First Credit

Friends of Faith:

Last week I wrote about being blessed, and with Thanksgiving just around the corner, it seemed somewhat natural to write about being thankful…

And then this article about the Illinois tornadoes caught my attention: the headline stated that the reason so few people were killed was that they were in church…..  but then it went on  to give credit to the “connectivity” of cell phones that provided instant messages during the service; to “forecasters” for predicting the path of the storm; and to the “technology” that is used in observing weather.

So the fact that most of the town’s people were attending church, in God’s presence and protected by God became merely a “setting,” a publicity stunt for the newspaper, rather than the heart of the story.

In fact, the media did not even mention God’s name. And when the final credits were given, despite the stories attention grabbing first line, “saved because of church,” NO credit was given to God!

No credit was given to THE GOD who has given us life, originally…THE God who saved our lives, mercifully… or even THE God who we would call on to protect us, eternally.

“One day he got into a boat with his disciples and said to them, “Let us cross to the other side of the lake.” So they set sail, and while they were sailing he fell asleep. A squall blew over the lake, and they were taking in water and were in danger. They came and woke him saying, “Master, master, we are perishing!” He awakened, rebuked the wind and the waves, and they subsided and there was a calm. Then he asked them, “Where is your faith?” But they were filled with awe and amazed and said to one another, “Who then is this, who commands even the winds and the sea, and they obey him?” Lk 8: 22-25

How big is my faith?

And does my faith remind me to give the first credit, where credit is due—to the Creator, to the Protector, to the Commander of life; by the amount of time, the amount of money, and the amount of effort I spend honoring and obeying him, or is God just an afterthought, a nicety, a convenience when I am in need?

Like the media do I have more faith and reliance on man’s technology and connectivity and give the credit to “man” instead of to the person to whom it is really due—to God?

Do I honor God by spending as much of my time in His house as I do honoring celebrities at houses built by man (entertainment venues)?

Do I use as many of my gifts to take care of God’s people (donations to charitable organizations which help widows, orphans, the homeless or the hungry) as I do rewarding  myself (shopping, vacations, entertainment, eating out)?

Do I set my alarm and mark off time on my calendar to celebrate God as I would to wake up for work or to plan for a vacation or to enjoy a night out with friends?

And is my freedom to worship God less important than, just as important, or more important than, the equality and the freedom to work, live, and play with whomever I want?

Heavenly Father, You are the Creator, the Lord, the Master and Majesty of all. You are the one who gave us the power to subdue Your earth (Gen 1: 28). Help us never to abuse the power you have given us. Help me to always remember to give First Credit where it is due by saying Thank You to You. Thank you for all I am, all that I have and all that you have blessed me to do for you. Amen.

Don’t make God an afterthought – give God the honor of the First Credit (thankfulness), the respect of obedience and profit of your first fruit.
Blessings,
Charlotte

From God's Point of View

Friendsof Faith:

The readings this past week would have all fit in the condensed version of “God’s Little Instruction book for Life.”

“Cause no one to stumble in anything.” 2 Cor 6: 1 “Love your enemies.”  Mt 5: 44 “God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Cor 9: 7 “This is how you are to pray, Our Father….” Mt 6: 9 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, but store up treasures in heaven.” Mt 6: 19 “No one can serve two masters, You cannot serve God and mammon.” Mt 6: 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Lk 9: 24

Have you ever looked at your life completely from God’s point of view, using God’s instruction book as your guide?

As Christians we believe God gives us everything and that everything that is good comes from God. So why is it so difficult to choose our path in life? Why is it so easy to justify the world’s point of view? How do we look to God AND to other Christians? Would it be easy for someone else to identify us as a Christian?

Do I help others to make good choices (cause no one to stumble) or do I tell others—it’s your choice, it must be right if  so and so, ……., it is the law, or everyone else is doing it? Does our law override God’s law?

Do I forgive those who hurt me, ignore me or judge me, and do I hold grudges against those who I consider enemies? Or do I pray for them as Jesus taught us?

Do I ask what I can reward myself with or do I cheerfully give my time, talent and treasures FOR the good of others?

Is it more important to make money to satisfy my own needs or is it more important to use my money for the benefit of the whole? (Do I honor God or the world?)

Are our spiritual goals as important as our earthly goals? (God or mammon/money)

What if we made His conscience ours; gave advice as if it was his; and made every choice as if he was standing next to us? Would our life look differently than it does now?

Heavenly Father, you have given us every instruction we need to live our life to achieve the greatest reward, heaven. Help us to make your goal for us our own goal. Help us to give cheerfully, pray as you taught and teach thru your counsel. Help us to make You our only master. Thank you for all of the gifts you have given me. May I use them to serve you and others and to draw me closer to you. Amen.

No human is without sin—that is why God gave us these instructions to follow, so that we can become holy in His world (heaven). This world is our practice field, a time to train and a time to condition our hearts for Him.

God gives us His expectations. May I make his point of view my own.
Blessings,
Charlotte

Staying Focused

Friends of Faith:

With all the division of this world I often have a difficult time staying focused on my goal: God eternally in heaven. Does everything I do and everything I believe in—everyday—direct me towards that goal? (Eph 1:3-23)

I am personally pulled as to where I spend my time and money—how I honor God, serve our family, and accomplish the everyday tasks that seem to take on a life of their own. Am I putting my desires ahead of the plans God has for me? What is my focus?

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, …, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love,  may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Eph 3:14-19

Christians (and non Christian believers) are divided by their personal beliefs, the beliefs of their neighbors, and God’s truths. Do I think I fully understand God’s truths, or do I continue to learn and discern God’s teachings thru the Church even when it is uncomfortable and might mean I have to change something I have professed or have unknowingly done wrong in the past?

"There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us. Mk 9: 38-42 (Oneness, Eph 2: 11-22) (Unity, Eph 4: 1-4)

This country (and therefore each of us) is pulled between life issues (abortion & redefining marriage) and money/economics. Am I willing to stand up for life first—choosing God over money?

“No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Lk 16:13 &Mt 6: 24

Come now, you rich, weep and wail over your impending miseries. Your wealth has rotted away, your clothes have become moth-eaten, your gold and silver have corroded, and that corrosion will be a testimony against you; it will devour your flesh like a fire. You have stored up treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud; and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. James 5:1-6

The world is divided by war and conflict, conflicts of people who want to become God by gaining power over more people. Does my focus rest on using my talents and treasures to serve others (the poor, the broken, the needy), or do I look to gain power because I have these same talents and treasures?

Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward. Mk 9: 43

Heavenly Father, You have created us ALL in Your image, therefore we are ONE in You. Help me to act as ONE for you—honoring you each day by my presence in Your house, and by giving You a presence in ours. Help me to focus every minute of my day on reaching Your heavenly height, the common goal. Be a part of every decision and every priority I set throughout my day. Thank you for the many gifts and talents you have created in me, help me to use them wisely for your glory. Amen.

Where has your focus strayed from God’s promise? What choices are you making that meet your needs, not his; that choose money over life; that use talents and treasures to gain power?

Our goal should be that we each help each other get there together. Undivided and Focused!

Stay focused on God, stay focused on heaven,

Charlotte

Dull

Friends in Faith:
Are you feeling dull, bored, wanting more, something different, something new, a change?

Isn’t that how we sometimes feel with our closest friends, or even our spouses? Like we’ve heard the same story over and over again, or eaten the same meal at the same restaurant multiple times, or even gotten up to the same “tune” each morning?

Are we continually seeking someone or something new; somebody more exciting; someone with more time, more money or more things to entertain us?

How often do we fail to “see” the gifts we are given and the prayers that are being answered simply because we have “gotten used” to their presence?

Is this how we feel about Mass, Church, and the Eucharist? Are we so “used” to the blessings and the offering that we no longer see the sacrifice, the hope, and the love given?

Are we continually seeking more and more and more?

We have been graced with the gift of the Eucharist, repeated daily or at least weekly in our lives. But has that repetition “dulled” our senses for the one true gift that is the answer to all of our prayers, hopes, dreams and even sufferings; the gift that feeds us spiritually and physically; the gift that can completely fill us emotionally over and over and over again.


“Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” John 6:54-56 Wow, what can be “dull” about this promise?

In the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes ‘Jesus said to them,
“There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.”’ Mt 14:13-21

Have we forgotten that Jesus feeds us regularly so that we never need to “go away;”so that we will never “want” for anything as long as He is our strength and we allow Him to give us our “daily bread?”

Have we forgotten that Jesus also asks us to “give them some food ourselves?”

One of the things that I have learned is that giving is more fun than receiving. Giving is never dull, I never get bored in giving and every gift given presents a change, a new reaction, a new reward—possibly more for me, the giver, than even the receiver.

Is that how Jesus feels when He gives us the Spirit, the Eucharist, the grace to move forward in hope?

Heavenly Father: We are blessed by Your gifts, especially the gift of Your Son. Help me to use my gifts wisely and to be filled by the gifts that You have given me. May the gifts I share fulfill the needs of those I meet so that we will each be filled with the Spirit. Amen.

Be renewed and refreshed by the Spirit that is ever present. And then give so that others might also receive.
Blessings,
Charlotte