Daily Thoughts - 07/09/2016

Daily Thoughts: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us? Here I am, send me!” In today first reading we have the call of Isaiah the prophet and the all too familiar words, “Here I am!” Isaiah’s vision enlivened his spirit and strengthened his faith to the point of accepting God’s call to serve. He sensed his own sinfulness but also realized God’s presence in his life.

Isaiah embraced the spirit of Jesus’ words in the Gospel this morning that he was important to God. God knew everything about him, all the hairs on his head. Isaiah knew that God valued him far more than a couple of sparrows. With this understanding, with this knowledge of God Isaiah was able to move forward, to volunteer for the journey of a life time.

Perhaps the challenge of our scriptures today is to look at our own life, to acknowledge our own sinfulness but to trust in the presence, the care and the love of God and move forward, to volunteer for the journey of a life time with God.

Yes, there is an evil one lurking out there ready to calm our body and soul but we must trust in God’s care, concern and love to guide us through the challenges and the struggles that come our way. We need to trust that we, like Isaiah, are important to God.

As we journey through this day let is ask God for the strength to believe more deeply in God’s love for us so that we can live more peacefully in God’s presence around us!

Have a great Saturday everyone!

Daily Prayer: O God, here I am, your child, at your disposal. Use me to continue your loving presence in the world, by giving Jesus to me and through me, to each person I meet and to the world. Let us pray for each other that we allow Jesus to love in us and through us with the love with which his Father loves us. Bless us with the Spirit’s grace in us and through us so that we may be your loving presence in the world today! Amen! (Adapted from a prayer by Blessed Teresa of Calcutta)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “When you have the enthusiasm and the passion, you end up figuring how to excel.” (Deena Kastor) So to in the spiritual life…

Daily Blessing: Saturday blessings to everyone! I hope your day has started off well. It is a cloudy morning here in Pelham but by the afternoon the sun should be out. Like the last few days there is a chance for a thundershower during the day. I don’t think it will be as hot today as the previous few days. I hope the weather is life giving by you today.

As I did yesterday I would like to once again remember all who have died over the last few days. I really wish this violence would stop but violence begets violence unfortunately. We have to find a way to see each other as people created in the image a likeness of God. It is sad that human life must be lost time and time again because someone cannot see past creed, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. It is sad when someone thinks the only way to deal with violence is more violence. It is sad when respect is lost. Please God help us to find a way to peace!

My prayer of blessing for all of you today is that your day will be blessed with the joy and peace of a summer’s day. That today will find you rich in family, friends and the joy that they can bring. That you will be graced with rest, relaxation, fun, laughter and peace. That you will notice God’s loving presence all around you and find hope and joy within that presence. Have a great day everyone and don’t forget to give God a little time this weekend! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/08/2016

Daily Thoughts: “For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Matthew 10:20). There is great comfort in these words from the Gospel today especially for someone like me, a preacher. However, they are words that are also demanding. They demand dependence not independence. They demand dependence on God, a willingness to let go and let God.

Now before I go any further with my reflection I would just like to say something about this phrase “let go and let God.” I know I use it often and at times people have commented that they don’t quite understand it. When I use the phrase “let go and let God” what I am referring to is the human condition known as being in control. We all like to be in control, to call the shots. We all like to have a sense that we have got things covered, that we know best.

However, if we pay close attention to Jesus in the Gospel we are reminded time and time again that it is about God not about us. Jesus often asks the disciples to trust, to not depend on themselves but the presence of God in their lives. It is not easy and the disciples often fail. It is when they are able to let go of their way and trust in God that they find themselves on the right path.

Letting go and letting God simple means that life is not about “me” it is about God. It is about letting go of the enticements of the world and letting God be present to us as we journey through life.

This theme of trust, of letting go has been an ongoing theme in our scriptures this week. We have been reminded of God’s unrelenting, unconditional love for Israel through the stories from the Book of Genesis. We have been told of the great power that the disciples have been given in order to proclaim the Kingdom of God in the Gospel. And we have been directed in many different ways through the responsorial psalm that our focus in life should always be God.

Thomas Merton wrote, “You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.” Jesus remind us today of exactly the same thing. It is through the courage of our friendship with God that we will always be able to bring the Kingdom of God to each moment of life.

So as we make our way through this day let us have the courage to let go and let God because we trust in God’s unrelenting love for us, a love that impels us to proclaim the Kingdom of God because the Spirit of God speaks through us!

Have a great Friday everyone!

Daily Prayer: Gracious and holy God, give us wisdom to perceive you, intelligence to understand you, diligence to seek you, patience to wait for you, eyes to behold you, a heart to meditate on you, and a life to proclaim you, through the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen! (St. Benedict)

A Runner’s Thoughts: There is something magical about running; after a certain distance, it transcends the body. Then a bit further, it transcends the mind. A bit further yet, and what you have before you, laid bare, is the soul.  (Kristin Armstrong) – So to in the spiritual life…

Daily Blessing: Friday greetings and blessings to everyone! I hope and pray everyone’s day is starting off well. It looks to be another sunny, hot and humid day here in Pelham. I hope the weather is treating you a little kinder though I really should not complain even with the heat today is much better than a day in the middle of winter!

I would like to remember all who have died over the last few days. I really wish this violence would stop but violence begets violence unfortunately. We have to find a way to see each other as people created in the image a likeness of God. It is sad that human life must be lost time and time again because someone cannot see past creed, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. It is sad when some thinks the only way to deal with violence is more violence. It is sad when respect is lost. Please God help us to find a way to peace!

If you are traveling today, please travel safe. If you are working I hope it is a light and easy day for you. If you are at home, I hope you are enjoying a little peace and quiet or the gift of family. If you are on vacation I hope it is a lazy day full of joy, fun and relaxation. If you are worried may those worries be held in God’s compassionate hands. If you are struggling with life may you find the strength to keep going. If you are finding faith difficult may you know that God always loves, you. In other words, I hope everyone is having a day richly blessed by God!

May God bless the gift that you are today wherever you share your gift; with whomever you share your gift. May you be blessed with faith, hope, joy and love throughout this day and always! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/07/2016

Daily Thoughts: I had two thoughts after spending some time with the readings for today. The first was that of God’s unconditional, unrelenting love. In the first reading from Hosea, God knows that the Israelites are not faithful and that they have chosen to buy into the culture around them. However, God is not going to give up on them. God is going to remain faith.

My second thought is that Jesus is also teaching his disciples about God’s unconditional and unrelenting love but in a different way. Jesus sends the disciples out to proclaim the Kingdom of God giving them great powers but also asking them to be dependent. They are not to take what a usual traveler should take. They are to be dependent on the people and place that they go. They are to let God take care of the problems that they may face. Jesus asks his disciple to depend on God in their ministry.

Our two readings remind us that God is in this journey of life for the long haul. God will be with us through the journey and if we are faithful God will take care of the struggles, not always in our time but in God’s time. All we have to do is trust in the presence and love of God. If we do this our presence life will give way to the fullness of a life that will never end!

The Kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel! Have a great Thursday everyone!

Daily Prayer: O God, thank you for your unconditional, your unrelenting love. Thank you for the people in our life. Thank you for those who care about us. Thank you for those we love. Thank you for the angels that touch our lives and help us to realize just how special life is. Thank you for the friends who make life so interesting. Thank you for the many extraordinary, wonderful, awesome and marvelous people, places and experiences that you have given us. Help us never to forget them and always to remember how gifted our life is because of your love for us! Amen!

A Runner’s Thoughts: Remember it is possible to begin a meditation run simply by stepping onto the pavement and putting one foot in front of the other. In fact, the simplicity of this is one of the great joys of running. No elaborate gear, accessories, or training are required. We can simply step into the run and see what unfold, see how God is present in our life today! (Adapted from Roger Joslin – Running the Spiritual Path)

Daily Blessing: Thursday greetings and blessings to all! I hope your day has started well and that your week is going well, if not as always please know of my prayers for each for you. Hopefully they will be of a little help to whatever life is throwing at you these days. Remember if people, or a place or an experience gives you trouble just shake their dust from your feet and God will take care of the rest.

It looks to be a sunny day here in Pelham but it is also going to be a hot one. By the time I finished my run yesterday I looked like I had walked out of the shower I was soaked from head to foot. It certainly will be the same today. I hope things are a little cooler where you are or perhaps you have a pool, a lake or the ocean to help you stay cool!

My prayer of blessing for all of you is that you are able to stay cool, dry and hopefully enjoy your day! May God bless all that you do, everyone you meet, and every place you go. May God bless you with the wisdom and grace to see the gift that you are! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/06/2016

Daily Thoughts: “A [person] knows when he [or she] has found his [or her] vocation when he [or she] stops thinking about how to live and begins to live.” (Thomas Merton) I think this is a good quote for our Gospel reading today. The 12 apostles (Matt. 10:1-7) begin to live today and in doing so they find out what God has in store for them.

Isn’t this true for all of us? In living we uncover, we find, we experience, we become who God calls us to be. A verse from John’s Gospel came to mind as I reflected upon today’s Gospel, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit – fruit that will last” (John 15:16). The twelve were chosen by Jesus and in the Gospel today they take their first steps in living out that call, they bring the gift of God to the people that they encounter.

The challenge today for us is – Are we living out our call? And what gifts are we offering the world today?

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

Daily Prayer: O God, you have called us to serve you today. You have asked some work of us today that you have not asked of others. We have a mission, a call, a meaning to our life today and we may never know its fruit fully. We are a link in your chain of life, a bond of connection between your people. Help us today to do good, to do your work, to be an angel of peace, a preacher of the Good News in our own way. Grace us with the gift of hope that we can share with whomever we meet. Amen!

A Runner’s Thoughts: Let’s run in a spirit of gratefulness today. Before we begin our run let’s declare our intention to look upon all we encounter with the freshness of the unexpected. Let us run with a sense of miraculous expectation and allow a feeling of gratitude for the extraordinary and the ordinary to flow through our being. As we run today let us be thankful to God for life! (Adapted from Roger Joslin – Running the Spiritual Path)

Daily Blessing: Wednesday greetings and blessings to all. It is rather humid here in Pelham this morning but it looks like a day that will have a lot of sun and rather hot temperatures. I hope your Wednesday has started off well and that you will encounter a beautiful sunny day were ever you are unless you need the rain!

In a little while it will be off to my new office and a day of looking ahead to the next taping on the Sunday Mass. The process of renovating and Lower Church at the Immaculate Conception Parish has begun though only on paper at this point but we have to keep the process moving so that we will be ready by September.

My prayer of blessing is that your day will be blessed with God’s peaceful presence and that your work, your encounters with others, your travel and your return home will be graced with a true sense of faith, hope, joy and love. Have a great Wednesday everyone – enjoy the day as best as you can and remember you are a gift and you make everyone’s day that you meet better! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/05/2016

Daily Thoughts: I have a couple of thoughts about our readings today. First off, I think we have all been where Jesus seems to be today. It might take place within family, friends, the place where we work, the neighborhood or our faith community, but we have been in those situations when we look at people and their struggles and our “hearts go out to them!” We see them overwhelmed by life and we wonder how they will survive, how they will make it. At times we even feel helpless because the struggle, the problem, the issue just seems so overwhelming.

In the midst of Jesus’ ministry, even though he is healing everyone in sight he looks around and it is overwhelming. He sees the struggles of life, of health, of emotions, of faith and he wonders how are these people going to make it. His heart goes out to them!

However, Jesus also sees a great harvest. He sees possibilities; he sees gifts, talents, abilities. He sees hope and a future but he knows people cannot do it alone the whole community must work at it.  Sometimes we think this passage just refers to vocations. If we just get enough priests everything will be fine. Vocations are only a piece of the challenge that Jesus presents to us today. The challenge is for the whole community to be involved. The whole community needs to work together to bring in the harvest, not just a so called chosen few.

If the community does not work together we see the outcome in our first reading by Hosea, the harvest is lost. The harvest of faith, hope and love is the responsibility of the community. We are in the journey together and we all have something to add, to give so that the full rich harvest of God’s presence can be realized and made present.

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Daily Prayer: We give you heartfelt thanks, O Loving God, for the rest of the past night and for the gift of a new day, with all its opportunities of pleasing you. Grant that as we live the hours of this day we will do so with joy, faith, hope and love in service of you. So that when evening comes upon us we will again give thanks to you for your many gifts that enriched us throughout the day. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen! (Adapted from Daybreak prayer of the Eastern Church

A Runner’s Thoughts: “Every run is a work of art, a drawing on each day's canvas. Some runs are shouts and some runs are whispers. Some runs are eulogies and others celebrations. When you're angry, a run can be a sharp slap in the face. When happy, a run is your song. And when your running progresses enough to become the chrysalis through which your life is viewed, motivation is almost beside the point. Rather, it's running that motivates you for everything else the day holds.” (From the Runner’s World Daily Kick in the Butt by Dagny Scott Barrios)

And as a friend and brother in the Passion often says – “So to in the spiritual life!”

Daily Blessing: Tuesday greetings and blessings to all! I hope you had a great holiday weekend and the rain didn’t dampen your fireworks viewing last night. I also hope your day has gotten off to a good start. I have a busy day ahead and it will begin with a rainy day as it has been raining off and on all night here in Pelham. I will be spending most of my day in my new office trying to get a sense of what needs to be done so that we are ready to begin taping the Sunday Mass again in September. Much has to be accomplished between now and then and it is my responsibility to see that it happens.

We are challenged in the Gospel today to help the harvest master to bring in the great harvest so my prayer of blessing for you today is that you will be blessed by God with the energy, enthusiasm, faith, hope and joy to work in the field of life today and bring the gift of God’s presence to all you meet. My you be blessed with the courage and strength to share your gift thus make a joyful noise in life today. Blessings upon all you do, every place you go and upon everyone you meet! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/04/2016

Daily Thoughts: The verse from the responsorial psalm seems to capture the essence of our readings today, “The Lord is gracious and merciful.” In the Gospel, (Matt. 9:18-26), we witness God’s graciousness and mercy through Jesus. It is a graciousness and mercy that comes about because of the faith of two people, the official and the woman. Both the official and the woman have unconditional faith, unrelenting faith. Even though his daughter is dead the official still searches out Jesus. He knows that even in death an encounter with Jesus can mean life. The woman who has struggled with health issues for many years just wants to touch Jesus’ clothing that simple action will make all the difference.

These two faith filled people teach us the value, the gift of unconditional, unrelenting faith. They teach us that when we place our trust in God wonderful things, sometimes even impossible things happen, both encounter God’s graciousness and mercy!

Today we are challenged not pass up any opportunity to encounter a place, a person, an experience that will help us to know of God’s active presence in our life, to know God’s graciousness and mercy. Let us be people of unconditional, unrelenting faith so that as we journey through life there is always the possibility for wonderful if not impossible things to happen.

Have a great Monday everyone and a happy Fourth of July, please be safe!

Daily Prayer: Loving God, bless our beautiful land with its wonderful variety of people, races, cultures, and languages. May we be a nation, a people, of laughter and joy, of justice and reconciliation, of peace and unity, of compassion, caring and sharing. We pray this prayer for a true patriotism in the powerful name of Jesus our Lord. Amen (Adapted from a prayer by Archbishop Desmond Tutu)

A Runner’s Thoughts: As prayerful runner we always seem to find it inadequate to sit and wait for the Spirit to appear. As prayerful runners, we always want to run towards God but if we are prayerful runner’s what we always find is that God is running toward us at twice the speed! (Adapted from Roger Joslin – Running the Spiritual Path)

Daily Blessing: Monday greetings and blessings and Happy 4th of July all! I hope you will be having a wonderful day with family and/or friends, with good food, good drink, good fun and a little time to be thankful for all the gifts you have around you.

My prayer of bless for you today is that God may bless you today with a day that will help you to look at the positive in life not the negative. May God bless you with a vision of hope and not despair, with the grace to believe that the impossible can become of the possible. May God bless you with the time today to look around you with wonder and amazement and not cynicism and negativity!

Party, celebrate and drive safe today. Enjoy the fireworks if they are near you. And know that were ever you are, whatever you are doing and whomever you are with – you are in my prayers today and always! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 07/03/2016

Daily Thoughts: In order to get a better grasp of our first reading today from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, we have to consider the importance of the Temple in Jerusalem. This building complex was the dwelling place of God and the central reminder of God’s fidelity. It was the foremost symbol of Israel as God’s Chosen People. They were what the Temple said they were. It became the celebration place for their identity, their history and their future.

In our first reading we are listening to verses from the final chapter of Isaiah. It is a complicated and lengthy series of poems, oracles, threats, history and songs of comfort and support. What we encounter today is one such oracle calling out hope and rebirth to the nation Israel.

The Temple has been rebuilt after exile and so the identity of the nation is reborn. The verse immediately before our reading, pictures God in a conception/birth posture which leads to the maternal rejoicing of our reading.

The Temple itself is in a maternal posture giving birth and consoling nourishment. The presence of God is again a blessing for all, who like young children, sit on their mother’s lap and are comforted with the motherly gestures of faithful love. Those who find life and strength from such nourishment will live their lives as faithful children in service to their loving God.

In our Gospel we hear what we might call a “pep talk” or a coach’s half time speech by Jesus. As Moses selected seventy elders to guide and govern his people, so Luke images Jesus as a Moses, sending out seventy-two disciples to make known his coming. Jesus’ challenge to them is that they are to depend on nothing nor anybody, but on the Spirit with which Jesus sends them. We hear of their joyous return and excited report of all they had done and seen.

Jesus receives their report and reminds them that what they experienced was a direct result of their relationship with God. They belong to God and are dependent on him for their identity. In other words, they cannot go it alone. They must let go and let God.

Jesus is the “kingdom of God” which is close at hand. The ones sent are how that “kingdom” will be handed on. They will see and do great things, but even greater are the works that will be done through them without their knowing it.

Today, we are how the “kingdom of God” gets handed on. Like Jesus’ disciples we too must be dependent on God so that great things can happen. However, at times we struggle. At times we think we can go it alone after all, tomorrow don’t we celebrate independence? 

Often, we want our own identities. We want to create our own kingdoms which are of hands and for ourselves. We can go down this road but it is the road to ruin. Even in the independence we celebrate tomorrow God is present. We might say that God is always be laboring to free us from our independence. God is always reminding us that what we have is not our doing but God’s doing. If we remain faithful, if we remain dependent even greater are the works that can be done!

Have a blessed Sunday!

Daily Prayer:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,

 Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

 where there is injury, pardon;

 where there is doubt, faith;

 where there is despair, hope;

 where there is darkness, light;

 where there is sadness, joy;

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

 it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

 and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

(Prayer attributed to St. Francis Assisi)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “Winning has nothing to do with racing. Most days don’t have races anyway. Winning is about struggle and effort and optimism, and never, ever, ever giving up.” (Amby Burfoot)

Daily Blessing: Sunday greetings and blessings to all. I hope your Sunday has gotten off to a good start. In a few hours I will head out to celebrate mass at St. John and St. Mary’s Parish in Chappaqua, New York. It looks to be another beautiful day here in Pelham I hope it is the same by you!

My prayer of blessing today is that you will be blessed with the spirit of faith to help you on this journey of life. May you be blessed with the spirit of hope to get you through the rough times. May you be blessed with the spirit of love to remind you in whose image and likeness you are created in, how special you are and that you are never alone. As you journey through this day may you know that God is with you always and will never leave you to face your struggles alone! Happy Sunday everyone and remember to give God a little time today! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul