The Christ in us...

"We gave you strict orders not to teach about that name, yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching..."
Acts 5:28

Fortunately for us, we won't likely be martyred for our Christianity, but could we be? Do our actions and reactions give us away as Christians? What does this look like in our lives? I was thinking about it and I realize that my reactions to others who get under my skin sure aren't Christian-ish. Fr. Richard Rohr would probably say it is my false self, or small self that gets irritated and short-tempered with others. By letting the Christ-within-me shine forth, I can treat others with more of the love God desires that I spread around. We all have them in our lives--people who just push our buttons and we react out of our very small selves.  If that happens today, let's stop, take a deep breath of grace and open our eyes to seeing them as God sees them--with love.  The Christ in us can certainly love the Christ in them--if we just get out of the way.  Love, heidi

Quest into Homecoming...

"For it is love that calls you on this journey. It is love that makes the Quest a homecoming, and it is love that is your source of energy to continue on the Quest."
Fr. Edward Hays, "St. George and the Dragon and the Quest for the Holy Grail"

Much of what I've learned about the Quest I learned from Fr. Ed Hays' books, the first one I read being "St. George and the Dragon." Storyteller, artist, hobo, pilgrim; Fr. Ed Hays was all on his Quest, and now his Quest has reached his Homecoming.  He has found all he was "questing" for...While I'm sad that he is gone from this planet, I'm so grateful that I got to meet him (above here with Mary Rau at the Sisters of Charity 150 year Jubilee, 2008). More importantly, that I was able to learn at his knee and catch a glimpse of the Cosmos through his eyes. His vision opened my eyes to a much wider view and I'm so grateful!  Love, heidi

The stage is set...

"Then the angel departed from her."

Luke 1:38

 

After I read Fr. James Martin's book "Jesus-A Pilgrimage," this is the line from the Annunciation story that leaps off the page for me. Mary had this wonderful, yet daunting, encounter with the angel who foretold that she would conceive and bear a son, Jesus. Mary asks how this can happen, and so forth. And just after she agrees and says "Yes," the angel leaves her.  The angel leaves her with her faith in God, her family and friends to deal with it all.  Just because the angel leaves, though, doesn't mean God left Mary. Not at all! God had created a supportive environment for Mary--God was working through the people who surrounded her, just as God does for us. Mary had her family, her cousin Elizabeth, and dear Joseph, who, himself, had an encounter with the angel. Mary's Yes was the starting point that set the plan in motion, but God had set the stage and placed the players already. Mary, a fourteen year old young woman, said, "Let it be done to me according to your word" and started the plan--the salvation of the world. Wow! Only the God of surprises could have come up with that!  Let's celebrate the Annunciation by saying  our own "Yes!" to God today! God has set the stage in our lives, too, to give us the people and resources we need to love and serve the people of God. Yes, God! I will welcome you working through me to help the world today!  Love, heidi

Miracles in the shadows

"Thus they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on one or another of them."
Acts 5:15

Doesn't this seem like just amazing faith? We've gone from the woman with the hemorrhage touching the hem of Jesus' robe and being healed to people wanting Peter's shadow to pass over their sick loved ones. Tremendous faith, this! What about us? Can we look for miracles in the shadows? Sr. Melannie Svoboda in "Give Us This Day" says that we tend to tell God exactly what miracles we want and how they should play out in our lives.  We want this to happen, then this...and so forth.  We want the miracles on our terms without really trusting that God may have a better idea. When, actually, miracles may be happening in the shadows of our lives and are going unnoticed. Once we free God up to work in God's own way in our lives we will notice more and more miracles happening all the time! Let's pray like Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy will be done." Or like Mary, who just identified her concern to Jesus, "They have no wine." Let's let God take our prayers and concerns and do what God does best--make miracles--even in the shadows.  Love, heidi