In her weekly relfection Lynn suggests we reflect – Sit at the feet of Jesus – Our Benefactor – I have a Dream – I love you Lord
My Dear Vincentian Family: My prayer for you today is one of thanksgiving. Lord for all the blessings bestowed upon our Vincentian Family and for those yet to come, I give thanks. I ask you to lighten the loads on the Vincentian family and give them the opportunity to rest in you. Help all of us to spend time with you in love and thanksgiving for our faith, our work and for your constant presence in our lives. Amen. When we pray the voice of the heart must be heard more than that proceeding from the mouth. – Saint Bonaventure (1221 – 1274)
Sit at the feet of Jesus for awhile. Sometimes we get so caught up in our work in the name of God we forget to sit at his feet in adoration. In the Gospel of Luke (10:38:42) proclaimed last Sunday we see the difference between two sisters, Martha and Marie. We can often relate to this story in our Vincentian work. We get so busy serving the Lord in our help to His people in poverty, we forget to sit quietly with Him. While it is true we serve Him in all we do, we forget to visit with Him alone, the friendship visit. Sitting at His feet and sharing your day. Casting off your worries and distractions and being 100% present to His Word and His love for us. You will soon find your worries are gone.
When we sit quietly at the feet of Jesus, we soon find our worries disappear. Jesus is the reason we serve those in poverty, so it makes perfect sense to let Him in on it often. We long for His love and His help. Sometimes we say, “I’m so busy doing His work, I don’t have time to pray. He will understand. Yes, He knows you, but because He loves us so much, He craves the intimate moments with us. Give all of you to Him at His feet. Share your friendship, your worries and seemingly devastating, impossible situations. I think we will find at the end of our intimacy with Jesus, at His feet, we will experience peace in our journey to holiness.
Our Benefactor is God, who gives us everything. He gives us all we need. Even when we forget He is with us, He never leaves. He is definitely the one constant in our lives. He sheds tears when we suffer from loss, or pain. He laughs with us in our happy times and He knows our heart before we even say anything. He loves us even in our faults and His love never dies. His healing and blessings never stop coming. I liken this to a couple of quotes by St. Ignatius Loyola: “Considering that the blessed life we so long for consists in an intimate and true love of God our Creator, our benefactor who is present in all of us. Look at every step of visible creation and you will meet Him.”
Lord help us to remember you are always with us as we journey to serve those in need you place before us. Help us to see you in the prisoner, the addict, the lost and lonely, the hungry, the naked and the unloved and confused. Let us always see Your loving presence dear Benefactor and friend. Amen
I have a Dream: Michael Thio (President General of SSVP International) His words to this song (and he is a beautiful singer). We have a dream, Jesus is He: He shows us the way, we follow Him. Jesus is our Saviour, He is our hope and joy. He is always with us, to guide us in our lives to be with Him. He shows us the way, we follow Him. The theme for the coming year announced at the Canadian National AGA is, “Let us put our Faith into Action”. Michael says, “Don’t fear in your work, God is always with you. Faith enables us to recognize the need and put our Faith into Action. Blessed Frederic Ozanam Learned talk was cheap and he was moved to action. Our witness of Faith, changes our hearts. Our God is a God of action.
I Love You Lord: Continuing with Michael, his second song: “I Love You Lord. In moments like this we give thanks to You. We give thanks to You dear Lord Jesus in moments like this. We sing praise to You, we sing praise to You dear Lord. Singing I love You Lord, Singing I love You Lord, I love You.” Take these words with you on your visits. Serving the Lord brings us everlasting joy. “He will see us and our hearts will rejoice and our joy no man shall take from us; for this is the sole reward for those who suffer for God’s sake, to rejoice forever in His sight.” (St. Bede, the Venerable).
We live in Faith, a faith with integrity. We know our God, we know He is with us and we see Him in all we serve. He calls us to put our Faith into Action. What God calls us to do is the perfect thing to do. This is our calling, we are called to serve. “Fortified by so many and such powerful means of salvation, all the faithful, whatever their condition or state, are called by the Lord, each in his own way, to that perfect holiness whereby the Father Himself is perfect”. LUMEN GENTIUM, para. 11
Have a great week. Pray for all who are suffering around the world. We pray as well with Pope Francis for those still missing and deceased in the explosion in Lac-Mégantic, Québec, Canada. I know Canadians are continuing to pray for relief from the flooding in Calgary and area, especially for First Nations who have lost so much. God be with us.
Blessings,
Lynn
Lynn L’Heureux is Special needs co-coordinator & Advisor of the Society of St Vincent de Paul Calgary Alberta Canada
Subscribe to her weekly newsletter Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast (English and Spanish) by sending an email to calgaryssvpadm@gmail.com
Tags: Canada, L'Heureux, SVDP, Thio
