Happy Christian Secrets

but, we get what we need from God.

Our prayers are always answered, but we don’t always get exactly what we prayed for.

The themes this week  are prayer and persistence.  In the first reading from Genesis (Genesis 18: 20-32), Abraham is haggling with God as if  God were his friend – God is our friend.  Abraham is bargaining with God to save cities from destruction if there are 50, then 40 ,  then 30, then 20  and finally 10 innocent people found in the city.  Abraham’s prayers and persistent negotiating with God resulted in God agreeing to save the cities if there were only 10 innocent people found. It’s Abraham’s prayers, persistence and relationship with God that allow his prayers to be answered.

Today’s Gospel reading from Luke (Luke 11:1-13) gives us a similar message with the themes of prayer and perseverance.  As some of Jesus’ disciples were watching Jesus pray, one of them said, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”

As always, it’s more important what we do with our actions than what we say with our words. Very importantly, Jesus’ disciples constantly see him in prayer.   Jesus then instructs the disciples to pray with the words of the “Our Father.”

Jesus taught us to pray to God as Our Father, Our Dad, Our Papa, Our Daddy.  God is just not Jesus’ Dad, God is OUR Dad! When we talk about each other as brothers and sisters, it’s true because we all have the same Dad.

He taught us to ask our Dad -  God -  to “forgive us our sins”, and he instructed us to show forgiveness of others too, “for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us.”  Did you happen to notice the word “everyone?”  Can we ask God to forgive us when there are still people in our life whom we have yet to forgive?

Jesus goes on to tell the disciples a story that you should read about a friend who is looking to borrow food in the middle of the night so that he can take care of a friend who unexpectedly arrived at his house.  Have you ever had to call a friend in the middle of the night to ask for help?  “My car broke down and I need a ride!”  or  “Some guests just arrived and we don’t have enough beds. Can I borrow a few sleeping bags and pillows?”  Our friend may respond by saying something like, “It’s 11AM, call me in the morning!”  We all know that when we persist in asking a friend for help, she always helps.

Jesus uses that story to remind us to constantly pray to God and to persevere in our prayers.  Jesus’ words are too perfect for me to paraphrase so here they are:

“And I tell you, ask and you will receive;

seek and you will find;

knock and the door will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks, receives;

and the one who seeks, finds;

and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

We’re being encouraged to seek and to find the things that conform with God’s will.  Our prayers are always answered. It’s up to us to look for the grace in God’s response – especially when it manifests in an answer which is different from our request.

We can’t always get what we want, but we have faith that we always get what we need!

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In this week’s Gospel from Luke (10:38-42), it’s easy to apply words from 2000 year old scripture to our life in 2010.

In this very short reading, Jesus was invited to Martha’s home.  Martha’s sister, Mary, sits at Jesus’ feet listening to his every word while Martha (who invited him there in the first place!) is busy – probably preparing food and drink for her guest.

Martha is a little bit irritated because her sister is just sitting around while she’s doing all the work. So what does Martha say to Jesus?  She says, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” 

Haven’t you ever felt exactly like Martha?  I have.  I’ve been running around my home trying to prepare food and drinks for my guests while other family members have been leisurely enjoying themselves.

How does Jesus respond to Martha’s unsolicited advice?  He says, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.  There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”

Jesus loves Martha and Mary and wants to remind Martha why and for whom she is laboring so hard.  He’s asking her to either listen to him while she’s working or to sit down with Mary and pay attention to what he has to say. True disciples eagerly listen to the word of the Lord.

Who are you rushing around trying to serve?  Are you also feeling worried and anxious quite often? Are you so busy with your every day life that there is no time for God?

Jesus is reminding Martha and each and everyone of us to remember who it is that we’re serving.  He’s asking us to put away our anxiety and fear and to put our faith in him.

If Martha had a hard time paying attention to Jesus when she was physically with him, how much harder is it for us today in a world of non-stop noise – TV, radio, computers, cell phones and piped-in music? It’s much more challenging for us to find silent time to simply be still and listen. Although it’s more challenging, it’s very possible.

Each of us has plenty of time for what we value. Jesus told Martha, “There is need of only one thing.”

We get to hear God’s Word not only in scripture but when we slow down long enough to listen.

Read his word.

Contemplate on what he’s asking of you.

Put his words into your mind and heart and most importantly, into your every day actions.

 You and I are the Body of Christ on earth.

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This weekend’s theme is love.  In my opinion, if we boil down Christianity into one word that word would be love.

In the reading from Deuteronomy (30:10-14) Moses lets us know that within the human heart is a divine law that commands us to love. It’s something that we already possess within us.  Moses says, “No, it is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry it out.” 

We possess love within.  We are love. When we act like ourselves, we love God, others and ourselves.  Love is our natural state. It’s when we’re not loving that we’re acting contrary to our nature.

It today’s gospel from Luke (10: 25-37), a Jewish scholar of the law asks Jesus, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus responds to his question with two questions, “What is written in the law?” and “How do you read it?”

The scholar says, “ You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”  He gave Jesus the correct answer: Love, love, love, love, love.

The scholar needed further clarification so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Was he expecting a response from Jesus like, “Only your fellow Jews”  or “Only people within 2 kilometers of your home”? 

In typical Jesus fashion, he responds to this question with a parable – The Good Samaritan.

As we know from hearing this parable numerous times, it’s not the priest or the Levite who stopped to help the man who was robbed and beaten, it was a Samaritan (Samaritans were hated enemy of the Jews).  The priest and Levite crossed the street and kept on walking ignoring the man.

When Jesus asked the scholar, “Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”, his response was, “The one who treated him with mercy.”  The scholar didn’t say the Samaritan. Maybe he didn’t say the Samaritan because it was the enemy of the Jews who helped the man – not the priest, not the Levite. He was probably embarrassed that a brother of the same faith didn’t help a fellow brother.

How often do Christians argue and fight with fellow Christians?

Which of our neighbors is Jesus telling us to love? Every one of them.  It’s a big world. There are lots of people who need our love.  Many of them are within our own families.

Are we really supposed to love our enemies?  Our family members who’ve hurt us?  Terrorists who’ve killed our brothers and sisters and changed our way of life?

You know the answer.  It’s in your heart.  Jesus is just reminding us because it’s very easy to forget when we’re surrounded by so much fear and hatred.

You and I are the body of Christ in the world. We are love. Go forth and love. Remind others of the love that they too possess.

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There are two major themes in this week’s readings. The first theme calls us to ask the question, “Am I making God the number one priority in my life?” In the first reading (1 Kings 19:16b, 19-21) God asks the prophet Elijah to anoint a successor – Elisha – for himself. When Elijah called Elisha to serve as his apprentice or attendant, the response from Elisha was “Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye, and I will follow you.”

In the Gospel reading from Luke  (Luke 9:51-62) Jesus is also reaching out to a man and says to him, “Follow me.” The man responds to Jesus by saying, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” 

Although the responses from Elisha and the man whom Jesus called seem fairly reasonable, especially by today’s standards, their response was not, “I will happily follow you. Here I am, Lord!”  They responded with, “I will God, but first I need to……” 

How often are you and I called by God or presented with an opportunity to be Christ to another and we think to ourselves, “That would be a great thing to do….if I had more time” or “As soon as I make a little more money or get that job or go for a run or (insert the excuse of choice).  Don’t we always seem to have really good excuses to put-off love and service in the present?

Jesus is asking us to make God first in our lives – every day.  In each conversation and in every action we can ask ourselves, “How would Jesus respond?” or “What would Jesus do in this instance?”  That’s how we make God first in our lives.

The second major theme for us this week is Love  and comes from Paul’s Letter to the Galatians (Galatians 5:1, 13-18).  In this letter, Paul is reminding the Galatians to focus on the Spirit of Christ within them and to not be enslaved by the flesh.  I really like the definition of flesh because in the past, I thought that Paul was talking about sexual temptations.  This definition of flesh means any form of selfishness.  L-O-V-E is the opposite of selfishness.  Flesh and selfishness are the exact opposite of God who is love.

By focusing on God’s Spirit which lives within us, we have the strength to overcome our flesh’s temptations – overconsumption of alcohol and food, lust, pride, greed, envy,  etc.

Love is the opposite of selfishness. We best express our love as Jesus did – in service to others.  “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

In summary, let’s make God first in our lives. We do this best when we’re actively serving and loving others!

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One of this weekend’s readings is from Paul’s letter to the Galatians (Galatians 3:26-29). As usual, Paul packs a lot of content into about 10 lines.

The first major topic is faith. Have you given that subject much thought lately?  As Christians, most of us have inherited our faith because it was our parents’ faith. 

What is it that we believe as part of Christian faith?  We believe in a man named Jesus who lived 2000+ years ago. We believe that he was sent to earth by his Father (God) to live with us and teach us how to love God and each other.  We believe that he sacrificed his life and was resurrected from the dead. We believe that we too will have to suffer along our earthly journey, but do it happily in imitation of Christ.  Like Jesus, through our faith in him, we know that we will be resurrected from the dead and will live with him forever.

Our faith allows us to live each day of our life confident in today and hopeful of the future – no matter how difficult today may be!

The second major concept in this reading comes when Paul says, “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.”

When we have clothes on we’re surrounded with cloth.  When we’re clothed with Christ, we’re surrounded by Jesus.  Like many of us identify ourselves with the clothing style we choose, to be clothed in Christ means that our identity comes from Him. Our differences are gone because our attention is on our commonality in Christ.

Within the world of marketing, identification with a particular brand mean a lot.  What different images do you think of when envisioning Nascar, Bentley, Starbucks and Walmart? 

What words do you think describe the brand Christian? 

When we choose to be baptized (or confirmed), we become part of this universal body of people who believe in  God the Father and Creator, his son Jesus and the Holy Spirit who is with us at all times. We take on the clothing of Christ by the way we think, speak, act and serve. 

We are constantly clothed in Christ when living in accordance with what he taught us while on earth.  Love.  Forgive. Do not judge. 

This clothing seems to fit perfectly!

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Enlightenment comes at us on a daily basis when we’re aware and seeking it.  This weekend’s readings caused high wattage light bulbs to go off several times for me.

In the first reading from the book of Samuel (2 Samuel 12: 7-10, 13), Nathan the prophet is chosen to deliver a message from God to King David.  God says, “I anointed you king of  Israel, I rescued you from the hand of Saul, I gave you your lord’s house and your lord’s wives.”   God is trying to tell David that he’s been given so much, yet he still found it necessary to be greedy and selfish and go and take what belonged to someone else.

What God is saying to David is, “how could you?”  He sounds like a parent speaking to a child (I could hear myself speaking to one of my kids). After gladly receiving everything that David was given by God, he still wanted more.  David became infatuated with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife, and conceived a child with her while Uriah, one of David’s most loyal soldiers was off at battle.  As if this is not bad enough, David then had Uriah arranged to be killed “in the line of battle” to cover up his less-than-worthy actions.

God is saying to David, “how could you commit adultery and murder after all that I’ve given you?”

God is asking the same question to us today, “how could you?”  When are you and I selfish and greedy? When do we ignore God’s love and generosity and go off desiring more without considering the impact of our actions on others?  That was light bulb number one for me.

In the second reading from Paul to the Galatians (Galatians 2:16, 19-21), Paul is reminding the mostly Jewish converts to Christianity at that time that salvation comes about through faith in Jesus – not by holding on to a promise of salvation as the result of clinging to the old laws of diet and circumcision.  Paul tells them that if the laws were good enough to bring about salvation then, Christ’s death was in vain.  In short, Paul is advising them (and us) to  love Jesus, have faith in him and keep his commandments.

God sent his only son to live with us, teach us and die for our sins.  He is the way to salvation. It’s not that there was anything wrong with the dietary laws or circumcision, but they should not be the focus of our life and our faith.  Our eyes and ears should be paying attention to Jesus.

Paul also says something amazing in this same reading. He says, “I have been crucified with Christ; yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given himself up for me.”   Light bulb #2 for me.  It is the life of Jesus who is alive and present in Paul!   It is the same life that exists inside of you and me when we welcome Jesus into our life and have faith in him and his word.

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With our very busy lives, regular attendance at church can sometimes takes a back seat to other activities.

In order to justify our actions, we start to ask questions like, “Do I really need to go to church every week?”  After missing several weeks in a row, we might start saying, “I’m a really good person and my relationship is between me and God, so it’s not necessary for me to go to a physical building.”

This weekend was the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ.  In the first reading from Genesis (14:18-20), the priest Melchizedek blesses Abram (who will later be called Abraham) over a meal of bread and wine.  Within the Christian church, we see  this ancient rite as a prefigurement to Jesus’ Eucharistic meal.

In the second reading from 1Corinthians (11:23-26), Paul tells us exactly what the risen Jesus told him directly.  Paul says, “I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said, ‘This is my body that is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.’” Jesus did the same thing with the cup and goes on to say, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.”

Jesus is very clear when speaking to Paul and to us when he said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”  It sounds to me like this is something that Jesus is asking us to do on a regular basis.

Is Jesus attempting to bring us together as a community?  Yes.

Is he asking us to remember that he literally sacrificed his body and blood because of his love for us?  Yes. This was a choice freely made because of his love for us.

In the reading from Luke’s Gospel (9:11b-17), we hear the very familiar story of Jesus and the 5 loaves and 2 fish that Jesus turns into enough food to feed about five thousand people and still has enough left over to fill 12 wicker baskets. Jesus not only wanted to nourish the crowd with his Words, but he desired to nourish their bodies too.

We’re called to  worship together for many reasons:

• We come to church on a weekly basis to be nourished with the Word of God.
• We come to be physically and spiritually nourished with the bread and wine – the body and blood of Jesus.
• We come together to be united within a small community of believers who are a part of the universal Body of Christ.  Unity.

When we’re together, we’re complete.  When isolated from others and from God, we’re incomplete.  Like the physical body has many members, the universal Body of Christ has many members too.  Each of us is an extremely valuable member of this body!

The opening line from today’s reading from Luke says, “Jesus spoke to the crowds about the kingdom of God, and he healed those who needed to be cured.”  We provided the bread and fish, but it is God who creates the abundance to feed the crowd and still has more left to give.  In every aspect of our lives, we must contribute something, but it is God who gives what we lack.  God will provide us with what we need when we admit that we need help and want to be healed.

As humans we’re hungry for something that many of us are not satisfying with regular food (regardless of how much we eat) and regular words (regardless of how much we read).  We’re  hungry for spiritual food and spiritual words -  the Word of God. It is only through God that we are satisfied and complete.

Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.  This is the food and Word that satisfies.

Come together to be nourished. Come together to nourish others.

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This weekend we’re celebrating the Most Holy Trinity.  This week Paul tells the Romans that we have reasons to boast.  Boasting is good when our pride is the result of our faith in God.

God the Father sent us his son Jesus to show us how to live and how to love.  He showed us that we love each other when we serve each other.  Jesus showed us that through the power of faith, people were healed on a daily basis. Through faith, Jesus was resurrected from the dead.  We learn over and over again about the healing power of faith.

 After Jesus spent time on earth loving us and before he went to heaven, he told us that he would never leave us alone  and that his Father would send an advocate to be with us always – the Holy Spirit.  God is with us every day through the power of the Holy Spirit. Our role is to invite God into every aspect of our lives.

In Paul’s Letter to the Romans (5:1-5), he talks about God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. As usual, Paul is logical and upbeat as he tells us that we always have reasons to boast (to take pride in or be enhanced by the possession of) – in good times and in times of suffering or pain.

Paul reminds us that our faith leads us to peace with God through Jesus. This same faith gives us access to the gift of grace that is with us always. As Christians, our grace allows us to boast in hope of the glory of God.  We are enhanced by the possession of our faith, hope, love and trust in God.

Paul tells us to not only boast in hope, but to also boast of our afflictions.  Really? Why? 

 We know that we’re enhanced because we’re confident that:

• Our afflictions produce endurance
• Endurance builds and creates our character
• Proven character sustains our hope
• Hope does not disappoint

Why does hope not disappoint?  Because God’s love has filled our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit who is with us always.

With each cell of our being filled with God’s love, there is no room for hatred, anxiety or fear.

Through prayer and conversation with God, we’re able to continually replenish and rejuvenate our faith.  Our communion with God provides us with a never ending supply of love and hope to sustain us  through every obstacle that is placed before us.

There is no problem that it so large that it can’t be solved by God as the result of our  faith.

Christians really do have reasons to boast!

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Pentecost Sunday marks the 50th day after the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles. It also marks the birth of the Christian Church by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Living in the year 2010, it takes grace  to live as a person of faith well over 2000 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus.  Thankfully, when Jesus left earth to go back to live with his Father in heaven, he promised his disciples that his Father would send us ‘The Advocate’  – the Holy Spirit.   Jesus said that the Holy Spirit “will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.” 

Maybe it makes sense to fully embrace the Holy Spirit and  call upon this power on a daily basis?

How’s that for a gift! We have God the Father in Heaven along with his son Jesus, we have the words of God as spoken by Jesus to comfort us each and every day AND we have the power of the Holy Spirit to assist us every second of our life on earth.  By calling upon and engaging the Holy Spirit we’re promised that we will never be alone.

Once the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit, they were capable of speaking in tongues and enabled to proclaim the Good News. Regardless of what language the people around them spoke, they were able to understand God’s message as proclaimed by the apostles.  Through the power of the Holy Spirit, you and I are able to proclaim this universal message to all too.

We’ve been called to live the commandments and the first and  greatest commandment is that we love one another. The Holy Spirit gives us the power to do this every day.

What do you do when something great or exciting happens to you during the week?  Most of us are more than happy to tell everyone about whatever it was. “I got the job!.” “My daughter got into her college of choice!” “My friend has completely recovered from cancer!”

 Christians should be filled with the highest sense of Good News at all times. Why?

• God sent his son Jesus to tell us first hand of his love for us.
• Jesus spent time walking the earth and God’s Words spoken through Jesus have been written down for us to learn and use to live our lives in faith, hope and love.
• We have testimony from those who saw him after his resurrection and believe that Jesus rose from the dead by the power of God’s Spirit.
• Jesus told his disciples that he’d never leave us alone and that his Father was going to send us the Holy Spirit.
• “If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.”  You and I will be resurrected upon the death of our earthly bodies too and live forever with Jesus in heaven! How’s is that for the ultimate long-term goal?

If you and I believe these things, what do we have to be anxious about?  Nothing!

We are filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and have confidence in our heavenly future.

We’re filled with the peace and love of Jesus so it’s easy for us to share those gifts with others.

The Holy Spirit is with us always and Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit “will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”

To say that we’re fortunate  for having  received and embraced this gift is a huge understatement.  We’ve been commissioned by Jesus to share this gift with others. 

 Have fun sharing!

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This week’s Gospel is from John 14: 23-20. Please pick-up your Bible and read every single word if you could use a little dose of hope and peace.

“Whoever loves me will keep my word and my Father will love him”, is how Jesus opens these words of advice to his apostles.  This seems to be pretty straight-forward to me.  If Jesus were talking with us today he might say, “Dude, If you really do love me,  isn’t it reasonable for me to ask you to learn what I’ve shared with you and make it a part of your life?”

Have you given thought to what “keep my word” means?  In order for us to keep Jesus’ words, we must know them.  Repetition is the best way that I’ve learned to assimilate any information, especially the words of Jesus.

You probably wouldn’t have to think too hard if I asked you to come-up with a favorite phrase or two uttered by your Mom or Dad.  Why?  Because their words were repeated over the course of your childhood and imprinted into the recesses of your mind. I’m sure that this is what Jesus is asking of us.

The difference here is that we have to seek Jesus’ word because it’s very unlikely that anyone around you is sharing them with you enough for them to become learned. Daily or frequent reading of Jesus’ Father’s words will allow them to become as much a part of us as the words of our parents.  Jesus’ words however are all constructive and filled with promises of internal peace and eternal life.

From psychology, we know that we become like what we think about.  If we’ve assimilated Jesus’ words into our minds, you know who we’re going to become like.

Jesus continues by saying, ‘and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.”

We’re told in scripture that our body is the temple in which Christ resides.  Have you invited God the Father and Jesus to come and live with you in your temple? If Jesus was living within your mind, heart and soul, how much room would there be for fear, anxiety and doubt?  None. That’s exactly the point! Fear, anxiety, doubt and despair are currently residing in the space where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are supposed to be dwelling.  It’s time for some new tenants.

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you”, is found a few sentences later. It sounds to me like you and I have been given the gift of peace.  Have you received this gift? Have you opened it?  Are you resting on this gift like it’s a soft, cushy pillow? Have you allowed the peace of Christ to penetrate every part of your being and bring each cell of your temple to the light and life of Christ?

This gift has been freely offered to all who wish to receive it. “Whoever loves me will keep my word and my Father will love him.”

Keep the words of Jesus in your mind.  When they’re in you’re mind, they are second nature to you.  Peace and love are the result of inviting the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to dwell in your temple.

Make the invitation today.

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