Juniper Springs Wilderness Run, Florida Picture by Jerry & Linda Laberge
Our blog is inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed, saying:
“Holy Father, keep them in your name
that you have given me,
so that they may be one just as we are one.
When I was with them I protected them in your name that you gave me,
and I guarded them, and none of them was lost
except the son of destruction,
in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
But now I am coming to you.
I speak this in the world
so that they may share my joy completely.
I gave them your word, and the world hated them,
because they do not belong to the world
any more than I belong to the world.
I do not ask that you take them out of the world
but that you keep them from the Evil One.
They do not belong to the world
any more than I belong to the world.
Consecrate them in the truth.
Your word is truth.
As you sent me into the world,
so I sent them into the world.
And I consecrate myself for them,
so that they also may be consecrated in truth.”
Emphasis mine Jn 17:11b-19
I found this reading very interesting.
We have been discussing the “Spirit World” for the past few weeks without knowing what this week’s reading would be about.
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is talking to His Disciples, and I now believe You and I who are trying to align our life with God the Father by imitating His Son, listening to the whisper of the Holy Spirit doing the Father’s will for the Glory of God the Father.
We fall short, but we keep trying, and that is all we can do.
I am reading an interesting book that tells the story of Christians trying to achieve some result for the glory of God the Father.
In two thousand years, some have failed to achieve their goals miserably.
But,
They kept trying, and when they were in error, they were corrected, and the church had to move on.
I am thinking about how the Catholics and Protestants resorted to torture and murder to try and keep people as Catholic or Protestant.
This occurred in Ireland during my lifetime, when part of the country, Northern Ireland, was caught in a civil war of Catholics vs. Protestants. Neither side lived the beatitudes, yet both claimed they were doing God’s will.
But Peace has prevailed and hopefully will continue.
So what’s the point?
Recognize that you, by being a Christan, are not part of the “world,” your Baptism has singled you out, and, hopefully, your desire to live a spiritual life in the “Spirit World” and celebrate any difficulties that may arise by this decision.
Because,
They, you, are not part of this world.
If you want to join Team Jesus, pray. Thank you, Father, for the difficulties (Name the difficulty……………) you have ALLOWED in my life; I know you will take care of me. Pray this until you smile, and that smile tells you, you are back with the Holy Spirit living in the “Spirit World.”
Sidebar:
Gail and I have just returned from Gediyon’s graduation from Sacred Heart College.
I had a feeling of loss on Saturday because I realized that we, Gail and I, are at the start of another milestone, the College Graduation of our Grandchildren.
Gediyon was the first, Brenna is this Saturday, Hannah is next year, and Andre’ and Kendall will be in three years.
At eighty-two, I can do three years holding my breath. I can’t believe how fast the time flies by.
We are saying this because when I was younger, I thought time would go by very slowly as one gets older.
Well, in our case, this is not true.
Thank God! And I do.
What I enjoy about graduation is that all the graduates start with a clean slate and, in this country, can accomplish anything they set their minds to. We are so blessed to be able to say we are Americans and have all the resources needed to make a Joy-filled life.
Sadly, I also believe that turning our lives over to the Triune God and doing the Father’s will for the Glory of God the Father is not at the top of the list for many graduates.
It wasn’t on mine.
And this has made me very sad.
Why?
I wonder what life would have been like had I lived in the “Spirit World.”
No sense in spending much time on the thoughts of the past; the important thing is to try and accomplish this goal today.
Picture:
This was taken on our trip down the Juniper Springs Wilderness Run in Florida in our 2-person kayak. 7.5 miles of tropical paradise. Picture by Gerry & Linda Laberge
Please keep Snapping!
Remember, if you want to submit a picture, no people, please, because we have to get permission from that person to use their photograph; in the comments section at the bottom of our blog, tell me you want to submit a picture, and I will send you my email address in our reply on Thursday. By sending your picture, you consent to allow us to reprint that picture in our next book, God Thoughts 2023, with your name and any comments in the Blog.
