Month: February 2024

“Love cannot remain by itself — it has no meaning. Love has to be put into action and that action is service.”

Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Happy Ash Wednesday! ♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥

It seems perfect that Ash Wednesday – a day that marks the start of Lent and our 40-day journey of spiritual preparation and self-examination leading up to the Easter celebration – should fall this year on Valentine’s Day –  a day associated with several early Christian martyrs named Valentine and recognized as a time for celebrating love and friendship.

Lent is certainly a time for abstinence, self-reflection, and penance. But Lent is also a time to listen more closely for Jesus and to trust in His loving call to follow Him. ♥

Luke’s Gospel recounts the story of Jesus calling Simon Peter as His disciple:

“One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around Him and listening to the Word of God, He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then He sat down and taught the people from the boat.

“When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’

“Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’

“When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

“When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

“Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.’ So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed Him.” Luke 5: 1-11

I can totally relate to Peter’s concern that his sins are far too great for Jesus. I can also totally relate to Jesus telling Peter not to be afraid and to believe in how much He loves him.

The love Jesus has for all of us is on full display within Luke’s story. Make no doubt about it – Jesus is telling us to stop sinning. But Jesus is also asking us to not be afraid to start loving Him – and each other! He is asking each one of us to follow Him, to cast our nets deeply into life’s ocean, and to draw more souls to Him.

This Lent, may we all embrace more fully Christ’s call to leave behind our sinful ways, and to love more deeply.

And this Valentine’s Day, may we all be assured of how very much Jesus loves us.

Jesus loves you.

He loves you deeply and without end.

God’s love never fails. ♥                                                       

As we enter a new week – and prepare for the beginning of Lent this Wednesday – I encourage all of us to take a few minutes to thank the Lord for all the goodness in our lives. There is so much goodness all around us. Even during the darkest of days, we can find goodness if we look for it.

I would venture to guess that all of us are thinking about some challenge that lies before us this week. Lay that challenge before the Lord, and ask Him to lead you through the challenge. Ask Him to help you turn that challenge into some sort of goodness. Spend time in the silence with Him this week. Think about what enters your heart and mind as you sit silently with Him. God speaks to us when we are still with Him, in the silence.

God wants to lead each of us forward – always. We can accomplish so much with Jesus and through Jesus:

“I can do everything through Him (Christ) who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13

Below are some verses from a beautiful hymn. Carry these words on your hearts this week:

Praise to the Lord¹

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation; O my soul praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation. All you who hear, now to His altar draw near, joining in glad adoration.

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee; Surely His goodness and mercy shall daily attend thee. Ponder anew, what the Almighty can do, who with His love doth befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him! All that hath life and breath come now with praises before Him! Let the Amen sound from His people again, now as we worship before Him.

¹Written by Joachim Neander

This morning, I rose early with the most vivid image in my mind. I had been dreaming. I do not normally recall nor spend much time thinking about my night time dreams! This dream was different. Given my new year’s resolution to draw nearer to Jesus, I will share this story.

I woke up with an image of Michelangelo’s Pietà on my mind – a marble sculpture of the Blessed Mother Mary holding the dead body of her Son, Jesus, after He was taken down from the Cross. In my dream, Michelangelo’s sculpture was painted with vibrant colors. I could see myself kneeling there, before the Pietà. The Blessed Mother was peering down at me intently, as if she were trying to say something.

As I sipped my morning coffee, the image remained on my mind, and slowly I felt a sense of peace settle on my heart. I thought more about the amazing Peace and Love that ultimately triumphed over that terrible event on Golgotha.

I began to think about the brokenness that exists in each one of us – a brokenness that causes indescribable pain at times. We tend to see this brokenness most clearly within our own families. We know each other so well.

We know that God gives us very specific people to love in the world. Jesus describes this in the Gospel of John, in a prayer to the Father:

“I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of this world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they have obeyed Your Word.” John 17: 6

Jesus asks that we follow His example of loving others, as God loves us:

“’As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Now remain in My love. If you obey My commands, you will remain in My Love, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commands and remain in His Love. I have told you this so that My Joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’” John 15: 9-11

Loving others – and in particular, our families – fulfills us. It completes us in ways we cannot imagine.

And yet loving others well requires sacrifice and effort. Love demands that we be willing to put the needs of others above our own. It commands a willingness to listen to and engage with one another – and a willingness to forgive. Love is not always easy. Loving family members, in particular, can be tough. Again, we know each other well.

Love is a choice we make. Before Jesus dies on the Cross, He asks His beloved disciple, John, to watch over His Mother:

“When Jesus saw His Mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His Mother, ‘Dear Woman, here is your son,’ and to the disciple, ‘Here is your Mother.’ From that time on, this disciple [John] took her into his home.” John 19: 26-27

Through this gesture, Jesus confirms that God gives us our families to love – and that we must choose how deeply we love them.

Through my dream, I feel the Blessed Mother was reminding me to love deeply those family members who have been given to me in this world.

Dearest Jesus, help us not to lose hope when we see brokenness in this world. Especially within our families, help us to love deeply, to seek to understand and to forgive, and to turn to You first, when we are angry and hurt. Help us to cherish the families You have given us, and to search for and find the goodness in one another.

These words from St. John of the Cross are compelling:

“In the evening of life, we will be judged on love alone.”

We are in this world to love.

Our desire and commitment to love ultimately defines our happiness on earth, and eternally with the Father. Someday, God will ask each one of us how much we loved others. He will ask us to recall those times when we gave of ourselves beyond what we thought was possible. He will ask about the times we chose to forgive – and not to forgive. God will ask about the times when we chose pride over loving each other.

What will I say to Him?