"So they said, 'What is this 'little while' of which he speaks? We do not know what he means.'"
John 16:18
On Pray-As-You-Go this morning, they reflected on this reading (which I notice we didn't have as our Gospel here in the US). But, they pointed out the redundancy of the phrase "a little while." Have you ever had to wait for something? Or wait through a difficult passage of time? Oh man, I feel like all I'm doing is waiting for the Next Thing. But that is so silly, really. I need to live Now and let the Next Thing happen when it happens. Maybe it will be in a "little while" or maybe it won't happen at all, but whatever happens, I'm losing the Present Joy now by just living in the wait. In the spirit of Providential timing, I'm headed out on retreat at Marymount for the next several days, Friends, so will give this a good ponder on the porch there. Please, enjoy your Memorial Day weekend safely. Enjoy the Now that is this time in our lives. Enjoy the gift of whatever you do. Peace out! Love, heidi
Thursday, May 25, 2017
Wednesday, May 24, 2017
Groping for God...
"...so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though he is not far away from any one of us,"
Acts 17:27
Yesterday was a "groping for God" day for me. There was a tragic, deadly car accident in town, world and national situations pressed in on my heart, one of the school districts I work with heard a rumor I was leaving and asked about my replacement (I'm not leaving!) Things just piled up like cordwood through the day. I groped for God. We do, don't we? We wonder what God is up to, where God is in these sad or irritating situations. There is so much suffering...we grope for God. God reached out to me through reassuring conversations with loved ones, the beautiful smell of lilacs, and finally the joy of dancing at a Zumba class. All of it spoke God's comfort to me. God wasn't far away at all. God is right here, right now, working for our good in situations that may feel overwhelming. We grope and God grasps our hand in the dark (see Isaiah 42:6). Gracious God, help us to feel your touch! Love, heidi
Acts 17:27
Yesterday was a "groping for God" day for me. There was a tragic, deadly car accident in town, world and national situations pressed in on my heart, one of the school districts I work with heard a rumor I was leaving and asked about my replacement (I'm not leaving!) Things just piled up like cordwood through the day. I groped for God. We do, don't we? We wonder what God is up to, where God is in these sad or irritating situations. There is so much suffering...we grope for God. God reached out to me through reassuring conversations with loved ones, the beautiful smell of lilacs, and finally the joy of dancing at a Zumba class. All of it spoke God's comfort to me. God wasn't far away at all. God is right here, right now, working for our good in situations that may feel overwhelming. We grope and God grasps our hand in the dark (see Isaiah 42:6). Gracious God, help us to feel your touch! Love, heidi
Tuesday, May 23, 2017
God in the mess...
"I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with all my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth..."
Psalm 138:1
It never ceases to amaze me to see God working vividly in our lives. We may not see it at the time as clearly, but, eventually, we look back and wonder, Wow, how did all that work out? How indeed. God continually works in our lives for good. God continually works for growth to come from difficult situations. God is continually in the midst of our messes, building us up from the inside, giving us exactly what we need right then. Maybe what we need are people to talk to. Maybe what we need is quiet time to think. Maybe what we need is the ability to surrender and let go of the heavy burden we are lugging around needlessly. So, today, as we pray with all the world, for all that troubles us, let's thank God, too. For even as we pray with our struggles, God is working through those very struggles to give us comfort and grow us from the inside. Love, heidi
Psalm 138:1
It never ceases to amaze me to see God working vividly in our lives. We may not see it at the time as clearly, but, eventually, we look back and wonder, Wow, how did all that work out? How indeed. God continually works in our lives for good. God continually works for growth to come from difficult situations. God is continually in the midst of our messes, building us up from the inside, giving us exactly what we need right then. Maybe what we need are people to talk to. Maybe what we need is quiet time to think. Maybe what we need is the ability to surrender and let go of the heavy burden we are lugging around needlessly. So, today, as we pray with all the world, for all that troubles us, let's thank God, too. For even as we pray with our struggles, God is working through those very struggles to give us comfort and grow us from the inside. Love, heidi
Monday, May 22, 2017
Jesus comes to us...
"I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."
John 14:18
It was one of the Jesus movies out not too long ago, which gave me a vivid picture of what this scripture says. The scene is after Jesus' death and resurrection and one of the disciples was alone in a house. Jesus appeared in the doorway. It had such an impact on me, for some reason, to the point where I can still picture Jesus in the doorway. The movie is one thing, but personally, I've experienced such vivid encounters that it's very personal when Jesus says, "I will come to you." It's not even that I need to go to Jesus, but that Jesus will come to me. Can and has. Early yesterday morning, I threw on some sweats and had my coffee outside. The neighborhood was quiet, with only birdsong breaking the silence. The sky was a vibrant blue and the sun already warm. All I could pray was "Good morning, Darling God..." We don't have to go to Jesus...Jesus comes to us! Love, heidi
John 14:18
It was one of the Jesus movies out not too long ago, which gave me a vivid picture of what this scripture says. The scene is after Jesus' death and resurrection and one of the disciples was alone in a house. Jesus appeared in the doorway. It had such an impact on me, for some reason, to the point where I can still picture Jesus in the doorway. The movie is one thing, but personally, I've experienced such vivid encounters that it's very personal when Jesus says, "I will come to you." It's not even that I need to go to Jesus, but that Jesus will come to me. Can and has. Early yesterday morning, I threw on some sweats and had my coffee outside. The neighborhood was quiet, with only birdsong breaking the silence. The sky was a vibrant blue and the sun already warm. All I could pray was "Good morning, Darling God..." We don't have to go to Jesus...Jesus comes to us! Love, heidi
Friday, May 19, 2017
Love to share
"Jesus said to his disciples, 'This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.'"
John 15:12
Pray-As-You-Go this morning offered a good question, How have you experienced God's love in your life? Good one, right? I sat and thought about it and the one answer that jumped out at me is People. I have experienced God's love through People. What people? Well, certainly the people who have loved me throughout my life; I have experienced God's love through them. But, also, I experience the love of God through other People. People I may not even know, really. People across the world or the country who challenge me to love better--with the love of Jesus. The poor, the marginalized, those on death row, those who have lost their way in the world, those who struggle, those I too-often judge harshly, the addicted, refugees, those who I can never imagine how difficult their lives are because mine is so cushy in comparison. The love of God challenges and compels me to love more deeply, more convincingly, more genuinely. And not just the people who love me back. Loving Jesus, you shower me with love, but not to cling to and hoard just for myself. You know that your love can only come to life and bear fruit when I share it with others. And that's harder for me to do! Please help me to love better...to love like you. Love, heidi
John 15:12
Pray-As-You-Go this morning offered a good question, How have you experienced God's love in your life? Good one, right? I sat and thought about it and the one answer that jumped out at me is People. I have experienced God's love through People. What people? Well, certainly the people who have loved me throughout my life; I have experienced God's love through them. But, also, I experience the love of God through other People. People I may not even know, really. People across the world or the country who challenge me to love better--with the love of Jesus. The poor, the marginalized, those on death row, those who have lost their way in the world, those who struggle, those I too-often judge harshly, the addicted, refugees, those who I can never imagine how difficult their lives are because mine is so cushy in comparison. The love of God challenges and compels me to love more deeply, more convincingly, more genuinely. And not just the people who love me back. Loving Jesus, you shower me with love, but not to cling to and hoard just for myself. You know that your love can only come to life and bear fruit when I share it with others. And that's harder for me to do! Please help me to love better...to love like you. Love, heidi
Thursday, May 18, 2017
Abide, Stay, Remain...in love
"Abide in my love..."
John 15:9
Today is a good time to ponder and pray what that means, exactly. I think it means to be in love, to stay in love, to let love influence all we do in a day. We consider each person we encounter is a child of God. We see our work as God's work, done with our human hands. No matter what we do, if we do it with love, we do it abiding in God. This may sound simple, but we cannot do God all by ourselves. We can only love with God's loving us first. God is love and abiding in God means abiding in love. Today, as we go about our mid-ish May Thursday, let's think about God's love extending out to our world through us! Love, heidi
If you'd like a little more on this, click here for my last Gospel Reflection on Catholic Moms for this year:
Gospel Reflection
John 15:9
Today is a good time to ponder and pray what that means, exactly. I think it means to be in love, to stay in love, to let love influence all we do in a day. We consider each person we encounter is a child of God. We see our work as God's work, done with our human hands. No matter what we do, if we do it with love, we do it abiding in God. This may sound simple, but we cannot do God all by ourselves. We can only love with God's loving us first. God is love and abiding in God means abiding in love. Today, as we go about our mid-ish May Thursday, let's think about God's love extending out to our world through us! Love, heidi
If you'd like a little more on this, click here for my last Gospel Reflection on Catholic Moms for this year:
Gospel Reflection
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