Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Daily Thoughts - 10/15/2013

Daily Thoughts: As we have often heard, “You cannot judge a book by its cover!” We might say that this saying reflects what Jesus is talking about in the Gospel (Luke 11: 37-41) today.  Jesus does talk about the outside of the Pharisees verses the inside. What they appear to be, what people see verse what they really do and think.

I think though that what Jesus is talking about is finding balance in life. Our life is not just about appearance it is about what we believe and how we live that belief out each and every day. Living a life of faith begins in our hearts and our actions need to reflect what is in our hearts.

The Pharisees were not bad people however at times they let their power, their position, their influence and their authority get the best of them. They forgot who and what was at the center of their faith. They forgot the purpose and meaning of their life. They put themselves first. They got out of balance.

It can happen to anyone, it can happen to us. Being in balance is important. We need to always remember that everything, outside and inside comes from God. As Pope Benedict put it, “Every form of gift is, in a word, a sign of the presence of God, because it leads to the fundamental discovery that, at the origin, everything is given.”

Have a great day everyone!

Daily Prayer:
God of all blessings, source of all life, giver of all good gifts, we thank you for the gift of life - for the breath that sustains us, for the food that nurtures us and for the love of family and friends without which there would be no life.

We thank you for the mystery of creation - for the beauty that the eye can see, for the joy that the ear may hear, for the unknown that we cannot behold because it fills the universe with wonder, for the expanse of space that draws us beyond the definitions of our selves.

We thank you for setting us in communities - for families who nurture our becoming, for friends who love us by choice, for companions at work, who share our burdens and daily tasks, for strangers who welcome us into their midst, for people from other lands who call us to grow in understanding, for children who lighten our moments with delight, for the unborn, who offer us hope for the future.

We thank you for this day - for life, for one more day to love, for the opportunity to work one more day for justice and peace, for neighbors, for one more person to love and by whom be loved, for your grace and one more experience of your presence, for your promise to be with us, to be our God, and to give salvation.

For these, and all blessings, we give you thanks, loving God. Amen.
(Adapted from Prayer of Thanksgiving on beliefnet.com)

Runner’s Thoughts: Running can clear cobwebs from our minds and focus our thinking. Running can give us time and space to sort out the things that are bothering us, or challenging us. At time running allows us to detach and think of nothing at all. But perhaps most importantly running offers us an opportunity to connect with God through our senses. Running graces us with an opportunity to taste, touch, smell, hear and see God in our life!

Daily Blessing: Tuesday greetings everyone! I hope your day has started off well if not hang in there it will get better and if it doesn’t there is always tomorrow! I returned from Scranton yesterday and I am still a little sore from my weekend run. One more day of rest and then back to the road tomorrow with the NYC Marathon just 18 days away!

My thoughts and prayers are with all of you as you wonder though this day and I pray that God will bless you with all that you need to make it through this day. And so I pray – May you be blessed with the grace and presence of God today. May the grace and presence of God be with you, in front of you, behind you, on your right and on your left, above your head, under your feet and in your heart. May everything you do today be for and with God! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

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