What I Know

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It’s graduation time for many young people. So I love this story that gives us “older folks” hope and inspiration.

The story is told of a young man who graduated from high school and then very nervously and with great anxiety enrolled in a local college. The first day that classes began his professor challenged his students to get to know someone they didn't already know. Our young man stood up and looked around; then a gentle hand touched his shoulder. He turned around to find a wrinkled, little old lady smiling at him with a smile that lit up her entire being.
"Hi handsome," she said. "My name is Rose. I'm eighty-seven years old. Can I give you a hug?"

The young man laughed and enthusiastically responded, "Of course you can!" and she gave him a giant squeeze. "Why are you in college? he asked. She said, "I'm here to meet a rich husband, get married, have a couple of children, and then retire and travel, she answered. "No seriously, “I’d really like to know” he said. "I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one" she answered.

After class, they walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milkshake. And they became instant friends. Every day for the next three months they would leave class together and talk nonstop. The young man was always mesmerized listening to this virtual "time machine" as she shared her wisdom and experience with him. Over the course of the year, Rose became a campus icon, and she easily made friends wherever she went.

At the end of the semester, Rose was invited to speak at the graduation. Those who attended and heard what Rose had to say will never forget what she taught them that particular day. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium. As she began to deliver her prepared speech, she dropped her three-by-five cards on the floor. Frustrated and a little embarrassed, she leaned into the microphone and simply said, "I'm sorry I'm so jittery.! I gave up beer for Lent and this whiskey is killing me! I'll never get my speech back in order, so just let me tell you what I know."

"We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing. There are no secrets to staying young, being happy and achieving success. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams, you die. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity to change. Have no regrets. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets." She concluded her speech by courageously singing "The Rose". She challenged those in attendance to study the lyrics and live them out in their daily lives.

At the year's end, Rose finished her college degree she had begun all those years ago. One week after graduation, Rose died peacefully in her sleep. Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in tribute to the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.

God invites us to listen to his words and what do you hear? “Listen to me, my faithful children, and blossom like a rose growing by a stream of water.”  (Sirach 39:13).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are still growing and open to learning new adventures. May the  seed of inspiration help us to be all that God wants us to be.

Sacred Moment

 

I was pleasantly surprised this past Sunday as I drove into “downtown” and noticed the message on the North Java Fire Department sign that read:

“Welcome Bishop Mack—Congratulations Confirmation Candidates.”

Earlier this year, I was invited by the chief to offer the invocation at their annual awards dinner. I could see by their faces, the men were eyeing each other and said they’ll have to watch their language and off color jokes. Priests don’t mind this stuff. You expect these awkward invitations. 

At this dinner, someone spotted me and asked point blank “Why the hell are you wasting your time in that stupid church? I finally wised up and got out.”

He goes on to spout the familiar litany of all that is wrong with religion in general and the Catholic church in particular: the Inquisition, the Crusades, the bad popes, sinister bishops, Vatican conspiracies, the clerical sex scandal, the degradation of women, dull Masses, lousy sermons, money-grabbing clerics, and so on. As I recall, the church was blamed for our six months of winter.

Of course, I am familiar with the litany of accusations. The church had and does have many problems and too often it’s a dysfunctional family. So why stay, why put up with such misery? Why? Because of Jesus’ words in the gospel. “I will give you another Advocate to be with you always.”

On their Confirmation, Emily, Grace, Zac and Nick received the Holy Spirit of Pentecost and that makes all the difference. Jesus promised to be with us no matter what we may be like on any given day, when we’re good and when we’re were bad; when we’re heroic and when we’re cowardly; when we’re faithful and when we’re not.

Now you can choose to believe or not to believe in this presence of the Holy Spirit. If you choose not to believe you can checklist the church’s problems and walk away in disgust. But if you choose to believe then you must look not only for signs of church failure, but also for the signs of the life giving spirit.

I was the unofficial photographer for our Confirmation Service, and I believe that I captured a glimpse of the life giving Spirit as He came into the hearts of our candidates. Take a close look at this sacred moment and ask yourself: “Where is Jesus present in your life?”

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends and especially proud of our young people who gave us at Holy Family a glimpse of being refreshed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Mother's Day Reflection

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Sometimes God’s presence is best heard as a whisper in the depths of our hearts. His voice comes as a whisper. The Gardner who spoke softly to the grieving Mary Magdelen in the garden, the Stranger who walked with the despairing disciples on the road to Emmaus, the Appearance who startled the fearful apostles hiding behind closed doors, the Friend who told Thomas not to persist in his unbelief, the Cook who appeared on the shore of the lake and prepared fish for incredulous disciples, the Shepherd who pursued with determined love the lost lamb, the Gatekeeper who opens the door to abundant life: we hear all these earthy titles used in the gospels of these Sundays after Easter. Gardner, Stranger, Appearance, Friend, Cook, Shepherd, Gatekeeper–all these titles, you must realize, are the gospel writers’ attempt to convey one truth: Jesus, in many ways and guises, is alive here and now, and he is active in the “everyday-ness of our lives.

Sometimes, when the moment is just right, we do sense his presence. There are encounters in our lives, moments that challenge and change us and give us pause. There are little spiritual revelations that happen to every person. There are times when we feel the closeness of Jesus, hear our name called, and experience our hearts burning within us.

After traveling four months with her best friend around the world, my sister-in-law suffered a massive stroke preparing to come home from her journey. We were in shock when we heard the news that the surgeons we unable to help her and she died in a London hospital. Four months earlier, her beloved husband had died after losing a couageous battle with a brain tumor. Now his beloved spouse has come home to join him in heaven. How does one respond to these kinds of unexpected events? I'm still in shock and disbelief.

Jesus was one who immersed himself in our broken world. He loved people who were flawed. They were harlots, tax collectors and thieves. He loved people the others feared, the lepers and the demon-possessed. Instead of shooing away little kids. He hugged them. Instead of condemning His torturers, He forgave them. He loved by serving, by washing His friends’ feet and by healing those who were desperate and abandoned. In his 33 years, Christ turned the whole world upside down. He told us the poor are rich, the last are first, the meek are blessed, and the dead are alive. Trying to follow His path can seem frustrating–and impossible at times–especially when we feel like we’re tripping over every pebble–and boulder–on the way. But, even when we fall into the pit of doubt and shock, He reaches out a hand and lifts us back up. The untimely death of loved ones makes us sit up and pay attention. What do you hear?

I know many mothers worry about their adult children who have "fallen away" from the church. I realize that you worry about your grown children who no longer practice the faith of any tradition. You pray for their souls that they one day return to church and i believe they will.

People who experience shocking events in their life, discover something about thier faith that the childhood catechism hadn’t mentioned. The long dry spell of disbelief can produce a robust harvest. Our cynical natures fails us, and we observe the rituals of faith with fresh eyes and hear the words of Scripture with fresh ears. The "fallen away" who wander far away from Christ for many years might envision Christ as gently coaxing them to His side. One can nestle against Him as He carries us back to a safe enclosure. As a mother you pray that your child recognizes Jesus’ voice and follows Him.

Easter can became something important for your children because Easter is the belief in a Jesus who is everything He said. His story is the same as that of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus or Mary in the garden. And it’s our story, too. Even when we’re sad and troubled, the Stranger is there. Even when we’re in an arid place, the Gardner is there. Even when we’re hungry for love and trust, the Cook is there. Even when we’re fearful and doubtful, hiding behind closed doors or wide awake late at night, the Appearance is there. Even when we’ve strayed and sinned, the Shepherd is there. Even when we feel locked out of life and love, the Gatekeeper is there to let us in to both. Even when we feel Him not and our faith is weak, even when we feel alone, betrayed and abandoned by our best human friend –a spouse, rejected and hurt, Christ, in some disguise, is at our side.

Gardner, Stranger, Cook, Appearance, Friend, Gatekeeper, Shepherd and Mother: all these descriptions are saying that he is alive now, as we sit here. Like Magdalen, we hear his voice if we but listen. Like the disciples, we will recognize him if we come out from hiding. Like a faithful mom, we gravitate to the One whose voice we recognize because we know that every day he comes to be at our side: to open the gate so that we might have life and have it more abundantly.

Lord, i oray for all my Sonshine Friends are suffer shocking events at this time. Bring us close to you now, and let us hear your whisper of comfort and peace.

Eye of Love

God never overpowers, never twists arms, and never pushes your face into something so as to take away your freedom. And nowhere is this more true than in what is revealed in the resurrection of Jesus. The Gospels assure us that the resurrection was physical, real, not just some alteration inside the consciousness of believers. After the resurrection, Jesus’ tomb was empty, people could touch him, he ate food with them, and he was not a ghost.

The resurrection did not make breaking news on CNN. After he rose from the dead, Jesus was seen by some, but not by others; understood by some, but not by others. Some got his meaning and it changed their lives, others were indifferent to him, and still others understood what had happened, hardened their hearts against it, and tried to destroy its truth.

Why this difference? What makes some people see the resurrection while others do not? What lets some understand the mystery and embrace it, while others are left in indifference or hatred?

Hugo of St. Victor used to say: Love is the eye! When we look at anything through the eyes of love, we see correctly, understand, and properly appreciate its mystery. The reverse is also true. When we look at anything through eyes that are jaded, cynical, jealous, or bitter, we will not see correctly, will not understand, and will not properly appreciate its mystery.

Two weeks ago, volunteers from our parish cooked a homemade pork and mashed potato meal for the “gentlemen,” the inmates from Attica. They have worked hard for seven months to remodel and restore the rectory, stain glass windows of the church and the parish school.

There darkness was the consequences of their drug addiction, losing their freedom, not being with their loved ones. However, on this special morning, the ladies of our parish gave these men back their dignity and offered them the love of this community. You should have seen the surprise on their faces as the homemade food was being passed around the tables. A lightness came across their faces as they were being fed real food from the hands of real people who offered it with the eye of love. As one inmate remarked: “homemade beats prison food anytime.”

What characterizes Holy Family Catholic Community is it oddness. Holy Family is home for people who are out of step, unfashionable, and unconventional. Hanging in the air throughout this catholic church is the heavenly smell of incense mingled with the piggy fragrance of sweaty hardworking farmers and a messy shepherd who gets stuck in manure.

Christ is risen, though we might not see him. The miraculous doesn’t force itself on us. It’s there, there to be seen, but whether we see or not, and what precisely we do see, depends mainly upon what’s going on inside our own hearts.

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends that they have the eye of love and  believe that He has risen. Blessed Easter to each of you and all the members of your family.

Humiliation-Stuck in Manure

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When Jesus sweated blood in the Garden of Gethsemane and asked his Father to let the cup of suffering pass him by he wasn’t, for the most part, cringing before the prospect of brute physical suffering. He was cringing before the prospect of a very particular kind of suffering that is generally more feared than physical pain. Crucifixion was designed to humiliate the person. Among other things, the person was stripped naked before being hung on a cross so that his genitals would be publicly exposed. As well, at the moment of death his bowels would loosen. Crucifixion clearly had humiliation in mind.

We have tended to downplay this aspect, both in our preaching and in our art. We have surrounded the cross with roses, with aesthetic and antiseptic wrapping towels. But that was not the case for Jesus. His nakedness was exposed, his body publicly humiliated. That is why many of his disciples abandoned Jesus and scattered after the crucifixion. They simply couldn’t connect this kind of humiliation with glory, divinity, and triumph.

What experiences in your life have you felt ashamed, a powerlessness from which you were unable to protect yourself, an abuse from which you could not defend yourself, an inadequacy of body or mind that has left you vulnerable, a humiliating incident that once happened to you, or some mistake you made that publicly exposed your lack of knowledge or strength in some area.

I was on my tractor yesterday planning to turn over the manure pile from the winter. No sooner had I moved the manure pile that I found my front and back tires spinning in the manure and mud. I rolled my eyes and thought to myself “this can’t be.” I tried to roll the tractor back and forth but it was stuck in the manure. Desperate, I got some wood boards to insert under the tires but it made no difference. Frustrated and exhausted after an hour and half, I got the chains to pull the tractor and discovered that I did not know how to hook them up. Humiliated, I called my neighbor for help. He came with two trucks figuring I was stuck in some ditch. When he came to the my side, I got back into the tractor and he said, “ did you put it four wheel drive.” No, I forgot that I have four wheel drive. Embarrassed, the tractor was out of the muddy patch in seconds and this priest was redeemed and humiliated. My friend told me not to worry, you are not a farmer who does this work for a living. I'm glad that you were not hurt when you called for help.

There are moments when we feel up to our necks in manure and wonder how will we get ourselves out of this smelly mess.

What is the connection between this type of pain and the glory of Easter Sunday? Why is it, as the gospels say, “necessary to first suffer in this manner so as to enter into glory?”

Because, paradoxically, a certain depth of soul can only be attained through a certain depth of humiliation. How and why is this so? It isn’t easy to articulate rationally but we can understand this through experience:

All of us, like Jesus, have been, in one way or another, hung up publicly and humiliated. In these helpless moments we attain a depth of soul.

Humiliation can makes us deep in character, understanding, graciousness, and forgiveness or we can be deep in anger, bitterness, revenge seeking, and murder. Jesus’ crucifixion stretched his heart and made it huge in empathy, graciousness, and forgiveness. But it doesn’t always work that way.

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who have felt the wounds of humiliation and shame from their family and friends. Help us to handle that wound not with bitterness but forgiveness.

Heavenly Home

 

NORTH JAVA - Joe McMahon and Kelly Smith were between a rock and a hard place.

Finding good and affordable housing is hard enough locally. But add seven kids and landlords can become less than accommodating.

Joe and Kelly’s dilemma has proven just the ticket for Holy Family Parish. Faced with a large and vacant rectory, the church was looking for somebody to fill the space.

Call it a match made in Heaven.

“It’s a pretty long story,” Joe said Tuesday. “We were pretty down on our luck, as far as we can get.”

Both natives of the Buffalo area, Joe and Kelly were living in Arcade until a few months ago, when they and their family were evicted from the place they’d resided for the previous six years.

The family was facing about year’s wait until they could get a home loan for military vets — Joe had served in the Marines — and their outlook wasn’t brightening.

They moved to a small place in Delevan in Cattaraugus County briefly, while one of their daughters stayed with Kelly’s mother. They also spent a few months in a hotel, always looking for suitable new housing.

“We were so freaked out,” Joe said. “We lived in this place six years, and we were given 29 days’ notice. Seven kids, we were like, ‘How is this going to work?’ We were concentrating on moving our stuff out, but where the hell are we going to go?”

Kelly said there’s a lot of ignorance, and they wouldn’t get calls back, after telling prospective landlords how many kids they had. They reached the point of saying they had four children, but didn’t want to lie.

“We were close to moving in with family members,” Joe said. “Hers or mine, and I was close to moving in with my brother.”

Enter Holy Family Parish, whose advertisement the couple saw in a local pennysaver.

“We wouldn’t believe how excited we were when we saw that,” Joe said.

The rectory had been vacant for about 10 years, during which the parish was shut by Buffalo’s Roman Catholic Diocese, and was later resurrected by the Polish National Catholic Church.

The building’s office was used occasionally for meetings in recent years, but it was otherwise unused. And its size made it a good choice for larger families, with six bedrooms, one-and-a-half bathrooms, a kitchen and more.

Thus the parishioners wanted the old rectory to be used. It was rehabbed last summer, including significant repairs by inmate work crews from the New York State Department of Corrections.

The rectory first hosted a nearby family burnt out by a fire in 2012, and then a single mom with six children until last August, when it became vacant again.

“We don’t want it to sit empty because there are people who can use it,” said Karen Wilson, who belongs to the parish’s building committee. “I put an ad in the paper, and Joe and Kelly were the first ones to answer it. Then I had three or four phone calls. I showed to three more families, but most of them didn’t qualify, because we won’t allow any pets or smoking.”

And it proved perfect for the couple and their family.

North Java is close to Arcade, where Joe works at his longtime API Air Tech job. It also provides relatively easy access to Attica Central School for the couple’s younger children, along with East Aurora, where their oldest children still attend.

“We could have gone South Buffalo way, but we both decided the schooling out here is safer,” Joe said. “Our kids grew up out here. That was a big point of staying in this area.

“My daughters basically went to school since kindergarten out here,” Kelly added. “We lived out here, and I like it out in this area too.”

Joe and Kelly looked at the rectory early last month. They received approval from the parish, and moved officially on March 16. They pay a basic “user fee” to cover the utilities and basic upkeep.

The couple have proverbially “hit it off” with Karen and their new neighbors, and are planning to stay awhile. And the full rectory helps fulfill the parish’s own mission.

“So far the family is ecstatic,” said Rev. Matt Kawiak, the parish pastor. “They’ve got some stability, and the parish s elated that after six months of renovation ... that they’ve found somebody who needed a place to stay. It’s a win-win for both, the community as well as the family.”

“It’s like God answered their prayers in my feelings,” Wilson said. “It’s like God sent them here, and they’re supposed to be here. The house is now alive with children. It’s a big house with a lot of bedrooms, and it’s going to keep everything alive.”

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who open their homes to family and friends in distress. May the spirit of hospitality bring our family closer together during the Easter Season. 

Who's Packing Your Parachute?

 

There’s a story about a navy jet pilot in Vietnam whose plane was destroyed by surface-to air missile. He ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent six years in a communist Vietnamese prison. Gratefully, he survived the ordeal, and now spends his time lecturing on the lessons he learned from that experience.

One day while sitting in a restaurant, a man at another table came up and said excitedly’ You’re the pilot who flew jet fighters in Vietnam from the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk and you were shot down! How in the world did you know that? Asked the amazed pilot. The man replied; “I packed your parachute. The airman shook his hand in gratitude and said; “Well, I guess it worked!” And they parted. End of coincidence. Nice story? Not quite.

The pilot began to think of the many hours that ordinary sailor spent in the bowels of the ship folding the silks of each chute, holding in his hands the fate of someone he didn’t know. Having thought about that meeting, this veteran now asks his audience when he lectures: Who's packing your parachute? His point is that everyone has someone who has packed their parachutes, who has blessed them, who has provided what they need to make it though the day.

Ask yourself, who blessed you this week. Our parish has been blessed with the craftsman skill of an inmate who has opened up the sanctuary and revealed two beautiful stain glass windows that have been covered for decades. On my recent trauma response, I was the guest of a special couple who took care of me with their warm hospitality and sent me home with homemade breads and a spring pussy willow wreath.

So as we continue our Lenten journey. Whose parachute have you packed? Or should have packed? Who did you bless this week? Family and friends. Sometimes, in the daily challenges of life that life gives us, we miss what really is important.

We are called to bless. It was also predicted of us: "In you all families of the earth shall be blessed." Lent is the time to recall how we are blessed and how we bless others. If there is a failure to bless, Lent is the time to repent, to confess and to promise to do better. Most of all Lent is simply time to recall your awesome vocation. We are here on earth to be a blessing to others.

God invites us to listen to his words and what do you hear? “When I was hungry you gave me to eat, when I was thirsty, you gave me to drink, when I was sick, you visited me.” (Matt 25:35).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are a blessing to others. Start packing parachutes and start blessing those who packed yours. By the way, have you adopted a rescued hen? Contact your local animal shelter and have them contact the ASPCA to provide a safe haven for one of God’s beautiful creatures.

Save the Hens

 

“Scum bags” was the term the rescue team used to describe the people responsible for the cruel treatment of 4,000 roosters and hens. Discovered on some remote farmland, the birds were being bred for cock fighting matches. The conditions these animals were living in was disgraceful. Starving and frozen, suffering from neglect and disease, a compassionate rescue team of professionals set about the task of saving these maltreated creatures.

I was contacted across the country to come on site and help this rescue team cope with their emotions since a decision was made that 2,000 roosters would have to be euthanized.

This was not the ordinary rescue mission for these team members. They had extensive experience coming to natural disasters such as tornadoes or hurricanes. They had rescued hundreds of lost dogs, cats and a variety of animal species. Their task was always to nurse these small creatures back to health and in many cases happily restore the pets back to their owners.

This was a criminal case. Evidence had to be gleaned from tags attached to each rooster’s wing feathers. The sad reality was that these animals were raised to be aggressive and used for gambling in cock fighting matches. Changing the birds aggressive nature was unfortunately not an option. Therefore, the humane decision was to euthanize each animal.

One seasoned rescue member shared that this was not part of their job description. Their purpose was always to save and rehabilitate the animals. Bringing animals back to health and restoring them to their owners or help in finding a new loving home. It was gut wrenching to observe each handler struggle with each bird fighting for its survival. However, the handlers carried out their duty with precision and grace. With dignity, they reached inside each cage and grasped the rooster who then would first be put to sleep and later received their injection from the veterinarian in a humane manner.

I was humbled to work along side each rescue member, taking the euthanized birds over to the forensic team to examine each animal for evidence. These people would gently place each bird on the exam table to be processed and identified and then with dignity placed back into its box and handed over to their final resting place. A decision was made to save the remaining hens that numbered close to 2,000. They are currently being fed and watered and waiting for their new homes throughout the country.

Similar to 9/11, never in my widest dreams did I imagine that I would be called upon to support such an outstanding team of rescue workers. Sometimes we find ourselves in unique situations that demand our very best. The rescue work was exhausting both physically and emotionally. I observed the highest degree of respect for each bird as they were carried to their final resting place. For some lucky hens, their life will go on as they continue to receive food and care until someone comes to adopt each one. In my heart, these people are true heroes in giving each rooster dignity at the end of life and helping to find homes for the remaining hens. This was one of the most unique critical incident services that I have been called upon to serve since 9/11. God was truly present in the way each person served to protect and care for each animal.At the final debriefing, i complimented this team for their compassionate work and told them to take the day off when they returned home to their families.

God invites us to listen to his words and what do you hear? “The Lord helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them, because they take refuge in him.” (Psalm 37:40).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are victims of violence. May God keep you safe. If you would like to adopt a rescued hen, call your local animal shelter and have them contact the ASPCA to provide a safe haven for one of God’s beautiful creatures.

Fish Or Cut Bait

“Fish or Cut Bait” was the title of a chapter that focused on the need to quit making excuses for lifetime of rude behavior. Quite frankly, this man  admitted that he had come to see me to give up his demon alcohol and anger that made him “mean spirited.”

Two months ago, he promised himself to get help for his drinking. However, he realized that his anger was the real “beast.” He was loud, vulgar and a real terror to his wife and children. He faced an ultimatum from his spouse, either he gets help or risk losing his family.

A few months of sobriety led to some new discoveries. He was learning to be quiet within, but he admitted to me that there still was this “beast” inside of him that he felt would never leave his side. The “beast” actually made him feel good. He admitted that he enjoyed it. It was like the effect you feel when you are using a drug. If he was going to confront his “beast” he had to learn that he was powerless.

One day, while visiting his mother, she made the comment that she had noticed a significant change in his behavior. She gave her son a necklace that had a black wooden cross and told him:  “Wearing this cross means you are in the company of Jesus Christ and He wants you to carry him around wherever you go.” Jesus will be your guide and your wisdom to learn the humility and gentleness that had been missing for decades. He took the necklace and put it around his neck and he began to sob. Not cry, or whimper, but sobs of tears were pouring down his cheeks. The tears were decades of pain that he had been carrying inside his gut. The “beast” turns out to be all the hurt and pain he felt as he was growing up and his response was putting on the tough guy mask who didn’t care much for anybody including himself.

If you receive your ashes on your forehead with the sign of a cross, think about the beast that stalks you at this stage in life. What are the excuses you keep making that prevent you from making the changes that will reflect the life of Jesus Christ. We are powerless to overcome the beast, but let the ashes be a sign that you want to walk with Jesus Christ as your companion who promises to lead us out of our darkness in to the light of truth and love.

God invites us to listen to his words and what do you hear? “I was stupid and ignorant; I was like a brute beast toward you.” (Psalm 73:22).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who feel powerless at times with their beast. May this Lenten season be an opportunity to make changes in our life that will make a difference and lead us closer to Our Lord’s wisdom and love.

Eternity Leads to Overflowing Platters

 

Just returned from "pre-lenten breakfast" at the parish. When I asked the volunteer who cooked the breakfast what sparked this tradition. She simply smiled and shared that maybe this would be the last time folks would enjoy  "bacon" before Lent. She was not worried about how much food to make because in the past she always seemed to have enough food to go around. I envy this kind of trust.

Jesus reminds us to stop "worrying" — worrying about food, worrying about the snow, worrying about our looks, worrying about our 401K in order to retire. Jesus knew the real needs for sustenance and shelter. They were a daily challenge for the average day laborer in first-center Palestine — as they are in twenty-first century America. He knows how hard it is to make ends meet — then and now. For folks in this faith community in order to make ends meet, you must do more than farming. Some drive a school bus, others are collecting maple sap in their woods, some work at a grocery store, some do child care in their homes, a few board horses with lots of mucking, some sell online products to help pay their household bills. And its a fact, nobody retires anymore, we all have to go back to work part-time to make ends meet.

Jesus stated, "your heavenly Father knows what you need." However, he doesn't want to offer us just a daily full plate. Jesus wants to offer us an eternity of overflowing platters. Not just a life of sustenance, but a life of abundance. A life overflowing and brimming over. A life that provides more than bread in our belly and a shirt on our back. The journey Jesus invites us to join feeds our soul, and clothes our mind, and fills our heart.

Before every car and every cell phone had its own GPS device planted in it, we used to plan trips with a series of maps and guidebooks. I used the  Triple A" "trip-tick" for mapping my camping journeys across the country.  The travel agent would plot it with a magic-marker. The "trip-tic" provided both regional maps, giving you an idea of how much geography you had to cover, and small, individual maps, focusing on the next fifty or one hundred miles. Off-ramps, restaurants, gas stations, rest stops — the AAA trip-tick gave you the "heads up" on everything that you were heading towards.

When we journey with Jesus we also get our own personal guidance "system". But God doesn't produce subs and blankets to see us through our kingdom-of-God journey. God doesn't send us mere sustenance. God offers us abundance. So God sends us guides to be with us and provide us with all we need to continue in our kingdom walk.

The guides are part of a divinely programmed guidance systems, that accompany us on our Jesus journey towards the kingdom of God. If you join Jesus on "The Way," you can count on these guides... The Guide Within, The Guide Beside, and The Guide Above.

God invites us to listen to his words and what do you hear? “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.” (Psalm 143:10).

Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who struggle to make ends meet. Help us to listen to our guides within, beside and above that will feed us overflowing platters.