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Haven’t we all been chosen? The challenge and the zest in life is trying to figure out what we have been chosen for and then to fulfill and meet that (those) challenges. David, as a youth, follows the word of God and trusts that God is with him in his challenge with Goliath. “Crushed the pride and wiped out the people’s disgrace- now that’s a person who goes forth, without fear, under the guidance and trust in God.” What a wonderful experience for an individual, and for all of us, to know and experience success by placing our trust in God’s hands and then going forward to meet life “dead-on”, feeling confident that we, using our gifts, can meet life’s challenges. Going forward in life, not feeling proud or over compensating out of fear but strong and confident as we continue to stay in contact with our true selves and staying in contact with God. “When he assumed the royal crown, he battled and subdued the enemy on every side.” What a role model David can be for us in keeping us mindful of how powerful our lives can be and how we too can conquer by enemies of greed, envy, fear, over indulgence and other personal enemies. “With his every deed he offered thanks to God Most High, in words of praise.” I absolutely love this reading, which tells me: “You go girl”, because I am with you, just don’t forget about staying centered and to say thank you. “The Lord forgave him his sins and exalted his strength forever; He conferred on him the rights of royalty…” The reading reminds me to trust, to use my abilities to make the world a better place for all those that I can touch even with my humanness. I often feel in fact, that my personal humanness is what has allowed me to connect, to be compassionate and respectful. In some ways, my personal humanness and my personal experience of sin and forgiveness seems to have allowed me to understand, to listen and to be empathetic with others. Because I have been nurtured and forgiven by God and people in my life I look for opportunities to help people cope, accept, understand, change and in the end to see all of our life experiences as blessings and gifts. We are all “royalty” in some way, in the sense that we all have power to influence and affect others. “Blessed be God my salvation” - an Amen to that! The Psalm speaks of a faith and trust in God that is alive and is solid as a rock. As I live life and encounter uncertainty and anxiety I have trust that the Lord’s shield will protect and guide me, leading me to feel peace and serenity in my daily life. In the Gospel, Herod and Herodias are perfect examples of people who act out of fear. Rather than listening and contemplating what John is saying they react in the moment and behead a holy and insightful man. We too, can get caught up in the moment or in the social pressure, in our personal pride, in our… and make the wrong decision. This Gospel account, from Mark, hopefully makes us stop and think about evil and how very important it is to stay connected with the word of the Lord and to attempt, every day, to live life accordingly. We need to be mindful of our need to love others along with discerning who we are, with our unique gifts and talents that, when brought forth, will allow all of us to live life rejoicing with our fellow men and women knowing that God will accompany us on this journey of life. |