“Why are you terrified, O you of little
faith?” Why are we terrified? Have we lost faith? Have we lost faith in God,
faith in others, faith in ourselves? Have we forgotten all the hard work we
have put into life? Are we unwilling to trust ourselves any more just because a
storm has entered our life? Are we really that fragile? Have we forgotten to
trust who has brought us to this moment?
Storms in life are fearful moments. They
seem to take control, if we really ever had it, away from us. They bring to the
surface all kinds of doubt from the dark reaches of our hearts. They scare us
and sometimes make us think the worst. They take us out of our comfort zone. Yet,
we are reminded today that no matter what, we never face the storms of life
alone. Paraphrasing the words of Thomas Merton’s famous prayer, “We should not
fear because God is always with us and will never leave us to face our storms
alone.”
On this lazy summer day whether we find
ourselves in the midst of a calm day, looking at a horizon full of storm clouds
or right in the middle of an all-out storm, let us have faith in God, faith in
those important in our life and faith in ourselves so that no matter what this
day brings our faith will see us through.
Daily Prayer: While I have
often suggested it I will again because I think Thomas Merton’s prayer is appropriate
for today. - “My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the
road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really
know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not
mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you
does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if
I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about
it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the
shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never
leave me to face my perils alone.” ―
Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude
Runner’s Thought: Remember that if
we are meditative runners, if we are runners at prayer then with each run we
are fortunate to have found a way to refreshes not only our bodies but also our
spirits. You might say with each run we give ourselves the change to be born
again in friendship with God! (Adapted from Roger Joslin – Running the Spiritual Path)
Ah, let me see today is Tuesday – I hope
– so Happy Tuesday everyone! I am checking myself after last week. I hope your
day has started off well. Here in Pelham the clouds and humidity remain but at
least no rain as of the moment and the sun is trying to peek through every once
in a while.
I wish there was a way to transfer our
rain to the west so the fires could be extinguished and the heat could be
broken because believe me we can spare the water!
On a serious note my thoughts and
prayers today are with the families of the firefighters lost in Arizona a few
days ago. May the firefighters be at peace with God and may their families
somehow find peace!
My brother Passionist, Fr. Jim O’Shea,
C.P. got 30 seconds of TV time last night on CNN. He said it was an interesting
experience. I am just sorry he did get more time because I think he had a lot
to add to the discussion. So now I live with two TV stars.
Have a great day everyone where ever you
are. Blessing upon your work, your ministry, your experiences, those whom you encounter,
those whom you love and especially upon you! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
PS Just a few reminders about my life
and ministry – Please visit my web site preacherman.org – If you want more information
on my Lourdes Pilgrimage in August 2014 drop me a line. – If you would like to
contribute to my NYC Marathon Run visit my Fred’s Team page http://mskcc.convio.net/site/TR/FredsTeamEvents/Freds_Team?px=1984802&pg=personal&fr_id=1930
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