On the Inside; On the Outside


 
Sep 29 2013
Love0

It All Begins with Us!

Posted by | Virtues | No Comments

There was an article in our local newspaper a couple of weeks ago that stated that the suburbs now have as many poor people as the city of Chicago. The number of poor in the suburbs has nearly doubled in 20 years from about 323,000 in 1990 to 630,000 in 2011, far outpacing overall population growth in the suburbs. It’s a trend researcher’s call “the suburbanization of poverty.” And this is not just here in Chicago; it’s a nationwide trend.

Poverty is defined based on income of less than $11,484 per year for a single person or less than $23,021 for a family of four. That’s living on $443 a week for rent, food, medicine, transportation, utilities, etc. I’m not sure how anyone can live on that amount in this area. Something has to be done! Read More

Sep 26 2013
Love0

Consider Your Ways

Posted by | Prayer | 2 Comments

This reflection is based on today’s reading from the Book of the Prophet Haggai (1:1-8)

We live in a materialistic world today.  Enough is never enough.  More than enough is never enough!  But this is nothing new.  This was the state of affairs in Judah 2,500 years ago.  It’s not as if the people of Judah didn’t have what they needed.  But instead of seeking after the Lord’s house, they were only concerned with their own.  Instead of looking to the Lord’s will, they were only concerned with their own.  As a result, they were never really satisfied. Read More

Sep 19 2013
Love0

Make a Choice

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

2chairsWhen tenor Luciano Pavarotti was a boy, his father, a baker, introduced him to the wonders of song. He urged him to work very hard to develop his voice. Arrigo Pola, a professional tenor in Pavarotti’s hometown of Modena, Italy, took him as a pupil. He also enrolled in a teachers’ college. On graduating, Pavarotti asked his father, “Shall I be a teacher or a singer?” “Luciano”, his father replied, “if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. For life, you must choose one chair.” 

Life is full of choices. Every day we are invited to choose. We choose what we are going to eat, what we are going to wear, how we are going to act, what we are going to do, and where we are going to go.  Read More

Sep 06 2013
Love0

The Power of the Power

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

power outletIt’s Thursday morning: I’m working from home as I always do. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and I’m on the telephone with a very important customer. Suddenly, the lights begin flashing, my computer monitor flickers and goes black, the lights go out, and my telephone disconnects. Yes, we just took another power hit. (This has been a frequent occurrence lately, primarily due to some road construction that is happening at the end of our block.) So I quickly grab my mobile phone and redial the customer. I was saved by technology after technology nearly did me in. And that got me thinking. Read More

Aug 29 2013
Love0

Blameless in Holiness

Posted by | Prayer | No Comments

john-the-baptistWith today being the Memorial of The Passion of St. John the Baptist, the line that always comes to mind from him is, “He must increase while I must decrease.” This has got to be my favorite quote because it always reminds me that it’s never about me, but it’s always about God. (And that is also a great way to pray!)

However, St. Paul prays to the Thessalonians (3:7-13), “May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all…to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father.” Read More

Aug 26 2013
Love0

Dog Days of Summer

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

As we enter the final week of August (which is going to be a hot one in this neck of the woods), I wanted to pass along this posting from a friend of mine, Fr. Tom Zelinski from the St. Anthony Spirituality Center in Marathon, Wisconsin (http://sarcenter.com/).  He truly captures the “heated” topic of the Dog Days of Summer. 

This time of year is often referred to as “dog days.” I have been thinking about dogs, whatever the weather might be. Dogs have certain qualities about them that are quite appealing, when they are not suffering from particular doggie neuroses and other troubles.  Read More

Aug 18 2013
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Fire Changes Everything!

Posted by | Discipleship | 3 Comments
bpr.berkeley.edu

Reference: bpr.berkeley.edu

In the summer of 1988, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming caught on fire. The fires began in June and continued to burn until November. In the end, 1.2 million acres were scorched, leaving the impression that the world’s first national park had been destroyed. But the doom and gloom prophesies about the destruction of Yellowstone proved to be wrong. What many failed to understand was that fire, even a fire of this magnitude, was necessary to maintain the overall health of Yellowstone’s ecosystem. The Lodgepole pine tree pine cones are sealed with a waxy resin, and only open once temperatures reach above 113 degrees. In other words, the trees need the heat of those fires in order to reproduce. The 1988 fires undeniably changed everything about Yellowstone’s landscape, but it didn’t destroy the park. Read More

Aug 14 2013
Love0

The Gift of Relationships

Posted by | Everyday Life | No Comments

Last evening, I had an opportunity to get together with a friend for dinner. This may not seem like a big deal, but it really is. With my schedule, I really don’t get out socially very often. So when an opportunity like this comes about, I do not take it lightly. Especially when this friend is venturing out and beginning a new phase of his life.  Read More

Aug 07 2013
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The New “Me”

Posted by | Discipleship | No Comments

There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth…not going all the way, and not starting. ~Buddha

It’s funny how the voice of the Lord is heard in different ways by different people. But what’s most important is that we are able to actually “hear” that voice, and act on it. 

Over the past several months, I have been moving toward following that voice. So far, I have avoided the mistake of not starting. That is why that you are viewing this blog on my new website. I took that leap of faith in following my calling to go out and become “available” to the world. It was a calling to go out and evangelize by using my God-given gifts to serve the Lord by serving others. It is an opportunity to share my stories, songs, and teachings with my fellow Catholic-Christians.  Read More

Aug 01 2013
Love0

Pitching a Tent

Posted by | Prayer | No Comments

tenderfootI can remember going camping a lot when my boys were young. It was always good family time, except for pitching the tent. When the boys were small, they weren’t much help, so my wife and I were left setting up the tent by ourselves. As the boys got older, everyone was able to pitch in to help. Read More