by Jason and Jessica WildeThe dim hospital room was packed full of 15 or 20 Filipino families, each huddled around a bed or crib holding their sick child. The windows were open and a single oscillating fan in the corner provided some airflow to keep the room bearable. Our small group of missionaries had introduced ourselves and were tasked with sharing a testimony - a personal story about when each of us saw God in our lives. Each testimony was unique and shared a story of enlightenment, hopefully providing a little bit of God’s light to an otherwise scary and tiring time in the lives of these families. Brecklyn shared a story from when she gave her own stuffed animal to poor boy on the sidewalks of Mexico City and how she saw God in the little boy’s smile. Grace's story was about seeing God’s love and compassion in a volunteer who comforted her on our pilgrimage to Lourdes when she was afraid of the baths. But it was Alex's testimony that shocked everyone in the room, including his parents. Earlier in the morning, while the girls were planning their testimony, Alex shrugged us off when we tried to help him prepare. He told us that his inspiration came from his beloved Lego Bible at home and that he had his testimony ready. It turned out that Alex’s testimony was reciting from chapter 25 of the Gospel of Matthew...by memory.
Throughout each testimony, Junar, one of the full time local missionaries, would translate into Vasayan, the local dialect. At this point, I could see the shock on his face as he stumbled to accurately recount what Alex just said.
By now, the room was still with suspense. A few cell phones were trained on Alex as he continued to preach.
Junar again did his part, but I could not honestly tell if anyone was listening to him. Everyone seemed to be in shock and amazement, but Alex continued.
I began to question how he was going to wrap this up. Were we just finishing the chapter, or were we in for the long haul - were we going to hear Jesus’ persecution, crucifixion, and resurrection as well?
At the end of his testimony, everyone cheered and clapped. Alex said that this was why he loved to serve God’s people.
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by Grace Wilde
You read the bible at least once a week. The Bible starts at the beginning of the earth. But where does it end? It never ends, because the bible is still being written. Why? Well there are many proofs of this.
The first proof is that the people who wrote some of the books probably just intended them to be records or letters of things that happened. In time those records and letters were read and gave a spiritual feeling that enlightened people. There are things like this today. Think of Pope Francis’s Laudato Si. People read it, are enlightened and really understand how it can change their life. It won’t be put in the Bible. But, Laudato Si will enlighten many people just as the Bible is a book of enlightenment. Another way we can prove this is that from the beginning of the Bible God has had plans. He planned a perfect everlasting life in the Garden of Eden for Adam and Eve. God’s plan was destroyed with sin so he made plans for a Savior. Through the middle of the Old Testament, God planned that someone would lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Even today the Lord has plans. He has plans for us to go to Heaven, because the Bible is a book of promises. The third and final proof is simple; God has never and never will abandon us. Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; If God had abandoned us as soon as we sinned, the bible would be two pages long. So as long as he loves us, which is forever, the Bible is still being written. The Bible is a picture of God's everlasting love. We know for sure that the Bible is still being written. But, how can we write in it? We can write in it through acts of mercy as Pope Francis writes,
The Pope says that you must read the Bible over and over. We should write in it with mercy and love because the Bible is the book of the mercy of God. By giving to the poor, you can show His mercy and love. You can also love the orphans. Lastly, Pope Francis said that we should ask our Lord for help to become a writer of the Bible.
We have seen that the Bible is still being written. Through the books people have written, through the promises of God, and through the everlasting promise that He would never abandon us, we can tell that the Bible is still being written. Through all of the Bible now and until the end of the earth, the bible shows all the LOVE He has for us. We can give back his love, by praying, attending sacraments and acting with Mercy to write the next book in the Bible. But I think the most important thing is, the Bible is still being written, so write it!
by Jason, Grace, Brecklyn, and AlexIn this year of mercy, we have been searching for ways to serve God’s people through personal involvement. It’s not that we couldn’t go bring a few boxes of Huggies or Cheerios to the Life Center at our church, it’s that we felt like there was something more we could do...something that would help us feel more in tune with those in need of mercy...to pop our bubble of contentedness and let us change ourselves. We had been giving out “Mother Teresa bags” to people on the street corners for over a year now. But, it was time to go a step farther. And so, when a coworker asked for donations for hygiene kits for the homeless, I asked how we could help in person. I decided to take Grace, Brecklyn, and Alex with me, with the intent that they would help out with the kits, and hopefully be able to help distribute them in one of the homeless communities in Austin. As this was a pretty daunting undertaking for a Dad and his 3 babies, I’d like to let everyone hear how the kids felt about the entire experience. Leaving home I’ll have to admit - I was a little nervous taking the kids to downtown Austin and throwing them right into the community service fire. In fact, as I stopped by Wal-Mart to pick up some soap for the kits, my mind was already thinking of ways out. It took a bit of courage to set those thoughts aside and type the address into my GPS. Preparing the bags (Grace): We prepared the bags. First, we unwrapped the the multi-packages of soap and shampoo/conditioner and lotion. Then I waited for a while until everybody came in. And then I started filling a few bags by going around the table in circles, picking things up and putting them in the bag. They also had little cards in the bags that told about the importance of water. Then, they said we had to do an assembly line. I started by putting toothpaste in the bags, but then I noticed another person doing the same job, and I saw that Brecklyn and Alex needed help bringing the finished bags to the pile. And so, I did that. There were about 30 people making bags. They worked hard. Half of them had just come from a party in the hall and they saw that there was a need for help, and so they helped. As we finished up, there was a lull while everyone organized and prayed for growth, strength, and safety. The organizers explained how we needed to stay in groups for safety, and that there would be drug use. My Dad anxiety went crazy at this point. Our kids were the youngest in the group, and something in my mind told me that I just needed to slip out the back and go home. But, I knew this was not God talking...it was my own fear that keeps me from serving God. Stop 1: ARCH ARCH (Austin Resource Center for the Homeless) is a large facility in downtown Austin that serves as a first services and shelter center for Austin’s homeless. We basically set up shop on the front steps. (Brecklyn): We gave water to the homeless. And we packaged soap and things that you wash with. We gave the things that we packaged up to the homeless too. It was hot. Very hot. One person had a big brown dog. Whenever someone came toward it, the dog stood up. At the first place there were more people. The homeless people were all sitting there. Their clothes were worn out. We gave them crackers. Most of the time they were talking to other people helping with us. When we gave water, they said “Thank you” and they were happy. (Grace): After (we) filled the bags, everyone got out of their church clothes and we started giving the homeless the supplies. It made me feel happy that we were doing something, but it also made me sad that they were in such conditions. There was trash everywhere, especially under the bridge. And it was very hot. When we handed the bags to the people, they would say “Thank you”, or “Beautiful”.- Grace (Alex): My favorite part was the music that we all sang together. Some of the homeless people sang with us. I heard Amazing Grace and If You’re Happy and You Know It. One verse in If You’re Happy was to say Amen. We sang half of the time, and in the spots between songs, we gave water bottles and bags. And I was sad about all of the people. As the crowd subsided, we were to move to another location down the road - under an overpass bridge, and away from the heavily protected shelter. Once again, my mind was racing - something was telling me that we have seen enough for the kids, and that this was a perfect opportunity to excuse ourselves. But, as we prayed, I was again told by God to stay the course. My prayer was being answered. Stop 2: Bridge (Brecklyn): At the second place, we were underneath a bridge. I couldn’t get to most of the homeless people because most of them were near the bridge’s poles and we were in the parking lot under the bridge. I am happy that I helped the people that I could. It wasn’t scary. (Alex): There were two spots where we went. We went to the homeless shelter, then we went under a bridge. And I noticed that there was this same sign that I saw that said “Tickets may hurt, but crashes kill”. This is the same sign that I see all the time when I go on the bridge to get to the doctor’s office. But I never noticed that there were actually poor people living under that bridge. I never noticed that there were actually poor people living under that bridge. As we drove home, I had a hard time speaking to the kids about their experiences. My heart ached for the lives that we had just touched. That there could be such despair and pain just one block over from the famed 6th street, and that we literally drive over these lives every time we pass through - I think Alex pretty much hit the nail on the head. I now realize that it was Satan trying to convince me to leave at just the right opportunities, that I had nearly let fear prevent our kids from seeing and touching these precious lives, just like he did to Jesus in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11). By Jessica and Jason WildeThe beautiful part of year round homeschooling is that on any given day, I have the flexibility and time in my schedule to scrap an entire day’s lesson plans and follow the Lord’s plans instead. Today, we were inspired by the canonization of Mother Teresa, a Mother Teresa box that we recently won at a Knights of Columbus Gala, and recent volunteer opportunities serving the poor. We spent the day studying Mother Teresa’s life and reflecting on our role in helping our neighbors. We are thus called to translate into concrete acts that which we invoke in prayer and profess in faith. There is no alternative to charity: those who put themselves at the service of others, even when they don’t know it, are those who love God (cf. 1 Jn 3:16-18; Jas 2:14-18) (Pope Francis's Homily at Mother Teresa’s Canonization Mass) One of my favorite quotes from Pope Francis is “We pray for the poor. Then we feed them. This is how prayer works.” Charitable acts are the foundation upon which God’s love builds, and it is only through these acts that we may fulfill the commandment to love thy neighbor. The physical connection that we have with another person when we help them is God’s love pouring out, and without us as a conduit for that love, the world becomes a very dark place. Mother Teresa spent her life trying to serve the most vulnerable poor in India, but she did so not to help the poor become rich, but to help God’s light shine on them and to keep them from being lonely. She is frequently quoted in saying that “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved” The Catholic Church is not at a loss of words for helping the poor. To begin with, in order to fulfill the beatitude “Blessed are the Merciful”, we must perform corporal works of mercy, over half of which are directly helping the poor. And, being corporal (meaning ‘of the body’) works, we are told not to merely pray for the poor, but to physically help them! “If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?” (CCC 2447). Finally, CCC 2446 quotes St. John Chrysostom - “Not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and deprive them of life. The goods we possess are not ours, but theirs.” So, by passing by that beggar or homeless person on the corner of the street, we are actually committing a sin against life. Helping those in need is not just something you do to be nice and compassionate - it is a duty and obligation of us as Christians. And it is with this mindset that we always keep Mother Teresa bags in our car in order to serve those whom we meet on the roads of life.
Next stop, reaching out, meeting the poor, and sharing our riches with the poor.
by Jason Wilde“I'll pray for you.” It's a phrase that is so common now, we don't even think about it. Got the flu? “I'll pray for you.” Going to be tested for a rare disease? “I'll pray for you.” Tough test coming up? “I'll pray for you.” Job interview? “I'll pray for you.” In fact, reading through my Facebook feed, it is so common in some threads that it seems like the phrase “I'll pray for you” has just become another way to say “Good luck!” Taking a weekend trip to your in-laws? “I'll pray for you.” Feeling really down this week? “I'll pray for you.” Got in an argument with me? “I'll pray for you.” Taking all the kids alone for the weekend? “I'll pray for you.” With all the atrocities in our world, it has even become common to pray for people that we've never met! Your sister having is a baby? “I'll pray for her.” Uncle going to rehab again? “I'll pray for him.” That poor family sleeping at the gas station? “Let's pray for them.” Babies being aborted? “We pray for them.” So, let's say you actually *do* remember to stop for a minute and say a quick prayer… “God, I pray that you could help that family who lost everything in a fire. They deserve better. Amen.” Is that it? Is that all it takes to pray for someone? This reminds me of a popular e-mail management style called ‘zero inbox’. The idea is that you keep your e-mail inbox empty at all times by immediately categorizing, tagging, and/or responding to all incoming e-mail as soon as they arrive. Create task (Pray for xx), write message to God (God, please help xx), send, and forget…awesome, now I can worry about the things that I can control, because I have faith and trust in God. It also makes me think of one of those GodSpeaks billboards on the way to Lubbock:
So, where does this phrase come from? Psalm 55:22 is a popular, catchy verse, but a more insightful source is 1 Peter 5:7 - “Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you.” But, in order to understand what this verse means, we must step back and understand the context. This verse is the conclusion of a passage asking a Christian community to be humble and listen to their appointed Christian leaders and teachers:
So, the passage is about humility, and it says that only in subjection and humility should you give all your problems to Him. Humble yourself, submit yourself, be willing to do what God asks of you, and only then, let go of your problems. You see, the problem with zero inbox is that, while it allows you to remove all worries and concerns from your mind, it is an “out of sight, out of mind” methodology, meaning that once you click 'Send’, it is immediately purged from memory, no possibility of immediate feedback. It is not an effective two-way communication method. Once you send your prayer, the only way God can respond is by catching your undivided attention again, and by then, you've probably forgotten what question he is answering, resulting in yet another “I'll pray for you.”
Prayer is a time to talk with God...but as in many of society’s problems, we forget that “The secret to talking is listening.” (We bought a zoo). Prayer is not the time for us to ask of God, but for him to ask of us. You can’t just simply ‘give’ your problems to God, because then in your mind, it isn’t your problem anymore, and you have removed the possibility of God directing you to a solution. So, if any of the GodSpeaks marketing people happen to be reading this, you missed a vital part of the ad...it should say:
A similar problem exists when atheists attack prayer, saying it doesn’t help and doesn’t solve problems. Essentially, they have taken “I’ll pray for you” out of the equation. Now, an atheist could still go help a person in need and be doing His will without even knowing it - this is the beauty of God’s divine mercy. This atheist could be serving God’s people while a self proclaimed Christian has simply ‘prayed’ and moved on. But the problem comes when a person acts without listening to God, and in this way, that person becomes a god helping only those he feels worthy. So, the next time you promise to pray for God to help your friend who has pneumonia and is dealing with her 2 kids while her husband is on a work trip, try asking God for an answer, and listen. Maybe instead of prayer-mailing someone else’s problem on God and then running off like it’s the weekend, you will hear God’s response, which could very well be “Well, are you going to help?” There are many problems in our world, and yes, we should pray for every single one of them. But, remember that prayer should invite a response from God that can change us and help us solve the world's problems, one prayer at a time. It's the classic insurance salesman pitch. "Follow me and I'll make sure -this- never happens to you!" Of course it makes sense - a good politician knows that FEAR is one of the basic innate emotions that generates the strongest response - summarized as "fight or flight" - and in many cases can be irrational or uncontrollable. In this way, an insurance agent is always able to increase their base immediately after a disaster, and a politician is able to change the mind of voters who would otherwise not pay attention or follow a competitor. How does one use FEAR to gather followers? The most straightforward way of course is to promise that this will never happen again...which is highly unlikely and therefore only captures those who are irrationally afraid or anxious. The second, and more devious approach is to turn FEAR into a contrasting emotion - ANGER. "Of course, this only happened because so-and-so did this-and-that." It is easier to attack than defend, and so the one who attacks first will have the upper hand, and now you have the FEAR of your followers replaced with a healthy dose of ANGER to help you out. Once a leader has ANGER involved, it is a short hop to hatred and division (us vs. them) - and then your support to fight back. Quoting my favorite fiction philosopher - "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering." Now, none of this actually leads to a real solution - one in which we improve our situation and ensure the tragedy doesn't happen again. For this to happen, derivative emotions (feelings) must be invoked. Why? Because while emotions are a physiological response, one which we cannot control, feelings instead are the cognitive response to an emotion. Because they require you to think about your response, these typically produce more well thought out and intelligent results. And, they are harder to involuntarily invoke or manipulate. Specifically those feelings which are tertiary to FEAR and ANGER - Remorse and Disapproval, followed by Love and Optimism, are those that we should be following in our response to a tragedy. So I challenge you to ask yourself - has someone used your emotions to support their cause? Are you on the path to the dark side? Or have you been able to shut out the salesman and take the path of a Christian - one in which you feel remorse and disapproval, but are reassured in love and optimism - which leads to a solution in peace? |
On a MissionTwo passionate parents and their four children are excited to bring His Word to everyone in need while living a life of Gospel poverty as missionaries. They invite you to join them on a journey to encounter our global neighbors that Jesus commands us to love through works of charity and service. Archives
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