Salvation’s Word is Spoken, Have Faith. By Beth DeCristofaro

Salvation’s Word is Spoken, Have Faith.       By Beth DeCristofaro

Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter

 

When Paul came to Antioch in Pisidia, he said in the synagogue:  “My brothers, children of the family of Abraham, and those others among you who are God-fearing, to us this word of salvation has been sent.  (Acts 13:26)

 

Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” (John 14:1)

 

Piety

My brother, Jesus, Word of Salvation, reveal to me ever more fully the peace and joy you place on my heart.  May my faith grow so that I act with your spirit of love and trust despite my human, conflicting, and colliding emotions.

 

Study

Orienteering is a sport which I’d like to try someday.  A topographical map, a compass, and unfamiliar terrain are the ingredients to finding one’s way to a designated somewhere.  Being immersed in nature, with no exit ramps or blinking “cheap gas” signs, sounds heavenly.  One must be confident in the ability to read a compass and to understand a map.  Also, one must be secure in the ability to achieve the physical challenge of traversing the landscape.  And there is the underlying trust that the magnetic pole will cause your compass to point true.  Like gravity or air, the magnetic north pole is a given, a relatively fixed point on the globe.  God’s silent, internal voice can be our fixed pole.

 

Jesus, again and again, asks his friends to follow him; his teachings were flagstones to step upon.  Some of these teachings include the Beatitudes, Jesus’ feeding and healing the lowest of the low and even the oppressor, stories that illustrated the kingdom of God and our, through him, relationship to the life-giving vine.  But Jesus also spoke of the mercy of a God who sends servants out into the roads to invite strangers to a feast, whose feathered wings protect like a mother bird, who loves even the lilies of the fields and tiny sparrows who live fleeting lives and a God who hunts for us in the brambles, putting us on his shoulders to bring us back to green pastures.  Why does our compass swing so widely off its mark if he has told us: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.”  We don’t find our way ourselves, but we can lose the way

 

Of course, life often puts us into a tizzy.  But to stay in that whirlpool or act from that place of fear, anger, self-righteousness, vanity is not what God, who sent us this word of salvation, wants.  What is underneath self and ego?  Can we find that word spoken on our hearts safeguarding us untroubled in Christ?  Rest there, let the waves sort themselves out. 

 

Action

St. John of the Cross, locked into a damp, freezing cell by confreres of his own order, was able to put beautiful words to the Holy Spirit’s outpouring! He was deeply united to God’s word of salvation amid his sufferings. All emotions, including less than positive reactions to what happens to us are God-given but do not need to compel our actions.

Ask Jesus to bring your attention to the word of salvation within your heart. Ask that grace reveal it more clearly. Let it grow, let it glow, and shed his light on sin, troubles or decisions in which you feel lost. Accept Jesus’ faith in God, which he shares with you, to guide you. He wants loving sweetness for me, you, and everyone.  He wants you to join him in a place he prepared for you.  (John 14:2)

 

 

Illustration:  https://olmc.us/2018/06/17/gods-garden-june-18-2018/

“Jesus Can’t Do Everything” by Colleen O’Sullivan

“Jesus Can’t Do Everything” by Colleen O’Sullivan

Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter 

The news about them reached the ears of the Church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to go to Antioch.  When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain faithful to the Lord in firmness of heart, for he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith.  And a large number of people was added to the Lord.   Then he went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch.  For a whole year they met with the Church and taught a large number of people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.  (Acts 11:22-26)

 

The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem.  It was winter.  And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon.  So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense?   If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”  Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe.  The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me.  But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. (John 10:22-26)

Piety

James Tissot, The Good Shepherd, c. 1886-1894, Brooklyn Museum, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

O Lord, with You as my shepherd, what more could I desire?  You bring me to places of rest and refreshment for my soul.  When my soul is troubled or heavily burdened, You lead me back to the path You have laid out for me.  Even when I walk through troubled times such as these, I am not overwhelmed by fear or despair, for You walk beside me every step of the way.  When I look to the future, I know You are preparing a banquet like no other and readying the oil You will use to anoint me.  May I be aware of and grateful for your goodness and mercy all the days of my life; and may I find my dwelling place with You forever.   (adaptation of Psalm 23)

Study

In the Acts of the Apostles, we’re told that after Stephen was stoned to death, the persecution of Jesus’ followers in Jerusalem intensified.  Many of them fled Jerusalem and ended up in places such as Phoenicia, Cyprus or Antioch.  The Jews who fled turned out to be very successful in their preaching to the Jews in Antioch.  It wasn’t long before they were joined by Cypriots and Cyrenians, who, it turned out, were quite good at witnessing to the Greeks in Antioch.  Word of what was going on got back to Jerusalem, and Barnabus was sent to join the ranks of the evangelizers.  He in turn traveled to Tarsus to bring Saul back to help as well. 

Jesus couldn’t do everything.    He needed followers here on earth to spread the Word to Jews and non-Jews alike. The new Church at Antioch continued to grow by leaps and bounds in its first year.  Up to this point, Jesus’ followers had been regarded as a small sub-group within Judaism.  But now, by the grace of God, non-Jews became followers as well.  For the first time, the name Christian was used when referring to all followers of Jesus’ Way. 

In today’s Gospel, it is the feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) and Jesus is walking around the Temple.  He is approached by Jews who demand that Jesus come clean about his identity.  Are you the Christ or are you not? they ask.  Jesus had more patience than I do.  He didn’t blow his stack.  He simply said, I’ve already told you, and you don’t believe.  I’ve already shown you by what I do in my Father’s name.  You simply cannot see it, because you are not part of my flock.

Here in Northern Virginia sheep are something we read about in books.  We’re not farmers.  Jesus, however, was talking to people who lived in an agrarian society.  Flocks of sheep were part of the landscape almost anywhere a person went.  Everyone knew that sheep recognize the sound of their shepherd’s voice.  Sheep never confuse the sound of that voice with that of any other shepherd. 

One thing Jesus can’t do is force us to be part of his flock.  In fact, Jesus never forces us to do anything.  He invites us to be one of his sheep, a member of his flock.  There are no prerequisites for this.  Simply become familiar with the Good Shepherd’s voice, follow it, and we will be taken care of.  We will be loved.  We will share in eternal life.  In one of his parables, Jesus even goes as far as to say that if one of us should ever get lost or stray from the others, he will leave the rest of the flock for as long as it takes to find us.

There are many other voices clamoring for attention in our world.  Voices that evoke fear about our future.  Voices that make unhealthy or unreasonable demands on us.  Voices that give us all kinds of bad advice on how to live.  The voice of the Good Shepherd stands out as the One who calls us by name, speaks to us with love and calls us God’s own.  Jesus can’t force us to join the flock.  All the Good Shepherd can do is issue the invitation.  Acceptance is up to us.

Action

The last year has been tough, to say the least.  People dying from Covid alone in hospitals without family or friends.  Morgues filled to capacity.  Funerals postponed.  Quarantines, masks, businesses closed down, churches shuttered for a time, jobs lost, hungry people looking for food for their families.  Personally, I worried for months about my brother waiting for a lung transplant in a hospital full of Covid patients.  I worried that he wouldn’t last long enough.  Thankfully, he did receive his transplant in time.  Schools and daycare programs closed down, so I again became a caregiver for my 3½ year old great nephew, whom I had taken care of for the first year of his life.  All of you can add your own experiences and travails to the list.   

I can’t imagine having lived through these past months without the support of the Good Shepherd and the entire flock.  We have all needed to hear the loving voice of the Good Shepherd encouraging us along the way.

Jesus is relying on us to be his body, eyes, hands and feet here on earth.  There are still many needs and many ways to “preach” the Gospel.  If you can take a senior citizen to get his or her Covid vaccine, that would be a small step in the fight against Covid-19.  If you are able to work at or donate to a food bank, that is fulfilling Jesus’ request that we feed the hungry.

Jesus is not able to do everything, and he asks us to step up and fill in the gap.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?search=James+Tissot+The+Good+Shepherd&title=Special:MediaSearch&go=Go&type=image

 

 

 

The “WORD” to Build on by Sam Miller

The “WORD” to Build on by Sam Miller

Fourth Sunday of Easter      

                                        

“He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.” (Acts 4:11-12)

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me and have been my Savior. I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me and have been my Savior. (Psalm 118:22, 8-9, 21, 28)

Beloved, we are God’s children now. (1 John 3:2)

This is why the Father loves me because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. (John 10:11)

Piety 

“Standing on the Promises of Christ, My King”

Standing on the promises of Christ my King,

Through eternal ages let His praises ring,

Glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,

 Standing on the promises of God.

        Standing, standing, 

Standing on the promises of God my Savior;

Standing, standing,

I’m standing on the promises of God.

Standing on the promises, I shall not fall,

List’ning every moment to the Spirit’s call.

Resting in my Savior as my All in all,

Standing on the promises of God. 

Study

Peter healed the disabled person in the name of Jesus Christ, the Nazorean crucified, whom God raised from the dead. He is the stone rejected by the builders, which has become the cornerstone. THERE IS NO SALVATION THROUGH ANYONE ELSE, NOR IS THERE ANY OTHER NAME UNDER HEAVEN GIVEN TO THE HUMAN RACE BY WHICH WE ARE TO BE SAVED.” Build on that firm foundation and stand on that Word!!

“It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.” To me, those verses emphasize the importance of the truth from the reading in Acts. Also, there is a confirming repetition in Psalm 118:21&28, “I will give thanks to You, for You have answered me and have been my Savior.” Lord, help me keep right on giving thanks to Jesus, for He IS my Savior! 

From 1 John, “…We are God’s children now…” Wow, God’s sons and daughters, by adoption through Jesus Christ, the Father’s Beloved Son, my Savior!!

The Gospel reminds me that Jesus IS the Good, the True Shepherd, the sheep belong to Him, and He laid down His life for ALL His flock. “This is why the Father loves me because I lay down my life in order to take it up again.” Faithfully fulfilling the Father’s will!! So, after fracturing the flow of the Scriptures, I see the connection!! Jesus IS the Way, the Truth, and the Life!!

Action

Please help me begin and end and live all day through focused on You, my Savior. Help me to give thanks to and for You all ways!! Amen & de Colores!!!

 

Image credit: Twitter post from Lawton Blandford (@rlawton58)