-God is the Creator and Lord of all the universe. He chose us before the foundation of the world. We came from God through our parents. We are unique and not merely some random combination of DNA. God made us to be holy in His sight – we are who we are because of God’s creative plan. We can call Christ’s father “Our Father”. From all eternity God created each of us to be holy, to be saints, to be like Him.

-God is our God and we are God’s people. God wants us to reject our sinful ways and get our act together. Doesn’t it seem sometimes that we are living the movie “Groundhog Day” – living the same thing every day? God said He would be our shepherd – He had nothing to gain by doing so but He promised to be there for all of us. In His flock there are no favorites – we are all one, all equal and He asks that we love one another. Jesus will never abandon any of us on our journey through life.

-Faith involves mind, heart, grace and freedom. It demands our cooperation. Faith cannot be proved – it is about more than ideas. Faith is a response to God and to Jesus’ life and ministry. There are things that God has revealed and which we believe – we say the Creed at Mass. Jesus took on a human life and became the source of forgiveness. Our faith life is animated by the Holy Spirit. Love, faith, courage and generosity are all part of the Christian life. A genuine Christian life shows us the life of faith – inner kindness, fidelity to commitments. The existence of people of faith tells us that Christ continues to exist and live in our present day world.

-“We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.” Winston Churchill.

-Psalm 139:1-6
I am an open book to You;
Even from a distance you know what I am thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back; I ‘m never out of your sight.
You know everything I am going to say Before I start the first sentence. I look behind me and You are there, Then up ahead and You are there, too. Your reassuring presence, coming and going. This is too much, too wonderful – I can’t take it all in!


-Questions I ask myself: You hear but are you listening? You see but do you really see? You exist but are you living? We look to see the truth of life – that Jesus is the Son of God. We listen and follow what Jesus is teaching because we believe. He is our Savior and Redeemer. Do I hear the words of truth? Do I understand, what Jesus is saying in the Gospels? Listen to Jesus’ words of life. – His wisdom. See Jesus in the Eucharist. Live His words in our lives. This will lead us all to a deeper relationship with Jesus.

-Jesus prayed constantly that His disciples would have courage. He spent time in both private and public prayer. He had confidence in His disciples to carry on the Word He preached to build up His Kingdom – even when they were obtuse and didn’t understand His message. His disciples were ordinary people. Jesus forgave them again and again for their failures. Jesus led the way in His teaching and preaching – He had intellectual, moral and physical self-discipline. Where do we find such accountability today? Every one of us is accountable to take care of ourselves. We are also accountable to help others, and, we are accountable to Jesus. Autonomy and freedom are meaningless unless each leads to building up the Kingdom of Christ. Jesus gives us many chances to accept responsibility for ourselves and for our world. We have the freedom and dignity to be God’s children and have the responsibility to make our world a better place.

-What is our purpose in life? What are we each looking for? Jesus wants us to contemplate the ultimate – the Kingdom of God – and to consider what we have to do to enter the Kingdom. We need to live our life in peace and tranquility in relationships, to serve others wherever the need is, and, to share in the sacramental life of the Church. It is not what we look for – but who we look for that is most important – Christ in our life in a profound way. What is God calling us to do? Whatever it is, we need to keep Christ in the center of our life and serve others in His name. -

HOPE: What are you hoping for today? Hope creates vision and gives our faith something to attach itself to. Take your eyes off your own limitations and put your eyes on God. Keep your hopes up – Don’t live in regret – hope fuels our faith. God gives us more than we can ask, think or imagine. Hope, I believe, is from heaven.

-Find God in all things. Whether we have fame or infamy, health or sickness, etc, we can find God in all things. This helps us deal with people in a more pleasant, compassionate way and gives us a richer sense of life.

-Adversity strengthens character. Adversity reveals character. Adversity reveals that we may not be as far along as we had thought. We human beings often hold God to promises He never made

– He never promised us a life without struggle. He did say: “Follow me. Deny yourself and take up your cross. I will never leave you.” Jesus never promised us a smooth journey through life but He did promise a safe landing. We turn to Jesus who is our strength. With faith and trust in Him and doing His will – which are the most important thing we can do

– God will feed us, lead us and protect us. How awesome is that!

-If someone has faith in you, why don’t you have faith in yourself? Fear, feelings of inadequacy and insecurity, etc, may keep us from doing things we can do. Allow the grace of God to work in and through you.

-God can do amazing things in our life, but we first have to say “Yes.”

Give God your “Yes.” God looks to us to say “Yes.” What does your “Yes” look like to you? Perhaps: “Yes” I forgive others. “Yes” I trust God. “Yes” I will reach out to help others. God waits for us to say “Yes” – for us to work in partnership with Him. Our “Yes” is not always easy but it serves as an anchor of hope to others. Our challenge is to keep God #1 in our life. “

Yes God, I am yours!”

May the St. James Parish Family be faithful stewards of all of God’s creation.