“Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.” (1 Ch. 16:8)

What are the chances that 102 pilgrims sailing from Plymouth, England in 1620 would encounter two English speaking Indians on the North American continent?  These Indians, named Samoset and Squanto, became instrumental in the pilgrims’ survival.  They helped the pilgrims learn how to plant corn, catch fish, and trade with friendly Indian tribes. 

Was God looking out for the pilgrims?  Apparently the pilgrims thought so.  At the end of the summer of 1621, after building new dwellings, planting and harvesting food to get them through the next winter, the pilgrims were “brimming over with gratitude” and Governor Bradford declared a day of public thanksgiving in October.  (The Light and the Glory by Peter Marshall and David Manuel.)

As our National Day of Thanksgiving approaches this week, I pause to reflect on some of the blessings for which I am deeply thankful: God the Father and his son Jesus Christ who love me and offer to dwell in me through the Holy Spirit and give me purpose in loving and serving the people in my life; a loving wife of 61 years and a mutual love that grows deeper each year; a family of five children and their families that include 13 grandchildren who are believing Christians and enjoy one another’s company; an adult daughter with Down syndrome whose bright smile, hugs, and inclination to love shows the rest of us the face of God; and Christian friends from the People of Praise community, Christians in Commerce, St. Mark Catholic Church, and our neighborhood who would take a call at 3:00 A.M. if the need arose.

This list does not mean we are exempt from trials and temptations, for who can escape them in this world.  But we share the God of the pilgrims who calls us, strengthens us, and upholds us.

What are you thankful for?  Make a list and offer it up to God in thanksgiving.

“What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51)

This was Jesus’ question to Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who was sitting beside the road as Jesus was passing by.  Bartimaeus had cried out to Jesus despite efforts by the crowd to shut him up.  When Jesus heard his cries for help, the Gospel of Mark tells us that he stopped and called Bartimaeus to him and asked the above question.  Bartimaeus said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”  Jesus said, “’Go, your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.”  (Mark 10:46-52)

How would you respond if Jesus asked you the same question, “What do you want me to do for you?” 

Over the years I have asked Jesus for guidance in making decisions, for healing for others and myself, and for his blessings on our family and friends.  This has included a major career decision impacting both my career and family; the healing of an advanced and aggressive form of prostate cancer and its subsequent recurrence; post-career decisions on what activities and ministries to participate in upon retirement; and the day-to-day response to life’s challenges and opportunities. 

Sometimes the response is not as quick as Jesus’ healing of Bartimaeus.   Marilynn and I prayed for each of our children to marry Christian spouses and raise Christian families.  While his response evolved over time, he certainly answered our prayers.  We asked Jesus to bless our daughter, Emily born with Down syndrome, so she could be a source of joy and love to our family and others.  A couple of years ago he gave her a ministry of serving coffee and cookies after weekday masses.  She loves greeting people with a hug and handing them a cup, and they love her in return.

Jesus is always available.  Sometimes I mess up and forget to ask him, and the result usually reflects my lapse.    

How would you respond if Jesus asked you what he could do for you?     

A large crowd had gathered to listen to Jesus, but as evening approached the disciples suggested that Jesus send them away to get something to eat.   Instead, Jesus took five loaves and two fish that the disciples had and multiplied them to feed a crowd of more than five thousand. (Mt. 14:13-21)

This was not the first time that the disciples’ actions had the unintended effect of separating people from Jesus.  On another occasion, the disciples tried to protect Jesus by preventing people from bringing their little children to him, but he said, “Let the children come to me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Luke 18:16) In another incident, the disciples rebuked Bartimaeus and told him to be quiet as he shouted out to Jesus to heal his blindness. Jesus ignored their efforts, called Bartimaeus to him, and healed him.  (Mark 10:46-52) And yet again, the disciples told Jairus, who had asked Jesus to come and heal his daughter, not to bother Jesus after word had come that his daughter had died.  But Jesus went on to raise his daughter to life.  (Luke 8:49-50)

How often do we unwittingly seek to separate others or ourselves from Jesus?  The possibilities are numerous — letting our kid’s soccer game or an invitation to play golf on Sunday morning get in the way of attending church; sleeping in and missing a time we had set aside for prayer; being a bad example to our children on an issue of integrity; holding on to anger and refusing to forgive another for some slight or wrong.  Even though we may not realize it, all these examples tend to build separation between God and us or others.  Any kind of sin tends to drive a wedge between us and God. 

Rather, our actions should be like the friends of the paralytic who carried him on a mat and tried to lay him before Jesus so he could heal him.  When they could not break through the crowd to get to Jesus, they carried the paralytic up on the roof, removed the tiles and lowered him down on his mat in front of Jesus.  When Jesus saw their faith and the efforts to which they had gone, he healed the paralytic and forgave him his sins. (Luke 5:17-26)  

One of our prime responsibilities as Christian parents is to introduce our children to Jesus.  We should encourage them by our word and example to grow in their faith so that they will be able to live out that faith in their own lives.

How often do we unwittingly seek to separate others or ourselves from Jesus? 

“We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22)

St. Paul made this statement after being dragged out of the city of Lystra and stoned.  He and Barnabas had been preaching the good news there when Paul saw a man who had been crippled from birth.  Paul perceived that the man had faith to be healed and asked him to stand up.  He did and started walking and jumping around.  The people were amazed, but then some people came from Antioch who were jealous of Paul and won over the crowd.  They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking him dead. 

Paul recovered from his stoning and returned to Lystra, strengthening the disciples, encouraging them to remain true to the faith, and making the above statement. (Acts 14:8-20)

There was resistance to building the kingdom of God in Paul’s day and there is resistance in our day.  Christians around the world are encountering ever increasing resistance and persecution in the Middle East, Africa, China, and parts of what was once considered Christendom.  In our country, we find increasing hostility to God’s natural law and scripture-based beliefs in traditional marriage and life, including the life of unborn babies.      

We should not be surprised by these trends for Jesus warned, “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” (John 15:20) But he also said, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt. 5:10)

The Holy Spirit took this small group of apostles, who ran in fear at Jesus’ arrest, and turned them into bold spokesmen for Jesus and the kingdom of God.  They and their successors overcame one of the most powerful and longest lasting empires the world has ever seen and brought the kingdom of God to millions of people in most of the known world. 

This same Holy Spirit is available to us today.  Perhaps we and our circumstances are different from the first disciples, but the Holy Spirit is not.  The same power to build and advance the kingdom of God is available to us just like it was to Paul and the first disciples.  Yes, there will likely be hardships as Paul mentions, and perhaps even persecution. 

But this is what the love that is central to the kingdom of God is all about – sacrifice, the giving of self, and the laying down of one’s desires for the love of God and others.  It may run counter to our nature, but it is a higher calling that God has for each of us – building God’s kingdom with the people and circumstances in our lives here and now. 

Are you willing to experience persecution to advance God’s kingdom?

How often do we sell God short in minimizing the effect of our prayer or actions?

St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians declares, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work in us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus.”  (Eph. 3:20-21) Paul is praising Jesus for doing more in and through us than we can ever imagine if we will only rely on him in our prayers and actions with the people and circumstances in our lives.

After experiencing a personal encounter with Jesus and the renewal of my Catholic faith in my late 30’s, I shared my experience with Pete, a work colleague and friend.  We had worked together a couple of years on a few projects and then he moved on to become a vice president in our company.  While we saw each other occasionally, we didn’t work together after that point. 

Fifteen years later he called me one day and asked if I could come up to his office.  It turns out that he had been diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer and was given about six weeks to live.  He was very distraught and lamented that because of his work, he had not spent much time with his daughters while they were growing up.  After listening for a while, I asked if I could pray with him.  He said yes.  I walked around his desk, put a hand on his shoulder, and prayed that God would bless his remaining weeks and give him some special time with his daughters and wife.  His wife shared with me at his funeral that he did indeed do that, and it was a blessing for Pete and all of them in spite of his eventual death.

We never know what God is going to do with our witness.  Fifteen years had passed since I related my story of meeting Jesus in a new way with Pete, but he still called me to share his personal crisis and his anguish over not spending more time with his family in recent years.  As St. Paul says, God can do immeasurably more than we can imagine with our words and actions.  May we reach out as the Holy Spirit leads us in sharing God’s presence with others.   

Do you sell God short, or do you have faith that he will act on your words and actions according to his good purpose?     

How often do you find yourself getting so caught up in what you are doing that you don’t think about asking God for his assistance? 

While I may start my day by asking for the Lord’s blessing and spending some time with him in prayer, as the day progresses I get caught up in whatever I am doing and totally forget to bring him into what is confronting me or ask for his help.  This may be particularly true if I consider the task I am facing important or has a deadline. 

Just the other day, I received a letter from one of the airlines that they had suspended my miles program because my “email had been compromised.”  I had no indication that there was any problem with my email account.  Instead of stopping to bring the Lord into the situation and asking for his help in guiding my next steps, I hurriedly searched for the phone number of my email provider, which I had difficulty locating.  After multiple efforts I finally found someone who said they could check for me.  After a lengthy period, they concluded that they could not find any indication of a problem. 

Next I called the airline to inform them that the email provider found no evidence of a compromise, but they still had me go through a lengthy process of providing an ID update to reinstate the account.  Only toward the end of that conversation did I realize that I had never sought the Lord’s presence to give me wisdom in how to resolve the problem with his peace. 

St. Paul encourages us to “Pray continuously, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Th. 5:17) In another letter he says, “The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  (Phil. 4:6-7) 

Years ago, I read a book entitled Practicing the Presence of God, by Brother Lawerance.  His premise was that in all things we should be aware God’s presence and bring him into every moment of our lives. 

Perhaps we could make it a habit to let our minds and thoughts continuously communicate with God.  Moment by moment, we can let God be our continuous companion asking him what we should do or say next. 

“Why are you sleeping?” Jesus asked. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”  (Luke 22:46 NIV)

After the Last Supper when Jesus and the disciples retired to the Mount of Olives, Jesus suggested that the disciples should pray so that they would not fall into temptation. He then withdrew to pray by himself.  Meanwhile, the disciples were not praying as he suggested but had fallen asleep.  He chastises them for sleeping and not praying.  We know what happened next; they succumbed to the temptation of fear, and all of them scattered, abandoning Jesus at his arrest.

Jesus’ antidote for temptation is not complicated.  It is simply prayer. In his suggested form of prayer to his disciples and to us, the final petition is, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” (Mt. 6:13)

Jesus invites us to pray just as he did the disciples.  He invites us to begin our day with him and the Father. He knows that we will not be able to withstand the temptations we face each day without prayer.  Yet, how often do we choose a little more sleep instead of prayer at the beginning of our day? 

Prayer nurtures our relationship with Jesus and the Father.  The temptations we face are many and varied — getting angry when things don’t go our way; engaging in negative humor at the expense of others; flirting with a co-worker; overstating an item on an expense account; telling the boss what he wants to hear instead of the truth; getting short with our spouse; or not spending time with our children at the end of a busy day.

One of my more frequent temptations is to get impatient with a store clerk or the person on a help desk when they do not seem to meet my expectations.  When I don’t pray, my response is often disproportionate to the problem at hand.  When I do pray, I am reminded to be patient and kind. 

With each temptation that Satan threw at Jesus at the beginning of his ministry, Jesus countered with a scripture that refuted Satan’s premise for the temptation. (Mt. 4:1-11) Prayer and scripture are weapons Jesus gives us against temptation and the efforts of Satan.  St. Paul describes them as part of the armor of God. (Eph. 6:12-18) To these, the Church adds the sacraments of reconciliation and the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

How do you protect yourself against temptation?

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  (Mark 12:30-31)

These are the words of Jesus in response to a scribe who asked what the most important commandment was.  Loving God and the people he puts in our lives with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength was his answer.  It is a consuming task.  It impacts every facet and moment of our lives.

In Old Testament times, the idols people worshiped included false gods and their images.  Today, our idols include entertainers, professional athletes, public officials, hobbies, careers, material things like cars, homes, jewelry, retirement accounts, etc. None of these are inherently wrong in themselves, but they can become idols if we make them so.

In the early years of our marriage and right after the Kansas City Chiefs had won Super Bowl IV, we were able to get season tickets as the Chiefs were moving from their old stadium into the larger Arrowhead stadium.  At first it was exciting, but it grew to become a project every Sunday, on which there was a home game, taking nearly the whole day with time for transportation, traffic, parking, etc. We had to get a babysitter for our young daughters for nearly the whole day.  In addition to the time, it also became rather costly.  

I had acquired an idol, a professional football team.  It became a detriment and a distraction to my love and responsibilities to my family.  There is nothing inherently wrong with being a fan of a professional football team, but when it detracts from loving your spouse and young family, and expressing your love for God on Sunday, I was in danger of creating and serving an idol over more important relationships and responsibilities – God and family. 

The people of Israel seemed to suffer from this tendency when the Bible reports in 2 Kings: 17:41, “Even while these people were worshiping the Lord, they were serving their idols.”  This eventually led to their exile in 722 BC, by the king of Assyria.    

Do you have idols that distract from your love of God and the people he has put in your life?     

How much do we connect our work with God?  In a seminar on faith and work which I attended a few years ago, most of the people in my small group of twelve said that they never thought of their work as having anything to do with God or their faith. 

Our increasingly secular culture would like to keep God and faith confined to Sundays and inside church buildings.  But that was never God’s intention.  He tells us at the beginning of Genesis, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work and take care of it.” (Genesis 2:15, NIV) God created us in his image and likeness and put us in the garden of his creation to “work and take care of it.” 

The Second Vatican Council said, “This split between the faith which many profess and their daily lives deserves to be counted as one of the more serious errors of our age.”  In commenting on this condition, St. John Paul II said, “A faith that does not affect a person’s culture is a faith not fully embraced, not entirely thought out, not faithfully lived.”

We had a legal secretary where I worked who talked a lot about her Christian faith in the office.  But when she was being counseled about her poor performance in serving the attorneys assigned to her, she indignantly proclaimed, “I don’t serve anyone but God!”  She was obviously confused about what serving God entailed — that we serve God and take care of his creation when we bring his presence into our work, seeking to bring his love, truth and excellence to our jobs and the people and circumstances of our workplaces.

James Hunter, in his book, To Change the World, says that the “great commission” has long been viewed geographically in terms of sending missionaries to faraway places.  But the great commission can also be interpreted in terms of the church going into all realms of social structure, including the workplace in whatever form it takes.  He says, “When the church does not send people out to these realms and when it does not provide the theologies that make sense of work and engagement, the church fails to fulfill the charge to ‘go into all the world.’”   

We serve God and take care of his creation when we do our jobs to the best of our ability no matter how significant or insignificant we may view them.  We are acting in God’s plan for us when we bring his presence, truth, love, and excellence into the conduct of our jobs. 

How do you view your work? 

St. Paul considered his friendship with Jesus the most important thing in his life.  “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.  I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ.”  (Phil. 3:8 NIV)

He considered his friendship with Jesus more important than his ministry, preaching, miracles, prophesies and every aspect of his life.  Jesus seemed to confirm this importance in his final prayer to the Father on behalf of the disciples when he prayed, “Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God and the one whom you have sent, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3) The knowledge that Jesus was referring to was not just knowing about God and himself but knowing the Father and the Son as a person and friend.   

For over 45 years I have been meeting with Jesus nearly every morning for coffee.  We are friends like my best friend who is my wife; like a few Christian brothers who know me inside and out.  I read some scripture, usually the daily readings for mass and excerpts from the Liturgy of the Hours.  Jesus often speaks to me through scripture giving me insight to a particular passage or he puts thoughts in my mind about another person or an upcoming event.  I look on these as guidance from him.  While I am still capable of messing up, his friendship helps me to seek forgiveness whenever I do.

Jesuit author William A. Barry in his book, A Friendship Like No Other, says that a major way in which God communicates with us is through our imagination, memories, insights and thoughts.  Whether they are from God is a question of discernment, which is often determined by the fruit of what follows.

Jesus told the disciples, “I have called you friends because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.” (John 15:15) We have the benefit of scripture to learn about the Father and the Son, and the opportunity to accept their offer to dwell within us. (John 14:23) We also have our God-created ability to think, imagine, and receive insights.  This, in combination with the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the sacraments of the church enable us to establish a friendship with the Father and the Son.    

Friends share knowledge and experiences.  A husband and wife share intimate details about their respective lives.  Good friends share joys, sorrows, and the mundane.  

Have you sought this kind of friendship with Jesus?