Tag: Jesus

Why The Spiritual Basics?

We can never get bored with the spiritual basics. Can we? What tempts us to get bored? Why do we think the basics ae relatively unimportant? Do we even think about such things?

Is it because they are too basic. Too elementary? Too simple? Is this why it’s not on our daily radar screen?

Why?

We can never get bored with the basics. Ever! What example do we set for the people following us – family, friends, colleagues and others we don’t even know about.

Tomorrow marks the seven month “anniversary” of starting every day on my knees. After 50 years on our planet, it occurred to me that starting each day on my knees was as basic as it gets. And yet, I had never done it. Why?

jeff noel – Blessed & Stressed

jeff noel, blogger, average guy, Father, Husband, teacher, is blessed and stressed after yesterday.

Blessed because I am all those things.

Stressed because I am not all those things.

Yes, my wife and I conducted an excellent Children’s Liturgy of the Word yesterday. Yet stressed, because at the afternoon birthday party, I realized there is a long way to go with helping our son work through his competitive nature.

He actually has a gift. We all do, don’t we?

Some us simply need help unwrapping it. Now, where did I put those scissors.

Children’s Liturgy of the Word

Children’s Liturgy of the Word. God’s Word.

And the fact that I would be delivering homilies (sermons) to dozens of elementary school children boggles the mind.

Yet, it will happen again today, like it does the fourth Sunday of every month. My wife and I volunteer to do this.

Four years ago, a woman from our Church made an appeal to the congregation that she needed more volunteers or Children’s Liturgy would go away. After Mass, we volunteered, thinking we would simply be helpers “on the sidelines”.

Funny how things turn out exactly opposite from the way we expect.

Camel’s Back & The Straw

Ever heard the phrase, “It was the straw that broke the camel’s back”?

It’s a phrase I’ve heard a 1,000 times in America. Camel’s are incredibly strong and resilient. However, they do have a breaking point, a threshold that can be too much, and they collapse.

And when the breaking point is about to be reached, it can be something as small and light as a piece of straw.

Yesterday was like that. Was asked to substitute as lead teacher for last night’s Catechism class. For a variety of reasons (one’s I feel are valid), my son and I skipped Catechism last night.

Just couldn’t do it. Preparing for and leading the class was more than I could bear. Yes, guilt started to overwhelm me. Yes, felt I couldn’t say no, but did anyway.

Yes, from a distance, it only looked like a small and light piece of straw. Carpe diem.

PS. We did do the lesson at home, so our son wouldn’t fall behind.

Catechist’s Prayer

Catechist’s Prayer:

“Gracious and all loving Father, out of love for all people you spoke your Word who became flesh for our salvation. May your Word transform me so that the message of your Son, our Lord, may be echoed through my teaching. Allow me to guide the hearts of those whom I teach in such a way that they will enter more deeply into your way of truth and salvation. Grant me the insight needed to lead them to know, love, and serve you. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, may they become hearers and followers of your Word, so that they may help transform the world to follow the way of life your Son has called us all, for he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.”

Copyright 2009, US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. All rights reserved.

Wednesday nights are reserved on our schedule for Catechism. Our son attends, and I help Miss Jane, the Instructor.