You will eventually find God (Frederick Buechner)

   Vocatus atque non vocatus, Deus aderit are the words C. G. Jung had chiseled into his stone lintel in Switzerland, which mean, freely translated, that you will eventually find God whether you want to or not. If you want to (even if you don’t happen to believe He exists), all you have to do is find some quiet place, be quiet inside yourself, and ask Him to let you find Him (or Him you). As far as I know, it is a prayer that is always answered. 

--Frederick Buechner 

Image source: https://carljungdepthpsychologysite.blog/2020/11/11/carl-jungs-gravesite/
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Gracious uncertainty (Oswald Chambers)

   Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life – gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, not knowing what tomorrow may bring. This is generally expressed with a sigh of sadness, but it should be an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and do the task He has placed closest to us, He begins to fill our lives with surprises. 

   When we become simply a promoter or a defender of a particular belief, something within us dies. That is not believing God– it is only believing our belief about Him. Jesus said, “…unless you… become as little children…” (Matthew 18:3). The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, just uncertain of what He is going to do next. If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. 

   But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, "...believe also in Me” (John 14:1), not, “Believe certain things about Me”. Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in– but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him. 

--Oswald Chambers,
“Gracious Uncertainty”

Image source: Jae Ko, Drift (2022), https://bmoreart.com/2022/05/sitting-in-uncertainty.html
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Discernment (Dr. Kathleen Hope Brown)

     Discernment is an attitude of the heart, an openness to learning God’s will and to making all of our decisions in accordance with God’s will. A discerning attitude of the heart is the way to healing. 

--Dr. Kathleen Hope Brown,
 Memorial for Fr. John Crossin,
April 18, 2024 

Image source: https://thejewishstudio.org/spiritual-open-heart-surgery/

Recognize the precious gems (Anne Lamott / Pope Francis)

You can safely assume you’ve created
God in your own image when it turns out
that God hates all the same people you do.

 --Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

    Every day, at home, on the street, at work, on holiday, we have the possibility of discerning good. And it is important to know how to find what counts: to train ourselves to recognize the precious gems of life and to distinguish them from junk. Let us not waste time and freedom on trivial things, pastimes that leave us empty inside, while life offers us every day the precious pearl of the encounter with God and with others! It is necessary to know how to recognize it: to discern in order to find it. 

--Pope Francis 

Image source: https://www.aliciajdiamonds.com/journal/complete-guide-to-gemstones/
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Sunday Gospel Reflection, September 29, 2024: Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name...

Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name…

Isn’t it amazing how often we question what God is doing? 

    When, in the Book of Numbers, the Lord comes down in a cloud and, taking some of the spirit that was on Moses, bestows it on seventy elders, Joshua is immediately concerned: Moses, my lord, stop them, he says. Joshua seems to think that his own judgment trumps God’s judgment. But not only is Moses unwilling to question the Lord, he is also thrilled to have a greater and more diverse group of leaders to take some of the burden of leadership off of himself. Indeed, Moses is thrilled that the spirit moves the elders directly into action: Would that all the people of the Lord were prophets! Moses says. Would that the Lord might bestow his spirit on them all! 

    Jesus’ disciples similarly question what the Lord is doing in Mark’s Gospel. When John brings it to Jesus’ attention that someone is driving out demons in Jesus’ name, Jesus does not want the disciples to intervene: Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. John’s narrow vision precludes him from seeing the full extent of what the Lord can do; John lacks clear discernment and misunderstands his own responsibility to God and to others. 

    If we limit God and what God is able to accomplish in our own minds, then we will be seriously limited in what we can do on God’s behalf and how will we will respond to God at work in our lives. Such vision extends to any activity of our own that affects others’ lives. The Letter of James decries those who work for riches – treasure for the last days – rather than addressing the needs of the community. This community is not allowing God to work through them; indeed, all of their actions are contrary to God’s will. They lack the discernment sought by the psalmist in Psalm 19: Cleanse me from my unknown faults, he prays, for who can detect failings? The psalmist clearly desires God to lead him in right paths, guided by those precepts of the Lord that give joy to the heart. 

    We, like Joshua and the disciples, need to learn to discern where the Lord is working in our lives and where our own lives might be prone to error and sin, that our conscience and consciousness might lead us to recognize our responsibility to God and to one another. Only then can we grow past the limitations we place on God and fully appreciate those precepts of the Lord that give joy to the heart! 

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com

To serve others (St. Catherine of Siena / John Roedel)

To the servant of God,
every place is the right place,
and every time is the right time.

--St. Catherine of Siena 

whenever I feel helpless
in this overwhelming world 

I become a helper 

oh, oh,
my love 

on the days
when it feels like
I have no power 

I serve others 

you see,
whenever I wash
the world’s feet 

my hands
immediately
stop shaking 

 --John Roedel 

Image source: https://possesshispromises.com/2018/10/19/washing-feet-3-lessons/ via www.LumoProject.com
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We are all called to serve (Elizabeth Bonker)

 
    We are all called to serve, as an everyday act of humility, as a habit of mind.  To see the worth in every person we serve... Whatever our life choices, each and every one of us can live a life of service — to our families, to our communities and to the world. And the world can't wait to see our light shine. 

--Elizabeth Bonker,
Valedictory Speech,
Rollins College

Image & quotation source: Rollins College Valedictorian Elizabeth Bonker, who is a non-speaking person with autism, gave her commencement speech using text-to-speech software. You can hear her speech here: https://www.npr.org/2022/05/12/1098506522/nonspeaking-valedictorian-autism-college-commencement-speech