands. We use e-mail and put off reading our messages until we have the time. We hurry through meals and can only give friends "just a minute." We live fast-paced and anxious lives. Too often, we run so fast we lose our center.

But, in the end, it's not how fast you lived that matters, but how well you lived. Are you taking time to enjoy? Have you left enough time for you? Is there time to listen to a friend or visit a relative in need? Are you leaving time each day to nurture your faith? Do you need to slow down? After all, the only race that matters goes, not to those who run it quickly, but to those who run it well.

In Times of Need

Independence Day

Sometimes We Just Need to be Reminded!

A well-known speaker started off his seminar by: holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" 

Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this. He proceeded to crumple up the $20 dollar bill. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" 

Still the hands were up in the air. Well, he replied, "What if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now, who still wants it?" 

Still the hands went into the air. My friends, we have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20. Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make or the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value. Dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to those who love you.

The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by WHO WE ARE and WHOSE WE ARE. As Isaiah 43:1; tells us: “But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, Jacob, and formed you, Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name: you are mine.”

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Two hundred forty-five years ago, 56 very brave men signed what we now call The Declaration of Independence. Facing an uncertain future, they persisted “with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence,” and they mutually pledged “to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.” They sought freedom from “absolute tyranny,” unreasonable taxation, military occupation, the obstruction of justice and “repeated injuries and usurpations.” They believed that we are endowed by our Creator “with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” They knew a better life was possible and they were willing to put their lives on the line to achieve their vision. Reflecting on the day he signed the Declaration, John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, “I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure, that it will cost us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the gloom, I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is more than worth all the means. And that Posterity will triumph in that day's transaction, even although we should rue it, which I trust in God we shall not.”

John Adams was correct. Their brave act did result in “toil and blood” and at the end there were “rays of ravishing light and glory.” These 56 men had a prophetic vision of freedom that was not accepted by the occupying force of Great Britain. In our readings today, we hear three prophetic voices: Ezekiel, Paul and Jesus. All three of today’s readings talk about the difficulty prophets face. God told Ezekiel that the people to whom he was sent were “hard of face and obstinate of heart” (Ez 2:4). St Paul had to contend with “weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ” (2 Cor 12:10). And, ultimately Jesus’ teaching and miracle working resulted in his crucifixion.

By our baptism, each one of us shares “in the priesthood of Christ, in his prophetic and royal mission” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1268). We are called to be prophets. We are commissioned to proclaim God’s message to our families, neighbors, and friends and in our communities. We also run the risk of humiliation, ridicule, rejection and abuse. Being a prophetic voice in today’s culture takes courage. The good news is that we are not alone. In our second reading today, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Jesus tells Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”

So, on this Independence Day, we should thank God for the gift of this country, for the gift of freedom and for the gift of democracy. We also should thank God for the gift of His Son Jesus Christ who sacrificed his life assuring that we can be citizens of God's kingdom.

God of all nations,

Father of the human family,

We give you thanks for the freedom we exercise

And the many blessings of democracy we enjoy

In these United States of America.

We ask for your protection and guidance

For all who devote themselves to the common good,

Working for justice and peace at home and around the world.

We lift up all our duly elected leaders and public servants,

Those who serve us as president, as legislators and judges,

Those in the military and law enforcement.

Heal us from our differences and unite us, O Lord,

With a common purpose, dedication, and commitment

To achieve liberty and justice in the years ahead for all people,

And especially those who are most vulnerable in our midst.

Amen.

Contributions

We need to take note, today, of all the opportunities we have to offer a helping hand to another person. We can notice too the many times a friend, or even a stranger, reaches out to us in a helpful way. The opportunities to contribute to life's flow are unending.

Our own vibrancy comes from involvement with others, from contributing our talents, our hearts, to one another's daily travels. The program helps us to know that God lives in us, among us. When we close ourselves off from our friends, our fellow travelers, we block God's path to us and through us.

To live means sharing one another's space, dreams, sorrows; contributing our ears to hear, our eyes to see, our arms to hold, our hearts to love. When we close ourselves off from each other, we have destroyed the vital contribution we each need to make and to receive in order to nurture life.

We each need only what the other can give. Each person we meet today needs our special contribution.

What a wonderful collection of invitations awaits me today!