Despite the chaos in the world, my life is blessed. Saying "yes" to Jesus comes with a ton of graces for which I am forever grateful. But it also comes with its share of crosses. The violence incited by left-leaning Democrats is beyond my comprehension. To lie, cheat, steal and harass seems to be their mantra. How did it come to this? My theory has two parts . . . lack of God in families and schools being one. The second? Participation awards. In my younger years, we learned about winning and losing. We bettered ourselves instead of feeling we were owed. We worked harder (and still do!) to achieve our dreams. My father was living proof. He became handicapped in his teens, but he never let it slow him down. He was a worker bee and a successful entrepreneur while he and my mom were raising four daughters. He never felt sorry for himself . . . I swear if someone would have made the comment when I was young about having a handicapped father, I would have been thoroughly confused by the comment!
My friends, there are so many lost sheep in this country, and Jesus is asking us to stay focused on Him so we can guide our lost brothers and sisters home.
In today's Gospel (Luke 15:1-10), Jesus asks us to assist Him in gathering all His sheep:
The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus addressed this parable to them. “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
In Anne a lay apostle's book Transforming Grace, her analogy is spot on when dealing with our lost brothers and sisters:
"We study once the again the relationship between Jesus and the good thief. The good thief must have railed against his sentence of death and the cruelty that meted it out to him. Yet through his sentence he was raised aloft with Christ and he was able to console Christ in a moment of exquisite temptation to despair. Would that each prisoner understand how uniquely placed he is to minister in the smallest of ways to those around him. Would that we, suffering from the place of our prisons of sickness and pain, understand how uniquely our crosses position us to help others suffering the same adversities. The beauty of the good thief shines out of scripture in flashing lights to those looking for validation, despite the inevitable guilt that comes to us from our fallen natures. Apostles, we must work hard to comfort others, despite our condition of sinfulness. We must accelerate our daily ministries, in our homes and in the world, despite the realization of our sinfulness and failure. Serve on, soldiers of the renewal. Do not be an obstacle to Christ. Truly, Jesus craves relationship with all and Jesus has never been more willing to accept the crumbs from the table of those who reject Him."
Lay apostles, how can we combat the disarray occurring in our country/lives today? If we each remember our blessings while carrying our crosses, a little more love pours from our hearts, leading the lost sheep to a place of comfort. Hard to do in the political climate we are experiencing, but the only way to peace.
Thank you, Lord, for allowing blessings and crosses in my life. I am finally understanding how this all works and the importance of doing my part in bringing everyone to You!
God bless,
Bonnie
My friends, there are so many lost sheep in this country, and Jesus is asking us to stay focused on Him so we can guide our lost brothers and sisters home.
In today's Gospel (Luke 15:1-10), Jesus asks us to assist Him in gathering all His sheep:
The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus addressed this parable to them. “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.
“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
In Anne a lay apostle's book Transforming Grace, her analogy is spot on when dealing with our lost brothers and sisters:
"We study once the again the relationship between Jesus and the good thief. The good thief must have railed against his sentence of death and the cruelty that meted it out to him. Yet through his sentence he was raised aloft with Christ and he was able to console Christ in a moment of exquisite temptation to despair. Would that each prisoner understand how uniquely placed he is to minister in the smallest of ways to those around him. Would that we, suffering from the place of our prisons of sickness and pain, understand how uniquely our crosses position us to help others suffering the same adversities. The beauty of the good thief shines out of scripture in flashing lights to those looking for validation, despite the inevitable guilt that comes to us from our fallen natures. Apostles, we must work hard to comfort others, despite our condition of sinfulness. We must accelerate our daily ministries, in our homes and in the world, despite the realization of our sinfulness and failure. Serve on, soldiers of the renewal. Do not be an obstacle to Christ. Truly, Jesus craves relationship with all and Jesus has never been more willing to accept the crumbs from the table of those who reject Him."
Lay apostles, how can we combat the disarray occurring in our country/lives today? If we each remember our blessings while carrying our crosses, a little more love pours from our hearts, leading the lost sheep to a place of comfort. Hard to do in the political climate we are experiencing, but the only way to peace.
Thank you, Lord, for allowing blessings and crosses in my life. I am finally understanding how this all works and the importance of doing my part in bringing everyone to You!
God bless,
Bonnie
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