May 31, 2019

What a beautiful Feast Day we have today! Today we remember Mary and Elizabeth finding joy and peace and comfort and love in one another.

It’s a day for companions; a day for women who find great comfort in sharing with one another. It’s a day to recall that impossible things are possible. It’s a day for the young and the elderly delighting in the life of the other. It’s a day to listen, to be awed by the Spirit. It’s a day to rejoice, to laugh, to cry. It’s a day to open our heart to God and God’s Word.

Be aware this day of the people in your life who bring you joy, those who speak the truth, those who encourage and affirm. Be aware – and listen to the words spoken and the actions performed. For this day is a day for God to do great things in you, perhaps impossible things but surely things that will energize and bring life.

Happy Feast of the Visitation!

May 30, 2019

With a grateful heart, O Lord, we thank You for the work of Your followers in the early Church. Their days were guided by the Spirit; their words and works inspired. They led and healed. They shared and listened. They were a great example for all of us.

Sometimes their words were too hard for others to embrace. Their miracles too hard to understand. Their redirection was too hard to comprehend. Sometimes people walked away. And sometimes they, too, shook the dust and walked away.

Loving God, sent Your Spirit to open our heart to discern Your Presence in us and in others. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see You Presence. Help us to sift away all that is not of You. Give us courage to accept or to move on.

We are Yours, Lord. We believe in You. We trust in You. We love You. Amen. Alleluia!

May 29, 2019

Heaven and earth are full of your glory. (Psalm response for Wednesday, May 29, 2019)

Praise the Lord from the heavens to the earth! Praise the Lord from the skies to the depth of the earth. Praise the Lord all God’s creatures and all nature.

Let all God’s peoples praise Him for gifts and energy and peace. Praise God for His Son, Jesus and for Mary His mother.

Praise God for those who inspire us and lead us along the way of truth. Praise God for those who speak and act the truth, those who bring peace and work toward reconciliation among peoples and nations.

Praise God for leaders who represent God’s Word, who possess courage and strength and utilize it for good. Praise God for all that is good and holy and compassionate.

Heaven and earth are full of your glory.

May 28, 2019

From the Weekly Update of Queen of Peace Catholic Academy, May 28, 2010:

“We have come to the end of another school year!  We have prayed and studied and played and rejoiced and cried.  We have learned much, whether child or adult.  We have sought help and received it.  We have questioned and given answers.  We have reached out our hearts to others and been given peace in return.  Everyday the smiles and the hugs enveloped us.  We extended wishes for blessed days and had those same wishes come back to us.

Hardly a day went by that a Safety Patrol didn’t inquire, “Well, Sister, how was your day?”.  Each day, I was taken off guard; each day I hesitated not expecting that a Fifth Grader would want to know the answer to that question.  But, the response was mostly the same, “I had a great day!”  Really, how would one not, when surrounded with inquisitive, loving, God-filled children and adults.

What a wonderful example for us all!  Our days are filled with blessings which sometimes go unnoticed.  Whether we feel the blessings or not, they are still there.  Often we must first verbalize our gratitude and then the feeling is not far behind.  Have a happy summer!  Do lots of fun things, count your blessings and praise God in song and word.  See you in Church!“

May 27, 2019

Happy Memorial Day! On this day thoughts resurface of my own father who served in World War I providing location information that was much needed at the time. Then during World War II he was one of many operators of local Air Raid facilitators. He and others sat for hours in support of those of a younger generation who wore the uniform of our country. They assisted in the safety of we American citizens.

Today we honor. We remember. We recall. We tell stories. We feel a sense of pride. We reach into our heritage and pray in gratitude for what was. We lift our hands in prayer for protection in our day. We ask for peace, for a coming together, for an end to violence.

Loving God, our grateful thanks and praise for all who served our country in any way in the past as well as those serve in our day. Their courage is an inspiration. Their faith in You is our strength. Hear our prayers this day, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

May 26, 2019

This is a busy weekend for many. It’s a fun one, a family one, one filled with good food and fun and laughs and remembering. It’s the kind of weekend we all need from time to time and what a blessing it is provided. It helps us recall that our lives are not our own but given by God. In gratitude we care for it and all of creation with tenderness and in great love.

Today’s Scripture readings document the struggles of the early church. The differences between the Gentiles and Jews caused some consternation and expectations had to be set forth. The bottom line, however, remained that Jesus came on earth for ALL, that God had created ALL. All are welcomed among the disciples of Christ. All are worthy. We are ONE.

As we join together today as family we celebrate our strength as nation and as a community of believers. We are blessed in one another. We are blessed in our faith. We are blessed.

Happy Sunday. Happy Family Day.

May 25, 2019

Tomorrow Jesus tells His disciples to embrace the peace He gives and to be free of trouble and fear. We pray….

Risen Lord, hear our prayer!

• For the peace of Jesus in our hearts, in our homes, in our country and in our world, let us pray…
• For faith to believe in Jesus and trust to count on Him, we pray…
• For the grace to let go of all that troubles us and allow God to be our Father, and the Spirit to be our Advocate, we pray…
• For an open mind and heart to hear the reminders of the Spirit and to put them in practice, we pray…
• For courage and strength for all who are struggling and healing for those who are ill, we pray…

Risen Lord, hear our prayer!

Let us pray:

Jesus, fill us, we pray, with your light and life that we may show forth your wonderful glory.  Grant that your love may so fill our lives that we may count nothing too small to do for you, nothing too much to give and nothing too hard to bear.  Amen.  (St. Ignatius of Loyola)

May 24, 2019

Memorial Day Weekend is just about here. It’s time to welcome Summer (although not officially) and warmer weather and anticipate vacation and all kinds of outdoor activities. It’s time for something “new”!

For us in Florida we have already been experiencing the 90 degree temperatures. The Springtime flowers have come and gone. The air conditioner is running. And the birds and the butterflies greet us each day. The days are filled with blessing.

Truly God is in our every day whether it is cold or hot. The temperatures do not dictate the presence of our God. No matter our accomplishments or upsets, our attitudes or complacency, God continues to be there. God simply waits for us to acknowledge Him. We can ignore God and pretend we don’t need Him. Still He waits. We can enjoy whatever life brings and also ignore Him. Still He waits. God is patient. God is love. God is all the seasons in one.

Take a little time today to turn to God with words of praise and thanks. Lay your concerns at His feet confident that He will listen and He will respond.

May 23, 2019

Our loving God, who knows the heart of all Your people, listen today to our thanks and praise. You have given us life and family and communities and friends. You have given us understanding and free will. You have given us creation with its sunrise and sunset. For these and all Your gifts, we say thanks.

Listen too, our loving God, to our cries and our pleas for Your help and Your blessing. We raise our hearts to You with our concerns and worries, our questions and our doubts. We place into Your hands those who have entrusted their concerns to You. We ask for healing and protection, for a change of heart, for courage, for truth.

We know that all things rest with You. In You is our trust, our faith. In You is our happiness, our peace. We are so blessed in You! Today we lift up our voices and say, “May Your will be done!”.

Thank You, God! Amen! Alleluia!

May 22, 2019

Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord. (Psalm response for Wednesday, May 22, 2109)

What a great blessing, Lord, to be in Your Eucharistic Presence! To listen in silence, to wait, to know. You fill us with grace after grace after grace. You inspire and encourage.

You are present as well within us. Our busy days can distract our focus but You are there still. You are just a whisper away, an insight, a joyful feeling.

We praise and thank You for Your attentiveness to us. Increase our awareness, our faith, our trust.

Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.