It amazes me how negative, hurtful,
bigoted and sinful we can be with the words we write about others. We call
ourselves Christian yet the pictures we post, the cartoons we send around, the ideas
we put forth sometimes are anything but Christian. I guess it is easy to site
in our homes or offices or be walking down the street and attack a person, an
organization, a political party, a public servant, someone in leadership, or a
president. They get no chance to defend themselves; our words don’t have to be
true. From the comfort of our own electronic device we can post whatever we
want and there are no consequences to our actions whether we are right or
wrong. Remember it is a free country and certainly free social media!
In the readings from mass today we are
reminded about the importance of truth. Jesus reminds us that he is sending us the
truth through the Holy Spirit from the Father, not Fox News or MSNBC or any
other news organization that we agree with. Truth is most often not found in
the media sources of today’s world it is found in the hearts of people who journey
through life as friends of God.
Lydia, whom we meet in the Acts of the
Apostles today, went to the river to pray and her life was changed through the
preaching and the presence of Paul. Paul spoke the truth and Lydia allowed it
to enter her heart. She came to believe. She invited the truth into her home
and into her heart.
We need to trust the Spirit in our life
not 24 hour news. We need to speak truth about ourselves and others. We need to
be friends of God who build up not tear down. There are always going to be
those who bring deceitfulness to the living of life may we always be people who
bring truth!
Daily Prayer: O God of all
Truth, your Son told us that the truth will set us free. May we live this day
in the freedom of your truth. May your truth truly set us free to bring you to
each person we meet and to each moment we live. Help us to let go of the
negativity that surrounds us and often enters our hearts. Help us to be
proclaimers of hope because we trust in your loving presence. Grace us with
hearts like Lydia, hearts of welcoming and kindness so that we may never be people
who tear down but people of service and hospitality who continue to build up your
kingdom. Amen!
Runner’s Thought: We need to
always remember that there are different forms of prayer, of communication with God and that
they are possible in everything we do, even when we run. So as I have often
said let us allow our run today to be a prayer of thanksgiving, or a prayer of
petition or intercession, or a prayer of praise, or a prayer of struggle, or a
prayer seeking help or perhaps just a prayer that says hello God how are you
today?
Happy Monday everyone! I hope your day
and your week have started off well. Though I do know that Monday mornings can
be tough! If this is a tough one hang in there and I will pray that the day and
the week get better.
I am looking forward to the first
evening of the mission here in Midland Park, NJ. Though I am a little nervous,
I always wonder if anyone will show up. But I am trusting in God and the fact
that some people over the weekend said they will see my on Monday. Please offer
a prayer for the faith community here at Nativity Parish and for their preacher
that we might have a successful journey together this week.
Please know of my prayers for you today and always. May you like Lydia, in the first reading for today, hear the word of God, take it into your heart and allow it to bless you with peace and hope throughout this day and always! Peace in Christ’s Passion and Hope in the Risen Lord…Fr. Paul
No comments:
Post a Comment