True Value!

So valuable to heaven is the dignity of the human soul

that every member of the human race has a guardian

angel from the moment the person begins to be.

~Saint Jerome~

The question I ask myself today is what value do I place on my life.  Do I even understand that I have worth?  Do I ever consider that I am a treasure and that the way I live my life either corrodes  or polishes this treasure?

Consider that silver teapot you were given by your grandmother.  It is beautiful.  But the trouble is it requires diligence to take care of it.  If it sits too long in the air without use it tarnishes.  So, you have to get the silver polish and clean it until it sparkles.  You are the one given the responsibility to oversee and protect it since your grandmother  loved you.

You see I am a treasure.  I am that teapot.  When I neglect to follow the ways of God, I become tarnished.  I forget that I have value and worth.  In order to repair any damage or to remove the tarnish that I have acquired through the neglect of my soul I must take out that "polish" and restore the shine I once had.

How do I do that?  I know what it is that causes the problem.  I avoid it.  If because of circumstance beyond my control I cannot avoid it, I must apply a thick coat of prayer that will be a buffer.  Then in order to repair what has been broken I ask for forgiveness through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  

I see that my guardian angel is at all times my "buffer."  She often, without my realizing it, diminishes the tarnish by guiding me past difficulty.  I truly believe this and as I reflect on who I am and where I have been I see that this gift from God for my journey here on earth is part of my treasury.  I know that I am responsible for who I am and who I am becoming, but it is good to know that I have partner that will help me reduce the tarnish and renew the luster of this life I have been given.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Wisdom from Fulton J. Sheen

fulton
Originally uploaded by Oka Kurniawan

My Lent thus far has been more productive than most. I say that as I have just finished a four day mission given by a wonderful Redemptorist, Fr. Vic. Earlier this week was the Penance Service. Being reminded of this again today in this reflection brings even greater healing. Listen with me from Lent and Easter: Wisdom from Fulton J. Sheen, A Redemptorist Pastoral Publication.

Rubbish Pile

Sorrow [for sin] is an intention to abandon the ego. It is hard. Sometimes it is like being skinned alive, peeling away sins and getting rid of some of them, taking on the firm purpose of amendment...I believe that most people are sorry for their sins not just because they dread the loss of heaven and fear hell, it is because they have hurt our Lord. After all, it is the Cross that reveals the dimension of sin. No one ever thoroughly sees sin in its utter nakedness until he understands redemption. Take the errors and the stupidity and the crimes of every day. People summarize them by saying, "Oh, what a fool I made of myself!" There is a world of difference between that and, "Oh, what a sinner I am!"

Fulton J. Sheen, Audio Tape, "Penance"

Repentance

If we say that we have fellowship with [God] while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin...If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1John 1:6-9

Prayer

With Saint John Chrysostom, let us contemplate the "many wrongs that the cross has set right," and pray: Dear Lord, even by prayer and penance we cannot fathom the inscrutable way of the cross, but we seek faith that you will deliver us from our sins and rescue us from our wrongheadedness. Amen

Lenten Action

Say a fervent act of contrition today, perhaps one you create in our own words.

~~~~~

So it is that I reflect today on my sinfulness and in so doing offer my sincere sorrow for the sins I have committed. For my sins do indeed impact the lives of many, not just my own and I must accept responsibility for the pain they have caused. And then in gratitude I say to my Lord and Savior, "Deo gratias!"

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Again I say,

Thanks be to God!!

Originally uploaded by Oka Kurniawan

Food For Thought

I woke up this morning just as I always do, saying the Hail Mary. My thoughts wandered to why it is that I always awake this way. Have I done this so many years just as a matter of course or is it because my morning can't begin until I call upon our Lady to pray for me? I would like to believe that It's because I want her to pray for me.

My thoughts then wandered to other gifts I am offered by God and I began to focus on the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Every night I go to bed saying the Act of Contrition. I ask God for forgiveness for sins I had committed that day and I go to bed hoping the next day will be better and the sins I committed would not be experienced again. Then I began an examination, not of my conscience, but of my personality and how I use or do not use the sacraments.

You see I take forgiveness of my sins for granted. Yes, I TAKE IT FOR GRANTED! Jesus Christ died on the cross so that I might be redeemed. I'm asked to "Love the Lord my God with all [my] heart, with all [my] soul and with all [my] mind. And I am to love [my] neighbor as [myself] (Matthew 23:36, 39).

It is simple. It is not a book with 200 laws and regulation. No, and the words are simple. They are not complex. It is not so complicated that I have to say, "I don't understand." If I follow his simple instructions all will follow all the rules and regulations ever written. If the laws are morally right and focus on the law of love I will not sin.

Now I am wondering why it is I make it so difficult to follow these two simple laws...

1. I'm selfish.
2. I'm jealous.
3. I'm greedy.
4. I'm religiously lazy.
5. I'm impatient with others.

That's only the beginning. I think if I start working on these five flaws, perhaps I will become a better follower of Christ. I should not take the Sacrament of Reconciliation for granted. When I accept its graces, I should do it with gratitude to a God that loves me, not necessarily for who I am, but for whom I can become.

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God~

Reconciliation, The First Pillar

We all have spiritual disease. We all have sins. Some people like to pretend that they don't, but their sins will just spread through their lives like cancer in the body. And in the end, they will be devoured by their sins...God sees your unrealized potential. He sees not only who you are, but also who you can be. Ask him to share that vision with you...
a great freedom is born by bringing your darkness into light. Our faults and failings have a tendency of eating away at us inside. But when we bring them into the light they lose their power over us...I assure you, if you will approach this sacrament with a sincere and humble heart, you will experience the flow of grace in your life. [As the priest speaks the words of absolution,] the flood gates of grace will be opened your soul will be filled with a deep peace, and you will experience inexplicable lightness, a sense of liberation.

Reconciliation is a gift. Behold the beauty. Embrace the treasure.

Rediscovering Catholicism
by Mattew Kelly
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And so it is today that I am called to reflect on my own sinfulness. I do a poor job of making an examination of conscience each day. My excuse is I'm too tired. The TRUTH is I don't want to think about it. If I'm too tired I can go to bed and forget about it. In reality it will not go away. The sin is still there and when I awake in the morning to a new day without claiming my sinfulness that day will be no different that any other day in my life.

My happiness lies in claiming my sins...you can call them faults if you like, but a sin by any other name is still SIN. And so this day, before I go to bed I will do my examination of conscience, claim the sins as my own, and ask forgiveness. Then I will take these sins to my confessor for absolution. Amazingly, when I make it a practice of recalling my offenses in the examination of conscience, I have no need to make another examination of conscience before presenting myself before the priest for reconciliation with God.

I am beginning a renewal. I have done this many times before. Yes, and many times have let it slide. Yet again, I will try! I will made every effort to visit the Sacrament of Reconciliation monthly. And in this renewal, I ask for prayers that I may have the will, courage, and strength to continue this journey and that if I falter, I will have the wherewithal to begin again and not dwell on this as a failure but as another hurdle to be overcome.

~~~^j^~~~

Reflection

The sky is overcast here today. Not a gloomy sky, just overcast. It causes me to reflect on why it is that gray skies cause lethargy and an overall feeling of I-don't-want-to-do-anything.

Sunny skies always cause me to feel cheery and invigorated. I want to move about and get things done. I have a positive attitude and am uplifted by the glory of the day.

As I thought about this I realized this is the state of my soul in sin. When in sin my soul is overcast and gloomy. It's an I-don't-want-to-do-anything soul. I am not a productive Christian in this state. I can't be a witness to others as I can't take care of me.

Enter the Sacrament of Reconciliation. By simply opening my soul to the grace of God by ridding it of the sin that causes this Christian lethargy, we open our soul to the warmth and sunshine of God's priceless gift of grace.

It's so easy to rid ourselves of that unholy lethargy. All we need to do is avail ourselves of this most important sacrament.

You know, just knowing I am privileged to have this gift offered allow the sun in the window of the soul.

~~~^j^~~
Thanks be to God!!!