Ignite

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Ignite

Cloud of Witnesses

Fire   Baptism   Division

Eyes Fixed On Jesus

Blaze

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scriptures: Hebrews 12: 1 and 2

We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.

When we rid ourselves of sin, we can persevere in running the race with our eyes fixed on Jesus.

Luke 12:49

Jesus was talking with His disciples and told them, 

"I have come to ignite the earth.

How I wish it was already blazing!"

Reflection

Have you ever felt so excited about some really good news that you just couldn't wait to share  with someone? The story ignited you and thrilled you. 

I think that must have been the experience of the apostles on Pentecost Sunday. The Holy Spirit ignited them with those tongues of fire. They could not wait to tell the people all about Jesus. 

I remember a song by the Doors that was very popular in 1967. It was called Light My Fire. It was about igniting the fire of love between a man and a woman. 

The beat was very intense, and you felt the passion between the two lovers. That feeling of course can burn out. The fire that Jesus is talking about in our passage from Luke is as intense as the feeling that the Doors are celebrating but it never fades. 

It is a fire that flows from the message of Jesus. He is calling us to love one another. Jesus knows that the power of that Love can transform us and the world. 

We know this because, as our reading from Hebrews mentions, we have a cloud of witnesses who testify to that Love. Many are witnesses in the literal meaning of that term---they are martyrs for that Love. They have given their lives because they believe that there is no greater Love than the Love that comes forth from the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

We can feel the fire of that Love within us. It has warmed us and led us to Love, especially those whom others have rejected. It is a fire that flows from our Baptism. We have been given the Holy Spirit and are called to renew the earth.

This fire is not accepted by all. Jesus warns about this and tells us that this fire, this Good News, this Love will cause division, even division within families.

Some people cannot accept that Jesus loves them. They do not believe that they are loveable. They might have been told that they are stupid, that they have no value, that they will never amount to anything. They might have experienced a lot of failure and frustration in their lives. 

Jesus is not concerned about all of that. He wants to ignite us with the fire of His Love. He knows what is in our hearts. He knows how deeply we desire union with Him. 

Our challenge is to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. There are so many distractions that we face and so many voices that want to mislead and misinform us. When we focus on Jesus and His message of compassion for others, we are ignited.

That blaze will never go out!

1. What is the best news you have ever gotten?

2. What is the fire that Jesus wants to ignite?

3. Who are some of the witnesses that have influenced your faith?

4. Why do you think that the teachings of Jesus have caused so much division?

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

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

Await

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Await

Little Flock

Prepare   Ready   Vigilant

Where Your Treasure Is

Kingdom

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara; photo from an image by Eugene Burnand---public domain)

Scripture:   Luke 12:34

Jesus was sharing with His disciples and said:

"For where your treasure is, there is where your heart will be."

Reflection

How do you feel when you have to wait a long time for something? I think most of us get very impatient. Many of us will pass on the activity or the sale and move on to another thing to do. We hate to waste time on lines.

However, some experiences are worth the wait. If there is a singer or band that we really love, we have no problem waiting all day to try to get those precious tickets. I can remember waiting on line for four hours at Madison Square Garden to attend Mass with Pope Francis as the presider. I would have had no problem waiting on that line for another four hours!

In our reading from Luke Jesus asks us to reflect on where our treasure is. When we discover our treasure, we have no problem waiting for it. Our treasure could be a special relationship, an important friendship, children, grandchildren, our time with God in prayer.

In speaking to His disciples Jesus referred to them as "His little flock". He spoke with intimacy and Love. It is obvious as you listen to the words of Jesus that He sees the disciples as His treasure. His heart is with them.

As we await a deeper encounter with Jesus each day, we are called to prepare our own hearts and to get them ready to see Jesus in each person we meet. We see Jesus especially in our sisters and brothers who are most in need---the lonely, the widowed, the orphaned, the hungry, the homeless, the refugees.

We are called to open our eyes and to be vigilant as we look for ways that we can make a difference. Our treasure is with Jesus. We want to join our hearts with His Heart. We await that deeper union that Jesus offers and that we seek.

We are invited into the Kingdom of God. We are called to repent of our selfishness and self-centeredness. We can spend too much time seeking for treasures which do not satisfy the deepest hungers of our heart. 

Jesus calls us to await no longer.

Come to Him.

He will give you all the treasure you need!

1. Can you remember a time when you had to wait a really long time for someone or some special event?

2. When have you felt that it was worthwhile for you to wait a long time?

3. Where is your treasure?

4. Do you feel that you are part of the little flock of Jesus?

5. What do you experience as you contemplate Kathy's photo of the Burnand image of The Waiting Servants?

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

Possessions

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Possessions

Spiritual     Treasures

Prioritize    Renew   Restore

Christ Is In All

Stewardship

(Phot and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Colossians 3:11

Here there is not Greek and Jew, a circumcised person and an uncircumcised person, a barbarian, a Scythian, a slave, a free person; but Christ is all and in all.

Reflection

What are your most important possessions? Are there certain items that you would never give away? Are there things that you feel you cannot live without?

Jesus always challenges us to put our love for God and for our neighbor first. We are tempted to follow the path of materialism. It seems like the American way is to have the biggest house, the latest car, the best boat, and to take amazing vacations while we complain that our taxes are too high.

We can easily get the feeling that we should just strive to accumulate as many possessions as possible. The teaching of Jesus that we should trust in God and not be attached to the things of this world is nowhere to be found.

Jesus points us away from all those material possessions and invites us to strive for spiritual treasures in their place. We have to decide what is really important in our lives. 

We know that we have to make a living and provide for our families. However, we have to avoid getting caught up in a society that always seems to want more things. We can easily become convinced that we need the latest technological innovations. When do we have enough?

Jesus invites us to prioritize the things and relationships in our lives. A complaint I hear all the time is people telling me that they have too much stuff. They are running out of room to store things. They have to rent storage units, and then they forget what is in the storage units! 

Jesus calls us to renew our spirits and not to be caught up in our possessions. We are called to give to those in need and to put them first. We restore our own spirits as we give to others. We avoid getting trapped by our desires for those things that can never really satisfy our deepest hungers.

St. Paul tells us in our reading from Colossians that we should avoid the silly boxes that we put people in. It is not important to put a label on people and name them as a Greek or a Jew. In doing that we distance them from ourselves. 

We are called to see Christ in all. Jesus has come for all and to be in all. Our constant quest for more possessions can blind us to seeing Jesus in our sisters and brothers. Is part of our present concern about immigration a worry that we will not have enough material possessions for ourselves?

Jesus is calling us to good stewardship. We should take care of what God has given to us, be thankful for it, and be willing to share it with those in need. 

All of our possessions come from God.

God has given us an amazing, beautiful, and intricate world.

Sharing this gift of creation is our joy. Getting wrapped up in a quest for more and more possessions robs us of that joy and that ability to see Christ in all. 

Thank you, Jesus, for your treasures!

1. What are your most valuable possessions?

2. How do you fight against the materialism that surrounds us in our American culture?

3. How do you try to restore your spirit?

4. What happens when we put labels on people?

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

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