Tag: #LoveHeals

Heart Work Matters!

A better world begins with us!

Today in some parts of the globe is known as Carnival Sunday. It is the last Sunday before the Season of Lent. We are in the last days before many of us will enter into a time of introspection, Heart Work! Our Gospel portion is, St. Luke 6: 39-45, and our selection for meditation is,

“The good person out of good treasure of his/ her heart produces good, and the evil person out of his/ her evil treasure produces evil; for out of the abundance of the heart their mouths speak.” Luke 6: 45

I know that I have  always heart work to do because judging others is so easy to do. But if we judge someone, how can we truly be loving to them?

Jesus calls us to look at ourselves first, then from self knowledge of  ourselves we can determine if we live out the life and message of Jesus, we can help others to do the same.

Jesus reminds us of the need to work on ourselves when He tells us,

“Can a blind person lead a blind person? Will they not both fall into a pit?” Luke 6:39

Our hearts must see and acknowledge what is going on in them, and compare them with the Heart of Jesus. The old yet important question still needs to be asked of ourselves, “What would Jesus do?” The answer to this question requires us know Jesus and have Him as the center of the totality of our lives!

As we close this last Sunday before Ash Wednesday, may we take Jesus seriously and make our world a better place through our lives!

Blessings!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/1ad6a4aa

Bring the Gift of Jesus to Each Other!

Healing is Available Though Us!

Happy Fourth Sunday of Advent!

Today our Gospel Portion (St. Luke 1: 39-45) is a wonderful reminder that we have to bring Jesus wherever we go! It will change our world and will change us too!

We read,

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zachariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Luke 1: 39-41

We have two of the most important people in Christian history interacting and this interaction speaks volumes about how we are to love each other. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, comes to assist  Elizabeth, the Mother of John the Baptist. Mary is pregnant with Jesus and upon her encounter with her cousin, Her cousin and her nephew are filled with the Holy Spirit and are transformed.

We give many gifts during these festive days, but the most important gift is the reason for the season, Jesus!

May we not lose sight of what people need during Christmas. We need the love that is Divine!

May our encounters be filled with Divine Grace! May we be transformed in love!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/033e2079

Rejoice, Christmas Is Near!

Repair Our Lives!

We are close to Christmas, the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus! And we have a Gospel Portion that challenges us to be ready to receive Him anew this Christmas.

Celebrating Jesus requires us to look at ourselves and see how our lives will welcome Him. Our Gospel Portion, St. Luke 3: 10-18, gives us St. John the Baptist’s Preparation Plan For Receiving Jesus. We read,

And the multitude asked him, “What then shall we do?” And he answered them, “He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.”

Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Collect no more than is appointed you.” Luke 3: 10-13

Sharing with those who do not have and being honest are keyways of being open and ready to receive Jesus anew.  These are very concrete steps we must take to receive the Lord Jesus. We can open our hearts if we are charitable and honest in the way that we live our lives.

It is beautiful that it is an uncomplicated way to be open to receive Jesus!

This approach is an all-inclusive approach! It is a daily approach to receive Jesus, because Jesus is always available to be born again in our lives.

We need Advent every year so that we will do what we need to do every day of our lives!

Have a fantastic 3rd Sunday of Advent!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/0d89d69b

Master, I Want To See!

Jesus wants to give us sight!

Jesus loves us and wants the very best for us. He wants us to see clearly and this is what He can give to us. There is so much in the world that blinds us to reality! We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

And Jesus said to him, “What do you want Me to do for you!” And the blind man said to Him, “Master, let me receive my sight.”

And, Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” Mark 10: 51-52
Bartimaeus was the blind person. He was a beggar and he heard Jesus was coming near. Jesus was his only hope for him to see and he reached out to Him. After he received the gift of sight, he followed Jesus.

There are things in our lives that blind us to truth. That truth is the Divine Love that we were created to share. But hate blinds us. When we realize that we are blind, then we can call out to Jesus and He will heal us! When we are healed by Jesus and we follow Him, the demon of hate cannot blind us again!

Hate is a terrible thing! We remember that God is Love (1 John 4:8). The cure for hate is Jesus! May we always call out to Him!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a46c6d7f

Let Jesus Bless You!

Believe and Trust in Him!

It is possible to miss a blessing because of unbelief. What a shame! We see in our Gospel selection of today, how unbelief in Jesus can keep us from healing. We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

And He (Jesus) could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands upon a few sick people and healed them. And He marveled because of their unbelief. Mark 6:5-6

Familiarity breeds contempt! And contempt blocks miracles. However Total Trust in Jesus allow miracles to enter into our lives!

What does this say to us as we live our lives today? Most of us know Jesus, but do we believe He can bring miracles into our lives.

Familiarity breeds contempt, but faith opens the door for Jesus to take control!

Jesus wants to bring peace and healing into our lives, but He will not force it on us! Allow Him to work the miracles He has in store for us!

Lord save us from blocking Your blessings in our lives!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/6dbcb083

 

Be Crazy in Love!

Be like Jesus!

If we love each other like Jesus loves us, we may be viewed as being crazy! Hate seems to be more normal in our world today. Perhaps it has been that way always! Jesus tells us in word and deed that this hate is contrary to Divine Culture. We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

When His relatives heard of this, they set out to seize Him, for they said, “He is out of His mind.” Mark 3: 21

The family of Jesus did not understand that Jesus’ purpose is to make the Divine present in the here and now. They would eventually understand because His relatives would continue His work after His Death and Resurrection.

Are we ready to live the Divine Culture of Love?

Perhaps we would be crazy to say yes because many of true believers get misunderstood and mistreated because others do not want the Culture of Love to reign. But for those who choose to say yes to the Divine, the peace and love and joy outweigh all of the suffering one might encounter in being true believers.

Choose to be out of one’s mind like Jesus!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

The Wedding Garment

Make Love Your Garment!

The Wedding Feast is a Love Feast!

At times our Sacred Scriptures can be difficult to understand. For example, in the Gospel of St. Matthew 22:11-12,

“But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment; and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless…”

What is the “Wedding Garment “?

In this Parable of the Wedding Party we we know that Jesus is talking about being in line with God’s Kingdom. The original guests were invited and they had their own things to do, they did not join the party. Then the invite went to everyone, and they came, but one was not properly dressed. Being properly dressed for the party is essential. Not have the “Wedding Garment” is like being present at the affair and not really being there.

Perhaps being properly dressed refers to being clothed in love!

Clothed in Love makes sense because it is a love fest! God became one of us to bring us together in Divine Love!

We can be at the Wedding Feast and not really be there, because we choose not to be love.

This is a wonderful reminder and challenge! Being clothed in love means we are Kingdom People! This is our ongoing goal, working towards it, we will always belong at the “Wedding Party “!

Pax.

The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

Honesty Matters!

Let Shalom Reign!

Our Lord is very practical about human relationships. He realized that we would hurt one another, yet he does not want us to stay in this hurting space but bring it out in the open. In openness of our feelings, with people who can be reasonable, we can find healing and move on to Kingdom Building!

Jesus says:

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.”
Matthew 18:15

Hiding hurts is not helpful, rather, they may lead to resentments. Holding on to hurts may lead to anger and outbursts that can destroy relationships. Jesus wants us to be together, to work with one another and for Shalom to reign.

Shalom, peace, can reign where honesty exists in relationships! We may do something wrong to our sister or brother and have no idea that our actions are hurtful. We can only truly know someone’s feelings if they share them with us.

Let us always be reasonable! Let us always be kind! Let us keep the peace!

And let us Stay in Prayer!

Pax.

The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

You Are The Christ!

Who Is Jesus To Us?

How We Treat Each Other Says Much!

Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of living God!”
Matthew 16:16

Jesus in our Scripture selection above asked who He was to His disciples and Peter responded that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. This was done through divine inspiration. However, Peter would have to live this answer, not always perfectly, and he would fail to live up to it, but Peter would be martyred because of his living out this proclamation.

Who is Jesus to us?

Trying to follow the Way of Jesus can be challenging. It requires a love that transcends the way of the world. As Peter ran away from the Cross, he would find his way back. We may fail too, we may run away from the Cross (by the way we treat each other), but hopefully we do not give up!

May we always return and embrace the Cross of Love!

Each interaction, each relationship with others, give us an opportunity to live our response to who Jesus is to us!

May we proclaim that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, by the way we treat each other!

Pax.

The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2