You never know how God will use you. Your intentional movement in love and goodness in the little things, impacts the people around you. It makes a difference. It’s imperceptible at times, but it’s happening. A tiny flame lifts the heavy lid of night.
Dear Friends, for this week, it seems most appropriate to have our dear Holy Father, Pope St. John Paul II continue to accompany us. As our father, he speaks these words to you today.
Even when there isn’t any perceptible sound around you, you can hear it. Sometimes it’s clear, sometimes it’s not. It can sound like background chatter in a dull and steady sort of way, or it can stream out in strong spurts and the cacophony of sound can overpower you. Sometimes it is very quiet. You can sense it more than you can actually hear it.
St. Thérèse’s feast day is right around the corner. For those who do not know her, she is a saint of our times. Often, we think of saints as people who lived a long time ago. People who received extraordinary graces. People who are “holy”, which can’t possibly be relatable to me. Wrong. St. Thérèse would be the first person to tell you that you’re wrong!
In an instant, the world can change. In a short period of time, we received word of a dear friend needing unexpected heart surgery, a baby being born, a friend going into a coma, a couple separating, a new job starting, a world view changing, experiencing new avenues of self-knowledge.
No one is exactly who they think the are, who they perceive themselves to be. Ask ten of the people closest to you, especially those who work closely or live with you for their raw unfiltered thoughts about you. I think we can say with a degree of surety that there will be elements of what they say that may be surprising, maybe even shocking at how they perceive you. How can who they say you are be you?
The realization that all things change is a fact of life that often continues to surprise us. We get comfortable, become accustomed to the concentric circles moving around us, perceive our lives to be stable and simply forget that life can change in a moment
For many of us, this day means a day of relaxation, enjoying family, hosting a BBQ, watching fireworks or setting off some yourself, enjoying company, eating good food, a day of rest. Yes, it can be and is all these things.