Look at what God has done

Mass Readings: March 31

First:	Isaiah 7:10-14
Resp:	Psalm 40:7-11
Second:	Hebrews 10:4-10
Gospel:	Luke 1:26-38

Psalm 40:7 sacrifice and offering you do not want; but ears open to obedience you gave me. Holocausts and sin-offerings you do not require;

Have you ever done something or said something that was noteworthy only to have others try to show that they have done noteworthy things as well.  They are robbing you of your credit by crediting themselves. That is the way I think we often are with God.  God has done wonderful and amazing things for us, yet we consume our energy with trying to do great things to impress Him, thereby robbing Him of the true worship that is due Him.  God said that He, Himself,  will give us a sign.

The words of the song are "Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and in fear and trembling stand"  When we truly see what God has done we realize that anything we can do pales in comparison. We need to have ears open to obedience and we need to marvel at what God has done and not try to glorify ourselves. This is true worship.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to learn to hear you and to obey with a willing heart.  Help me not to succumb to pride and be obsessed with concern about how "good" my offering is, or how "worthy" my worship is, but to stay focused on what you have done for me.

Amen

My Lord and my God!

Mass Readings: March 30

First:	Acts 2:42-47
Resp:	Psalm 118:2-4,13-15,22-24
Second:	1 Peter 1:3-9
Gospel:	John 20:19-31

John 20:28 Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"

Thomas was probably like most of us. We will believe it when we see it. Sure we follow Jesus as did Thomas. We can be as one of his disciples, teaching and preaching and trying to live a better life. But the rubber meets the road when it comes to the resurrection. This is what sets Christianity apart from other religions. God became man and conquered death for us. But do we really believe it, or are we followers like Thomas?
But praise be to God, Jesus even meets Thomas where he needs it. Thomas says "My Lord and my God" when he finally believes. But Jesus says those who believe without seeing are more blessed. Can we say that we really believe Jesus rose from the dead and that we will too?

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to really believe that I can have life eternal, that Jesus really rose from the dead in the flesh. Help this to change my life, that I will not be a follower in word only, but that my faith will be real.

Amen

Can't deny it

Mass Readings: March 29

First:	Acts 4:13-21
Resp:	Psalm 118:1,14-21
Gospel:	Mark 16:9-15

Mark 16:14 (But) later, as the eleven were at table, he appeared to them and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart because they had not believed those who saw him after he had been raised.

The religious leaders continued to rebuke Jesus' disciples for teaching the resurrection even though they themselves could not deny it.  But what about these disciples?  They didn't even believe what the others said about Jesus appearing to them. They found it hard to believe. 

We don't think about this time after the resurrection when Jesus rebukes his disciples very often.  We are always ready to criticize non-believers for their unwillingness to allow for the faith in Christ to be a part of our culture, but how often does the church itself fail to truly believe and even deny the truth and power of the resurrection.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to truly believe in the truth and the power of the resurrection. Help me to be willing to trust you in every situation and to be willing to give witness to the love, grace and power that we find in Christ.

Amen

Come, have breakfast

Mass Readings: March 28

First:	Acts 4:1-12
Resp:	Psalm 118:1-2,4,22-27
Gospel:	John 21:1-14

John 21:12 Jesus said to them, "Come, have breakfast." And none of the disciples dared to ask him, "Who are you?" because they realized it was the Lord.

I love this scene. Jesus is hosting a simple breakfast of fish and bread. He reveals who he is to the disciples by revisiting a former miracle. Then he just invites them to eat with him. There is no chorus of angels or shooting stars or trumpets blowing. It probably smelled like fish with the noise of the waves breaking on the shore.

It is hard for me to put a lot of theological significance in this event. This appeals to me more on a visual or experiential level. I love the idea of Jesus just sitting down and eating with them. In the culture of Jesus' time, eating is a time of intimacy. You didn't just eat with anybody. It was a time of fellowship. But here, after all that had happened, it is a moment of peace and refreshing. A time to get one's bearings. The stability of tradition and family and friends has value that is beyond words.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to always remember the simple yet important things. Help me to take the time to sit and eat with those who are important to me. Help me to appreciate the value not only to myself, but help me so that I can add value for others.

Amen

Repent, therefore

Mass Readings: March 27

First:	Acts 3:11-26
Resp:	Psalm 8:2,5-9
Gospel:	Luke 24:35-48

Acts 3:19 Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away,

There is a temptation in the churches today to always want to find new expressions of the Christian faith. We are always looking to see how we can appeal to the people to draw them into the faith by adding new things and by changing the music, adding programs etc...

The Bible likes to tell us of what God has said and done in the past however, and bring that to our remembrance and based on that we should repent and be converted.  The Bible says that the fathers and prophets of the faith have been for us that we might be blessed through them.  It is our history, our heritage and tradition that the Bible appeals to as the means of our conversion and the call is not to be entertained, but to repent.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to celebrate what you have done for me throughout all of  history and through the prophets and your people Israel and the Church.  Help me to repent based on these your glorious works and not based on my own likes and dislikes.

Amen

Who are you looking for?

Mass Readings: March 26

First:	Acts 3:1-10
Resp:	Psalm 105:1-4,6-9
Gospel:	Luke 24:13-35

Luke 24:16 but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.

It may be a question of science, or of belief, but I believe that what we see is effected by our expectations. Jesus says to Mary "who are you looking for" and she supposed him to be the gardener. The two men on the road walked with Jesus for some time and didn't recognize him. They didn't expect to see the risen Christ. Mary didn't expect to see the risen Christ.
In the movie the Matrix the people are in a virtual world and they are imprisoned in this world by their understanding of the rules by which the program executes. If, like the main character Neo, they can believe beyond their learned expectations, and they have a passion to do something, they can do amazing things.
Are we conditioned by this world to not see the risen Christ? Do we really believe that Christ lives? Who are we looking for? What do we expect to see?

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to see the Lord. Open my eyes to see your risen Christ. Help me to not be limited by my own expectations or lack of expectations.

Amen

Justified!

Mass Readings: March 25

First:	Acts 2:14,22-33
Resp:	Psalm 33:4-5,18-20,22
Gospel:	John 20:11-18

John 20:15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" She thought it was the gardener and said to him, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him."

Who was Mary looking for? It occurs to me that Mary may have felt almost apologetic or out of place, like she didn't belong here. Think about it for a moment, why would the gardener take the dead body out of a tomb? Well, the tomb was given by Joseph of Arimathea, a man of wealth. He would have a gardener to tend to the grounds and Mary may have thought that the gardener has taken the body of Jesus because he may not have known that Joseph donated it. She may have even had some feelings that she was trespassing.
The term to be justified means that we need not apologize. We are justified in what we do. Mary may have not felt fully justified in using a wealthy mans tomb. Jesus asks her who she is looking for? Is she looking for a dead man, or the Son of God? Does the Son of God have to apologize for anything? That is why we can be bold in our faith. He is the Son of God and He has over come death. We are fully justified in following Him. We have every right to think that Jesus can inhabit the tomb of a wealthy man or even the culture of this country we live in. As Americans, that is as Christian Americans, we need not apologize for our faith. We are justified by Christ because he is the Son of God and He has risen from the dead. Peter says to save yourselves from this corrupt generation. Don't apologize for your faith and give into the ways of the world. We must act as though we believe what we say we do.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to act boldly and faithfully, to know that I need not apologize for having faith in you, who is the Son of God and who has overcome death for me. Help me to repent and to know that I am justified by faith in you through my baptism.

Amen

Don't follow the money

Mass Readings: March 24

First:	Acts 2:14,22-33
Resp:	Psalm 16:1-2,5,7-11
Gospel:	Matthew 28:8-15

Matthew 28:15 The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has circulated among the Jews to the present.

So which story are we most likely to believe? This man was raised from the dead, or the zealots over powered the guards and took his body? It is amazing what money can do and how the truth can be hidden and distorted. It is amazing that the guards could be convinced by the money to dismiss what they saw. I would be willing to bet that the tabloid journalists of the day would more likely report that the followers of this man were trying to create a lie by stealing the body. After all, if the guards can be bought, how true could the story a resurrection be?
Praise be to God that we are not dependent merely on the stories of men who fall into corruption. God continues to find ways to get the truth out to the people. The church grew in spite of the lies that were told be the so called eye witnesses, the guards. The truth can't be hidden. Jesus says that everything that is hidden will be made known.
We have many lies in the church today and many that fall to the temptation of money, fame and power, and we can be the victims of their sins. But the holy Spirit does not rest from revealing what is true to those who will believe.

Father, thank you for the resurrection, the sign of your grace and love for us and our hope. Help me, by your Holy Spirit to always seek truth and to resist the lure of money and to seek those who are willing to tell the truth because they believe it and not because they benefit from it.

Amen

He is Risen Indeed!

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Easter Sunday

First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Gospel: Acts 10:34, 37-43 Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 Colossians 3:1-4 or 1 Corinthians 5:6-8 John 20:1-9

Christ is risen,

He is risen indeed!

Hallelujah!

That is enough to think about today.

Father, help me to see the wonder, love and hope that exist in the resurrection of our Lord.

Thanks be to God

Amen

Recount the deeds of the Lord

Saturday, March 22, 2008 Holy Saturday Night: The Easter Vigil

First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Psalm: Third Reading: Psalm: Fourth Reading: Psalm: Fifth Reading: Psalm: Sixth Reading: Psalm: Seventh Reading: Psalm: Epistle: Psalm: Gospel: Genesis 1:1 - 2:2 or Genesis 1:1, 26-31 Psalm 104:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12-14, 24, 35 or 33:4-7, 12-13, 20-22 Genesis 22:1-18 or 22:1-2, 9-13, 15-18 Psalm 16:5, 8-11 Exodus 14:15 - 15:1 Exodus 15:1-6, 17-18 Isaiah 54:5-14 Psalm 30:2, 4-6, 11-13 Isaiah 55:1-11 Isaiah 12:2-6 Baruch 3:9-15, 32 - 4:4 Psalm 19:8-11 Ezekiel 36:16-28 Psalm 42:3, 5; 43:3-4 (When baptism is celebrated) Isaiah 12:2-6 or Psalm 51:12-15, 18-19 (When baptism is not celebrated) Romans 6:3-11 Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 Matthew 28:1-10

Psalm 118:17 I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD.

A vigil is a time of waiting, watching and praying while everybody else is sleeping. This is a type of what our lives are. We are to wait, watch, and pray for the coming of the Lord and our entrance into new life with Him. Our life in Christ is in a sense a vigil. We must remember that we shall not die if we are in Christ, and we must always recount the deeds of the Lord. This is something that is lacking in the church today. We are very interested in what God is doing in our lives, but we don't take special interest in what he has done, but we are to recount these things.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to always recount the things you have done. Help me to keep the faith and to continue to wait, watch and pray in everything I do.

Amen

Let my people go

Friday, March 21, 2008 Good Friday

First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Gospel: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12 Psalm 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-17, 25 Hebrews 4:14-16 - 5:7-9 John 18:1 - John 19:42

John 18:8 Jesus answered, "I told you that I am he; so, if you seek me, let these men go."

Today's readings are so packed with significance that it is hard to take it all in. The idea that verse 8 above communicates to me though is that the people's beef is really with God.  I think that Jesus by coming and dying on the cross takes the battle to where it really belongs.  We spend a lot of time fighting and arguing with each other, but it is our fight with God that counts. Our battles only mask our fight with God.  Jesus comes and says "I am he".  In other words he says your fight is with me, so let the others go.  By sacrificing himself on the cross he spares our lives because he makes everyone accountable to him. He becomes the scape goat. He becomes the one who takes all the blame. He is the one that takes the beating. Jesus takes evil head on here.  He meets the evil one and says your fight is with me.

Every one of us has to ask ourselves if we are fighting God or if we are with him.  If we are fighting God then we are the evil and our fight is with Jesus Christ.  If we are with God, then Jesus says to the evil, let them go, your fight is with me. Jesus echos the words of Moses here when Moses goes to Pharaoh and says "Let my people go".

Father, this of all days is the most painful and yet the most important.  This is where the people divide.  Do we yell crucify, do we run away, or do we stay at the cross with your son?  Help me, by your Holy Spirit to remain at the cross with your son, so I can be one of those Jesus is talking about when he says let these men go.

Amen

Eat Drink and Live

Thursday, March 20, 2008 Holy Thursday Evening - Mass of the Lord's Supper

First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Gospel: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 John 13:1-15

Exodus 12:13 The blood shall be a sign for you, upon the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall fall upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

It is surprising to me that as Christians there are many who do not believe that the Eucharist is more than a symbolic memorial.  Even at the first Passover we see God acting based on the presence of only a lamb's blood.  Jesus says that if we eat his flesh and drink his blood he will raise us up on the last day.  In other words, when the judgement day comes, the judgement of condemnation will "passover" us.  The presence of the blood, but not just a lamb's blood, but the Lord's blood will cause God's wrath to passover us.  Seems clear enough to me.  So why all the trouble with this sacrament?  I think that we get caught up in trying to understand the cosmic physics of this and it becomes a device of pride and manipulation, and we forget or even deny it's basic purpose.  We all have different biases and aptitudes to understand things.  So we all have different ideas as to what the real physical nature of this is.  But the words of the Lord are simple and direct.  Eat my body and drink my blood and you will have life.  I think I can understand that.

Ask yourself though, if someone doubted that the blood of a lamb on the door post could save the life of a first born, and so decided not to enter into a house where the blood had been spread, would they have lived or died on that night?  Would God stay true to His word or would he allow the people to decide what is true and what isn't?

Father, many things are beyond my understanding.  Help me, by your Holy Spirit to be obedient to your words and to trust in you for the strength to endure even when I don't understand.  Help me to approach the sacrifice of your son for my sins with great reverence and with faith.  Help me to never receive your sacrament unworthily and to always seek your mercy and grace in my life in order that I can share that with others in your name.

Amen

God will not fail us

Wednesday, March 19, 2008  Wednesday of Holy Week

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel: Isaiah 50:4-9 Psalm 69:8-10, 21-22, 31, 33-34 Matthew 26:14-25

Psalm 69:8 I have become a stranger to my brethren, an alien to my mother's sons.

Today's readings are dripping with prophetic references to our Lord's crucifixion. Yet they are mostly about betrayal and separation from this world. If we are to truly identify our selves with Jesus Christ, we too must become separated from this world.  We must in a sense become a stranger to our brethren.

Judas and the Jews betrayed Jesus.  Jesus says that he does not depend on the praise of men, meaning he does not put his trust in them.  His help is in the Father's hand.  We too must not put our trust in men, but remember that our help is in the Lord.  He will not fail or betray us as people do.  And we can only truly love someone when we rise above our dependency on them because they will betray us.  This is hard to hear, but no matter how much we love someone and care for them we must always remember that they can and often will fail and betray us.  If we put our trust in God and become a stranger to our brethren, then we can see to forgive them and love them in a way we cannot when we are victims of their earthly ways.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to become more dependent on you and less attached to the world.  Help me to rise above the enslavement to the flesh so I can see clearly to forgive and be forgiven.  Help me to identify with Christ's sufferings so I can be raised with Him.

Amen

Talk is cheap

Tuesday, March 18, 2008  Tuesday of Holy Week

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel: Isaiah 49:1-6 Psalm 71:1-6, 15, 17 John 13:21-33, 36-38

John 13:38 Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.

I was watching the game show "Deal or No Deal".  The contestants always say they "believe" that they have the million dollar case, yet they always settle for a deal rather than stick it out to the end to find out if they actually have that million dollar case.

I guess they don't really believe.  They say the words because they wouldn't be a good contestant if they didn't "believe" they had the right case.  It is all part of good entertainment.  But the fact is they don't really believe what they are saying.

How often do we say we believe and if we would be pressed to prove it would "take a deal". Peter said he would follow the Lord to the death, and he eventually did, but on that very night that he was so bold he denied the Lord out of fear.  I am not sure that at that moment you could say he really believed.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to be faithful to the words we are taught to say and believe.  Help me to really believe by acting as though it is all true to me.  Yes, I believe, help my unbelief.

Amen

Spare no Expense

Monday, March 17, 2008 Monday of Holy Week

First Reading: Psalm: Gospel: Isaiah 42:1-7 Psalm 27:1-3, 13-14 John 12:1-11

John 12:3 Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.

In John's account of this story we see that the woman is Mary, Lazerus' sister. Think about it for a moment. Her brother was dead, but now because of Jesus he is alive again. How would you feel if your brother had died and then came back to life?
The cost of the ointment didn't matter at this point, or in fact it was precisely because it was so expensive that she used it. This was perhaps to show Jesus how grateful she was and how much her brother means to her. In the other accounts Jesus says that this woman is forgiven a great sin. We don't know what he sin was. Maybe it was that she barked at Jesus when he arrived too late to save her brother and that she didn't trust him. The point is that there is no ointment that is valuable enough to save when Jesus is present. He is the life and the resurrection. What could be more valuable than that?

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to always remember the value of your gift of life. Sometimes we can get rapped up in life itself and forget it's value. Help me in my faith to spare no expense when it comes to following you.

Amen

Come close with care

Sunday, March 16, 2008 Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion

Entrance Reading: First Reading: Psalm: Second Reading: Gospel: Matthew 21:1-11 Isaiah 50:4-7 Psalm 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24 Philippians 2:6-11 Matthew 26:14 - 27:66 or Matthew 27:11-54

Matthew 26:23 He answered, "He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me, will betray me.

Often times we look at how perverse our culture has become and we campaign for it's change. We criticize those who rob, kill, abuse and who commit all kinds of evils. But this week it is someone from the inside that is the betrayer. It is the people of Israel, the very ones whom Jesus comes to on this day that in a few short days will be yelling "crucify him". Yes, it is us, the ones that claim to be his followers are the ones that most likely to betray him.
It has been said that in order to really betray someone you must come close to them. When we come close to Jesus it is more important that we be careful that we don't find ourselves being the betrayers.

Father, help me by your Holy Spirit, to always take care and to remain humble in my love of your son Jesus so that I don't make my purpose more important than his.


Amen

Such was his intention

Mass Readings: March 15

First:	2 Samuel 7:4-5,12-14,16
Resp:	Psalm 89:2-5,27,29
Second:	Romans 4:13,16-18,22
Gospel:	Matthew 1:16,18-21,24

Matthew 1:20 Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord  appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.

God has promised His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.  That poses some problems when you consider the weakness of us humans.  How can we be trusted to care for God's Kingdom and not let it fail?  The answer I think is that God has plans of His own and He works in ways that we don't always expect.

Joseph thought he knew what the "right" thing to do was.  He was a righteous man. But Paul says that being righteous according to the law is not enough.  We must have faith.  Faith isn't always knowing the right answer, but it often means trusting God when we don't know the right answer, or when we don't have any answer.  God's Kingdom is beyond human comprehension. We can act in faith, but we can't have complete knowledge to manage the kingdom ourselves apart from the Holy Spirit.

Father, I often think I know the answer, but help me, by your Holy Spirit, to trust that you may have plans that don't always make sense to me or fit into my plans.  Help me to be willing to do what you would have me do, even if I don't think it is the right thing.

Amen