First on my Christmas List – A Gift from my Heart

It's that time of year again; and to quote the late, great Andy Williams, it's the "hap, hap, happiest season of all.” Andy is right, preparing for the beautiful season of Christmas makes us very joyful indeed. Jesus' coming into our hearts bearing the gift of love brings us a beautiful sense of peace - something our very troubled world needs desperately. As we write our Christmas cards, shop for and wrap gifts, trim the tree, and bake Christmas treats, we need to think of others who experience sadness during the Christmas season, for a variety of reasons, but mainly due to the loss of a beloved family member or friend. As I started my own Christmas shopping, tears began to fill my eyes, as I realized that my own dear father would not be on my gift list this year. This is particularly difficult as my dad was born on Christmas Day. I felt my heart breaking as I recalled the bittersweet emotion of his passing to Our Lord in Heaven in August of this year. When we lose a loved one, we are happy that they are free from their suffering, and resting in peace in the arms of our loving father God, but that peace is also accompanied by the pain of separation. Even Christ cried at the death of His dear friend Lazarus. Moments after experiencing this well of sadness, a bright light came to my suffering soul, and it occurred to me that I do not have to omit my dad’s name from my Christmas shopping list. In fact, his name is FIRST on my list. What can I give him? The best gift I can give him comes from my heart – a good deed, an extra act of kindness. I can honor his wishes by being a good daughter to my mom, and a loving sister, niece, aunt, and friend. I can perform a deed that would touch his heart. My dad will not be needing monetary things like new shirts or slippers this year, as he is celebrating with Jesus, but I am sure he will be happy with my gift, as it is a gift from my heart.  

Togetherness – A Spiritual Connection of Two Souls

When the circumstances of life separate loved ones from one another, it is comforting to know that “togetherness” is not limited to a physical experience. True togetherness is a spiritual connection of two souls. Although people miss and long for one another, they also feel great joy in knowing that even while apart, their souls remain close. God understands the tremendous sense of longing of the human heart, and to ease that pain, He brings peace and comfort to their sorrowful hearts by uniting them spiritually. And, although physically they appear to be apart, they are truly “together.”  

Take the First Step and God Will Provide the Rest

Have you ever noticed that waiting for the "right moment" to take action rarely results in success? Often the “right moment” doesn’t come because God is waiting for us to take a step. Maybe we are not using the gifts He has already given us. Notice how children are always looking for more - more presents, more dolls, more trucks, more silly bands, more video games, more apps for their electronic gadgets, etc. Often, we grownups feverishly search for more as well – more money, more time, more responsibility, more opportunities, more friends, more… We like to have all our “ducks in a row” before taking action. If only we had more time we could tackle the project we’ve been putting off; if only we had more money we could make a sizeable contribution to our favorite charity, if only we had the ideal opportunity we would seize it. Often we do not receive more because we have failed to utilize the gifts we have been given.  Maybe if we work with what we have we will be given more. If we use our time wisely, we will be given more time; if we act responsibly, we will be given greater responsibility; if we act upon the opportunities within our reach, others will come; and if we love and care for our friends, we will be blessed with more friends.

 

If we wait for the “right moment” to begin, we may wait a very long time. Take the first step and God will provide the rest.

 

When the Lord Closes a Door, We Search for a Window

“When the Lord closes a door, He always opens a window somewhere.” This familiar phrase from the movie The Sound of Music is also the running theme throughout the novel “The Trapp Family Singers” by Maria von Trapp. The von Trapp’s, whose fame skyrocketed with the release of the motion picture, were a gifted musical family whose courage and faith carried them through the brutal storms of life. Maria possessed a deep love for God as was evidenced by her own faith, trust, and perseverance in the face of tribulation.  

 

We all endure suffering, some more than others. It may seem that every door we attempt to enter is slammed in our face. Severed friendships, professional failure, financial loss, serious illness, and the romantic relationships that die on the vine can cause us to lose hope. Sometimes we feel like a deflated punching bag. But our faith tells us to trust in God.  Thus we patiently wait, and wait and wait. In our frustration we call out to God and ask, “Lord when are you going to open a window?” then His answer comes to us, “My child, I tried but your windows are locked.” When we feel that the straw has finally broken the camel’s back, we unintentionally throw up a force field to protect ourselves from further pain. However in so doing, we block out Our Lord who tries to shower us with His grace. At times all we need do is “unlock our windows”, and He will enter. However in other situations, Gods asks us to actually open the window and “stick our neck out.” He wants us to take that giant leap of faith, of course with prudence, trusting that He will be there to catch us if we should fall.

 

Risk taking is something we would just as soon avoid, for we all want to be certain that our next attempt at love, friendship, employment, or some personal undertaking will be successful. However, we all know that we may have to undergo many failures before we achieve success. If we don’t take the risks, we may never know what blessings await us on the other side. When we reflect on past mistakes and sufferings, it is understandable that we may be reluctant to take that step forward. However we need to muster up our courage and confidence and begin again. We ought to possess a compelling desire to achieve our goals but not like the vulture that takes his prey by force, but rather like the butterfly that attracts others’ with its beauty, grace and endearing persistence.

 

With supernatural optimism, confidence in our God given abilities, courage, and constancy, we will find that window of opportunity.  If the window is not open, we will simply have to open it. Life on the other side may have its share of joys and sorrows but Our Lord will be with us cheering us on and guiding our way.  He will never let us down, for even if He allows us to fall into the pit, He will reach out His hand and lead us out of darkness and into light.

 

Good Versus Evil - Living a God Centered Life in the Presence of Evil

Present in society today there exists a blatant dichotomy between good and evil. While people are generally good and try to live a God centered life, the cares of the world and the presence of evil weaken our resolve. On the one hand we are spiritually fed with God’s grace, love, and eternal truth; and on the other hand, evil lurks like a wild beast ready to trounce upon its prey, warping the human mind and endangering the soul. Evil generates from two sources: our own imperfection and inclination towards sin (due to original sin), and the direct influences of the devil. The devil does indeed exist and he cunningly worms his way into our lives infusing our minds with lies, tricks, and delusions, under the guise of goodness. His (empty) promises that material wealth, supreme power, and earthly perfection will lead us to ultimate happiness, only plunge us into despair when we realize we have been duped. At times evil seems so prevalent that it prompts us to seek seclusion in a sort of spiritual cocoon, a place where we can hide - and bask and grow in the warmth of God’s love. However, like that butterfly that eventually emerges from its cocoon, we too must leave our comfort zone and rejoin the imperfect world. This by no means suggests that Earth is doomed, but even a small amount of evil emits a deafening roar and has the potential to infiltrate the heart like a snake’s poisonous venom. Goodness, while very powerful, speaks softly, like an innocent lamb passing unnoticed. Unfortunately, people tend to listen to a loud bark over a gentle whisper.  So how do we teach others to listen to the gentle whisper...  The answer simply stated by St. Paul, drown out evil with an abundance of good – infiltrate society with the love of Christ.  We do this by inviting Christ to accompany us to each and every activity, encounter or situation of our day - work, school, shopping, entertainment, even times of rest and sleep. Others will come to know Christ through our good example and love. Little by little, evil will be overshadowed by good and thus restore faith to mankind. 

Recognizing the Voice of Our Lord – The Nature of Divine Inspiration

One week ago today love was born in a manger. Today, on the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God, we stand by the crèche along with Our Lady, St. Joseph and the shepherds to adore the Christ child asleep in His crib. It is a great joy to have Christ with us now, but what happens when the Christmas season ends on January 10th, the Baptism of The Lord. Will He be put away with the Christmas decorations? Jesus Christ remains forever close to us in the Tabernacle but also in our hearts. Quite often Our Lord places people in our paths but we often pass them by for we see with our limited human vision. In order to see others’ as Christ sees them, we must first know Him. To know Him, we must listen to the words He speaks to our hearts.

 

Christ loves us with an infinite love and calls each us by name but frequently we do not hear His voice for the cares and responsibilities of life cause us to unknowingly filter out His voice. To hear Him we must enter into the silence of our hearts where we will hear Him speak.

 

How do we recognize the voice of God?  He comes to us in many ways. Perhaps the most obvious is through spiritual advisors or trusted friends. However, He also comes in unexpected ways, in song lyrics, lines from movies or television programs, thoughts that “unexpectedly pop into our heads”, and in dreams. We shutter to think what would have been had St. Joseph disregarded his dreams as nonsensical meanderings of the human subconscious. He may not have married Our Lady, and Our Lord Jesus may have been counted among the Holy Innocents – the infant martyrs who died at the hands of Herod and his jealous wrath. Naturally, St. Joseph must have been certain that the messages he received were indeed from God or he would not have altered his own plans. Simeon and Anna through the action of the Holy Spirit, recognized the Christ child as the Savior of the World. Recall that St. John the Baptist also knew of the Savior’s birth while still in his mother Elizabeth’s womb. God sent him as the forerunner of the Christ to come so that we would recognize Him of whom John spoke.  The gospel of St. John 14:25-26, 29-30 says, “These things I have spoken to you while yet dwelling with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your mind whatever I have said to you. … And now I have told you before it comes to pass, that when it has come to pass you may believe.” The Holy Spirit awakened the thoughts stored in the minds of His disciples, and also told them of things to come.

 

Our Lord speaks to us in similar ways. Consider the common phenomenon: an old friend from our past comes to mind and minutes, hours, or days later we hear from him; or perhaps we have a thought that a letter from so and so is in our mailbox, and discover upon picking up our mail, a letter from that friend; or two close friends utter the same words at precisely the same moment. We have all experienced such happenings. Why would Our Lord speak to us of such seemingly trivial incidents? Might it be that He is teaching us how to recognize His voice? If we believe in small matters, we will receive the graces to believe in matters of greater significance. If God did not reveal Himself in this way we would likely dismiss the thoughts as figments of our imagination. He wants us to believe and thus He manifests Himself through divine inspiration. When we receive perceived inspirations we should ALWAYS pray about them for they must be tested to ascertain that they are from God.  Additionally, consultation with a trusted spiritual advisor is essential.  St. Josemaria Escriva, the Founder of Opus Dei said, “Get to know the Holy Spirit, the Great Unknown, the one who has to sanctify you. Don’t forget that you are a temple of the God. The Paraclete is in the center of your soul: listen to him and follow his inspirations with docility.” (The Way, #57.) St. Josemaria founded Opus Dei through divine inspiration on October 2, 1928.

 

Rejoice with Our Lady and St. Joseph and believe in the Child Jesus. He who is our Savior, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Prince of Peace is wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.

 

Recommended Reading:

 

In the School of the Holy Spirit, by Jacques Philippe

Christ is Passing By, Christ Triumphs through Humility, and the Epiphany of Our Lord, by St. Josemaria Escriva

Both books are available through Scepter Publishers, Inc. www.scepterpublishers.org

Works by St. Josemaria Escriva may also be viewed on-line at: www.opusdei.org

 

Preparing our Hearts for the Savior’s Birth - Maintaining Hope, Spiritual Optimism and Peace

We are nearing the end of our Advent season and the beautiful season of Christmas is near. As we patiently await the birth of our Savior, we find ourselves scampering here and there amidst the hustle and bustle of crowded stores, and traffic jams. At times such as these we must hang on to our hope for the “grinch” will try to rob us of our peace. It is very easy to get caught up in the net of commercialism; and the stress that consumes us can shake our spiritual optimism. We may find ourselves on a treadmill stuck in high gear. Consumerism is the apparent culprit, but perhaps the greater problem is a lack of faith and hope that leaves our vulnerable souls open for the enemy’s attack. At times Christmas celebrations can be “over the top” for we indulge in lavish foods, drink and jollity to the point that the real meaning of Christmas is overshadowed by the so called “finer things of life.” Eating, drinking and general merriment is wonderful providing that Christ’s birth is the reason for our happiness. Everyone tries to “get into the Christmas spirit”. A glass of eggnog, some Christmas Eve snow, and a few strolling carolers will add to the ambiance and help boost our spirits, but without Christ our parties are pointless, and superficial. How do we spread the joy of Christ’s birth when the stress of the season seems insurmountable? Perhaps if we get off the treadmill and simply contemplate the empty crèche that awaits the Christ Child, we will find the real Christmas spirit. Gaze at Mary and Joseph and imagine being in that lowly stable in Bethlehem as they wait with joy the birth of the child - the baby Jesus who comes bearing love to save us from our sins. Perhaps if we invite the Holy Family into our celebrations we will find our peace, for our hope is in The Child.  In decorating our homes, let every candle we place in our window, every ornament we hang on our tree, every carol we sing, every cookie we bake, and every gift we exchange be for Christ. Our homes should reflect His love, and our parties ought to be a joyful celebration of His anticipated coming. We should go to Mary and Joseph in prayer and ask them to help us prepare our souls to receive the Savior of the World, our King, the Prince of Peace.

 

Wishing all of you a Blessed and Joyous Christmas Filled with Hope.