Today is a gift.

God wants you to be in the world, but so different from the the world that you will change it. Get cracking.
-Mother Angelica

I have the ability to hide in my little world.  I go to daily Mass and home and to my sister's home. I also go to the grocery store when needed.  But what I really want to do is travel!

I just got back from a week of camping with a group of strangers.  I felt that I had been thrown head long into a world that I did not feel comfortable in.  It was a singles group which really is not my scene, but a mutual friend wanted me to meet up with a women. She thought we would hit it off.

The woman and I were able to find common ground and we had a good time until we had to be with the group.  They were negative in so many respects and there was a fair amount of casual sex.  It reminded me that my life had changed in small and big ways.  I no longer felt part of the world.  Especially that world.  So I made sure that I started my day with prayer; to ground me, to put on my armor, to help me remember that I am a child of God. The Rosary in my pocket was a good physical reminder of who I want to be and how I want to conduct myself.

I listened to their stories about how lost and hopeless they felt. Only one other person went to Church on Sunday. We went to Mass together.  There were remarks about going to church so we could be saved.  I needed to go to get grace and be strengthened.

As much as I wanted to hide in my RV and not interact I knew that I had to get out there and be Christ-like. I attempted to put a positive spin on the negative.  I was to be a witness to them.  I did my best.

The week did help remind me that I love being in my RV, seeing the country and admiring God's handiwork.  I was and am feeling guilty about wanting to be out there when I have commitments here at home.  As I was discussing this with my favorite sister, she reminded me that I need to do this traveling thing while I still can.  She reminded me that each day is a gift and that I can't squander it.  My parents and brothers agree with her.  Then Father Charlie talked about it in his homily at Mass.  I know he sees my heart and reads my mind!

I want to find a way to meet my commitments and still travel.  It would be a shame for that new RV to just sit and gather dust.  I bought it for a reason.

Lord you gave me the desire to serve you.
And You gave me the desire to travel.

Help me to find a way to do both.
Your will, not mine.
~Cindy

We do not recognize Him!

"Holiness is not for wimps and the cross is not negotiable, sweetheart, it's a requirement."
-Mother Angelica

I love the readings during the Octave of Easter. Jesus is raised from the dead and He appears to His disciples and His Mother, Mary.  Yet, each time that He appears to them they seem not to recognize Him!

This has always concerned me.  Why didn't they, who walked with Him, ate with Him, and shared in His public ministry not recognize Him when He appears to them?  Father Charlie hypothesized that perhaps Jesus looked different, or perhaps they didn't expect to see Jesus.  Jesus takes the time to appear in places that they had all been together during His life. I love that fact that Jesus cooks breakfast for them on the beach.  What an incredible image of Our Lord on the beach, fish and bread on the fire cooking for His disciples.  How much He loves them and us to do the most ordinary of tasks for them.  He feeds them!

We too are like the disciples.  We don't recognize Jesus when we see Him.  Perhaps it is like Father says, we don't expect to see Jesus there.  But there He is, sitting in the pew behind us chatting as they plan their golf date, or the parishioner that rubs us the wrong way or that we rub the wrong way.  He is in the homeless person on the corner that we wonder are they really down on their luck and should we just drive by.  Jesus is in the family member that has hurt or disappointed us.  Jesus is the rebellious teen or the forgetful parent. Jesus is in the sick or dying spouse that we care for on a daily basis until we fear we can't do it any more.

Let us not forget that Jesus is also in the innocent smile of a child.  The painted sunrise and sunset are gifts from God.  Jesus is in the smile of a total stranger that lightened our dismal day.

Jesus is not in the tomb.  HE IS RISEN!

Lord help me as I move through my day
to see You in others.
Help me to see You in others that annoy, hurt or anger me.

Help me to see You in my small cross.

Help me to lighten the cross that others carry.

~Cindy