Epiphany – Who is Your Anchor? – Hungry for God – God Grants MiraclesVincentian Day of Prayer and Fast Tuesday January 13, 2015
Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast Tuesday January 13, 2015
Dear Vincentian Family: Christmas and New Year’s is over, but that does not mean we have nothing to celebrate. Each day is a celebration of what God has done for us in our service to those living below the poverty line and making bad choices due to lack of love and joy. Each day is a celebration when we can bring others His love, joy and hope. We need to bathe ourselves in God’s abundant gifts, not for ourselves, but for others. Everything we have belongs to God and He guides us to give it to others. Do not put a price tag on lifting those from their situation. What price would you put on serving Jesus? This is what we do. We serve Christ in all those He places before us; the prisoner, the sick, the lonely, the addicted and all in poverty. Dear God help us serve everyone You place before us, so we may bring them Your love and joy. Amen! Alleluia!
Epiphany – Have you had your epiphany? It is more than seeing the great star in the sky, which by the way is a historical fact. Why did the Magi who were gentiles follow the star? This epiphany is our first look at what the role of Jesus is. The magi brought Gold for the infant. Gold was reserved for kings. Jesus is the King of heaven and earth. They brought Frankincense which is used to anoint holy ones. Christ is the Holy of Holies and came to teach us holiness. Finally they brought the gift of Myrrh which is an odd gift indeed. Myrrh is used to cleanse the body of the dead; it is used in the preparation for burial. How wise this Magi was. We know Jesus is King, the Holy One and He came to earth to die for us. This was the first sign of Jesus’ death. He was born to die for us on a cross. Oh and the Magi were gentiles. He came for all peoples. We need to be the bright star for others. We need to extend a hand, the hand of Jesus to our neighbours or friends in need. Remember, they are not clients they are part of the flock, perhaps the lost sheep, but they are loved as much as we are by our Lord and Saviour.
Who is your Anchor? – The answer is JESUS! It does not matter if we are rich or poor, black or white, He came for all people. He is the prince of Peace. We must bring the peace to those in need and serve Him in all our encounters with others. This is not the easiest task. I know I harp on it often – such a nag. However, we need to see Christ in everyone. It becomes difficult to see Him in the addict and the drunk laying in the gutter or the person who has given up and does not help themselves. Sometimes those we serve lie and smell or live in chaos with filth and no direction. Hello, we are called by Christ to give direction. Christ is our answer and we need His anchor, so our personal prejudices do not get in the way. How soon the crowd turned on Jesus. Look at everyone we encounter as Christ, sometimes it is the broken Christ or the arrogant Christ, no matter, they all must receive our love, they all are Christ. This is who we serve and serve with. Of course we find it difficult to get along with others, but not when we see Christ in them. Remember how I’ve told you to look in the mirror, each morning and see Christ in you. Yes, we need to seem Him in ourselves to see Him in others. Anchor yourself in Jesus. It is the ultimate gratification and will last an eternity.
Hungry for God – Sometimes, great things come in surprising packages that do not seem to be great at all. The Eucharist – in the form of a little wafer of bread – does not look like it contains the full presence of Jesus with all of his humanity and his divinity. The baby Jesus – a tiny, helpless child – does not look like the conqueror of evil. But He is! And so is Jesus in the Eucharist; He is here for you. And you! You might not seem to be a great person, but you contain Jesus. You contain greatness beyond imagination! This greatness does not dwell only in you; it comes out from you in every good thing that you do. Oh Jesus, I am full of gratitude that You have taught me about Your real presence and the joy that comes from spending time with You. Give me the grace to be faithful, because the most important thing in my life is to surrender to You and know You better. Teach me to serve others—to give my time and resources to those in need. Let me lose myself and find You. This is a life of faith!
God Grants Miracles – Miracles to show His love so we may become testimonies of His great love for all who believe. “We receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what pleases Him. And His commandment is this: we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as He commanded us. Those who keep His commandments remain in Him, and He in them, and the way we know that He remains in us is from the Spirit whom He gave us.” This gift gives us faith and helps us to stay on the path, straight to our Lord. Call on the Holy Spirit, so we may be constantly joyful. This will help us touch the hearts of those we serve. We have many role models in the Vincentian family to help us live with joy and share the joy with other. Loving them and promoting peace. We need help to maintain the joy we need to complete the work God has begun in us. Pray always. God did not call the saints, however, we can learn from them; He called the sinners and He lavishes us with love. He gave us His Son who died on a cross for us. He forgives us just as He forgave those who tortured and crucified Him. He grants us miracles and lavishes us with love, even though we do not deserve either.
Blessings,
Lynn
Lynn L’Heureux is Special needs co-coordinator & Advisor of the Society of St Vincent de Paul Calgary Alberta Canada.
Her newsletter is translated into 3 languages, hopefully soon to be 4. They have a group which brings the prayer into China and it is translated into Mandarin and other Chinese dialects.
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