Daily Thoughts - 05/24/2013

Daily Thoughts: Morton Kelsey in his book Caring wrote, “There is no greater need than to love and be loved. This need touches the deepest level of the human heart. And the need to love may be deeper and more central than the need to be loved.”

I read this a long time ago and it has stayed with me ever since. Perhaps it is because my life has been made up of so many relationships, so many friendships that have gone unfulfilled, friendships that have been there and then are gone. Friendships that have afforded me the chance to love and be loved only to see those love lost. I can say without a doubt that the desire to love and be loved is profoundly important but at the same time profoundly difficult.

The first reading for today’s mass from the Book of Sirach (Sirach 6:5-17), talks about the value of friendship, about the gift of friendship in our life but it also points out how difficult at times friendship can be. Today’s reading points out that having a true friend is a treasure yet finding a true friend can be difficult.

Friendship and love demand trust. They demand openness to self and the other and there are many ways in which we can be hurt by both. Yet a friend born out of love can be one of the greatest gifts in life and to lose the love of a friend can be one of our greatest sorrows.

As we journey through this day let us remember our friends. Let us remember our love for them and their love for us and how important they are in our life. Let us give thanks for the gift of our friends and the true treasures in our lives that they are!

Daily Prayer: O God, give us insight into our friendships. Help us to see your gift of love, your presence in them. Help us to be faithful friends to others, loyal, generous and kind. Grant us the gift through our friendships to love and be loved. Bless our friends this day and always with the richness of life and the faithfulness of our love. Amen!

Runner’s Thought: If we run as a spiritual runner let us remember that it is being a runner that matters, it is not how fast or how far we go. The joy, the gift is in running, in the journey and not always in the destination. We have the best chance of encountering our friend God, in the midst of our run when we remain focused in the present and don’t think too far ahead! (I adapted this from a quote by John Bingham, the author of No Need for Speed: A Beginner's Guide to the Joy of Running.)

TGIF everyone and welcome to the unofficial start of summer! Well ok not quite yet as some of you are in the midst of a Friday work day. I hope your Friday has started off well and it will be a short one that will take you into a relaxing and fun weekend. The rain and clouds are still hanging around us here in Pelham. They say even the cold, or cooler weather will return for the weekend, not so much summer yet and not so enjoyable! I hope the skies will be brighter, the sun will be out and the weather will be warmer where ever you are this weekend!

Have a great Memorial Day weekend may it be a time of rest, relaxation and fun. May it be a time of family and friends rich with smiles, laughter, good food and many blessings. Enjoy and know you will all be in my prayers that the weekend is not only fun but safe! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 05/23/2013

Daily Thoughts: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is out light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves: Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are we NOT to be? We are children of God. Our playing small doesn’t save the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around us. We were born to make visible the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it is all of us!

And as we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fears, our presence automatically liberates others.

So let us not allow our salt, our flavor, to become insipid. Today let us live as the person that God has created us to be rich in the gifts of faith, hope and love, rich is all that matters to God. (Adapted from an Unknown Writer)

Daily Prayer: Loving God, in you is found the fullness of life and unconditional forgiveness and love. We place ourselves in your hands each day, asking that you make holy all that we are, all that we have, and all that we offer you. Keep us firm in our faith and strong in your service. Create in us a new heart, that we might find a peace that always welcomes us home. Amen!

Runner’s Thought: Not every run need to be a search for life’s deeper meanings. Sometimes when we run we need to just “cruise!” Approach your next run with openness to the moment. Try to run unencumbered by the stress and strains of life. Look for the unexpected, look for the expected in a different way. Just cruise with God at your side!

Thursday greetings to everyone! I have been a bit busy the last few days and it is nice to have a chance to sit down and share a few thoughts with you today.

The sun is shining for the moment here in Pelham but we have been warned that storms are a possibility today and tomorrow. My thoughts and prayers remain with the people of Oklahoma, for they truly know what storms are about. It was nice that the death toll went down but certainly not comforting to those who lost loved ones! I pray for peace in their journey back to a normalcy of life!

I also keep all of you in my prayers today as I do every day. I am hoping your Thursday has started off well and will continue to be a good day. Blessings upon your work, your relationships and most importantly upon you today! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 05/20/2013

Daily Thought: “I do believe, help my unbelief!” In many ways all of us look at ourselves as people of faith, people who have values and in most cases can say we are believers. Yet, perhaps like the man in today’s Gospel (Mark 9:14-29) we need help with our unbelief, we need help in those moment, those situations, those circumstance when it is hard to believe.

Belief at times can get away from us, our emotions, our feelings overrun us and cause us to doubt God’s presence in our life. Situations don’t go our way, the burden of all that life throws at us seems to overwhelm us and we let go of what is most important. We become part of a faithless generation.

Perhaps we might take our lead today from our first reading from the Book of Sirach (Sirach 1:1-10). We need to go in search of Wisdom, God’s gift that was created before anything else. It is a gift to possess because if we do we become friends of God. Wisdom is the gift that can guide us through the struggles of unbelief. Wisdom can be the very presence of God that helps our unbelief.

Wisdom is the experience of life, the doing, seeing and listening of life that enables us to encounter the presence of God when we most need it. Wisdom can be found in every living thing and thus so can God. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit that we often recognize when we take the time to pray.

Let us be believers today and trust that God’s wisdom will always help us in our moments of unbelief!

Daily Prayer: O God, so many sick; so many starving; so many deprived; so many sad; so many hurting; so many bitter; so many fearful! When we look at You, We hope again. We do truly believe, help our unbelief. O God of infinite compassion, O ceaseless Energy of Love, O Eternal Wisdom grace us with your friendship and hear our faith filled prayer today so that we may help You to reduce the world’s pain. Amen! (Adapted from prayer by George Appleton)

Runner’s Thought: One of the things about running is that our greatest runs are rarely measured by great achievements or racing success. They are moments in time when running allows us to see how wonderful our life is. They are moments in time when running enables us to encounter the presence of God. (Adapted from a quote by Kara Goucher)

Monday greetings to all! I truly hope your weekend was a good one and that your new work week has started off in a positive way. The clouds remain here in Pelham with a coolness to the air but they say there will be sun and warmth this afternoon. My prayers are certainly with the people of Oklahoma and other parts of the Midwest as they encounter these violent storms of spring, may things calm down a little so that the storms and flood waters can take a break!

Well friends, I hope your day will be filled with many positives and that the negatives will only be fleeting moments. Please know I am trying to do my part for you by asking God’s blessings upon all you do, upon everyone you meet and upon everyone you love! Peace in Christ’s Passion and Hope in the Wisdom of God…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 05/19/2013

Daily Thoughts: “Different gifts but the same Spirit!” It is hard sometimes to trust in the gifts that we have. We always seem to look across the fence at the other side and think it looks better. We tend to see what other people do and think, “If only I could be like Mike!”

The key to overcoming our struggle with the Spirit is remember, that every gift comes from the same Spirit. In other words we all have a common origin, we all are gifted. The challenge is not, are we the best, the brightest, the most powerful, the most important, the most well-known, the strongest, the most gifted. The challenge is how do we give life to the gifts we have? How do we speak and act so that when others hear and encounter us they come to know the might acts of God?

St. Paul was very creative when he used the image of the body to represent our relationship with God, our relationship with Jesus. It is one body with all of us as members, as parts. All of us are necessary for the body to work, to function, to have life, with each member, each part valuable and important. Some members, some parts may stand out more than others, but it is the sum of the parts working together take makes the body visible, strong and life giving to others.

Yes, today we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We celebrate being one of the many gifts of the Spirit. We celebrate being a part of Christ’s body. We celebrate being a member and hopefully like the disciples on the first Pentecost we give life to the gifts of the Holy Spirit that we have received so that all will hear through us in a language they understand the mighty acts of God.

My friends, peace be with you today and always and receive the Holy Spirit, letting the Spirit fill your hearts and bring to life the fire of God’s love within you!

Daily Prayer: Breathe in us, O Holy Spirit, that our thoughts, our ideas, our words, may all be holy. Act in us, O Holy Spirit, that our works, our labors, our actions, our living of life too, may be holy. Embrace our hearts, O Holy Spirit, that we may love and be love in a holy way. Strengthen us, O Holy Spirit, that our lives may represent all that is life giving and holy. Protect us, O Holy Spirit, that we always may be your gifts of hope and life in this world. Amen! (Adapted for a Prayer to the Holy Spirit by Saint Augustine)

Runner’s Thought: Running is about the physical, the mental and the emotional sides of our lives. It challenges us in physical, mental and emotional ways. Will our bodies respond, will they hold up, will they take get us back home or to the finish line? Will our minds let us move beyond the pain and the struggle? Can we overcome the fear? Will we give in to what seems easier? Yes, running is about the physical, the mental and the emotional sides of our lives, however running is also about the spiritual. It is about breathing in the breath of God, the Holy Spirit. Running is about giving life to the gift of who God has created us to be!

Happy Pentecost everyone! I hope you are having a good if not great Sunday. We are running through the rain drops here in Pelham with the air once again a little on the cool side. I hope you are able to enjoy this day especially with family and or friends. That it is a day which will offer you some rest and relaxation so that you might enjoy the gifts of the Holy Spirit within and around you!

I will leave you today with this thought from Thomas Merton, “Love is the guarantee that the life of the Spirit is growing in us. Love is the sign of the Holy Spirit at work in the Church and in the world.” So love much today my friends! Peace in Christ’s Passion and Holy in the Gifts of the Holy Spirit…Fr. Paul