Precious Trials

Then Why Don't We Pray

The highest privilege ever afforded to humans is the power of prayer.

... then why don't we pray?

The right to talk to the highest power in all the universe...
... then why don't we pray?

The most powerful force accessible to people is the potential of prayer...
... then why don't we pray?

The greatest longing in the heart of God is to talk to His children...
... then why don't we pray?

Nothing is impossible to those who pray...
... then why don't we pray?

No one ever failed or faltered who gave himself to prayer...
... then why don't we pray?

Every sin is forgiven, every stain is washed clean, all guilt diminished to the one who prays...
... then why don't we pray?

Hell moves farther away, Satan flees from the one who prays...
... then why don't we pray?

Anointing will come, mountains will be moved, valleys made smooth, rivers made crossable, the inaccessible made accessible, the impossible made possible, dreams come true to the one who prays...
... then why don't we pray?

Jesus said that men ought always to pray...
... then why don't we pray?

Paul encouraged prayer without ceasing...
... then why don't we pray?

The riches of heaven are open to those who pray in His name...
... then why don't we pray?

Everyone can pray, the young, the old, the rich, the poor, the strong, the weak, the child, the aged, the sinner, the prisoner, in any nation, in any language, all people can pray...

... then why don't we pray?

Train of Life

At birth we boarded the train and met our parents, and believed they would always travel at our side. However, at some station our parents will step down from the train, leaving us on this journey alone. 

As time goes by, other people will board the train; and they will be significant i.e. Our siblings, friends, Children, and even the love of our life. 

Many will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will go so unnoticed that we don't realize that they vacated their seats!  This train ride will be full of joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, good-byes, and farewells.

A Successful journey consists of having a good relationship with all passengers requiring that we give the best of ourselves. The mystery to everyone is: We do not know at which station we ourselves will step down. So, we must live in the best way - love, forgive, and offer the best of who we are.

It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty - we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the train of life.

~ Jean d'Ormesson

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

When are you most likely to pray?  Is it when life is going well or when the rug has been pulled out from under you?  For many people prayer comes easily when everything in life is going their way but when disaster strikes, they shut down.  For other people when life is running smoothly, they become complacent and forget about their relationship with God.  However, when things go wrong, they are down on their knees in a nanosecond imploring God to make things right again.   Our approach to prayer says a lot about our relationship with God. 

For the next two weeks St. Luke directs our thoughts towards prayer.  Today’s Gospel, the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Corrupt Judge (Luke 18:1–8), is about perseverance in prayer.  In this humorous story a corrupt judge who has no fear of God or respect for any human being is badgered by a poor widow who finally gets what she wants because the judge is afraid she will give him a black eye.   It would be easy to interpret this parable as encouragement to nag God until we get what we want.  However, the corrupt judge is nothing like God.  Jesus uses the judge as an example of what God isn’t.  God does not respond to us out of fear, frustration or cowardice.  God cannot be manipulated by our wants or our whims.  God responds to us out of love; a love so great we cannot begin to comprehend its vastness.  Imagine, if a self-serving, corrupt and amoral judge can be swayed by a widow’s plea for justice, how much more our loving and generous God responds to us. 

The heroine of this parable is the persistent widow.  As a poor widow, her survival depended on a just decision, which she finally got.  But if we stop at this point in the parable, we totally miss the punch line.  Which is “But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"  This question brings us back to our approach to prayer.   Prayer requires discipline and perseverance.  It is a habit we must cultivate because the more we pray (in good times and in bad times) the closer we come to God.  More often than not when we pray our situations don’t change but we change.  Through prayer we stand a chance of seeing the hand of God working in our lives and then we can pray that perfect prayer “Thy will be done.” 

Lord God,
tireless guardian of your people,
always ready to hear the cries of your chosen ones,
teach us to rely, day and night, on your care.
Support us in our prayer lest we grow weary.  
Grant that we will always seek your enduring justice
and your ever-present help.
We ask this 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.

Be Aware of Giving ....

Be aware of giving from a desire to feel good about ourselves, rather than from a place of connection to all people.

When we see a person in need, we may want to give them something as a way of helping them, but if we give without taking the time to see who they really are, honoring that most of all, our gift is nowhere near as powerful as it could be. We may want to give a homeless person a sandwich, for example, but if we give it without also taking a moment to look the person in the eye, making authentic contact, we rob them of the experience of being human.

Being in a position of need leaves a lot of people feeling vulnerable and full of self-doubt. The greatest gift we can give is to meet people in need without judgment and with the awareness that we are not superior to them simply because we are not currently in their position. If we take the long view, we can see that we all began life in need of a lot of care and attention, and many of us end life in the same way. Giving and receiving are companion energies that take turns throughout our lives, and we all get a chance to be on both sides of the exchange from time to time.

It's important to be aware of our own tendency to give from a desire to feel good about ourselves, rather than from an acknowledgement of our connection to all people. Letting go of our self-importance allows us to see that, regardless of appearances, we are all givers and receivers. When we are in the position of the giver, we honor those we are helping when we remember the many people who have helped us. Then we can look the person we are helping in the eye, aware that we are making contact with a human being who is our equal.

A little girl was sitting on the lap of her grandfather. For the first time, the child was really giving her grandfather the once-over. She examined his wrinkled skin, and his gray hair. "Grandfather," she asked him, "did God make you?" "Sure, sweetheart." Then she looked at herself. Smooth skin. Blonde hair. "Grandfather, did God make me?" "Absolutely!" he answered." There was a moment of silence while she thought about the differences between the two of them. "Grandfather," she asked, "don't you think God's doing a better job than He used to?"

Five Fingers

A mother put her son to bed on the eve of his fifth birthday. She was trying to communicate that birthday idea to him. "Kevin," she said, "this is the last night of your fourth night. Do you understand that?" Kevin was ready to communicate with his hands. For a full year, he had shown people four fingers for his four years, and now he was ready to add a thumb. Seeing his four fingers, his mother nodded, and said: "When you go to sleep tonight, you'll still be 4-years-old. But do you know how old you'll be in the morning, when you wake up?" Kevin nodded enthusiastically, added his thumb to his four little fingers and said, "Tomorrow, I'll be a handful!