Daily
Thoughts:
"Do to others whatever you would have them do to you," advice given
by Jesus to his disciples, advice given to us today. What a different world it
would be if we just followed this simple wisdom. I do not think there is a
person among us who does not want good things to happen to them. Who does not
want to be treated with respect and dignity? Who does not want to be valued for
who they are? It is a basic human emotion, feeling and need. We want to be
accepted, we want to be loved.
Yet over
and over a scene is played out in our world today that runs counter to the
wisdom Jesus gives us in the Gospel today. Just think of how many times and how
many different ways each day we hear about, read about and even witness people
disrespecting, belittling, devaluing, making fun of and hurting others, with
words, actions, or in actions. Just think of all we endured leading up to
Election Day and since. Debates and millions of ads that attack the other candidates. We
rarely heard about how good and well qualified somebody would be for an office.
We always seem to heard how bad the
other person was!
Just take
a trip some time online through Facebook, Twitter or one of the other social
media sights. Reading the comments at the bottom of some article or news
stories post on the internet and you will encounter, hate, bigotry and profound
disrespect. We seem to be about tearing down not building up. If we take Jesus'
words at face value it would seem we all want to be disrespected, dishonored
and devalued because that is the way we seem to treat others.
I think
we need to remember that we value life because each of us, all of us, are born
in the image and likeness of God. There is good in all of us. Perhaps we first
need to find that goodness in ourselves and allow our words, our actions to
originate from that goodness.
In the
first reading Queen Esther prays for God's help. In the Gospel Jesus tells us
to ask for God help. Today I am praying, I am asking God to help us see and
concentrate on the goodness, the image and likeness of God within us, so that
we may see it in others and continue the work of the prophets of old in making
this world a better place. Making it a world of respect, reverence and love!
Have a
blessed Thursday everyone!
Daily
Prayer:
Gift us O God, with a spirit that always contemplates what is right, what is
good, what is worthy, what is decent, what is honorable, what is of value, the
goodness, within ourselves and others. Help us to treat all we meet in the same
way we want to be treated. Grace us with patience when we are not. Enliven us
with trust in you so that we will always have the strength to ask, seek and
knock. Knowing that if we do we will always be given, we will always find and
the door will always be open! Amen!
A
Runner's Thoughts: Let us run today with a spirit of gratefulness. Before
beginning our run, let's declare our intention to look upon all we encounter
with the freshness of the unexpected. It has been said that "surprise
leads us on the path of gratefulness." So let us run with a sense of
miraculous expectation and allow feelings of gratitude for the extraordinary
and the ordinary to flow through our being!
(Adapted from Roger Joslin)
Daily
Blessing:
Thursday greetings and blessings to everyone! We finished the mission last
night in Hamilton, NJ at St. Raphael/Holy Angels Parish in a wonderful way.
Again a great spirit and I now take that spirit with me as I ready myself to
head out on Saturday for my next mission in Levittown, NY.
I will be
off to the Wartburg Home for mass at 11 am today and then on to spiritual
direction and I little workout at the gym. I hope your week is going well and
perhaps coming to an end in a good way so that you can enjoy the weekend ahead.
For all those not having a good week, I am asking God for a special bless upon
you today that things will turn around and that today will be a truly blessed
day for you.
I pray
today for God's blessing upon all of us, that the richness of God’s presence
will touch our lives in many ways so that we can live to fullness of life in
all we do and with all we meet. Remember within you is a treasure – the
treasure of God’s presence, trust yourself, find the goodness in yourself and
live today with a joy filled heart! May God bless the gift that you are and
everyone you meet! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul
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