MY FAITH EXPANDS MY LIFE

 

When our Christiaan faith is actually lived (that is much beyond a label that we use to identify ourselves) we discover how the spiritual teachings of the Gospels actually shapes and challenges our life journey.

 

At this point in our history there is concern that mankind has become so powerful that we will not need a lot of human beings to produce the things we need. And there is a real fear that AI (artificial intelligence) could actually start a war without any human beings in control. 

 

There is concern that we could lose a part of the dignity that makes human beings so wonderful. 

 

The population of the world is shifting. Never before in the history of humanity have  so many people moved into a country that they were not born in. Migration is a fact of life.

 

I want to thank the workings of the Spirit of God to reroot us once again in the creation story. This is not some pious teaching story from the past but a powerful tool to shape our personal lives and the way that we structure our Canadian society.

 

The roots of our creation story is that God has created human beings (male and female) in the very image of God. Each human being is an expression of the Creator. Each human being carries within themselves the very value that they are living image of God. 

 

I am so thankful that our Christian teaching moves me to try to see and value the very image of God in every human being I encounter. No one is  more valuable because they can work and be productive in their careers. No one is more valuable because they are capable of being the best soccer player in the world.

 

My Christiaan faith challenges me to see that value in the other each and every day. I must never limit my appreciation of the other based on their physical strength, their intelligence and their self -reliance. 

 

I am challenged to see the other as the loved creation of our loving God and as a sister or brother of equal worth.

 

Christian faith has powerful challenges and incredible rewards when I live and treat the other as the very image  of God.

 

Thank you, Gospel religion, for expanding my vision and my heart. When I live the actual teaching of my faith, I am a more sincere human being.

MISTAKES COME WITH BEING HUMAN

Crea

No one wants to make a mistake. 

 

But making mistakes is as necessary to life as breathing. 

 

How many times have you had to work with people who “make the same mistakes over and over again?  But you can’t tell them anything because they know better! 

 

Right from very early age we experiment, we see if the stove is actually hot! Our little hand touched the hot stove! Ouch! We never do that again! We have learnt something new.

 

Now this continues right to the end of life. In our very senior years we may think that we are still very competent drivers. Then, ouch! We back into a parked car and leave a dent in a stranger’s vehicle. If we are honest with ourselves, we will draw the correct conclusion to this fender-bender.

 

But it is also important in our teenage years that we get ourselves into trouble. We are caught in a very difficult situation. Now, this may be a time when we have to figure our way out of this mess that we brought on ourselves. 

 

What a lesson learnt!

 

As we enter into the spiritual life we want to teach people that we will make mistakes. We can be too demanding of God: “Get us out of this sickness! Or other sufferings and confusion!

 

We may have abandoned the practice of daily prayer only to be confronted that we are out to “Use God.” We are in trouble and so we cry out as a man falling off a cliff cries out for help. 

 

We may be blind to how judgmental we really are toward people who do not share the same color, culture and history that we do. We can be blind to the ‘racist spots” in our personality. 

 

The spiritual life is an actual journey of ups and downs. Try to see what can happen when we are honest about our mistakes, our failures and missteps. Where is the direction that the Holy Spirit is giving in these mistakes?

 

Fortunately, we are living in a time when our church is being more honest about its failure to live up to Gospel teaching. Last month Pope Leo asked for forgiveness for the failures of the Church in its long history with slavery.  It has taken six centuries to come to a n honest assesment that the people of the Church were very wrong in their approval and practice of slavery. And it took six centuries to come to this honest assessment.

 

Take a few moments to see the blessings that have emerged in your own life in r egard to the mistakes you have made.  

HUNGER FOR GOD’S JUSTICE

Whenever a believer draws closer to the living God, that is, they live in a face-to-face relationship with God, they also draw closer to their fellow human being. What is happening here?

 

Now, much of all religions will be cultural. This means we do religious things because that is what we are  supposed to do in this culture. There is a lot of going-through-the-motions in all of the world’s religions.

 

When a believer draws closer to the very life and heart of God they experience in their own lives a growing love and compassion for their fellow human being. The relationship with the outpouring God, i.e., the Trintiy, motivates them to be outgoing towards others. As God is Father and creator of all, so now others become our sisters and brothers. Authentic religion always expands our heart, our world view and our society.

 

This is where the hunger for justice for others grows and matures. It first arises from a heart that shares the compassion and goodness of the holy Trintiy. How we live in God and the Holy Spirit within us flows to service and care for others.

 

Focus on the hungers that emerge from your own heart when you reflect on what God is doing and moving within your life.

 

Pay attention to the concern you feel when you go grocery shopping. Prices have increased 26 percent in the last five years. But wages, especially the wages at the bottom, have not increased. What is it like to be a single parent , trying to provide proper nourishment for your children, when your budget gets tighter every year.? Now, what kind of hunger , i.e., compassion, do you feel in your heart when you consider the people who shop for groceries but are at the bottom end of the wage scale?  How much of the concern for these parents comes from the Holy Spirit?

 

Canada has accepted many refugees (displaced people who had to flee from an unsafe country in which they were born) during the past twenty years. You reach out to help them get settled, learn Canadian business practices and get their kids into school. Where does this concern for displaced people come from?

 

Spend time listening to the hungers within your soul for others. These hungers  are so often God-given. The Spirit of God can move within us – but sometimes it is painful when you see your fellow human being suffer.

 

What hungers for justice and compassion do you experience?

 

 

FAITH IS ALWAYS A SEARCH

If you have ever went hiking in the mountains you will agree that every turn can be something new. You keep walking but the wildlife and the scenery are enjoyable. It is always new!

 

There were moments where I just asked fellow hikers, “Just sit down and enjoy this!” Now the truth was that there was another beautiful surprise that would capture our attention in the next little while. But just stop! Don’t miss this one; it is so beautiful!

 

Now our life our faith is a walk, a journey, with our God. The very Spirit of God is moving in all parts of the earth – and every human person. God is alive and moving within us. Our task is to pay attention and always ask  “Where is God in all  of this?”

 

True to the journey of life there are always ups and downs. We may go through some hard patches of life, some very difficult struggles with believing and trusting in God. There may be moments when we want to give up on the whole God-project. Throw it all in! Quit!

 

Authentic faith is always a search for the ways that God is moving in our life and through the mess of the world events. You never have God nailed down and under control.

 

We try to image the very life and spirit of God as a bird. Now, here in Saskatchewan try to control a flock of sparrows! They move and fly where they will move and fly. Every movement of the wings of a sparrow is always a surprise.

 

Noone controls God. 

 

Search and pay attention.

 

When the Sunday liturgy is prayed correctly it is always the people of the Church taking a small chunk of the Scriptures and asking, “What does God want to communicate to us today?”  It will always be new because God is not stationary and the situation of the world is always on the move.

 

Faith is always searching for God. Faith is always listening to the movements of God in the life of our country, our family and within our own soul.

 

How do you know and live with God today?

 

NAME YOUR HUNGER FOR GOD

 

Some years ago two moose hunters  in Northern Saskatchewan got lost in the forest. They wandered up and down the cut lines looking for a road. They walked all day and into the night. This was November so darkness came early. Somewhere after six o’clock they stumbled on the camp of two other moose hunters. They had not eaten since early morning. The two men in the camp sadly told the lost hunters, “ All we have is just two burnt wieners.”

 

The hungry and lost hunters said, “You have never tasted such good wieners!”

 

We need to feel the pain of hunger to appreciate how good food actually tastes. 

 

This is the same in the spiritual side of life. We must get in touch with our hunger for God to appreciate how powerful it is to believe and to pray in the mystery of God.

 

The worst thing that happens in our spiritual life is when people feel secure that they know what God wants and they are living pretty good lives.  Religion has a built -in trap that can block the reality of God in our daily lives. 

 

If you do not experience spiritual hunger you will not find God.

 

When you get stuck, parked in a long line of traffic, because the highway has been blocked off until a serious accident up front is cleaned up, you ask in frustration, “God get me out of this mess!” You are not in control and you feel such a need to have God just close by in all your impatience.

 

Your sister, whom you talk to several times a week, has just received the unexpected diagnosis of stage four cancer. You are devastated. In pain and tears you cry out to God, “Why is this happening to someone in the forties? How will we handle this cancer?”

 

There are  so many moments in our lives when we are tossed down, confused and feeling powerless. This is where we feel our hunger, our need, for the presence and the helping hand of God.

 

These are the moments when we are hungry for God. This hunger is most often a deep pain in our lives. We know that we need God’s assistance.

 

This is where the little ones of this world can be so honest. They cannot control what happens in life and they cannot control the movements of God. But it will be out of their pain and confusion (i.e., their hunger for God) that they will cry out for help and courage from God.

 

Today give a few moments of reflection about your own hunger for God.

Where in your life do you feel a deep hunger for God?