2531AFC080125 – Working on a living ← PODCAST LINK 🙂

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Ecclesiastes 2:22-23 – ²² What do mortals get from all the toil and strain with which they toil under the sun? ²³ For all their days are full of pain, and their work is a vexation; even at night their minds do not rest. This also is vanity.

Psalm 90:17 –
¹⁷ Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
    and prosper for us the work of our hands—
    O prosper the work of our hands!

Colossians 3:5-10 – (GNT) [1] ⁵ You must put to death, then, the earthly desires at work in you, such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed (for greed is a form of idolatry). ⁶ Because of such things God’s anger will come upon those who do not obey him ⁷ At one time you yourselves used to live according to such desires, when your life was dominated by them.

⁸ But now you must get rid of all these things: anger, passion, and hateful feelings. No insults or obscene talk must ever come from your lips. ⁹ Do not lie to one another, for you have put off the old self with its habits ¹⁰ and have put on the new self. This is the new being which God, its Creator, is constantly renewing in his own image, in order to bring you to a full knowledge of himself.

Luke 12:18-21 – ¹⁸ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ ²¹ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! May Peace always be with you and may God bless you, Belovéd! A little housekeeping at the start. Wednesday, July 29^th, we had a “non-event” Big Day In The Ocean. An earthquake of magnitude 8.8 – which is a whopper – stirred up a tsunami wave which eventually reached Kauaʻi and all the rest of the Hawaiʻian Islands, as well as the Left Coast of the Continent. The bottom line is, we’re OK here. No big whup. There are currents to deal with as an aftermath, and that  caused some jostling that continued into Thursday. Crucita, Timothy, and I had nothing to worry about, regardless, because we are living well above the inundation zone. We appreciate the prayers for all the persons impacted, especially those where the wave arrived more forcefully. Now, on to the work at hand.

I think we’ll take them in order today so Ecclesiastes first. It seems this guy, Qoheleth (קֹהֶלֶת) (ko-HEL-eth) ,who is the preacher, teacher, philosopher, sage, wiseman, and so forth is the alleged writer of this book. We’re not exactly positive who wrote this collection, and I suppose we could speculate is was “done in committee,” but we have a vague notion who it might have been. He introduces himself as Son of David, king in Jerusalem, so it seems it might be (might as well be) Solomon (shel-o-moh) the third king of Israel. He also gets credit for the Books of Proverbs and Song of Songs; these three together are grouped as the “Wisdom Literature of Solomon.” The Book of Wisdom has a pseudepigraphical attribution to Solomon, but that is just a slick way to fluff up the credibility of the author(s) who were putting it together as a sort of indoctrination document to distract young Jewish males from the influences of Hellenism in First-Century Alexandria.

Qoheleth spends pages and pages lamenting the worthlessness of just about every human enterprise. The most-readily recognized passage, thanks to the Byrds (↔ Music Link), is chapter 3 “For everything there is a season …” so, by this point in his tome he is saying that the reason we all toil and trouble is because God has chosen things for us to do that keep us busy. In Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (GNT) ¹ he says, ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will last forever. You can’t add anything to it or take anything away from it. And one thing God does is to make us stand in awe of him. ¹⁵ Whatever happens or can happen has already happened before. God makes the same thing happen again and again. This is not a proposition of reincarnation, but perhaps a rather lyrical way to signify the timelessness of God for whom all Times and Seasons are one instance. All the work we do for the sake of work is pointless work. All the work we do for the Glory of God is Godly work, and that is work that is worthwhile and productive because it fulfills the purpose of our creation. Some of us will remember this:

• Q: Why did God make you?
• A: God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in heaven.

Ecclesiastes encourages us to see – that apart from knowing, loving, and serving God – pretty much everything else is useless so we might as well enjoy our lives and loves which are a gift to us from God so we can know, love, and serve him. Yep. He does that over, and over, and over and … ! Get it? Got it! Good!!

Now then, knowing that, we can see that Solomon’s Pappy – King David – was right on target when he said, Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands. Work done outside of God’s favor and blessing does not prosper. Oh, some folks might get rich at it, but their lives are empty. Look to Hollywood or politics for evidence of that. Or even just look at the schlemiel in our Gospel reading. He’s a rich guy who got richer (and the implication is that it was God’s doing, not his) and so he decides to pack away his good fortune by tearing down his own barns and silos and building bigger ones. Just like that, he goes from schlemiel to schlimazel because he’s dead before that project ever gets started. The point in Jesus’ parable about the Rich Fool is that being wise about your earthly holdings is of small consolation when it comes to your Treasures in Heaven. Like they say, “You can’t take it with you.” When we ask God to “prosper the work of our hands,” it is for the purpose of HIS Glory, not ours. It should always be that when others see the magnitude and diversity of God’s Blessings, Gifts, and MERCIES in our lives, they should see it as God’s doings, not ours. Most of us would have to confess that we don’t always get that right in our day-to-day living.

OK, I took that out of order for a reason, because we’ve decided to finish up with the Key Verse from Colossians. This is one scalding scolding! The Apostle Paul lists a bunch of things we must, must, lay aside because we are “a new creation” through the New Covenant in Blood established by Jesus. I’ve inserted some explications in the following excerpt:
The Apostle Paul lists: sexual immorality, indecency [immodest dressing, sexually suggestive actions], lust [Disordered selfish desire focused on the creation, not the Creator], evil passions [cherished infatuations], and greed [the idolatry of desires]; anger [impulsive, indignant punishment], passion [nurtured wrath], and hateful feelings [heaping wickedness and worry on others]. No insults [“trash talk,” gossip] or obscene talk [filthy speech or, worse, blasphemy] must ever come from your lips. ⁹ Do not lie to one another.

All of us, sometime, somewhere, have notched one or two of these into our belts.

Thankfully, we have a superlative way to deal with that fact: God’s Perfect Integrity, Endless Mercy, Everlasting Love, And Eternal Salvation as part of his Absolutely Perfect Plan. We might be tempted to ask, “Why does God make the same thing happen again and again; or God seeks out what has gone by; or God requireth that which is past; or God restores what has passed away. (←Look it up here.) Could it possibly be that we are negligent, unfocused, inattentive servants who learn obedience and then promptly and completely forget it again and again? The B.I.B.L.E. tells us repeatedly that is the case. It also tells us God notes our sin and then promptly and completely forgets it. That is, when we confess our sins, admit we were, are, and will be wrong, and seek and accept his forgiveness. Anything else, adelphos, is indeed a vanity of vanities.

If we are actually working on a living, it’s best not to put all our thought and energy into working on a living here! We need to be working on a living There. Here are a couple of wise words for our work in this life. First from Matthew 6:19-21 – ¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰ but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven (↔ Music Link), where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” We can see that working on a living is a HEART thing. Here’s how The Apostle Paul amplifies that in 2 Corinthians 4:7-10 – ⁷ But we have this treasure in clay jars (↔ Music Link), so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. ⁸ We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; ¹⁰ always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. Now that’s the way to work on a living by Living a Life in Christ! (←Learn more here. I use it every day!)

The Grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In such a life there is not vanity or loss, but only humility and eternal J.O.Y.

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

[1]Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) are from the Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

2529AFC071825 – Choose the wiser choice  ← PODCAST LINK 😀

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Colossians 1:24-26 – ²⁴ I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. ²⁵ I became its servant according to God’s commission* that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶ the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints.

*οἰκονομίαν (oikonomia) {oy-kon-om-ee’-ah} → management of a household; more accurately, a stewardship, a position of management (administration) by which a person looks after another’s business and resources. He has been made a servant of Christ’s ecclesia – ἐκκλησία – ek-klay-see’-ah See Matthew 16:18

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! Today we will look at another of those passages that is easily skipped over. What could the Apostle Paul possibly be telling the people of Colossae (Greek: Κολοσσαί), and why? How can he be “completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions?” He states he is the servant of the Church, a steward of the Gospel for their benefit. We will study this passage in the tone of the readings for the 16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Hospitality as one of the four pillars of Stewardship.

The Old Testament reading is from Genesis 18:1-10. It is the story of three visitors – Angels of God (or perhaps even Jesus was there???) – and Abraham invites them to stay awhile and be refreshed by him – he will bathe their feet (are you remembering The Last Supper?) and get them a snack (about 5 gallons of bread dough, a fattened calf, and a batch of cheese!) before they continue their travels. They are on their way to Sodom and Gomorrah to see how bad things really are there. Two angels continue on the road, The Lord tarries with Abraham as Abraham pleads for the lives of the people there. This story is often remembered in Hebrews 13:2 – ² Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. Notice also that Abraham’s hospitality is “over the top” because his very deep humility sees the Majesty of his Guests, and so his offering is worthy of their Presence.

The Gospel is Luke 10:38-42 – the story of Mary and Martha. Martha is fussing around in the kitchen – trying to demonstrate her “over the top” capacity for hospitality through “much serving” – and her sister Mary is just sitting at Jesus’ feet, doting on him and what he is saying. Martha wants Jesus to scold Mary and make her help with the preparations; but Jesus says Mary has made the wiser choice and “will not be deprived of it.” Hospitality is important, and has its place, but there are other things that are more important – listening to The Word for example. Might that be an even greater form of hospitality – to pay attention to one’s guest?

The Apostle Paul mentions hospitality, or the quality of being hospitable, especially in reference to the qualifications for leaders of the Church which he describes as The Body of Christ. As you can see by our illustration here, hospitality is part of The 4 Pillars of Stewardship; the other parts are Prayer, Formation (learning about God’s Absolutely Perfect Plan), and Service (helping the Body of Christ in addition to others outside the Church). The Apostle Paul states he has received from the Lord a “commission,” an assignment to spread the Gospel.

In this passage the Apostle Paul is addressing a congregation he has never met, and so he expresses his responsibility and qualifications for the work he is doing on their behalf. As he presents this information, he indicates that the Master in this economy of Faith is God inasmuch as it is God who is providing the resources for our Salvation – in other words, God is being “over the top” hospitable for us. As part of that economy to be managed, God assigned the responsibility of conveying the Gospel to the gentiles to the Apostle Paul. He describes how that assignment is carried out in 1 Corinthians 9:17 – ¹⁷ If I were volunteering my services of my own free will, then the Lord would give me a special reward; but that is not the situation, for God has picked me out and given me this sacred trust*, and I have no choice. Living Bible (TLB)[i]
*This sacred trust is the stewardship of the Gospel
 – to deliver it freely without expecting a return, to prayerfully lead the community of faith, to contribute to their proper and thorough knowledge of the Truth of the Gospel, and to serve God by serving those whom God has called. It is this service to which the Apostle Paul willingly gives his whole life – even the great sufferings (which Jesus had promised him at the time of his conversion) he endured for the sake of the Gospel. Here we see a man who does not count the cost of fellowship and service. He simply gives whatever is needed. In the NIV (New International Version) it is expressed this way: Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.  

We’ve all heard – and perhaps even used – the expression “offering it up to the Lord,” or “joining my suffering with the sufferings of Christ.” The Apostle Paul is suffering for those who would not be able to bear the suffering promised to all who follow Jesus. His compassion for the people in Colossae, whom he had never met, is so closely bound to the afflictions of Christ and the Church that he gladly and willingly steps in to suffer on behalf of others. You’ll find a very clear explanation of this kind of suffering in 1 Peter 4:12-19 which ends with this statement: ¹⁹ Therefore, let those suffering in accordance with God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good. (Please use that link to see this in context.)

The Apostle Paul is NOT saying that Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross was incomplete (as some will try to tell you); he is saying that the Church, the Body of Christ, has much suffering to do, and he is willing to take on more than his share because Jesus commissioned – appointed, authorized, and contractually commanded – that he do so. As a Steward, the Apostle Paul gets my vote for being an exceptional example of the entire concept of Stewardship. When we first read (or skim over?) this passage, our hearts and minds may hear the faint echo of disbelief saying, “Say what?” Now, perhaps, when we hear this we will better understand that being a good Steward means more than just managing and sharing our Time, Capabilities, and Worldly Wealth. It means doing everything in our power, and beyond (for with God all things are possible (← Check it out!) for your sake. The Apostle Paul would have been familiar with the concept of the “Messianic Woes,” the sufferings in the end times that prepare the World for the Advent of the Kingdom of God. He willingly submitted to suffering those preparatory disruptions in his own flesh – marked with the wounds of Christ (certainly at least the scars of multiple scourgings and perhaps even the stigmata) – for the sake of people he never met – you and me, for example.

Let me share with you a couple of passages about how much he suffered. One of them I will ask you to read rather than reproduce it here. First, check this out: 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 – ²³ Are they ministers of Christ? I am talking like a madman—I am a better one: with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless floggings, and often near death. ²⁴ Five times I have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea; ²⁶ on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters, ²⁷ in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked. As you can see from this image, being hit full-force with this device just once would take out most of us. Imagine what it would feel like to get hit 39 times. Some scholars speculate that Jesus got more than 40 with something even more vicious than this one. If I meditate on that for even a few moments, that is an excessive amount of suffering The Apostle Paul was willing to endure for the sake of Christ. (↔ Music Link) He accepted his own weakness and trials as well as the sufferings others could not bear! Pay careful attention to the bridge in this song:

He died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves.
Oh, live for Christ who gave his life, and now is raised on high.

That’s over-the-top all the way, and it has no end. Because why? Because God’s Grace was enough (↔ Music Link). Enough for even this:

On top of that he and his traveling colleague, Silas, endured beating with rods. Can you imagine willingly – indeed willingly – submitting to this? Read all about in Acts 16:19-36 – PLEASE read this passage so that you will understand this image better! Remember, Paul was a Roman Citizen and therefore subject to Roman “justice” including punishment. He was also a Jew and subject to their punishment – which also included flogging – as well. He endured all of that from and for people he didn’t even know. Imagine the scars he carried on his body from “countless floggings.”  Locked up in stocks and bound with chains, he could still praise God. He was able to do all this because HE GAVE God PREEMINENCE. That is the Wiser Choice even though it might seem reckless, Jesus prophesied that we would have extraordinary rewards along with persecutions. If I, if you, if we are not feeling especially persecuted today, consider that it might be because someone somewhere is offering their suffering as sacrifice for what we cannot endure.

If we understand our faith, if we know – intimately – the Spirit that dwells within us, then we know that Jesus willingly endured more than we can understand for “by his stripes we are healed,” and “he laid upon him the iniquity of us all.” It is that nearly-unimaginably intense level of generous hospitality that saved us. You might think of it as Jesus telling you, “I’m dying to meet you.” See if that won’t rock your soul! And you now know that God’s Absolutely Perfect Plan worked. Despite all his sufferings, The Apostle Paul joyfully wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9 – ⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— ⁹ not the result of works, so that no one may boast.

So therefore Beloved, Rejoice! God created you with a purpose and is absolutely thrilled when he sees you devoted to Him and to His purpose. This is HIS WORLD (↔ Music Link) after all! That is certainly a cause for great rejoicing. He will surely look with favor on his devoted servants who willingly offer their lives in sacrifice to take on the commission to be Stewards of the Gospel who willingly, joyfully, Lovingly, extravagantly lay out their (our!) lives for The Other – the one whom God loves just as much as you and me. Be like Mary of Bethany and choose to pay attention to the Message and to all the opportunities of service and sacrifice it brings to us. There, indeed, is The Wiser Choice.  How can we prepare ourselves to make that wiser choice more often?Here are 3 wiser things we can start on today: [1] Strive to find an opportunity for conversion every day, yours and/or someone else’s. [2] Every time we participate in Mass, we should always expect to be changed by the time we leave. [3] Look for the stories of people who have inspired you and tell those stories to others. The best stories are those found in the B.I.B.L.E.

BONUS MUSIC LINK! (Yep, click on it to listen)

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

2528AFC071125 – Oh! There you are!   😀 ← PODCAST LINK

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – use one of the social media links at the bottom of the page to share this post. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.
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Deuteronomy 30:11-14 – ¹¹ Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away. ¹² It is not in heaven, that you should say, “Who will go up to heaven for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” ¹³ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” ¹⁴ No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe”

Psalm 69:33 –
³³ For the Lord hears the needy,
    and does not despise his own that are in bonds.

Psalm 69:33 – Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live. (↔ Music Link)

Colossians 1:19-20 – ¹⁹ For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰ and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

Luke 10:36-37 – ³⁶ “Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” ³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Gratia vobis et pax a Deo Patre nostro et Domino nostro Iesu Christo in Spiritu Sancto.

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord – Jesus Christ – in the Holy Spirit. Today is the Memorial of Saint Benedict, Abbot, and that is why I chose a greeting in Latin for us. He lived from 480 to 547. He founded the Benedictine Monastery at Monte Cassino and is rightly regarded as the father of monasticism in the Western World because he established The Benedictine Rule. As a young man he became disgusted with the debauchery and decadence in Rome and withdrew into solitude in a cave not far from the palace of Nero at Subiaco. He advocated and required a life of balance consisting of roughly equal periods of prayer, work, and study each day. In Chapter 19 of his Rule, “The Discipline of Psalmody” he directs thusly:

“We believe that the divine presence is everywhere and that in every place the eyes of the Lord are watching the good and the wicked (Proverbs 15:3). But beyond the least doubt, we should believe this to be especially true when we celebrate the divine office.”

We have previously confessed the omnipresence of the Lord: When God speaks the name of one of his servants, the ones who are committed to serving him and him only, and they reply in humble readiness, it reminds me of the response we were trained to give in the Armed Forces: Sir! Yes Sir! We enthusiastically show our readiness to serve as did the Psalmist in Psalm 40:7-8 – ⁷ Then I said, “Here I am; in the scroll of the book it is written of me. ⁸ I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.” We know our duty – to Trust and Obey – and we discharge that duty without reserve.

God establishes servants wherever service is needed. That makes sense, doesn’t it? If something needs to be done, bring in those who are capable of doing it. And we can readily see that God’s servants know what he wants because they are prepared for whatever he asks (See in context Deuteronomy 30:11-14 – ¹⁴ No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe.) In Isaiah 58:9, we have a prefiguring of the promise in Genesis 2  – the presence of God in the lives of his earthlings. After all, it is his Spirit that makes us living souls. God is always here, always near, always and all ways Always, and that means he knows us more intimately than we know ourselves. (See my “2^nd-most-favorite-Psalm,” Psalm 139:13-16) God chose to make his Son – his ONLY BEGOTTEN SON – manifest in flesh, flesh like ours. He is always present (Omnipresent – here I am, not “here I will be”) He calls us to be present (Here I am Lord) (↔ Music Link) and when we respond, great things happen! We find Grace, Power in the Holy Spirit, Peace surpassing all understanding, surrender to God as he lays hold of us, our willingness to serve escalates, our preparedness is sharpened, we are aglow with the Presence of God. Of course, we are not as refulgent as Christ was as he spoke with Moses and Elijah, but we do shine! Have you ever heard God’s voice? I have. I have shared this before, but I want to share it again today.

Suppose we start out with Isaiah 6:8 – ⁸ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!” I always liked that. It was, in a special way, part of my decision to give my life to “Full Time Christian Service” at age 10 at Camp IdRaHaJe – which is an abbreviation for “I’d Rather Have Jesus.” (↔ Music Link). Later – in high school – I thought I had a calling to the Ministry in the Reformed Church in America. Long story short, one thing led to another, the Draft happened, and that idea faded away. The message for that calling was “Preach my Word.” Once I was in the Air Force, I was led to my conversion in the Catholic Church. Just two weeks after my first fully-Catholic day, I married the love of my life – Crucita – and not long after, the message in the call became “Teach my Word.” I’m still working on that directive. Here is one way that happens:

The Psalm I love best is Psalm 138(← Check it out!). It is my all-time-favorite Psalm. The first two verses are filled with wonderful praise:
Psalm 138:1 – I thank you, Lord, with all my heart;
in the presence of the angels to you I sing. New American Bible (Revised Edition)(NABRE)

I like that part about singing in the presence of the Angels. It reminds me of Psalm 22:3 which says that God “inhabits the praises of his people.” The rest of the Psalm is so reassuring. God will surely hear the cry of the suffering.

There is a passage in 1 Corinthians that steadies me with grateful conviction – conviction that enables my service because it matches up with my “Sir! Yes sir!” The Apostle Paul is describing how he received the Gospel, “as to one born abnormally,” when Jesus met him on the road to Damascus. 1 Corinthians 15:10 – ¹⁰ But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me has not been in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them—though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. This verse always reminds me that I have not yet worked as hard as I should, or as hard as I can, on behalf of the Gospel. I am what I am by the grace of God, though, and he constantly challenges me to be a better steward of the many, many gifts he has presented me in my life.

I often remind myself and others to “Honor the Giver by accepting the Gift.” When I look at the faith of my Old Friend Abraham, or reflect on the determination and courage of Moses, or recognize in David a heart that God called “a man after my own heart” (See Acts 13:22), I know I fall far short of the servanthood to which I aspire. One of the many reasons for that is that he gifted me with words, and sometimes (way too many times) the words I use are not the Word from God’s own heart. Then he calls, and I remember.

When he calls us, we remember that he chose us, we did not choose him. To him, we are not “hey you” because he has called each of us by name. I remember that he comforts and consoles as well as corrects and counsels because he has given us his Holy Spirit – not just me, but all the faithful in Christ Jesus. Nothing can stop, divert, sully, or prevent his Love from filling our lives. We are victors, conquerors in Christ, and we have not only the Victory, but also the spoils of the victory: The repudiation of every evil that has tried to harm us. We have an indefatigable and inexhaustible source of Love and Protection called “God’s Providence.”

Now then, if God is all around us, within us, and he expects us to listen to him, how is it we can be found hip deep in the mire and muck of the Swamp of Pride, struggling in the darkness? At the risk of being redundant but none the less repetitious, I will remind all of us that WE FORGOT!! The only way we can know that Darkness is not where we belong is to know we have been in Light, and remember that Light is in us. Remember, God is used to hearing us say, “I forgot.” He forgets stuff all the time – for example sins for which we have been forgiven. There in the “depths of despair” we are assaulted by desires and doubts that feast on us like a cloud of voracious gnats and occasionally we have the presence of mind to say, Jesus, help me!

Maybe we don’t hear an explosion or see a burst of impenetrable Light, but if we’re not too foolish to listen we might hear the Word in Isaiah 58:9 ^a
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
    you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.
When I hear that, when I lift my hands, my eyes, my heart, and my mind to that Omnipresent Voice I understand those last three words as HEAR I AM. And honestly adelphos, I feel that assurance of his presence is spoken with what I’d call a loving chuckle. It’s like “What are you doing in this mess, kid?” and then the Holy Spirit speaks reminding me of Isaiah 30:21 – ²¹ And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”  

His commandments are not burdensome, they are – as we have been told –very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe. We know that when we go to him he tells us
³³ For the Lord hears the needy,
    and does not despise his own that are in bonds. When we hunger and thirst for righteousness(↔ Click Link) the I AM who is near will fill our hungry hearts (↔ Music Link).

HE
will
REDEEM
us!

How can that be? Trust and obey. It’s the only way. Walk with those who “walk with the Lord in the Light of his Word,” and you will become fully aware that ¹⁹ For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰ and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross. By now we in the MBN know that all if this is in God’s Absolutely Perfect Plan. Because why? Because YOLO-F! We are to be whole and mature in all our works because that is how God created us to live.

 OK campers, take out your note books and get ready for a pop quiz!
Q: What was St. Benedict’s motto? (Just kidding about the quiz)
A: St Benedict’s motto was Ora et Labora (prayer and work).

I’ll end with a few of St. Benedict’s “Tools for Good Works” from Chapter 4 (← Check it out!)  of His Rule
1 First of all, love the Lord God with your whole heart, your whole soul and all your strength, 2 and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39; Mark 12:30-31; Luke 10:27).
20 Your way of acting should be different from the world’s way;
21 the love of Christ must come before all else.
41 Place your hope in God alone.
42 If you notice something good in yourself, give credit to God, not to yourself,
43 but be certain that the evil you commit is always your own and yours to acknowledge.

44 Live in fear of judgment day
45 and have a great horror of hell.

If we have known and shown Mercy, we will know God’s mercy. Remember the lesson from the Parable of the Good Samaritan: “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” As we carry out our Mission to advance the Gospel, we can stay out of the Swamp of Pride by humbly trusting that by showing mercy, we all obey God who told us – Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away.

Belovéd, some days we are searching for Love in all the wrong places because we are blinded by sin. Therefore I urge you, Don’t just do something. Stand there! and expect the Presence of God. There is no place we can be that God does not already occupy. We recall a beautiful prophecy from Jeremiah 23:23-24 (GNT) [1] – ²³ “I am a God who is everywhere and not in one place only. ²⁴ No one can hide where I cannot see them. Do you not know that I am everywhere in heaven and on earth?

Isaiah 55:6 –
⁶ Seek the Lord while he may be found,
    call upon him while he is near;
God is everywhere all the time ready with his help. Acknowledge his Presence and you will say, “Oh! There you are!” Then he will say, “Welcome back, kid. Come on in.”

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

 Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

[1] Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) are from the Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

2527AFC070425 – Trust The Process  😀 ← PODCAST LINK

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – use one of the social media links at the bottom of the page to share this post. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.
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Isaiah 66: 13, 14 ^c –
¹³ As a mother comforts her child,
    so I will comfort you;
    you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

[…] it shall be known that the hand of the Lord is with his servants

Psalm 66:20 –
²⁰ Blessed be God,
    because he has not rejected my prayer
    or removed his steadfast love from me.

Galatians 6:14, 16-18 – ¹⁴ May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. ¹⁶ As for those who will follow this rule – peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.
¹⁷ From now on, let no one make trouble for me; for I carry the marks* of Jesus branded on my body.
¹⁸ May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.

Luke 10:1 – ¹ After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! Grace and Peace to each of you from God our Father and our Lord, Jesus the Christ, in the Power of the Holy Spirit. God is SO good! Repent and believe the Gospel! That’s how the process runs. But what does that mean? Well, we’ve all been over this often enough, so a quick bullet-point review should suffice/

• REPENT: we need to stop doing things our way (Don’t DIY ↔ Learning Link), make a 180 in our lifestyle and go back to doing things God’s way.
• BELIEVE: trust everything you understand about the Word, and furthermore, if the Word says it is True, trust everything you can’t understand.
• THE GOSPEL: there is only ONE Gospel because there is only One God who has made himself know to us through Jesus – his Only Begotten Son, the Christ of God – in the Power of the Holy Spirit.

That should be clear enough even for the most obstinate among us. Yet, often even the most learned and trusting among us sometimes mix things up, and then we try to make God tell us why our lives are such a mess.

Let’s first look into that powerful statement by the Apostle Paul where he declares he bears the marks of Jesus branded on his body. I think of these as the thick scar tissue on his back from many floggings and beating with rods, and the thickness of many broken ribs. These scars, inflicted by others as punishment intended to dissuade him from testifying (μαρτυρέω – mar-too-reh’-o like “martyr”) about the Gospel. His devotion to Jesus and the Gospel always held primacy in his life. Absolutely nothing was more important than sharing whatever the Holy Spirit spoke in him. His scarred body was the testimony, the martyring, that asserted he was Jesus’ follower, Jesus’ servant , and the word used in Greek is δοῦλος (doulos) {doo’-los} which mean slave. Anyone who tried to question his authority to teach, and many tried it, were silenced by the magnitude of his only boast –HIS SUFFERING FOR THE Gospel. He was not scandalized by his appearance. His wounds were described as stigmata.

This is also related to the word stigma. When we use that word we usually mean a mark of disgrace; a stain or reproach, as on one’s reputation or dignity; an association with scandal and ill repute. The Greek root means “to stick” or pierce. When we talk about “The Stigmata,” we are usually referring to the wounds of the crucified Christ which may appear supernaturally on the bodies of various persons so that the hands, feet, head, and/or thorax appears to have wounds that may actually bleed. In modern times, this kind of wound was a characteristic of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, known to the world throughout his ministry as Padre Pio, and he is often shown with his hands covered because of the large, bloody wounds in both palms. There are reports that he had similar wounds on his feet and side; I have never seen photographs of those. Many people also recall that St. Francis of Assisi had the stigmata during most of his ministry. Some people believe that is what Paul means when he says he bears the marks of the Lord Jesus. But there are a couple of other interesting things about Paul’s assertion that align with his statement May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. ¹⁶ As for those who will follow this rule – peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God

How could The Apostle Paul submit to all of that suffering? (↔ Music Link) I think there are at least a couple of reasons. First, he did it because he took his call to be an Apostle very seriously – and well he should! The Resurrected, Glorified Jesus personally came to him and told him to stop persecuting the Church and to believe, to go preach to the gentiles even in Rome (See Acts 9, 22, and 29). Secondly, because of this unique “sending” (Apostle means “one sent”) he had an absolutely unshakeable and unlimited Love for Jesus. He really, really knew the meaning and power of Love. If his life was a movie, the screenplay would be based on our Key Verse from Isaiah 66: As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; it shall be known that the hand of the Lord is with his servants. As with our Old Friend Abraham, The Apostle Paul trusted that Jesus knew what God the Father wanted, and so he did what he was told to do. He “let go and let God.” (↔ Music Link)

We are all familiar with the adage, “Let go and let God.” There is wisdom in that, a kind of wisdom we often allow to slip away because we forget to be wise. When we come to some petty adversity in our lives, we bristle, and pout, and shake a fist at God. We are like the man who traverses the living room in the dark while going to the kitchen. He bangs his shin on the coffee table, screams a curse using God’s name in vain, and kicks the table hard enough to overturn it, and that bruises his foot. The “LET GO” in this adage does not mean to let loose some invective blaming God. It was not God who hit the man in the shin; it was that coffee table the man had placed there of his own free will, and then discovered in the darkness by banging his shin against it. In short, God doesn’t stop us from being stupid if that is our choice, so there’s no point in blaming him for the consequences of our stupidity. “Let go and let God” means we should stop holding onto our own “wisdom” and allow the Wisdom of God to guide us. We must submit (↔ Music Link)  to the Sovereignty of God.

Our God is King, and – as Jesus is reported stating in Luke 10:11 ^c – Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near. Why? Why did the Kingdome come near? God is always the initiator, and he started our reconciliation with him by coming to us in human form. He wanted to ensure that we got the message that he Loves us regardless of our brokenness. Really and truly, Belovéd, we can pray the Psalmist’s words
Blessed be God,
    because he has not rejected my prayer
    or removed his steadfast love from me.

The Apostle Paul understood that clearly enough to endure calamity, pain, suffering, and humiliation, and even to die for it. What is “it?” “It” is the APP, the Absolutely Perfect Plan. Whatever seems to be difficult, incomprehensible, crazy, or just simply irritating as all-get-out – there’s an APP for that. it might even be the case that we are being sent out into all of the places Jesus intends to go. Do you remember when he walked across the water? Take a look at Matthew 14:23-25. There was a strong headwind battering the boat. Jesus can walk through the storm because it is where he intends to go. We can do that only if we intend to give him primacy in all things as did The Apostle Paul – and all the other Apostles, and many, many other Disciples since then.

Trust the process. Stick with the program. Do the right thing. Give praise to God for all his benefits – even the stormy ones.  He gives them to us for a reason.

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

2526AFC062725 – Choose Your Lion  ← PODCAST LINK 🙂 

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – share on your social media links. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.

Do you know someone who enjoys Bible study, or who might like to read this? Ask them to email us or to subscribe on our blog-site.

Acts 12:7, 11 – ⁷ Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his wrists.
¹¹ Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hands of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

Psalm 34:7, 17 (GNT) [1]
⁷ His angel guards those who honor the Lord
    and rescues them from danger.
¹⁷ The righteous call to the Lord, and he listens;
    he rescues them from all their troubles.

2 Timothy 4:17-18 – ¹⁷ But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. ¹⁸ The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Matthew 16:17-19 – ¹⁷ And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you, you are Peter,^[a] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! When you these things described in our Key Verses taking place, you know that the Kingdom of God is near. Each of these passages describes things that happened during times of intense persecution. What the Lord wants us to recognize is that when it’s time to “enter the lions’ den,” God is with us and rescues those who are faithful. We have some very special indications of that this weekend.

Today, Friday June 27, the church celebrates the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. This is a celebration I look forward to every year. Back in 1973, I first became interested in the sacramental (i.e., not a Sacrament, but something which fosters and animates devotion to the Sacraments) of The Sacred Heart of Jesus. To me, the image was so very compelling. I joined the Sacred Heart Auxiliary on April 1, 1978, consecrating my life to The Sacred Heart of Jesus. We discovered a copper repoussé (you can see it here) of The Sacred Heart just before Christmas in 1978. Two days after we bought that we got a call from our adoption worker saying “We have a baby boy for you to pickup.” That baby boy became Timoth Olin Todd who was born on April 28, 1978, just 27 days after my consecration. Here’s some information on the icon shown below.

• The heart. It is usually shown in the shape and form of a natural human heart – not valentine shaped – and sometimes even blood vessels are depicted. The heart is the center of our being, the place of Love and, regrettably, sin as well. It represents the core of Jesus’ human life.
• A crown or girdle of thorns. These represent the torture and mockery Jesus endured on our behalf, perhaps especially our mental sins of lusts, wrath, pride, and sloth l(aka acedia).
• A gaping wound. Usually on the lower-left side of the heart below the thorns. This recalls the “proof of death” described in the accounts of the crucifixion. There was a lance or spear thrust through the side of the corpse from which water and blood poured out. It also portrays fulfilled of an ancient Messianic prophecy: “They shall look on him whom they have thrust through” (Zechariah 12:10 this is a very touching Prophecy well-portrayed in the statue “La Pietà di Michelangelo”)
• In some icons (not in this one) droplets of blood are depicted, perhaps with a chalice beneath to collect them. this recalls Jesus’ institution of the “New Covenant”: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. (Remember: in Greek, the word for “many” is πολλῶν which means multitudinous, plenteous, sort of “more than you can count”)
• There are flames around the top of the heart. These signify the great intensity and warmth of Jesus’ Love.
• The Cross. It was on the Cross, his final earthly throne, where Jesus demonstrated his immense Love for us, for his Father, and the absolute obedience in his own heart.
• Rays of light. This Love is further illustrated by beams or light or glowing light surrounding the heart. Jesus is the light of the World and it is that light of Love that signals the Love of his heart reaching out to dispel the Darkness.

So, there you have a short (well, almost short)t description of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In April 2022 I used an image. I share this account with you because it illustrates that God does hear prayer and then comes to the rescue.  Crucita and I were married in 1969. We had been hoping for a child for 10 years when that call came. “Being Pregnant” (with expectations) for 10 years is exhausting! All our prayers were answered, and we were delivered from our anguish. It was like being imprisoned, unable to move forward with our dreams of a family. Then, like The Apostle Peter, the Lord reached out and changed our lives. God rescues them from all their troubles. He gifts JOY to our hearts even (especially!) when that seems impossible.

For St. Peter, the impossible became reality. What a jail-break! Today someone might say, ”The whole thing was surreal.” St. Peter was expecting to die, and probably in a very painful way. St. James had already been murdered by Herod, and so when the King put St. Peter in jail, the prognosis was not good! He was prepared, as best he could be, to die for Jesus. Then, an Angel nudges him in the side, makes him stand up and get set to travel, and miracle upon miracle, he gets out of jail in the most improbable way. It was miraculous, to be sure.

It would be, and is, difficult to ignore those big miracles, but way too easy to ignore the little ones like corn growing, babies laughing, flowers blooming, finding a good parking space, making friends who last a lifetime, the ingredients and skill to prepare a good meal, missing the accident that happened just moments after we passed by that location, holding hands at the movies, taking a walk in the early-early morning as the sun comes up, falling in love several times until True Love elevates our hearts to unimagined happiness, seeing the Real Presence of the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ – and then receiving him alive in our hearts. (↔ Music Link)

The Apostle Paul describes another miraculous escape from death when he says But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. Some interpret this as stating that he wasn’t forced into the Coliseum to be devoured by wild animals. Many scholars think it goes deeper than that. Having to “face the lion” is to face immense danger from hostile authority. Our Father in Heaven, his belovéd Son Jesus, and our dear Companion, the Holy Spirit possess higher and greater authority than any powers on Earth or in the bondage of evil. There is, however, a very important proviso we nearly always overlook: God-In-Three-Persons has primacy in everything. Every thing, every time, and especially every relationship. What God requires is that we hold a relationship with him, a Covenant of Love. We saw it in Eden – until that snake showed up. We saw it in Abram when he made a sacrificial Covenant with the Lord Jehovah. We saw it in King David when he committed serious sins, and he returned to the Lord God in penitence and humbled himself before God. David the Psalmist gave us the words His angel guards those who honor the Lord
    and rescues them from danger. After millennia passed, we saw it in Jesus – the Root and Offspring of David (See Revelation 22:16) – who honored the lord by giving up his life for all of us – sinners worse than David and Saints equal to the Apostles Peter and Paul.

This Sunday we honor these two – the Greatest of the Apostles many will say, because they truly did give God Primacy in all things. The World would see their lives as wasted for a hopeless ideal. They, and we, see that loss as the greatest-possible Hope. We must certainly recall the hope in Revelation 5:5 – ⁵ Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” The “Seven Seals” is the symbol of the final and greatest Covenant, and only the Lion of Judah, the Lamb that was Slain, the One Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the World, The Lamb who (Music Link →) alone is Worthy can – and will – open that scroll and reveal every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing,

“To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might
forever and ever!”

The Apostle Peter was given the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, and like Eliakim he will take over rule from the Shebna of Eternity, ha-Satan, and be the Steward of his Master’s house, a place of many mansions prepared for those who love Jesus. Pick a lion, adelphos. The Lion of Judah who conquers and saves, or the Lion of Hell who deceives and devours. You might remember these two characters.

“Mufasa” is a Swahili name associated with governing, strength, nobility, and wisdom. Scar is – well – a scar, a healed-over wound. Those who choose to follow him are ultimately abused by him. Those who follow the Leader (↔ Important Learning Link), who give preeminence and absolute Primacy to whom it is due, they can build their live and therefore their homes on The Rock against which Hell cannot prevail. Choose a lion, choose a Life. There are two choices, there are two roads, there are two trees, there are two roads, there are two ways. There is only Blessing or Curse.

Pick one, and give it your all. Here’s a checklist:

• Narrow and wide roads, gates, passages – there is one entrance to Heaven (Matthew 7:13-14)
• The Way, The Truth, and the Life – there is one Way to Eternity (John 14:6)
• Slavery to sin or freedom in Righteousness – there is one Deliverance from sin (Romans 6)
• Sowing and Reaping: Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life (Galatians 6:7-8)
• Life and Death, Blessing and Curse, Good and Evil (Deuteronomy 30:15-20) – “Choose life therefore that you may live” There is One Way to Eternal Life in Heaven.
• As for me and my house, We will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever
at your service, Belovéd!

 Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License –>

2525AFC062025 – Because Jesus Said So

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – use one of the social media links at the bottom of the page to share this post. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.
Do you know someone who enjoys Bible study, or who might like to read this? Ask them to email us or to subscribe on our blog-site. And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.

Luke 9:16-17 – ¹⁶ And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. ¹⁷ And all ate and were filled. What was left over was gathered up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.

Acts 2:42 – ⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

1 Corinthians 10:16

 – ¹⁶ The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ?

Greetings adelphos! We have new additions to the MBN Intercessory Prayer List. Please visit, and if you can make the time, please add the MBN Daily Prayer to your “daily list.” Thank you VERY much!

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! Grace and Peace to each of you from God our Father and our Lord, Jesus the Christ, in the Power of the Holy Spirit. This coming Sunday is June 22, 2025 – The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi). On this day we remember that Christ told his Disciples, and us as well, that he is the Bread of Life come down from Heaven which was followed by the statement for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. (Please read carefully John 6:53-59) Jesus is in the Father, the Father is in Jesus, the Father and the Son live in the Unity / Communion / Fellowship (Fellowship is translated from “koinonia” as κοινωνία) of the Holy Spirit, and the Father and the Son, and the Holy Spirit are in those who believe. We hear this in every Mass, the Great Doxology.”
Through him, and with him, and in him,
O God, almighty Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honor is yours,
for ever and ever. AMEN

St. Thomas Aquinas once wrote: “Material food first of all turns itself into the person who eats it, and as a consequence, restores his losses and increases his vital energies. Spiritual food, on the other hand, turns the person who eats it into Itself, and thus the proper effect of this sacrament is the conversion of man into Christ, so that he may no longer live for himself, but that Christ may live in Him. And as a consequence it has the double effect of restoring the spiritual losses caused by sins and defects and of increasing the power of the virtues.”

Yes, we believe it truly is Christ who is present in the Eucharist; we believe His true presence begins from the time of the consecration and then endures so long as the sacramental species are discernible. In that belief, we become what we eat – Holy. Perfect? No, we are not perfect or perfected. We are made WHOLE which is what holiness is. Christ is present, Christ is offered, and Christ offers the Offering.

We refer to this offering as an oblation. This is a solemn gifting of Christ’s sacrifice and ours as we look upon the True Presence with eyes enlightened by faith. (See Ephesians 1:17-19 for opening the eyes of our hearts (↔ Music Link). An Oblation is a “meal” (grain) offering. It is the most fundamental of all offerings. In the Old Testament it is often called a “gift offering,” and the noun used in Hebrew is מִנְחָה (minkhah) {min-khah’}. During every Eucharistic Prayer there are two Oblations. The “lesser oblation” is the Offertory – this happens before the Consecration – in which the bread and wine are presented to God. During this Offertory, the Priest holds both hands over the Gifts on the Altar and blesses them in and through the Holy Spirit. The “greater oblation,” the Oblation Proper, occurs after the consecration when the Priest, on behalf of Christ, offers God the Precious Body and Blood of Jesus as Jesus himself offers himself to his Father on our behalf. It is a truly amazing moment many people often miss even though we have opportunity to see the Bread of Life and to believe – to be an active participant in The Fellowship of The Bread.

We see the Bread when it is offered. We see the Bread when it is consecrated. We see the Bread when is broken and elevated with the Chalice of Salvation. We see the Bread when it is given for consumption. We become the Bread when we eat the Bread and drink the Chalice. In all of these instances after the consecration, if we see with the eyes of our hearts, we see The Precious Body and Blood of Christ – not just bread and wine. (↔ Music Link)

Jesus is the Bread from Heaven, the Bread of Life, The Living Bread, and that Bread was blessed and broken for us. (See also John 6:22-59 – The Bread of Life Discourse. Every Christian, Catholic or non-Catholic, should read this passage often) Bread is the staff of life, and eating bread is a necessary action of living. Traditionally, bread – as the staff of life – was broken before eating it; it was not cut because, symbolically, that would be slicing Life itself. With that in mind, there is a new layer of context in Acts 2:42 – ⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. These are spiritual acts – sacred moments devoted to God. The Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 10:16 – ¹⁶ The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ?

As these passages testify, Jesus states quite plainly , and repeatedly, that he is the Bread of Life. The Gospel reading from Luke for this Sunday is an account of the feeding of 5000+ persons with 5 barley loves and two fishes. (See also John 6:1-15) It comes down to this: In Scripture from the very words of Jesus at The Last Supper, and attested to by The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Jesus said plainly “This is my Body” and “This is my blood.” There was no indication of representational similitude. Please try this the next time you attend to the Eucharistic Prayer.

After the consecration and the fraction of the Host, the Priest elevates the Precious Body and Precious Blood of Christ together above the altar around eye-level and pronounces the prayer based on the Prophecy of St. John the Baptizer – Ecce agnus Dei
Behold the Lamb of God. . (↔ Music Link)
Behold him who
takes away the sins of the World.
Blesséd are those called
to the Supper of the Lamb.

Blesséd indeed! As the Presiding Celebrant holds the Precious Body and Precious Blood, pay attention to WHO – not what – he is holding up for you to see and if you are prepared to worthily receive him who will be given to you to consume, Jesus’ Body and Blood Soul and Divinity will become part of your spiritual Life and physical strength because Jesus said so. For me and for my fellow Catholics, that exercise is made possible in a fuller and more satisfying way for us because of our confidence in the wholeness – mature, fully grown, completeness of The Body and Blood of the Eucharist. I gave up accepting the symbol of our faith as expressed in symbolic communion when I accepted the challenge to live in the Mystery of Transubstantiation. It’s a difficult concept for many Catholics to embrace and not all Catholics accept it. I cannot condemn that nor can I judge them for that perspective. Finding Jesus depends on where you put him. It is not the Priest who causes this miraculous transformation. It is Jesus in the Holy Spirit united with God the Father.

Now, for the last three weeks I have been too excited about the readings and I neglected to send you the “Person of the Week.” To make up for that I have attached a quick study on three guys in the New Testament. They’re all pretty well-known, so I’ve just pulled together some additional biographic information on them. This information will be inserted at the end of the Aloha Friday Message – this one – as part of the online post.

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN TO THE END

 Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

The Body of Christ – the Eucharist – nourishes and forms The Body of Christ – The Church – so that the Body of Christ becomes … the Body of Christ!

Here is the information on the Persons of the Week which I have recently omitted.

Barabbas, Barsabas, and Barnabas

I chose these three men because their names sound similar. We can usually remember at least some of the context in which we hear those names, but today we’ll add some substance to that context. We will start with the most infamous – Barabbas.

Barabbas

The name Barabbas is in Greek Βαραββᾶς whish is a transliteration of the Aramaic bar (son of) and Abba (a father). He is the robber, and murderous insurrectionist (See Mark 15:7), released in place of Jesus at Jesus’ “trial.” His name in mentioned in all four Gospels

:

In some translations (←See examples) he is given a first name to go with his last name. Again in Greek that name is Ἰησοῦς – Jesus (i.e., Jehoshua), the name of our Lord Jesus the Christ of God and two (three) other Israelites. In the context of those translations sometimes it is represented as [Jesus] or (Jesus) and there is a good probability that the double name is what was originally intended. The Gospel writers would know how this information would be received by their audiences. The Bible has no other information about the man. Some legends say he converted to Christianity. Other tales say he dies in another failed insurrection, possibly the First Jewish Roman War in 66-73 AD. In that disastrous uprising, the Second Temple was leveled, fulfilling Jesus’ Prophecy in Matthew 24:2, Mark 13:2, and Luke 21:6. This completely changed Worship in Jerusalem, leading to centuries of dispersion and suppression. Worship shifted from centering on sacrifice to study of the Torah and Midrash and an increase in the use of prayers. Matthew 27:16:  [Jesus] Barabbas: it is possible that the double name is the original reading; Jesus was a common Jewish name; see the note on Matthew 1:21. This reading is  found in only a few textual witnesses, although its absence in the majority can be explained as an omission of the name “Jesus” made for reverential reasons. The is bracketed because of its  uncertain textual attestation.

The Aramaic name Barabbas means “son of the father”; the irony of the choice offered between him and Jesus, the true son of the Father, would be evident to those  addressees of Matthew who knew that. See also John 18:40. He was referred to as a Revolutionary – a guerrilla warrior fighting for nationalistic aims, though the term can also denote a robber. See the note on  Matthew 27:38. The same Greek word found there is used for Barabbas.   Called a thief (“robber”), would connote someone who is stealing out in the open (typically with violence). The Greek word lēstḗs (“a bandit, briard”) is a thief who also plunders and pillages – an unscrupulous marauder (malefactor), exploiting the vulnerable without hesitating to use violence. This Barabbas was essentially the antithesis of Jesus, yet the mob preferred him to the real Only Begotten Son of the Living God.

Barsabas

 His “full name was Joseph Bar Sabas – Joseph the son of Sabas; this could include the meaning “son of the Sabbath. His surname was Justus as we see in Acts 1:23. He was one of two Disciples put forward to replaces Judas Iscariot; the other was Matthias. The Apostles cast lots, and it fell to Matthias. Some contemporary historical records indicate he was one of the 670 sent out by Jesus (see Luke 10:1) – some ancient texts say 72. There is a second personality in the New Testament named Barsabas – Judas Barsabas who accompanied The Apostle Paul’ companion Silas. Silas was also a Ro/man Citizen like The Apostle Paul, as well as a teacher and a Prophet. He was chosen to accompany The Apostle Paul because he was well-known in the Church in Jerusalem. Barnabas and Paul had a serious disagreement between them (See this IMPORTANT TEXT in Acts 15:36-41) and The Apostle Paul chose Silas to go with him to revisit the churches he and Barnabas had established together.

Barnabas

He was a Levite from Cyprus who was also originally named Joseph. The name means son of encouragement. In Acts 4:37 we read that he sold a field he owned and brought the money to the Apostles. It was Barnabas who brought Saul of Tarsus, the feared persecutor of the Early Church, to the Apostles in Jerusalem. Barnabas vouched for Saul and told them about the miraculous conversion Saul had experienced near Damascus. The Believers in Jerusalem were wary of being associated with this Saul of Tarsus who had been on of the principal witness of the execution of Stephen, the First Martyr of the Church. Barnabas was a generous, faithful, and supportive companion to The Apostle Paul during much of the early years of the Church working tirelessly with him to establish churches in many cities. The tow endured many hardship and persecutions, beatings, and life-threatening moments together. They fell into sharp disagreement about another Disciple named John Mark who had traveled with them for a time, but abandoned them in Pamphylia. Barnabas wanted to bring him back into service, but Paul refused. They split up and went their separate ways. Barnabas did give John Mark another chance and took in under his wing as his traveling and preaching companion. There is an apocryphal Epistle credited to Barnabas.

Aloha Friday Message – June 13, 2025 – Working While Walking With Wisdom

2524AFC061325 – Walking While With Wisdom 😀 ← PODCAST LINK

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – use one of the social media links at the bottom of the page to share this post. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.
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Proverbs 8:22, 30-31 –
Wisdom’s Part in Creation

²² The Lord created me at the beginning of his work,
    the first of his acts of long ago.

³⁰     then I was beside him, like a master worker;
and I was daily his delight,
    rejoicing before him always,
³¹ rejoicing in his inhabited world
    and delighting in the human race.

Psalm 8:4-5 –
⁴ what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
    mortals that you care for them?

⁵ Yet you have made them a little lower than God, [1]
    and crowned them with glory and honor.

Romans 5:1-2 – ¹ Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.

John 16:13 – ¹³ When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

Aloha nui loa, ʻŌmea! Grace and Peace to each of you from God our Father and our Lord, Jesus the Christ, in the Power of the Holy Spirit. This coming Sunday we mark The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. The Trinity is one of the most challenging tenets of ur F.A.I.T.H. The entire concept of “One God in Three Persons” is difficult to grasp – and it is supposed to be like that. I am going to string together a bunch of adjectives to show what I mean: immutable, unassailable, incontrovertible, indisputable, unchanging and unchangeable, incomprehensible, mind-blowing. One-God-In-Three-Persons means exactly that and nothing other than that. We looked into that about 10 (ten!) years ago in 1522AFC052915 – Whole in One. Here is a little (edited) excerpt from that post:

Unlike 3-IN-ONE_® Oil –  which is one entity that does three things – God is One Entity that is three things – three Persons (all of whom are Divine, Distinct, and very real). Sometimes we try to understand The Trinity by saying that we, too, are “triune beings,” in that we have a body, soul (intellect and emotion), and spirit. We can see the body, we can experience the soul, but we’re usually stumped by what to think or say about our spirit. It is, after all, the one thing about us that is most like God for “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (See John 4:6-30).

Even knowing that does not allow us to pack it comfortably into our brains. History (Apostolic Tradition), the Scriptures, the Catechism, and the Magisterium of the Church all say the same thing about this concept of Trinity: It is a Mystery. I’m OK with that because that means that I can believe it even if I can’t fully understand it. Why? Because I accept it as being True. To fail to accept it would be colossally unwise! After all, we’re talking about God here, and if that’s what he says, that’s what I believe.

“The Source and Summit of our Faith” is Jesus – the Eucharistic Jesus we encounter at every Mass. He is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, the Messiah. The Messiah, the Christ of God, is that Perfection of Wisdom  that redeems the costly ravages of sin (Death) thereby preparing us to become wholly Holy. Jesus is the Power and the Wisdom of God. Because why? Because Wisdom was there with The Holy Trinity when the universe (with Angels galore!), the Earth, and all persons and creatures who dwell in this Sweet Spot of God’s Favor, this Dear Earth from which our bodies were formed and were then infused with the Ruach of God.

We are the recipients of his Unmerited Favor (Grace – χάρις charis {khar’-ece}) (See 1 Corinthians 1:24 (GNT) [1]– ²⁴ but for those whom God has called, both Jews and Gentiles, this message is Christ, who is the power of God and the wisdom of God. Isaiah 11:2 speaks of the Spirit of the Lord resting upon the Messiah, including the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. ² The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,
    the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
    the spirit of counsel and might,
    the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord
We have previously (↔ Click Link) quoted Colossians 3:15-17 which brings to mind that Jesus is the epitome of Wisdom and Knowledge (after all, he is God!) – ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. For me, that describes a precious and splendid Life in the Light of his Glory and Grace (↔ Music Link)

We also have this, and it is encouraging: Proverbs 23:23 – (GNT)^{1 23} Truth, wisdom, learning, and good sense — these are worth paying for, but too valuable for you to sell. This struck me as one of those, “Well, yeah!” kind of statements. Those for things are certainly worth paying for, and usually we pay for them with experiences that teach us things that are not true, wise, smart, or sensible. “Learn from your mistakes.” But actually, all four of those things are embodied in The Truth. We all remember seeing this at least once in the past 1,000 posts:

(Music Link→) LIGHT ≡ GOD ≡ LOVE ≡ TRUTH ≡ WAY ≡ LIFE ≡ ETERNAL ≡ JUSTICE  ≡ OMNIPOTENCE  ≡ ONE GOD IN THREE PERSONS

Looking at all these verses gives me great Joy and Hope. God created the Earth with Wisdom – Wisdom was the first Quality of God he called forth. Everything he made, he made for Loving. He made the Universe because he Loved it, and he made us – his earthlings – so he could Love us and we could Love him, too. Then his new earthlings messed up and fell into sin and death – that was NOT what he had planned; BUT he already had an Absolutely Perfect Plan to deal with it – Redemption and Salvation through Christ Jesus. Jesus told his Apostles – and they tell us – that God would send the Holy Spirit to help them (and us!) to remember everything he taught and that the Holy Spirit would also defend us against the Devil. Thinking about that is so reassuring; in fact it gives all of us Blessed Assurance (↔ Music Link). Sometimes it’s hard for us to wrap our head around that Love and Forgiveness. But then we think about what the Psalmist said, and it’s even more amazing.

Click on the picture ↓↓. It’s a LINK.,

³ When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars that you have established;
⁴ what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
    mortals that you care for them?

⁵ Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
    and crowned them with glory and honor.
⁶ You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
    you have put all things under their feet

or try this link (↔ Music Link)

No! God did not make everything that is Good and then just walk away from it to see if it would hold together. The whole thing, THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE (including all of us scrawny, scrabbling Earthlings) is in his hands. HE is still at work in this World, and whenever we walk with him, he gives us the option (it’s always, always a choice!) to walk and work with him. Even if we feel the weight of sin and separation from God, here’s a little reminder from 938AFC091809 – Circle of Friends:

You say: “I am a sinner, and unlovable.”

God says: I love you enough to die for you. (Romans 5:8; John 3:16-19; 1 Peter 3:18-20) Ther’s a handy little chart in that post, and if you decide to check it out, at least open the link to Romans 5:8 (or do that here).

God did not leave us abandoned! Take a look at Isaiah 41:10 – (GNT) ^1
10 Do not be afraid – I am with you!
    I am your God – let nothing terrify you!
I will make you strong and help you;
    I will protect you and save you.

And let’s not forget Matthew 28:18-20, The Great Commission – ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” That “age” is the Age of the Church, and eon during which we walk and work (↔ Music Link) with Jesus every day. And there we have it. He will bless us with his Spirit and change us with his Love. That’s what it’s like to work alongside Jesus, to work inside Jesus, to work with Jesus inside. That sounds good to us. That sounds smart to us. In fact, that sounds WISE to us because Jesus is the Wisdom of God. And that leads to another memory verse we have referenced many times:

James 1:5 – ⁵ If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. If Wisdom was the First collaborator with God, and if Jesus is the Wisdom of God, then asking for God’s Wisdom will get us … Jesus! And if we get Jesus, then he will come with us and bring Another Advocate, the Holy Spirit! It is, therefore, very Wise to ask to work with Wisdom because then you work with God. In The Catechism of the Catholic Church §258 we find this (my emphases added): Thus the Church confesses, following the New Testament, “one God and Father from whom all things are, and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom all things are, and one Holy Spirit in whom all things are.” Does that sound even a little familiar?

How about, “Through Him, with Him and in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, almighty Father, for ever and ever.”
“The Church believes in the mediation of Christ alone and His supreme Priesthood. Only “through Him, with Him, and in Him” can we reach the Father who beckons us to receive the Son who bestows the Holy Spirit. “No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) We know that our deeds are pleasing to God through Christ. Our lives united to His life, to His death and to His resurrection, are glory and honor to the Trinity.  “ As you can infer from this animation, when one Person of the Trinity acts, all Three Persons act together, and while each is separate, each acts according to the principles and characters of his nature. Hard to wrap your brain around that? That’s because (you guessed it!) it’s a MYSTERY!

We are Working While Walking With Wisdom and therefore, we are Walking with Jesus(↔ Music Link) and also Walking in Sunlight (↔ Music Link). Because Wisdom is our Companion, we walk with the Lord in the Light of his Word, and are therefore ALWAYS in the Company of The Holy Trinity, and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. Therefore we can believe and know that When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears. Belovéd, Wisdom is Truth and Truth is Wisdom and both are through, with, and in The Holy Trinity.

Our closing hymns are a collection of Three Trinity Hymns (↔ Music Link) We invite you to sing along!

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

 Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

2523AFC060625 – Zeal for Fire, Fire for Zeal 😀 ← PODCAST LINK

Read it online here, please. And please – when you visit there – use one of the social media links at the bottom of the page to share this post. Thank you! And remember, we now have a READER VIEW available, so share this link or this email often.

Do you know someone who enjoys Bible study, or who might like to read this? Ask them to email us or to subscribe on our blog-site.

Acts 2:1-3 – (GNT) [1] ¹  When the day of Pentecost came, all the believers were gathered together in one place. ² Suddenly there was a noise from the sky which sounded like a strong wind blowing, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire which spread out and touched each person there.

1 Corinthians 12:3-7 – [2] ³I want you to know that no one who is led by God’s Spirit can say “A curse on Jesus!” and no one can confess “Jesus is Lord,” without being guided by the Holy Spirit.

⁴ There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them. ⁵ There are different ways of serving, but the same Lord is served. ⁶ There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service. ⁷ The Spirit’s presence is shown in some way in each person for the good of all.

Romans 8:14-15 – ¹⁴ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” (↔ Music Link)

E pili mau na pomaika‘i ia ‘oe a me ke akua ho’omaika‘i ‘oe, ʻŌmea! (May blessing always be with you and may God bless you, Beloved!) Today we look at one of the most exciting celebrations of the Church – Pentecost Sunday. This celebration is rooted in the Jewish feast of Shavuot, The Festival of Weeks. This Feast is held for celebrating the giving of the Torah to the entire nation of Israel at the foot of Mount Sinai – although that is not explicitly described in Scripture. There are scholarly discussions of the background of this Feast in the Talmud – the “oral Torah.” The Festival of Weeks is in the middle of the festivals decreed by God.

1. Passover (Pesach)
2. Unleavened Bread (Chag Hamotzi)
3. Firstfruits (Yom Habikkurim)
4. Pentecost (Shavu’ot) The Feast of Weeks or Festival of Harvest
5. Trumpets (Yom Teru’ah)
6. Atonement (Yom Kippur)
7. Tabernacles (Succoth)

Whenever God puts something in the very middle of what he wants or what he creates (same-same those are), it turns out to be very special and important. Pentecost comes at the end of Eastertide, and it’s a pretty long wait – 50 days like the name says – so it’s like a really big reward for that wait.

Today I want to give a shout-out to Father Moses Akebule who gave an extraordinary homily at St Catherine of Alexandria Catholic Church on May 15, 2016 – Pentecost Sunday. My homily notes supplied some of the content of this post. For my part, I exhort each of us to cultivate zeal for the Fire of the Holy Spirit who will give us the Fire for that Holy Zeal. Pentecost is a remarkable Feast in the same way that Shavuot is an amazing Festival. In these celebrations of God’s Love, we commemorate the moments in the history of his People that he chose to make himself more clearly known. In the Torah, the Word of God is given to us. In the Feast of Pentecost, the Living Word is received in us. I tell you, adelphos, for me that is a mind-blower! Think about this:

This great Feast has no commercial celebration. There are no Pentecost mattress specials or discounts on cars and trucks. There are no widely-sold Pentecost decorations or costumes. That is an example of the deep meaning and sanctifying nature of Pentecost. There are no representational images of fire, or doves, or wind on sale at Walmart. There are only the metaphorical images of these traits of the Holy Spirit. He is exceptionally present in the universe, but we see only glimpses and flashes of him in the small parts of creation. He has an impact on our lives – like the wind, or fire, or water impacts us – and wherever his actions move upon us, then and there always is the Fruit of the Spirit produced.

This is because the Holy Spirit is the Very Life of God – Love. Jesus passed on the Love of the Father through his Love for us, and he shared that Love with the Apostles who passed it on to us through the laying on of hands in the Priesthood. In this way God’s Love is poured out into our hearts, constantly blowing his flames through our lives more and more to stir up the Way, the Truth, and the Life and Love of Christ in us. This leads to a profound communion among his Disciples in all Nations because of the great unity in diversity among Christians as the Prophecy of his Good News is, and will continue to be, spread to all lands and tongues.

Let’s take a look at some of the ways the Holy Spirit is made knowable to us.

1.  The Holy Spirit as a Dove is not a product of the Earth. It is a gift of God in heaven.
2. Fire of the Holy Spirit is given by and from God for light, heat, or as cleansing fire that burns away the debris in our hearts left behind by our sin.
3. The Holy Spirit is positive, affirming Life. ALL negatives vanish resulting in the restoration to us God’s Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. New growth will recognize the Light of Truth, it will burn out evil and terrible memories.
4. The Breath of the Holy Spirit breathed out on the Apostles is like oxygen to the blood of every member of the body of Christ
5. The Holy Spirit has no Gospel of his own, but he is expressed now in everything Jesus said because Jesus only said what the Father told him in the Holy Spirit.
6. Water is a symbol and venue of his actions as it nourishes and sustains Life, promotes growth, cleans and purifies, but can also destroy. Water represents the Soul of the Church which in turn produces the continuity of our lives despite the progressive changes of The World.

The Holy Spirit as the Soul of the Church gives us continuity in our lives which is as certain as our heartbeat. We are given Gifts so that we will use them, and so we exercise our Gifts in the Holy Spirit in any act of mercy and/or testimony as we honor the Giver by accepting the Gift. We must be open to his leading, willing to be led to the service which God intends for our adelphos. He is never idle, but is always acting with and through us 24/7/52/365. Recall the Jerusalem Council’s statement, “It is the will of the Holy Spirit and us…”  Every enterprise we undertake will profit us and our sisters and brothers in Christ if we include our awareness of his presence. We must have a Zeal for that Fire!

The Holy Spirit is our closest friend and constant counselor given to us in, and through, Jesus so that we can come to know all Truth and remember everything he taught us. (See John 14:26) We should always be conscious of his influence in our lives and faithfully be aware of his Loving Presence. The Holy Spirit is the Bond of Love between the Father and the Son, and the Blesséd Trinity invites us to experience the Divine Presence of all three Persons by allowing the Holy Spirit to inflame us with his Love, his Mercy, and his Grace. May our Almighty, Everliving God grant us an unquenchable Fire of Love for the Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit – and for one another as he has commanded us – “Love one another as I have Loved you.” This weekend, in the Power of that Love of Christ, we come “all in one place together” so that we can confess “Jesus is Lord,” [while] being guided by the Holy Spirit. In our joyful Zeal let us remember with exultation and reverence that it is we who are commanded to spread the Fire of the Gospel.

Remember, Jesus said, “I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!” (See Luke 12:49) Belovéd, we are the kindling for that Great Fire which will become for us – the Fire for that Zeal! WE must throw open our hearts and minds and even our souls to that brilliant Fire of Mercy and Grace which is the Love of God – our Light in this present darkness. As The Apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:12 – ¹² For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. There is occasion for some confusion here when The Apostle Paul says “heavenly places.”

We should also consider Ephesians 2:1-2 – ¹ You were dead through the trespasses and sins ² in which you once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. This can be understood that Satan has power to surround and move in, over, and around The World because he is the Archon of that realm which is on and above Earth but below Heaven – an “ethereal realm” wherein the demonic spirits endlessly seek the ruin of souls by enticing them into disobedience and lack of Love because of their indifference to the Power of God in Christ Jesus, the King of the Universe. Against such assaults on Believers, our Κύριος – Kyrios – our Lord and Master sends the Commander of Heavenly Powers, Saint Michael the Archangel to defend us in this spiritual War. He works with the Holy Spirit and Believers to thwart the Devil’s plans and actions.

The Holy Spirit is our closest friend and constant counselor given to us in, and through, Jesus so that we can come to know all Truth and remember everything he taught us. (See John 14:26) We should always be conscious of his influence in our lives and faithfully be aware of his Loving Presence. The Holy Spirit is the Bond of Love between the Father and the Son, and the Blesséd Trinity invites us to experience the Divine Presence of all three Persons by allowing the Holy Spirit to inflame us with his Love, his Mercy, and his Grace. May our Almighty, Everliving God grant us an unquenchable Fire of Love for the Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit – and for one another as he has commanded us – “Love one another as I have Loved you.” This weekend, in the Power of that Love of Christ, we come “all in one place together” so that we can confess “Jesus is Lord,” [while] being guided by the Holy Spirit. In our joyful Zeal let us remember with exultation and reverence that it is we who are commanded to spread the Fire of the Gospel.

As we read in Romans 8:15 ^d – 17 – When we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. When we testify (μαρτυρέω – to be martyred) in the Holy Spirit, we glorify God by using the Gifts he bestows on us through his love for the Christ of God, and that Love is the Holy Spirit. When any Person of the Trinity acts, they all act together. We shall be gathered together in One Place again at the End of the Age of the Church. That may come tomorrow or in a thousand years, but the time does not matter, because we can experience the presence of The Holy Trinity through the workings of the Holy Spirit who, for us, is another advocate given by God through Jesus. We need that Fire deep inside (↔ Music Link)  so let it fall on us!

Spirit of the Living God (↔ Music Link) Fall afresh on us and set us afire with Zeal for your Love!  Send forth Your Spirit (↔ Music Link) O Lord and renew the face of the Earth!

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

 Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

[1] Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) are from the Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

[2] Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) are from the Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

2522AFC053025 – And then what happened?  😀 ← PODCAST LINK

OPEN ALL THE MUSIC LINKS. THERE’S A REASON FOR ALL OF THEM.

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Acts 1:10-11 – (AKJV) [1] ¹⁰ And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; ¹¹ which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this SAME Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Psalm 47:5 – (GNT) ^2
5 God goes up to his throne.
    There are shouts of joy and the blast of trumpets,
    as the Lord goes up.
If we praise God when we sing with the Angels, then the Angels are singing, worshiping God and WE are singing and worshiping WITH THEM as we sing Glory to God, (↔ Music Link) What comes after that?

Ephesians 1:17-19 – ¹⁷ I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, ¹⁸ so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.
Open the eyes of my heart, Lord (↔ Music Link)  

Hebrews 9:25-26 – (GNT) [2] ²⁵ The Jewish high priest goes into the Most Holy Place every year with the blood of an animal. But Christ did not go in to offer himself many times, ²⁶ for then he would have had to suffer many times ever since the creation of the world. Instead, now when all ages of time are nearing the end, he has appeared once and for all, to remove sin through the sacrifice of himself.

Luke 24:51 – ⁵¹While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into Heaven.

Aloha pumehana, Belovéd! Last week we looked into Doing the right thing. Again. This is our daily challenge as Christians – always to do the Right Thing BECAUSE IT IS THE RIGHT THING. If the speed limit is 25, go 25. If the sign says STOP, stop. If the IRS says you owe more, pay it. If your doctor says avoid starches, don’t make Texas Toast for breakfast. And if God says, “Love me and your neighbor,” do it. If Jesus says, “Keep my commandments,” we should certainly try with every ounce of determination we can muster to do that because it is the Right Thing to do. This week I ask that we think about what comes next. After we encounter Jesus, after we are encouraged by his promise to return to us in Glory, what comes next? Well, what comes next is doing the Right Thing, the Things that Jesus told us to do: EXPECT, AND WELCOME, THE Holy Spirit.

Today we look forward to the celebration of the Lord’s Ascension. “Ascension Thursday” is 40 days after Resurrection Sunday – this year Ascension Thursday was yesterday, May 29^th. In many churches around the world, this coming Sunday, June 1^st, will be the day this event is celebrated. For us, the first reading will be Acts 1:1-11 (↔ Learning Link) This is my second-most favorite Bible passage (My #1-most-favorite is Psalm 138 ← Check it out! , especially verse 1). I like these passages because they are good descriptions of how I feel about my relationship with God. Here’s what I mean:

In the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament), as well as in the Vulgate (the Latin translation originating in AD 382), David opens by telling God that he will praise God with all his heart in the presence of the angels. Many English translations use the word “gods” instead of angels. The word in Hebrew is אֱלֹהִ֣ים (‘elohiym) {el-o-heem’}. Some of you will recognize that as one of the “names of God.” It can also mean messenger, judge, “God-like one,” or angels. In Greek that is ἄγγελος (aggelos – Singular, ἄγγελοι aggeloi Plural) and in Latin it is angelorum. That’s how I want to spend my Eternity – at the threshold of the Throne Room listening to the myriads and myriads of angels ministering to God with songs of worship and praise, and I will be singing along with them – in their presence and HIS – with all my heart. I am impatient to get that started. It is that account of the Ascension the fuels my impatience. We’ve covered this before, but I just want to pull up something from the past that speaks to the power of that passage, so from May 15, 2015 (and even earlier in 2009) we have this:

The Ascension, to me, is so reassuring. It is a very strong central tenet of my faith. And in a way, it’s one of my favorites because the angels in that account have a little bit of attitude about them.

Here’s what I mean. Jesus has just been talking with the disciples, and suddenly WHOOSH! He’s on the Cloud Elevator going back to spend eternity with His Dad – Abba. Very, very cool. And if we could be there watching (and we are – I’ll tell you about Contemporaneous Concomitance (↔ Learning Link) sometime, we would see the disciples standing there literally dumbfounded. Then two angels show up and say, “Men of Galilee, why-y-y-y are you standing there looking into the sky!? This same Jesus, who has been taken up from you into Heaven will return to you in the same way you saw him going up into Heaven.” Man! How great is that?!?! I think that passage is just amazing. I guess some scholars can debate about “in the same way” or “in like manner” but for me the word that jumps off the page and makes my ears ring is SAME as in THIS SAME Jesus. Now for those of you who are true Biblicists, really-real Bible scholars, I may be stepping out on a limb here. In the Koine Greek used in Acts of the Apostles, the word for same is houtos I can put the Greek letters here, but they might not display correctly on your screen: οὗτος. So it turns out that this word, which is used in a bunch of places in the Bible, means this one, the one visibly present here, the one just named and none other than this one. There’s not another one, there’s no way it could be someone else. It will be precisely, exactly, permanently that same guy you just saw take off into the clouds. It is HE who will return to you. THAT “this” is IMPORTANT! (↔ Learning Link)  

Jesus told the Apostles he was going to die a terrible death and then come back to life on the third day after his death. Jesus told the Apostles he was going back to his Father to make a place for them to live with Him forever. Jesus told the Apostles that he would send them the Holy Spirit. And then two angels – two of those myriads of ministering to God – told the Apostles Jesus was going to come and take us all Home. All of that is absolutely crystal clear in my mind and heart. I want to see Jesus like that – shining in the light of his Glory, and then I will take up the songs of Praise and cry out Holy, Holy, Holy. (See Isaiah 6:3 and its echo in Revelation 4:8.) Some folks say they have no idea what God says; they claim he never listens to them so they don’t listen to him. That’s not my experience – at all!

Take this post for example. I usually start working on the next post the Saturday after the current one. But this past week, it just didn’t click like it usually does. That happened because I wasn’t paying attention. Then one of those 2X4 moments happened. I was cruising Facebook and came across a little video about a 10-year-old kid named Christopher. He was blind, autistic, and his adoptive father – his uncle actually – introduced him. His dad told a little about him and said he was going to sing a song called Open the Eyes of my Heart. (↔ Music Link – check out Christopher’s performance!)

WHAM!!

I love that song! It takes everything from Psalm 138 and Acts 1 and makes it fit together like peanut-butter-and-jelly – all rich and sweet and full of goodness. Again, I love that song! Now, if you read these fairly regularly, you’ll know I often talk about songs I knew as a kid. This one, though, I learned as an adult. It was written by Paul Baloche – a prolific writer of Praise Music – in 2000. I probably heard it first on KHJC here on Kauaʻi. Maybe you’ve already clicked on that link I provided – that is Paul singing his song in front of a live audience. In describing the song, he says that it sort of wrote itself one night. He was just noodling around with his guitar that night, and the lyrics and cords flowed out. He relates it is based on Ephesians 1:18. (Take a sec and scroll up to look at the underlined part.) Are the words redundant? Yep. Is the melody simple? Yep. Does it make me want to sing? Yessiree! Suddenly, I realized Ephesians 1:18 was what God wanted me to write about. Normally I look at the reading for the coming Sunday to see if there’s anything that catches “the eyes of my heart.” I requested the assignment to read the passage from Acts 1 because I just love seeing people’s eyes light up when I proclaim “TH-I-I-I-I-S-S-S-S-S Jesus And the passage from Ephesians is one of the options for the Epistle; the other one is from Hebrews!

WHAM!!

Not only were the eyes of my heart opened, so were the ears of my heart. I got the message. It was one of those “Thus-says-the-LORD” kind of moments. I could see why Paul wanted us to be looking toward God, and Paul says we want to see Jesus ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. That is the Sh’khinah Glory I long to see when I meet him face-to-face. You may have heard this Paul Baloche song sung by Michael W. Smith (↔ Music Link). I hope it gets stuck in your head and heart, because whenever it pops up, you’ll be reminded that – with The Apostle Paul – ¹⁷ I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, ¹⁸ so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints,¹⁹ and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.

Remember – YOLO-F!, and for us that means we expect to see him again in Heaven because he first appeared once and for all, to remove sin through the sacrifice of himself.  Now, allow God to open the eyes and ears of your heart. See him high and lifted up, shining in the Sh’khinah (↔ Learning Link) – the Light of his Glory. Feel the outpouring of his Power and Love and sing: Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! – Holy! Holy! Holy! Repeat ceaselessly for the first 10,000 years in Heaven because “We’ve no less days to sing his Praise (↔ Music Link) than when we’d first begun.”

Blest be El Shaddai Olam who has Blessed us – [w]hile he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into Heaven. And HE is coming BACK! And that, Belovéd adelphos, is what is going to happen next! Some of us may get a jump on that and get there before he gets here, but either way we can be excited about what can and will happen then!

Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever —
at your service, Belovéd!

Please pray with us here at Share-a-Prayer.

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

Biblical languages inserts from Bible Hub (Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages) Visit at http://biblehub.com

[1] Authorized (Kin g James) Version (AKJV) KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK. Used with permission.

[2] Passages marked (GNT): Good News Translation (GNT) are from the Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition)© 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.