"Every Kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste." Lk 11:17
Divisions within ourselves, our families and our faith communities, while natural and in some ways necessary, are painful and confusing. Too often in contemporary society we feel divided within ourselves. We have obligations to our families, our churches, our employers, our parents and so much more. When we fail to attend to any or all of these, we become harried and guilty. Unable to pay attention to everyone and everything at once, we excuse ourselves but don't change our lifestyles.
The same reality holds true in our relationships with our families and faith communities. Not infrequently, concerned that people could not possibly do one more thing, I would worry about parishioners who gave what seemed like too much time and effort to the church. Hesitant to suggest they let someone else assume a leadership role for fear they would walk away in anger or hurt, I would watch as these friends of God exhausted themselves in the service of others to the detriment of their personal or family health.
Jesus warns his adversaries about this. Divided among themselves concerning how best to live the Law, they accuse Jesus of all manner of faults but the Lord sees through them. Unable to heal one another or find common ground, they shift their focus to a "scapegoat" who, for a few minutes or days, will free them from self reflection and arrogance. Unless we find ways to reflect upon and change our obsessive patterns, everyone will be unhappy.
Today, take 10 minutes to sit, breathe and reflect.
How do you adjust to an impossible daily schedule?
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Asking God for Help
"And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."
Jesus is clear with his disciples. Do not be afraid of God. Don't think you can bother God, or pester him. God is waiting for us to draw close and to seek from him everything we need. While it is important to speak with God as a trusted friend, we must also realize that even our closest friends sometimes hesitate to help us, unsure of whether their response is really in our self interest.
In recent years, spiritual writers have tweaked our understanding of intercessory or petitionary prayer, urging us not simply to ask God for what we need or to help others, but to ask God to make us available to God for God's will for ourselves or others. This minor shift in how we pray can be very helpful in teaching us how to be for God and God's desire in all things.
We do this well in other areas of our lives. Think for instance of those times you asked a spouse or friend how you might help them in the kitchen or in preparing for a gathering. Anxious to do only that which will really help, we avoid imposing our suggestions upon others. Rather, we offer them our time and talent in a way they can use.
Today, ask God to make you available to God for God's work in the world.
What is it like for you when a friend offers to do anything you want?
Jesus is clear with his disciples. Do not be afraid of God. Don't think you can bother God, or pester him. God is waiting for us to draw close and to seek from him everything we need. While it is important to speak with God as a trusted friend, we must also realize that even our closest friends sometimes hesitate to help us, unsure of whether their response is really in our self interest.
In recent years, spiritual writers have tweaked our understanding of intercessory or petitionary prayer, urging us not simply to ask God for what we need or to help others, but to ask God to make us available to God for God's will for ourselves or others. This minor shift in how we pray can be very helpful in teaching us how to be for God and God's desire in all things.
We do this well in other areas of our lives. Think for instance of those times you asked a spouse or friend how you might help them in the kitchen or in preparing for a gathering. Anxious to do only that which will really help, we avoid imposing our suggestions upon others. Rather, we offer them our time and talent in a way they can use.
Today, ask God to make you available to God for God's work in the world.
What is it like for you when a friend offers to do anything you want?
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
The Lord Hears the Cry of the Poor
"We were to be mindful of the poor, which is the very thing I was eager to do." Gal 2:10
The early church struggled mightily with its relationship to the Gentiles. Not sure whether Jesus wanted them to impose the entire Torah on newly converted Gentiles, the apostles and disciples were deeply divided. After 14 years of insisting that there was no need for Gentiles to observe the entire Torah, Paul was anxious to settle the matter. His letter to the Gentles is one of his many responses. Reminding his readers that there was a matter more fundamental than circumcision or dietary laws, Paul highlights the concern every Christian should have.
Unless the first Christians attended to the needs of the poor, the message of Jesus would fall on deaf ears. With the contemporary church struggling with diminishing attendance, and the continued fallout from the sexual abuse crisis, Catholics need to remember, no matter what divides them, if they remain attentive to and responsive to the poor, the Gospel will continue to be preached and God's reign built. Nothing is more important.
Today, let go of arguments. Care for the poor.
How do you settle disagreements in your family?
The early church struggled mightily with its relationship to the Gentiles. Not sure whether Jesus wanted them to impose the entire Torah on newly converted Gentiles, the apostles and disciples were deeply divided. After 14 years of insisting that there was no need for Gentiles to observe the entire Torah, Paul was anxious to settle the matter. His letter to the Gentles is one of his many responses. Reminding his readers that there was a matter more fundamental than circumcision or dietary laws, Paul highlights the concern every Christian should have.
Unless the first Christians attended to the needs of the poor, the message of Jesus would fall on deaf ears. With the contemporary church struggling with diminishing attendance, and the continued fallout from the sexual abuse crisis, Catholics need to remember, no matter what divides them, if they remain attentive to and responsive to the poor, the Gospel will continue to be preached and God's reign built. Nothing is more important.
Today, let go of arguments. Care for the poor.
How do you settle disagreements in your family?
Monday, October 8, 2012
You Knit Me Together
"O LORD, you have probed me and you know me; you know when I sit and when I stand; you understand my thoughts from afar...Truly you have formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your works." Ps 139
Psalm 139 is so evocative and positive that it can sustain us especially during periods of personal spiritual darkness. Affirming in a way that startles us, the psalmist reminds us that God is always seeking us, like an ardent lover who cannot and will not take "no" for an answer. As God pursues us, even if we try to run away, there is no place to escape God's ardent yearning. In all of this, God is portrayed as someone who not only made us wonderful, but who also wants us to live in wonder and awe at the beauty of being alive and in God.
Because so many people are busy about weighty matters, it is easy to lose focus. The demands of job, family, and fraternal life can suck the life out of a day leaving us tired and disoriented. When this happens, we need to return to Psalm 139 and read it slowly. No matter how fast we go or how we try to avoid God's loving gaze, we cannot escape his love or care. As the psalmist reminds us: "If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there." (139:8) Disciplining ourselves to take a few minutes each day to remember this and be grateful can make all the difference.
Today, remember that God is nearer to us than we re to ourselves.
How have you experienced God pursuing you?
Psalm 139 is so evocative and positive that it can sustain us especially during periods of personal spiritual darkness. Affirming in a way that startles us, the psalmist reminds us that God is always seeking us, like an ardent lover who cannot and will not take "no" for an answer. As God pursues us, even if we try to run away, there is no place to escape God's ardent yearning. In all of this, God is portrayed as someone who not only made us wonderful, but who also wants us to live in wonder and awe at the beauty of being alive and in God.
Because so many people are busy about weighty matters, it is easy to lose focus. The demands of job, family, and fraternal life can suck the life out of a day leaving us tired and disoriented. When this happens, we need to return to Psalm 139 and read it slowly. No matter how fast we go or how we try to avoid God's loving gaze, we cannot escape his love or care. As the psalmist reminds us: "If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there." (139:8) Disciplining ourselves to take a few minutes each day to remember this and be grateful can make all the difference.
Today, remember that God is nearer to us than we re to ourselves.
How have you experienced God pursuing you?
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