Tag: celebration

Acts 14: Tenacity
Acts 14: Tenacity

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

Iconium, Lystra, Antioch. Jews, Gentiles. Healings, beatings, curses, cures. Zeus, Hermes, the Living God. Hardships, celebrations. Mythology, mysticism, illusion, reality. In all of these places, with all of these people, in all of these philosophies and approaches, Paul and Barnabas journey together to deliver the good news that we are loved by the Living God. I am exhausted just reading about their missionary journey as we watch these two faithful disciples of Christ persuade and teach, heal and call. Despite the fact that they see much of their work undone, they continue to rejoice in the work they do as God’s servants asks of them. They are an amazing – and successful – pair. They bring many into the church.

Paul and Barnabas have much to teach us who are discouraged when small details of the day become looming obstacles. They might show us that when we growl and complain about interrupted plans and schedules that we add to our own burden. We see that they do not fall into the trap of thinking that the world is an unjust, corrupt and unfair place. Rather than focus on the problems they navigate, they remain centered on doing God’s will. These two friends have discovered that tenacity and companionship are antidotes for anger and dejection. And they have learned that success comes most often and stays longest when they defer to God’s plan rather than their own.

Paul is a familiar figure to us but perhaps we can learn something more about Barnabas as he and Paul model how to best react when we see others dismantle the work we have lovingly delivered to God. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02300a.htm

Misunderstood by many, these two place their faith in God. Rejected by the tradition in which they had been raised, they place their hope in Christ. forgotten by the fledgling churches they have founded, they allow the forgiveness and healing of the Spirit to work through them. Barnabas and Paul refuse to allow any failure to deter them. They follow Christ. And they hold on.

And so we pray . . .

Faithful and abiding God,

We remember that you were the cornerstone that the builders rejected.

We believe that you walk with us in our journey just as you walked with the apostles in theirs.

We ask that you abide with us when the night grows darkest.

We know that you rejoice with us as we celebrate our little successes.

Lead us so that we remain faithful to you.

Guide us so that we remain hopeful in you.

Help us so that we react in love and not in anger when we see our work taken apart by others.

Grant us the gift of tenacity that you gave to Paul and Barnabas, on the days when we find our journey long, and our resources low.

We ask all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

A re-post from September 20, 2011.

Image from: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/36099234483087340/

39.533225 -76.430369
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October 15, 2025

Antioch, Barnabas, celebration, discouragement, Iconium, joy, Lystra, Paul, stamina
Ezra 6: 19-23: Marvels – Part V
Ezra 6: 19-23: Marvels – Part V

Monday, November 20, 2023

Dedication of the Temple

God had changed the mind of the king of Assyria to the Israelites in rebuilding The Temple of God, the God of Israel.

God says: My faithful celebrated when the Emperor of Syria released them from bondage, for they saw my hand in that marvel. My faithful returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple where they and I communed. Today I invite you to open hour own heart to me so that I might build my New Temple within.

Then the Israelites who had returned from exile, along with everyone who had removed themselves from the abuses of the nations to join them and seek God, the God of Israel, ate the Passover. With great joy they celebrated.

God says: My faithful returned from exile to celebrate with me in great joy for the marvel of their return. They believed that I lived only in their Temple but I have come to walk among you to reveal greater marvels than you even imagined. I come as one of you to live with you, to eat and drink with you, to pray and play with you. I have come to write a New Covenant with you and to write in on your heart.

With joy they celebrated . . .

God says: I know that there are many days and many nights when my marvels and miracles fade from your memory but despite this dwindling, I urge you to remain in me. For I will always remain in you. Exchange your old wine skins for new ones so that I might live in you forever.

With joy they celebrated the marvels their God had done for them.

For more on Darius, the King of Assyria, click on the Temple image above, or visit: http://bibleencyclopedia.com/pictures/Ezra_6_Dedication_of_the_temple.htm

Other images from: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/christiancrier/2015/08/22/what-is-the-difference-between-new-wine-and-old-wine-in-the-bible/ and https://gjcoc.us/the-new-covenant-is-here/
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November 20, 2023

celebration, Israelites, Jeremiah 31:31-34, King Darius, King of Assyria, Matthew 9:17, new covenant, The Temple
Ezra 6: 19-23: Marvels – Part III
Ezra 6: 19-23: Marvels – Part III

Saturday, November 18, 2023

James Tissot: The Return of the Prisoners

We consider the marvels God has done for the faithful in ancient days, and we consider the response of the faithful.

The people who had returned from exile celebrated.

We recall the marvels God has done for our own ancestors, and we recall their celebration of God’s fidelity.

With great joy they celebrated.

We remember the presence of God in our lives, the miracles God has wrought in us, and we remember our celebration of God’s presence in our own days and nights.

For seven days they joyfully celebrated.

We hope for the presence of God in the lives of our children and grandchildren, and we hope that our children celebrate in joy for this presence.

The Lord had made them joyful.

Yesterday, today and tomorrow we rejoice in our return from exile as did the people of old.

James Tissot: The Reconstruction of Jerusalem and the Temple of Herod

They were full of joy.

Yesterday, today and tomorrow we rejoice in our return from exile as did our ancestors.

And they kept the feast.

Yesterday, today and tomorrow we rejoice when we pass on this tradition of joy as we also keep the feast.

When we use the scripture link and drop-down menus to compare translations of these verses, we find that we have great cause to rejoice.

For more on Herod’s reconstruction work, click on the image of the rebuilt temple, or visit: http://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/second-temple/

Image of the return of the exiles from: http://thejewishmuseum.org/collection/26577-the-flight-of-the-prisoners
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November 18, 2023

celebration, Herod, joy, return from exile, trust God
Mark 3:20-35: Jesus and his Family
Mark 3:20-35: Jesus and his Family

James Tissot: Jesus Teaching in the Temple

Thursday, August 25, 2022

He came home. Again the crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat.

As I was growing up and moving into womanhood, my oldest brother – twelve years my senior – would come home from college, visit us when he had military leave, and then brought his family to visit from places across oceans. When he did, the clan would gather to celebrate. My sisters – both older than I but younger than this brother – came home often, and they brought their families from places nearby. They believed that the celebrations for my brother were more enthusiastic than those for their own families. Perhaps they were. I do not remember seeing the difference. My younger brother and I watched this curious mixture of disappointment and love, feeling that push and pull of family dynamics and understanding that this was how family functioned. A dichotomy of conflict and acceptance, worry and love. I suspect that each of us has similar family experiences.

In today’s Noontime we see Jesus return home from a pilgrimage of healing and transforming others, and so many gathered that it was impossible for them even to eat. Jesus’ family, worries that he will come under scrutiny by the officials, declares that he is out of his mind. The scribes, worry about losing influence with the people, decide that Jesus is possessed by the devil. This is a confusing, jumbled juxtaposition of celebration and dangerous plotting.

Life is never a simple picture. Reality is always a combination of highs and lows, positives and negatives, sorrows and joys. Today’s Noontime, much like my own family memories, presents us with a picture of sadness mixed with delight, celebration with worry. And this is as it should be. For this is how families are. And this family of Jesus that we read about today is very much like our own families.

All of this makes sense when we watch Jesus return home and we consider that he is, after all, our brother.

Tomorrow, Jesus of Nazareth.

Adapted from a reflection written on August 31, 2010.

Image from: https://jesuswithoutbaggage.wordpress.com/2013/08/15/jesus-speaks-of-his-relationship-with-the-father/
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August 25, 2022

celebration, home, sadness versus joy
Zechariah 14: Apocalypse – Part V
Zechariah 14: Apocalypse – Part V

The Sistine Chapel, The Vatican: Michelangelo’s Prophet Zechariah

Saturday, June 11, 2022

The fight for Jerusalem that Zechariah predicts is already begun . . . and we are celebrants in the newness of what is coming into being. Let us gather ourselves to face the disasters that life brings to us, for it is in these disasters that we find this new life. Let us find our places in God’s new city, for it is in this new place that we find new meaning. And let us rejoice and be glad for we know what to do when cataclysm strikes; it is in this cataclysm that we discover the refuge that is the house of the Lord of hosts.

Past, present, future. Let us step forward into the newness of our transformation. Past, present and future. Let us step away from our childish predictions of a future that is too simple. Past, present and future. Let us rest in the moment when we fully experience the three-person God who is more real and more certain than any savior we might conjure up on our own. Let us rest in the present to celebrate the God who always was, always is and always will be the peace and hope and joy of the world.

Enter the word restoration into the blog search bar and explore the idea of cataclysm bringing joy into our lives.

Tomorrow, the feast of the Trinity.

Senior, Donald, ed. THE CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE. New York, Oxford University Press, 1990. 425. Print.

Adapted from a reflection written on Friday, July 10, 2009.

Image from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zechariah_(Hebrew_prophet)
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June 11, 2022

apocalypse, celebration, exile, prophecy, restoration, return, Trinity
Zechariah 14: Apocalypse – Part IV
Zechariah 14: Apocalypse – Part IV

Friday, June 10, 2022

Return from exile is celebrated but the celebration is taking place amid the ruin of former glory because our newness is more important than what was. In our child-like, dual minds we see the world as negative and positive, off or on, with or against, good or evil, black or white, up or down. When we give ourselves over to our Triune God we begin to understand that these opposites exist side by side and even intertwined. We also begin to see that God’s plan, God’s promise and God’s love are capable of turning any harm – natural or human-made – into a force for beauty and goodness. This is the promise of the Easter resurrection, and it is the miracle of Pentecost indwelling.

We are nearing the Feast of the Trinity and later Corpus Christi when we celebrate this gift of Jesus’ presence in gift of Eucharist. I will feed my people with finest wheat and fill them with honey from the rock (Psalm 81:16) We are one with Christ in the gift of bread and wine. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believe this has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. (John 6:47-50)

We have been transformed and made anew, and this miracle of redemption that Zechariah describes already exists today in that each of us is the libation bowl poured out for Christ. We are each a vessel fashioned by God’s hands and brought into existence for God’s purpose. We each are the hope of the Spirit to the world.

Past present, future. Let us remember the holy trinity of our lives: all that God has created and gifted, all that is here with us in the Spirit, and all that is promised by Christ in our lives to come. Then, when apocalypse befalls us, let us offer all that we have and all that we are to the triune God: courageous creator, compassionate savior and blessed comforter.

Tomorrow, transformation.

To read about how different cultures celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, click on the image above or visit: http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/common/corpus-christi

Senior, Donald, ed. THE CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE. New York, Oxford University Press, 1990. 425. Print.

Adapted from a reflection written on Friday, July 10, 2009.
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June 10, 2022

apocalypse, celebration, Corpus Christi, exile, John 6:47-50, prophecy, Psalm 81:16, restoration, return, Trinity
Matthew 5:5: The Meek
Matthew 5:5: The Meek

Easter Monday, April 18, 2022

On this Easter Monday we continue our reflection on the Beatitudes as we re-focus our attention on God’s priorities rather than our own.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. (Matthew’s account of the Sermon on the Mount)

Perhaps patience is the quality we most need if we are to be humble servants. Patience in our understanding that we are not in charge. Patience in our knowing that it is God’s wisdom and grace that answers our deepest questions. Patience in allowing God’s fidelity and mercy to invade all that we do. Patience in both giving and accepting God’s healing love. Psalm 27 reminds us what we gain when we are able to wait. These verses bring into focus what it is we inherit, and why the land in which the Spirit dwells is worth our offering of meekness.

Though a host encamp against me, my heart will not fear . . .

On this Easter Monday we celebrate God’s strength . . .

Though war arise against me, I shall be confident . . .

We celebrate God’s hope . . .

I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living . . .

We celebrate God’s gift of eternal life and love . . .

Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage . . .

We celebrate God’s gift of promise . . .

Yes, wait for the Lord . . .

We celebrate God’s gift of persistence.

When our quiet strength rises from God we have no need to boast or strut. When our simple humility follows the example of Christ we have no need to exclude or divide. When our genuine meekness grows in the Spirit of God we have no need to hate or avenge. Let us wait on the Lord, let us give thanks for God’s presence, and let us celebrate the patience we inherit that offers us the gift of God’s meekness.

Using the scripture links, explore different versions of these verses and give thanks for our inheritance of meekness.

Tomorrow, the merciful.

Images from: http://eagleviews.org/2011/10/14/they-say-he-said/ and http://flowers-kid.com/easter-empty-tomb-images.htm
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April 18, 2022

celebration, courage, fidelity, God’s grace, God’s wisdom, humility, love, patience, persistence, Psalm 27, Psalm 37:11
Psalm 37:4 – Joy and Happiness
Photo by Moyan Brenn

Sunday, January 23, 2022

Psalm 37:4

Joy and Happiness

Today’s post is the last in a series in which we visited scripture looking for stories about joy. These tales may have surprised us in a number of ways. We may have found our personal invitation to a disciple’s intimacy with Christ. Perhaps we have been fed by the stories of God’s love and joy in our existence. Or perhaps we have felt the Spirit’s joy that heals, calls and binds us together. In this concluding reflection, we gather our thoughts on joy from the last several months, and we contemplate how it is that despite travail and suffering, joy continues to sustain the human race.

Psalm 37:4: Delight yourself in the Lord; and God will give you the desires of your heart.

In recent years the topic of sustainable happiness has piqued the interest of many and two authors, Joe Loizzo and Sarah Van Gelder, have both written books on the subject. YES! Magazine publishes articles on the subject every few years and their website hosts pages “Peace and Justice,” “Planet,” “New Economy,” “People Power,” and “Happiness”. There is always interest in how to find and maintain a happy, balanced life style. Given current world events, we might imagine that more of us will be looking for the source and nourishment of happiness, and some of us might be surprised to find amazingly simple answers to what we believe are complex questions.

We have just completed a journey through scripture looking for the many times and places that joy has surprised the human race; and we have seen that while we assume that joy accompanies celebration, she is always found in times of great pain and great loss. Indeed, happiness is most intense in the deepest darkness; and her sister joy is most healing when our wounds are deepest. Spend time today exploring sustainable happiness. Listen to On Being podcasts of conversations with the Dalai Lama and others as they discuss the concept and experience of happiness. When we allow joy to settle into our hearts and take up residence in our very bones . . . we too, will know the real meaning of lasting and sustaining joy.

For more on sustainable joy, visit: http://sustainablehappinessbook.com/ and http://www.yesmagazine.org/peace-justice

For thoughts from Sarah van Gelder, click on the image above or visit: http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/7-ways-to-get-happy-without-costing-the-planet

Visit the On Being site at: http://www.onbeing.org/program/pursuing-happiness-dalai-lama/147

If this week’s Noontimes call you to search for more ways to encounter Joy or urges you to investigate the New Testament, click on the word Joy in the categories cloud in the blog’s right hand sidebar and choose a reflection, or enter those words in the blog search bar.
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January 23, 2022

celebration, joy, Psalm 37:4, sustainable happiness, YES! Magazine
John 20:19-23: Easter People
Saturday, April 24, 2021

John 20:19-23

Rado Jovar: The Upper Room

There are many times in our lives when we feel complete and whole, when we want to celebrate life’s goodness, when we want to share the good news we have heard and seen and touched for ourselves. An event causes us to fully understand that we are a small part of an enormous whole. Deep in our innermost core we believe that we bring a unique and necessary hope to the world. We look for a loved one, friend or colleague with whom we might share the story of our Easter newness. We throw ourselves into play or work, fully willing to follow the gentle leader who stands waiting before us, saying . . .

Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.

In our newly-found Easter selves, we step forward to participate in God’s plan.

The disciples work and play and pray with Christ; they see his story unfold before them and still they are startled to see that they have an integral part in God’s plan of salvation. Let us reflect on the Christ’s call, and let us determine to be true Easter people who go where we are sent.

A re-post from Easter Wednesday 2014.

For another reflection, enter the words I send you on this blog and explore.

Image from: http://radojavor.deviantart.com/art/the-upper-room-294522793
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April 24, 2021

celebration, Easter People, joy