Prayfor2

The season of Advent is a season of waiting. For kids, it’s the seemingly never-ending wait for acres of presents under the tree Christmas morning.

But it’s primarily about preparing our hearts, waiting for the breach between Heaven and Earth, where God took form in human flesh, to dwell among us in the person of Jesus Christ.

Waiting builds up the virtue of patience. I laughed when I first heard someone caution, “Be careful about praying for patience, because God may just give you the struggles that are necessary to build patience!”

Listen to Saint James urging us to be patient in waiting on the coming of Jesus,

“Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient over it until it receives the early and the late rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble, brethren, against one another, that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the doors. As an example of suffering and patience, brethren, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.”

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. Shine the light of your love on our Advent preparations, as we patiently wait for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Help renew within us a sense of awe and wonder that you would become one of us. Build within us a joyful anticipation as we exercise the virtue of patience. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen anytime at Godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app

John the Baptist calls out the Pharisees and Sadducees for not bearing good fruit,

foreshadowing Jesus’s talk on the vine and branches. Both use trees and plants as

analogies for our works of faith. Both share the same dire warning for those that don’t

bear good fruit.

John The Baptist said,

“Bear fruit that befits repentance… Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Jesus said,

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned.”

When I hear someone say they need to find themselves or their purpose in life, I want to

jump on a couch like Tom Cruise and say, “Your purpose is to discern and cultivate the

gifts and talents God has uniquely gifted you, and give those to others in loving service!

Go bear good fruit!”

You were made to be a gift. This is where you will find deep, sustained joy, even amidst

evil and suffering.

Let’s Pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. You designed us to be gifts of self, each with a unique set of gifts and talents. Help inspire us to bear good fruit in you – our faith working in love. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen anytime at Godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

The Advent season reawakens us to a name originally introduced in Isaiah - Emmanuel, meaning, “God is with us.” The Creator of the world didn’t dispassionately spin the world into existence, step back, then wish us the best of luck. He so intimately knows and loves us that he chose to become one of us.

Listen to the Gospel of Matthew…

“The birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit…An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Joseph, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

“Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emman′u-el”(which means, God with us).

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus.”

Let’s pray. Dear Emmanuel - God with us. Help us to appreciate the intimate love you have for us, taking on human flesh to enter our world, and continuing to do so through communion in the Holy Eucharist. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly. You can find Pray For 2 at Godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio ap

Why God?

This is a very natural and common reaction along our road of faith, questioning or even blaming God for our trials and afflictions.

Why would you take my child from me? Why do you allow war? Why did you let me fail?

In cases where it’s because of our own decisions, Proverbs even says,

“When a man’s folly brings his way to ruin,his heart rages against the Lord.”

Job is a famous Old Testament figure that suffers many afflictions. Listen to Him speaking to God,

“I loathe my life; I will give free utterance to my complaint;

I will speak in the bitterness of my soul. I will say to God, Do not condemn me; let me know why you contend against me.”

While it is a very healthy process to question God and our faith, we must always lift our eyes to a more universal truth – that God is love, and that all of His creation falls under that loving umbrella.

We trust, in faith, that any suffering we endure must be part of a greater good, whether building up our own patience and resolve, or the good of the greater body of Christ.

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. We are fragile vessels that are prone to question our faith and want to blame you in our affliction. Help remind us of your overarching love, that we would endure through trials knowing they are part of your bigger plan of love for our lives and all of humanity. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

One of the arguments proponents use is that Jesus doesn’t say anything against gay marriage. Homosexuality is discussed both prior to Jesus in the Old Testament book of Leviticus, and after in New Testament letters of Saint Paul, among many other sins.

What does Jesus say about marriage?

“Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one’. So they are no longer two but one flesh.

Marriage, designed by God, is the perfection of the bond between one man and one woman, until death, for benefit of the individuals and the natural procreation and raising of children. The perfection of the bond between those with same sex attraction is Christian friendship.

That said, we as the Church need to recognize that those with same sex attraction are beloved brothers and sisters, created in the image and likeness of God. We are to treat them as Christ in our midst - that is loved and welcomed.

We all have our sins we struggle with in life. Our challenging task is accompanying and loving one another without judging, while simultaneously holding another to account to truth as we grow in faith.

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. You created marriage. Help us to recognize the wisdom in your creation, while seeing and loving our brothers and sisters with same sex attraction as you do. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at Godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

Have you ever thought of Mary Poppins as a Catholic Theologian?

Saint John revealed that, “God is love” and Jesus Christ called himself, “the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” so our call to share the truth in love is full of divine implications.

Jesus routinely conveyed the loving mercy of His Father. He was also fearless in sharing hard truths. A deeper dive reveals an intriguing underlying pattern.

In many of his encounters, including the woman caught in adultery, Jesus initiated non-judgmentally. He pointedly challenged her accusers that the one without sin could cast the first stone against her, and they all left. It was only after engaging her as a beloved child of God, saying He did not condemn her, that He finished with truth – “go and sin no more.”

Jesus shares the truth in charity, but leads with love.

Where does Mary Poppins factor into this? She famously sang, “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.” The sugar is the sweetness of love. That helps us to swallow the medicine of what can be bitter truth. Don’t you find it easier to accept hard truth when you first trust the person sharing has your best interest at heart?

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. You sent your son into the world to reveal your divine truth, and shine the light of your merciful love into our hearts. Help us heed you call us to share the truth in charity, while also modeling the example of Jesus as we lead with love. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

Have you heard the story of the man living in a house facing an imminent flood? An authority drives by to recommend the homeowners evacuate. The man responds, “I have faith that God will save me,” and ignores the ride.

The floodwaters begin to rise, forcing the man to the second floor of the home, and authorities send out a rescue boat. The man again declines, exclaiming, “I have faith that God will save me!”

The waters continue to rise, forcing the man to his roof. A helicopter flies by and beckons him to hop in. The man again responds, “I have faith that God will save me!”

The waters soon overcome the house, and tragically, the man drowns. He is taken to the judgment seat, where he is incredulous. “I am a man of great faith in God – why didn’t He save of me?!” The judge responds, “Well we sent a car, and a boat, and a helicopter…”

The moral of this tongue in cheek story is that God works through various means, including other people. Jesus draws us together into the body of Christ, as a community, the Church. We are designed to bear one other’s burdens, and to lift one another in times of trial.

Some disparage the Church as, “a crutch,” but like the man in the story, we ignore these gifts God to our peril.

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. You call us to faith in you. Help us recognize the many ways you answer that faith, including through the community around us. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

I once heard a non-Catholic ask a priest why they couldn’t receive communion.

While we encourage Christian unity, Scripture sets a very high bar for communion. In saying, “Amen,” and accepting the Eucharist, we profess to believe all the Church teaches, and that our soul is in a state of grace, that is, not in a serious state of sin.

Saint Paul shared this on the gravity of receiving communion…

“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said,

“This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.”

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy – you gave us the Eucharist as the new manna from heaven. Help ignite within us a renewed respect for the gravity of communion. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

ZEN BEGINNER’S MIND = COME TO ME WITH THE MIND OF A CHILD

As I came into the Church, I was intrigued by the overlap between beliefs of Christianity and other religions.

When Jesus said, “unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,” it reminded me of the concept of “Beginner’s Mind” in Zen Buddhism. Each encourages a childlike humility, full of faith and wonder.

In the gospel of Saint Matthew, Jesus, said,

“Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

This discovery validated the Church’s teaching that God revealed much through the natural order and natural law. These truths are true no matter your religion or social construct.

But the fullness of truth is found in the Catholic Church, where the truths of natural law are combined with divine revelation – God speaking through human prophets via the Holy Spirit. Those two, combining faith and reason, paint the full picture of truth, shared in the love of the Tradition and teaching authority of the Church.

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. You shine the light of your love through the pillar and bulwark of truth, the Catholic Church. Help us to approach all you reveal like a child, with a beginner’s mind, full of humility, awe and wonder. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen to them anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.

How do we discern the will of God? Saint Paul told the Romans, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect

A simple formula for discernment is ask, test and trust.

First, ask. The book of James says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men generously…and it will be given him”

Second, test. In Thessolonians it says, “Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit, … but test everything; hold fast what is good.

Finally, trust. In Proverbs, we hear, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

By first asking God, we recognize that there is a God, and we are not Him. By testing, we focus on good choices. In trusting, we remove our human anxiety, freeing us recognize God’s loving will.

And the best way to do this is by journaling. By documenting your cycles of asking, testing, and trusting, you will see patterns of the Spirit guiding you.

Let’s pray – Father of Grace and Mercy. In your love, you give us free will to pursue our own path in life. Help us to ask, test and trust, that we may discern well the path you have designed for us. Amen.

This is Mike Kelly with Pray For 2. Listen anytime at godislove.blog, or on the Redeemer Radio app.