Lent Day 42 - Covering The Bases

Now that baseball has officially started we are watching a lot of games. We had the privilege of watching one spring training game with the Chicago Cubs while in Arizona. It is interesting to watch the plays - the planning that goes into the training - learning just where to throw the ball and when - where to hit the ball - how to place it exactly where you want it to go. Most of the time - executed exactly as planned - often - not - errors - dropped balls - lost games. In this third day of Holy Week - those preparing to join the Church at the Easter Vigil - now going through the plays - what to do - where to be - what to say - everyone a winner - all will complete the play - become fully initiated into the Church.

When God set the world in motion - He had all the bases covered - people in the right places - everything planned out. Then things happened - had to deal with - Free Will. In spite of those who chose to ignore Him - He is still in control - covering all the bases for us. He is there - especially as we celebrate Holy Week - to give us special opportunities to touch the Divine - to catch the spiritual blessings - He throws at us. It is up to each of us if we participate fully - give
it our best effort - to catch - accept - everything sent our way.

Deacon Dale

Lent Day 41 - Oil Change

Changing oil is recommended periodically to keep many tools - vehicles- in proper working order. Oil is a lubricant and facilitates the smooth operation of moving parts - protecting them from wearing out - extending their usable life.  In earlier days - athletes would rub oils into their skin - to strengthen - aide them in competition. Many people use oils daily to aide in their health - cod liver oil - olive - canola - corn - peanut - safflower - soybean - sunflower - in cooking - preparing foods. Oils are used in religious services to anoint as in baptism - confirmation - ordination. During Holy Week - in the Catholic Church - the Bishop blesses new - fresh oil - in a special Chrism Mass. These oils to be used throughout the following year - replenishing the supply for all the parishes - around  the world. 

In Holy Week the Church gives us special opportunities to experience the Divine. At the annual Chrism Mass - often held on a Monday during Holy Week - the Bishop not only blesses the three oils to be used while celebrating the sacraments - also celebrates his priests and deacons - together - all renew their promise to serve the Holy People of God - the Church - to the best of their abilities. Attending the annual Chrism Mass - with all its pomp - reminds each of us - how much God loves us - lavishes His love upon all - anointing each of us - with His Love - Blessings - daily.

Deacon Dale 

Lent Day 40 - Palm Sunday

Palms - fingers - when discussing the anatomy of the extremities - one must obviously include - the fingers - hands - palms. All three are very important parts of the body - used to accomplish a multitude of tasks. Individually they have their own function - combined - still more. The fingers allow us to accomplish tasks such as typing - keyboarding - playing musical instruments - the hands - hold - carry - throw objects - baseballs - stones - rocks - the palm - the cradle of the hand - the pocket - received - carries various objects. When considering the palm with center area - fingers -  thumb - outstretched - looks very similar to a palm leaf - tree. This Sunday - Palm Sunday - the annual celebration in the Christian Church around the world when we commemorate the powerful entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem.  I have been to Jerusalem - three times - never greeted with palms - the way Jesus was. He - the Christ - the Anointed One - me - a pilgrim - trying to get closer to my faith roots. My internal clock - telling me - maybe - I need to return to the roots of my Christian faith - one more time. Perhaps  that is why we have our very own palm at our Arizona house - a constant reminder of our faith roots - not a crucifix.

Mediterranean Palm at Casa Del Camino

God calls all of us - especially as we begin the holiest week of the Christian year - to go to our faith roots. We are asked to open our hearts - hands - palms - to received from Him the many blessing of this week. As we celebrate the blessing of Chrism by the Bishop - the institution of the Priesthood - Eucharist - Good Friday - the Passion - Holy Saturday - the anticipation - Resurrection - Easter Sunday. There is much to absorb in one short week - a lot to behold - very worthy. We need to walk into this week - eyes wide open - ears listening for His words - hearts - hands encompassing - every blessing sent our way.

Deacon Dale 

Lent Day 39 - Playing Dominoes

We were introduced to the game of Dominoes a few years ago and one thing we have learned - one game where the rules seem to evolve as you play.  With one group of friends - their rules - with another group - different rules.  Recently we gathered with four family members and as we advanced through each round - the rules kept becoming more and more complex. In an effort to explain one rule - we developed a new additional - revised rule. During the course of thirteen rounds - rules modified at least six times. To say that it became very interesting - an understatement.  Our relationship with God - often seems the same. 

When God created the World - when He revealed Himself to His people - simple rules - 
I will be your God - you my people - do as I say.  Jesus clarified those rules - after they had become more complex with so many do's and don't do's - Love the Lord your God with all your heart - mind - soul - and your neighbor as yourself.  What should be so easy - simple - we have made complicated.  Old rules - new rules - Rituals renamed - to clarify - only to create more confusion. This Lent as we prepare for the holiest week of the year - uncomplicate your life - 

get back to the basics - do as God - Jesus - said.  Your Lent will be much more meaningful.

Deacon Dale  

Lent Day 38 - Flight Time

Whenever I have to take a flight somewhere - one of most important things is the flight time - time of departure - time of arrival - length of flight. If it is not a non-stop flight - then the connecting time between flights - also important.  To me and many others - time is very important.  I do not want to wake up at 4:30 AM in the morning to be able to board a flight that leaves at 6:30 AM - nor do I want to arrive at my destination in the middle of rush hour - too late to find a hotel - having to drive an hour or more at midnight.  When flying with a connecting flight - time between flights has to be a minimum of one hour.  First flight risk of being late and leaving a small amount of time to exit one gate and get to the second gate - in a crowded airport - the two gates at opposite ends of the terminal.  As is said often - timing is everything. 

God is eternal - outside of time.  With God one day is as a thousand and one thousand as one day  (2 Peter 3:8 and again Psalm 90:4).  God is not bound by the limits of time since He is the one who created time - the author of the system which we use to mark days - weeks - months. He calls each of us and waits - no time limit - giving us all the time we need to move closer to Him.  In Lent we take 40 days - 30 days - 10 days - maybe less - to reflect on our lives - our relationship to Him - with His Son - Jesus.  Take all the time you need - He can afford it - but - can you?

Deacon Dale 

Lent Day 37 - Little Things

Everyone gets excited when grand - exciting things happen in their lives. Big surprises - lavish - over the top presents - unexpected windfalls.  While those are exhilarating - rare - not frequent enough. In my lifetime I have experienced a few of those moments - the most significant - not what you might think. As I grow older -  reflecting on the joyful moments of my life - more often - the little things. A few years ago our youngest son had planned on flying out to Arizona for a short three day visit. He had to work and was not able to take time off while my grandson was on spring break - had to miss a week in Florida with his son and wife - visiting her parents.  Luckily - he was able to get a day free which allowed him a long weekend to visit us.  As planned - we picked him up at the airport - after putting his luggage in the car - had to dash back to pick up other luggage - our grandson!  In a surprise move - he was able to bring our grandson with him for those three days. This little blessing - an awesome gift that we least expected.

God works in strange and mysterious ways. So many people miss the everyday - little things - God does for them - looking constantly for grand - outrageous blessings. Here in the Sonoran Desert flowers are fairly rare - at certain times of the year. Most people think of the desert as a bunch of rocks - sand - lizards. When you take the time - in the right season - the otherwise boring green saguaro cacti - among others - produces a beautiful flower on its head. Even more interesting is when you see a bird sitting atop this cactus loaded with very sharp needles. You would never touch a saguaro - yet - a bird - sits comfortably on top. It is these little things - to be appreciated - contemplated. Why did God make this possible - what is the reason - who will benefit from such beauty - tucked away in a desert. Like a surprise visit from a grandson - God is full of surprises. If this surprises you - time to get to know God better.

Deacon Dale  

Lent Day 36 - Looking For Love

Everyone that I have ever met has been looking for love. Little children - seeking to be affirmed by parents that they are loved - teens - looking for the - first love - of their lives - young adults - seeking to find that special partner - the love of their life - mature adults - looking for love - lost - never found. Animals - love - at least we think they love us - some sort of attachment - curling up in our laps - sitting by our sides - tails wagging when we return home. Defining love - difficult - an intangible - unable to hold - touch - yet we say we feel - loved -in love - lost love.

God so loved the world  that He sent His only Son into  the world to share His Love with us. To teach us how to love - to feel love - to be love. Many people feel unloved - alone - abandoned. In Lent we drive deeply into our self - to exam who we are - what we are - to seek - the depth of the love - buried inside. Unfortunately - many - feel - no love. Truth be told - we are loved - period. God - His Son - Jesus - has loved us from the beginning of time - even before we were created - born - They loved us - still do. Going against common wisdom - we need to understand that first of all - we must love ourselves. No matter what we have done - how we have lived - love - ourselves. God created us in His image - to be good - not God - to be the love that He has for us. Understanding that we are the physical embodiment of His Love - we know then that we are Love. Start with yourself today - then start loving others - in doing so you will find the love you seek - need.

Deacon Dale  

Lent Day 35 - Cranky Franky

 We have all experienced people like - Cranky Franky - people who are always in  a bad mood - complaining - ill tempered - no fun to be with. They drive cars and blow horns at everyone - overload their shopping carts - then complain it takes too long to check out their purchase - impatient - always in a rush - living life one curse after another. It is easy to pick on the Cranky Frankies of the world - not knowing them - what is going on in their lives. The man whose wife is slowly dying in the hospital - the lady who just lost her job three years before retirement with no hope of finding affordable health care - the fat kid who never gets picked for any of the teams - even after losing fifty pounds in the last six months - the girl whose life is miserable and wants to commit suicide because she can't deal with her recent rape. Yes - these are some of the Cranky Frankies in the world - others for many other reasons.

God loves all of us - even the Cranky Frankies of the world. His love is not only for the lovable - also for those that are miserable. Often those - more loved - because they need it more. God calls each of us to love - as He loves - not making judgments - rather loving when loving is very difficult. To show God how much you love Him - find a Cranky Franky today and show them His love - through your love.

Deacon Dale 

Lent Day 34 - Managing Our Home

A very important part of managing a home is seeing that various systems are properly maintained - electrical - plumbing - heating - security - to name a few. It is important that all homeowners periodically inspect the different systems in their homes to avoid major issues. Verifying that electrical circuits are not overloaded - hot water tanks are periodically flushed - water softeners disinfected - furnaces checked for cracked heat exchangers - security - contacts - batteries all functioning. Marking a calendar to remind to do an annual inspection - one very good tool in the process. One reminder that is published for the public yearly is to check smoke - fire alarms to make sure batteries are fresh - time to replace units over ten years old. We recently had one of our smoke alarms go off - inspecting that one unit in our Arizona home alerted us to the fact that it was time to replace all the units. Reviewing Phoenix building codes we learned that all hard wired units - which the majority of homes have - now required to be replaced with a sealed unit with a ten year lithium battery. Replacing the units involved a slight re-wiring issue but it was simple to do and new units now meet current building codes - home in good shape. 

Many areas of our lives are regulated by rules - regulations - codes - for personal safety - for community safety. There are those who hate these codes - guidelines - ignore every chance they get. Most others - follow the rules - regulations as listed by reliable authorities. The most common signs we see - traffic signs - lights - informing us when to stop - go - how fast we may travel. In Lent the Church sets down guidelines for us also - specifying fast days - days of abstinence - ways to manage our personal Spiritual home.  Although many do not understand - most comply with these regulations. It is for our benefit that all these rules are posted - everyone informed. As we continue into this fifth week of Lent - these regulations now very familiar - not an issue. No longer on our minds - focusing instead on how well we manage our spiritual homes - our relationship with God. Happily for us - with God - all things possible. 

Deacon Dale 

Lent Day 33 - Claiming The Fifth

Yes - the Fifth Sunday of Lent - already!  Depending which Mass you attended today you may have heard the Cycle C readings - or if your church was celebrating the Third Scrutiny for your catechumens - Cycle A.  Here in Arizona - where I am for now - all Masses heard Cycle A as they have about 30 people preparing for the Easter Vigil.  The Fifth Sunday of Lent - celebrating New Life. In today's Gospel (A) we heard about Jesus raising Lazarus of Bethany from the dead. My first thoughts - I have been there - in Bethany - my wife rode a camel there! We laughed as we watched the camel try to give her a kiss.  What a memory - modern day - happy times. Anytime the Scriptures mention places in the Holy Land where we have visited - it brings back many great memories.  Today's Gospel should bring all of us to similar happy memories. We have been told countless times - those who believe that Jesus is Lord will never die - our own resurrection - foretold by Scripture.

This Sunday in the Church - around the world - the Third Scrutiny is being celebrated - final examination of the Elect - preparing to join the Church at the Easter Vigil. The last three Sundays have been baptism liturgies focusing on the three elements of Water - Light - New Life - all which is experienced on Holy Saturday at the Easter Vigil. God does not call us to ride camels - resurrect from the dead - anything else. He simply asks that we approach Him with honest open hearts. Honest as to who we are - what we have done - good - bad - open to Him - to accepting Jesus as Lord - receiving all that He has to offer in the initiation rites to be celebrated at the Vigil. For those already members of the Church - we are asked to walk with the Elect - to pray for them - as they pray for us - that all may be one in Christ.

Deacon Dale