Just have Faith

 

Friends of Faith:

Jesus said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” Mk 5:21-43

Seems so simple, but do a faith check; and a fear check and a trust check….

How are you really doing?

No matter who we are, there is some area of our life where we “fear” and/or some part of our life where we try to control the situation (so lack faith or trust.)

I haven’t written for a while partly because I have “feared” judgment; that my message would be taken politically or in judgment of another’s fear. And partly because I didn’t want to sound like I was judging another’s faith or trust.

And because of my fear it’s possible that someone else hasn’t been supported or lifted up in their own faith. That’s what being a witness for Christ is all about. That’s what having faith is all about.

What a tangled web we weave – because of fear, because of a lack of trust – or even because we are trusting in something other than God himself.

The woman who was hemorrhaging had faith enough to simply reach out and touch Jesus’ cloak and she was healed. The family of the dying daughter had enough faith to ask for her healing and she was brought back to life – from death to life.

Yes, God has that much power – to bring us back to life. But will we even take the challenge to ask?

My biggest regret looking back at the last 20 or so months, hasn’t been that I feared sickness or death, but that I lacked faith – faith enough in your responses; faith enough in the Holy Spirit so that you would hear HIS message through me. Faith enough that the Holy Spirit would guide my message so that those reading would be converted, be comforted, strengthened and given the courage to trust in their own relationship with Christ Jesus, and in his healing power.

That is what I keep learning that the devil wants – to keep us in fear; to push down our faith; to take away courage inspired by the Holy Spirit and most importantly to keep us away from the Eucharist and our communion of faith – the Church community to which we belong; where we are given strength in numbers (where 2 or 3 are gathered….)

Go. Ask for God’s healing and conversion. Do not fear. Just have faith!!!!

Blessings,

Charlotte

Faith and Culture vs Religion and Politics

 

Friends of Faith,

The Spirit continues to prompt me to write and what I realized this morning is that some of the reason I haven’t is that I didn’t want this blog (my thoughts) to become just another political point of view on our culture.

And yet, I also realize/d that my faith both challenges and forms my political view and is forming each of many very divided cultural and political views, both in this nation and worldwide.  

Recently I read an article entitled: “Why Catholics ‘should’ talk about Religion and Politics.” And I realized before I began, that unfortunately, and sadly, a Christian denomination doesn’t necessarily bring unity to our political viewpoints or necessarily even reflect what we claim as our faith, or our faith’s values and/or beliefs.

And while the culture of society has always been influenced by varying beliefs and “religions”, God’s intention has always been that HE would form, convert and transform our beliefs into what is known as the “common good” and unification -- peace and holiness, ONE HOLY BODY of all.

Instead, the devil (and sin) have been allowed a cultural influence in thousands of Christian denominations and religions (instead of one) and viewpoints so grievously wrong but far spread that they are attempting to overtake God’s very plan for life and holiness. The devil is attempting (and I believe in many ways succeeding) to divide our culture into a war; maybe not the typical war, but a war spiritual in nature. This is not a recent thing as St Paul warned us of it in Eph 6:12: “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.”

Let me get back to the beginning.

When Jesus came into this world 2020 years ago, he came to fulfill God’s promise and covenant with Abraham. Genesis 15: 1-6, 21:1-3

God had one purpose in mind for giving us His son, Jesus: to undo the original sin of Adam and Eve. (Jesus paid a debt HE didn’t owe because WE owed a debt WE couldn’t pay.) God was keeping a promise he had made centuries before to His chosen people – to save us – to allow us to be able to choose heaven, to become holy; something that Adam and Eve’s original sin had put into jeopardy.

God’s goal for us was for us to become holy: to join Him in heaven! Nothing more, nothing less – not wealth, power, material possessions or even time for ourselves – “just” holiness – to avoid the sin that separates us from him, shown by our love for Him and love for each other.

And God knew that only by the incarnation (“He Became man” Jn 1:1-5, 9-14) would that promise be fulfilled. He joined us in our humanity so that we might join him in his divinity. His son, Jesus, would (and was) needed to lead us on the path to holiness.

But Jesus’ nature is opposite of what our culture today thinks of as both leader and King. He was not handsome, or wealthy, or powerful as we know it today. And His message, the respect He and His followers were given, and even His death on the cross (as a common thief) was not what would be expected of someone who was sent here to save us.

Likewise, much of our culture today shows no respect for faith, or for a belief in God and Jesus. In fact, our faith is challenged by our culture and belief in Jesus is still quite often mocked, usually when we least expect it; by those we sometimes think or thought we should respect; many times by those within our own churches and families; and especially by those who “claim” or profess to be in charge.

The division that is apparent in our culture is a call to Spiritual Warfare. And the cause of division is the same today as it was in all of the yesterday’s past – the devil, SIN.

When we allow culture to justify sin (ie: that we can choose life, our sex, power and feeling good) over God’s intentions for holiness and the very nature by which He formed us, then we have allowed the devil and SIN to transform us instead of Jesus to convert us. And faith, culture, religion, and politics have converged to where my conversation began – awareness of a deep divide that we are failing to talk about for fear of offending each other.

And yet the “person” we are most offending is God himself.

Think about this in the next conversation you partake in. Are your words kind? Do they speak the truth – God’s truth with honesty, or do they circle around the truth so that they don’t offend? Are we speaking to manipulate or justify our actions or inaction? Or are we speaking to bring awareness and understanding that will lead not only ourselves but others to holiness? Maybe we need to bring that cliché WWJD (what would Jesus Do) more into our daily actions, prayer and decision making.

And politics and religion: If the truth of our faith doesn’t influence our culture – then remember the opposite is true: Our culture AND politics will influence and lead us astray in our faith. And if the Christian faith and truth proclaimed by Jesus doesn’t influence our decisions, who or what is?

WHO are we listening to? And WWJD?

May our conversations be blessed by our faith and God’s truth, rather than avoiding His presence. And may you be blessed by God’s influence in your life, a search for His truth, and His desire for your holiness.

Blessings,

Charlotte

 

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Friends of Faith:

Do you remember the song, “R-E-S-P-E-C-T—just give me a little Respect” by Aretha Franklin? I feel like that’s what God must be thinking as we make choices contrary to Church teaching formed by twenty century’s of guidance by the Holy Spirit in the Church Jesus left here to complete his salvation vision for all people.

“Brothers and sisters: Through Jesus, let us continually offer God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have; God is pleased by sacrifices of that kind.

Obey your leaders and defer to them, for they keep watch over you and will have to give an account, that they may fulfill their task with joy and not with sorrow, for that would be of no advantage to you. Pray for us, for we are confident that we have a clear conscience, wishing to act rightly in every respect.” Heb 13: 15-18

This verse from Saturday’s readings spells RESPECT to me and points to the issues created by the lack of respect of leaders in today’s culture.

God deserves our respect, praise and thanksgiving because everything we have is from Him: Life, the chance for eternal life given by His son, Jesus’, death and resurrection, and all that sustains our very being.

And leaders in our homes, our schools, our workplaces, and our world should be given the chance to earn our respect when we equally serve each other—each doing our part in making our homes, our schools, our workplaces and our world a better place for everyone. Our world is not something we deserve, but something God gifted us so that we would have a “space” and a reason where we could reflect His love on others.

Instead our lack of respect is shown by our self-serving individualistic natures and our perceived needs for unbridled wealth and happiness which is reflected in the divorce rate, bullying and materialism.

The reading also defines respect in terms of sharing; doing good for the other (and not expecting anything back, or expecting something for nothing); obedience to authority; and experiencing joy in having done the right thing vs giving sorrow because of criticism, blame and complaining. 

R-Right Judgment through a clear conscience. Do I have a true desire to do what is right for others? And do I give obedience to those in leadership roles: starting first with God and then with those who are entrusted to lead us.

E-Empathize! Think about where the other person is coming from and how they perceive the situation. Right or wrong, if we aren’t at least trying to understand the other person’s heart, their upbringing, and the motivation for what they do it will probably lead to sorrow rather than joy. How much “sorrow” do we create in our own homes because we fail to respect those we profess to love the most?

S-Share. It’s one of the first virtues we teach children. But as adults we can be very self serving and neglectful of doing good, sharing our time, talents and treasures with others. When we receive a shared gift given from the heart it is difficult not to respect the person giving the gift.

P-Prayer and “Please and Thank you.” (Not power, not politics--‘Nough said)

E –Expect the Best, Don’t look for the worst. (Again, enough said)

C-Character, Built on Christian values and morals.

T-Truth. Tell, Teach and Trust the Truth. Not our “relativism” truth, not culture’s truth, but God’s truth. The kind of truth you would tell if you were swearing on the bible. And be honest with yourself about your own faults. I believe if everyone was more truthful we’d have much less division, much more respect and abundant joy.

Let us give God Respect. Pray and truthfully seek to share the gifts He has given us for the good of others so that everyone can get a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Blessings,

Charlotte

Power and Equality

Friends of Faith:

First I would ask your prayers for Andy who began a seven day silent retreat yesterday as part of his orientation to Mundelein seminary where he will be studying theology for the next 4 years before his priestly ordination. Please pray that the challenge of living physically and mentally without any “outside” interference (primarily his IT devices) will lead to a deep spiritual “inside” connection to God’s call in his life.

"Thus says the LORD: Observe what is right, do what is just; for my salvation is about to come, my justice, about to be revealed.
The foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, ministering to him, loving the name of the LORD, and becoming his servants—all who keep the sabbath free from profanation and hold to my covenant, them I will bring to my holy mountain and make joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be acceptable on my altar, for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples. Is 56: 1, 6-7

Insiders and outsiders, power and equality, foreigners and citizens, the chosen and the outcasts.

Our world is a dichotomy and a struggle to have both equality and power. In order to have earthly power, control, superiority, and to be “inside” then someone else must be “outside.” It is common to give power to the governmental elite who are able to make decisions which affect my lifestyle; to let the “inside”elite set societal norms; and to feel that the “chosen” are those who have money which set the standards for what I then think I deserve.

And these power struggles in turn create a social struggle directly opposite because of our innate desire to be “equal” – to have “equal” rights, “equal”opportunity, and “equal” choices.

Reality and entertainment are challenged by our competitive nature: our desire to win, to be the best, to be the leader, to be big, and to be chosen, accepted, powerful, and righteous.

And yet in “equal” there is no winner or loser, no hierarchy of power, no big or little, no leader or follower, no inside or outside, no control over another person, no principality, no more or less, there is nothing that is deserved.

“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But the woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She said,“Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour. Mt 15: 21-28

While I might deem the most powerful person as the pope, president, king or queen or doctor; you might deem the most powerful as your boss, the mayor, even a sports team, coach or player. It depends on our context in asking the question, or even in the context of the time the question is asked.

So who really deems me “the winner?” Who do I think is the most powerful? Who really chooses me as an “insider?”

As a Christian whose ultimate goal is heaven, there can be only one answer: God! It is through him I am created equal, it is in Him I am given power. It is by Him I will be allowed “inside” and it is by Him I hope to be chosen.

HE must be first and I must be last. Will I choose to be the obedient child of the Father, with no false god’s before me? Will I give selfless, unconditional service to all others? Will I live and serve faithfully under His commandments? And will I respect those to whom God has given earthly authority?

Heavenly Father, You are the one and only power. We are created in Your image and likeness. I strive to live as Your chosen. Thank you for giving me all that I need each day. Help me to honor you by living in faithful acceptance and with the sincere trust it takes to set aside worldly inequality. Help me to accept the challenges of sacrifice and suffering so that I may be your willing witness to others. Amen.

God is the only power. And thankfully we are created equal in His likeness. I seek only to be accepted and chosen by Him. May you choose the same.

Blessings,

Charlotte

www.morningreflection.blogspot.com

In the Beginning

Women of Faith:

In the beginning… things always seem fresher, clearer, more easily definable, and it was easier to bear the burdens and sacrifices of our initial commitment.

So, it is good to look back at the beginning, because the beginning reminds us what our intent and purpose was before we were influenced by others, before we tired, and before our self-discipline was challenged.

In the beginning… our commitment is to lose weight so that we will be healthier; our commitment to God in baptism is to love, honor and serve him—as innocently and as trusting as a child; and our commitment to our spouse in our wedding vows is to overlook their faults and to love and serve them unconditionally and faithfully until death do us part.

In the beginning ….marriage was created as man and woman to be helpmates and partners of each other …. “The LORD God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him."….. The LORD God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, the man said: "This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called 'woman, ' for out of 'her man' this one has been taken." That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh.” Genesis 2:18-24

In the beginning, children were esteemed precious, a gift from God, to be protected and received by all Christians. “The disciples approached Jesus and said, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said … And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.” Mt 18: 1-5 “For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it." Mk 10: 13-16

Yet 3,000 innocent children will die today without a voice. Babies killed by abortion. Nearly ¼ of ALL pregnancies ended--over 50 million since abortion was legalized in 1973. (In comparison 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust.)

Will history say that the justices who legalized abortion under the Roe vs Wade decision were more murderous than Hitler? Will history say that we Christians allowed it to happen because we were afraid to be the voice of the unborn child. The argument has been “it’s the women’s right”! The answer is “It’s the unborn child’s right” to have the same right to be born as the mother did.

In the beginning our nation was created… “One nation, under God.”  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Declaration of Independence

And our founding father’s made this fundamental promise the First Amendment to the Bill of Rights. “Congress shall make no law disrespecting an establishment of religion, or by prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”

Yet, today the leaders of our country are disrespecting our religious conscience and prohibiting our free exercise of religion—by forcing public laws upon us that go against God’s commandments. Instead of God being allowed to be “the way, the truth and the life”--our power and our conscience—we will be publicly penalized for obeying His commandments, His laws, instead of theirs.

The HHS (health and human service) mandate which is a part of “Obamacare” dictates that ALL business must provide insurance coverage for their employees that will include abortion and contraceptive coverage--regardless of the employers religious belief/s that abortion and contraception are against God’s commandments.

Every social justice, religious, and non-profit business which serves the poor and homeless—like Christian hospitals and schools and Christian social service agencies (Catholic Charities & Lutheran Family Service)--will face tax penalties so severe that they will be put out of business if they stand up for their Christian religious “conscience” and go against public law. A Christian conscience which understands that every child is a gift from God, created in His image, from the moment of the miracle of conception.

As Christians will be rebuked for not taking a stand and speaking up as Jesus rebuked his disciples, “I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out!” Lk 19: 40 What would it be like for stones to cry out? Imagine how the God of creation, the creator of marriage, and the God of new life, will deal with those who choose to ignore “right to life,” marriage and religious freedom issues which go against His commandments.

Heavenly Father, “You are the head of every principality and power.” Col 2:10 We pray for Your grace on all Christians who fight for You. Help us to remember that in the beginning You created marriage as one man, one woman; and in the beginning it was a blessing to have “a quiver full of children” (Ps 127:5) created by that union. Convert every politician and every citizen to the understanding that You are the real power and the truth and the giver of life. Give protection to the unborn; healing forgiveness and comfort to those who believed abortion was a choice; and bless all those who care for mothers and their babies. Amen.

This is a call to Christian action: To remember our beginnings under God.

Blessings,

Charlotte