This was sent to me from my wife who received it from my Daughter. I thought you might enjoy it…
A woman’s daughter had asked the local minister to come and pray with her mother.
When the minister arrived, he found the woman lying in bed with her head propped up on two pillows. An empty chair sat beside her bed. The minister assumed that the woman had been informed of his visit. ‘I guess you were expecting me, he said.’ No, who are you?’ said the mother. The minister told her his name and then remarked, ‘I saw the empty chair and I figured you knew I was going to show up.’
‘Oh yeah, the chair,’ said the bedridden woman. ‘Would you mind closing the door?’
Puzzled, the minister shut the door. ‘I have never told anyone this, not even my daughter,’ said the woman. ‘But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, bu t it went right over my head.’ I abandoned any attempt at prayer,’ the woman continued, ‘until one day four years ago; my best friend said to me, ‘Betty, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest. ‘Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It’s not spooky because he promised, ‘I will be with you always’. ‘Then just speak to him in the same way you’re doing with me right now.’ ‘So, I tr ied it and I’ve liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day.
I’m careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she’d either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm.’ The minister was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the woman to con tinue on the journey. Then he prayed with her, anointed her with oil, and returned to the church. Two nights later the daughter called to tell the minister that her mother had died that afternoon. Did she die in peace?’ he asked.
Yes, when I left the house about two o’clock, she called me over to her bedside, told me she loved me and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found her. But there was something strange about her death. Apparently, just before Mother died,
She leaned over and rested her head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make of that?’ The minister wiped a tear from his eye and said, ‘I wish we could all go like that.’
Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive.
I asked God for water, He gave me an ocean.*
I asked God for a f lower, He gave me garden.*
I asked God for a friend, He gave me all of YOU…
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.
September 30 2008 | inspiration | No Comments »
Well, today I was fortunate to have lunch with 2 recently ordained Deacons. One is from my parish, the other from across town. They gave me strength and hope and most of all support for the journey ahead. Indeed, I feel blessed.
I spent the afternoon getting myself organized. I scanned some of the class documents, but soon found out there is a size limitation for yahoo groups. I really wanted to make them availabe online to our group, but I will have to figure out something.
It’s been a long day, think I will offer evening prayers and get some sleep.
Peace to all.
September 25 2008 | random thoughts | No Comments »
I was sent this in an email.
SCARS OF LIFE
‘Love is when God became man.’
Some years ago, on a hot summer day in south Florida, a little boy decided to
go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool
water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went. He flew into
the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was
swimming toward the shore.
His father, working in the yard, saw the two as they got closer and closer
together. In utter fear, he ran toward the water, yelling to his son as loudly as he could.
Hearing his voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his father. It was
too late. Just as he reached his father, the alligator reached him.
From the dock, the father grabbed his little boy by the arms just as the alligator snatched his
legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two. The alligator was much stronger
than the father, but the father was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive
by, heard his screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the
alligator.
Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy survived.
His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the animal and, on his arms,
were deep scratches where his father’s fingernails dug into his flesh in an effort to hang
onto the son he loved.
The newspaper reporter, who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he
would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs, and with obvious pride,
he said to the reporter, ‘But look at my arms. I have great scars on my
arms, too. I have them because my Dad wouldn’t let go.’
You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, too. No, not from
an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly
and have caused us deep regret. But some wounds, my friend, are because God has
refused to let you go.
In the midst of your struggle, He’s been there holding on to you.
The Scripture teaches that God loves you. You are a child of God. He wants to
protect you and provide for you in every way. But sometimes we foolishly wade
into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead. The swimming hole of
life is filled with peril – and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack.
That’s when the tug-of-war begins – and if you have the scars of His
love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He did not and will not ever let
you go.
September 22 2008 | inspiration | No Comments »
As this weekend came to a close I am thankful for the opportunity both to learn and get to know my fellow Aspirants. Julia and I thank each and every one of you for your gift of friendship and encouragement. I look forward to the year ahead of us and hope that we can give back as much as we receive.
This being said, I stopped by Barnes and Noble and picked up a couple books that were on the list:
- The Catholic Bible – 2nd Edition, (Personal Study Edition) NAB
- Painless Writing, Jeffrey Strausser (Barron’s)
- Introduction to Christianity, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, (Ignatius Press)
I still have a few more to order, but it’s a start.
Thanks again for the wonderful weekend.
Al
September 21 2008 | formation | 4 Comments »
I apologize for the lack of anything to read but we’ve been in a bit of “crisis” mode for the last few days. In my last posting, I shared photos of my dogs. One a Catahoula and the other a Rottweiler. Well, Sadie my Rottweiler was having trouble with keeping food down, loose bowels, disorientation, lethargy and so on. It got to the point that she was severely dehydrated and in acute crisis. We took her to the vet and they began running an IV and drawing blood for testing. Fecal tests were done as well. She spent a night in the hospital. Yesterday we found out from the test results that she has a disease called Addisons. Basically, it’s when your adreno glands fail to produce cortisol or doesn’t produce enough of it. See the link for more detail, but in essence she needed supplementation.
We are very happy to report that she is back to her peppy self again. I cannot believe the difference a day and expert medical help did for her. Veterinary medicine is a marvel and these people who dedicate their lives to the care of our animals are to be commended. The staff there at the Pet Medical Center were kind, considerate and caring towards both us and our beloved Sadie. Although Addison disease cannot be cure, it is manageble and with proper supplementation she will lead an otherwise normal life.
I thank God for people caring for animals and for Sadie, who has given us so much in her 3 years of life. Her unconditional love and affection is always there for us and I could not do any less for her.
September 06 2008 | my dogs | No Comments »
