Faithful

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Faithful

Grace   Peace

Bestowed   Aroused   Alert

The Time Will Come

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(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   First Corinthians 1: 3, 8 and 9

Grace to you and peace that is given to you from God and Jesus!

Jesus will keep you firm to the end, pure and alert on the day when Jesus will come again. God is faithful and has called you into community with Jesus.

Reflection

Our reading from First Corinthians reminds us that God and Jesus want to give us amazing gifts. We are filled with grace and peace.

The grace that God and Jesus give us strengthens us to follow God's way more completely and to reach out to each person we meet with compassion. I was talking with someone this week who was trying to live that compassion by reaching out to those she disagreed with. Instead of judging them, she was seeking the grace to accept them with love.

The peace that God and Jesus want to give us helps us to build peace within ourselves. When that peace grows in our hearts, we can transform our communities and our world. God and Jesus are leading us to that Peace.

In times of war we all wonder why God does not end the conflicts that we see all around us. If God wants to give us peace, why do we have war?

The peace that God wants to give us can work to end the wars we see. We have to embrace it and spread it. God and Jesus are always giving us the gift of peace; but we have to accept that wonderful gift and change the attitudes of hate and injustice that lead to war.

Jesus can keep us firm in the pursuit of peace and justice. We are called to be faithful to the message that Jesus gives us.

We know that it is not easy because we see so much war and injustice around us. We also know that God and Jesus give us the grace to overcome the obstacles that surround us. 

Jesus calls us into community so that we do not face these challenges alone. We unite with our sisters and brothers to spread the grace and peace we have been given by God and Jesus.

Paul reminds us in this reading that God is faithful. God will help us and grace us. We have to be alert to what has been bestowed on us. We have to watch for those moments of grace and be aroused by that new life that God and Jesus give us that leads to Peace. 

Accept the grace.

Spread the peace!

1. When have you felt the grace of God and Jesus in your life?

2. How do you reach out with compassion to people with whom you disagree?

3. Do you see any connection between building peace within yourself and creating more peace in our communities and our world?

4. Why do we have so many wars in our world today?

5. Do you feel God's faithfulness in your life?

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

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