Safety Recall

I think almost everyone is familiar with the concept of a safety recall - merchandise or product - deemed to have an inherent flaw - dangerous to the well being of the public in general. My sister frequently sends me notices about food recalls - contamination with bacteria - foreign material - unhealthy for even animals to consume. The food recalls are unbelievably common - more common that we would like to think.  Other products - toys - contaminated with lead paint - toxic plastics - harmful vapors - harmful to anyone who uses them. Possibly the biggest and most well known - automobile recalls - failed brakes - steering systems - faulty air bags - and on and on - all defects - discovered after the fact. At the time of manufacture - production - safety tested - only to fail ongoing testing at a later date - after it has landed in the hands of the final consumer. Thankfully - few are harmed - because of the due diligence by these companies.

When God sent Jesus - no need for safety testing - no need to follow up with additional testing - rather - follow up only to see how effective His Word - actions were. God is the original - Jesus - the real deal - no prototype - no future model. God gives us His best - first and foremost - no need for a second or third edition. What we see - what we get - day after day - hour after hour - minute after minute. Unlike the rest of the world - we get the best first and forever. In these summer days we tend to relax - let up on our spiritual observances - take the low road - ignore the high road - skip a Mass here and there - let our relationship with God slide into a lower place - possibly - no place at all. Instead of allowing this to happen - insert God moments - times when you may touch the Divine - into your summer activities. Had a great golf game - thank God - experience an awesome camp out  - praise the Lord - enjoy an well deserved vacation - sing your praise to the God who loves you. The only recall you should have with God - is recalling that He loved you - first.

Deacon Dale 

It's A Crazy Life

Yes we are not alone - too many of us -  experiencing crazy times. Now that we are back in the Midwest - life has taken on a whole new aspect. After enjoying a relatively relaxing five months - the hectic stuff has quickly crept back into our lives. I have been so busy I haven't been able to take the time to blog - time to correct that. We have figured out that five months was too long to be away - we lost connections with many - fell out of the loop - left by the wayside.  Illinois is more challenging - lots of grass to mow - lawn tractors that break down when you want to use them - weeds to pull - flower gardens to spruce up - not to mention just getting back in touch with everyone we left behind - reconnecting - gathering - getting crazy. Add to these issues - coping with life's daily issues - the political scene - social media - humidity - lots of bugs - fixing things around the house. Slowly getting back to deacon duties at church - in two weeks have served three Masses - baptized three children - signed some witness affidavits - reached out to a young lady about an annulment - just for starters. In four days we leave for a nine day pilgrimage to Poland. Yes life is getting crazy.

God looks over every thing that is going on - not only in my life - but all of our lives - and smiles. Smiles because we are experiencing life to the fullest - with ordinary events - extra ordinary - happy - sad - frustrating - fun - stressful - relaxing. Just as He wanted - exactly why Jesus came - that all might experience life to the fullest. Often people will complain about the unpleasant things in life - why do we have to have those off moments - yet - if we think about it - the rough times - make the good times better - makes us appreciate little things - like peace - quiet - blue skies - white puffy clouds - handshakes - hugs - moments sharing with others. Like my friend Tom said last night - keeping in touch - looking to the future. God is present in everyone - everything we experience. Crazy or not - God is always there - smiling - calling us to touch the Divine.

Deacon Dale