Mad at God?

Today I'm joining Charlotte and Ginger on Spiritual Sundays. Thanks, ladies for hosting! Click on their names for more inspiration.

I received this message last week in a newsletter I subscribe to and wanted to share it with you. I haven't posted in a long time, but kept feeling like I should post this one, perhaps there's someone out there who needs to read this.

THIS THANKSGIVING

This Thanksgiving holiday may be the only one some of us have left, or it may be the most important one some of us will ever have. Let’s make the most of it.

From the beginning, this mostly secular holiday has had a somewhat “holyday” dimension to it. After all, the Pilgrims gave thanks to God, mostly for surviving, but surely for the food they had that helped them to survive and ultimately prosper.

Taking things for granted is an occupational hazard of the human condition. It is easy to forget that all things come from God. Whatever we have is a gift from our Father, “Who art in Heaven,” and on earth, and in every heart and mind that permits him entrance.

This Thanksgiving some of us are having our own personal struggles, and it is not as easy perhaps to be thankful. Millions of people are nowhere near as well off as they once were. The lines at the local food banks and shelters are longer than they have been in recent times many places. Those of us who are able must help those less fortunate when we can. I spent one Thanksgiving homeless, roaming the streets of Los Angeles when I was younger. I can tell you it is a cold and desolate feeling.

Some of us are mad at God this Thanksgiving. I can understand that, although it doesn’t do any good to bang your head against the rock wall of Reality. Some of us don’t have what we had last year. I know dozens of people who have lost more than 40-50% of their wealth this past year. I lost my best friend this year. I know what it is to be mad at God too, although it isn’t the right thing to do, and it certainly doesn’t help. God gave us what we had to begin with.

The Prophets got mad at God at times. They got over it, and so will we.

Some people lost wives, husbands, and children this year. I can’t imagine the depths of their suffering, but I sympathize with it. I don’t have a wife or children in the normal sense. I acquired a dog ten years ago at a very dark and painful time in my life. He saved my life when he was a puppy by giving me a reason to live. Years later he saved my life from two intruders who broke into my home early one morning. He was my best friend for years. He died tragically from cancer a couple of weeks ago. He bled to death internally and died as I held him on the examination table of the veterinary clinic. He was scared and could hardly breathe as he looked into my eyes.

I was mad at God for taking the only real friend I had for many years; the only one I lived with and could be close to through many dark and troubling years. He was always the same, day in and day out. He loved me unconditionally, and every morning he greeted me as though he hadn’t seen me for years, although he slept on the same bed that I did every night of the ten years he was with me.

It’s hard to lose things, harder to lose what we love. Yet, it was God who gave us these things from the beginning. I remember that there were over 3,000 sunrises and sunsets that I spent with Sage. He loved to walk with me anyplace we went. He loved to swim more than anything else. He was a Chesapeake Bay Retriever, and it was in his genes to be that way. He was loyal and he was loving, and he is gone, but I am thankful to God for the years He gave me to live with Sage. He always slept with one back leg over my ankle, as though he wanted to keep track of me through the night. He liked to watch football games on television, and sat next to me on the sofa with one paw draped over my leg.

He would often steal my shoes or socks and race joyously through the house and prance and dance until I told him to hand them over, which he always did as though it was his highest and happiest mission in life.

Loss is hard, but sometimes it is only in loss that we realize what we’ve had, the greatness of the gift and how much it has contributed to our life. It’s easy to give thanks when everything goes well. It’s easy to love when all is comfortable. It’s the highest and best thanks and love when we can do it from a place of loss. Be thankful for what you have, and for what you had, even if it was only for a little while, for as a wise man said, “Tis better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.”

So, this Thanksgiving let’s be thankful indeed for all we have, and for all we’ve had. It is all evidence of the love and care of God our Father.

Have a blessed and happy Thanksgiving,
Father John Corapi

Posted by Katherine

Independence Day Message

I haven't participated in Spiritual Sundays in a while, but would like to share this Independence Day message today. I hope you like it.

Thanks to Charlotte and Ginger for hosting. Go here for lots more inspiration.

Independence Day Message

I have fond memories of the 4th of July going back to when I was probably only four or five years old. We remember the parades, the picnics or barbecues, and the happy gathering of families. During the American Revolution, the legal separation of the American colonies from Great Britain actually took place on July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve the resolution of independence previously put forth by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia. After debate and revision Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4th.

Of note is the letter John Adams, one of only two Founding Fathers who went on to become president, wrote to his wife Abigail:

…This day ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward forever more. (Adams Family Papers: An Electronic Archive. Massachusetts Historical Society)

Like so many of the Founding Fathers, Adams recognized that the day of deliverance came from the providential hand of almighty God. I am not sure about large numbers of duplicitous politicians and other so-called public servants today, whether elected or appointed.

Freedom is a great thing, and we do well to celebrate it on the 4th of July. That being said, it’s something rooted in truth, and apart from the truth there can be no authentic freedom.

If you continue in my word [truth] you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. (John 8:31-32)

An individual, a country, or a world that does not remain rooted in objective truth cannot ultimately live in freedom. If you are serious about your faith, my dear friends, I strongly recommend that you read #1730-1748 as we approach the wonderful celebration of Independence Day, or the 4th of July.

Some highlights of this reality:

1731: Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility. By free will one shapes one’s own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude [true happiness].

1733: The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes…

One of the most common errors of all time is to confuse freedom and license. Today, frequently under the specious pretext freedom, mankind acts in a manner that is really license. We are not morally free to do whatever we choose to do. Only when rooted in truth and acting in objective truth can we hope to be free. No one has the moral right to do evil. No one has the moral right to choose to take an innocent life or to engage in actions that are out of accord with right reason or any objective standards of morality we have ever known.

The inevitable consequence of abusing freedom is losing freedom. Soon, if we do not alter our present course, the United States will no longer be the home of the brave and the land of the free. Loss of personal freedoms, one at a time, is already well underway. One day we shall awake from our moral slumber and find that we have become slaves.

We must live in truth and act in truth if we are to remain free. Abuse it and I assure you we shall lose it! Wake up America! God is not a disinterested spectator. Let’s thank God for our freedom, but let’s not sit by idly while the forces of darkness divorce freedom from truth. For, as Jesus says, “The man who sins is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34)

I’ll leave you with the motto of the United States Army Special Forces on this 4th of July:

De oppresso liber! (To free the oppressed)

Indeed, Jesus came to set the captives free. Let’s do our part for our country and our world that we might all remain free in the glorious freedom of the children of God.

God bless you,

Fr. John Corapi

Happy Easter!

Thanks to Charlotte and Ginger for hosting Spiritual Sundays weekly. Go here for lots more inspiration.

I would like to extend to you best wishes for a very Happy Easter.

I give thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ for drying on the cross for us so we may have eternal life with Him forever and forever!

I'm sharing a few of my Easter decorations in our home this year.

My childhood bible with a twig cross on top. A friend made the twig cross for me.

My husband made the crown of thorns from the vine off our bouganvillia bush.
The nail was given to us at church a few years ago.

I like the shadows on this and the next few pictures

Especially the shadow from the candle below:

The picture below has the true colors

The old bible above, has been in our family almost a hundred years!

My childhood bible below:

The twig cross displayed in a cloche with thorny roses, pearls and a baby's pink bible:
This represents Jesus dying on the cross for us after leaving His words for us to live by. A bittersweet representation.

If you would like to see more of my Easter decor, go to my other blog The Yellow Rose Arbor, here.

Have a very blessed Easter.

He is Risen!!! He's Alive!!! Thank you Lord!

Katherine

The Holy Alphabet

I received this alphabet by email today and wanted to share it with you. Thanks to Charlotte and Ginger for hosting Spiritual Sundays weekly. Go here for lots more inspiration.

The Holy Alphabet

A lthough things are not perfect
B ecause of trial or pain
C ontinue in thanksgiving
D o not begin to blame
E ven when the times are hard
F ierce winds are bound to blow
G od is forever able
H old on to what you know
I magine life without His love
J oy would cease to be
K eep thanking Him for all the things
L ove imparts to thee
M ove out of "Camp Complaining"
N o weapon that is known
O n earth can yield the power
P raise can do alone
Q uit looking at the future
R edeem the time at hand
S tart every day with worship
T o "thank" is a command
U ntil we see Him coming
V ictorious in the sky
W e'll run the race with gratitude
X alting God most high
Y es, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Z ion waits in glory...where none are ever sad!

"I AM Too blessed to be stressed!" The shortest distance between a
problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the
floor.

The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything. Love
and peace be with you forever, Amen.
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We are especially thankful today for answered prayer about the heart catheterization my husband had yesterday at Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville, FL) He didn't need to have any stints and the doctors said his problem could be "fixed" with medication. He is home now! We've been praying and our pastor anointed him with oil a few weeks ago.

Praise the Lord!! Thank you Lord for answered prayer!! Thank you for being there with us!

Katherine

Devine Intervention

When I came to my Power of Prayer blog with an idea of what to share I noticed the last time I posted on Spiritual Sundays the title was Detours.

My husband and I had one of those detours just recently. In December he was planning his annual skiing trip to Breckenridge, CO. For the past five years I haven’t gone with him because the last time I went I spent the week in bed with altitude sickness. He asked me to go again this time and I reluctantly agreed to go hoping I wouldn’t experience the altitude sickness again!

A friend offered to loan us his timeshare condo the first week in January. My husband contacted the company several times and had difficulty getting the confirmation papers we needed. Our friend kept telling us to ask for “Mike” he had the confirmation number, etc. Finally my husband said he wondered if all the difficulty was a sign that we shouldn’t go. In desperation, he cancelled all the plans, he was very disappointed.

Our reservations were to be Jan 3 through Jan 10 -- this week. Several things happened this week. My husband’s sister died this past Wednesday (from ovarian cancer) He also received word from his doctor that the stress test he had last week revealed he should have a heart catheterization. Something else that occurred was the new airport security that would have been a big hassle! Don’t forget all the bad weather all over the country, Colorado had bad snow storms!

We are praising God for His Divine Intervention! He goes before us to prepare the way! I’m so thankful He blocked our plans. If we had continued on with our plans, my husband could have endangered his life skiing, we would have had a lot of problems at the airports, traveling in bad weather, plus we would have had to cut the trip short and return home when his sister died. We will miss his sister, Angela, but we will see her again – in Heaven! Praise the Lord for eternal life!

My husband goes to the doctor Wednesday to discuss the stress test what steps he is to take next. Your prayers are appreciated! Charlotte, I hope we receive good news the way you did! PTL!

Thanks to Charlotte and Ginger for hosting Spiritual Sundays. Go here for more inspiration.

Katherine