From this story in St. Paul’s Letter to
Timothy and others like it we can be graced with the hope that in our journey
of faith our support, like St. Paul’s, comes from God in many different ways.
God is always with us and will never leave us to face our perils alone. And
like Luke for Paul, friends and family who stand by us, even when others forget
us, are special gifts. Perhaps today on this Feast of St. Luke, Evangelist and
faithful friend we might give thanks for the faithful friends in our own lives.
Thanking God for them and the gifts that they are to us!
Have a great Friday and a wonderful
weekend everyone!
Daily Prayer:
Loving 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 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
for 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 we will 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 my perils alone. Amen!
(Adapted
from a Prayer by Thomas Merton)
Runner’s Thoughts: Remember that
if during our runs we have the desire to run and pray then our runs can
transform the simplest moments into divine encounters!
Daily Blessing: Happy Friday
everyone! Yes, we are at the end of another work week and in a few hours our
weekend will begin. Now I am aware that for some this is not the end of a work
week and that a weekend is often a time of work so for those who do face work
these next few days hang in there you “weekend,” your “time off” will come! But
for those who find themselves at the end of their work week and who are looking
forward to the weekend ahead for a little rest and relaxation, TGIF!
Today’s blessing is going to be a little
on the long side as there have been many things that have crossed my desk over
the last few days that are worth mentioning.
First I would ask you to remember in
your prayers a long time retreatant from our retreat center in Riverdale,
Marianne, who is having surgery today for ovarian cancer. I celebrated mass for
her intention this morning asking God for healing, comfort and peace, so I ask
you to do the same.
Secondly, we are getting a new member to
our community here in Pelham, Fr. Enzo Del Brocco, C.P. from Naples, Italy. Fr.
Enzo will be spending a few months with us. He speaks perfect English because
part of his childhood was spent in Pittsburgh! Welcome Fr. Enzo!
Thirdly, one of my two goddaughters,
Alexis, is celebrating her birthday this weekend on Sunday. I will not be dumb and
reveal her age but let’s just say she in much younger than me and I am still
young! I want to wish Alexis a very Happy Birthday, with many blessings on her
day and always. Alexis is also expecting her third child so I want to ask God’s
blessing upon mother and child as they journey to birth throughout the coming
months. Alexis’ husband, Kevin, is away at this time in Nepal doing missionary
work so we wish him the best and a safe journey home!
Fourthly, I wish to ask God’s blessing
upon my niece Sarah and her husband, my nephew, Dominick. They are finishing up
their 10 day journey to Italy. I have not heard anything so I figure no news is
good news. I just ask God’s blessing upon their final days away and that they
have a safe journey home with many wonderful stories to tell!
Finally, this is a special weekend for
Passionists as we celebrate the Feast of St. Paul of the Cross. St. Paul of the
Cross’ feast is actually Saturday October 19th but in the United
States October 19th is the Feast of the North American Martyrs so
St. Paul’s feast is transferred to October 20th. We will be
celebrating in a special way with Fr. Joachim Rego, C.P., our Superior General
on Sunday at Immaculate Conception Parish in Jamaica, New York at the1:00 pm
mass. Fr. Joachim will preside and preach with Passionists coming in from all
over the United States and Canada. The mass is open to everyone so if you live
in the New York area why not come and celebrate with us. The Immaculate
Conception Monastery and Parish are located at 86-45 Edgerton Blvd., Jamaica,
New York 11432. I hope to see some of you there!
There are many other prayer requests and
stories that have crossed my desk this week and so now we gather them all together
asking God’s blessing upon all in need, upon all of us as we continue this
journey of faith we call life.
In the Gospel (Luke 10: 1-9) today,
Jesus tells his disciples to proclaim, “The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.”
So as a hopefully a faithful disciple and preacher I ask God to bless all of
you with the sure and certain hope that the “Kingdom of God is truly at hand
for you!” I ask God’s blessing on all who find themselves sick and or
struggling in some way may this blessing bring you healing and peace! But most
importantly I ask God’s blessing upon all of you that you will always know that
you are never alone that God is standing with you and will never leave you to
face your perils, to face life alone! Have a great Friday and a wonderful
weekend everyone! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
No comments:
Post a Comment