14thSunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 14th Sunday of Ordinary are:

1. Ezekiel 2: 2-5
2. Psalms 123: 1-2, 2, 3-4
3. 2 Corinthians 12: 7-10
4. Mark 6: 1-6

• Appreciation is over rated
• Who does not want to be successful?  And a sure measure of success is how well we are received, affirmed, appreciated.  But all that God desires of us is that we are willing to serve.
• If you suddenly stopped receiving tokens of appreciation for your service, be they thanks, your picture in the parish directory, even a stipend, would you begin to doubt your calling to that ministry?
• If human appreciation for our work is an uncertain barometer of how God sees our work, how do we tell if we are in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing?
• Is it necessarily a bad thing to feel lonely in your ministry?

• For the greater glory of God
• Thomas Merton in New Seeds of Contemplation makes the case that the truly humble person is able to accept complements graciously because they know without a doubt that the complement goes straight to God who made us all.
• What are you proud of in your life?  Maybe its professional accomplishments, the respect of your peers, the respect of your family (often much harder to earn than respect from your peers), things that you have learned ...
• How often do you thank God for those?
• Why do you think that is?

• Dealing with the baggage
• We all carry baggage in our lives.  Maybe is the sting of divorce, or resentment over suddenly losing a cherished job, maybe a friend who betrayed you when you needed them the most, maybe just general disappointment that life didn't turn out the way that it was supposed to.
• If someone asked you for a catalog of the baggage in your life, would you be able to list those things pretty quickly?
• Is that from steady practice listing your baggage?
• If you don't feel as though you are carrying baggage, why is that?  How did you resolve/heal from those experiences?
• Where was God in those experiences, and your healing from them?

• The power to grow
• None of us like change, particularly in those around us.  When they grow, deepen, mature, it either inspires us to do the same, or intimidates us.
• Who are some of those from your life who have really matured over the years that you have known them?
• How did they manage that?
• What might you learn from them?
• Do you think that it's too late for you to grow/change?
• Why?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Why am I afraid of losing other's approval?
2. Where is God calling me to more gratitude?
3. How can I find more healing in my life?
4. Where is God calling me to grow beyond my comfort zone?

Coming Home

The journey home was a long one.

At first the young inventor wanted to show them all,

That he was more than they had seen in him as a youth,

That he had realized the potential that no one saw.

Then he realized that wasn't what he was after.  

What he really wanted was for them to appreciate his accomplishments,

To realize that he had potential long years ago when they knew him,

And it just took some hard work and courageous mentors to awaken it.

Then he realized he didn't really care what they thought, then or now.

What he really wanted to to show his old crush what a great opportunity she passed up.

And let her know that her rejection of him had inspired rather than beat him,

And maybe give her a genuine "thank you" for being honest.

Then he realized that he didn't really have anything to prove to anyone.

Instead, he wanted to reconnect with the frightened young boy that he was so long ago,

Embrace that young man, let him know that he was treasured and complete,

And let him know that he had always been loved, never left behind, 

Just forgotten for awhile.

Shalom!

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 13th Sunday of Ordinary are:

1. Wisdom 1: 13-15, 2:23-24
2. Psalms 30: 2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13
3. 2 Corinthians 8, 7, 9, 13-15
4. Mark 5: 21-43

• Creation emerging
• Creation can be destructive.  Hurricanes, drought, unseasonable cold, earthquakes and many more events can cause huge devastation and death.  All of these events and more are labeled "acts of God" in insurance circles to signify that no human agent is the direct cause, so there is no one to litigate when trying to get compensation for damages done.
• Think of some inexplicable tragedy in your life.  Maybe it was the loss of a loved one, unexpected loss of a job, ...  What did you conclude about God from that?
• Was your trust in God shaken by going through that trial, or was it maybe just reshaped?
• How has your trust toward God changed through that event, and others in your life?
• Has that been a good thing?
• Do you think that change might have happened otherwise?

• Mourning into dancing
• Rescue is a potent word.  It conjures up images of desperate people about to be engulfed by flood or fire suddenly plucked from disaster by daring heroes risking their own lives to save others.
• What are some things that God has rescued you from?  Maybe not a fire or flood, but maybe He's rescued you from being self-centered, or judgmental, or an addiction ...
• How did that rescue take place?
• What was your part in that rescue?
• What might God be anxious to rescue you from today?

• School of generosity
• I think that many of us fear the "bottomless pit" syndrome.  You probably know it by another name.  You see someone in need, maybe it's a homeless person parked near the freeway offramp, or someone that you see at church every Sunday, always all alone, and you perhaps feel like reaching out to them, but you ask yourself, "what are they going to ask of me?  Where will it end?  How will I know that I've done all that I can/should?"
  
• If someone came to you and told you "I want to learn how to be generous towards others" what would you say to them?
• Maybe you would get them involved in an existing program at your parish.
• Maybe you would tell them to start using their envelopes on Sunday.
• Maybe you would tell them to start praying for guidance.
• Is there any way to practice generosity so as to get better at it?
• What does better generosity look like?

• Do you see me?
• Deep need can isolate us from one another.  The one in need can find themselves totally defined by their needs, unable to give to anyone else.  Those others fear deep need because they think that they have to somehow fix things, at least help in some material way.
• Think of someone that you reached out to in need.  Maybe they had lost a loved one, or they were new in town and didn't know anyone, or their car broke down and they had no idea of how to get needed repairs.
• What were your fears at the time?
• Did any of those fears come true?
• Did it matter?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Why am I afraid?
2. Where is God transforming a tragedy in my life?
3. How can I be more generous, and more effective in my generosity?
4. Where is God calling me to reach out to another today?

Shalom!

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Our readings for the 12th Sunday of Ordinary are:

1. Job 31: 1, 8-11
2. Psalms 107: 23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31
3. 2 Corinthians 5: 14-17
4. Mark 4: 35-41

• Creation emerging
• One theme of Ignatian spirituality is that creation is not over yet.  God continues expressing, revealing, celebrating His creative self in us and all of creation in an ongoing basis, and that God invites us into that process.
• Looking back over your life to date, can you name any places/times/events when you can say that God was creating in and through you?
• How did that feel at the time?
• How does it feel now?
• How do you think that you can help God help you to be more creative?

• Houston, we have a problem
• Losing control is never easy, no matter what your personality type might be.  But sometimes that's the key to moving forward, becoming a better version of yourself.
• What were some of the worst fears that you've had over the years?
• Did you feel that God was going to be by your side through those times?
• Was He?
• What difference did that make?

• Paradigm shift
• Falling in love can be more than mildly disorienting.  Suddenly the very air you breath is alive with perfume, light permeates the fabric of your existence, you suddenly see the good in that cranky neighbor that you have disliked for years, and you have a whole new reason to get out of bed in the morning.
• Maybe "coming to Jesus" is not quite so dramatic.  Maybe the shift from merely surviving to glorying in the eternal Now of serving God takes a little more time.  But the implications are no less dramatic.
• What is the single biggest change that God has made in your life?
• How does that work itself out in your life today?

• At least show that you care
• There is no way to tell for sure, but I have this theory that Jesus was just faking being asleep in the stern of the boat.  He was waiting to see how long it would take before His disciples would panic.
• Do you ever wonder if God cares?
• Do you think that He has a funny way of showing His love for us?
• Do you ever bring that up in prayer?
• What does He have to say for Himself?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. Where is God calling me to create today?
2. Where can I be less controlling and still be fully alive to the possibilities?
3. Where is God calling me beyond the confines of my comfort zone?
4. Where do I doubt God's care for me?

Best Possible Outcome

Do you not yet have faith?

Faith for what is what I ask.

Those disciples on the lake with Jesus were no strangers to water.

If they were afraid, I'm pretty sure that I would be too.

Were they supposed to have faith that Jesus would somehow come to in time to save them,

And they would all make it to shore in one piece?

Or maybe He expected them to still the waters on their own,

And leave Him to a well-deserved, but doubtless soggy nap.

Or maybe they were to have faith that another boat, hopefully larger,

Would come to their aid and rescue them from the storm.

Or maybe their faith was supposed to be that God would care for them somehow

And totally leave the details up to Him.

Or even, sorry to tell you this fellas, but today is it for you.

Your tour of duty as a disciple is over.  Good job.

Whatever Jesus meant by His question, my answer is going to be

"I'm working on it.  Give me some time."

Shalom!

11th Sunday in Ordinary TIme

Our readings for the 11th Sunday of Ordinary are:

1. Ezekiel 17: 22-24
2. Psalms 92: 2-3, 13-14, 15-16
3. 2 Corinthians 5: 6-10
4. Mark 4: 26-34

• New beginnings
• This prophecy in Ezekiel came to the people of Israel in exile in Babylonia.  In this prophecy, God promises that He will always be faithful to His people, that He is the one constant in their history.
• What are some of the constants in your life, things that never really change, that you can count on?
• What do those constants tell you about our God?
• What do they tell you about yourself?

• What are you thankful for?
• Genuine thankfulness is actually harder than it looks.  The self-serving Pharisee who thanks God that he is not like other people, or even that tax collector over there, is an easy trap to fall into.
• What are you thankful for today?
• Is that any different from what you were thankful for yesterday?
• What would you like to be thankful for tomorrow?

• Spiritual beings having a physical experience
• We speak of the dead as "gone home to Jesus" which is a good reminder that we are not home just now, we are on a pilgrimage whose beginning and end are shrouded in mystery, and wonder.
• Picture yourself on your deathbed.  Family and loved ones are gathered around to see you off.  Oddly, everyone there, yourself included, are at peace.  In that gathering is a precocious child who asks you to recall your favorite memory.
• What would that favorite memory be?
• What would it take for your favorite memory from your life to happen to you today?
• What's stopping you?

• Stay in your lane
• We have all heard that phrase.  Usually it serves as a warning to pay attention to our particular job, and leave the rest to others.
• If God is ultimately responsible for the success of our ministries, just what contribution do you make?
• How successful are you at leaving God's responsibilities up to God?
• Are you any better at that now than you were 10 years ago?

• Preparation for Reconciliation:

1. What is God calling on me to count on Him for today?
2. Where is God in my life that I might not be noticing?
3. Where is God calling me to be bold?
4. Where am I trying to take over for God? 

Shalom!