Don't miss the lesson!

"When the Sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished..."

Mark 6:2

 

So, basically, the hometown folks rejected Jesus; his teachings seemed too astonishing from the Nazareth lad they knew from his youth. He seemed a bit too big for his britches, as my mom used to say (not about Jesus, but about others who seem above themselves).  The people of Nazareth didn't believe in Jesus so they missed the message or the lesson he was teaching.  The same thing happens to us when we encounter a difficulty and miss the "lesson-ness" of it.  We may writhe and buck against the lesson, thinking it's unfair, when it just may be there to teach us something. Jesus' most valuable lessons may be so hard to see as lessons and just may be perceived as problems. Next time we run up against a difficulty, let's stop and think:  What am I to learn from this? Can I turn this difficulty into a lesson or learning experience for me or others?  Let's try to recognize the lesson, no matter how obscure it may seem!  Love, heidi

Let Jesus heal us-from the inside!

"She said, 'If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.' Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed."

Mark 5:28-29

 

No matter how many times we hear this Gospel it still holds something new for us, doesn't it?  What inside us needs Jesus' healing?  Can we just touch his clothes and be healed of anger? Bitterness? Lack of patience? Loss of faith? Stubbornness? Greed? Insensitivity? Our inner lives can be healed by Jesus, if we just approach him, reach out to him, and desire the healing--just like the woman with the hemorrhage. What within us needs to be healed today?  Love, heidi

Lessons from David...

"But the king replied, 'What business is it of mine or of yours, sons of Zeruiah, that he curses? Suppose the Lord told him to curse David...'"

2 Samuel 16:10

 

For all his difficulties and indiscretions, David sure teaches us a powerful lesson about humility here, doesn't he? He also teaches us about redemption.  David must have felt some comfort in God's mercy; he prayed for it so beautifully in Psalm 51.  He must have felt that the merciful God would accept his repentance and forgive him.  So much so that, even as this fellow, Shimei, is cursing him and raving about how horrid David is, David allows him to rant.  David accepts what he knows should be coming to him.  He was wrong, he did wrong, others have a right to spurn him.  But, deep down, David trusted in God's mercy...the only mercy that really matters.  And that mercy kept him on his path back to God.  Today, let's learn from David the many lessons he can teach us--to accept that we do the wrong thing at times, to pray for God's forgiveness and mercy, and to accept any consequences that may come our way due to our failures.  For the bottom line is that God loves us, forgives us, and lovingly sends us back on our way.  Love, heidi

Where to store your fortune!

St. Marcella (324-410 AD) was a wealthy woman who gave her fortune away to the needy, 'preferring to store her money in the stomachs of the needy rather than hide it inside her purse.'"

"Blessed Among Us," Give Us This Day

 

Oh, do I love that!  The idea of storing our money in the stomachs of the needy sounds so much like something Pope Francis would say, too.  How can we incorporate some of this message into our lives today? Can we store some of our belongs with those who may not have a warm coat? Can we share some of our bounty with St. Vincent de Paul, whose in-gathering is at the masses this weekend in Idaho Falls?  How can we best store our own fortunes?  Besides in our own purses? Let's think and pray about how we can follow the example of St. Marcella as we leave January behind...Blessings on your weekend!  Love, heidi

One, two, three...eyes on Me!

"Make known to me your ways, Lord; teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are my God my savior.

For you I wait all the long day, because of your goodness, Lord"

Psalm 25:4-5

 

Sometimes you just need a good Psalm on a cold winter morning!  And this is so beautiful. There are times I feel almost desperate to know what God wants me to do.  And other times, it's just as clear as can be.  During the murky times, I need to remember if I am seeking God's instruction, I need to make myself teachable.  I need to let go of my own agenda and open myself up to God's lessons.  If my mind is closed tight, I cannot learn God's ways or will.  It reminds me of the classroom chant to get the kids' attention, "One, two, three, eyes on me!"  Help me to fix my gaze on you, O Lord.  Help me to be open to the new lessons you have for me today...O let me be teachable! Love, heidi

Stages of life...

"'Hear this! A sower went out to sow..."

Mark 4:3

 

We are all familiar with today's Gospel about the sower and the seed and it falling on various types of ground.  And while it seems to represent different people, it also seems to me to represent different stages of our lives, too. There are times in our lives when our soil can be rocky and unwelcoming to God's word.  We may hear it at mass but it doesn't linger in our minds much longer than the church steps we bound down to get to the parking lot! Other times, the word may linger a bit longer in us...perhaps until Monday, when we give it a glance and then carry on with our busy lives.  Other times, we may give honest effort to living the word of God but worldliness and demands of our culture choke it right out of us.  Finally, we reach a stage of life where we hear or read the word of God and it sticks.  We can take the message of love, peace, forgiveness and compassion out into the world and live them, just as Jesus taught us to do.  I may be partial to the time of life I find myself in right now, but it seems like now is the time when following Jesus and living God's word is more fruitful for me.  The career is in perspective, kids are living their own interesting lives, and I can spend more time studying and applying God's word to daily life.  What about you? Love, heidi