"Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death..."
Philippians 2:7-8
I have always loved this reading, but each time I read it, I see something more. I've also been reading Fr. Richard Rohr's daily meditations, and he is sharing how God is relational; participatory in our lives, not just watching us from afar. This is exactly played out in Jesus becoming human and sharing our humanity with us...relationally with us. Jesus came among us, in very humble, human form. Jesus wasn't born in a palace, regally. Jesus came, taking the form of a slave, the humblest of humans. This is especially startling as we look around and see who we, as a culture, admire. Yikes! The people we make our heroes and heroines often do not pass the humility test...some do, but many do not. Our heroes need to be the humble among us, who live and work as Jesus demonstrated to us--with love and compassion for all. Our loving God is relational, not some distant deity judging us from the sidelines. Our God came to live and work among us, washing our feet and loving the most vulnerable in our midst. Our most vulnerable are our most valuable. Let's never forget that! Love, heidi
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Monday, September 12, 2016
Lost and Found...
"Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost."
Luke 15:8-9
I've been waiting for this Gospel to come around so I can share my Lost and Found story! See, I've had this ring for ten years. It has Jesus fish all around it and is inscribed with the scripture 1 Corinthians 7:34. It's very special to me because it represents a commitment I've made and I'm reminded of that commitment each time I see it on my finger. Carelessly, I've lost this ring more than once. It even had to be sent back to me from Kansas one time! About a month ago, I lost it for good. Or so I thought. I was devastated. I just didn't feel complete without it on my finger. There was something missing in me and I was heartsick. When I heard this reading yesterday, I flashed back to how sad I felt with my ring missing and realized that there is something missing in God's world when we are not connected to God. So, it's not just that God rejoices when one of us is found and back in the fold, but God feels the tremendous ache of loss when we wander away. I turned the house upside down, just like this gal in the Gospel, to search for my ring. At one point, I peered under the couch with a flashlight and caught a glimpse of something shiny, way in the back. Apparently, it had fallen through the couch cushions to the floor. I rejoiced and vowed to be more careful. But in that Lost and Found, I'd caught a glimpse of how treasured we are by God, who seeks us when we are lost, too. Love, heidi
Luke 15:8-9
I've been waiting for this Gospel to come around so I can share my Lost and Found story! See, I've had this ring for ten years. It has Jesus fish all around it and is inscribed with the scripture 1 Corinthians 7:34. It's very special to me because it represents a commitment I've made and I'm reminded of that commitment each time I see it on my finger. Carelessly, I've lost this ring more than once. It even had to be sent back to me from Kansas one time! About a month ago, I lost it for good. Or so I thought. I was devastated. I just didn't feel complete without it on my finger. There was something missing in me and I was heartsick. When I heard this reading yesterday, I flashed back to how sad I felt with my ring missing and realized that there is something missing in God's world when we are not connected to God. So, it's not just that God rejoices when one of us is found and back in the fold, but God feels the tremendous ache of loss when we wander away. I turned the house upside down, just like this gal in the Gospel, to search for my ring. At one point, I peered under the couch with a flashlight and caught a glimpse of something shiny, way in the back. Apparently, it had fallen through the couch cushions to the floor. I rejoiced and vowed to be more careful. But in that Lost and Found, I'd caught a glimpse of how treasured we are by God, who seeks us when we are lost, too. Love, heidi
Sunday, September 11, 2016
Never Forget or Always Remember...
I bristle when I see posts that say "Never Forget" the events of 9/11. I prayerfully explored why earlier today as I sat in silence, remembering the day. I realized I tend to equate Never Forget with "Never forget what they did to us." We learn that our compassionate and loving God forgives AND forgets our sins...shouldn't we try to forget as well as forgive those who harm us? What I choose to remember about the events of 9/11 aren't the bad things that happened, but I choose to remember the good things. I choose to remember the heroes and heroines of the day and months that followed. I choose to remember the strangers reaching out to each other, united in tragedy. I choose to remember the helpers, the first responders, the selfless acts of courage from that day and days since. I choose to remember the good and decent people who were lost to their families, but also to those of us who didn't have the chance to know them. So, instead of saying Never Forget when it comes to 9/11, I'm going to say "Always Remember" instead. Always remember the helpers and the good. Always remember that God loves us and can bring good from every tragedy. And always remember that we are to love each other, too. Love, heidi
Friday, September 9, 2016
A nest to put her young...
"Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest in which to put her young--
Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my king and my God!"
Psalm 84:4
One special joy I experienced this summer was watching a nest of robins, built in a tree in Sam and Allen's backyard. The nest was surprisingly low and could easily be seen from the patio. Watching the nest became quite mystical...first it was just there, then there were signs of activity, then one could even see little beaks poking up as the parents flew all around gathering breakfast, lunch and dinner for the new little lives. Finally the nest grew too small and soon after, the little tenants moved on, leaving the bare nest. It was mystical because it was such a window into the Divine for me. I'd never really seen a real nest with real birds before and it was enchanting. And yet, it is so normal and happens all over the place, all the time. So it is with God. God happens all over the place, all the time, and yet, we too often miss it as we busily go about our lives. It is said that nature is the first bible. I totally saw that this summer, watching a little robin's nest. Love, heidi
Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my king and my God!"
Psalm 84:4
One special joy I experienced this summer was watching a nest of robins, built in a tree in Sam and Allen's backyard. The nest was surprisingly low and could easily be seen from the patio. Watching the nest became quite mystical...first it was just there, then there were signs of activity, then one could even see little beaks poking up as the parents flew all around gathering breakfast, lunch and dinner for the new little lives. Finally the nest grew too small and soon after, the little tenants moved on, leaving the bare nest. It was mystical because it was such a window into the Divine for me. I'd never really seen a real nest with real birds before and it was enchanting. And yet, it is so normal and happens all over the place, all the time. So it is with God. God happens all over the place, all the time, and yet, we too often miss it as we busily go about our lives. It is said that nature is the first bible. I totally saw that this summer, watching a little robin's nest. Love, heidi
Thursday, September 8, 2016
A better question...
"Instead of asking 'What does God want me to do?' Ask 'What kind of person does God want me to be?'"
Fr. Radmar Jao, SJ, Sunday homily 9/4/16
This is an amazing discernment tool given by Fr. Radmar at St. Paul's at BSU this last Sunday. I will post the link below for all the homilies from St. Paul's...you can listen to them on Soundcloud and they are WELL worth your time! So often, when we are faced with too many things to do we try to discern what would God want us to do. Fair enough. But this question, "What kind of person does God want me to be?" may be a better discernment question. Then we can filter the activities or tasks through that lens and ask ourselves, "Does this activity lead me to be the person God wants me to be? Does it support my transformation? Or not?" First, it causes us to sit down and really ponder what the person God wants us to be looks like. That's worth prayerful exploration right there. Next we can ask God for guidance and help in becoming the person God knows we are deep inside and wants us to show to the world. And maybe, some of the things we are doing or activities we are choosing are not the best for us. I've been thinking about this since I heard the homily and it really is an amazing process! I encourage you to check out the St. Paul's Preaching page here:
http://www.broncocatholic.org/preaching
This series is called "You Got This," and Fr. Bentz and Fr. Radmar are knocking it out of the ballpark! Love, heidi
Fr. Radmar Jao, SJ, Sunday homily 9/4/16
This is an amazing discernment tool given by Fr. Radmar at St. Paul's at BSU this last Sunday. I will post the link below for all the homilies from St. Paul's...you can listen to them on Soundcloud and they are WELL worth your time! So often, when we are faced with too many things to do we try to discern what would God want us to do. Fair enough. But this question, "What kind of person does God want me to be?" may be a better discernment question. Then we can filter the activities or tasks through that lens and ask ourselves, "Does this activity lead me to be the person God wants me to be? Does it support my transformation? Or not?" First, it causes us to sit down and really ponder what the person God wants us to be looks like. That's worth prayerful exploration right there. Next we can ask God for guidance and help in becoming the person God knows we are deep inside and wants us to show to the world. And maybe, some of the things we are doing or activities we are choosing are not the best for us. I've been thinking about this since I heard the homily and it really is an amazing process! I encourage you to check out the St. Paul's Preaching page here:
http://www.broncocatholic.org/preaching
This series is called "You Got This," and Fr. Bentz and Fr. Radmar are knocking it out of the ballpark! Love, heidi
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Happy New Year!
"Halleluiah! Sing to the Lord a new song..."
Psalm 149:1
For so many years it felt like a brand new year, the day after Labor Day. The kids usually began a new school year this day and it had a sense of freshness and newness to it. It was a day to begin new healthy eating habits, get to bed at a decent hour, meeting new friends. It was like New Year's Day in the fall. Even all these many years later, it still has a sense of newness to it, even though I'm still doing the exact same thing I did last week! I can begin again today, maybe mustering up a new zeal for what I have done for so many years. I can begin today to eat healthier (certainly healthier than I ate this past weekend!) I can get to bed earlier with the earlier darkening of the change of seasons. Maybe I can even begin to add some prayer time to my day that, for some reason, I didn't have time for during the summer. Let's think about today as a new beginning for us, even if we are doing much the same thing as before. We can always begin again and invite God to help us do it all better. Love, heidi
Psalm 149:1
For so many years it felt like a brand new year, the day after Labor Day. The kids usually began a new school year this day and it had a sense of freshness and newness to it. It was a day to begin new healthy eating habits, get to bed at a decent hour, meeting new friends. It was like New Year's Day in the fall. Even all these many years later, it still has a sense of newness to it, even though I'm still doing the exact same thing I did last week! I can begin again today, maybe mustering up a new zeal for what I have done for so many years. I can begin today to eat healthier (certainly healthier than I ate this past weekend!) I can get to bed earlier with the earlier darkening of the change of seasons. Maybe I can even begin to add some prayer time to my day that, for some reason, I didn't have time for during the summer. Let's think about today as a new beginning for us, even if we are doing much the same thing as before. We can always begin again and invite God to help us do it all better. Love, heidi
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