Inspiration for your journey to God!

Category: Advent (Page 9 of 20)

Walk softly and carry a big stick

walk softly and carry a big stick
He’s with us every step of “the way!”

Walk softly and carry a big stick is the first thing I thought of when I read the title to today’s Gospel – The Gentle Mastery of Christ.

Matthew 11:28-30

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.”

Throughout all of Scripture, Jesus speaks softly. He is extremely gentle and yet His words and actions have power beyond measure. People follow Him, they listen to Him, they’re healed by Him. I would say Jesus is a shining example of what it means to walk softly and carry a big stick.

A barrage

So many thoughts crossed my mind today as I read this Gospel passage and unpacked each word. For one, when I read yoke I thought of that part of a shirt or garment that covers the shoulders. That description led me to think of a baptismal garment. Jesus is telling us to put on our baptismal garment and follow Him? Maybe.

Then I thought about yoke as a frame that fits over a person’s neck and shoulders used to carry pails or baskets. THEN it made more sense to me. Balance came to mind. The balance between meekness and humility.

here i go again

To be meek is to be submissive and to be humble is to have a low estimate of your own importance. So Jesus is meek and humble of heart and He wants us to learn from Him. Sooooooo, wait for it………….we’re called by Christ to be CONTEMPLATIVES (meek; submissive) in ACTION (humble of heart; compassionate). Balancing stillness before God with our action in the world (charity and work for justice). We are called to do both, walk softly and carry a big stick!

the freedom in limitation

A tall order, I know. I don’t think there are too many people out there who are good, focused or consistent in both, contemplation and action. It’s either one or the other or neither. Admitting our limitations frees us up to beg for the grace to grow in the areas we are lacking.

Jesus Christ is our Redeemer. He gives us the strength we need to follow His lead no matter how unable or unworthy we are. He is with us every step of the way!

Are you following Christ’s lead when it comes to contemplation (practicing stillness and silence – click here to see Fr. Thomas Keating explain Centering Prayer) and action (being charitable and/or working for justice in a peaceful manner)? Where are you lacking? Will you beg for grace today? Beg for the grace to grow as a disciple who is called to both contemplation AND action.

God bless you!

The parable of the lost sheep

the parable of the lost sheep
The Good Shepherd finds his sheep and rejoices!

The parable of the lost sheep is what the Church gives me to chew on today. Somehow though, I manage to connect the dots between today’s Gospel and my Jesse tree tradition (click here to see what I mean) and Advent readings.

matthew 18:12-14 – The parable of the lost sheep

What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.

My first thought after reading these verses was who are we to judge? Because in the verse before these, Jesus says “see that you do not despise one of these little ones……”

As followers of Christ, we sometimes get caught up in judgment and maybe even think it’s our “job” to convert someone we deem to be “lost.” But here Jesus tells us not to despise them, not to look down on them.

Psalm 139 my favorite!

Psalm 139 tells us in part: Darkness is not dark for you, and night shines as the day. Darkness and light are but one. You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. I praise you, so wonderfully you made me; wonderful are you works.

God created us! We are all precious in His sight. WE ARE ENOUGH! When we judge others (not just their person but their souls and whether or not we think they’re worthy of heaven), we’re basically saying what God created is not enough, that it’s not good. The audacity!

God sees no distinction – this psalm tells us light and dark are as one. It’s all the same to Him, the Creator of the universe. So, I’ll ask again, WHO ARE WE TO JUDGE?

If we read and study Scripture and haven’t gotten the message yet, shame on us. What’s the message? The message is love, unity and non-judgment. If that’s not what we’re practicing, then we need to study harder and pray more.

Pray that God open our minds to the Truth that we are ALL God’s children. He loves us ALL the same and He pursues us constantly. Let us remember that it is not His will that ANY of us be lost. All in His time not ours.

samuel’s “conversion”

Samuel 3:1-18 shows how God persistently calls us but may not necessarily reveal Himself to us. Don’t you think it’s hard to respond to someone you don’t know is calling? You see, Samuel didn’t know who was calling Him. Scripture tells us “Samuel was not familiar with the Lord, because the Lord had not revealed anything to him yet.

Eventually, Eli comes to understand that Samuel doesn’t know who God is and simply instructs him. He instructs without judgment. Isn’t it interesting that it’s Eli who reveals to Samuel who God is? Once Samuel is made aware, he is able to respond directly to God.

our call to be light

So what are we to think about today? The lost sheep. Are they lost because of some wound, a past hurt, lack of knowledge? Could it be they’re lost because, like Samuel, God has not revealed Himself to them yet?

Whatever the reason, we should not judge. Let’s follow Eli’s example. God’s plans are not our plans. The truth is we are ALL His and He doesn’t will that any of us be lost. Trust in His promise. Let’s focus on being His light in the world without judgment. Who knows, He may want to use us to reveal Himself to a lost sheep! Are we ready?

God bless you!

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2024 Shepherd of Faith

Theme by Anders NorenUp ↑