A Regular Joe

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

GOD'S BUILDING CODE

[1]It’s Hurricane season! In 1992 Hurricane Andrew left behind devastation beyond our imaginations. The lessons learned resulted in Florida developing and adopting new standards for building codes in 2002. Included in the code was a wind-borne debris region, which requires certain homes to have door and window protections up to 120 mph. The code also established new standards for roofing, created more thorough inspection processes and required that products used in home construction meet approved hurricane standards.

These new Codes were tested in 2004 by hurricanes Charley, Ivan, Frances and Jeanne. In 2005, University of Florida researchers studied the differences in damage between older and newer homes, comparing 200 randomly selected homes that were in the path of the highest wind zones generated by the hurricanes. The study concluded that homes built under the 2002 Florida Building Code sustained less damage on average than homes built between 1994 and 2001 under the Standard Building Code. Homes built before 1994 also fared worse than those built after that year.

Did you know that we are the result of an even more wondrous building code? In today’s first reading, St. Paul calls our attention to the incredible building code God used and continues to use in forming his people through our lives. Everything we are, everything we do, all the forces we withstand—all give evidence to how carefully God has crafted the Code. Like a master builder, he has built us with great precision and fortified us with his own divine grace, and what a marvel we are!

There’s more marvelous news: God isn’t done! Through the grace of his sacraments, he continues to make us stronger and steadier. Day after day, he infuses us with the gifts of his Holy Spirit so we can withstand any gale force winds that might come against us. Through the witness and encouragement of our brothers and sisters in Christ, he continues to teach us how to adapt to the barometric pressures of temptation without snapping or crumbling.

We are a marvel of God’s handiwork! We are far stronger than we think, far more flexible than we think and we are far more capable than we think. We have “the strength for everything through him who empowers” (Phil 4:13) us!

In meeting today’s challenges, pray for the situation, not in “self-confidence,” but “God-confidence.” God has built us with his perfect code for the mission he has assigned us to do. Remember, Christ is with us, he is in us, and he is more than able to work through us.[2]

[2] The Word Among Us. June 2017 Issue.

Sunday, May 21, 2017

COMMIT TO STEP TWELVE

[1]For over seventy-five years, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has successfully helped people beat the additions of alcoholism. Most of us have heard of the twelve-step program to recovery, which has been adapted to may other addictions, and many of us may even know the first step--admitting we have a problem.

When a person is addicted they are physically and mentally dependent on a particular substance, or enthusiastically devoted to a particular thing or activity, and are unable to stop taking or participating in it without incurring adverse effects. When most people hear the word addiction, they think of dependence on a substance, such as drugs or alcohol. But drugs, alcohol, and other commonly abused substances aren't the only things we abuse or think we're addicted to. In fact, just substitute the word "behavior" for "substance," and you open up the definition of addiction to all kinds of dependencies, some of which may surprise you. While experts don't agree on whether they're all true addictions, here are some habits people get hooked on: gambling, sex, internet, shopping, video games, plastic surgery (yes plastic surgery), eating, and risky behavior. Let's not forget our trust smartphones. Being so connected has not only produced adverse effects on the user but also for others around them (i.e. walking while texting, distracted driving). The local report talked about the negative effects of the addiction of social media sites on the development of our children, especially those 14 years and younger.

"You wanna know the whole secret to AA?" Jon, a recovering alcoholic, asked me. "You wanna know who actually gets sober and who doesn't?" Few if any of the alcoholics enrolled in AA will find sobriety until they complete Step Twelve. Even if they make it through all the other eleven steps, those who do not complete Step Twelve are very likely to drink again. It's those who complete Step Twelve who overcome the addiction. Step Twelve is the commitment to help another alcoholic beat the disease. Step Twelve is all about service.[2] And it is service, done in the spirit of love, that is the day to breading our addictions, whatever they may be.

Jesus is in the Father, the disciples are in him, and he is in them. Sounds like a puzzle. We put it together by keeping his commandments. To keep is to act. We often say, "Actions speak louder than words." When we live the commandments, our actions make this known.[3]

When Jesus says, we must keep his commandments, he’s not just telling us to observe a bunch of rules and regulations. You can’t reduce the Christian life, or any true religion, to a list of do’s and don’ts. The Pharisees tried that, and it didn’t work. They ended up with a rigid, stifling religion. But there is a place for rules: The Ten Commandments are a good start. They tell us to worship God, to respect parents, to respect life, to be sexually responsible, and to be truthful and honest. Sometimes these commandments are hard to obey; they occasionally call for courage, unselfishness, and sacrifice. These are the tests of real love.[4]

Jesus doesn’t leave us orphans trying to figure it out all by ourselves. We were baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The gift of the Spirit was, or will be, deepened within us in confirmation. How do people know that the Spirit is within us? We manifest the gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. When our actions make clear the Spirit of God guides us, people see we remain in Jesus Christ and he remains in us.

St. Francis de Sales taught that human beings love by doing good. The wisdom, counsel, understanding, and knowledge of the Holy Spirit give us courage to do good and live Jesus’ command to love.

Does this guarantee that we will always do the right thing and live up to the law of love? Of course not. Life will always have its share of obscurity and uncertainty. God only asks that we do our best, that we not try to go it alone. We belong to a church that is the Body of Christ, whose vital principle is the Holy Spirit. Its leaders teach in the name of Christ and help us to discern the truth. They are human and fallible just as we are, so they and we must be attentive to the Spirit. We’re all in this together, as we try to know Christ’s commandment, to keep them, to make the commitment to help each other, especially those most in need, and thus prove our love for him.

Withdraw into your heart this week. Turn to our Advocate, the Holy Spirit. Reflect on the gifts of the Spirit and ask for the courage to act on them. Then love as Jesus loved. How did Jesus love? He completed Step Twelve, when he offered himself, in his passion, death and resurrection, for our salvation. Every time we participate in this Eucharistic Feast, we are reminded how he committed himself to completing Step Twelve. His actions spoke louder than any words in human history. Our actions do speak louder than words. When our actions are united with Jesus’ love for all creation, we show the world that he remains in us and we remain in him. Are you ready to commit to complete Step Twelve?

Monday, March 20, 2017

SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP

[1]Once a farmer had an old mule. One day the mule fell into the farmers well.

The farmer liked the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving. Instead, he called his neighbors together, told them what had happened, and asked them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery.

Initially the old mule was frightened! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hitting his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back, he would shake it off and step up!

This he did, blow after blow. "Shake it off and step up..., Shake it off and step up..., Shake it of and step up!" he repeated to encourage himself.

No matter how painful the blows, or how distressing the situation seemed, the old mule fought panic and just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP!

It wasn't long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the wall of the well! What seemed like it would bury him, actually helped him... all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity.I couldn't help thinking of Moses when I read this story. Here's a guy who had already been through a lot in Egypt. First, he was a prince, then he discovered his real identity and found himself set off to the desert to die. As what seemed his lowest point he finds a home, a love, and a steady job. Life is good, until that burning bush started talking to him. This nameless God says, I want you to return to Egypt to free his people from pharaoh.

Change can feel like falling into a well. What makes it more challenging for Moses is the people, even after witnessing the hand of God destroy their enemies, they begin to grumble against Moses. We're thirsty, a shovel full on the back. Why did you ever make us leave Egypt? Another shovel full on the back. Was it just to have us die here…with our children and livestock? Yet another shovel full on the back. Can you feel his anguish and concern, his feeling like he is being buried alive, as the cries out to the Lord?

Paul tells us, in our reading from Romans, that “hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Rom 5:5)

Life is full of challenges and change. All of us experience change in our lives. Change is the one constant in our lives. There are changes that we look forward to, that feeds our feelings of hope Paul talks about, and change that we fear, challenging any feeling of hope. One thing is for sure, things will not stay the same no matter how much we would like them too. When a life change occurs, we have two choices in how to respond. We can despair the change has come and assume the worst, or we can look with excitement at the new possibilities the change presents.[3]

Moses may have experienced anxiety with his life changes, yet he lifts his voice to God for direction. Paul, after getting knocked from his high horse, literally, learned to embrace his life change and became a passionate witness of a hope that does not disappoint. The woman at the well, inquisitively engages Jesus who be revealing his identity, change her communal status from outcast to a believable witness of hope.

For the Catechumen and those seeking full communion with the Church, at the Easter Vigil, it is any exciting time! Discovering the Messiah, like the woman at the well, their hearts on fire to witness to the joy and hope of the promises of an all loving and merciful God. For them and all of us that profess faith in the risen savior, there is a cost to this discipleship. Know this, to live the Good News will bring change, an interior and exterior change, change that can feel like shovel load after shovel load of dirt being thrown on our backs, even to the point of distress and a willingness to consider a return to Egypt, a return to the way we use to be.

Can we be real for a moment? Speaking for myself, I often find it quite easy to talk to others about their life changes. To encourage them in the opportunities that lie before them, even if it is a traumatic change, such as a serious illness, a major family move, or even a death of a family member or close friend. However, when the change is mine, if feels like I've fallen into a well, with every step in the process of change is like the shovel full of dirt beating me down. My first reaction is much like the Nation of Israel, despite all the blessings God has showered on me, I grumble. Yep, even though I made the choice, I grumble. It's not until I abandon myself to God's will that I am able to see the hope Paul witnesses too, that I am able to shake it off and step up.

It's all about how we face lives challenges and changes. If we face our problems and respond to them positively, refusing to give in to panic, bitterness, or self-pity we will be able to shake it off and step up, triumphantly.

[2] http://www.facebook.com/pg/IdeasForLife2016/videos/?ref=page internal "The farmer and the mule"