Food for the heart...

"Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way.  What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.  It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends. What you will read, whom you will know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. 

Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything."

Pedro Arrupe, SJ, as quoted in "Moved to Greater Love"

 

I can add nothing to this, except to encourage us all to spend some time pondering it and praying with it!  Love, heidi

Get rid of false gods!

"...we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up."

Daniel 3:18

 

This reading gets me double checking to see what god I am worshipping.  The god of personal success? The god of 30% off at Kohl's? The god of Make-sure-people-like-me? These are all false gods I seem to gravitate to at one time or another.  Now is a good time to dismantle the altars I have for them and worship the only God there is: the God who urges me to use my gifts for the glory of God alone. The God who desires that I live simply, humbly and charitably. The God who loves me enough that I don't have to compromise myself to make sure others love me.  That God.  Are there any altars you need to dismantle before Holy Week in your house?  Love, heidi

Good question!

"So they said to him, 'Who are you?'"

John 8:25

 

The Pharisees give us a fabulous question to ponder as we journey toward Holy Week! It is the perfect time to sit, in silence, pray and really ask ourselves, Who IS Jesus? Is Jesus a person in history? A savior? A friend? The guy in line at the soup kitchen? If we spend time with Jesus, he will answer the question for us.  Just like Jesus said to the Pharisees, Jesus answered me, "I AM."

"I AM all you want.  I AM all you need. I AM all you have..." 

And that is an amazing way to start a Tuesday!  Ask Jesus yourself... Love, heidi

Jesus and the death penalty

"Then Jesus said, 'Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.'"

John 8:11

 

Do we ever have difficulty with this reading?  The woman was, after all, caught in the act.  She was supposed to be stoned as a result of her adultery (one wonders what would have happened to the man she was with, but that's another Daily).  She was guilty and the law said she should be stoned to death.  A man on death row was found guilty in a court of law, the sentence is death.  And what does Jesus say? Well, first he says, "Let the one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." (v. 7) Does that mean the court system needs to find a person without sin to begin the lethal injection that will kill the death row inmate?  I think Jesus is very clear here about the death penalty.  Killing for the sake of teaching people not to kill is ludicrous.  Killing a person takes away all possibility for them to turn their life around.  And who are we to do that?  Jesus has a clear answer, for me, anyway.  Let's spend some time, this last week before Holy Week, thinking and praying about life.  All life.  Love, heidi