How to Fill Empty Pews

 

On route 98, as I was driving to Holy Family Church in North Java, you will pass through Varysburg. There is assign outside the Catholic church that says: “Empty Pews, but filled with Prayer.” A sad comment on the fact that most church pews really are empty. However, the Mother’s Day gospel story was the formula how Jesus brought people into the pews

There's a famous line attributed to France of Assisi, "Preach the gospel at all times and only when necessary use words." 

 

We talk a lot about meeting people where they are and leading them to where God is calling them to be. This essentially was Jesus' model of evangelization. Jesus never preached to somebody before he fed them, healed them, comforted them. This was his approach. He went out to the people. He met the people where they were, physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually. He met them where they were. He ministered to them usually first in their human need, and then he ministered to them spiritually. He met them where they were and led them to where God is calling them to be.

 

Question to ask yourself, “are we really meeting them where they're at? Or are we standing down the road and saying, 'Hey, gals and guys, come to our church, because that's not what God calls us to. He calls us to walk back down the road, to meet them where they're at, to say, "What is troubling your heart? 

 

And they may say, "I got a whole bunch of credit card debt because of my gambling addiction to scratch off cards." They may say, "I just lost my job because I stole money from my job to pay for my cocaine.” They may say, "Don't like my job. Don't get on with my boss at work. I'm worried about my son's health. I'm worried about my mother’s alcohol addiction? My mom's sick. My dad's sick." The things that are heavy on people's hearts. What's troubling your heart? 

 

Because when we meet people where they are, we are first concerned with what's troubling their hearts. And there're so many ways that we can help people carry their burden. But the first way is just to recognize that people are carrying a burden, to listen to the burden that they're carrying, and then to do an inventory of our lives and say, "Okay, how can I help this person? 

 

What talents or resources do I have available to me that can help this person?" The person may say, "I'm struggling with getting my medical insurance benefits?" We may think, "Hmm, I know this person who's really good at that or an expert at that. Maybe I can connect the two and they can help each other" We're here to help each other. It's the beginning of filling the empty pews..

 

A starving person cannot hear the message. You have to feed the starving person and then their ears become open. Our mission is about you and me listening and how we can we feed them so that they can hear the life-giving, life-changing words of Jesus in the gospel.

 

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who like our nurturing women make the sacrifice of their time and use their compassionate hearts to care for the staring souls of the world. So, whether you are a mom or grandmom, a teacher, a nurse, a social worker or a generous neighbor and family caregiver, let me say “thank you” for your service, each and every day by following the mission of Jesus to bring His love to all the staring people in need.

Mother's Day Blessing Prayer

 

 

Friday night, my wife Sue woke me up at 4am to take a photo of the Aurora Borealis.

My Mother’s Day gift to all our nurturing women is this gift from God from the heavens.

 

Living Nurturing Mom’s
And celebrate the many wonderful mothers/nurturing women here on earth who touch so many in such a positive way- Michelle M., Rose W., Theresa L., Dorthea L., Ashlynn, Sharon M., Kerry M., Tammy M., Barbara S., Natalie S., Donna S., Jane S., Kate , Stephanie Katie, Terria, Ashley., Breena, Justine., Gina, Kim, Shelby, Courtney, Caitlin, Gail Boldt, Rebecca Feistel, Laura Fafinski, Janyce Feistel, JoAnn Kalinowski, Elaine Hill, Kathy Casale, Cathy Post, Cheryl in Florida, Yvonne Seekins, Sue Sullivan, Bev Kaiser, Marlene; Bev; Cindy; Barb; Gloria; Vianna; Grandmother B., Muriel, Tracy H in Fairport, Eileen C in Rochester, Mary Jane B. in Webster, Maggie K. Susie K., Ogivens spouse in Haiti, Viola Podleiszek, Florence Ruszala, Denise Flanagan, Cassie North, Elizabeth Mays, Katie Van Damme, Michelle North in Florida, Danielle Michalek Hernandez, Arianne Michalek Aughey, Becky Michalek, Joyce Hakes Montanaro, Patty Dondorfer, Marianne Gerwin Reichelt, Mary Stopper Eiswert, Marie George, Vicki Rehwaldt,

Suzie L., Mindy Q.,Emilie M  

 

Deceased Mom’s
Lucille Fafinski, Sophie Wrobel,  Lucy Czarmowski, Virginia Fafinski, Rosemary Fafinski, Antonia Fafinski, Annie Kawiak, Catherine Sullivan, Helen Ogrodowski, Rose Maggio Guido, Ruth Maggio Barlow, Angeline Adonnino Lallucci, Veronica Lallucci Kurek, Lorraine, Dorothy Wangler; Leona Tiernan: Catherine Wangler-Spriggs, Sharon Bean, Maryann Delfino, Dorothy Bender Hakes, Mary Rose Cenname Montanaro, Ruth Meyer,

Teresa George, Grandma June V.

 

MOTHER’S DAY PRAYER

A wise old mother taught her daughter many prayers and this one was her favorite. She was about six years old at the time. She was sitting outside on a block of concrete, and she was crying. She doesn’t even know why. She was just crying and crying. Her mother came along and said, “What’s the matter?” She said, “Nothing, leave me alone!” She did - and then she really started crying!

About 15 minutes later, the mother came back and sat beside her. “You know,” she said, “I have to tell you something. There are going to be a lot of times in your life when you are going to cry, and you won’t know why. You won’t understand and neither will anyone else.”

Then, this mother said she was going to teach her a prayer for the times when she was crying and didn’t know why. She made her get off the cement block and stand up. She said, “Now, put your arms around yourself. “She did but it wasn’t good enough.
         

“You’re just folding your arms” she said. “Put them all the way around yourself. Cuddle your body. Hold yourself the way you would hold baby in your arms.”

“Now, after you have a real good hold of yourself, close your eyes and begin to rock yourself. Rock yourself real good, the way you would a baby, and just keep doing it. When you grow up, no matter how old you are, and you are crying and you don’t know why, I want you to rock yourself just like this. As you do it, remember that you are God’s little child, and that God understands why you are crying even if no one else does. And, remember, too, that God holds you close just the way you are holding yourself because God loves you very much. Then just keep rocking yourself and be comforted.”
         

Isn’t that a good prayer? She still says it today when she feels bad. I recommend it for you, too. Just stand wherever you are - in the kitchen, in the bathroom or outside in the barn - and wrap your arms around yourself, tight as you can and rock yourself.

 

Blessings on Mothers’ Day to all our moms and nurturing women,

fr. matt

 

 

 

 

 

What Kind of Friend Are You?

 

Do you have friends? I hope so. Here's the good question though. What kind of friends do you have? Or a better question might be what kind of friend are you? Jesus gives us a really good measuring stick for friendship today. Here it is, "Love one another as I have loved you. This I command you to love one another." Right there, Jesus summarizes the key quality of a great friendship in one word, love. It's agape love, love that gives, love that sacrifices, love that's selfless, love that's patient. That's what Jesus said about true friendship. Love each other as I have loved you. So we're talking about real, true, deep, lasting friendships. Do you have any really good friends? And what kind of friend are you? One sure way to learn whether you have a real friend is in a moment of crisis. You will see certain qualities. One thing you'll absolutely see is loyalty. Do you have friends who are only there when they need you? But nowhere to be found when your life lands in the ditch? I'm talking about loyalty. A friend is one who walks in when others are walking out. Love means a real friendship will be rooted in loyalty. A second thing, love also means there will be forgiveness. Love doesn't hold grudges. Do you have friends who are always reminding you of everything you've done wrong or always holding guilt over your head?

You also find that real love produces honesty in a friendship. A true deep friend speaks the truth in love. They don't just tell you what you want to hear. They actually tell you when you have spinach in your teeth. And they tell you things that are even harder to hear. A good friend will confront you when you're making a mistake, even when it hurts, because that friend doesn't just want to make you feel better. The real friend hopes to make you a better version of yourself. Do you have a friend like that? Someone who loves you enough to come to you and say, "You really ought to consider that again." Or, "If I were you, I'd think about this." Even when they know you probably won't want to hear it. That's what a true deep friend does. They love you enough to speak the truth to make you better. And finally, a true friendship has dedication, dedication. A friend sacrifices, is selfless, devoted to the friendship, committed. But that's the kind of love God has for us. Dedicated love takes lots of forms. Jesus even says sometimes it means laying down your life for a friend because almost always dedication means sacrifice.

The cell phone  rang. It was late in the day, and I was driving home from a critical incident. It was my sister-in-law. “Matt, I am at the nursing home with Aunt Helen and she’s not doing well, the end is very near. I got to make some tough decisions and need your help.” She had to decide how she was going to make funeral arrangements. She found an insurance policy in which she was the beneficiary, but she didn’t know how to get the information how to make a claim. 

I told Kathy I’m on my way. So I turned my car around from home and drove straight to the nursing home. Kathy said, “you got stuff to take care of right now. I will figure it out. I'll keep you posted. Don't worry about it." I said, "No, no, I'm on my way.” I’m going to come and I will contact the Life Insurance policy and get what you need so that you will ready to take care of Aunt Helen when God calls her to heaven,

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who drop everything at a moment's notice in an unplanned time of crisis. Jesus said that real, true friendships will be rooted in love. Real friends will show loyalty, forgiveness, honesty, and dedication. Love shows itself most of all in times of crisis. That's the kind of love God has for you. What kind of friends do you have? What kind of friend are you?