Thursday of the 1st Week of Lent Est 4:17Mt 7:7-12 “Is there a man among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread?” As I reflected on the Gospel today, I imagined it being read to a cheeky child who, after being read to, asks, “Then what if I asked... Continue Reading →
25 February, Wednesday — Change is difficult
Wednesday of the 1st Week of Lent Jon 3:1-10Lk 11:29-32 "...there is something greater than Jonah here." Back when I was a young adult, I underwent what one might term a transformation of a certain aspect of myself. Over the years that I spent in school, I had been wondering about friends' responses to things... Continue Reading →
24 February, Tuesday — Being present in prayer
Tuesday of the 1st Week of Lent Isa 55:10-11Mt 6:7-15 "So you should pray like this:..." On a particularly cold Saturday a few weeks ago, a warning for ice was issued in the northeast region of the Netherlands. For some reason, I missed the warning and was therefore shocked when I slipped and fell almost... Continue Reading →
23 February, Monday — The choice is yours, and mine.
Monday of the 1st Week of Lent Lev 19:1-2,11-18Mt 25:31-46 “...in so far as you did this to one of the least of these….. in so far as you neglected to do it to one of the least of these...” The choices we make, more than the words we speak, determine where we will spend... Continue Reading →
22 February, Sunday — A Greater Gift
1st Sunday of Lent Gen 2:7-9,3:1-7Rm 5:12-19Mt 4:1-11 …but the gift itself considerably outweighed the fall. One activity during training or teambuilding makes use of a white sheet of paper and the facilitator asking people to draw one dot. Immediately, everyone’s attention is on that one dot and it seems as if they have forgotten,... Continue Reading →
20 February, Friday — To eat or to fast?
Friday after Ash Wednesday Isa 58:1-9Mt 9:14-15 “…then they will fast.” Ash Wednesday fell on the 2nd day of Chinese New Year. There was no fast and abstinence. My family welcomed many relatives and friends that day. Lunch was hearty and delicious. Today is the first Friday of Lent. It is also fast and abstinence... Continue Reading →
19 February, Thursday — Choose Life
Thursday after Ash Wednesday Deu 30:15-20Lk 9:22-25 “Choose life, then, so that you and your descendants may live, in the love of the Lord your God, obeying His voice, clinging to him…” I am probably dating myself here, but I used to love the British pop group from the 1980s, ‘Wham!’. Yes, that fabulous duo,... Continue Reading →
18 February, Wednesday — On Aging
Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent and occurs forty days before Easter (excluding Sundays). It falls on a different date each year, because it is dependent on the date of Easter; it can occur as early as Feb 4 or as late as Mar 10. Ash Wednesday gets its name from... Continue Reading →
13 April, Sunday — Triumph or Tragedy?
Palm Sunday Isa 50:4-7Phi 2:6-11Lk 22:14-23:56 The greatest among you must behave as if he were the youngest, the leader if he were the one who serves It has been said that "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely." This statement seems very true, and it does appear to be the case. Each one of... Continue Reading →
12 April, Saturday — The Gift and Sacrifice
Saturday of the 5th Week of Lent Eze 37:21-28Jn 11:45-56 …Jesus was to die for the nation -- and not for the nation only, but to gather together in unity the scattered children of God. My son has a children’s book that explains why Jesus came into the world, and in the story, the mother... Continue Reading →
OXYGEN 