A message from Father Pete

Isaiah 66: 18-21; Hebrews 12: 5-7, 11-13; Luke 13: 22-30 What do we know:  the world will end.  All living things that we know will come to their end.  You and I know that we came into this world, not of our own accord…and we will leave the world at a time we do not know.  We don’t think about this probably because we don’t want to think about it.  I am closer to the end of my days than I am looking back to the beginning of my days.   Am I afraid…no I’m not.  Am I looking to the time of heaven forever…yes, I am.   The readings today plead with me to look at the time now till the time of the end of my earthly sojourn.  I like the word, sojourn… its synonyms are:  stay, visit, stop, stopover, residence, draw to a close, conclude, terminate, fade away.  I like the British informal definition, to stay somewhere for a short time…’you’ll have to stop the night’.  I don’t think most people want to hear this concerning our time on ...

Jeremiah 38: 4-6, 8-10; Hebrews 12: 1-4; Luke 12: 49-53 How do I view the world today?  Do I tend to focus on all the wrongs, evil, pain, suffering?  Do I lose sight of the mission I have from God to be an instrument of His peace to my world and the bigger world?  What is my approach to people who always seem to be negative and find the ‘bad’ in so many places?  When do I tend in this direction myself?  As my life has enfolded have I realized that God has a plan to redeem myself and every one in the world?  Do I want to be an active participant in God’s plan or am I suspicious?  Do I ever confront the difficulties and obstacles that seem to attack my beliefs and faith?  Do I realize they mainly are focused on living solely for myself and not for my brothers and sisters?  Have I found myself tending toward depression or despair?  Do I see that the struggles that are a part of so many lives like addictions, life-threatening violence, ...

Wisdom 18: 6-9; Hebrews 11: 1-2, 8-19; Luke 12 32-48 Am I anxious about my life ending here on earth?  Do I envision Heaven as a better place?  Do I look forward to be in Heaven or am I afraid of this concept?  Do I realize that Jesus has promised Heaven to all who believe in Him?  Do I plan on ‘working on Heaven’ in future years, when I may be closer to the end, being sickly or older?  Do I put off to tomorrow what I can do today?  What fears do I have about Heaven?  Am I afraid that I am not prepared for Heaven or that I’m still not worthy of heaven?  Do I live in fear of things in my life or future things?   I remember a prayer from my youth ' Now I lay me down to sleep.’  This is a classic children’s bedtime prayer from the eighteenth century.  The earliest version was written by Joseph Addison in an essay appearing in The Spector on March 8, 1711.  It says:     “When I lay me down to Sleep,   ...

Ecclesiastes 1: 2; 2: 21-23;  Colossians 3: 1-5, 9-11; Luke 12: 13-21  Today’s readings all point us in one direction: toward God.  So I can again ask myself as I must do frequently:  is my life pointing to my possessions or to what matters to God?  Am I using my gifts, my possessions, my talents, to be useful and shared with those around me and those in need?  Am I too attached to ‘things’ the I consider precious?  Do I realize that my life is a gift and all gifts must be shared with those in need?  What do I consider ‘idols’ in my life?  Some working definitions of idols are:  an object of extreme’ devotion; a false god…a likeness of something obsolete: pretender, impostor.  In the Bible, idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than God as if it were God.  Deuteronomy 5: 6-10 states the first two commandments given to Moses by God:  “I, The Lord, am your God who brought you out of the land of Egyp...