Do what we can do not what we can't

When we see the storms that hit Fiji we can often feel connected and at the same time remote from the disaster. Unless we personally know somebody who lives there, if we have visited Fiji or have some association with the islands we can feel both concerned and distant. This contradiction can disturb us because we want to help and almost feel powerless at the same time. However, each person is created for God’s mission to immerse ourselves in the day to day life and not to become remote from it. We are called to search for the freedom inside themselves which is convicted of God’s joy and life. It calls us to reach out to human beings out of respect and friendship confident that God’s love is displayed in how we become present to the normal events of daily life. Essentially what makes us human and Christian enables us to live out our vocation. This is not only as a person loved by God but as a person who is able to help transform our world and be a messenger of God’s grace. We are called to do what we can, not what we can’t.

Ultimately, it is not by self-perfection that we encounter God. Christianity is not another self-help program. It is a relationship which enables us to become transformed by God’s loving mercy. Thus it is an integration of our whole life which is expressed whenever we gather to celebrate Eucharist. God calls together not people who have made it, but people on the journey.

How does God call me to be present to others this week?

What is God revealing to me about my own life?

What is being transformed in my community by God’s grace?

Do we shape the world or does the world shape us?

The context in which we live does shape our world. Our perceptions of how the world is can influence how we respond to others, where we invest our time and what we consider important.  What attracts our attention will influence what we do and what we seek to be. We only have to consider our news programs and note the ordering of what we view: current events, business, sport and weather. It is good to stay informed but as Christians we are called to view our world through a different lens. All of these things can have an impact on our lives but do they focus on what is urgent and immediate rather than what is important.

During Lent we are called to consider how we respond to the place where we live. There is a need to study our environment as it is not as we would wish it was; we need to be prayerful in being present to God and to others; we also need to act in a way which is considerate of what God and others have placed on our hearts. I think we can be driven by external events beyond our influence and control rather than looking at what God is putting right in front of us. By seeking to be people who pray, reflect and act we start to be present to a world full of God’s grace. The focus shifts of our plans and onto what God’s is achieving with us.

How have I found time to be prayerfully present to God and others?

Where have I spent most of my time?

What am I called to do next?

What brings me life?

The three temptations of Jesus are the same that we each face: to be powerful; to be spectacular and to be relevant. When we are entrusted with the gifts of the spirit it is wise that we are in touch with the giver of the gifts. What can happen is that we start to see the gifts as our own possession and that the world revolves around us and our choices. Lent allows us the opportunity to open our hearts and our lives to God’s mercy. It calls us to recognize the time when we have sought to use the gifts entrusted to us to advance our own status.

In our own age we are called to recognize both what enhances the living of the spiritual life but also what dampens it. Lent does not call us to turn inwards but to recognize the spirit rises like a wellspring within us. The central questions are what brings life to us, what brings life to others and how do we acknowledge that God is at work within our community. By seeing each person as created in the image and likeness of God we can help them to become what God wants them to be.

At the end of each day pause and reflect with God for a couple of minutes

What brought me life?

Where did I move away from what brings me life?

What can I do differently tomorrow?

Say a prayer which reflects this intention

Seeing things differently

We can often encounter a world-weariness where we just seem to be going through the motions. There is sense where our work can lose its savour and purpose. The work is so familiar and every day. We do not see immediate results and there is always a danger to lapse into boredom or listlessness. When we are faced with this crisis we can seek to discover new pastures or new jobs which seem exciting, fresh and new. We are attracted towards people who have the answer to this deep sense of inertia and pain.

The gospel this weekend talks about putting back out into deep water and discovering Jesus anew. Often it is in familiar situations that we are called to find new energy, hope and love. Lent allows an opportunity for us to discover where Jesus is calling us to a fresh insight. This is why during this penitential season we are called to give something up so that we can see through what is blocking us from encountering Jesus in our everyday life. This could be as simple as switching off the TV and spending some time in prayer or reflecting on the scriptures; visiting or calling somebody we have lost contact with or even engaging in some work for a person who is not as fortunate as ourselves. Lent is about seeing differently and allowing Christ to pay out the nets.