Daily Thoughts - 10/23/2013

Daily Thoughts: “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” This is a demanding and challenging reflection by Jesus in today’s Gospel (Luke 12: 39-47). Each time I hear this Gospel especially these words from Jesus I always pause in thought. Am I using the gifts and talents that I have been entrusted with to the best of my ability? Perhaps more importantly, am I using the gifts and talents that I have been entrusted with to further the Kingdom of God? Am I using them not only for myself but for others?

If I am honest with myself then at times my answers to these question are no! I have been graced, honored and entrusted with many gifts and I have to say at times I do not use them to the best of my ability. Sometimes I am selfish in my approach to life and in sharing what I have been given. At times the challenge of the Gospel especially the challenge in today’s Gospel weighs heavy on me.

I want to be the best person of faith I can be and I want that to be reflected in how I live my life and how I use my gifts. I was reading a reflection on the Gospel today in my copy of Living With Christ and the reflection stated that, “If we have been given a keen mind, we must think. If we are filled with compassion, we must serve. If we receive a voice, we must sing. God will not ask the impossible, but will expect our talents to be used.” Perhaps the question for the day is what are my gifts and talents? What are your gifts and talents? Are they being used to make present the Kingdom of God?

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

Daily Prayer: Loving God, give us the strength and courage today and always to be your good and faithful servants. Grace us with the wisdom and spirit to use the gifts and talents you have entrusted us with to bring about your presence in everything we do and to everyone we meet. Help us to be faithful servants of your joy and love this day and always. Amen!

Runner’s Thoughts: It's important to know that at the end of the day it's not medals or where we finished that we should remember. What we need to remember is the process, the journey – what we learn about ourselves, about our relationship with God by challenging ourselves, the experiences we share with other people, the honesty that training, that prayer demands – these are things to remember because nobody can take them away from us whether we finish last or first.

Daily Blessing: Happy Wednesday “Hump Day” everyone! I hope this finds you well and enjoying your day and life! The weather have begun to change here in Pelham, you can feel the chill beginning to be a permanent fixture in the air. It is a cloudy almost gloomy day which is probably a preview the winter days ahead.

So that we are not dragged down by thoughts of the approaching winter and its absence of warm that color, I pray today that God will bless us all with eyes to see God’s goodness in ourselves and others. That went things get cold, gloomy and colorless in life may we always find warmth in the people of our lives, energy in sharing our gifts and talents and color in the smiles, joy and love that we encounter in the life we are living. May this blessing of God’s presence be with you today and always! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 10/22/2013

Daily Thoughts: Throughout the scriptures Jesus often uses the image of master and servant to make a point and describe our relationship with God. In most cases God is the master and we are the servants and the relationship is as any master and servant relationship would be in Jesus’ world.

However in today’s Gospel (Luke 12: 35-38) the relationship between master and servant between God and us is turned upside down. God does the waiting on us today and this profound reversal of roles is the very spirit of the Gospel message. It is the very spirit of what Pope Francis has challenged his cardinals, bishops and priest to be as ministers, the very essence of what he has challenged us to be as Christians.

If we look at our relationship with God we come to know that God not only loves us and cares for us but in the person of Jesus God has taken on our human nature in order to redeem us. Many of those who listened to Jesus’ preaching probably found his image of God as one who serves difficult if not impossible to accept. Masters of that time or anytime for that matter just are not seen or experienced as people who are willing to serve. Yet, for Jesus that is exactly what God has done in sending in own Son into the world.

To continue this gift we are asked to be servers of God’s grace to the world. A question for today might be how do we make God present known through service to others?

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Daily Prayer:

Loving God, Creator of all that is good; we live in the sure and certain hope that your mercy knows no bounds and so today with every creature we pause to give you praise. You have given us an inner law by which we are to live and to do your will is our commission.  To follow your ways is to know peace of heart and so to you once again we offer our service. Guide us on all the paths we travel this day and always. Free us from all the evil tendencies which lead our hearts away from you. Never let us to stray from you. Grace us with the strength to live our life making present your love so that we will be among your chosen ones on the last day.  O God, Author of peace and justice, give us true joy and authentic love, and a lasting peace.  Bless us your everlasting gifts. Amen.
(Adapted from a prayer by Blessed John Paul II)

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) And you are not having the fullest experience of God that you can have, so don’t run away from struggles or suffering in running or in life, embrace them with the help and grace of God!

Daily Blessing: Happy Tuesday everyone! I hope everyone is well and if you are in the east you know that we are beginning to transition from Indian Summer to true Autumn weather. The leaves probably will be turning soon here in Pelham. I know they have begun to elsewhere, so make sure you take a little time and look at God’s beauty!

Wherever you are today, whomever you are with and whatever you are doing I prayer that you will be blessed with the grace, love and presence of God. Enjoy your day, think positive thoughts, wear a smile and trust that God walks, runs, works, plays and journeys with you! Blessings to all. Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 10/21/2013

Daily Thoughts: We often think when we hear stories like the one about the “Rich Fool” in today’s Gospel (Luke 12: 13-21) that Jesus doesn’t like those who are rich and that is not true. When Jesus talks about wealth, possessions, status and power it is not to condemn them but merely to challenge all who find themselves in possessions of them. Jesus wants to know what we are going to do with what we possess. Do we use wealth, possessions, status and power to make ourselves comfortable or do we use them to help others? What we do with what we have is always the question.

As Jesus points out today, we cannot take it with us. As a friend of mine always says, “You never see a U-Haul behind a hearse!" In other words you cannot take it with you so what are you going to do with it?

Pope Francis continues to challenge us to care about the poor, the needy, the less fortunate, the immigrants and the struggling. This challenge is nothing new it has been part of our faith from the beginning. It flows out of the Gospel. It is the same message that Jesus presents today. In the early Church the question of those in need was always part of the Church's focus. Pope Francis is just reminding us of what Jesus has said all along.

Wealth, power, possessions and status are not evil. They are not counter to the Gospel; unless we fail to share, unless we only think of ourselves, unless we let injustice and poverty go unchallenged. Do we use the gifts, talents, possessions, wealth and power to make the world for all people a better place? In other words by living our life are we rich in what matters to God?

Have a great day everyone!

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.

Help us to always use, offer, invest and give our gifts freely for the good of all and so that you Kingdom will continue to grow. For the grace to give and all our blessings, we give you thanks, loving God. Amen.

(Adapted from Prayer of Thanksgiving on beliefnet.com)

Runner’s Thoughts: We need to always remember that there are different forms of prayer, of communication with God and that they are possible in everything we do, even when we run. So as I have often said, let us allow our runs to be a prayer – a prayer of thanksgiving, a prayer of petition or intercession, a prayer of praise, a prayer of struggle, or a prayer seeking help or perhaps just a prayer that says hello God how are you today?

Daily Blessing: Happy Monday everyone! It was nice to see some of you at our Passionist Celebration yesterday in Jamaica, New York. It was a wonderful mass and celebration. It was really nice to see a full church, almost 1,000 people. The music was great. Fr. Joachim’s homily and presence was inspiring. It was just a great day to be a Passionist! Thanks to those who came and celebrated with us, thanks to those who always pray for us!

I hope your weekend was as good as mine! I know that some of you were traveling and I hope your travels near and far when well and that you returned home safely. I hope those who were not traveling had a restful, relaxing and pleasant weekend.

I want to send a special blessing out to Dan, whose birthday is today. Dan is in the Air Force and I had the privilege of celebrating his baptism many years ago in St. Louis so I want to send a special birthday blessing to Dan! Have a great day and Go Cards!

As for all, I am feeling pretty good and positive today I guess because of just a great Feast of St. Paul of the Cross yesterday so I will ask God’s blessings for all of you today through the intersession of St. Paul of the Cross. May God bless you and protect you today and always. May God’s face smile upon you. May God’s grace enter into all you do. May you live today rich in a harvest of faith, hope and love which God has planted within you and may you always know that nothing can separate you from the love of God! Blessings to all and have a great day everyone. Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul