Just when I had convinced myself that things had calmed down a tad at work, I learn that this is just not so. I am off to an emergency meeting this morning with our legal team to look at some of the issues that have been besotting us (Can you say that in English?) for the last month or more. It does not make me feel any better that I was right about some of the legalities involved. No matter what, all of management is in the same boat together, and if the boat overturns, it does not matter who insisted, rightly, that one needed to make a j-stroke as opposed to any other and that no one listened. An overturned boat is an overturned boat. Now, I don't think this boat is going to overturn, at least, not so that anyone drowns -- we all know how to swim. I do think that this morning's meeting will be interesting, elucidative, justifying, edifying, and a whole bunch of other, similar adjectives.In the interim, I have continued to read and enjoy Matthew, which continues to be a great gospel, and I continue to make certain progress through it. This week I stopped at Chapter 15, which contains several parables and stories. The most familiar one is perhaps the story of fishes and loaves.
Reading: Matthew 15: 32-39
Meditation: My life is one example after another of the fishes and loaves story. I don't know how God does it, but God does multiply things in my life, just as Jesus multiplied the fishes and loaves. I have blogged about this upon several occasions. One clear example is God's credit card, which has allowed me to help many people with money I don't have but which appears in time to pay off the credit card. (Note: If I use the credit card for something personal, which I only do for an extreme emergency and when presented with no alternative, then it takes a l-o-n-g time to pay it off.) Another example is the time that Padre (Fr.) Julio needed money for the children of Colombia. I was helping him with his website, Por Amor a Los Ninos de Colombia/For Love of the Children of Colombia, which he was using to fund-raise when I had to go on a business trip. I promised God that I would donate any leftover per diem to Padre for his children -- and all $1000 of the per diem ended up left over because everyone provided me free meals and free lodging. Yet another time I felt I was being directed to donate 25% of my salary to restoring a Franciscan retreat center (like St. Francis was called to rebuild a church). I could not afford that, but I was certain I was supposed to do that, so I made the commitment/pledge. One week later, I received a 25% salary increase! And so on and so forth. God keeps multiplying the fishes and loaves in my life so that I can do my best to feed God's people (literally and figuratively).
Contemplation: That is far as I can go with you this Monday morning. I now retire to private prayer to
thank God for blessing me with so many fishes-and-loaves experiences, to repent if ever I have lacked sufficient gratitude for them or worried about them not occurring, and to praise Him for His willingness to intervene in my life in this way. And then, I will ask Him to keep doing it -- because I like it!
I will leave you now to your prayer and contemplation. First, though, I would like to bring to your attention a Monday morning prayer post that you might enjoy:
Fr. Austin Fleming, priest of the Archdiocese of Boston and pastor in Concord, Massachusetts, posts a prayer each Monday morning that he calls "Monday Morning Offering." I enjoy his prayers very much. I think you also will find them inspirational. He has graciously given me permission to include a link to his blog on my Monday Morning Meditation posts. (During the week, he also posts great homilies and other thoughtful discussions. I enjoy reading those, too, as do readers of this blog who have taken the stroll over to his blog.)For additional inspiration throughout the week, I would point out two sets of blogs: (1) the list of devotional blogs on my sidebar and (2) my blogroll, where I am following a number of inspirational priests and writers about spiritual matters. I learn so very much from all these people. I highly recommend them to you.
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