Making a Mess

Six-year-old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor. He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten. Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked!. Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him. Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process.

That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our vocation gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our situation, or our health goes sour.

Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him. But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to "make pancakes" for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried.

Did Anyone See Me?

I first noticed it on a hot, July evening when the moon was full and bright. Several beautiful, large white flowers, emitting a fragrant perfume, were blooming on one of the cactus plants in our front yard. The following morning, when I took my family outside to show them this stunning sight, not a single blossom remained.

I soon discovered that this was a Night-blooming Cereus, called the "Queen of the Night". The flowers for this remarkable plant not only bloom just at night, but each one for only one night. Imagine - their one moment of glory and hardly anyone sees it.

I can relate to that. As a stay-at-home mom, I often feel I do my best work when no one's around to know. Such as when I find the magical combination of stain remover and elbow grease that saves my son Ross' favorite shirt from ruin. Or I call every Burger King in Phoenix finally to unearth the last remaining doll from the current Disney movie, the only thing Maria wants for her birthday. Nobody sees my moments of glory either, and sometimes I wonder about the merits of so much blooming in the dark.

But watching the Queen of the Night more carefully, I've noticed something wonderful. Come morning, after the flower closes, from it grows a bright red fruit, a delicacy for birds and small animals and the source of the seeds for new growth. It's the tiniest part of a great cycle just as it's supposed to be, just as God has planned it.

It's the same for me. The little things I do for my family, the many tasks whose nearly invisible results help make our life together run more smoothly, are my contribution to the plan God has mapped out for us, and as I watch the fruits of my work grow strong, the rewards -- a smile, a giggle, a thank you -- are the tiny seeds that inspire me joyfully to begin the process anew each day.

Have a wonderful day!


~ From The Inspiration List

No One Can

 

Happiness Within

Even before Christ, there existed wonderful philosophy in Greece and Rome. The ancient Romans were practical people. They did not ask themselves theoretical questions. They asked how they, as people, could become happy. They concluded that they must keep the source of happiness within themselves. They were the Stoic Philosophers. The writers included Epictetus and the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. They were wise and wonderful.

The Stoics believed that they could not depend on the "outside" for happiness. The "outside is beyond my control. I must keep some control over my happiness or I will always be a victim. Example: I would be happy if my wife (or husband) were cheerful in the morning. I will be happy when I win the lottery. This is not the road to happiness. Happiness is securely found only from within.

The Stoics said that we could not let our desires go unrestrained. If I let my desires go wild, I can convince myself that I need a yacht to be happy. I do not need a yacht, or a DVR or a Porsche, or a widescreen TV. We can decide what we need; we can be content with what we have. In this regard, there are two ways to get rich. I define a rich person as one who earns more than s/he wants to spend. You could earn a fortune, more than you could ever want to spend. Or you could limit your desire to spend. J.P. Morgan chose the first way. Francis of Assisi chose the second. They were both rich.

The Stoics were a secular philosophy. They did not bring God into the picture. When we take the Stoic wisdom and add our spirituality, then we really have a plan of life. Look inside yourself for happiness. Inside you find the God who loves you. This God is the only sure source of happiness. Now we find that Francis of Assisi just might have been the happiest individual whoever lived.

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??

3rd Sunday of Lent

For the next three Sundays, we leave the gospel of St. Matthew and experience Jesus in three dramatic encounters as presented by St. John.  Today we hear about Jesus’ and the Samaritan woman at the well of Jacob.  Next Sunday our gospel tells the story of Jesus and the man blind from birth.  And on March 29 we will reflect on the raising of Lazarus from the dead. The Church selected these readings especially for our catechumens and candidates coming into the Church through the RCIA experience at Easter but there is a powerful message for each one of us.

Jesus invited the Samaritan woman at the Well of Jacob to engage in a dialogue. This woman approached Jesus with three strikes against her.  She was a woman; she was a foreigner and she was a moral outcast.  What she initially saw in Jesus was a Jewish man (a potential enemy), who was tired, thirsty, probably very hot and hungry.  Although she did not know Jesus, he knew her and he did not judge her.  Rather, he responded to her with compassion and mercy. When Jesus asked her for water, she was shocked and said, “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?”  It’s ironic that the Samaritan woman was shocked by Jesus but he was not shocked by her. 

Jesus, acting out of love asked the Samaritan woman for water. We don’t know if she ever gave him water.  What we do know is that Jesus offered the woman much more, “whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Not only did Jesus offer the woman the promise of eternal life’ he offered her acceptance, compassion and hope.  He freed her from shame so she had the courage to return to her town and share the good news. 

Because Jesus and the Samaritan woman had a relationship of “openness and fruitful dialogue,” he was free to reveal to her that he was the Messiah. Her testimony was so effective that “Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him because of the word of the woman who testified….”   Many others came to believe because they too were given the opportunity to have a “relationship of openness and fruitful dialogue” with Jesus.  This invitation for an open and fruitful relationship with Jesus is extended to all of us.  We all have the opportunity to live abundant lives filled with love.  And we are expected to share that love with all the people we encounter.  Like the Samaritan woman, we are called to be evangelizers.  We are called to share the mercy and love offered to us to others so together we can build the kingdom right here in Peachtree City.

Creative and forgiving Father

you let people experience your mercy

when they encounter your Son, Jesus Christ.

Let Jesus, your living Word,

speak to us from heart to heart.

Give us an unquenchable thirst

for the things that matter:

for faith and for meaning in our lives,

for hope in a better world

filled with your justice and peace,

for a spirit of committed love

that knows how to share itself.

Generously give us all these things

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

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.