Look for the good, and you shall find it . . . even on a cruise ship! Jay and I just returned from a wonderful 4 day cruise on the Caribbean Princess gifted to us from one of our clients for a job well done. Such a generous gesture . . . we were/are very thankful for the time away with no cell phones, computers, etc. Just the two of us. We received the schedule of events Saturday evening for all activities occurring on Sunday. We called the information desk to see if there was a Catholic priest on board for Mass, which there wasn't. But there was an "Non-denominational" service at 10am being held in Club Fusion (one of the nightclubs on the boat). To our surprise, it was just a beautiful experience to be amongst fellow Christians. We sang Amazing Grace as well as 3 other hymns; we prayed the Our Father and two other prayers of thanksgiving. Then the young woman from the cruise line leading the service read the following, a favorite of hers:
A church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday.
“I’ve gone for 30 years now,” he wrote, “and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 Sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember a single one of them. So, I think I’m wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all.”
This started a real controversy in the “Letters to the Editor” column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher: “I’ve been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this: They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!”
Just beautiful, isn't it? It's time to be grateful, lay apostles, receiving the nourishment we need to be spiritually alive.
Todays Gospel ((Luke 17:11-19) teaches us to be thankful for all God has given us:
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him. They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” And when he saw them, he said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”
In Volume Seven, St. Philomena encourages us to be thankful, no matter our situation:
"Dear brothers and sisters, you must be joyful during this time. Whenever you are tempted toward despair, you must think of heaven and how Jesus is making the earth like heaven by allowing this cleansing. Jesus is reclaiming the earth. That is a wonderful thing and will ensure that your children’s children will not have to contend with the darkness of sin that surrounds your children. It would please Jesus if you would be thankful to Him, despite any circumstances. A saint conducts herself this way and finds that she is joyful regardless of any and all hardships. Dear friends of heaven, the enemy will not prevail. You know this because you have been told this. At the end of this time, Jesus will return and the earth will be beautiful again. Before that, there will be a time when it will appear that the enemy has taken control of the world. The darkness of sin will reign and our beloved Church will suffer even more. Followers will face grave and constant attacks for their faith in many areas of the world. They will persevere and set the most beautiful example for others. This will draw others back to the faith in great numbers, so you see, the enemy’s strategy will backfire. The more God’s enemies persecute His children, the more children will choose God and remain true. It has always been this way, sadly. God’s children should serve Him faithfully in good times also, but many do not. Many become worldly when the times are easy. Be brave. Your courage will come from heaven and inspire many."
Today, lay apostles, what are you thankful for? How have you shown Christ your thankfulness? Let's all strive to imitate the one leper out of the ten healed in todays Gospel. Praise Jesus . . . for everything.
Thank you, Lord, for all the blessings and gifts You have given me throughout my journey so far. I'm sorry I haven't been as thankful in the past. Please give me the graces needed to remember!
God bless,
Bonnie
A church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday.
“I’ve gone for 30 years now,” he wrote, “and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 Sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember a single one of them. So, I think I’m wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all.”
This started a real controversy in the “Letters to the Editor” column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher: “I’ve been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this: They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!”
Just beautiful, isn't it? It's time to be grateful, lay apostles, receiving the nourishment we need to be spiritually alive.
Todays Gospel ((Luke 17:11-19) teaches us to be thankful for all God has given us:
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him. They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” And when he saw them, he said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”
In Volume Seven, St. Philomena encourages us to be thankful, no matter our situation:
"Dear brothers and sisters, you must be joyful during this time. Whenever you are tempted toward despair, you must think of heaven and how Jesus is making the earth like heaven by allowing this cleansing. Jesus is reclaiming the earth. That is a wonderful thing and will ensure that your children’s children will not have to contend with the darkness of sin that surrounds your children. It would please Jesus if you would be thankful to Him, despite any circumstances. A saint conducts herself this way and finds that she is joyful regardless of any and all hardships. Dear friends of heaven, the enemy will not prevail. You know this because you have been told this. At the end of this time, Jesus will return and the earth will be beautiful again. Before that, there will be a time when it will appear that the enemy has taken control of the world. The darkness of sin will reign and our beloved Church will suffer even more. Followers will face grave and constant attacks for their faith in many areas of the world. They will persevere and set the most beautiful example for others. This will draw others back to the faith in great numbers, so you see, the enemy’s strategy will backfire. The more God’s enemies persecute His children, the more children will choose God and remain true. It has always been this way, sadly. God’s children should serve Him faithfully in good times also, but many do not. Many become worldly when the times are easy. Be brave. Your courage will come from heaven and inspire many."
Today, lay apostles, what are you thankful for? How have you shown Christ your thankfulness? Let's all strive to imitate the one leper out of the ten healed in todays Gospel. Praise Jesus . . . for everything.
Thank you, Lord, for all the blessings and gifts You have given me throughout my journey so far. I'm sorry I haven't been as thankful in the past. Please give me the graces needed to remember!
God bless,
Bonnie
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