Prayer For Peace by St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

"Renegade" - Styx

Oh momma I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law
Lawman has put an end to my running and I'm so far from my home
Oh momma I can hear you a'crying you're so scared and all alone
Hangman is comin' down from the gallows and I don't have very
long

The jig is up the news is out they've finally found me
The renegade who had it made retrieved for a bounty
Never more to go astray
This will be the end today of the wanted man

Oh momma I've been years on the lam
And had a high price on my head
Lawman said get him dead or alive
Now it's for sure he'll see me dead
Dear momma I can hear you a'crying
You're so scared and all alone
Hangman is coming down from the gallows
And I don't have very long

The jig is up, the news is out
They finally found me
The renegade who had it made
Retrieved for a bounty
Never more to go astray
The judge will have revenge today
On the wanted man

Oh Momma, I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law
Hangman is coming down from the gallows And I don't have very long

The jig is up, the news is out
They finally found me
The renegade who had it made
Retrieved for a bounty
Never more to go astray
This'll be the end today
Of the wanted man
The wanted man

And i don't wanna go,
Oh no
Dont let 'em take me
No no

This song is totally about Jesus, Peter and Paul. Three men who were put to death by the "lawmen" of Rome for crimes they didn't commit.

"Show Me The GRAAAACE!"

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which one of you would hand his son a stone
when he asked for a loaf of bread,
or a snake when he asked for a fish?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your heavenly Father give good things
to those who ask him.
“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the law and the prophets.” - Mt. 7:7-12

Two days ago, Jesus taught his disciples, and us, how to pray to God. Today, Jesus encourages us to pray not only for own our needs, but also how we should do good for others, just as God does for us.

Jesus reminds us that if we can help and show love and respect for others, imagine what God has in store for us! God gives us what we need, even if we are sinners, because he is our Father who loves us. He wants to help us bring about the Kingdom of God.

All we need to do is "ask," "seek," and "knock." We need to first admit that we need help and ask God to give us the grace to guide us. Then we must seek the truth, which is Jesus. And knock on the door when we are need of a place of welcoming when we face persecution and lonliness.

We must still however, show love and respect towards everyone. This includes our enemies and those who wish evil upon us. This can be a challenge in this day and age. Our politicans carry grudges their entire careers. We have been raised with an "us" and "them" mentality. But we are called to break this mentality and be open and loving of all people.

So we ask God to grant us the courage and the grace that God gives us everyday to become better Christians.

Life Without Regrets

"Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got til it's gone?" - Joni Mitchell

"At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here." - Lk. 11:32

Today's gospel serves as an awakening for us. It starts with Christ declaring, "This generation is an evil generation" when you start from the bottom you can only go up, right? No. You can accept your fate and just remain evil or you can pick yourself up and correct your course and then slowly but surely make your way up from the basement.

What we are called to do is to live life with no regrets. This does not mean we should say "Live like there is no tomorrow? Then parties and orgies galore!" What we are being called to do rather, is hear the call of God in ourselves and be resolved in strengthening our commitment to serving him. Jesus reminds us that even the sinners of Nineveh, whom Jonah thought were unfit to be redeemed, reformed from their wicked ways and were saved by the grace of God. Who are we then, followers of Christ, to deny this wonderful opportunity of forgiveness and redemption with him through the words of Jesus?

Jesus isn't bragging in today's gospel by saying he is "greater than Solomon" or "greater than Jonah." He is stating a fact! Solomon and Jonah were mortal men, who had their flaws, but the one is flawless is offering eternal redemption to us, the "evil generation" who have found themselves trapped in a dark basement but really yearn to be saved.

So let us live our lives with no regrets. When we die, let us take comfort in the fact that we accepted the call of God through his son Jesus and have been given the greatest gift of all, eternal life, so long as we continue to build the Kingdom of God.

Everything I Need To Know About Prayer I Learned From Jesus

Jesus said to his disciples: “In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This is how you are to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

“If you forgive men their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive men,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.” - Mt. 6:7-15

In today's gospel reading, Jesus not only tells his disciples how to behave when they pray, he gives them a prayer that does directly to God.

We too often need guidance in how we pray. Some treat it like a wishing well. Others see it as an opportunity to "talk on the phone" with God. Some don't see prayer as important or useful, others dedicate their entire lives to it. Either way, Jesus reminds us that the line of communication between us and God are always open, especially when we follow his lead in living prayerful, faithful lives.

Who Are You?

When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter,and upon this rock I will build my Church,and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” - Mt. 16:13-19

Think about your relationship with your friends. How often do we ask our friends what others think of us or what they think of us? We always hope they will say something positive, like "Everyone loves you!" "I think you're the greatest!" Jesus is not that different. He wants his apostles to respond honestly, but hopes they will say the right thing, which Peter does.

Jesus is so impressed with Peter's response that he takes that moment to declare Peter to be the "rock" upon he will build his faith community. Jesus trusts his closest apostle. Jesus sees a glimmer of hope in a man that he knows will deny him on Good Friday. Within three verses even, Jesus condems Peter's response to his annoucement that he will be put to death soon. Jesus tells him "Get behind me Satan!"

Jesus is not having second thoughts about trusting Peter, but rather is casting the temptation of escaping his fate out of his close friend's mind. He is reminded that Peter is just human and still lacks the ability to comprehend the necessity of Jesus' death.

How do we respond to the question of Who do people say Jesus is? Who do we say he is? Let's spend the next six weeks searching for our answer to these questions.

1st Sunday of Lent: Temptation In The Desert

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days,to be tempted by the devil.He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered him,“It is written, One does not live on bread alone.”

Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant.
The devil said to him,“I shall give to you all this power and glory;
for it has been handed over to me,and I may give it to whomever I wish.
All this will be yours, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It is written:You shall worship the Lord, your God,
and him alone shall you serve.”

Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God,throw yourself down from here, for it is written:
He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,and: With their hands they will support you,lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It also says, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”

When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time. - Lk. 4:1-13

The temptation in the desert is read every 1st Sunday of Lent. We are reminded that Jesus, like us, is tempted by the Devil to forsake God and give in to our earthly wants and desires. Yet, one aspect that is often overlooked is how the showdown begins.

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days,and when they were over he was hungry.

Jesus is led by the Holy Spirit out into the desert for forty days with the intention of having Satan tempt Jesus. This wasn't a simple "devil on your shoulder" temptation. This was the final training for Jesus in order to begin his mission (The synoptics all begin his public ministry with this event). Jesus is out in the hot, lonely desert with the only purpose of having his faith tested. To make it even more of a challenge, Jesus forsakes eating anything for those forty days. By the time the Devil appears to tempt him, Jesus has weakened his body to the point that a mere human would have already been dead, let alone be opening to salvation from even the Devil.

The message of today's gospel isn't "Look at how powerful Jesus is over the Devil." It is actually look at how weak Christ is physically, to a point that we cannot even fathom, but yet he refuses to give into the will of Satan and finds solace in the will of God. He shows us that even when we believe we are at our most vulnerable or weakest moment, we still have no excuse to give into the Devil's wants and desires. We must be like Christ and stand firm and resolve in our faith in the Lord. We must also welcome the Devil's temptations as a sign of growth and development in our relationship with God. When we too can refuse the Devil's charms and offers, we can grow closer to God and be fit to carry on the mission of Christ today.