Tag: #spiritualdirection

LOVE IS HOW PEOPLE WILL KNOW JESUS

“And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. If you have loved one another, then everyone will know that you are my disciples.“ John 13:34-35

So often we get hung up on what we need to do for God. At times we may even feel guilty because we think others are doing more than us, but in truth we are basing it on the gifts they have, not the gifts we have. There are also times that people urge us to be like them and practice the gifts they use.  In their excitement, they want us to experience what they experience.  Their hearts are sincere, but their gifts aren’t necessarily our gifts.  An introvert, for example, may be made to feel like they are doing very little because they aren’t out preaching to all they meet. In truth their shyness prevents them as well as having no time because they are taking care of an elderly parent.  They aren’t seeing that preaching is not their gift, while loving the elderly parent is.  They discount the gift they have been given of loving the elderly and how they are using it.  God didn’t say people would know Him by any one gift. He said people would know Him by our love. Why? Because “God is love” (1John 4:9) and all our many different gifts are both a means to bring God’s love to others and of loving Him and our neighbor.  

God’s love is known because He loves through us. We are incapable of loving. At times we are made to feel we have to do more, but Jesus never lied and He said people would know Him by our love. How that happens is not up to us. That is the job of the Holy Spirit. Our gifts aren’t what gets us to Heaven. Using them as a means of giving God‘s love and by that loving Him and our neighbor is how we get there.  

We will be judged by our love.  It may be through directly preaching His word if that is how one is called to love, but it also may be through giving someone a drink of water, working in a nursing home, making a family dinner, painting a portrait, making someone laugh, planting a garden, repairing a car, etc.  The gift may be given to one or it may be the instrument that brings people together to form a  community.  Whether for one or many, they are always meant to be shared and so on some level, they always entail sacrifice.  Our efforts may seem successful or they may seem to be going nowhere.  That highlights the mercy of God.  He doesn’t even ask that we be successful in using our gifts. He just asked that we be faithful to our love for Him and neighbor so He is known.

The world needs the gifts you have because what you have is a means of giving God and His love to to others and, at the same time, it is a means of showing our love for God.  Love is the reason for everything.

POINTS TO PRAYERFULLY PONDER DURING THE WEEK

Meditate on John 13:34-35 as cited above.

Meditate on  1John 4:9 as cited above.

Meditate on Matt 25:31-40

Meditate on 1John 3:16-18

What are your gifts and how do you use them as a means of giving God’s love to others?

CONTEMPLATIVE IN ACTION

During the week try and stay in the present moment so you can better be in the presence of God.  Notice how He may be further guiding you along the way based on what you discovered in your prayer time. 

BECOMING AWARE OF THE EXPRESSION IF GOD’S LOVE -PART 2

Let’s continue to reflect on becoming aware of the expressions of God’s love that we started on the last post.

Third Way God Expresses His Love – We are Never Alone

There are times in our lives when we all feel lonely because we are alone. For some, that loneliness can make us feel unloved, but that is not true.  We must always find alone time to pray so we can experience God.  It is in the times of prayer that we slowly grow in our intimate relationship with God.  It is in building this relationship that eventually helps us to fully know that we are never alone.  Intercessory prayer can be a source of God’s love pouring out to others.  This type of love can bring us comfort knowing that others are praying for us as well.  In the Communion of Saints, we are never alone.  Resting in that reality can be of great comfort as it is an experience of God’s love.  

Still, even in praying and knowing we are not alone, active hours can be difficult at times.  Even in those times, we can pay attention to how God expresses His love to and through us. We can ask Him to give us a spark of hope that can come from us being more aware of how He loves through us. For example, we may be alone, but the simple acts of watering the flowers or feeding our pets can put us in the presence of God‘s love and how He expresses it to them through us. Those acts are expressions of caring and nurturing.  As we look upon the flowers and smile at their beauty that is dependent on us watering them and the pets whose health depends on us feeding them, we can experience God‘s love even when alone. It is being expressed through us. Grab it. Notice it. Does God care more about the flowers or our pets than us? No. Notice the care in the nurturing. It’s for them, but it’s also there for us if we take the time to notice it.  

Fourth Way God Expresses His Love – When We Receive It From Others

If we are all expressions of God’s love, at times we receive it not as it is coming through our hands, but by receiving it from others. 

Sometimes our pride makes it difficult to receive. It is far easier to give the cup of water than it is to be weak and vulnerable and in need of receiving it. In those moments we should let our guard down and receive it. At the same time, we should never be upset that someone loves differently than us. That can make us feel that love is missing when, in reality, it is not.

On the contrary , we should rejoice that we can experience God in a way that is different than how we express and, therefore, experience Him.  So often we try and control how someone loves instead of receiving it from a God who has an infinite number of ways to express it.  

To be loved in the same exact way we love is nice, but we can grow in a greater union with God when we are aware that His expressions of love are as vast as the number of His children. 

Of course, there are times when we easily receive God‘s love, but are in such a hurry that we don’t pause to take notice. The smile, the compliment we brush off, the directions given when we can’t find something, the grocery attendant who takes our cart for us or the person who takes away our dirty plate are all expressions of God’s love for us. 

We also take for granted the people that choose to use their gifts to help because we only see it as their job.  All people like doctors, store clerks, garbage collectors, truck drivers… They are all there as helpers and we would do well to consider that the help they give is an expression of God’s love for us.

Summing It All Up

We can all console God’s heart by becoming noticers of the expressions of God’s love. It seems so many hate these days. Who will receive God’s love that is being thrown on the ground by those who let hate consume them? God needs to be love. He needs to express it.  We all have free will. We all have the ability to say no to the love and to infect the world with hate. When we say yes, however, we inject it with love. 

Say yes to giving love and receiving it from others because it is God’s love that needs to be expressed and He longs for us to both give and receive it with gratitude.  We should all take the time to be noticers so we can fully embrace God‘s love. We can comfort His heart that is so deeply wounded when others shun it. Notice how He expresses it through others. Notice how He expresses it through you. Love Him back by noticing, by embracing it, by receiving it with an open heart and letting it flow through you with that giving heart. By doing this, we can console God’s heart that is so deeply wounded by the lack of love. We can grow in our relationship with Him and we can be the prayer of love knowing that love conquers all.   

“Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God” (Matt 5:8).  Hate and judgment block our ability to see God.  They come at such a high cost.  By choosing to always look for and acknowledge love, we choose to see God, to love Him and to console Him.  While others who do not choose love will see the world differently than us, we know we are far better off.  It is through the lens of love that we can have a pure heart and see God even now while we are still on Earth.   

Remember only God is love so do all you can to be the powerful prayer of love. When we say yes to it, we send a spark of love into the world and by that we can set the world on fire with the love of God.  He is longing for us to do this as He has so much love to give. Be the vessel that says yes to giving it and yes to receiving it.  Say yes to being the expression of God’s love!

Points to Prayerfully Reflect On and Talk to God About

What are some of the ways that you are an expression of God’s love when you are alone?  

Be mindful of the love you have received today.  How did God express His love to you through others?  Can what you have learned about God’s love and how He expresses it through others, help you with a present concern you are praying to God about?

“Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God” (Matt  5:8).  What are some ways you can be pure of heart and, therefore, better able to see God?  

So much of God’s love is rejected by others.  We see this reality in the Old Testament, New Testament and throughout history.  We see it happening today.  All of history is a drama of people rejecting and accepting God’s love. Talk to Jesus about this.  

BECOMING AN EXPRESSION OF GOD’S LOVE – Part 1

Photo courtesy of Austin Kayatin.

We are all expressions of God’s love!

That is the sentence I immediately awoke to this morning. It wasn’t an audible sentence, but one that filled my heart quickly even though it came out of nowhere.  I felt like it was an invitation given to me to so that I could learn more about what it meant so that it may be an expression that resonates deeply within my heart.  Eagerly I prayed on it and then picked up a pen so that my heart could be poured out onto the pages.  

FIRST WAY GOD EXPRESSES HIS LOVE – HE CREATED US

We are all expressions of God’s love. What a beautiful reality. 

His love for us is so deep that He could not contain it simply within His heart.  He had to create us.  Our birth is an expression of God’s love.  

There are so many times in everyone’s life when we can feel somewhat down.  Resting in the reality that we were created because we were so deeply loved can be of great comfort.  Think of a time when you were so excited about something that you just couldn’t wait to share it with others.  Now multiply that with an infinite number.  That is why God created us.  His love was so deep, He couldn’t keep us contained in His heart.  He had to create us so He could be one with us and share us with all of the other children He created out of love!! 

SEXOND WAY GOD EXPRESSES HIS LOVE – WHEN WE GIVE HIS LOVE

Now that we see how much He loves us and united to us, desires to share us, we can understand more fully why we are to love God and neighbor.  When we are doing something loving for others, we should take a pause and allow ourselves to be aware of this act of sharing because it is God expressing His love for others through us.   That awareness can help us to receive God’s love just as our neighbor is receiving it, but we have to notice.

Sometimes we are in such a hurry that we don’t even think about what we are doing for someone else. Other times we are, but our focus is totally on them, which is beautiful. 

If we take a moment, however, to let ourselves feel that love, let ourselves be mindful that we are also experiencing God‘s love as it flows through us, our union with God may grow deeper.  The simple act of comforting someone, for example, can be a reminder to us that it is God who is giving the comfort through us and when we are down, even if we are alone, He is there for us with His comforting presence too.  We now know this to be true.  We can no longer doubt it because we have experienced Him offering comfort through us. 

We cannot give love unless God first gives it to us because it is God who is love. When we are more aware of this, we will be more aware of Him and we will notice what He is doing with and through us. We will learn more about the God who loves deeply…the God who loves us dearly. 

IN SUMMARY

God is love and we can console His heart when we embrace that truth. From the very moment we were conceived in His heart, He loved us.  When we love someone and that love is not returned, our hearts break.  Given that God’s heart is pure and He is love, can you imagine how much it must hurt Him when His love is not returned?  So often people never even think of the great union we are a part of when we receive and give God’s love.  It is a priceless gift that we so often take for granted.  

Reflect on these two aspects of the expressions of God’s love and I will share part two next week.

POINTS TO PRAYERFULLY REFLECT ON AND TALK TO GOD ABOUT

Pray about the beautiful reality that God created you out of love and that united to you, He wants to share you with His other children. 

Meditate on the great union of love you are a part of because God loved you from the moment you were thought of. (Psalm 139 13-16) (Jer 1:5)

“Then I heard the Lord say, “Whom shall I send? Who will be Our messenger?”  I answered, “I will go! Send me!”  (Isaiah 6:8).  Personalize that scripture text.  How does God send you out to be His expression of love?

Be mindful of the love you give daily.  How are you an expression of God’s love to others?  What have you learned about God’s love in how He expresses it through you?  Can what you have learned about God’s love and how He expresses it through you, help you with a present concern you are praying to God about?

Faith, Hope & Love Successfully Carry Us Through the Unexpected Interruptions in Life

As I sit on my deck in the early morning I am fully aware that I am embraced in the love of God. The sun is shining, the sky has been painted blue, the birds are chirping and there is a very slight gentle breeze. I hear the whoosh of cars driving by knowing people are out and about living their yes to God, just as I am. How they live it may be different than what I am doing, but we are all living out our yes minute by minute.

Each moment that approaches us is an unpredicted moment. We can’t know what each one will bring. We cannot know for certain how any given day will look like with 100% accuracy.  We make our plans, our neighbors make theirs and so does God so surprises and intersections happen.  Sometimes our plans are interrupted just for a moment such as the times when the passerby says hello and breaks our train of thought and other times we are interrupted for a greater length of time because of a phone call or the unexpected guest. Some unexpected moments completely change our lives due to things such as marriage proposals, pregnancy tests, the loss of a job, a health prognosis, etc.

Whether the moment that changes our path is minor or major, there is one thing that is constant. God is there and He loves us dearly. 

Each interruption holds a hidden treasure because each interruption is an invitation to find God’s love and return it to both Him and neighbor.   Each one gives us the opportunity to practice the virtues of faith, hope, and love and it is in those gifts that we are offered the opportunity to deepen our Union with God.

PRACTICING FAITH IN THE UNEXPECTED

We practice our faith by knowing God is there with us even if we can’t see Him.  Jesus, said, “I will be with you always, to the end of the age.” Matt 28:20. 

We can easily forget this truth in the little interruptions. Without even thinking about it, we can get annoyed when we are in the middle of something and find our plans are even just slightly changed.  We focus on self and forget that for some reason, God needs our attention to shift so that we may love Him through our neighbor.  

In larger, happy interruptions, such as the marriage proposal, we can be so excited that we forget to include God, who is the cause of our joy.  We easily love the one we see, but neglect the invitation to love God.  

Some interruptions are devastating and can be very scary, but we never carry our crosses alone. Just as Jesus carried His cross on His back so that He could clearly see all the love that was around Him, we too must carry ours on our back so we can clearly see God, who is love, surrounding us. Our faith will show us that while bad things may happen, we know all things work together for the good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose (ROM 8:28). We may not know what will come out of any given thing, but with faith and hope we know all will be well.

PRACTICING HOPE IN THE UNEXPECTED 

We must hold onto that hope because hope never disappoints (ROM 5:4-5). When we are interrupted by good things, hope in God can make them even better. When we hope in God during the difficult times, we know He will take care of us. 

God is bigger than any statistic or diagnosis. He alone can change what we see as the odds being stacked against us. It doesn’t matter what has happened in the past for us or others.  It doesn’t matter if the situation is the same or different. God is infinite and we cannot box Him in by expecting Him to do the same thing He did once before.  Our journeys are all different. Our adventures are our own. 

Once before I talked about the annunciation moments. When we think of the annunciation, we often think of all the positive aspects of it and we forget that a young girl was just told she was handed a reason to be stoned to death and she had no proof to counter such an accusation.  Through it all, she found joy through her faith in knowing God was with her.  Her hope lied in trusting that all would be well.   God would carry the burden with her so she could focus on her baby and Elizabeth.  He would protect her and make certain all would be well. This was her hope and she knew hope never disappoints .  Her faith and hope freed her from having to worry and enabled her to love others and experience the love which was all around her.  

Even in something as bad as certain death, which we all must encounter one day, God is our hope and Heaven our destiny where we will be immersed in the center of love for all eternity.

PRACTICING LOVE IN THE UNEXPECTED

Meanwhile, in all times we can practice love. Interruptions can be seen as simple as God saying hi, as difficult calls to look to Him for strength and everything in between. No matter what the circumstance, they are always a call to love Him and since so many interruptions come our way through others, they give us an opportunity to love our neighbor and love is a powerful prayer.  

When we love, we are in union with God because God is love (1John 4:16).  When we love, we are experiencing a piece of Heaven right here on Earth.

IN SUMMARY

With faith, hope and love, we are more capable of being at peace so we can experience God.  It is in that peaceful union that we are a far more effective prayer with our very lives than we would be if we were doubting, stressing and feeling despair that ultimately make it hard to love.

Living in the peace of practicing faith, hope and love is the goal.  It may take a lifetime to achieve, but when we put our faith, hope and love in God, we can grow in these virtues and the union they bring.  

Each interruption, good, bad or otherwise, is an invitation to love as we grow in faith and  hope.  When we fall, and we will, just having the hope and knowledge that God will not disappoint us and having the faith that as His children we will daily grow even if we can’t measure any growth, can make our hearts fill up with love and joy so we can stand once again.  Faith that we are children of the Father and hope in Him, a hope that doesn’t disappoint, reassures us of this so even our falls are reasons to rejoice.  Why?  Because our faith and hope are in God and God is love!

PRAYERFUL REFLECTIONS 

Meditate prayerfully on each area above that is bolded.  Talk to God about your reflections.

Are there joyful interruptions that you have failed to make God a part of?  Can you correct that now? Pray for the grace to do just that.

Are there bigger interruptions in your life that could use the peace that can come from living them out with the heart of faith, hope and love?  Can you try and stress less about them and practice these virtues more?  Pray for the grace to do so.

In the evening reflect on how you handled the small interruptions during the day.  Have you ever considered that the better you handle the smaller interruptions, the easier it will be to handle larger ones when they come?  Pray to handle the small interruptions with a heart opened to love. 

Can you get into the practice of pausing for a brief moment to ask yourself where the invitation to love is in the interruptions life brings?  Find the love and find God.  

Can you rejoice when you fall knowing you are a child whose hope is in a Father who loves you? 

4 METHODS TO HELP KEEP OUR EYES ON GOD, NOT THE STORM OF OUR IMAGINATIONS

Imagination can be one of our greatest gifts, but it can also be used to hurt us.

The storms of life can grip us with fear. They can cause us to freeze. They can pull us in so all of our focus is on the storm. The result can be anxiety, stress and worry. Like the apostles, we tend to focus on the storm, not on who is in the boat with us.

God is a God of peace. Yet we seem to act as if he is the God of upheaval and chaos when we focus all our attention on the storm and not Him.  The storms come in many different ways. The  one I am focusing on here is the storms from our imaginations that fill our heads with negativity.  We are all set.  We’ve worked hard and have carefully thought out our plans.  We are excited.  We are filled with hope and willingness to move forward.  We know we are in God’s will.  We have prayed and discerned.  We see the good that our decision will bring.  Then our imagination kicks in with thoughts that seem like facts.  Suddenly out of left field we are certain we can’t carry out our plan because it would be too hard.  We suddenly believe nobody would care and we would just be wasting time.  We entertain the possibility of being laughed at or ridiculed.  We become certain only bad will come from it even though we can’t even identify what that bad may be.  It’s at those times we can rest assured that it is not God leading us with thoughts such as these. He leads lovingly and in a calm manner. 

This can happen with large scale events and even with common daily circumstances.  The moment we realize this is not the voice of God, we need to shut it down. We must not entertain it. More often than not, the voice is stopping us from doing good or trying to entice us to do bad. We must, as Saint Ignatius says, act like a strong woman and say no so that the enemy will flee.  When we make this a practice with the small situations we find ourselves in, it will become a developed skill in the larger ones.

I had to pull in the reigns of my own imagination this week. I begin focusing my attention on the storm that was over powering the positivity, love and hope from God. It was causing me to doubt what I knew was of God.  It was my own imagination bullying me.  I had to choose to stop the imagination, turn my back on the “what if’s” and turned to God.  I turned my attention to Him and not the storm.  I let Him calm my storm.  

I looked for God in all they ways that were around me, trusting that within my life, He had already supplied me with the tools to fight a battle He knew was coming well before it came.  The tools I had been supplied with were:

  1. The determination to refuse to entertain the negative and demeaning thoughts. 

God‘s love for us is so intense. We need to embrace it and pay no attention to the bullying that is the voice of the enemy. If God wants us to go on a different path, He will not lead us by fear or demeaning ways. He will lead gently and lovingly. When the loud voice of the stranger tries to grab our attention, we must not engage it.  We must silence it by focusing on God’s whispers and all He is offering us to weather the storm.

  1. Observing Others

I recalled the actions of solid people in faith that I had observed over time and how they handled the attempts presented to them in hopes they would abandon God’s will.  Being in a state of heightened awareness, I also noticed people who were currently staying the course on a path they believed God called them to.  In all these people I made the following observations. 

  • They refused to listen to anyone who spoke negatively as an attempt to let their imagination entertain any negative thoughts and discourage them from what they knew they were being called to do.  They were already on the steady course and God was their focus.
  • Their path gave them purpose with passion regardless of what the naysayers said because they had already discerned they were doing God’s will.  Love for God energized them.  It was their driving force.  After much hard work, they were ready to share what they had done with their gift.  Letting their imagination entertain negativity and get discouraged was not a door they would open.  They knew the road they were on was other oriented.
  • They fought with their faith in order to stop the sudden negativity.  They trusted that God wouldn’t suddenly shift gears on them before the task given them by Him was complete.  They trusted that if God gave them something, they needed to use it and let Him worry about the results.  They trusted that if, however,  God did want them to go down a different path, He would lead gently and with love.  They knew they could recognize Him in love, not the negativity their imagination was tempted to entertain and the discouragement it would offer.

It is true that we can fall off the right path and we should not instantly shut out people as they could be helping us, but discernment in knowing God’s voice can help us to know when it looks more like bullying from others or even ourselves.  Sometimes we have to ignore the delivery.  Discernment can help us to follow hope and the love of self giving and not follow despair or a turning inward towards self love.  We can discern when they are trying to get us back on the path we originally set out on and may have fallen off of or if they are trying to pull us off the path that is good and right.  In times that it may seem confusing, it is always good to talk to a trusted friend, pastor, mentor or spiritual companion that can help you discern.

  1. Talking to God about it. 

We must pray and make God the focus in whatever way we know builds up the special relationship we have built with Him.  It is in that special relationship, that communication of love, that we recognize our Advocate and can clearly see that the other voice does not have our best interests at heart.  This is why regularly praying is essential.  We can’t wait until an imaginative storm comes to think we can know how to recognize God’s voice.

  1. Scripture 

I turned to scripture that I had used in the past that always gave me strength.  It is always good to have a list of go-to-scriptures that touch our heart and seem to have a way of giving us peace when the storms of life come.  

These methods quickly helped me find my grounding again.  Instead of embracing despair, I found hope.  Instead of fear, I found faith.  Instead of allowing my imagination to hurt me, I reminded myself that imagination is a gift to glorify God with for creative purposes, not hurting me with thoughts that are contrary to God’s loving and merciful nature.  God never brings about His will by acting contrary to His goodness.  It is in my relationship with God and paying attention to Him in the many ways He presented Himself to me that I found my heart stirred up for God.  It is a gift available to all of us and one that greatly helps when the storms come.

I hope this reflection and these points to ponder help you as much as they helped me in knowing God more personally.

Reflections for Sitting in Prayer with God.

Read and reflect on Lamentations 3.  Notice the negative imagination in verses 1-20.  I seriously doubt his flesh was torn into pieces.  Notice the contrast in verses 21-40. Notice the contrast started with the power of hope.  

How do things change in your own life when you put your hope on God and not the storm of your imagination?

Is there something on your mind that has been stirred up negatively through your imagination?  Do the thoughts seem like the nature of God or His enemy?  

What has been the result of it?  Talk to God about that.   

Practice not entertaining the bully that takes up residency in your head.  

If you know you are walking in God’s will and people seem to be trying to pull you off the path, but you are still feeling confused, talk to a trusted friend to make sure you haven’t gone astray.

WHEN WE ARE POOR IN SPIRIT WE ARE POWERFUL FOR GOD & NEIGHBOR

We are nothing, we have nothing and can do nothing without God. We are truly poor, but in this poverty we can be powerful and make a difference for both God and neighbor. 

POWERFUL FOR GOD

It is in being aware of our poverty that we can make a difference. It is in our nothingness, united to God and His Divinity, that enables us to accomplish even the smallest of things. When we are aware of this, we become powerful vessels for God because we become the prayer. It is in this state that we can do all God asks of us because our acknowledged nothingness coupled with our yes enables Him to work through us.

There are different gifts, but the same spirit; there are different ministries, but the same Lord; there are different works, but the same God who accomplishes all. The Spirit’s presence is shown in someway in each person for the good of all. (1Cor 4-7)

It amazes me to think of this divine union we are blessed to be a part of. In our nothingness, we have it all. We are never alone. We never have to do anything by ourselves. We always have the One who cares deeply for us in us and by our side. When fear sets in when we set out to do something that challenges us, we need only to step back and be mindful that we are vessels. We are not alone and God is going to accomplish what He needs done through our loving yes. The same holds true when loneliness creeps in. We are never alone. We are always being held by our very loving God.

POWERFUL FOR OUR NEIGHBOR

Being mindful that we have nothing without God not only connects us to God, but to our neighbor. Right now, for instance, I am sitting on my couch writing. I would not have the couch nor the laptop were it not for God. This reality can be taken as far back and deep as I care to go. For instance, who built the faculty where the couch was made? Once made, what employees helped to make it? Who supported them while making the couch? Who helped to feed them, get them to work etc.? Who helped to get it to the store? Who worked on the roads for the delivery truck to drive on? Who built the truck? Who supported the workers? I can continue this line of wandering right up to my door.  At this moment I can take comfort in knowing I supported the livelihood of many by my yes and because of all the other yeses, I have a couch. From the yeses of others I also have a home where I am safe to sit on it. I keep it clean and that gives respect to those who helped me to have it and those who now use it all while  giving honor to God.  I can now invite friends and family over and because they have a place to sit, it is an aid in the building of community. All these jobs may seem small and isolated, but they all contributed to me having a place to sit and all the good that can come from it. This is how we know we are united as one. This is how we know we have nothing without God.  It is in the gifts that He gave each individual that He was able to get me a couch. All we have works this way. 

We all may seem small, but when we step back, we realize that is in our smallness, our poverty, that we are able to be in union with others and God.  We may be tempted to want to do it all, but in having only one small part, we have a powerful union and can make a difference.

We can take every aspect of our lives and pause for a brief moment to realize the union we have with God and neighbor. All matters whether we are giving or receiving. Later today I have to mail my son some important paperwork. I cannot do this without God and the help He offers through others.  Think of all the people that will help in being able to get this document to my son and all that he will be able to do because of it. Our connections to our neighbors are everywhere.  

POWERFUL PRAYER FOR OUR NEIGHBOR IN NEED

All we do matters. Nothing is insignificant and when we are mindful of God‘s presence in us while we are doing all things, we become the prayer. Before we do anything, no matter how big or small, we can begin by offering it as a prayer for any intention God places on our heart. By that, we not only are making a difference in the lives of people that will directly be touched in some way by what we are doing, but we can help people that are not going to be touched by our immediate actions simply because we used it as a means of prayer. That is amazing. That is a way we can work towards praying without ceasing.

SUMMARY

Christ is like a single body, which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts. For the body itself is not made up of only one part, but of many parts. (1Cor 12 & 14).

We are one.  We are all connected to God and each other.  We need each other to survive and that is possible because we are each united to God who is our source for survival.  Being mindful of this is one way we can live out the the two most important commandments…loving God and neighbor.  With hearts filled with love for God and neighbor, we want to make a difference.  Often we are frustrated because we feel we are not doing enough.  It is in those times that we can be mindful of the smallest act we make, connected to God and neighbor is always vital. God uses everything! 

For Prayerful Reflection with God:

Meditate on the two bible passages above… 1Cor 4-7 and 1Cor 12 & 14.  

Prayerfully reflect on the reality that we are nothing, have nothing and can do nothing without God because we are truly poor. 

Reflect on the various things you have done today and how they made a difference both directly and indirectly, as well, if you offered the actions up as a prayer. 

In what ways were you helped today because you were connected with people you don’t even know?

What prayer intentions do you have that you can offer your various actions up for today?  When you feel like you are lacking in something and need help, consider offering it up for the materially poor who are lacking and need help as well.

Try and be mindful of your union with God in all you do.  While it may be impossible to keep the awareness continually, beginning each action and periodically looking up to God is a beautiful way to help to keep your heart  stirred up for God.

Talk to God about all of this.

The Weather Can Teach Us To Be More Welcoming

The sun was shining the other day. It felt so good. My energy was high and I accomplished much off my list and for others.  At one point I eagerly walked the dog so I could take it all in. The next day wasn’t so easy. It was cold and cloudy. I kept watching the clouds and looked for the sun. I only needed a small window to force myself to get out, but it was hard because my energy was a mirror of the clouds.  I felt like doing nothing.  The cold and lack of sun made it hard to move.  The next day was even worse because it was complete with rain or should I say downpours.

I begin pondering on how different I was when the day was filled with sun and when it was not. I knew it was all about my attitude, but what could it teach me about my relationship with God, including the relationship I have with God being in my neighbor?  Would I have a sunnier attitude and more energy by being opened to learn?  I hoped so as I don’t want the weather to dictate my enthusiasm for any given day.

In reflecting, I could see that when the sun was out, everything felt good and I welcomed all the day had to offer. My ability to receive the gift of the day and also give the gifts I had in order to help others was high and everything felt good. I was energized and my heart felt light and happy. 

It was as if I mirrored the sun, which was ready to glorify God by using its gift of light and warmth.  It would shine on both the good and the bad.  It didn’t refuse to give its gifts to anyone based on judgments.  Freely given.  Freely received.  All were welcomed. 

When it was cloudy to any degree, everything changed.  I no longer had the energy and with that came the lack of desire to use my gifts.  I was closed off and was not receiving the gift of the sun.  In reflecting on it, I absolutely see the gift of the sun was still there.  I could see the green grass and the colors of the flowers set before me.  I could see the people walking their dogs and all the cars driving by.  When the sun was set and it was dark, I couldn’t see those gifts.  I looked up at the sky on the day I was reflecting and it was completely white.  It was the background to the trees and seemed to perfectly highlight their beauty.  Funny how we like to decorate our homes with the breezy feeling of white in the summer, but we don’t accept it when it’s in the sky.  God chose that day to decorate in white.  When I saw it that way, my energy began surfacing.  I thought about the days when it’s only partly cloudy.  How fun it must be for God to make puffy clouds!  What joy He must feel when He makes angels, dogs, ducks and people out of them! 

Once I started opening my heart to the creativity of God and the beauty He brings every day when the sun rises, everything changed.  

I allowed my heart to welcome the gifts being given and in turn I was eager to give my gifts.  I began noticing how good I felt when, whatever gift I may be giving at any given moment, was happily received.  I felt great.  That’s how God must feel when I happily receive His gifts.  I also noticed how sad I felt when my gift was not received or even noticed.  That’s how God must feel when I complain or don’t appreciate His gifts.  I knew with those comparisons, I wanted to make sure I appreciated all gifts, but in particular I wanted to embrace the weather whatever it may be.  The shining sun, the glistening snow, the bright white or blue sky, the fluffy clouds and the grey skies that offer me the chance to play in the rain are all gifts if I am opened to receiving them.

A welcoming heart.  That is what I want.  I want to welcome the gifts that are given to me and I want to welcome the neighbor that God places in my life.  I want to show them how they have a place in my heart by sharing my gifts.  The size of the gift won’t matter.  Any moment God places someone in my life, He has most assuredly given me something I can share.  

At times all we can give is a smile. When that happens, we know we can trust that that was all that was needed.  If something more was needed, God surely would have supplied us with the means to do so.  

At Christmas time we often hear the question posed whether or not we have room in the inn of our hearts.  We embrace that, but then we can easily forget after the Christmas season is over.  

Life gets in the way and we forget what’s important. The to-do-list must get done, the bills have to be paid, the kids need to get to practice, the car needs repair and the dinner must be made. No one can argue that they aren’t important. Many things on the list are other oriented and part of our vocation, our purpose. But having a welcoming heart can be lost because our focus becomes on getting the boxes checked off and at times just making it through the day.

Every day the sun rises and shines on us. We experience the joy when we receive it and it doesn’t take much for the sun to do it. It was going to rise anyway. Much of our welcoming life can be like that. We can help people feel valued and welcomed simply because we were there anyway.  

We just need to practice a heightened awareness so we don’t miss the many precious opportunities given us.  We cannot have that awareness grow without prayer and God’s much needed help.

Do we smile at people who walk by us or we do we avoid eye contact? Do we pick up the phone while making dinner so we can call a friend or are the earphones only used to listen to music? Do we think to use our love for baking to make a cake for a friend who is down? Do we maintain eye contact with the one we are talking to or are we busy scanning the crowded room? Are we present? Do we send a card to our elderly family members who don’t use email so they can be lifted up in knowing that they are important and remembered? Do we knock on our neighbors door to say hi? Do we run if we hear the neighbor knocking on ours? There are so many ways we can be present and when we are present, we are welcoming and making room in the inn of our hearts.

I pray I can remember what I’ve learned from the clouds so that my love for God and neighbor can grow.  What once made me feel blah now makes me aware that the beauty and the silver lining is always there for us to see because God’s gift is always there.  

By looking up and simply being aware of the weather of the day, I pray I can then be mindful to be aware of the fact that all I have to do is rise, show up and be aware to be that welcoming heart of love.

Prayerful Reflections – After praying, talk to God about what happened during your time of prayer.

The natives showed us extraordinary kindness; for because of the rain that had set in and because of the cold, they kindled a fire and received us all. Acts 28:2

Praise the Lord from the earth lightning and hail, snow and clouds, strong winds that obey His commands. Ps 148:5-8. 

Reflect on the sun’s rising always bringing you gifts even when the sky is not a blue sky.

Take some time each morning this week to reflect on the gift that the weather is giving you.

Every evening review your day to see what happened when you showed up.  Did you use your gift and by their use be a welcoming heart?  Can you see that you had all you needed just by showing up?  Can you trust you had all you needed?

In reviewing your day, can you see that you had a welcoming heart in receiving gifts given to you? 

If you see that you, perhaps, missed something in either giving or receiving, don’t beat yourself up.  We are all human.  We all have to work at being more aware.  Find joy in the process of this part of your journey.  It’s like playing Where’s Waldo to find your welcoming heart! 

Be Authentic

“Be yourself. Everyone else is taken.” Oscar Wilde. We are all expressions of God’s love and each one of us has a unique way of expressing it because God’s love is shown in an infinite number of ways. That’s why it is so important for us to be our authentic selves and never compare ourselves to how someone else is expressing the love of God. By your very life you are a prayer that nobody else can offer and needs to be prayed.

OUR PURPOSE FOR TOMORROW CAN ONLY BE MET BY FULFILLING OUR PURPOSE FOR TODAY

Destination…Purpose! If only we had a GPS that could take us to our purpose!  The truth is, if we did have one, we would find it to be a very short trip.

At various times in our lives we think about our purpose and set out to try and find it.  We often look for large scale ideas that can make an impact, but we fail to look at the now and how we are already making a difference. I have three highly independent children who are out in the world doing three different things with their lives. They are each using their gifts to make their corner of the world better.  This is what parenting works towards.  That means that in the times that we are changing diapers, making dinners, helping with homework, getting them to sports practice and cleaning the house, we are fulfilling our purpose. We may not see it at the time, but we will see it in the future. This is not just the case for parents.  This is true for everyone.  Together with God we make a difference. 

The fulfillment of our purpose happens when we are fulfilling our purpose each day that is set before us. 

Parents may see only pots and pans.  Children may only see homework.  The to-do-list, in our limitations, can seem mundane and endless, but God sees the bigger picture and the differences we are making. 

My children are grown, but my purpose in life is not over. It is set before me just as it was when I was raising them.  Of course, some things take great discernment.  I am not referring to those bigger decisions.  You also cannot say yes to everything or you will burn out.  I am referring to the times we say yes in the simplicity of our daily lives.  These times form us and direct our path without us even thinking about it.  In most situations, among the pots and pans, so to speak, we often come to realize that all any of us have to do is say yes for today and each today that comes to make a difference. We say yes to those who we have the ability to help. We say yes to being good stewards of the gifts we have been given. We say yes to giving what we have and receiving what others may want to share with us.  By that sharing, we form commUNITY, which is always vital.  We say yes to new opportunities if they seem right and good and we say yes to learning. In the stillness of our hearts we follow what we become passionate about even if it seems silly. 

We say yes every day to the desires of the Father’s heart and we trust that with each step we are making a difference. Each step is taking us to the finish line whether we can see it or not. Each finish line is not the end, but the beginning of a new purpose.  By this we see that there is nothing ordinary about any day in our lives. 

While there are countless different things we say yes to, when we are striving to make a difference, they all have one thing in common.  They all entail sacrifice.  To make a difference,  we say yes to benefit someone else, not our self gain.  It is other oriented.  On our own we are incapable of sacrifice, but the greater we grow in our love for God, the greater is our ability to sacrifice with love…and not with grumbling.    Yes, God is love and and He has shown us that true love is in sacrifice. 

Being mindful of being united to Jesus in the sacrifice, helps us to be the unceasing prayer because on our own, we would never be able to make even the smallest other-oriented gesture.  That is why we are in great union with Him when we sacrifice and why everything we do becomes a powerful prayer. 

Even self-care is other oriented as in taking care of our physical, mental and spiritual selves, we can maintain our health and with a refreshed mind and spirit, we can more readily give with a heart of love. 

During Covid, my routine changed. In these months I have used the time to create the life I would want when I retired. Having my son with me in the beginning was a big help as it is in his nature to be a supportive coach. When he stepped out of the car at the airport, I thought that my support had gone and without my cheerleader, I wouldn’t be able to continue on the road I had begun to travel on at the start of Covid. Then I realized that was not true. The roles had been reversed. Over the last two months he was raising me so I could be independent on this new purpose-filled road.  His returning home was a fulfillment of his purpose at that time. When he got on the plane, a new purpose for him had begun just as mine had. All the steps I needed to begin my retirement journey were prepared before the road would be traveled on because each day, step-by-step for the past several years, I was fulfilling my purpose for the day until the time came for me to have a support system to pull it all together.  

In fulfilling my daily purpose, God was gently getting me ready for a new purpose, a purpose that could not be met without first daily preparing for it with my yes.

Then, when it was all set, He sent me the encouragement I would need to hit go.

Each day that we say yes, we are fulfilling our purpose. It is met with all that we are given. God doesn’t make it hard. We do. Our gifts, talents, circumstances and heart lead us day by day. When we fail to realize it, we fail to enjoy the spectacular gift of today. We fail to see the loving hand of God preparing us ahead of time for what we will need down the line. 

It is that very hand that loves us that assures us we don’t need to worry about tomorrow. We only need to do what we need to do today. 

To procrastinate and put off things will cause problems as that is our free-will no. It is a way of blocking the very thing we want…purpose.  The things we put off way heavy on us, making it difficult to move forward.  But with our yes, we can soar because we are carried safely in the wings of God. Psalm 91:4

For Prayerful Reflection with God

Are you aware that when you do things while being mindful of God’s presence, by your very life, you become a prayer?  If it’s hard to be mindful constantly that is understandable.  Try starting and ending each thing you do being mindful of God.  If possible to remember, take a small pause while doing the job to remember you are doing your responsibility with God.

When doing for others, do you have a selfish motive or an other-oriented motive?

Are you grumbling in your sacrifices?  Perhaps you need some self-care so that you may be more loving when you do for others.

Reflect on how many things you said yes to in the simplicity of your day and how that made a difference for others.

Are you giving time to explore your gifts and grow in the things that interest you?  Are you mindful that by your growth, God may be preparing you for the future?  At the very least, these may be a cause of refreshment to you and when you use your gifts, you always glorify God because on your own, you cannot do them.

When you think about your past, can you now see how God was preparing you for what you are doing today?