Too Weird

After being startled by the alarm clock, I realized I was already late for my early Friday morning appointment. I slipped into my cleanest dirty shirt and pants, jumped on my bicycle and pumped as hard as I could until the blood started to circulate through my left brain. I was hoping to wake up some logical, rational and objective thinking…knowing that it would be wasted effort to circulate any blood to the right side. It is common knowledge that my subjective right brain persists in some sort of permanent coma. I arrived a full thirty minutes late but decided…what is in the past is in the past…I cannot change that. So I went in, said “Hello!” .... “Sorry I’m late.”

As I sat staring at the Bread looking back at me from the monstrance…I thought…how bizarre, how weird. All this mumbo jumbo about God’s only son who’s life, death and resurrection purchased us the rewards of eternal life. The story of a virgin mother giving birth to God made man…how strange this all seems. This is really hard to understand, hard to grasp with my left brain.

But, when I consider all the other strange and peculiar beliefs…all the other even more bizarre and more weirder gods, maybe it’s not that much of a leap of faith to believe in my God. Especially when it appears all the other material gods and theo-isms only lead to chaos, confusion and mayhem. So, perhaps my God is not so odd in the overall scheme of things. But, it is so incredibly mysterious. In John’s sixth chapter the disciples are quoted, “this saying is hard: who can accept it?”

Well, I'm with Peter. These are hard sayings. But, like Peter when asked “do you also want to leave?” Simon Peter answered “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

I choose to believe in the mysteries without having to understand them. It is a decision of the heart not the head. Because the head cannot figure this out. Maybe there is hope for my right brain after all.

Lord Jesus, nothing compares to the promise I have in you.

Amen

The Jar And The Jug

I opened the refrigerator door and stared in…a recreational activity which has become more pronounced in the last two weeks. Originally I had high expectations of accomplishing many projects around the house after my largest customer informed me that they were cutting back and tightening their belt due to the stagnated economy. At first I welcomed the free time but then I discovered something about myself, something that I didn’t really want to know.

I am not a planner; I prefer being told what to do and when to do it. Just give me one emergency at a time. I like to solve technical problems and work hard when the challenge arises…especially when it is an emergency, someone else’s emergency not mine. The routine mundane stuff is not for me.

Then there is that other problem…worrying…the worrying that I promised myself not to do. Worrying about the future and what is going to happen…what a total waste of time and energy.

I removed the expired carton of milk from the refrigerator and decided to make cornbread. Besides sour milk…buttermilk…that’s all the same stuff isn’t it? As I mixed the flour from the jar and the oil from the jug I couldn’t help but think of the widow from Zarephath and how she prepared a little cake for Elijah and what he told her. “The jar of flour shall not go empty nor the jug of oil run dry until the day when the Lord sends rain upon the earth.”

What a comforting thought as I ate my fill of comfort food. Perhaps I will start painting the house today.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the comfort food of eternal life…a life without economic woes or worries…a life where you do all the planning, all I have to do is follow your lead.

Amen


Ref: 1 Kings 17:8-24

Why Me?

As I cast a judgmental eye around the congregation I wondered if they were just there physically not spiritually. Were they only present out of habit or under duress from a spouse or parent? As I wandered the labyrinthine halls of my mind it occurred to me what a fraud I was…how judgmental I was. As I continued flipping the channels of my brain from day-dream to day-dream…I stood, I sat and I kneeled…I followed the crowd like a zombie. I watched the altar boy, in this case a girl, yawn…a most contagious yawn that had an infectious effect on me. I grit my teeth and tried for my most pious pose in an attempt not to follow suit but it was of no avail. I wasn’t even fooling myself. In the background I could hear the droning of a sermon as my coma persisted. Automatically getting in line and filing up to receive communion I heard the priest announce, “The Body of Christ”. That snapped me out of my stupor and I stammered, “Amen”.

The realization of how unworthy I really was came over me like a giant wave crashing down and causing me to gasp for breath. As a warm loving feeling washed over me and I strained to hold back the tears, my only thought was…why me Lord? What did I ever do to deserve love from You.

The tune and words from the song played in my head.

“Why Me Lord? What have I ever done
To deserve even one of the pleasures I've known
Tell me Lord what did I ever do to deserve loving you
And the kindness you've shown”

Amen

Tuna Salad

As I remove the stainless steel mixing bowl from the cabinet…the bowl that belonged to my mother…it brings back childhood memories… recollections of my mother’s tuna salad made in this very bowl. Every Friday she would prepare a batch of canned “sea chicken”. Although I cannot say for sure what the exact ingredients were or verify the exact proportions of each ingredient …I make it exactly the way she did. Over the years the tuna has morphed into Albacore and the Miracle-Whip into mayonnaise and who knows what other subtle changes have evolved…but the memories are unchanged and no less vivid. I remember the entire family sitting around the kitchen table eating together with no TV in the background, no carpooling children to soccer, or band practice and no going out on dates. There was no talking with your mouth full or leaving the table early. There was family time; there was doing the dishes (if it was your turn); there was sitting up straight; and there were manners.

I stir in the pickle relish, add salt and pepper, and taste. Yep! That’s it! Just like mom’s.

My mother has been gone for forty-five years but I miss her. I look forward to the day that I see her again just to say “I love you”. I know she must be a saint now. I can take credit for that because…I was the one who kept her on her knees.

Thank you Jesus, for that special mother.
Thank you Lord, for no other.
Thank you for those mem-o-ries
Thank you Lord from my knees
Amen.

Quiet Please!

I agreed to chauffeur my wife to her meeting in Dallas. I thought it would give me a chance to get some “alone time” while she attended her conference. I spotted a quaint eatery with secluded tables and chairs that appeared to be perfect for meditating, writing and sipping caffeine. As I started to scribble out some half baked ideas, I noticed how hard it was to concentrate with the annoying music playing at a volume suitable for a rock concert. This just would not do. I looked up the nearest library on my trusty Blackberry, Googled a map and set out for a more peaceful place…just blocks away. I relished the thought of total silence. It made me giddy just thinking about how quiet it was going to be. It’s been years since I’ve been in a library. The library is a serious place for serious studying, compiling term papers and nodding off. I meandered though the stacks of books looking for the perfect spot to claim…it just didn’t feel the same as I remembered. Nevertheless, I began putting adjectives in front of nouns, stringing subjects, verbs and objects together...trying in earnest to put my thoughts onto paper. My writings never really seem to flow…they are more like a crossword puzzle…I jump around filling in the empty blanks, scratching out and changing almost everything. The harder I tried to concentrate…the louder the raucous of the children, the boisterous people and the noisy library employees seemed to get. Even the clamorous noise of a copy machine in the back ground became deafening. Now, as if this was not bad enough…someone’s cell phone rings out with its earsplitting volume. That was the last straw. After fumbling around trying to turn it off…I gathered up my note book and slunk out of the building. Frustrated, I retreated to a park bench and listened to the birds singing and the leaves rustling in the gentle breeze of a beautiful spring day.

I am going to just sit here and enjoy what God sends my way… trying to force my plan never really seems to work out.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for this beautiful day.
For the peaceful calm you have sent my way.
Forgive me Lord for the harsh things I say.
To you let this be my prayer for today.
Amen

ND Commencement

Dear Fr. Jenkins

I think it is an outrage and a scandal that such a blatant pro-abortion advocate, Barack Obama, be invited to speak and be honored at a supposedly Catholic University.
Maybe you should check with Pope Benedict to see what he thinks about this. I am a Catholic struggling to follow Christ in a world that doesn't want to follow His rules. Please do not add to the confusion. Please make a stand for the sanctity of life.

Prayerfully yours,

Gene Jeansonne
Victoria, Tx

The Right To Bear Arms

I don’t mean the right to wear muscle shirts…although that should probably be out-lawed for all of us who are over weight and out of shape. I’m talking about this gun thing. I have never owned or desired to own a gun. I have never shot a gun except when the Marine Corps made me qualify at the rifle range. But for some strange reason I feel the need to go out and purchase the most ostentatious assault rife I can think of…just because the politicians are talking about taking away our right to bear arms. It just seems absurd that they think making rules will solve problems. Crazy people, crooks and criminals don’t follow rules anyway. God made ten rules and not too many people follow them. Look at our worldwide economic situation. That was a result of greed. Greed is not following God’s rule number ten.

Dear Lord Jesus, please give me the strength of get through another day in this crazy world and please don’t let me shoot myself in the foot.
Amen.

President’s Pictures

As I looked at the pictures of presidents Jackson, Lincoln and Washington…I began to muse…I carefully folded them and put them back in my wallet. I couldn’t help but imagine the Treasury Department working around the clock printing more and more copies. All backed by good as gold “politician’s promises”. Perhaps they would even come up with a new denomination. It would have Obama’s picture on it. It would be worth one trillion dollars and have the purchasing power of one happy meal. On the up side that would be a politician's promise made good…CHANGE. He never said it would be change for the better. Perhaps I’m being unfair. Perhaps I just don’t understand. There are so many things I just cannot grasp. For example; if Jesus is happy with ten percent why does Uncle Sam get twenty-five percent? My, my…Publicans and tax collectors…it seems their reputation has not changed in two thousand years. I suppose I might as well give to Caesar what is Caesar’s…it surely won’t be worth anything to me.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for being relevant in an irrelevant and irreverent world.

Amen

News from Malta

Here is the news from Fr. Tito in Malta. The typos corrected.

Do you think that Blissful ignorance is a virtue? It is not. The Holy Spirit gives us 7 virtues, One is wisdom, the other discerment, Joy and knowledge. Ignorance is no virtue. But
all the Godlessness is not just in America. The virus is world wide and little Catholic Malta has the same problems that the world has. No love for life, no love for marital committment, pre martital sex and even in Malta they start young. we had 12 year olds already single mothers. Most Maltase go to church at least on Sundays. A big majority go to daily Mass. But then most of them ignore the rules of the church and the 10 commandments. I think they think they can fool God too not just the church. Then there is the EU Europen Union. It is very anti any religion and they want to make the showing of religious objects a crime. They way to criminalize religious schools. They want to eliminate all crosses from schools, hospitals and other public places so as not to offend atheists or Muslims. THEY WANT TO GIVE power to arrest priests or ministers who refuse to marry gays in their churches etc. It's too long a litany. I love Malta and I cry for it and the way it is today. Love fr. Tito