Daily Thoughts: “I am the way
and the truth and the life…. If you know me, then you also know my Father.” These are familiar words of Jesus spoken to
Thomas and found in today Gospel (John 14: 6-14) on this the feast of Sts.
Philip and James. They are words that remind us that our Christian faith is a
very profound experience; only those who have faith come to know that God, the
creator of the universe, chose to enter our life, to be part of human history
and in doing so reveal a profound love to all creation.
Jesus seems to be responding to the age
old question, is there a God, and if so what is this God like? Jesus’ answer is
look at me, know me, because if you see and know me then you see and know my
Father. As we find earlier in John’ Gospel, “God so loved the world that he
gave us his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might bot perish but
might have eternal life.” (John 3:16) So if we take a good look at Jesus, if we
get to know Jesus then we will know God, we will know the Father, the God who
so loves the world!
In coming to know God it always comes
down to a relationship, a relationship with Jesus, a relationship with the
Father, a relationship with the Spirit. Relationships take work, relationship
can be difficult and demanding, relationship demand time and investment. Yet in
the end a relationship is the only way we can come to know the love, mercy, joy
and faithfulness of God!
Happy Saturday everyone and don’t forget
to make a joyful noise with your life today!
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)
A 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: Saturday
greeting to all! I hope you are getting to enjoy a beautiful, sun filled and
warm Saturday like we are here in Pelham. These last few days have been just
what the doctor ordered and as far as I am concerned they came at just the
right time!
We find ourselves in the month of May
which can be a very busy time of the year with First Communions, graduations,
weddings, confirmations and many other celebrations take reminds us of spring,
life and all that is good. I hope wherever you are that this May will be
blessed with many life-giving moments of celebration, joy and love.
As for today, may the spirits of the
Apostles Philip and James enliven your life and your day with the blessings of
God’s presence in the people you meet, the place you go and in the things you
do. May you come to know God today through the living of life and may your
living of life today make a joyful noise for all to hear! Peace in Christ’s
Passion and Joy in the Risen Lord…Fr. Paul
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