Pardoned Healed Redeemed and Crowned

He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion.
Ps.103:3,4

Psalm 103 is a beautiful self portrait of God.  Whenever I get a bit fuzzy about who God is, this is where I go to be reminded, to have my vision of Him refocused.

Today I am reminded God is one who pardons, heals, redeems and crowns.  What a beautiful Advent promise for me to savour.

Thank you Jesus that You forgive me my sins, that You heal me of my brokenness, that You have paid the price for me to gain eternal life and that You crown me with the title of "Son of the King".

Little Flower, please pray for me.

Hard and Soft

Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church 

Then he said to his disciples,
“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest.” 

Then he summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness. 

Mt.9:37-10:1

Jesus is moved with compassion when looking on the crowds following Him.  He calls them "sheep without a shepherd".  Immediately He provides shepherds by commissioning the twelve disciples and sending them off on their first missionary trip.

Saint Ambrose is a giant among saints, being pivotal in the conversion of Saint Augustine.  As bishop he is discribed as being assiduous in his duties while being compassionate with his people. The perfect shepherd whose character could describe our current Pope. 

Hard on doctrine while being soft on people.  I find it hard to excersise both these virtues. I tend to be one or the other.  The tension between the two keeps them both in balance, like gravity stopping the person on a swing from floating out into space.  Hard and soft... These can be my points of focus today.

Lord Jesus, You are the perfect example of the perfect shepherd.  Help me shepherd the flock You have given me.

Saint Ambrose please pray for me.

The Rock

Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock.
Mt.7:24

Jesus warns against not acting out God's word.  He tells the story of the wise and foolish builders.  Both build houses but their foundations are radically different, as different as rock and sand.

We're always building something.  Hopes, dreams and plans abound.  At the moment we are building a wedding day for our daughter.  Jesus has a lot to say about weddings.  He's a big fan for them, as evidenced by the wedding feast at Cana.  The rock on which to build this day is the sacrament that is created in the Nuptial Mass.  Everything else will flow from that.

Lord Jesus, help me always keep You in the picture.  You are my rock.
Little Flower, please pray for me.

Can Do

Jesus said to them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ ‘Seven’ they said ‘and a few small fish.’ Then he instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves and the fish, and he gave thanks and broke them and handed them to the disciples who gave them to the crowds.
Matthew 15:34-36

Jesus is in the hills next to the Sea of Galilee teaching and healing a vast crowd for three days.  His compassion moves Him to want to feed the people.  The disciples observe what they have (seven loaves and a few fish) and see problems.  Jesus sees what they have and provides a solution.

I am often like the disciples here.  I focus on what there isn't instead of, like Jesus, seeing what there is. I have a reputation in my family for "raining on their parades".  Using what you've got is a great maxim. It gets things started and allows miracles to happen.  In modern jargon it's called a "can do" attitude.  It's an attitude I can cultivate today.

Lord Jesus, with You anything is possible.  Help me be positive in my outlook, seeing what can be done rather than what can't.
Little Flower, please pray for me.