Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

7 Judge not, that you be not judged.
(Matthew 7:1)

"In mercy you have seen fit today to show me,
poor as I am, how we can in no way pass
judgment on other people's intentions. Indeed,
by sending people in an endless variety of paths,
you give an example for myself, and for this I
thank you."

St. Catherine of Siena
Political and Religious Peacemaker
(1347-1380)

Imagine that a fly lands on a train and wants to make
it move. It pushes with all its might, and the train does
start to move. It goes very fast and the fly starts to think
that it must be really strong. To the onlooker, it’s
ridiculous to think that the fly could ever be pushing a
train. Even the largest, strongest, most capable fly
cannot push a train!

We are like that fly. Sometimes it looks like we are the
ones pushing the train and running the world, but it’s
just an illusion. God is the driver, the conductor, and
the power that runs our lives.

We are all vulnerable and totally dependent on God who
covers us with His love. Remember how God loves us
infinitely, and He will continue to conduct our lives in
the best way possible. We cannot control everything,
but the good news is that we don’t have to. Our loving
Father in Heaven has got us covered.

With prayers for shalom, peace,

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

A pastor who, tongue-in-cheek, printed an item in his
Sunday bulletin. In it, he listed all the reasons why he
stopped attending sporting events. He wrote,

"Every time I go, they ask me for money. The fans
don't seem very friendly, and the seats are too hard.
The coach never comes to call on me and the referee
makes decisions that I don't agree with. A lot of the
people come only to see what team jerseys other
people are wearing. Some games extend into overtime,
making me late getting home, and the band plays
some awful numbers that I've never heard before.
Usually the games are scheduled when I want to do
other things, and the stadium brings up bad childhood
memories of my parents taking me there far too many
times. And don't you know it, ever since I read that book
on sports, I know more than the coaches do anyway!
So now I don't take my own children because I want
them to choose for themselves what sport they like best."

(SOUND FAMILIAR?)

(The Staff and editors of Sunday Sermons Online)