Given the Glory

May 25, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

Jesus, speaking to His Father, “And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one…” (John 17:20-26)

GIVEN THE GLORY: In John’s Gospel today, we are reminded once again we are part of the Body of Christ. Together, all of us – as one – make up the Body of Christ.

We have been given the glory, the honor of passing on the message of Jesus Christ. This is a tremendous responsibility. It is work that needs and deserves our attention.

I find it interesting, and frustrating, how quickly I can be distracted from this work. One minute I am focused on doing the work of Jesus, the next minute I am focused back on me.

We give many things generous portions of our day. Time at the gym, lunch with a friend, time checking out our Facebook account, watching our favorite television show…

Why is it that our “Jesus time” is usually the first thing to get cut out of a tight schedule?

When we start our day with prayer today, we should ask Jesus for an increased awareness of our responsibility to do His work. Pray we may do our fair share of the work required of the Body of Christ.

Do Not Belong to the World

May 24, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. (John 17:11-19)

DO NOT BELONG TO THE WORLD: In today’s Gospel, John distinguishes between being in this world and of this world.

We were placed on this earth. Good or bad, like it or not, we are in this world. We hold out hope for eternal life in heaven; but for now, we are in this world.

Modern society invites us to be of this world: to embrace self-centeredness, to focus on things rather than people, to lose sight of the dignity of all human beings, and to rely on ourselves rather than on God.

However, we have a choice. We have been given the gift of free will. We can make the decision to hold on to trust in God, to live out our faith, and to answer the call to love God and others.

We can make the decision to be in this world, but not of this world.

Bear Witness

May 23, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

Yet I consider life of no importance to me, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to bear witness to the Gospel of God’s grace. (Acts 20:17-27)

BEAR WITNESS: With this statement, Paul completes a 360 degree turn in the focus of his life. It wasn’t too long ago that Paul (Saul at the time) had but one purpose – to eradicate the believers in, and followers of, Jesus Christ. Their lives had no purpose, no value.

Now here we are, post-transformation, and Paul says he again has but one purpose: to finish his course and ministry and “to bear witness to the Gospel of God’s grace.” He is of such single-minded focus that now his life has no value.

Paul states a willingness to die in his effort to complete this task.

This is humbling to hear. I’m an ordained minister of the Church and have taken vows to do the work of the Church. But can I say that I am so committed, so focused, on that work that anything else, including my own life is “of no importance to me.” Would I be willing to die for this effort?

I, too, am undergoing transformation. However, it is not of the “knocked off my horse” variety. My transformation has been, and continues to be, moving much more slowly than Saul-Paul.

I have learned that I need to accept that about myself.

I am not totally committed to my faith and the work of the Church; but I am more committed today than I was yesterday. I am not as strong of a Christian man as God wants me to be; but I’m a stronger Christian man today than I was yesterday. I am skeptical that I would be willing to die for my faith if confronted with that today; but I hope a time will come when I am prepared to do so.

I have cut myself some slack. I have stopped beating myself up for being not good enough, holy enough, prayerful enough, worthy enough. However, I am of single-minded purpose: Each day I wake up with the intent of being better, holier, more prayerful, and more worthy than I was the day before.

I hope and pray, and believe in my heart, that my efforts in that regard are pleasing to God.

Spoke in Tongues

May 22, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. (Acts 19:1-8)

SPOKE IN TONGUES: The concept of speaking in tongues can be confusing. The disciples in today’s reading, and the Apostles at Pentecost, are suddenly able, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to speak the language of whoever may be listening to them.

This is very difficult to understand. I’m sure if I had asked about this as a child, I would have been told, “It’s a mystery” – the catch-all phrase used by adults when they didn’t understand something either.

Perhaps what is really going on is that the followers of Jesus, once given the gift of the Holy Spirit, had the courage to speak the universal language of Jesus Christ, the universal language of love.

When I went to Haiti, I was unable to speak Creole, the language of the Haitians. But we certainly communicated. They certainly understood a smile, a hand taking theirs, a hug, and a nod acknowledging that we were there to help them.

Filled with the Holy Spirit and motivated by the love of Jesus Christ, we are all capable of being understood. We are all capable of speaking in tongues, as long as it is the language of love.

40 Years!

May 21, 2023

Today at approximately 3:00 pm will mark 40 YEARS of marriage to Carol. That’s a long time! Over the last few weeks, I have spent quite a bit of time reflecting on the joys and struggles of marriage. I asked myself, “Given my experience, what wisdom would I offer to a naïve 23-year-old Rick as he prepared to marry young Carol Lyons?”

In no particular order, I came up with these twelve points:

1. The words of your marriage vows – “for better or for worse…for richer or for poorer…in sickness and in health…” – are REAL. You will experience everything in those vows (although I am still waiting for the “richer” part). You will have good times and bad times; you will struggle to make ends meet; you will experience sickness. Get ready for a roller coaster ride; marriage is full of twists and turns.

Your Joy May Be Complete

May 20, 2023

“Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you. Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.” (John 16:23-28)

Notice that Jesus did not tell His disciples, “…so that your happiness may be complete.”

Happiness has an expiration date. Joy is happiness on steroids. It is not something that we have to search for and it does not depend on anything from the outside world. We do not need to wait for it or hope for it. And no one can take it away from us unless we let them.

Joy resides in our hearts. The source of that joy is the love of Jesus Christ. We can access it at anytime.

We can choose joy. It is simply a matter of accepting the love of Jesus.

Go On Speaking

May 19, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

Do not be afraid. Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you. (Acts 18:9-18)

GO ON SPEAKING: There are many times that Jesus comforted his disciples with the words, “Do not be afraid.”

By saying, “Do not be afraid,” Jesus acknowledged their vulnerability. People don’t like to admit when they are afraid. They prefer to pretend they can handle anything. Yet somehow, when Jesus said “Do not be afraid,” it brought comfort. He was really saying, “I understand that you are afraid, and I am here to help.”

In today’s reading, He said these words to Paul. The Jews Paul was trying to evangelize were turning against him. His confidence was shaken. Paul feared not only rejection, but possibly violence and death.

Jesus gave him permission to be afraid, but He did not want the fear to immobilize Paul. Rather, he wanted the fear and the knowledge that Jesus will be with him to fuel his work, to give him new energy and drive.

Jesus knows that we, too, are often afraid. He tells us, as he did Paul, to go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you. We can roll up our sleeves and get back to the work of spreading the Gospel message, finding comfort in the fact that Jesus will be with us when we do.

Wedding Homily: Jorden and Zack

May 18, 2023

I had the honor of being the officiant for the wedding of Jorden and Zack last Saturday. Here is the homily I delivered prior to the Marriage Rite:

I was once asked if I preach the same homily at every wedding. My answer was “No,” —– as I try to personalize the homily for each couple as much as I can. However, there are two messages I DO repeat at every wedding because I think they are important to hear.

One message is specifically for you, the congregation. The other is a last-minute reminder for the couple.

So, I will begin by addressing the invited guests. You play a critical role in today’s ceremony. Whether you were aware of it or not, you are now acting as witnesses on behalf of the Church. You may have thought you were just here to kill time until the reception, looking forward to the opportunity to eat and drink at someone else’s expense. While I will be the first to acknowledge that nothing tastes better than free food, you have a greater calling today.

When you entered the church, you became a witness to this marriage and are one of many designated supporters of Jorden and Zack. So, what does this role entail?

Serving God

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

The God who made the world and all that is in it, the Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands because he needs anything. (Acts 17:22 – 18:1)

SERVING GOD: So God does not need us to serve Him?

God does not want us to serve Him because He needs it. He wants us to serve Him because we need it. By serving Him we fulfill our purpose on this earth. By serving Him we grow in faith and understanding. By serving Him we empty ourselves and become more like Him.

Jesus taught us that we best serve God by serving others.

God does indeed want us to serve Him, but for our own benefit and that of our fellow men – not because He needs it.

Advocate

May 16, 2023

Each day, I reflect upon a word or phrase inspired by the readings of the day. I encourage you to do the same and perhaps incorporate that word or phrase into your daily prayer.

“For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” (John 16:5-11)

ADVOCATE: In this sixth week of Easter, we continue to hear readings from John, from Jesus’ discourse with the Apostles at the Last Supper. For the last several days, the readings have alluded to the coming of the Advocate.

This, of course, refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Jesus wants to assure the Apostles that even though He will be leaving them, He will be sending the Holy Spirit to be with them, to guide them and give them a voice. They should find comfort in this. This message should give them the courage they will need.

This message should bring us comfort as well. The human person of Jesus no longer walks the earth with us, but His presence remains and is available to us at all times. We should never feel alone. We have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit. That should give us the courage we need.