Friendship

St. Francis de Sales tells us: "Friendship requires great communication." Mt 6:6 says to us: “But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”

In the First letter of Peter 5:7 we are told: “Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you.”

And so, the only way to have a friend is to be one. A real friend is someone who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.

Optimist Creed

Promise Yourself.......

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and prosperity to everyone you meet.
To make all your friends feel there is something special in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry,
Too noble for anger,
Too strong for fear,
And too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

~ by Christian D. Larson

Bad Hair Day

There once was a woman who woke up one morning,
looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs
on her head.

"Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today."

So she did and she had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that
she had only two hairs on her head.

"H-m-m, " she said, "I think I'll part my hair down the
middle today."

So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed
that she had only one hair on her head.

"Well," she said, "Today I'm going to wear my hair in a
pony tail."

So she did and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and
noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.

"YEAH!" she exclaimed, "I don't have to fix my
hair today!"

Attitude is everything.

~ Source Unknown

Prayer

Lord,

Take my life and let me live serenely for today.

Open my mind to happy thoughts.

Take away my self-pity, I don’t want it.

Take away my ill will towards others.

Make it possible for me to feel joy, love, and compassion.

Help me to accept what is, to hold my tongue, to do my daily task, and to let go with love.

Take away my worry about the future.

Make me realize that in your hands everything will be provided.

Help me to understand that I have no control over anything but my own actions.

Make me know that today is precious and will soon be gone.

Help me to remember that all hatred and pain directed toward me are the hatred and pain the other person is feeling toward himself.

Thank you for your willingness to accept my burden and lighten my load.

~~ By Unknown

2nd Sunday of Lent

Every year on the second Sunday of Lent, the first reading highlights an aspect of Abraham’s relationship with God and the Gospel recounts the Transfiguration. What struck me about these readings this year is that Abram, Moses, Elijah, Jesus, Peter, James and John all heard the voice of God; they listened to God and acted on God’s directives. God tells Abram to “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1–2) and “Abram went as the LORD directed him” (Genesis 12:4).  Moses listened to God, liberated the children of Israel, led them to the Promised Land and provided them and us with the Biblical books of the law. Elijah heard the voice of God in a tiny whispering sound and went on to become the first of the great prophets. 

In his Message for Lent 2026, Pope Leo XIV focuses on, Listening and Fasting: Lent as a Time of Conversion.  The Holy Father tells us that, “In revealing himself to Moses in the burning bush, God himself teaches us that listening is one of his defining characteristics: “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry” (Ex 3:7). God Listens to us and hears us.  We, in turn, should listen to God. Pope Leo writes, “Our God is one who seeks to involve us. Even today he shares with us what is in his heart. Because of this, listening to the word in the liturgy teaches us to listen to the truth of reality…. In order to foster this inner openness to listening, we must allow God to teach us how to listen as he does.” 

Peter, James and John heard the voice of God proclaim the transfigured Jesus His “beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”  They did listen to Jesus and in spite of their human failings and weaknesses; they became the fathers of our church.   Like these great men of scripture, God tells us to listen to Jesus.  We hear the word of God proclaimed every Sunday. Last week we heard Jesus remind the devil that “one does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). 

Jesus listened for his Father’s voice in moments of fasting, solitude and prayer.  Lent is the perfect time for us to be still, to be silent, to fast, to pray and to open our hearts and minds so that we too can hear the voice of God directing our lives.  All we have to do is stop, open our hearts and “listen to him.” 

God our Father, 

 help us to hear your Son. 

Enlighten us with your word, 

that we may find the way to your glory. 

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 

one God, forever and ever.

Amen.

Listen to These Words of Mine

Listen to these words of mine.

We all must take the time to be silent and to contemplate, especially those who live in big cities like London and New York, where everything moves so fast. This is why I decided to open our first home for contemplative sisters (whose vocation is to pray most of the day) in New York instead of the Himalayas: I felt silence and contemplation were needed more in the cities of the world. I always begin my prayer in silence, for it is in the silence of the heart that God speaks. God is the friend of silence-we need to listen to God because it's not what we say but what He says to us and through us that matters. Prayer feeds the soul-as blood is to the body, prayer is to the soul-and it brings you closer to God. It also gives you a clean and pure heart. A clean heart can see God, can speak to God, and can see the love of God in others. When you have a clean heart it means you are open and honest with God, you are not hiding anything from Him, and this lets Him take what He wants from you.

~ Mother Teresa

Morning Prayer