Daily
Thoughts:
“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have
taken place there in these days?” We encounter two famous stories in our
readings today. In Luke’s Gospel it is the story of the two disciples on the
road to Emmaus and in the Acts of the Apostles it is the story of Peter and
John curing the man at “the Beautiful Gate.”
In some ways putting the two stories together on this Easter Wednesday
can help us to enter into the mystery and power of the Resurrection.
The story
of the two disciples on the road, in my book, is a classic. It has all the
elements of our faith life. The struggle with the things of the world, of life,
the missed opportunities of encountering Jesus because we are so focused on our
struggles; the moments in time when we sense God’s presence, when our hearts
burn but we don’t realize it until the end of the experience and those
instances when Jesus becomes present to us in the breaking of the bread.
We have
all been where these two disciples have been. We have been on that road in our
life. We have been blind by our own lack of hope, our own disappointments, our
own struggles. The gift, the hope of this story is that God that Jesus never
gives up on us. He is always trying to enter our lives to remind us of the
story and open our eyes to his presence.
Peter and
John understood that as they entered Jerusalem through “the Beautiful Gate.”
The opened the eyes of the crippled man who want silver and gold but ended up
with much more. The power of the Risen Christ can transform our lives sometimes
profoundly and sometimes simply but when that moment comes we just to be ready
and not be blinded by our own lack of hope, our own disappointments, our own
struggles.
Let’s not
be the only ones who do not know the story, who have given up hope. Let us be
people of faith and hope today whose hearts are burning with the word and
presence of God and through the living of life who proclaim – “Jesus is Risen,
Alleluia!”
Have a great
Wednesday everyone!
Daily
Prayer: Jesus,
we come before you at the beginning of this day. Take Lord, and receive our
hearts; the words of faith that we speak, the works of justice that we do, our
joys and sufferings. When we come to the Eucharistic table of life, gather our
offerings to your own for the life of the world. At the end of this day, place
us with Mary, your mother, and for her sake take our hearts to your heart.
Amen! (Adapted from a prayer by the
Maryland Province of Jesuits)
A
Runner’s Thoughts: “Succeeding in running should be seen as an allegory for
succeeding in every aspect of life. Set goals, plan out how to achieve them,
then stick to the plan.” (Kim Griffin)
Daily
Blessing:
Happy Easter Wednesday everyone! Yes, it is Easter Wednesday so our camel is
decked out in Easter eggs and lilies today proclaiming the good news that it is
Hump Day. I hope your day has started well and that wherever you are the sun is
out or will be out and you will get to enjoy its warmth!
It looks
to be a sunny day here in Pelham and the wind has certain died down so I am
looking forward to a nice day. In a couple of hours, I will be headed out to a
Day of Recollection for the Ladies of Charity of New York. We are having the
day at St. Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, New York. It should be a nice day and
will ask you to keep the ladies in your prayers and if you could add a little
prayer for their preacher it would be greatly appreciated.
I send
Easter blessings to all of you today. As I was spending sometime in prayer
yesterday I reflected on the fact that whenever I get to this week each year I
think of the movie Ground Hog Day, because for these eight days of the Easter
Octave each day we celebrate Easter Again. So Happy Easter and may God bless
you today with the gift of Easter joy wherever you are and in whatever you are
doing. May you be found rich today in the grace and presence of God and may you
share your Easter joy with everyone you meet. May your hearts burn today with
the presence and the spirit of the Risen Lord! Peace in Christ's Passion and
the Risen Lord...Fr. Paul
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