Thoughts on the end of the year

Every Situation

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you His peace at all times and in every situation. The Lord be with you all.
2 Thessalonians 3:16, NLT 
 
To many people around the world, 2020 was a difficult year, even a tragic one, and we have no idea what the new year will bring. But we know this without a doubt: In every situation we face, our Savior is with us.

As the new year dawns, paraphrase 2 Thessalonians 3:16 as an earnest prayer: Lord, may You, the Lord of peace, give me Your peace at all times and in every situation.

Remember what Paul said in Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (NIV). He added in verse 12: I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation (NIV).

Every situation means every day, every hour, every circumstances, every location, every need, every fear, every joy, every opportunity, every step. He is more present than you know, and more powerful than you can possibly conceive. Our times are in His hands.

Dr. David Jeremiah

Thoughts on death

 

Love is Stronger than Death

God is Spirit and the Source of all love. Our spiritual journey calls us to seek and find this living God of love in prayer, worship, spiritual reading, spiritual mentoring, compassionate service to the poor, and good friends. Let us claim the truth that we are loved and open our hearts to receive God’s overflowing love poured out for us. And living fully each day let us share that love in all our wonderful and difficult relationships, responsibilities, and passages. The seeds of death are at work in us, but love is stronger than death. Your death and mine are our final passage, our exodus to the full realization of our identity as God’s beloved children and to full communion with the God of Love. Jesus walked the path ahead of us and invites us to choose the same path during our lifetime. He calls to us, “Follow me.” He assures us, “Do not be afraid.” This is our faith. Henri Nouwen

Thoughts on truth

 

Truth Will Set Us Free

St. John the Evangelist tells us that the truth will set us free. But what does that mean? St. Francis found the truth that leads to freedom in the truths of the Gospel, and the freedom he found was the freedom to love. God’s truth imparts to us the freedom not only to grasp the truth that is being imparted but also the freedom from what previously had been preventing us from acting on that truth. The Gospel itself will show us not only how we are to discern the truth, but how the truth leads to the action we call love.

—from the book Surrounded by Love: Seven Teachings from Saint Francis
by Murray Bodo, OFM

Thoughts on Saint Stephen

 

Saint Stephen’s Story

“As the number of disciples continued to grow, the Greek-speaking Christians complained against the Hebrew-speaking Christians, saying that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table. Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint to this task, whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’ The proposal was acceptable to the whole community, so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the Holy Spirit…” (Acts 6:1-5).

Acts of the Apostles says that Stephen was a man filled with grace and power, who worked great wonders among the people. Certain Jews, members of the Synagogue of Roman Freedmen, debated with Stephen, but proved no match for the wisdom and spirit with which he spoke. They persuaded others to make the charge of blasphemy against him. He was seized and carried before the Sanhedrin.

In his speech, Stephen recalled God’s guidance through Israel’s history, as well as Israel’s idolatry and disobedience. He then claimed that his persecutors were showing this same spirit. “…you always oppose the holy Spirit; you are just like your ancestors” (Acts 7:51b).

Stephen’s speech brought anger from the crowd. “But he, filled with the holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, ‘Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ …They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. …As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ …‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’” (Acts 7:55-56, 58a, 59, 60b).

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Reflection

Stephen died as Jesus did: falsely accused, brought to unjust condemnation because he spoke the truth fearlessly. He died with his eyes trustfully fixed on God, and with a prayer of forgiveness on his lips. A “happy” death is one that finds us in the same spirit, whether our dying is as quiet as Joseph’s or as violent as Stephen’s: dying with courage, total trust and forgiving love.

Franciscan Media, 28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202, USA

Thoughts on Christmas!

 

We Are Not Alone

God came to us because he wanted to join us on the road, to listen to our story, and to help us realize that we are not walking in circles but moving toward the house of peace and joy. This is the great mystery of Christmas that continues to give us comfort and consolation: we are not alone on our journey. The God of love who gave us life sent his only Son to be with us at all times and in all places, so that we never have to feel lost in our struggles but always can trust that he walks with us. The challenge is to let God be who he wants to be. A part of us clings to our aloneness and does not allow God to touch us where we are most in pain. Often we hide from him precisely those places in ourselves where we feel guilty, ashamed, confused, and lost. Thus we do not give him a chance to be with us where we feel most alone. Christmas is the renewed invitation not to be afraid and to let him—whose love is greater than our own hearts and minds can comprehend—be our companion. Henri Nouwen

Thoughts on Christmas Eve

 

A Prayer

O Lord, How hard it is to accept your way. You come to me as a small, powerless child born away from home. You live for me as a stranger in your own land. You die for me as a criminal outside the walls of the city, rejected by your own people, misunderstood by your friends, and feeling abandoned by your God. As I prepare to celebrate your birth, I am trying to feel loved, accepted, and at home in this world, and I am trying to overcome the feelings of alienation and separation that continue to assail me. But I wonder now if my deep sense of homelessness does not bring me closer to you than my occasional feelings of belonging. Where do I truly celebrate your birth: in a cozy home or in an unfamiliar house, among welcoming friends or among unknown strangers, with feelings of well-being or with feelings of loneliness? I do not have to run away from those experiences that are closest to yours. Just as you do not belong to this world, so I do not belong to this world. Every time I feel this way I have an occasion to be grateful and to embrace you better and taste more fully your joy and peace. Come, Lord Jesus, and be with me where I feel poorest. I trust that this is the place where you will find your manger and bring your light. Come, Lord Jesus, come. Amen. Henri Nouwen

Thoughts on Emmanuel

 

December 23: “O Emmanuel” Emmanuel is perhaps the most familiar name we give to God during Advent. It means “God with us.” For a people who longed for the Messiah through the centuries, Emmanuel named the fulfillment of all their dreams. We believe that God is with us today and every day. Take time today to think about your deepest desire for this Christmas season. How is God’s presence part of the fulfillment of that desire?   Today’s Gospel tells of the birth of John the Baptist. Because Francis often characterized himself as the herald of the Great King, it’s not surprising that his biographers would see in his mother’s desire to name him Giovanni (John) a sign of his identification from birth with the forerunner of the Messiah.   Francis, the servant and friend of the Most High, to whom divine providence gave this name so that by means of this singular and unusual name the knowledge of his ministry might become known to the whole world, was called John by his mother, when, being born again of water and the Holy Spirit, he was made a child of grace from a child of wrath…. For while her neighbors were wondering at the nobility of soul and the modesty of Francis, she would say, as though prompted by divine guidance: “What do you think this my son will turn out to be? Know that he will be a son of God by the grace of his merits.”   This indeed was the opinion of not a few whom the youthful Francis pleased by reason of his good inclinations…. He considered the feast of John the Baptist to be more illustrious than the feasts of all the other saints, for the dignity of his name left a mark of mystic virtue upon him.

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. —Luke 1:76–79

Click here for a Minute Meditation on Christmas!

Thoughts on the winter solstice

 

Dark Days and Dark Moods

Dark days can mean dark moods. This natural turn of the seasons helps explain the timing of Christmas. It is the festival of light, the return of the sun and longer periods of daylight. It’s a time of renewal and hope, sentiments we feel as we watch the skies and see faint signs of the sun returning. What happens in December in the northern hemisphere is a natural symbol. You don’t need a dictionary or an encyclopedia to know that the dark sky parallels your darkened heart. You feel it in your body and then in your emotions. The sky mirrors your feelings, and your pulse beats with the special rhythms of night and day. The turn of the sun on the day of solstice may well coincide with a turn in your spirits.

—from the book The Soul of Christmas
by Thomas Moore

4th Sunday of Advent

 

A Desire for Mercy

In Mary we see all the beauty of Advent concentrated. She is the one in whom the waiting of Israel is most fully and most purely manifested; she is the last of the remnant of Israel for whom God shows his mercy and fulfills his promises; she is the faithful one who believed that the promise made to her by the Lord would be fulfilled; she is the lowly handmaid, the obedient servant, the quiet contemplative. She indeed is the most prepared to receive the Lord...

The Abbot of Genesee monastery said that we should desire not only the first coming of Christ in his lowly gentleness but also his second coming as the judge of our lives. I sensed that the desire for Christ's judgment is a real aspect of holiness and realized how little that desire was mine...

Now I see better how part of Christian maturation is the slow but persistent deepening of fear to the point where it becomes desire. The fear of God is not in contrast with his mercy. Therefore, words such as fear and desire, justice and mercy have to be relearned and reunderstood when we use them in our intimate relationship with the Lord.

Henri Nouwen

Even more thoughts on joy

 

A Return to Joy

People usually think of Christmas as a traditional and sentimental festival, but not as a celebration of the Jesus vision it commemorates: a philosophy of profound reform. The child lying in the manger would become perhaps the most radical of all spiritual visionaries, showing how to live more joyfully and communally. Many people today feel an underlying anxiety due to world events and the challenges of getting along in a complicated world. Christmas allows a break from that gray depression, an inner darkness reflected in the winter sky. 

—from the book The Soul of Christmas
by Thomas Moore

Thoughts on reconciliation

 

Thursday of the Third Week of Advent: Be Reconciled and Be at Peace  The Lord of mercy says, “My steadfast love shall not depart from you.” If you know this kind of love in your own life, you know that it frees you to reach out to others with the same kind of unconditional love. When we are reconciled with God, we feel expansive toward the world and each other. And when we are reconciled with ourselves and one another, we find God. If you haven’t already done so this Advent season, find an opportunity to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation.   We think of the saints as models of perfect virtue, but they would be the first to admit their failings. As the old saying goes, Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.   That he might show himself in every way contemptible and give an example to the rest of true confession, Francis was not ashamed, when he had failed in something, to confess his failing in his preaching before all the people. Indeed, if it happened that he had had an evil thought about anyone, or if he had on occasion spoken an angry word, he would immediately confess his sins with all humility to the one about whom he had had the evil thought and beg his pardon. His conscience, which was a witness to his complete innocence, guarding itself with all solicitude, would not let him rest until it had gently healed the wound in his heart.

All praise be yours, my Lord, through those who grant pardon For love of you; through those who endure sickness and trial. Happy those who endure in peace, By you, Most High, they will be crowned. —“Canticle of the Creatures”

More thoughts on joy

 

The Cause of Our Joy

Christian joy is not simply a superficial feeling of heightened delight or the emotion accompanying extreme pleasure. It does not necessarily depend upon one’s immediate circumstances or fortune as taught by Saint Francis’s example. It does not ignore or deny the troubling reality of indifference, hopelessness, or disappointment. Christian joy lies beyond the realm of feelings and emotions. It is a fundamental disposition and stance toward life. Descriptive metaphors for it abound: It is the knowledge that having prayed and surrendered, God hears the hopes and desires of my heart and will respond in a timely, appropriate way. God is my shepherd and I must trust God’s heart. Joy feeds on the fact that God stands watch over every situation in my life and guides me with rod and staff. My joy sometimes bubbles up, sometimes surges up, from the rock-bottom certainty that the finger of God is somehow present in every tragic or trivial event. Joy is the oasis residing in the confident conviction that the waters of God’s loving care and concern never run dry—not even in the desert. The gratuity of grace is always unending and never expiring.

—from the book Soul Training with the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis
by Albert Haase, OFM

Thoughts on COVID-19

 

Despite COVID-19, Christmas Still Brings Good News By Rick Warren — 12/16/2020 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God with us’).” Matthew 1:23 (NIV) Because of COVID-19, this Christmas is unique and unprecedented within our lifetimes. Yet, we can still experience great joy, knowing that Immanuel, “God with us,” has arrived to save us from our sins and take us home to heaven. We may be celebrating Christmas in a different way—but it is still a celebration. You can spend this Christmas focusing on the many things you can be grateful for. And you can marvel that the God of the universe cares about the details of your life. He cares about the stress, frustration, and heartache you may be experiencing this holiday season. He cares about your future and has plans for you that will bring hope and healing (Jeremiah 29:11). The Good News of great joy proclaimed by the angel over 2,000 years ago is still Good News and still a source of everlasting joy. The angel said: “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:10-12 NIV). Regardless of the circumstances, regardless of the pandemic, you can still celebrate this Christmas with great joy because of three reasons: God loves you. God sent Jesus on a mission of love. In fact, the Bible says God is love. God created the entire universe, just so he could create the human race, just so he could create you, just so he could love you. God made you so he could love you. And his love isn’t based on what you do. His love is based on who he is. The Bible says, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14 NIV). That’s a reason to celebrate the birth of Jesus with great joy. God is with you. The Bible says Jesus is Immanuel. He is God come to live amongst us. Jesus truly was “God with us.” And he is still with us today. You may not feel his presence, but that doesn’t make it any less true. You may have been abandoned in life, but God will never abandon you. Knowing God is near means you don’t have to worry or be anxious about what’s coming next. He—not your circumstances—is in control. He—not the coronavirus—is in control. Knowing God is near will remove your fear. You can remember it like this: When he is near, there is no need to fear. And that’s a reason to celebrate the birth of Jesus with great joy. God is for you. He’s on your side. He wants you to succeed. In fact, Jesus said this: “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:17 NLT). Many people are afraid of God because of their guilt. But the Bible says Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world. He came to save it. That’s Good News! And that’s a reason to celebrate the birth of Jesus with great joy. It’s Good News of great joy for all people because God says, “I love you, I’m with you, and I’m for you.”

Thoughts on Joy

 

Joy

Joy does not come from positive predictions about the state of the world. It does not depend on the ups and downs of the circumstances of our lives. Joy is based on the spiritual knowledge that, while the world in which we live is shrouded in darkness, God has overcome the world. Jesus says it loudly and clearly: “In the world you will have troubles, but rejoice, I have overcome the world.” The surprise is not that, unexpectedly, things turn out better than expected. No, the real surprise is that God’s light is more real than all the darkness, that God’s truth is more powerful than all human lies, that God’s love is stronger than death. Henri Nouwen

3rd Sunday of Advent

 

Deepening Our Lives in Christ

Besides affirming life and remembering it, celebration is filled with expectations for the future. If the past has the last word, a man would imprison himself more and more the older he became. If the present were the ultimate moment of satisfaction, he would cling to it with hedonistic eagerness, trying to squeeze the last drop of life out of it. But the present holds promises and reaches out to the horizons of life, and this makes it possible for us to embrace our future as well as our past in the moment of celebration...The period before Christmas has that remarkable quality of joy that seems to touch not only Christians but all who live in our society...

But Advent is not only a period of joy. It is also a time when those who are lonely feel lonelier than during other periods of the year. During this time many people try to commit suicide or are hospitalized with severe depression. Those who have hope feel much joy and desire to give. Those who have no hope feel more depressed than ever and are often thrown back on their lonely selves in despair.

Surrounded by a loving, supportive community, Advent and Christmas seem pure joy. But let me not forget my lonely moments because it does not take much to make that loneliness reappear...When Jesus was loneliest, he gave most. That realization should help to deepen my commitment to service and let my desire to give become independent of my actual experience of joy. Only a deepening of my life in Christ will make that possible.

Henri Nouwen

Thoughts on Our Lady of Guadalupe

 

A Bold Plan

On this Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, let us first of all gratefully remember her visit and maternal closeness. When she appeared to St. Juan Diego on the Hill of Tepeyac, she presented herself as the “ever perfect Holy Virgin Mary, Mother of the true God.” She also hastened attentively to embrace the new American peoples, at their dramatic birth. We can continue to praise God for the wonders He has worked in the life of the Latin American peoples. God, in his way, “has hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to the lowly and humble, to the lowly in heart” (cf. Mt 11:25). In the wonders that the Lord has fulfilled in Mary, She recognizes her Son’s manner and mode of conduct in salvation history. He lifts up the humble, comes to the aid of the poor and the lowly, fills with goodness, with blessings and hope those who trust in his mercy from generation to generation, while He puts down from their thrones the wealthy, the powerful and the overbearing. In light of the Magnificat, let us feel compelled today to ask for a grace, a wholly Christian grace, that the future of Latin America be forged by the poor and by those who suffer, by the meek, by those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, by the merciful, by the pure in heart, by the peacemakers, by those who are persecuted for the sake of Christ’s name, “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (cf. Mt 5:1–11). May the grace be forged by those who today, are relegated to the category of slaves, of objects to be exploited or simply be rejected, by the idolatrous system of the throwaway culture. And should we be frightened by such a bold plan or should worldly pusillanimity threaten us, may She return to speak to our heart and enable us to hear her voice, that of Mother, of Good Mother, of Great Mother: Why are you afraid? Am I not here, I, who am your Mother?  

—from the book The Joy of Advent: Daily Reflections from Pope Francis

Thoughts on Christmas Day

 

How do we know Jesus was born on December 25th?

Everyone knows that Christ was born on Christmas Day, December 25th, but how do we know that? That’s an important and fascinating question, and I’ve spent the past twenty years searching for the answer, reading just about everything on the subject. We know for sure that Mary and Joseph knew the day Jesus was born because they were there. I am sure they told Jesus the day he was born just as our parents told us, and the Apostles would have learned that from Mary or Jesus or both. But the first time December 25th shows up in any written record is near the end of the second century AD, so either written records were lost for 140 years, or that important information was passed on by word of mouth by the early Christians. It is also very fitting that Jesus Christ was born on the day the Ancient Romans regarded as the Winter Solstice (although by that time the calendar was off by four days) because with the Winter Solstice the days start getting longer and more light comes into the world.

Thanks for joining us on this journey. If you have missed a previous Advent Inspiration, you can find all of them here.