Godly Men

"Find a guy who loves your heart more than your looks. Who guides you when you stray from God. Who will lay under the stars worshipping with you or will stay awake just to pray for you. Wait for the guy who pursues you, who values your thoughts, who wants to show the world the joys he is blessed with. Who isn’t ashamed of the truth. Who is most attracted to you when you’re on fire for the Lord and insists that He can hold you tighter than he can. The one who constantly reminds you of Whose you are and how blessed he is to share relationship with you. The one who turns to God and says “thank you so much for her." ~Brian Beesley

Vote Catholic

Do you consider yourself politically literate? Politically active? Distinctively Catholic?

2012 marks a year of presidential election, pivotal Congressional races, and likely votes over same-sex marriage and for a new governor in the state of Washington. Plenty of other issues will be debated and positions contested in the coming months. These things matter. They shape our society.

Recently, someone helped me discover a great Catholic website for being an informed voter. If you want to know what the Church says on key issues and candidates, here's a great place to start: http://www.catholicadvocate.com/category/2012-election/. Read it. Research it. Pray it. Be informed.

Does this sound like anyone you know?

Does this sound like anyone you know?

A young man resistant to the Catholic faith. He doesn’t ever seem to get it. What’s the point?

His devout mother pushing for Baptism and Confirmation, praying unceasingly for her fallen-away son. A sensible father who wants a great education for his son, even if it comes at the expense of his son’s faith upbringing. The priority, his dad says, is to give the boy every chance at wealth and influence.

The young man grows up studying science, learning about the vastness of the universe, and growing to understand himself as a sexual being.

College comes. He goes away to study philosophy and be enlightened. What little faith he has diminishes further as he discovers the many ways reason trumps the existence of God. Religion, he comes to believe, is a useless relic that serves to pollute minds, start wars, and divide people.

As a young adult, he finds himself a woman he thinks he loves. He moves in with her. They have a son. It is a civil marriage if not a sacramental one. They live together but don’t share much other than physical intimacy. The relationship eventually ends. Not long after he starts a new romance. Same pattern. Same result.

He jokes often with friends that his prayer to God is this: “Grant me chastity, but not yet.”

The true love of his life is his career. An articulate, powerful speaker, he uses his rhetorical abilities to quickly rise up the professional ladder. He is an excellent student and after undergraduate studies are complete, he earns a PhD within a few years. Armed with a number of fine mentors, the man is discussed as a possible candidate for political office if his career arc continues.

In fact, he rises to a top academic position by his mid-thirties. But he is unfulfilled. His mother’s pleas take root. Anguish over his lifestyle sets in. He swears off women. He is confused. He doesn’t know what he believes anymore. It is a full-blown mid-life crisis.

And in the depths of his struggle, St. Augustine of Hippo finds God. He finds what he is missing in the Bible, in the Church, in the sacraments. He is finally baptized, much to his mother’s delight, after she has been praying for this his entire life. He leaves his career, pledges a life of chastity, and is ordained a priest four years after his conversion. He writes some of the most influential works in Church history. He serves as a bishop for over 40 years. He speaks about his struggles with a chaste life while still having a strong sex drive, but he remains faithful. He becomes a living model for teachers of the faith, lost causes, sons for whom mothers pray endlessly, and seemingly hopeless individuals.

He is an ordinary man who discovered an extraordinary love for God only after battling with his inner thoughts and reeling and stepping back from his life to ask the fundamental questions of human existence. We need God, he realized. And that led him to pen his most famous line: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you, O Lord.” Only a man who struggled so deeply could say it so profoundly.

Does this sound like anyone you know? Maybe there’s a bit of St. Augustine in each one of us.

Be Satisfied First

Everyone longs to give themselves completely to someone,
To have a deep soul relationship with another,
To be loved thoroughly and exclusively.
But to a Christian, God says, “No, not until you are satisfied,
Fulfilled and content with being loved by me alone,
With giving yourself totally and unreservedly to me.
With having an intensely personal and unique relationship with me alone.
Discovering that only in me is your satisfaction to be found,
Will you be capable of the perfect human relationship,
That I have planned for you.
You will never be united to another
Until you are united with me.

Exclusive of anyone or anything else.
Exclusive of any other desires or longings.
I want you to stop planning, to stop wishing, and allow me to give you
The most thrilling plan existing . . . one you cannot imagine.
I want you to have the best. Please allow me to bring it to you.
You just keep watching me, expecting the greatest things.
Keep experiencing the satisfaction that I am.
Keep listening and learning the things that I tell you.
Just wait, that’s all. Don’t be anxious, don’t worry
Don’t look around at things others have gotten
Or that I have given them
Don’t look around at the things you think you want,
Just keep looking off and away up to me,
Or you’ll miss what I want to show you.

And then, when you’re ready, I’ll surprise you with a love
Far more wonderful than you could dream of.
You see, until you are ready, and until the one I have for you is ready,
I am working even at this moment
To have both of you ready at the same time.
Until you are both satisfied exclusively with me
And the life I’ve prepared for you,
You won’t be able to experience the love that exemplifies your relationship with me.
And this is perfect love.

And, dear one, I want you to have this most wonderful love.
I want you to see in the flesh a picture of your relationship with me.
And to enjoy materially and concretely the everlasting union
Of beauty, perfection and love that I offer you with Myself.
Know that I love you utterly.
For I am God. Believe it and be satisfied.
~ St. Anthony of Padua

What are you giving up for Lent?

Do you need ideas for what to give up this Lent? Here are a couple articles from Life Teen to get you started:

http://lifeteen.com/weird-lent-ideas-that-will-make-you-holier/

http://lifeteen.com/what-to-give-up-25-creative-ideas-for-lent/

Whatever you give up, make it a challenging and worthy sacrifice. Giving up small luxuries reminds that God provides all we need and then some. We are dependent on the source of all life. Choose something that reminds you every day of that reality. May the Lord give you peace on your Lenten journey!

Ashes

The best advice for how to receive ashes today as we begin Lent.

Ash Wednesday and Lent in Two Minutes

Prayer for Today

Dear God,
On this day I ask You to grant this request…
May I know who I am and what I am,
Every moment of every day.
May I be a catalyst for light and love,
And bring inspiration to those whose eyes I meet.
May I have the strength to stand tall in the face of conflict,
And the courage to speak my voice, even when I’m scared.
May I have the humility to follow my heart,
And the passion to live my soul’s desires.
May I seek to know the highest truth
And dismiss the gravitational pull of my lower self.
May I embrace and love the totality of myself…
My darkness as well as my light.
May I be brave enough to hear my heart…
To let it soften so that I may gracefully
Choose faith over fear.
Today is my day to surrender anything that stands
Between the sacredness of my humanity and my divinity.
May I be drenched in my Holiness
And engulfed by Your love.
May all else melt away.
And so it is.

Wear Your Seatbelt

Adoration & Bible Study Tonight

The Lord Be With You! The readings for the Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time are:

READING 1: Isaiah 43:18-19, 21-22, 24B-25
Thus says the LORD:
Remember not the events of the past,
the things of long ago consider not;
see, I am doing something new!
Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
In the desert I make a way,
in the wasteland, rivers.
The people I formed for myself,
that they might announce my praise.
Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob,
for you grew weary of me, O Israel.
You burdened me with your sins,
and wearied me with your crimes.
It is I, I, who wipe out,
for my own sake, your offenses;
your sins I remember no more.

READING 2: 2 Corinthians 1:18-22
Brothers and sisters:
As God is faithful,
our word to you is not "yes" and "no."
For the Son of God, Jesus Christ,
who was proclaimed to you by us, Silvanus and Timothy and me,
was not "yes" and "no, " but "yes" has been in him.
For however many are the promises of God, their Yes is in him;
therefore, the Amen from us also goes through him to God for glory.
But the one who gives us security with you in Christ
and who anointed us is God;
he has also put his seal upon us
and given the Spirit in our hearts as a first installment.

GOSPEL: Mark 2:1-12
When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,
it became known that he was at home.
Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them,
not even around the door,
and he preached the word to them.
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,
they opened up the roof above him.
After they had broken through,
they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic,
"Child, your sins are forgiven."
Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,
"Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming.
Who but God alone can forgive sins?"
Jesus immediately knew in his mind
what they were thinking to themselves,
so he said, "Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
'Your sins are forgiven,'
or to say, 'Rise, pick up your mat and walk?'
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth"
-he said to the paralytic,
"I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home."
He rose, picked up his mat at once,
and went away in the sight of everyone.
They were all astounded
and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this."

Reflection
Read through the Gospel a few times for this Sunday. First, read through it and put yourself in the position of the paralyzed man’s friends. What would it be like to carry a paralyzed man on a mat through the town? How do you think they felt when they saw how crowded it was? How did they get the courage to climb up onto the roof? How do you think they felt when they watched their friend get up and walk?

Now read through the Gospel again, this time imagine yourself in the position of the paralyzed man. What would it feel like to have your friends carry you through town on a mat to bring you to Jesus? What do you think the paralyzed man expected to happen? Did it matter? Was he just along for the ride? There wasn’t much he could do about anything was there? When you think about it, it didn’t really matter what he thought or believed did it? If that was the case imagine how he felt when he stood up and walked!

Now read through the Gospel one more time, this time as it pertains to you, as you are today. What do you hear? What does it mean to you? How does it call you to change your life? Does it?

Join us Thursday @ 7:00PM in Adoration of our risen Lord, then Bible Study following!

THE DUDE ABIDES Jn 15:4
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not want to understand, no explanation is possible.

Jim Krieger
Lay Mystic

Puns for Educated Minds

1. The fattest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. He acquired his size from too much pi.

2. I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian .

3. She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.

4. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class, because it was a weapon of math disruption.

5. No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.

6. A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.

7. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.

8. Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.

9. A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall. The police are looking into it.

10. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

11. Atheism is a nonprophet organization.

12. Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other: "You stay here; I'll go on a head."

13. I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.

14. A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said: "Keep off the Grass."

15. The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.

16. The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.

17. A backward poet writes inverse.

18. In a democracy it's your vote that counts. In feudalism it's your count that votes.

19. When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.

20. If you jumped off the bridge in Paris, you'd be in Seine .

21. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, "I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger."

22. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says, "Dam!"

23. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.

24. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One said, "I've lost my electron." The other said "Are you sure?" The first replied, "Yes, I'm positive."

25. There was the person who sent ten puns to friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did.

Love Is

This poem is by Laura, one of our own youth, and reminds us the power love has in our lives, especially on this special day meant to celebrate love itself.

Love is the purest, perfect light,
Love is kindness, gleaming white.
Love is the joy that we can see,
Love is the source, it is the key.

Love is the butterfly's gentle wing,
Love is the crown that crowns the king.
Love is the sunshine that shines on the creek,
Love is the courage that braves the weak.

Love is the child's very first smile,
Love is the laugh that's been left out a while.
Love is the puppy's strongest bark,
Love is the artist's stunning art.

Love is the rain that comes pelting down,
Love is the snow that covers the ground.
Love is the sun that shines for the day,
Love is the light that shows us the way.

Love is our food, it is our drink,
Love is the way we move, live and think.
Love is our souls, it is like perfect art,
Love lives in our minds, our thoughts and our hearts.

People Watch You

The Lord be with you!

I have been thinking lately about how the consequences of my actions effect others when I evangelize my faith and the Church. Then the Holy Spirit revealed this story to me.

Several years ago, a preacher from out-of-state accepted a call to a church in Houston , Texas . Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride the bus from his home to the downtown area. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him a quarter too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself, 'You'd better give the quarter back. It would be wrong to keep it.' Then he thought, 'Oh, forget it,it's only a quarter. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a 'gift from God' and keep quiet..'

When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the quarter to the driver and said, 'Here, you gave me too much change .'

The driver, with a smile, replied, 'Aren't you the new preacher in town?'

'Yes' he replied.

'Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I'll see you at church on Sunday.'

When the preacher stepped off of the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, 'Oh God, I almost sold your Son for a quarter.'

Our lives are the only Bible some people will ever read. This is a really scary example of how much people watch us as Christians, and will put us to the test! Always be on guard -- and remember -- You carry the name of Christ on your shoulders when you call yourself ‘Christian. ‘Watch your thoughts ; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits..Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

THE DUDE ABIDES Jn 15:4
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not want to understand, no explanation is possible.

Jim Krieger
Lay Mystic

World Youth Day Logo Unveiled

Who wants to go to Rio in 2013 for World Youth Day?

The Flesh

"The problem with our sex-saturated culture, then, is not that is overvalues the body and sex. The problem is that it has failed to see just how valuable to body and sex really are. Christianity does not reject the body! In a virtual ode to the flesh, the Catechism proclaims: "'The flesh is the hinge of salvation.' We believe in God who is creator of the flesh; we believe in the Word made flesh in order to redeem the flesh; we believe in the resurrection of the flesh, the fulfillment of both the creation and the redemption of the flesh."
~Theology of the Body for Beginners, Christopher West

Adoration & Bible Study Tonight

The Lord Be With You! Here are the readings for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time:

READING 1: Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,
"If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch
which appears to be the sore of leprosy,
he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest,
or to one of the priests among his descendants.
If the man is leprous and unclean,
the priest shall declare him unclean
by reason of the sore on his head.
"The one who bears the sore of leprosy
shall keep his garments rent and his head bare,
and shall muffle his beard;
he shall cry out, 'Unclean, unclean!'
As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean,
since he is in fact unclean.
He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp."

READING 2 1 COR 10:31-11:1
Brothers and sisters,
Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,
do everything for the glory of God.
Avoid giving offense, whether to the Jews or Greeks or
the church of God,
just as I try to please everyone in every way,
not seeking my own benefit but that of the many,
that they may be saved.
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

GOSPEL MK 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched him, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning the him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.

Reflection
As we reflect on the readings for this Sunday let’s remember if you are a leper or if you come in contact with one, you're not "looking good" enough to do your ritual duties. The issue is not contagion as a threat to physical health. (The condition here called leprosy wasn't contagious; leprosy as we know it didn't enter the Middle East until later.) It's that you have to be fit to come before the holy God, fit even on the outside.

Then with Paul writing to the Christians in Corinth, questions came up that, from our distant vantage point, seem bizarre. One such question was, "Is it OK for us to eat foods that have been previously used in pagan worship rituals?" Apparently the thrifty pagans sold or took home what the gods did not consume; a Christian could find himself shopping in a market or invited to a home where such goods were offered. In prior verses Paul has told them of course they cannot participate in pagan worship, but of course they can later buy or eat such food "without raising any question of conscience." But if someone objects "That food has been offered to idols," the Christian is to refrain, not because the idols mean anything, but in order not to scandalize the other person.

As we enter into the sacred teaching of John Paul II through The theology Of The Body in upcoming weeks, let's reflect on imitating Christ in respect to what we were created to do and be. God works from within. That is why we are called to participate in the divine nature of God, not from outside of God. Putting people “outside” our culture instead of “inside” is contradictory.

We Christians are 2,000 years old. How much older do we have to be before we're old enough to turn the outs in this world into the ins Jesus intends them to be?

Join us Thursday @ 7:00PM in Adoration of our risen Lord, then Bible Study following!

THE DUDE ABIDES Jn 15:4
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not want to understand, no explanation is possible.

Jim Krieger
Lay Mystic

Catholic Post Its

 

Former Soccer Star Training For Priesthood

This story comes from thepostgame.com and is written by Martin Rogers. See it in its original form here.

Phil Mulryne used to share a locker room with David Beckham, had a reality TV star girlfriend, and enjoyed all the trappings of being a Manchester United soccer star.

Yet just three years after seeing his career cut short by injuries, the 34-year-old has embarked upon a remarkable career that has taken him far away from the bright lights, big crowds and celebrity lifestyle of a modern soccer player.

Mulryne, who grew up in Northern Ireland and spent his playing career in England, recently moved to Rome -- not to transfer to one of the Italian capital’s famous soccer clubs, but to undergo training to become a Catholic priest.

His extraordinary story was revealed by former teammate Paul McVeigh, who played with Mulryne after he moved from United to Norwich City, and is now a popular media pundit.

"Unfortunately Phil struggled with injuries towards the end of his career," McVeigh said. "(He) decided to stop playing and move back to Belfast and try and decide what he'd do with the rest of his days. To my amazement, and most likely to the rest of the footballing fraternity, Phil decided to train to become a Catholic priest.

Continue reading...

Age to Age

I like this one. The simplicity speaks to me. Almost an Indie quality to it, which is very different for Hillsong.

Saints Alive!

The next meeting of Saints Alive! will be Friday, Feb. 17, when Fr. Jim Northrop from St. Brendan Parish in Bothell will join us as we discuss Discernment. Bring your questions and spend your Friday evening talking with Fr. Jim! We meet at Holy Family Parish in Kirkland from 7:00-9:00 p.m. in the Holy Family Room of the Youth Center (the northernmost building on the block), 7355 120th Ave. NE, Kirkland. Saints Alive! Eastside is a regional group for high school teens in grades 9-12 (ages 14-18) who wish to delve more deeply into our Catholic faith through the saints, prayer, Scripture, and discussion of interesting faith-related topics. A priest is present at each meeting to give a teaching and facilitate the conversation. Come join us and meet other teens who want to discuss their Catholic faith! For more information contact Julie Linde at ejlinde@earthlink.net or 425-488-8538. We are now on Facebook, too!

Adoration & Bible Study Tonight

The Lord Be With You!

This Sunday is the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

READING 1 JB 7:1-4, 6-7
Job spoke, saying:
Is not man's life on earth a drudgery?
Are not his days those of hirelings?
He is a slave who longs for the shade,
a hireling who waits for his wages.
So I have been assigned months of misery,
and troubled nights have been allotted to me.
If in bed I say, "When shall I arise?"
then the night drags on;
I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.
Remember that my life is like the wind;
I shall not see happiness again.

READING 2 1 COR 9:16-19, 22-23
Brothers and sisters:
If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,
for an obligation has been imposed on me,
and woe to me if I do not preach it!
If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,
but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.
What then is my recompense?
That, when I preach,
I offer the gospel free of charge
so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.
Although I am free in regard to all,
I have made myself a slave to all
so as to win over as many as possible.
To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak.
I have become all things to all, to save at least some.
All this I do for the sake of the gospel,
so that I too may have a share in it.

GOSPEL MK 1:29-39
On leaving the synagogue
Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.
They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.
Then the fever left her and she waited on them.
When it was evening, after sunset,
they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.
The whole town was gathered at the door.
He cured many who were sick with various diseases,
and he drove out many demons,
not permitting them to speak because they knew him.
Rising very early before dawn, he left
and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, "Everyone is looking for you."
He told them, "Let us go on to the nearby villages
that I may preach there also.
For this purpose have I come."
So he went into their synagogues,
preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole of Galilee.

Reflection
"If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it!" I Corinthians 9: 16

Mark hands us today's topic on a silver platter. It jumps out at us as we proclaim the last paragraph of Sunday's Gospel reading.

The first Evangelist begins his Gospel by describing Jesus' initial days of public ministry (Mark 1:29-39). Jesus starts by announcing God's kingdom is at hand, calls his first four disciples, goes into the Capernaum synagogue where he exorcizes a demoniac, then ends up at Simon's house in time to cure his mother-in-law, and eventually sticks around through the evening when he "cured many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons...."

What a beginning! Did you notice this time he made sure not to let the demons speak so as to reveal him, “not permitting them to speak because they knew him”?

No doubt at this point his followers have press conferences set up and TV interviews scheduled. But as we hear at the end of our liturgical passage, Jesus has other plans. "Rising very early before dawn, He left and went off to a deserted place where He prayed."

Jesus Unscripted
It's important to note that throughout his Gospel Mark only has Jesus pray when He's under "messianic stress" - when He's trying to figure out what kind of Messiah He should be.

We can surmise from Mark's Gospel that the historical Jesus wasn't handed a divine script for the next 30 years. Like Job, Paul and all of us, He was expected to work out His own destiny.

Jesus faces a huge temptation that morning. He can go back to Capernaum where "everyone is looking for you," or leave town and preach in "the nearby villages."

If He decides to do the former, He'll probably live a full, rewarding life, dying in bed peacefully with His admiring family and friends gathered round.

If He opts for the latter, He runs the risk of going "one village too far," a village like Jerusalem where He'll stay alive only five days after He enters its gates.

Marcan scholars often remind us that the Greek vocabulary he employs in this passage is only found in one other place in his Gospel: the agony in the garden. The Evangelist implies Jesus had more than one "agony." This is His agony "in the deserted place."

Like all of us, Jesus reaches a point in His life in which He can continue doing "God's work" in a secure, sustaining environment. Yet He agrees to respond to a call to go beyond that peaceful existence. God is calling us as well to this "beyond."

Going Beyond
We especially see some of this beyond in today's I Corinthians passage (9:16-19, 22-23). Paul not only responds to God's call to "preach the gospel," he goes beyond: "When I preach, I offer the Gospel free of charge so as not to make full use of my right in the Gospel."

He doesn't ever want anyone to accuse him of "being in it for the money." He deliberately makes himself "weak to win over the weak." Paul's convinced that some will never have the opportunity to be saved if he doesn't go beyond what he's expected to do.

On the other hand, if we do only what's expected of us and no more, we run the risk of identifying with Job (in 7:1-4, 6-7), asking, "Is not our life on earth a drudgery?...If in bed I say, 'When shall I arise?' the night drags on."

We presume both Jesus and Paul discovered that when they chose to go beyond, life was never as secure as it was before, but it certainly wasn't boring.

Join us Thursday @ 7:00PM in Adoration of our risen Lord, then Bible Study following!

THE DUDE ABIDES Jn 15:4
For those who understand, no explanation is needed.
For those who do not want to understand, no explanation is possible.

Jim Krieger
Lay Mystic

Do you hear me Father?

This poem is by one of our own teens from EAS. It was published on the website TeenInk.com. Read it in its original form here.

Do you hear me Father?
When I question my every belief
From the world we walk, to the air we breathe,
are you listening?
What is this hesitation in the search of your grace
to fulfill Penance, Sacraments and healing,
our devotion to see your face

I question the question
The masses of people ask
when they fill the pews
to attend the Mass
of your word.
But none of your teachings
can seem to be heard, through
empty voices too loud, too weak,
to hold our prayers
We are too proud to strip down our layers
for you

And when the priest delivers words of well wishing,
We wish to ask what it means to be Christian,
Coins of hope, dropped in a well of indecision,
are we too blind, or are we searching for vision?
Is our minds too numb to believe
we stand up from our seats and turn to the door
and with it we leave,
your lessons left on the floor

It might be that I’m to slow to ask “What could’ve . . “
Before I begin to ponder
What are we afraid of?
the castle in the sky?
Why are you walking away?
from this inviting place.
Is it our very own faith?
that has us walking away.
God can’t be replaced
in his heart we are safe
And yet we cannot understand,
we don’t want to know

Tonight, you say to yourself,
“I’m not going to pray”
Every night, every day
The same thing you say,
Why are you pushing him away?
But you don’t
Because in that morning, that feeling is betrayed
as your thoughts are displayed
to him

It’s now, the mists of my confusion, clear
your voice is sent ringing through my ears,
my trust found you in a rush of waves
and my barriers shifted,
they cracked,
and they caved

When Sunday rolls around, you walk into the pew
You’re kneeling, knees on the ground praying.
Remember, just like Jesus prayed for you
with knees on the cross, to free us from sin
His love is within, for
Love is God, and my love is in him

Do you hear that Father?
I am listening.