Daily Thoughts: Recognizing and
responding to God seems to be the tread that connects out two readings today.
In the first reading from the Book of Jonah, Jonah is finally convinced by God
to go to Nineveh and preach his message. Before Jonah gets half way through the
city the people begin to repent. They proclaim a fast and put on sackcloth. As
the word of God's message gets to the king, he puts on sackcloth and sits in
ashes. In other words, much to Jonah's surprise the people hear God's word and
respond to it right away. There is no debate, no bargaining, no resistance, the
people hear the word of God and repent!
In the Gospel Jesus uses the example of
Jonah to make his point to the people he is preaching to. His point is that God
is in their midst but they are missing this gift. Other people, people you
would not expect, people outside the faith community hear the word of God and
respond but people in the faith community do not. They want signs and yet God
in right in their midst.
Recognizing and responding to God, that
is always the challenge. It is certainly the challenge for us today. How many
times is God present in our lives and we fail to recognize him? How many times
does God speak to us and we fail to hear or listen?
God is profoundly compassionate and
forgiving but we have to recognize him, we have to hear and respond. This was
the biggest problem for the religious leaders of Jesus' time, God was right in
their midst and they did not recognize him; they did not hear and respond to
him. Let us not make the same mistake. Today let us be open and aware to the
many ways God enters into our lives and invites us into his mercy and love!
Have a blessed Wednesday everyone!
Daily Prayer: O God, look
kindly on us today. Help us to recognize you in the many ways you will be part
of our life today. Enable us to hear your word and respond to it with energy
and enthusiasm. Grace us with humble and contrite hearts open to your presence
and word. Fill us with your hope so that we may live always in your love! Amen!
A Runner's Thoughts: Life like
running contains elements of challenge, difficulty, and pain...life like
running hurts, it wounds, it calls on us to rise above conditions that seem
beyond what we are capable of doing...life like running is a thing worth living
and doing not just because of the future rewards, but because of how it feeds
our bodies and minds and souls in the present and makes us aware of God's
presence.
Daily Blessing: Wednesday
greetings and blessings to all! I hope you will all have a great day wherever
you are and in whatever you will be doing. We will be bringing the mission to a
close here at Our Lady of Loreto Parish in Waterbury, CT today. It has been a
spirit filled three days. Yesterday was a busy day but a faith filled day as
many people shared their faith and struggles with me and even sought God’s
forgiveness. I was tired at the end of the day but it was a good tired! Again I
ask your prayers for this final day of mission, for the faith community and the
preacher.
I pray that God will bless us with the
richness of his grace so that we can navigate through this Hump Day of our
week. May we all be blessed with the gift of God’s loving presence, a presence
we will find in our encounters with others, in our travels and journeys, in our
moments of quiet and within ourselves! Blessings upon all today. Have a great
day everyone and know you are in my prayers! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr.
Paul
No comments:
Post a Comment