COMPASSION

Today, Good Friday 29th March 2013, is a good day to reflect on what it means to be compassionate.

In Church, we took turns to kiss the Cross, reminding us of how Christ died for us on the Cross.

I felt no emotion as such, yet upon reflection it must have been horrifying for Mary his mother, to witness the Crucifixion of her Son and watch as He gave his last drop of blood for each one of us. 

Perhaps that is the way that God shows us how to feel love for Him, by having compassion for Mary's suffering. That way I learn to have compassion for Christ's suffering too. 

And, of course, having compassion for those I know / I meet / I live with.  There are many opportunities each day to have a compassionate heart and show love for others.

Have a little Faith...

I was worried about our Retreat Get-a-way up in Donegal. People who had shown a definite interest had changed their mind.  Perhaps the fact of cold, winter weather in March put them off.  I was sorely disappointed...

Should we cancel?  Was it worth it to go ahead with so few?

I checked with Clare up in Donegal and she had no problem with small groups.

Then it occurred to me that what is most important is God's Will.

So, how does one find out if it truly is God's Will to continue what we are doing?

What steps does one take to find out God's Will?

I believe God wants us to honour our commitments.

When we look at History, we learn about people who were willing to go to the ends of the earth to follow their commitments. People like St. Francis Xavior for example, and all those adventurous climbers and inventors who put so much work into what they believed to be their destiny.

To put it simply, I believe God is asking me to have a little Faith.

Every step we take on Faith is moving the world closer to God, so let's do just that and have a little Faith.

PASSION

To be good at what we do requires Passion.  We may not be the best person in the world at what we are gifted with, yet as long as we are passionate about our gift, then we will be good, even brilliant.

It's easy to experience this as a writer.  We take a blank page and we can look at it for hours, yet if we have something to write about, something that moves us and fills us with interest, then the blank pages will soon be filled with words / stories / poems / plays etc.

That's why it's important to follow the inspirations that come our way. Not to be put off by what others may think or say. Just go ahead and allow our passionate nature to move us forward.

Of course, it's good to gain input from others, yet remember each one of us is unique.  How I see things can be different to another person and vice versa. 

Let's open our heart and soul to the gift within and follow our passionate nature!

The Human side of God

Our belief system helps us to have an awareness of the Presence of God.

Depending on how we live and practise our Faith we will keep this awareness of God alive in the events that happen to us each day.

The Saints, those who learned to develop a close relationship with God,  constantly remind us in their writings of how compassionate God truly is towards us.

This is the hallmark of a human soul, Compassion / the ability to reach out and care for others. 

When we are able to be compassionate towards others we find ourselves developing a human heart, devoid of judgement and condemnation.  We grow in love.

This is the Human side of God, portrayed by the life of Christ.  He cares / He weeps / He loves.

At times, we may find our belief in God to appear abstract.  No worries.

Take a moment to dwell on the life of Christ and His willingness to give ALL for us. Could there be a stronger, more human Love?

A HUMBLE SOUL

When we read about people who have lived a sincere spiritual life, we become aware that they had a structure and a special way of living.

No matter who they were or what their status as regards intelligence, they had humility;  they were a humble soul.

How did they avoid the ordinary traps of pride?

I believe their sincerity in loving God was their protection.

God doesn't wave His finger at us and demand that we are perfect beings.

He is the Creator and has a plan for us, taking into account our very human nature and all the many weaknesses that come with being human.

Humility teaches us to be honest and unafraid of being weak / failing etc.

The humble soul has no guilt / no guile / no pretense.

When we aspire to be humble, we are often tripped up by our imperfections, but no matter.  We are happy to be who we are, regardless of how others might see us or even judge us.

We are here primerly to love God; not ourselves or others.

Strange to say that as our way to love is found in caring for others.

Perhaps the truth is found in simply putting God first / our neighbour second and our selves third.
This way we gain a sense of freedom and balance, allowing us to be a happy, humble soul!