More good than bad!

"The good is always more true than the bad. Whoever sees the deep truth about another, always sees someone, created in the image of God, to love and be loved."

Fr. Wilfrid Stinissen, "This is the Day the Lord Has Made"

It sounds so easy when he says it!  But that deep truth is sometimes hard to get at--especially if the other person drives us nuts.  But the sentence, "The good is always more true than the bad," is a powerful one and one we should be able to pull out of our memory whenever faced with a difficult person.  Remember when we learned about the weeds and the wheat growing together?  God sees the good in us and wants to give us the chance to grow and change.  We need to try and see through God's eyes and see the good in others.  And the fact that there is MORE good than bad should make that a bit easier.  Today, let's try to imagine each person we meet as God sees them.  And even ourselves--let's try to see ourselves as God sees us. And in doing that, we will have a blessed summer weekend! Love, heidi

Success or failure?

"We must never put our dreams of success as God's purpose for us.  His purpose may be the exact opposite."

Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest"

What? Did I read that correctly? The exact opposite of success is failure...God wants me to fail? Oswald Chambers goes on to say that God's purpose for us is that we depend on God and God's power, right now.  God isn't as interested in the end result of our work.  God is more concerned with how we get there--to the end.  And God wants us to depend fully on God.  How did we humans get so wound around the axle about our success?  Success to us means getting the job done, but God is more concerned with how we get it done and who we rely upon to get it done.  I was thinking about my job and how my success is often measured by the number of clients served successfully. But the real success is the daily moments with the wonderful people I serve.  The little ladies showing me their scrapbooks and pictures of their grandchildren.  The former WWII veterans, telling me stories of their lives.  And I need to rely fully on God to do whatever I can to assist them.  Today, let's think about our successes and even failures. And let's think of them in terms of where God fits into the mix. If we are truly relying on God in our daily lives, God deems us a success!  Love, heidi

Beautifully and wonderfully made...

"As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ."

1 Corinthians 12:12

Last night I attended a concert by a jazz quartet down on the Greenbelt.  It was a perfect. A perfect summer evening with a slight breeze.  Perfect music by some of my favorite local musicians.  Perfect group of interesting locals, including the lady who dresses her cat up in doll clothes, the middle-aged gal who rides a razor scooter everywhere, a bus load of seniors from an Assisted Living facility, puppies, dancing kids and assorted other characters.  I thought to myself, "How many unique and interesting people does it take to make up our world?"  And we are just a tiny little corner of the world! Each one of us is unique and yet all of us together make up the people of God.  It is a beautiful thing to be unique and wonderfully made and also to be community; with many of us making up the Body of Christ.  Today, let's appreciate the interesting characters that we are! Love, heidi

Never forsaken, never alone...

"Anyone who wished to consult the Lord would go to this meeting tent outside the camp."

Exodus 33:7

 

This reading reminds me of my freshmen year in college.  That first semester was difficult for me and I used to seek consolation by walking around the football field at night.  I'd just walk and walk, praying as I went.  That was a particularly lonely time for me, and yet, as I walked around the lighted field, there were always three shadows.  The way the lights were set up, my shadow turned into three.  I never felt alone!  When I think back to that time--that difficult time--I see that I was as close to God as I have ever been.  In fact, there were times when God was my only friend as we met each night on the football field to discuss the passing day. I always attended the 10:00 PM mass in one of the dorms, after my walk, and that was another chance for me to meet up with the first friend I made in college...God. Let's try to remember that, during our loneliest times, as always, we are never alone.  Love, heidi

Treasure vs trash...

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field."

Matthew 13:44

Yesterday, our wonderful homily was about gathering treasures instead of collecting junk.  I started to think about the summer and all the fun things Sam and I have done together and I realized such treasures will be with me for a long time....much longer than any "stuff" I could buy and stick in the closet.  The memories of golf games, the corn we've eaten at the farmer's market, Ladies night at Bingo, the festivals at the river and feeding the bears at Bear World, are worth more than all the riches in the world to me.  I want to store up the memories and be able to pull them out on a lonesome, cold, winter day; I know those days will come, all too soon.  Let's think about the treasures we are gathering as we go along...relationships, memories, time spent silently with God.  It's so much better than collecting junk like anger, bitterness and harsh judgments of others.  May your summer continue to be a treasure hunt and let's leave the junk behind! Love, heidi