Costs and Investments

Great Day to you! It's another Friday, don't let it get by you without READING and/or LISTENING to our readings for today.

Our Gospel (Mark 8:34-9:1) for today is incredibly powerful and very clear. If we want to join Jesus and see Him face to face in Heaven, will must follow Him. We must do the hard stuff, face the persecution that will come our way, deny ourselves the temporary and worldly pleasures that present themselves to us and follow His lead.

We are being asked to count costs. We are asked to look at what really matters. Are the temporary things of this life worth more than the everlasting, and if not, isn't it time we start acting that way!?

How are you spending your time, talent and treasure? Who are you spending these with and on?

Are you working all the time, miserable to the people around you and just trying to become rich? Where is that really going to get you?

Jesus wants us to examine our hearts and consider what we are investing in. What are the things that matter most and are most worthwhile? Spend your time and energy there! Spend your time and energy on the things and people that truly matter and bring you joy! Spend your time and energy on the things and with the people that help you know Christ better and bring you closer to Him. Spend your time and energy on the things and with the people that will make you a better person!

Figure out what truly matters in this life and the next before it's too late.

What dat?

Take a few moments to READ and/or LISTEN to our Mass Readings today.

Our Gospel today (Mark 8:27-33) has 2 different focuses.

1. Who is Jesus?
2. What is His mission?

Jesus ask the apostles who they say He is. We know others saw Him as a prophet or even John the Baptist or Elijah come back from the dead! But, who did the apostles say He is, who do YOU say He is? 

God revealed to Peter that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah the Anointed One! Yes, they saw miraculous things, but John and Elijah did amazing things as well. God had to reveal Jesus to them. He will reveal Jesus to you too if you seek to know Him!

Once the apostles knew and understood who Jesus was, it was time for them to learn what His mission was. Jesus told them all the awful things He must go through up to His death and then glorious resurrection, but they didn't want to hear or understand it! Peter even tried to rebuke Him because He didn't understand that this was the will of God. 

There will be times of suffering and many challenges we will face in this life, but our time on Earth is temporary and any suffering in Jesus name will be worth the eternal rewards we will receive. If we want to truly follow Christ we will have to submit to God's will, all of it, not just the stuff we like! Jesus didn't want to suffer, be humiliated and die the most painful of deaths, but He knew it was God's will and God's will and plans are bigger than anything we can see or understand. 

Continue to seek Jesus, find and know Him! Submit to God and know that our eternal reward is worth any temporary suffering and pain on Earth.

Fuzzy at First

Take a few moments to READ and/or LISTEN to our mass readings today.

Our Gospel today (Mark 8:22-26) is the same story we read last week, but from a different author with a few more details.

A blind man is brought to Jesus begging for his sight back. Jesus takes the blind man away from the crowds to heal him. He puts a little spit on his eyes, laid hands on him and asks if the man can see. The man can see shapes, but they are still not clear ("I see people looking like trees and walking").

Jesus puts His hands on the man a second time and the man can see clearly!

Why does the man's sight not get restored on the first shot? What are we suppose to be learning or gaining from this story? Perhaps we are to understand that things may not always seem clear at first but if we continue to trust Jesus and have faith, things will be made clear.

The more time we spend in prayer and in The Word, the more clearly we will begin to see and hear God's Word. He will continue to show himself and open our eyes, but we have to keep seeking and continue to have faith through the process.

Don't ruin the loaf

Happy Valentine's Day. Be sure to READ and/or LISTEN to our readings today.

In our Gospel (Mark 8:14-21), the apostles find themselves so concerned that they forgot bread for their trip that they totally miss the message Jesus has for them. They are super concerned about only having one loaf of bread, it is as though they totally forgot they saw Jesus feed over 5,000 people with only 5 loaves (with a bunch leftover), and they saw Jesus perform a similar miracle for over 4000 people! Do you do this? Do you forget God's amazing provisions for you?

Jesus warns the apostles to guard against the "leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."

Leaven can transform dough. It doesn't take much to make a big impact. We don't want to allow ourselves to be ruined by a little bit of the wrong influence.

When I worked with youth we talked about baking brownies and adding just a teaspoon of dog poop to the mix. Not one of the students said they would be willing to eat one of those brownies (the truthful ones anyway). They recognized that just that little bit of dog poop would ruin the entire brownie!

Be on guard! Be aware of the influences around you. Don't allow yourself to be ruined! Don't lose sight of Jesus and His constant provision.

Do you need a sign?

It's another Monday and another fresh start if you need one! Get in The Word and READ and/or LISTEN to our mass readings today.

In today's Gospel (Mark 8:11-13), the Pharisees were arguing with Jesus and wanted to test Him by demanding a sign from God. It seems a little absurd that they were demanding a sign from our ultimate sign, right?

How often do we do the same thing, though? We want a sign, yet miss them every day. There is proof and evidence of God and His love all around us, yet we miss it? We don't see or feel His presence among us. Why? Are we not seeking it? Are we not allowing ourselves to get quiet and listen?

He makes His presence known to us in many ways. He reaches us through His Word, when we read it and when we hear our priest proclaim it. Sometimes He makes His presence known through the people He puts in our lives.  We don't get to pick and choose How He will show himself, we just need to have faith that He is there and will show Himself when we seek Him with all our heart.

You will not be turned away

It's another Friday! READ and/or LISTEN to our mass readings today.

In our Gospel, Mark 7:31-37, we continue to see Jesus perform miraculous healing!

Jesus takes a deaf man with a speech impediment, who was brought to him for healing away from the crowd. When they are alone Jesus puts his finger in the man's ear, and spitting, touched his tongue, then prays to God in heaven and the man is totally and completely healed! He can hear and speak with no difficulty.

We continue to see over and over and over again throughout scripture that Jesus doesn't turn away anyone who earnestly seeks His help. Do you approach him with an expectant faith? Do you boldly go to Him with confidence?

Nothing is impossible for God, "So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help." ~ Hebrews 4:16 (NABRE)

Testing Faith

READ and/or LISTEN to our mass readings for today!

Gosh I dislike saying that I don't like a passage of scripture, but man do I struggle with this one!

Our Gospel is found in Mark 7:24-30. I don't like this passage because it feels like Jesus is putting off or ignoring a woman desperate for His help. Part of what makes this feel even ickier to me is that the woman is a Gentile and not one of the "Chosen" people. Then, to top it off, he compares her to a dog!?

Was Jesus just testing this woman's faith? That is the best I can come up with, because this is not characteristic of Him. I know the dog reference would have been one understood in it's time, but I still don't like it.

Through this, the woman did not lose faith. Even though it appeared she was being put off and not heard, she persisted.

Do you persist when you feel like you aren't being seen or heard? Do you lose faith because Jesus doesn't answer right away or doesn't answer as you expect Him to?

This woman's love for her child and faith that Jesus could heal her child brought about true and everlasting healing! This woman was rewarded and honored for her faith. Jesus will not turn away those who earnestly seek him, so keep seeking, even if you feel like he doesn't hear you.