It’s The Little Things That Matter

Zechariah 12:10-11, 13:1

Galatians 3:26-29

Matthew 25:31-46

Divine Inspiration

What can you do to make someone else’s life just a little easier?  What is one thing that may not be a big thing for us, but it makes such a difference in someone else’s life?  It can be something as small as a smile, a kind word, a phone call to say, “I’m thinking of you.”  I love the part of today’s Gospel in which Jesus says, “I was naked and you clothed me.  I was hungry and you fed me.”  And, one of the disciples asks him when – “When, Lord, did I do all these things?”  And, Jesus explains that when that person helped others, he helped Jesus. 

Jesus – God – the Holy Spirit – is a part of and in each one of us.  He is there, in our soul.  When we do something for someone – anyone – we are doing it for God.  Some of us do a lot for others.  Some of us go out of our way to make others happy.  But, some of us could do a little more, if we are truly honest with ourselves.  In today’s Gospel, Jesus says to take up his cross daily.  The image of the cross may make you think that you have to do big and hard things every day.  But, I don’t think that that’s what Jesus meant.  I think He meant that we just need to look beyond our own issues, maladies and pain to think of and reach out to someone else; whether it’s in a big way or a small way.

I’ll give you a couple of examples from my life – one where my small action helped someone, and one in which I could have taken a small action but didn’t and regretted it.  Last week, I heard that one of our friends from our small church group had her mom pass away.  I could have just sent a card and she would have been glad to have received it.  But instead, I took five minutes to call instead and let her know how much I care.   I could tell in her voice and words that this one call made a difference for her, and it made me feel good to know I could ease her pain a little, too.  The other example is a little lighter.  Yesterday as my husband Craig and I got ready to jump into our pool, I grabbed a towel for myself but not one for him.  I could have gotten one for him, but I assumed he’d just get his own.  When he asked if I had gotten one for him, I felt bad.  It’s a tiny thing that would have made him happy. 

This is what I’m talking about here – serving each other in little ways; ways that are not difficult or particularly time-consuming.  They just take a little thoughtfulness.  But they can make a big difference in making someone else feel loved, cared for and appreciated.  This is how we can take up our cross every day and serve one another while serving the Lord.

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, June 23, 2013.

He Calms The Storm

Job 38:1, 8-11

2 Corinthians 5:14-17

Mark 4:35-41

Divine Inspiration

When we go through trials and tribulations in life, it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that God is testing us, testing our faith.  The first reading from today’s readings is from the Book of Job.  Is there anyone who has suffered more than Job, who would be within their rights to ask why God is testing him?  In reality, all that Job was afflicted with was borne out of the lack of cleanliness and lack of modern-day medical assistance.  It was not God creating the misery.  Yet, what pulled Job through was his faith in God.

In the New Testament, the Gospel of Mark, the disciples are in the boat, fishing, just trying to do their jobs, when a huge storm blows out of nowhere.  Isn’t this usually the way it happens?  We’re minding our own business, doing our jobs, doing our best each day, when out of nowhere, stress, conflict, even tragedy strikes.  The stock market crashes and jobs are lost.  Or, disease settles in.  Suddenly, we’re thrown into chaos, and we start asking, “Why, God?  Why are you testing me?” 

Yet, it really is not God testing us.  Why would he send bad things when he loves us?  He wouldn’t.  The things that happen to us are just part of the human experience here on earth.  No, what we need to ask during those times is for God to guide us through them; to calm the wind and the storm the way Jesus did for the disciples in the boat.  We need to dig deep into our faith, the faith that we work on building every day when we pray, when we give thanks to God, when we talk with him.  It’s important to build this faith, this relationship with the Lord, so that it’s there when we need it most.

How is your relationship with the Lord, the Divine, the Universe?  Do you know Him?  He knows you, he loves you, and he’s there waiting.  It is never too late to call out to him.  And the relationship we have with him can never be deep enough.  The point – the message – here is to turn to the Lord ALWAYS.  Whether in good times or bad, the Lord loves us and wants to be our Rock.

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, June 21, 2015

Be Amazed!

Deuteronomy 4:32-34

Romans 8:14-17

Matthew 28:16-20

Divine Inspiration

Be amazed at the Glory of God!

Be AMAZED at the Glory of God!

As we go about our days, our lives, our own issues, it is easy to take the Lord for granted.  Sure, we love Him and we pray to Him; that’s not in question.  But do we really ever step back to just revel in how AWESOME God is?

In the Old Testament, Moses asks the people if they have ever seen or heard anything so great as the Voice of God.  Think about it – God had just brought them out of Egypt and slavery.  He parted the Red Sea, for Heaven’s sake!  And yet, the people fell back into their daily issues and worries and started complaining again.  They had failed to continue to be amazed at God’s glory.

In the Gospel, the eleven disciples are travelling with Christ.  They see all He is doing – the teaching, healing and miracles – and yet, they doubted.  They failed to be amazed by the glory of God.  And there were there with Him!

When we get caught up in our own fears, doubts and issues, and we fail to be amazed by God, we’re not alone!  In fact, we’re in good company.  But, that doesn’t mean we should give up.  No, to the contrary, we should try to remember and find something every single day that reminds us of God’s glory and amazes us.  Maybe it’s seeing a beautiful picture of the land.  Maybe it’s simply seeing the sun!  Maybe it’s a phone call from a loved one or a smile from a dear friend.  All of this comes from God and is a reminder of how much He loves us.  And when take time to notice the signs he sends to us every single day, when we realize just how very much He loves us, it is truly awesome, truly amazing.

Be amazed at the glory of God.  Be amazed every day with the signs of His love for us.  And, share that love with one another. 

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, May 31, 2015

We Are All Connected

Acts 8:5-8, 14-17

1 Peter 3:15-18

John 14:15-21

Divine Inspiration

Life is good when we can stay connected with others.  This is what Jesus is doing with the disciples in the gospel today – trying to tell them they will stay connected.  He will go to His Father, and someone (or something) will be sent from the Father – an advocate of sorts – to stay connected.  This advocate is the Holy Spirit.  It will always keep the disciples together.  And, it binds us to Jesus and each other in communion. 

This friendship and connection will never end, even in death.  We belong to the communion of saints.  It is a connection to all - living and deceased.  It goes on forever.  And, it gives us strength to continue Jesus’ work here on earth.  The Holy Spirit flows through this connection, guiding us, urging us to do God’s will.  It is always with us, always. We are never alone.  The Holy Spirit is part of God here on earth, loving us, comforting us.  And, we take that love and comfort so that we can give it to others, spreading the gospel and being filled with the Holy Spirit.  The connection we have with God through the Holy Spirit becomes the connection we have with all people.

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, May 29, 2011

Choices

Acts 2:14, 36-41

1 Peter 2:20-25

John 10:1-10

Divine Inspiration

The gospel reading today celebrates the Feast of the Good Shepherd.  The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.  The key here is recognizing that the Lord is my shepherd.

Sounds simple.  But, do we really follow Christ?  Or do we allow our own perceived needs and wants to guide us?  Do we want something so much that it consumes our thoughts, our actions?  And, if so, are we choosing to be led by something or someone other than the Lord? 

God has given us free will.  He does not require that we follow Him.  In fact, that’s an example of His unconditional love for us – He loves us whether we follow Him or not.  He waits for us, gently (or sometimes not so gently) reminding us that He’s there for us, loving us, wanting to lead us.  It’s our choice to follow.  And when we do, when we make an active decision to, “Let go and let God,” everything falls into place.  Our worries and fears melt into the background.  They may not go away completely.  But, we, as God’s sheep, are better able to deal with them because the Good Shepherd is truly leading us.

Amen.

Reading and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, May 14, 2011

The Bond of Love

Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48

1 John 4:7-10

John 15:9-17

Divine Inspiration

Today’s readings are all centered around love.  How fitting, when today we celebrate our mothers and our love for them.  While we may all not be mothers, we all have or had a mother.  And, the love between us – mother and child – is deep, special and unlike any other.  It is a bond that can never be broken, regardless of the state of the relationship.  The love that God has for us is similar.  He is love, and He loves us all without conditions, regardless of the state of our relationship with Him.

In the New Testament reading, it is said that whoever is without love does not know God.  And, that is true.  But that does not mean that God does not know him or her.  God knows us better than we know ourselves, and he loves, warts and all, because God IS love.  The bond is there - He is simply waiting for each of us to wake up to that realization.  He will wait for as long as it takes, loving us unceasingly.  No matter how distant or far we may feel from God, He is always there, waiting for us, loving us, calling to us and welcoming us when we do wake up to the realization that we are living in the shining glory of God’s love.

Happy Mother’s Day, everyone!

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, May 13, 2012.

Know God’s Love Through Serving Each Other

Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48

1 John 4:7-10

John 15:9-17

Divine Inspiration

Today is all about one of my favorite topics – love!  In the Gospel, Jesus gives us his famous and only commandment – to love one another as He loves us.  And in the new testament reading, John says let us love one another because love is of God.  There seems to be all this love swirling around!  But what happens when we don’t necessarily, “feel the love?”  It’s great to hear how much God loves us – that He sent His only son.  And it’s truly awesome that Christ loved us so much that He died on the cross for us.  So, if we don’t really feel it, truly feel it in our hearts, does that mean that we’ve somehow, by some weird twist of fate, been left out of the loop?  Could God have accidentally missed us?

There is a very important line in the New Testament reading.  It says, “Whoever is without love does not know God.”  Think about this.  It is not saying that God only loves some.  It is not saying that only some have God’s love and others don’t.  I’ll read it again.  “Whoever is without love does not know God.”  The accountability here is on us.  God ALWAYS loves us.  That never, ever changes.  Ever.  God has told us and shown us over and over that He loves us.  But relationships go in two directions, not one.  And it is up to us to say, “OK, God, I want to know You and I want to feel your love.”  And, even then, after we say it, we have to do more.  We have to talk with God every day, multiple times a day.  And then, we have to take it a step further.  We have to – MUST – love each other.  We must look for ways to serve and see God in each other.  Because, in serving each other, we are serving God and building that relationship with Him.

I have one final thought on loving and serving God through serving each other.  In the very first reading today, Cornelius, upon meeting Peter, fell to his knees before Peter.  Cornelius was honoring Peter, his way of loving.  And, Peter said, ‘Get up, I am also a human being.’  Peter, who could have fed his ego, chose instead to love and connect with Cornelius.  Peter even went on to say that ‘God shows no partiality.’  This is how we need to be with everyone we know and meet every day.  When we are complimented and honored by others, it is important to keep the ego in check and return the compliment, honor and love that are flowing our way to the person from whom it is flowing.  And, as we focus on loving each other, we will feel God’s loving arms wrapping around us, too.

Amen.

Readings and Divine Inspiration from Sunday, May 10, 2015