Sacraments of God's love

Today is the feast of Don Bosco, founder of the Salesian Family whose mission is to be signs and bearers of God's love for young people.
May Don Bosco's life and example inspire us to believe in the "goodness" of each young person.
Our priest this morning mentioned that through us, God wants to reach the young. Yes, our humanity, despite its limitations, is a privileged channel through which God wants to express to young people His love and care. So nothing is small, nothing is insignificant. We are sacraments of God's love for the young.

Sowers

To sow seeds: this is what God asks of me.
To live my faith in my thoughts, words and deeds: this is how I sow seeds.
It is not my business when, where or how the seeds grow: that is God's.

Come as we are

To pray is to come to the Lord as we are; better yet, to pray is to realize that we  are always immersed in God's infinite ocean of mercy, that we don't need to be worried about cutting a good figure. What we need is a humble and trusting heart.
Humble, in accepting the awesome and breathtaking truth that we are loved by God as we are.
Trusting, in believing that God wants us to be happy.

God's will

It is God's will that I be happy!
This is a truth that I believe in.
All life is a journey to believe that God is on my side, cheering me on, wanting me to be happy.
My whole view about life and about the way I live it will radically change if this fundamental truth becomes part of me.
The thing is, I need to change the way I look at what makes me happy. What will give me joy?
What will truly make me happy is not something ephemeral.
Don't get me wrong. It doesn't mean that little things cannot make me happy; for, the transitoriness of something doesn't depend on its size or cost. True happiness touches the soul. It is not for sale. I have seen it in the eyes of the most impoverished children, or in the gentle hands of a mother as she comforts her crying baby after a long day's work.
What makes me truly happy is what gives meaning to my life, something that gives me the reason to wake up every morning, to brave the routine of everyday life, to stay faithful even if it doesn't give me an emotional high.
God's will is for me to be happy, a joy that no one can take away from me. Is this possible? I think it is, and we see it every day in the most selfless acts of kindness, generosity and forgiveness. For it is when we are making others happy that happiness springs from the deepest part of our being. It is a gift. It is God that gives that kind of happiness to me.

God is not in the palace

One thing struck me about yesterday's Feast of the Epiphany. God is not in the palace. Jesus was not born in a palace.
The wise men from the orient, those men who were attentive to "signs", knew that a great man was born. The wise men saw the sign, a great star, and as they consulted and enquired, they confirmed that, indeed, an infant king was born.
Naturally they went to Herod's palace, the most normal place for a king to be born in. Of course, they did not find what they were looking for in that place.
As the wise men continued their journey, the star they were following reappeared once they left Herod's place, and the star led them to the place where the Christ-child was.
God is beyond our control. His ways and His choices are infinitely surprising. We need to continue to search and to be ready to be surprised, to meet God is the most unusual places. After all, Jesus was not born in a palace.

Seeking God

Those who sincerely seek God will find Him; the desire to seek God is already a glimpse of God's face.

Totally yours

At the start of this new year, I renew my choice to be totally God's. There is a great temptation in me not to say this, knowing how many times I've made two steps forward and three steps backward.
But I will do this renewal because I feel that it is the Spirit urging me to do so.
Lord, you don't need me, but I need You.
You don't deserve me, and neither do I deserve you.
Everything about You is totally gift, and I am blessed by the very fact that my life is immersed in Your immense ocean of mercy.

Hope

The beginning of the year gives us hope that we can always start anew.
As I retire my old calendar and hang a new one, it is as if God is giving me the gift of a fresh start. It is not really a back-to-zero thing, because I believe that everything that happens to us, especially our most significant experiences, will always be a part of us. Just as the resurrection did not erase the marks of the Passion, our wounds will always be a part of us; but so do our joys and triumphs.
A new beginning is a call to forgive, to give thanks, to dance to life's melody.