Feel God’s Touch – Mercy, the Key to God’s Heart – Live Lent Intensely – Silence is Golden

Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast – Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Feel God’s Touch – God’s hand is always on us.  Sometimes we don’t see or feel His presence, sometimes we do not see the light at the end of the tunnel or we have tunnel vision.  But never despair.  Just feel His touch.  He embraces us in our pain and sorrow.  He is with us on every visit and He is certainly there during acts of mercy.  During those times I feel His embrace. He longs for our need of Him and will change any situation if we take the time to listen to His messages and direction.  We will never go wrong. Be open to Him always and never miss an opportunity to sit and listen in silence to Him and also those we serve.  They have a story and allowing them to tell us is allowing them to feel God’s touch.  We can help others feel His touch.  My granddaughter who is now 19 had problems when she was little.  Her mother sent her to be with us for the summer and she had many anxieties.  I would sit on the edge of her bed and stroke her hair and sing to her (I am not a good singer).  One night I heard God tell me to let her know He never stops loving her and talk to her about her Guardian Angel.  I did and she was so excited.  God gave us a name for her angel.  She wanted to know if her mom had an angel, so once again God gave me to right thing to say, “Yes.”  I told her we could send a kiss and hug with her Guardian Angel to bring to her mother’s angel.  She did this every night and there were no more tears at bedtime.  It is our calling to give people hope and take away their fear and anxieties.  Sometimes it is as simple as a smile and with their permission a hug.  Say hello to the homeless person, notice them.  It could really make their day.  This is God’s touch and it should always be shared.

Mercy, the Key to God’s Heart – We long to feel close to God.  Even when we have created a space between Him and us we want to feel His Love, Joy and Mercy.  We long for the peace He gives.  He truly cares for us.  We are His best creation.  He loves us so much He gave us His Son, who also loves and gives His life to us.  He sacrificed the horrors of the cross for us.  What do we need to know?  This is it.  He loves, He forgives, and He is mercy.  In reality, we only need to unlock our hearts and trust in His mercy and believe.  “Day after day… the Lord guides our steps with His grace, and He comes to meet us, to remain always with us, notwithstanding our faults and contradictions. Let us never tire of feeling the need for His forgiveness, because when we are weak, His closeness makes us strong and enables us to live our faith with greater joy.”(Pope Francis, February 1, 2016)  As Vincentians we encounter people daily who are in need.  They are really searching and needing Jesus.  Generally they do not know this, but they need unconditional love as only He can give.  We try to heal their wounds with the mercy we bring.  We are the Gospel by our actions and we serve with love and respect.  We try to show them love and peace and of course joy.  This is our calling, to serve without reserve and to love those we serve.  We know we are serving Jesus and we are there to bring His love through looking at His face in the broken, people in need.  “May we take seriously our call to be Christians, to live as believers, so that the Gospel may touch the hearts of all people and open them to the gift of God’s love.” (Pope Francis, January 30, 2016)

Live Lent Intensely – Pope Francis encourages us to live this season of Lent “intensely” as a privileged to celebrate and experience God’s mercy. He calls on us to be, “missionaries of mercy” in the world, in a special loving way during these days of Lent.  “Change your life, not just your clothes.  Come back to God, your God.  And here’s why:  God is kind and Merciful” (Joel 2:13).  Today begin to change your life.  I am writing this on Ash Wednesday and the Ashes are very humbling for me.  I start to look at the many things God has given me and forget about my woes.  It reminds me to be a little kinder to others.  This is the beginning of our spring cleaning, not of our house, but of ourselves.  I like to think of getting rid of the junk in my trunk.  It is time to do some soul searching and create better habits, getting rid of the old.  It is time to come close to Jesus, forgive others, end gossip, love more, smile more and thank others.  We should especially thank the person working in stores who are serving us.  If they don’t have a smile give them one and if they do have a smile tell them how beautiful it is.  Decide what you want to do to make a difference.  The big thing is to come back to God.  Keep His fragrance with you always.  Whether it is praying more or reading Scripture more.  You decide and don’t make it a long list or a difficult list because you want to stick to it.  Make Lent work for you and those you serve.  Keep them in your prayers.  Have a great Lent.

Silence is Golden – The value of silence cannot be measured.  We are bombarded with noises in our lives.  Traffic, horns honking, garbage trucks clanging, TV or Radio blaring and the phone ringing are sounds we hear every day.  We can eliminate some sounds.  In fact we can eliminate most.  Find a quiet place to replace the noisy sounds with sounds of nature, calming sounds. Sit in the quiet and talk to God.  Acknowledge your love for Him and ask Him for guidance.  Silence is the best form of prayer.  You are a changed person.  It is truly a healing.  Make the time to do this.  Many people say they are too busy.  I have a sign in my office which reads:  “You will never have time, you must make it.”  Make the time to visit with the Trinity and you will be surprised at the gifts you receive.  Pope Francis encourages us to rediscover the value of silence so that we may plumb the depths of the wisdom that comes to us in Scripture.  He reminds us that in order to be capable of mercy, we must make the time and the space to meditate on the Word of God.  (MV 13)  Remember, Jesus spent 40 days in the desert.  If we keep this in mind, we can succeed at our own Lenten Disciplines.  Use your quiet corner as your desert.  It may seem a sacrifice in the beginning, but I think you will find blessings for the time and great fruit.  Escape to your desert of silence for guidance and prayer.

Blessings, Lynn