Return and Live!

August 16, 2008

Saturday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, each one according to his ways, says the Lord GOD. Turn and be converted from all your crimes, that they may be no cause of guilt for you. Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why should you die, O house of Israel? Ezekiel 18:30-31

“Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

Piety

Psalm 23 (For the Work Place)

The Lord is my real boss, and I shall not want.
He gives me peace, when chaos is all around me.
He gently reminds me to pray and do all things without
murmuring and complaining.

He reminds me that He is my source and not my job.
He restores my sanity everyday and guides my decisions
that I might honor Him in all that I do.

Even though I face absurd amounts of e-mails, system
crashes, unrealistic deadlines, budget cutbacks, gossiping
co-workers, discriminating supervisors and an aging body
that doesn't cooperate every morning, I still will not stop---
for He is with me! His presence, His peace, and His power
will see me through.

He raises me up, even when they fail to promote me.
He claims me as His own, even when the company threatens
to let me go. His Faithfulness and love is better than any bonus check

His retirement plan beats any 401k there is!
When it's all said and done, I'll be working for Him a whole lot longer and for that, I BLESS HIS NAME!!!!!!

Original author unknown

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/081608.shtml

Every morning gives us another opportunity to make for ourselves a new heart and a new spirit. No matter what yesterday holds, today is a new beginning. As the sun rises, the Son rises.

The kingdom of heaven belongs to the children who gaze upon the sunrise and those who are child-like in their innocence, obedience, and trust. We need to return to this pure state and put aside the distractions of adult life.

This passage from Matthew and the message from Ezekiel bring to mind the memorable lines from 1 Corinthians 13:11-12. When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things. At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.

As an adult, Paul reminds us that although we have put aside childish ways, we have not grown to perfection. We put aside childish behavior for adult behavior. Such a life still is only a shadow or image of our perfect self. We no long act with the pure innocence, obedience, humility and trust of a child who relies upon a loving adult.

We have trades one set of distractions for another. Despite our chronological maturity, we still only partially see and experience the virtues in life. As St. Paul reminds us in those passages read at so many weddings, “If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:3)

When we embrace love of God, we shall return to the perfect aspects in our humanity and to the gifts God grants to us. But we need love.

How do we do this? With a contrite and humble spirit, the psalmist counsels. Through such humility, we can retrieve a new heart and a new spirit.

Action

Why does the Bible keep telling us to give away everything we own? In this society of affluence and acquisition, that idea is hard to follow. Anyone can donate a box or two to the Salvation Army, the white elephant sale, or the Purple Hearts. But everything???

Jesus gave up everything, even the clothes on his back, as he was nailed to the cross. Because nothing we collect in this life can be taken with us.

Yet we still learn our lessons slowly. When the poet, activist and Sojourners magazine co-editor Rose Berger, spoke to my Just Faith class, said two things that stuck in my mind.

First, she said that she never bought a book or record without giving away a book or record. So she never collected items. There was always an ebb and flow to what she had in her home.

Second, she never bought anything which would make her feel hesitant to invite anyone into her home from her best friend to a homeless person she met. That way, she never fretted about anything breaking, being stolen or getting too possessive about the “things” around her.

Why not try to adopt the first of Rose’s practices? For every book, CD, movie or magazine that you buy, go to your shelves and donate one that is sitting there collecting dust and weighing you down.

As we give away all the stuff we collect in our adult lives, then we will have a better chance to be like the children who are invited to come to the Lord.