Most married couples will remember a time early on in their courtship and marriage when it was actually painful to be apart from each other for more than half a day. No other relationship, work project, hobby or sports team could match the desire you had to be with that person.

Remember that?! Some would say those were the “Good Old Days”. But now that you two have married, children, mortgages, health insurance, and credit card debt can take most of your attention and efforts.

Your spouse “will understand”, you say. “After all, we’re a team. We want the same things.”

Okay. But every once in a while “The Team” needs to take a break. You two need to take time to remember what you saw in your spouse. To remember what told you that she (he) was “The One”.

So guess what? . . . Holy Trinity is throwing a date night. We’re calling it the “Art of Marriage”. Here’s what’s going to happen.

Saturday evening, February 4th, (after the 4pm. Mass) all married couples are invited to a cocktail hour and catered dinner in Murphy Hall. (We’ll make it nice — it won’t look like a gym!).

At the table (sit with friends if you’re coming as a group) you’ll find some questions about your “Good Old Days”. How you met? What was your first date? What did your proposal look like?

Everybody has a story! There’ll be a chance to hear others and (if you wish) share yours. The conversation is a blast. Really. It just sort of starts rolling, and story after story gets told amidst much laughter.

A wise seasoned married couple will close the evening with a few words of wisdom and encouragement for us all. Finally, we’ll ask for your advice about future events for the Art of Marriage.

Married couples, young and old (but especially YOUNG), please come for dinner that night. It’s going to be fun. You may meet up with the one you fell in love with back then!!

We need you to register for the event. Check inside this bulletin for directions. Oh, I almost forgot. The whole night: food, drinks, fun . . . $20 a couple!!

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Breathing Space . . . For High Schoolers. Tonight!!

You heard last week about Breathing Space for high school students.

It’s a once a month get together of teens to hear presentations and have conversation about some of the pressing issues young people face at this time of life.

Tonight’s topic ——————- God, where are you? (finding God in my life)

Fr. Paul English will share how he found God as a young man and give you some pointers on how you can find the Lord too.

We’ll say some prayers for you and then . . . . PIZZA!!

Come join us tonight. Bring a friend.

Fr. Tim

There is a prayer league called the Christopher’s who have as their motto, “It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”. What a wonderful motto. I bet you can explain its meaning without much coaching . . . spread the light, not the dark.

But what does that mean in practical ways? It means there is a choice to be made in many of our human activities, a choice between goodness and meanness, or truth or lies, or generosity and selfishness.

There are of course “neutral choices” or choices of preference (the soup you eat or the toothpaste you buy) that don’t spread light or darkness. But think for a minute how many times in the day we are confronted with opportunities for goodness or evil in the twinkling of an eye.

Do I:

Say something positive about a person or join in the litany of faults that others enjoy telling?

Watch something funny or human or beautiful on TV or search out programming with ultra violence, fear or lewdness?

Try to find something hopeful in a difficult situation or enjoy describing how terrible things are?

Do I wait for the smallest opportunity to “be offended” or do I take any personal slights as coming from someone whose day is probably harder than mine? Someone who needs my patience.

Do I take the old comfortable path of minimal effort or do I try to make something beautiful or excellent?

Do I give a person the benefit of the doubt or do I presume their motives are small and mean.

Do I enjoy getting angry and being hurt? or do I try (not always successfully!) to ignore or forgive?

Do I grab that parking spot or let someone else have it?

Do I enjoy a whining (“It’s just not fair!”) or do I try to point to what’s wrong in a way that people are invited to correct (“Why don’t we try this? Let’s try to make this better”)

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Did you know that the light is more powerful than the dark? (Sometimes we wonder, don’t we?) Think about it though – what is darkness but the absence of light. Darkness is removed by lighting a light. Try that at home. Wait till dark. Make sure all the lights are out in the room. Then light a single candle. The entire room catches the light however dimly. See it flicker on the wall! Darkness has no power over light . . . so long as it shines.

“Dear God, help me to learn to love your Light. Help me to learn that I carry your Light. Oh God, use me to spread your Light.”

Bless you always,

Fr. Tim

I remember a long time ago, part of my seminary preparation sent me to a summer chaplain school in a county hospital in Dallas, Texas. There were 13 in our chaplain class. 12 Southern Baptists/Assembly of God and one Catholic (me).

We would meet daily for intensive meetings about the patients we were working with and then we’d break for lunch. It was during our lunches that we’d learn more about each other and what our personal faith traditions taught. You can imagine the attention the Catholic guy got!

Comments like: “You Catholics like statues!” Or “You worship Mary.” Or “the Pope is as important as Jesus.” Or “Just go to mass and you go straight to heaven right?” But the one question that we spent most of our time on was “Do Catholics accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior?” “Did you accept him Tim?”

It really made me step out of my Catholic world to see what these Baptist classmates knew in their bones as little children . . . “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” A real, living, present person . . . my friend Jesus. “Yes”, I said, but they made me dig deep inside to realize this
friendship.

Many Catholics are a little slow to answer “have I accepted Jesus into my life”? “Do you mean, do I love God? Of course I do. I go to mass. I say my prayers. I try to live right. Does that mean I have a personal relationship with Jesus?”

I would say “yes”. You’ve got the basics covered there. . .loving and serving a God we cannot see. However, I think the question goes a bit further than that, asking in a sense, is this relationship with Christ PERSONAL? Does it bear the signs of a relationship? Is there a familiarity with Jesus that one would have in a dear friendship?

Is there at times an emotional level to your speaking with God? (For example: “Lord you know I can’t stand the thought of losing my friend, (neighbor, associate, job etc.)” Or “Please help me today, I just don’t know what to do to help my child.” That’s a personal relationship.)

What if I don’t recognize these feelings in my relationship with Christ? Have I accepted Jesus as my personal Savior? Don’t be too hard on yourself. Remember, you HAVE a relationship with Christ GIVEN to you in baptism. You are a child of God and you are invited to call God your Father. It’s a gift. Accept it.

The other personal feeling stuff comes naturally to anyone who loves God and tries to do what is good. If my chaplain friends had asked me “do you always FEEL Christ’s friendship?” I would have to answer “no”. Feelings come and go. There are times when we are filled with affections toward those we love. At other times things feel dry and everyday. There is nothing wrong with that. It’s just how life is.

But there is one infallible way to determine whether we have a personal relationship with Jesus – – – – how do we treat our neighbor in need? Why is this the measure (and not some spiritual feeling)? Because Jesus said so.

“As often as you (fed, clothed, visited, comforted) these little ones, you did it for me.” MT. 25:31ff. And, “Whoever has not loved a brother/sister whom he has seen cannot love God who he has not seen.” 1 John 4:20. In other words Christ takes it PERSONALLY when we care for our neighbor. Kindness to them is kindness TO ME says the Lord.

Loving our neighbor is essential to having a personal relationship with Jesus as Lord and Savior. God has a grace for you to know his friendship. Ask for it.

God bless you in these Christmas days.

Fr. Tim

Somehow in my youth I thought it would all work out. I mean good people, working together for the common good, would make this world a happy place.

Surely, if we just put our minds to it, we can solve the problems that cause so much pain in the world. Hunger, poverty, war, hatred – are all fixable if we just work together.

I don’t believe that anymore. Even on our best days, with everyone on their best, there’s just something in the human condition that causes us to mistrust, to cheat, to bully, to steal, whatever. As the cartoon character Pogo said some time ago, “We have met the enemy; and he is US.”

Others, coming to this same conclusion about humanity, have turned to an anxious life of getting what they can. The more tender hearted of us tend to despair.

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But something outrageous has happened today.

God, who created this world and saw it to be “good”, has come to make “all things new”. He has seen how deep the wound is in the human heart (a self-inflicted wound) and provided the most fitting remedy imaginable.

The short of it is, God is going to give us a new heart. He’s going to give us a heart like His. How will this happen? (Here’s the mind boggling part). God became a human being. God took a human heart (God’s human heart .. think of it!) when he was born of Mary. His human name is Jesus. Today we celebrate his birth.

He has the only remedy that seems deep enough and true enough to break the chains of the selfishness that grips the world and each one of us. You see this God baby came to this world to die.

Why will he have to die? Because God the Father wanted his Son’s heart to take all the sickly, selfish, violent stuff of humanity into itself and die. So that sin has finally met its match – – – a love that is willing to die at the hand of the hater for the purpose of revealing the love of God for humanity.

He “became sin for us. He who knew no sin.” (2Cor. 5:21) And he took sin and death down with him when he died. Death died in Christ. It’s a kind of love never seen before.

God of course will raise this noble heart of Jesus to a new life in the Resurrection. And here’s where humanity gets a new heart. We now are reborn by the grace of God. By adoption we become Children of God and begin a life “in Christ” seeking God’s will to do.

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This changes everything. There is something really new here. Now there is Hope. Hope that, with Christ (ONLY with Christ- – – we’ve tried everything else!) . . . with Christ we are reconciled to one another since we have all been loved and saved by the blood of Christ. He lives in you. He lives in me.

We are brothers and sisters in Christ who loves us all. Let’s let the world know.

But first, on this Christmas Day, we gather at the manger to hear the baby’s sweet breath and touch his little toes. Too soon he’ll be taken from Mary to walk the Mount of Calvary.

There he will open the heart of God for all to find their home.

A blessed Christmas to you and your loved ones.

Fr. Tim

Let’s get ready. Let’s make this place shine. You see there’s going to be a great celebration. Everyone in Webster and beyond is invited. Let’s celebrate Christmas here in our house at Holy Trinity. Let’s make it a total GIFT to everyone. We’re going to need everyone’s help to make this a proper celebration

So how shall we get ready?

• Music? Monica, are the choirs ready?
• Church decoration? Beautiful!
• Lectors, Eucharistic Ministers, Greeters, Ushers . . . ready?
• Fr. John, Fr. Tim do you have something to say for the homily? Check. (We hope!)

How about you? Are you ready to welcome 3,000 people to the Christmas masses? This is your home. These are our welcomed and honored guests. Holy Trinity needs you to be ready to host this great event. What’s your role? You are the voice and smile and handshake of our parish. Sooooooo . . .

What NOT to do:

• Glare at people whose children are fussing and cranky. We’ve all been there.
• “You’re sitting in my pew,” is not the way we want to welcome people.
• Make people climb over you so you can keep the aisle seat. (No, move in! It’s a gracious way of saying “glad you are here.”)
• Roll your eyes when people’s talking bothers you.
• Feel superior when something happens that lets you know “these people never come to mass”. Give them a look that tells them “I’m here every week and you’re NOT!”
• Leave church right after you receive Holy Communion. Chew the host in the parking lot. (No, stay with us.)
• Be in a hurry to get out of the parking lot. (It’s Christmas! Take your time. Enjoy even the inconveniences of the day).

What TO DO:

• “Merry Christmas!” is totally appropriate before mass begins. Say it to everyone, not just your family.
• Expect total strangers to be sitting all around you. Think of them as your cousins whom you’ve not seen for a while. Let them know somehow how glad you are for their being there. Compliments before and after mass . . . “Oh, your children look wonderful. What a nice family you have.” Or more general, “That hat! Christmas come early?” . . . you’ll think of something.
• Give up on sitting for mass. That’s right, let someone take your seat . . . a Christmas gift to a total stranger. It’s what we do.
• Expect things to be a little different than a usual Sunday at Holy Trinity. More people (yea!), more congestion, more standing, more of everything. It’s Christmas!!
• As was said, be the face of Holy Trinity for those around you. Your smile, your handshake, your readiness to give up your pew, and your singing are all part of the gift this parish wants to be for those who join us that day. Who knows what your kindness might begin in them.
• We want people to experience Christ. Chances are it may be through you.

So ready, set, here we go.

God bless you very much this week.

Fr. Tim

Webster defines joy as “a very glad feeling.” Theologians, as usual, complicate things by splitting joy in two: sensible joy and intellectual (spiritual) joy.

Sensible joy is easy to describe. Think of finishing your favorite meal done just the way you like it. Or hearing your favorite song by the original band; the smell of lilac on a sunny spring day. Joy may be either the action itself (the tasting, seeing, feeling) or the pleasant state that ac- companies the achieving of this good thing (. . . how’s that for over analyzing?!)

Spiritual joy is different. It may have similar feelings attached to it (gladness, cheeriness) but it goes deeper than something pleasing to the senses. It has its origin in an awareness of a “Good” that has been obtained through virtuous action.

For example a swimmer exerts themself for months to train for the big meet. They experience joy when they see their efforts have paid off with their best time ever. The joy is in the awareness . . . “do you see what you have done? Your hard work has really paid off. You really are a fine swimmer! Let’s celebrate!!”

OR, you stuck with someone who was going through a hard time. Everyone was down on this person and anyone who hung out with them (you). You resisted all urges to run away and you never wavered in your friendship. Suddenly you both realize that this is what friendship really means. This is a joy!
Spiritual joy usually comes with some effort of the will, some “doing the right thing”. With little effort there is little joy.

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So what are your moments of joy? Of laugh out loud happiness? A sense of wonder at this world’s beauty so strong it makes you choke up? Here’s a few of mine. What are yours?

Moments of Joy:

** High School Senior year. Beating previously undefeated Gilmore Academy in triple overtime. I didn’t play one second of the game but the joy it brought on the bus ride home showed me God is real and present.

** 21 yrs old. Standing on the 17th tee at Durand Eastman, suddenly knowing that Rochester is where I wanted to live my life.

** Handel’s Messiah. Pure joy. Also Samuel Barber’s “Adagio”. I can die in peace.

** A dream I had about God a long time ago. I can still feel what it was like.

** The change of seasons brings joy (and a sweet sadness sometimes which is a weird kind of joy too).

** Many memories of friends and their great kindnesses.

** The times (there have been many) of uncontrollable, fall on the ground, close to tears, laughter.

** Being a priest and seeing God touch people’s lives.

** Watching children be children.

** Knowing (because Christ said so) that it’s all going to turn out all right. Love wins. Darkness and hatred are on the losing team. Let’s spend this life doing the things He asked of us. This purpose in life brings joy.

Of course all moments of joy are simply a foretaste of the joy the Lord created us to experience . . . . the vision of the limitless beauty and goodness of God.

“Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it entered the mind what God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Cor. 2:9

Two weeks to go ……………… wait ……………. Pray.

Fr. Tim

Except for our relationship with God, marriage is the most important relationship in all of human affairs.

Think of it. It is because of you and your spouse we have the human race at all. Sure, we know the various ways human conception can take place without a marriage union; but the “call of nature” put in us by God will always require a man and a woman to bring forth a child.

And . . . a human child (again by God’s design) requires at least 20 years of nurturing, education and character formation. So “making babies” is only the beginning of the work of making men and women.

And . . . the work of leading a child to adulthood needs, in the best environment, a mother and a father.

And . . . mothers and fathers, in order to be their best for the child, need the support of a spouse. A loving wife. A loving husband.

Now I don’t know, since I’m not married with children; which is deeper, the love of husband and wife OR the love of parent for child? I suppose it’s different for each family. I don’t think there are any rules here. One wife and mother corrects me by saying, “They’re each different. I love them all (spouse and children) totally. Each in their own way.”

What I do know is that the human heart wants to give both spousal love and parent love. They each have their own season. Most marriages reach a stage when personal fulfillment becomes secondary to the needs of the children. In this sense parental love can (for a while) come easier. The urgency of a child’s need can delay one’s response to their spouse.

Spousal love began a long time ago in a moment we call “falling in love”. Your Senior Prom (a New Year’s celebration, a moonlit night, whatever) brought a moment of choice for this person who overwhelmed you with their beauty or charm. (Engaged couples need to test the strength of this love. Are they kind, honest, hardworking, faith filled, gentle?)

Married life has a way of revealing what love really is. It grows because of the various struggles along the way.

The beauty or charm that drew you to each other has, over time, become a love of their character: their kindness, their generosity. The fire of “first love” has become a deep and abiding peace.

Moments of disappointment, misunderstanding, selfish- ness (they happen to all of us, don’t they?) bring the false message that you’ve made a mistake; that love is gone. Not true!! Don’t listen to that.

In fact here’s where love earns its wings. You are on the verge of discovering what it’s all about! It’s in the dying to yourself for your spouse that you prove your love for them. It’s when you say to your wife, “My Queen”. . . to your husband, “My King”. And then lay yourself down for them.

So how can you make this switch from “what about me?” to “I’m yours.” It happens because you realize you’re involved in something bigger than yourself and the hard feelings you’re having at this time. God is here. He gave you this partner. He wants you two to win.

It happens when you begin to realize that Christ IS your love for your spouse. That’s right. Your love for your husband, your wife, brings Christ to them. You are Holy Communion for your spouse!! That’s the power of the sacrament you received. You become God’s love for each other.

What does that love look like? Christ on the cross. The crucifix hanging in your bedroom . . . that’s your love for each other.

Don’t feel it? God will give it to you. It’s called prayer. And it’s critical. “Ask and you shall receive . . .”

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Anyway we want to honor our married couples this winter with some fun and informative events. Save the date!! February 4. It’s a Saturday night in Murphy Hall. It’s a catered supper (need your reservation) with cocktails and music. We have a guest speaker that night that will teach and make us laugh about the “Art of Marriage”. Stay tuned married couples. More to come.

God bless your Advent. Go slow.

Fr. Tim

A little over a month ago the parish finance committee reported that Holy Trinity is in relatively good shape financially. What you contributed in the Sunday collection paid for all of our bills (heat & light, insurance, maintenance, salaries, Catholic Schools assessment, religious education, etc.).

We had a little left over which we’ll put in savings to meet the upcoming lighting and fire alarm projects. In short we’re paying our way. No big deal. You do it at home every week.

But guess what? That was last year. What will we do this year? The new fiscal year began July 1. And, as always happens, our yearly responsibilities repeat themselves. We heard the report about the Catholic Ministry Appeal last month. Bishop Matano and the Diocese of Rochester is asking Holy Trinity to support the charitable work of the Catholic Church with a goal of $142,000.

(This number comes from a diocesan formula that considers, 1. The number of registered families in the parish, 2. Average mass attendance, 3. Average Sunday collection, 4. Average yearly household income in this region.)

But those are just numbers. The Catholic Ministry Appeal is about people, people in need. We can’t solve all the needs in the diocese here at Holy Trinity. But together, we can make a huge difference in the lives of people we may never meet. Can I show you where your contributions go?

** Seminarians study for priesthood. (yearly tuition averages over $45,000 times 13 sems! That’s $585,000 needed per year.)

** La Casa, safe housing for migrant workers in Wayne/ Ontario Counties.

** Food and clothing shelters throughout the 12 counties of our diocese.

** Pro-life ministries helping expectant mothers find alternatives to the tragic choice of abortion by providing counseling, medical assistance, baby needs, and support along the journey.

** CYO (coaches and “CASE” training to insure safety for minors).

** Maintaining professional staffing at the Pastoral Office to help parishes with expertise in building maintenance, religious education programs, youth and campus ministry.

** Tuition assistance through the Office of Catholic Schools.

** Provides help to college campus ministries to insure a Catholic presence for young students far from their home parishes.

** Catholic Charities aid for refugee families. And much more!!

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So what do we want from you? Well let’s do the math.

Rounding it off to large numbers, if 2,000 registered households at Holy Trinity each gave $70 we would make our goal. But that’s not going to happen for lots of reasons.

So what are we asking from YOU? Maybe a conversation with your spouse or children, something like, “what shall we give to help the spiritual and physical needs in our diocese?”

But then what? How much Fr. Tim?!! Each of us must decide. I have to give more for two reasons: 1. I know better than you all the good the CMA does – so I have to help. 2. I get free room and board at Holy Trinity (thanks to you!), so I’ve got some money to give to those who don’t have free room and board. (The most frequently offered pledge last year was $100.)

How about you give what one month’s cable TV/internet costs you? In the end I know you will do what you are able. God has blessed us with so much. As always (this giving thing never ends!) we need to give back in proportion to what each has received.

This is such a generous parish. I have no worry that we will do our duty.

Bless you each day.

Fr. Tim

(10 little hints to help you start again and perhaps to help your prayer time be more effective.)

1. The very thought or desire to pray is a personal gift to you from God.

No one can say “Jesus is Lord” (1 Cor. 12:13) without a grace from God. So every time your heart is lifted, however faintly, to look toward God – – – it is God actually reaching out to you. Let this be an encouragement. God loves you and wants your friendship. He’s begins the conversation.

2. Prayer is about Friendship and Trust in God.

So how do friends speak and listen to each other? Honestly, straightforward, without fear of offending, with humor, and of course with affection. Things like, “Lord, I’m sick and tired of …” or “Dear God, I did it again. Help me.” Or, “Why won’t you take this away Lord?” Or, “Show me what I need to do.” Or anything else your friendship needs to say.

3. God is invisible, so . . . images help. (hand extended, shepherd in the distance, etc.)

God made our minds to work by way of images. Pictures of loved ones keep them more clearly in our minds and hearts. But God we cannot see so – – – images help. Some- times I image God by a hand resting on my shoulder, or sometimes a person in a darkened room. Jesus said he is a Good Shepherd; picture that. Water springing forth in the desert. A calming voice, etc. Let yourself find an image that helps you to trust his presence.

4. Start where you “are” not where you “should be”.

This is very important. You don’t “get holy” and then start to pray. We start right where we are. Sinful, lazy, selfish, lustful, angry, happy, . . . whatever. Give yourself to God just the way you are. That’s what friends do. But remember . . . He’s the Lord. His will is the path to life. End your prayer by submitting to God’s will. Jesus did in the garden.

5. Be honest with God about what you REALLY are thinking and feeling.

Again, “holy” thoughts are not what God wants. God wants YOU! In all your imperfections and failures.
He’ll begin to show you a new path but it starts right where you are!

6. Warm up to prayer (a memory of sometime you know God helped you. Go back to that time, feel the help it brought you. Thank God again.)

There was a time I was in a real pickle. I tried and tried to get myself out of it but nothing worked. This thing just wouldn’t leave me. I remember asking God about a hundred times to take it away and guess what? It took a while but He did!!

So it helps me to begin my prayer remembering that in the past he freed me from some messes of my own making. What has God done for you that you can thank Him for at the beginning of your prayer? (It takes about 10 minutes to shake off the noise of the world and get down to business with God.)

7. Find YOUR way of praying not someone else’s.

Don’t pretend to be something you’re not. Each of us brings a unique way of talking and feeling. Don’t be phony. Talk to God as you would a friend who knows all your gifts and your quirks.

8. We learn to pray by praying.

No one ever learned to play the piano by reading about it or seeing a video. You learn by putting fingers to the keys. So too with praying . . . just do it. There’s no one there to grade you. God will take whatever you offer him and magnify it. Remember the Mustard Seed? (Mt. 4:31)

9. Listen to your heart.

After you’ve read scripture or spoken your feelings to God, it’s time to listen. How does God speak? God speaks to us by touching our minds with thoughts and memories and our affections with sentiments that move our will to want what God wants. Often times it’s only later in the day (or week!) we realize what God has done in our prayer.

10. Don’t get discouraged. Stay at it!

Just know that the smallest of gestures toward God brings his blessing. God loves you. You are his child. Keep on trusting, keep on asking, keep on looking for signs of his hand. “Seek and you shall find.” (Mt. 7:7)

Prayer. Just do it. It’s what love does.

Fr. Tim

Dear Friend,
I call you friend. I hope you don’t mind. You see I’m just your grandfather’s age and I have this tender feeling for any young person trying to figure out what life is all about. So I want to tell you how wonderful this life is while at the same time warn you about some pot holes to avoid.

I guess by now in your teenage years you’ve had some experiences that send the message about how to succeed in life. Let me guess what a few of those might be.

** “Try as best you can to be cool.” Don’t let anything get under your skin. Looking like you don’t care is a hall- mark of “cool”. What the world admires about cool people is that they don’t seem to be struggling with life the way we are.

** “Pretty” and “handsome” (those are old school terms, what are yours?). These two attributes are to die for. Life is happy if you’re good looking. It stinks if you’re just plain or a little goofy like most of us.

** Find your group and learn to fit in. (This is a really hard one because we all desperately want to be accepted.) You know you’ve found it when, what everyone else is doing is what you must do.

** Don’t be too smart. If you do you’ll stand out and that’s not cool.

** Sex is a way to prove you’re all grown up. Don’t let anyone know how awkward and self conscious you feel. That’s not cool either.

** Religion is for geeks and losers. Who knows if there even IS a God? And if there is, it’s got nothing to do with me because I only deal with what I can see and touch.

** Money is very cool. Eventually you’ll find it is the biggest factor in determining what I do. “Do I have enough? How can I get more? If I’m going to live the way I want, I’ll need more money”.

** If it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing. Long days of trying hard with little success to show means I should quit and do something else. Why? Because life should be fun.

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You can probably add other societal beliefs you’ve bumped into along the way. These “lessons” point to a way of living that only a few can achieve. And those who reach “success” in these ways (you’ve got to trust me here) are headed for unhappiness. Why? Because they’re not the fuel the human heart was built to run on. And what is the fuel that drives us? The truth about who we are. See what you think . . .

** You’re not the captain of your ship. You don’t even belong to yourself. You belong to God who made you out of his love. God gave you life. You didn’t order it up. He’s running this show (forget that and it all gets messed up).

** The key to being a successful human being is learning how to love. Why that? Because love is our purpose. It’s what God had in mind when he created us . . . “if I do all those things but have not love, I am nothing.” 1 Cor. 13. The eye is made to see. We are made to love.

** Your love and work will have an effect on the world beyond what you know. Acts of kindness have a ripple effect. Your work, your children, your friendship will shape the world in a way that pleases God.

** Fastest, strongest, prettiest, richest, most popular . . . are all prized in the world and there is nothing wrong with them . . . but they are not what make us “good people”. Goodness brings happiness. (That’s just the way it is!)

** As the poet says, “We pass this way but once.” This is not a dress rehearsal— this is it! No “do-overs”. Make your life say something. Make it beautiful. God will show you. I promise.

Lots more to share, but I see your eyes glazing over!

Much love,
Fr. Tim