Daily Thoughts: A number of
times during my recent pilgrimage to France I was struck by the gift of
children in life. Whether it was encounter children during my journey or
thinking of the children that are important in my life like my three grand nieces.
In many ways both St. Bernadette and St. Thérèse of Lisieux where both children
when they were profoundly touched by God.
In Aramaic, the word for child, servant,
and slave is the same, which reflects the cultural attitude of first-century
Palestine. But Jesus says “for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
What a switch! Jesus is turning the social structure upside down! What does
Jesus see that the learned and clever cannot see?
Children are vulnerable and totally
dependent. Because they lack power and control, they live in trust. Relying totally
on their parents, they learn and grow. This is the stance that Jesus took when
he taught his disciples to pray. We need to do the same.
We need to value the gift of children in
our lives. They should not be silenced, or abused, or hidden away, or seen but
not heard. They should be in our midst always reminding us to be vulnerable,
dependent, trusting and loving. They need to remind us to have joy always in
our hearts!
Have a blessed and joyful Saturday
everyone and be aware of the gift of children around you today because they
know the Kingdom!
Daily Prayer: Loving God,
help us today and always, as Jesus said, to become a child once again. Help us
to know that we are loved by you. Help us to let go of pride and pretense. Help
us to trust so that we can let go of all our futile and unnecessary attempts to
prove that we are worthy of your love. Let us know the humble prayer of being
your much loved child. Amen!
A Runner’s Thoughts: “Struggling and
suffering are the essence of a life worth living. If you're not pushing
yourself beyond the comfort zone, if you're not demanding more from yourself -
expanding and learning as you go - you're choosing a numb existence. You're
denying yourself an extraordinary trip.” (Dean Karnazes)
Daily Blessing: Happy Saturday
everyone! It is another beautiful day here in Pelham. It is nice having a few
days to rest and get reconnected with my usual life after my 10 days in France.
It gives me a little time to process just what happened during my journey before
getting busy about life again. There was a richness to my journey that I cannot
put into words at this time but hopefully as times goes on I will be able to
mind that richness and make it a part of my preaching and my life!
My pray of blessing for all of you today
is that your weekend will be a restful and relaxing far from the busyness that
life often heaps upon us. I pray you have had a good week whether you were
working, vacationing or traveling. I also pray that your day will be blessed with
people that will gift your life with laughter, smiles and fun. Don’t forget to
give a little time to God this weekend. Remember one hour is not a lot of time
and God will appreciate hearing from you!
Blessings to all today and throughout
the weekend, be safe if you are traveling and don’t forget to smile. Peace in
Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
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