Podcasts – deacon rudy's notes

Jesus came into the world to save sinners, but the Pharisees and scribes did not think they needed to help being saved.

I suspect there are many different kinds of excuses we are willing to make. These are obstacles that block our path and prevent us from being the disciples we are meant to be.

If we’re always too focused on ourselves, then we will be blinded to what really matters. This is the spiritual truth that Jesus is trying to explain to us.

Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and sharing the Good News takes great courage, but indeed that is the kind of person who will enter through the narrow door.

Jesus came to set fire to the world. Are you ready?

We are not called to be pew potatoes! No! God has blessed us all with gifts – gifts that must be shared. Just like eating bon bons while binge-watching a show, if we don’t use the gifts God gives us, then our spiritual gluttony can leave us feeling like sloths. We need to be active. In today’s parable, the servants didn’t just sit around. They actively prepared for their master’s return so that they would be ready for when ever he might come. The same is true for us.

What we hear in Ecclesiastes is tht we can get so caught up in ourselves and in the things around us that we lose sight of what is really important and the things that really last – God and the blessings that flow from God, like our family and our friends. Being thankful for our blessings and enjoying our blessings and most importantly sharing our blessings with others are ways that we can store up for ourselves treasure in heaven.

In the Gospel according to Luke, Jesus teaches us how to pray by giving us the Lord's Prayer.

Prayer without action is sterile, and action without prayer is empty.

When we love one another, we experience the presence of God.