Sunday, August 4, 2013

Daily Thoughts - 08/04/2013

Daily Thoughts: “You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you, and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?” One of the closing verses of our Gospel today (Luke 12:13-21), and when I hear or read this Gospel it is the verse that always catches my attention. Not because I have a lot of wealth in the traditional sense or because I fear that I might die soon. This phrase catches my attention because I have long thought that each time a receive communion God says to me, “I demand your life of you!”

Perhaps this is stretching Jesus’ words but for me each time I receive communion God demands my life of me and all the things I have are now to be used to proclaim the “Good News.” My life is not here to comfort me, but to be of service to God. My life is about faith; a faith is to be lived.

Faith is not a word that defines or described my relationship with God. It is not something that only comes into play when I am in Church or doing Church related things. Faith is like taking a breath. I need to breathe every moment of my life. I need to breathe in order to do anything. It is the same with faith, it is a part of my whole life, and faith is a part of everything I do or say.

Jesus asks us to live our lives through faith today. He asks us not to be caught up in what the world defines as valuable, important or necessary but to be caught up in the things that matter to God, life and people. Yes, today God demands our life of us. What will be our response?

Daily Prayer: Lord God, we have no idea where we are going. We do not see the road ahead of us. We cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do we really know ourselves, and the fact that we think that we are following your will does not mean that we are actually doing so. But we believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And we hope we have that desire in all that we are doing. We hope that we will never do anything apart from that desire. And we know that if we do this you will lead us by the right road though we may know nothing about it. Therefore will we trust you always though we may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. We will not fear, for you are ever with us, and you will never leave us to face our perils alone. (Adapted from a prayer by Thomas Merton)

Runner’s Thought: “There is something magical about running; after a certain distance, it transcends the body. Then a bit further, it transcends the mind. A bit further yet, and what you have before you, laid bare, is the soul.” (Kristin Armstrong)

Sunday blessings to all wherever this day finds you! I hope you are having a good weekend and have or will dedicate a little time to God today. It is a beautiful day here in Pelham and I hope the same is true where you are.

Hopefully, on this date next year I and at least 32 others will be in our final stages of preparation for our journey to Lourdes and other holy places in France. If you have ever wanted to make a pilgrimage to Lourdes and see France let me know and I will send you information about the trip. We still have plenty of space available!

I am sitting at my desk this morning looking at my many pictures of Roberto Clemente which are on the wall next to my desk and thinking how great it is that the Pirates are in first place but every time I turn on Sportscenter all I hear is Alex Rodriguez, suspensions and steroids. Will it ever just be baseball again? Probably not!

Well, friends it is National Friendship Day. Who knew! So happy Friendship Day to all my friends! And to everyone else, Happy Everyone Else Day! Have a great Sunday everyone, enjoy. May it be blessed with family, friends, fun, laughter, rest, relaxation and much love! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

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