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Today is Pentecost! A very exciting and enlightening day for all of us! It is a day to celebrate how the Holy Spirit powerfully entered the Upper Room and ignited the courage of those present to go out and live the Gospel! Those first disciples dramatically changed their lives and all those they encountered. They went out and preached the Good News-- and we are called to do the same!
The world still needs to hear the words of Jesus. The world needs to know that God the Father loves each of us tremendously. The world still needs Spirit-filled people to reveal God's Kingdom, because people often don't see God in their life.
Today I challenge you to let the Holy Spirit ignite your faith. Spend sometime alone in prayer today. Ask yourself some tough questions: What do you really believe? Do you believe that the Third Person of the Holy Trinity really lives within you? Do you allow the Holy Spirit to have a voice in your life? Do you allow the Holy Spirit to speak through you? What is the Holy Spirit inspiring you to do?
You no longer need to be afraid, hiding in your Upper Room. Allow the Holy Spirit to use your voice to speak His words of Truth! Let the Spirit of God ignite you!
-Susan
This week many of us were able to return to Sunday Mass at our home parishes! As I entered into the church, I was greeted with, “Good morning! Welcome home!” Believe me it felt good to be back! Although I truly appreciated all the masses available on social media during our time of quarantine, I really missed receiving our Lord in the Eucharist. I needed to see and touch Him once again. I needed His healing graces. I needed His Divine Love to reside in me.
A very familiar saying is “Home is where your heart is.” The Eucharist is all heart. One small host contains more love than we can ever imagine. One human heart needs His Love more than we can truly understand. One heart, no matter where it is in the world, can be united with Christ through the Eucharist. The thought that Jesus infuses our hearts with His Love is beyond amazing! We should definitely let everyone know it--all the way to the ends of the earth!
-Susan
After driving aimlessly for an hour, Tori saw a sign-St. Joseph's Retreat Center. "Retreat is exactly what I need," she thought to herself. "I need a retreat from all my problems." She pulled into the small parking lot and put the car in park. She smiled at the large statue of St. Joseph holding the child Jesus surrounded by a wall maintained garden of flowers. Tori suddenly felt the urge to draw closer to the statue. Without thinking she got out of the car and began walking down the short path towards an empty bench in front of the statue. She just sat there and allowed her tears to slowly roll down her face. "I've really messed things up this time. I don't know what to do," she thought to herself. She looked at how lovingly St. Joseph looked at the little Jesus in his arms, and longed to be able to embrace Jesus as well.
Tori was so lost in thought that she didn't even notice the priest walking up the path until he cheerfully announced, "Good morning! How are you today? It sure is pretty out today!"
Tori did her best to fake a smile. "Yes, the weather is perfect today." she said without much enthusiasm.
"You look like you have a lot more than the weather on your mind."
"Yes, I suppose I do," Tori replied. "I actually don't know how I even got here. I just got in my car and started driving, and this is where I ended up. Is it okay that I am sitting here?"
"Of course it is. It's a great place to think. I come here often myself. Anything I can help you with?"
"Not unless you're good at erasing mistakes," admitted Tori.
"Well...I may be able to help you out. Have you visited the River of Grace? It flows right through the Church. It's known for its healing power."
"River of Grace? No, I've basically just been sitting outside here."
"It's really something. I would love to share it with you."
"It runs right through the Church?"
"Yep."
Tori shrugged her shoulders and then raised her eyebrows, "Ok, that sounds pretty interesting." Tori followed the priest into the Church.
"Now it starts right here at the Baptismal font. Just put your hand in there for a minute. I want you to close your eyes, bless yourself with the sign of the Cross and then let the Spirit show you the River of Grace."
Tori followed the priests instruction. She closed her eyes as her hand went into the water and then blessed herself in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Suddenly Tori's eyes became wide open and she saw the River Of Grace flowing from the Baptismal font. It was absolutely amazing! It was so beautiful! Without thinking she removed her shoes and starting wading in the water. The gentle, warm current nudged her forward little by little. With each step she felt completely immersed in love. The pain of her mistakes ebbed out of her heart and disappeared into the water. She felt a peaceful wave flow right through her. She felt as if she had been reborn! Inspired by the River of Grace, she looked up towards the heavens and cried, "Father, forgive me, I am so sorry."
And then she heard the Father's voice, "I absolve you of all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
" I'm ready to begin again." Tori was silent for a minute. "Father, thank you for inviting me in. I didn't even realize how much I was missing by staying outside."
Father Jim smiled. "Jesus patiently waits for each of us to come inside so that He can heal us through the sacraments with His Divine Love and Mercy. I'm so happy you said 'Yes' to the invitation."
-Susan
My son and I were outside on our backyard patio enjoying the beautiful weekend weather. "May is the best month," he said.
"Why's that?" I asked.
"Look, the grass is green again, the trees are budding, it's not too hot, and there's no bugs yet."
"Your right," I said. "It is really nice to enjoy all this again after a long winter."
Unfortunately, in a few weeks we may not be excited that the grass is still green. We may take for granted all the leaves on the tree, and we may not be thrilled to just be sitting outside enjoying a nice day. It's easy to take such beautiful things for granted. Today, however is the beginning of a new season of growth for nature, and if we are open to it, it is a new season of growth for us as well.
May is the month of Mary. It is a time to sit down and take in her beauty that is all around us and in the details of our life. It's often easy to take our Mother for granted. We take for granted all the graces she has bestowed on us. All the moments she prayed with us at our side. All the times she helped us turn our hearts back to God. All the times she held our hands when we were too afraid or hurt to begin another day. And all the songs of praise and thanks she sang to the Father on our behalf, because we forgot too. Mary is truly beautiful.
I would like to encourage you to take some time this month and let Mary know how much you love her. Allow her love to grow in you. If you are having any trouble with this, I would encourage you to sit and talk with her Son. Ask Jesus to tell you what he likes most about His Mom. I imagine she is even more beautiful from His point of view.
-Susan
