Daily Thoughts: “I prefer a Church which is bruised,
hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church
which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.” (Pope
Francis – Evangelii Gaudium – The Joy of
the Gospel)
These are perhaps odd words from Pope
Francis to use on this Feast of St. Joseph, yet I think they are words which
reflect the life of Joseph. He was a laborer and he faced many challenges in
his life especially when God came calling. St. Joseph was a person of life, an
ordinary person who through faith did extraordinary things. St. Joseph is a
wonderful image of the kind of Church Pope Francis wants, a compassionate,
loving and joy filled Church.
Today we celebrate St. Joseph a person
we know very little about but what we know can be an inspiration for all of us.
He was a simple man skilled in the use of his hands to shape, form and build.
He was an ordinary man place in an extraordinary situation. He was a faith
filled man who staked his life on the promises of God.
St. Joseph wanders into our life through
a few verses of scripture and leaves a lasting impression. In every situation
we find him he pursues the right thing to do. He is righteous man who cares
about the people around him. He is a loving man who protects those he loves. He
is a hope filled man who places his trust in his relationship with God.
Yes, in his ordinariness St. Joseph
stands as an example for all of us and we live our lives of faith. He is a
model of quiet faithfulness. He is the hopefulness that fathers bring to a
family. He is an example of loving attention to God’s presence. He is the
humble father who reminds us of the gift of family life and the challenge of
living for others!
As we celebrate St. Joseph today as the
husband of Mary let us honor his faithfulness, his hopefulness and his love by
letting him be an example that helps us to live our life of faith caring for those
around us.
Happy St. Joseph’s Day to all, many
blessing and have a great day!
Daily Prayer: Loving God, we
honor your faithful servant, St. Joseph today. Help us with your grace to be
your faith filled servants too. Enable us to be compassionate like Joseph to
those around us. Give us the wisdom of Joseph so that we to will see your plan
in every aspect of our lives. Gift us with a love like Joseph so that we to can
make a different with our lives. Touch us with the joy of Joseph so that we
will always find the gift of God’s presence in everything we do. Good St.
Joseph pray for us and watch over us. Help us to always find the value of
family life no matter how difficult the world makes it. Amen!
A Runner’s Thoughts: You have to
wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself
a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it
started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement. (Steve
Prefontaine)
Daily Blessing: Happy Feast of St. Joseph and Thursday greetings
and blessing to everyone! I hope your day has started off well. We had a very nice
closing to the mission last night. Before I made my way back north to home
after the closing of the mission I was able to have dinner with two longtime
friends who live in the area which made for a very nice ending to a great week
in Hainesport.
Today I will get caught up on mail and
paperwork. I will also prepare of a long day of taping tomorrow at St. Francis
de Sales in Manhattan for the Sunday Mass. Then it will be off to Peterborough,
NH for my next mission starting Saturday evening. So as you can see I am
keeping busy and out of trouble for the most part!
My prayer of blessing today is that all
of us remain focused on our faith, on our relationship with God and on all the
wonderful things God has done for us. May we never give in to hopelessness and
look elsewhere to a god the world creates. Many blessings to all today, success
in your endeavors, safety in your travels and many experiences of God’s
presence throughout the day! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
No comments:
Post a Comment