Don't Go Squirelly

I feel sorry for squirrels. I know some of you don’t like squirrels because they can be such a nuisance. They eat your bird food, chew through wires, get in your attic. But I feel sorry for them. They are so indecisive and often their indecisiveness leads to tragic results. You know how they are.

As you approach in a car if there is a squirrel on the side of the road, you can bet they are trying to decide whether to go or stay. They dart out, come back, and zig zag. You try to avoid hitting them, but often you don’t know which way to go because the squirrel can’t decide. Because squirrels can’t decide, often it doesn’t work out too well for them

Humans can be indecisive, too. But, life boils down to the decisions made or not made. It is interesting that in making decisions we often go one of two ways.

•    We either decide too quickly without proper consideration of the facts and consequences, or we consider in such detail that we never decide.

•    We either look without leaping or leap without looking.

Some folks are ready, aim-aim-aim-aim and never fire.  Others are ready, fire and never aim. Which one are you?

There is a time to study and think and weigh things out, but when it comes to faith there is a time to step out and trust God and believe.  So much that is so good, so many of God’s blessings are missed because we never step out in faith. If you want to know what God can do, then give Him a chance to do it.  Step out in faith.

In the Gospel ( Luke 18:1-8) we are introduced to the Pharisee - now he was in prayer - but not stepping out in faith  His prayer, if it can be called that, is largely an advertisement for himself. He's selling himself to God. The tax collector, on the other hand, didn't have to tell God who he was.  He knew who he was and he knew that God knew who he was.

His prayer is not an exercise in self-promotion, but a confession and a plea for mercy. He is not selling himself, but opening himself. And Jesus says, "It is this man who went home justified." To be justified means to be declared "not guilty." It means to be declared right.

The famous actor Brad Pitt was once standing in line with a friend, waiting for a table in a crowded Los Angeles restaurant. They had been waiting for some time, the diners seemed to be taking their time eating and new tables weren't opening up very fast. They weren't even that close to the front of the line. Brad Pitt's friend became impatient, and he said to Brad Pitt, "Why don't you tell the maitre d' that you’re a famous actor?" Brad Pitt responded with great wisdom. "No," he said, "if you have to tell them who you are, then your not that famous."

Part of getting over indecisiveness and living confidently and abundantly - is to always remember who we are and whose we are and not get too caught up in ourselves but rather that God is the famous one:
•    God has a plan
•    God can make a provision
•    God gives the growth
•    God has the solution

And if we live our lives not ready, aim-aim-aim-aim and never fire nor ready, fire and never aim - but rather ready, He will Help Me Aim and Show me when to fire - that God is decisive

Not only is indecision taken away, but so too is the pride of thinking we are someone more than we are - but rather we are His and He is with us -we can’t do it all-but He sure can!

As we arrive on this Lord’s Day - how do we pray ?
•    Is our prayer a resume of accomplishment or is a plea for mercy?
•    Is our prayer a list of what is wrong or a litany of thanksgiving?
•    Is our prayer totally focus on us or does it include the needs of others?
•    Is your prayer dependent upon God’s answer or are you giving God the answer - FYI?
•    Is your prayer a leap to call it a prayer - or a leap in prayer & faith- dependent on Him

So don’t so squirrelly in life
•    God has a plan
•    God can make a provision
•    God gives the growth
•    God has the solution

Leave it with Him in prayer. He is never indecisive trying to figure whether to aim or fire - but rather God is always ready.

Let us Pray!

The theme of faith on which our readings have been focused these past two Sundays, takes a different turn in today's Word. The image of Moses in the First Reading of today (Exodus 17:8–13) intently observing (and helping) Joshua's battle with Amalek is both amusing and striking. There he leans, sitting on a massive rock, his arms outstretched, propped up on each side by his two aids, Aaron and Hur. Whenever Moses begins to lower his arms from fatigue, the enemy begins to prevail; so Aaron and Hur stay at his side until sunset and ultimate victory, serving as living crutches for his aching shoulders and arms. The author of this passage clearly wants to impress on the reader the need for persistence in prayer.

Many of us have false notions of prayer. The purpose of prayer is not to make God feel good, nor to win personal merit points, nor to change God’s “mind,” etc., etc. Rather, prayer is an expression of a relationship and the way one prays reveals the nature and intensity of that relationship. If, as disciples of Jesus, we do not cry out day and night (as the widow in today’s Gospel - Luke 18:1–8), if we are not persistent in prayer, and if we do not believe with all our heart that our prayer is being heard, then our prayer simply has no faith foundation. A person of faith, on the other hand, persists in prayer, and is long-suffering – never gives up despite the pain or the suffering or the long periods of darkness and silence. A person of faith fervently believes that his/her prayer is always received, and that God, in receiving our prayer, now has a way to connect with us, to empower us with God’s own presence and Spirit.

It is not always convenient to be a good steward in prayer, especially when all the temptations of our busy and materialistic world get in the way. Yet, we must be persistent even when it is inconvenient. This persistence marks the true follower of Christ. As we live our life, and do our best to live a life of Christ, we often meet obstacles. As we strive to be a disciple of Christ, standing up for our values and the dignity of others, let us remember to always turn to prayer first, and even at the most difficult times, eventually we will find reconciliation, eventually we sense peace.

Prayer, at root, is our relationship with Jesus. And so the nature of our prayer is essentially a reflection on the quality and intensity of that relationship. Blessed Mother Teresa puts its best “Prayer enlarges the heart until it is capable of containing God’s gift of Himself." The author of our second reading speaks of it well; (2 Timothy) “I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favourable or unfavourable…."

1.    What do you think the great challenge is to being a person of prayer today?

2.    Is there a format, a way, a method of prayer which you find helpful?

3.    Can you think of a moment when you persevered in prayer? 

With hands uplifted O God, like Moses at prayer, we long for Your response to our prayer lets conclude with the model of all prayer.  OUR FATHER.

Don't Forget to Say Thanks

My memories of Thanksgiving celebrations when I was growing up were always divided into two parts - before the meal and after the meal. Before the meal - the 3 "F's" : fun, family, food. After the meal - the 3 "S's": solemn, somber, sleepy. There was something about eating that turkey and ham - that made us all want to fall asleep on the sofa after our big feast. And I have to admit - sometimes I did. And it was a deep sleep, a sweet sleep, an angels surrounding, plucking at their heavenly harps type of sleep.

In the Gospel of today (Luke 17.11-19) we are introduced to the story of the ten lepers. This story has always surprised me a little. Here are ten fellows who are pretty much isolated from society, one might even say - on the very edge of even normal human relations. People saw Lepers, in those days, as individuals who were being punished by God - so they put them aside. Now Jesus comes upon them and these lepers were all shouting, "Master, Jesus! Please have mercy and do your best to heal us!" Now Jesus was the sort to be merciful and kind, He heals them and sends them off to the authorities so that they might be declared “welcomed” back into the community. So - here is the part that always gets me:

Jesus has done an amazing thing for them - life transforming thing in fact
•    He not only healed them of a dreaded disease
•    He not only gave them the ability to be come back into human interaction
•    He not only permitted them to once again be accepted by others
•    He gave them dignity - human dignity - once again!

And what do they do - they go off and only one of them - says “thanks”. It is almost like they had there life before the meal....had a great meal...and then well...went and fell asleep on the sofa - without even saying thank you !

Now here is the human thing to the story - it can happen to all of us - but just in case you are not clear on what I am trying to say - because well - we have not met a lot lepers in our life and we can’t even imagine what their realize from this disease would be like -  let's come at it in another way. Let’s reset the story in the modern day.

Let's say that ten kids are playing out in the yard and thinking how nice it'd be to have an ice cream bar. When along comes a mother, and they start to scream and shout for that wonderful ice cream that they've been dreaming about.  The mother loves them so she gives them each a dollar and tells them, "Go to the store and buy that for which you hollar." If those kids did exactly as she said and just went to the store and not one of them thanked her, well, that'd be pretty poor.

The best thanks come naturally, don't you think that's true? I mean, thanks should be an echo when we're given something great  Thanks should be the shadow which from the gift you cannot separate. Yet how many parents remind their child, "What do you say?" and keep on reminding kids a hundred times a day? But I won't pick on you kids, for we grownups forget too, and perhaps in even more important matters fail to say Thank you.

So we observe Thanksgiving - not as a forced moment to give thanks but as a reminder that we should. Luke tells the story of Jesus healing the ten lepers is told for the same reason; to remind us, to recall for us, to invite us to say THANK YOU!  So, here is my question for all of us - when was the last time you said THANK YOU

•    to the person who opens the door for
•    to the individual who prepares a meal for you
•    to the group that prays for you
•    to the family member who sacrifices for you
•    to the sibling that plays with you
•    to the parent who loves you
•    to the constable that protects you
•    to the teacher who instructs you
•    to the driver who gets you there
•    to the God who heals you    
Its not just a Church thing - a what happens in Church; stays in Church thing.

It’s a life thing - because without thanks in our life - well we are lepers - self created - who walk off in the sunset unaware of all the healing that happens in our life. So don’t fall asleep on the sofa - or if you do this Thanksgiving - before you enter the sleep of angels - say thank you.

A Guide to Prayer

The month of October is the month of the Rosary; a great opportunity to reflect on prayer.

A mother once taught her child to
pray using her fingers. The thumb is the nearest to
the heart, so pray for those you love – your family,
your friends and you. The second finger is for
pointing; pray for your pastor and your teachers,
those who show you the way and inspire you. The
third finger is the longest; let it remind you to pray for
your leaders, those in authority in the church and in
the nation. The fourth finger is weak; pray for those
in trouble or in pain; pray for the sick and the
abused. The firth finger is the smallest; pray for
those who suffer loneliness or deprivation.