Life

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Life

Own     God's

Accept     Sacrifice      Carry

Take Up His Cross

Follow

(photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 16:24 and 25

Jesus said to His followers, "Whoever wants to come after Me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will discover it."

Reflection

How do you truly find your life?

Sometimes it can take us awhile. We search for friendship, a career, marriage, and family. 

In the midst of our searching, we stop and take time to reflect on what is the true meaning of life. Jesus points us in the right direction in this passage from Matthew.

The formula is simple: just deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Jesus. No question, as we all know, there are going to be difficulties and challenges in life. There will be times when we are misunderstood, face sickness, work to confront injustices, battle hurricanes and tornadoes, try to end wars, and deal with the loss of loved ones.

In all of these situations and many more like them, we are called to try to follow Jesus. It helps us to look at what Jesus did. He did not think of His own comfort and ease. His focus was always on being faithful to the mission that the Father gave Him. 

As we follow Jesus we "lose" our life and the focus on our own worries and concerns. We concentrate on being faithful to the teachings and the example of Jesus.  He tried to help others, to heal others, to teach others, and to inspire others. 

When we do that also, we "find" our life. We discover what life is all about----to share this amazing Love of Jesus with each person we meet. This new life fills our hearts and gives us the strength to carry our crosses and to try to overcome the obstacles that face us each day.

It is this newly found "life" that fills us with joy and hope. We realize that we are not alone. Jesus is leading!

1. What have been the most meaningful and precious moments of your life?

2. How have you been "taking up your cross" lately?

3. What do you think Jesus means when He talks about "losing" your life?

4. What do you "find" when you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)

Peter

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Peter

Rock     Key

Act     Build     Declare

Son of Living God

Continue

(photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 16: 13 to 18

Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi and asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"

They said, "Some say it is John the Baptist. Others have said Elijah. Still others have thought that it would be Jeremiah or one of the other prophets."

Jesus then asked, "Who do you say that I am?"

Simon Peter said, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."

Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. Flesh and blood has not made this known to you. It is my Father in heaven. I say to you that you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and there is nothing that can prevail against it."

Reflection

The power of a rock. We always think of strength and majesty. We pile up rocks to protect us from danger.

Peter has become that rock because of the strength of his faith. He truly believes in Jesus. He has seen what Jesus can do---He has healed the sick, He has raised up those who were dead, He has calmed storms at sea, He has multiplied loaves and fishes to feed the hungry, and He has taught the people with amazing wisdom.

Peter has seen this and heard this. He knows that Jesus is different. His encounter with Jesus has made him the rock.

Peter will be given the commission along with the other apostles to continue the mission of Jesus. He will be imprisoned and beaten as he spreads the good news. Nothing will deter him.

His faith is firm.

He believes.

His faith was tested when Jesus was arrested and crucified; but he responded with an even deeper faith and told Jesus how much he loved him. 

The tradition holds that Peter asked to be crucified upside down because he did not feel worthy to be put to death in the same way that Jesus was crucified. He had become a true rock.

It was a strength that came from his relationship with Jesus. He knew Jesus well. He experienced that Love which filled his heart.

Jesus invites all of us to be those rocks. To be strong in our faith because we are Loved!

Always!

1. What do you think of when you hear the word "rock"?

2. How did Peter become a "rock" in his faith?

3. Do you feel that you are a "rock" in your faith? 

4. How have you responded when your faith has been tested?

5. What do you feel as you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)  

Crumbs

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Crumbs

Mercy     Justice

Surpass Cultural Norms

Call of God Irrevocable

Everyone

(photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scriptures: Romans 11:29

For the blessings and the call of God are irrevocable.

Matthew 15:26 to 28

Jesus replied to the Canaanite woman who was seeking a cure for her daughter,

"It is not allowed that the food that should be given to the children is shared with the dogs."

She said, "Lord, even the dogs get to eat from the crumbs that fall down from the table of their owners."

Jesus replied, "Your faith is extraordinary! It will be done for you just as you have asked."

At that very moment her daughter was healed.

Reflection

How do you feel when you are given just a few crumbs?

We might respond by saying that it all depends on the crumbs we are getting!

In this passage from Matthew Jesus is trying to let this woman know that He must minister first to the children of Israel. As St. Paul says in Romans, the call was given to our Jewish sisters and brothers and that call is irrevocable. Jesus is focused on speaking first to the Jewish people.

This woman was a Canaanite. They were not part of the Jewish community and in many ways they had tried to distract the Israelites from their covenant with God.

Her faith in Jesus overcomes every obstacle and cultural norm. She loves her daughter and truly believes that Jesus could help her.

How did she come to that belief? The "crumbs" that she had experienced as she heard people talk about Jesus and as she followed Him fed her faith. She knew Jesus was special. 

Her story is a challenge to our faith. Do we truly believe that Jesus can heal us? 

Faith transcends the divisions that we make. Jesus looks into the heart of the person and not the labels that we might put on that person. Jesus comes for everyone.

His "crumbs" are as extraordinary as the faith of this Canaanite woman.

Enjoy them!

1. Why does Jesus say that He must first minister to the children of Israel?

2. How did the Israelites feel about the Canaanites?

3. Is your faith as strong as that of the Canaanite woman?

4. Have you received any "crumbs" from Jesus recently?

5. What do you feel as you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)

Storm

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Storm

Wind     Waves

Believe     Unseen     Reach

Step Out In Faith

Walk

(photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 14: 24 to 31

The boat that the disciples were in was being rocked by the wind and the waves.

Jesus came to them, walking on the water.

The disciples were upset! They cried out in fear!

Jesus told them to take courage: "Do not be afraid!"

Peter asked to come to Jesus and Jesus encouraged him.

Peter, however, lost courage when he saw how strong the winds were and he began to sink.

He asked Jesus to help him: "Lord, save me!"

Jesus stretched out His hand at once and caught him.

He said to Peter: "Where was your faith? Why did you doubt?".

Reflection

What do you do when faced with a bad storm?

I think we all try to be as prepared as we can; but sometimes we can be caught in a storm that comes up without any warning. That seems to be the case with the disciples in this story from Matthew.

To add to their fear, they see Jesus coming toward them walking on the water! I think everyone would panic if that happened!

You have to love the bravado of Peter in this story. He wants to come to Jesus. Unfortunately, his faith was not that strong and he quickly sank.

Again I think we can all relate. We want to follow Jesus but there are always obstacles: our pride, everyday routines and distractions, criticisms of others, our own addictions and demons, our fears.

The amazing miracle to me in this story is that none of that matters to Jesus. He just reaches out---AT ONCE---and helps Peter.

What a consolation for all of us who think it is all about our efforts and plans and dreams. It's really all about Jesus and trusting in Him.

Yes, storms will come. 

Jesus shows us here that those storms are no match for His Power----the Power of Love!

1. How do you cope with the storms in your life?

2. How would you react if you saw Jesus coming toward you walking on the water? 

3. Can you relate to Peter in this story?

4. What are the main distractions that you personally face in following Jesus?

5. What do you feel as you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)

Eyewitnesses

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Eyewitnesses

Transfigured     Coheirs

Confirm     Rise     Serve

Come Off The Mountain

Proclaim

(photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Second Peter  1:16

We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of His Glory.

Reflection

The author of Second Peter is sharing the personal experience of the Transfiguration of Jesus. Can you imagine what that must have been like---to see Jesus, Moses, and Elijah totally transformed before you?

What an overwhelming event!

And then to hear the voice from heaven telling you that Jesus is the Son of God and you should listen to Him!

No wonder Peter wanted to set up three tents on the mountain! You just want to stay there for awhile and take it all in. Amazing!

After that experience, the three apostles (Peter, James, and John) were now eyewitnesses to the reality of Jesus. They now knew who Jesus really was.

Many will say that when we say that Jesus is the Son of God, it is just a nice story that we are making up. When you are an eyewitness to the power and glory of Jesus, you know better. 

Jesus, though completely human, is also divine. This was openly demonstrated at the Transfiguration and then confirmed for all of the apostles and disciples at the Resurrection.

When they came off the mountain, they were strengthened to proclaim the Good News of Jesus. As eyewitnesses, they could not be dissuaded by doubters. They knew the truth.

We are also called to be eyewitnesses today---to experience the Love of Jesus through our encounters with Jesus in the Word of God, the sacraments, and through the community.

We come down from the mountain of our intimate encounter with Jesus and let everyone we meet know the Glory of Jesus!

1. What do you imagine the Transfiguration of Jesus was like?

2. How do you think being an eyewitness to the Transfiguration affect Peter, James, and John?

3. What would you say to a person who told you that it is just a myth to say that Jesus is God?

4. How are you called to be an eyewitness to Jesus today?

5. What do you see as you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John J. McNamara)