Tag: #blessedsolanuscasey

Joy Begins With Thanks

I am in Louisiana. When I travel, I rarely sleep well. Last night was no exception. I awoke no fewer than half a dozen times, and actually had the same nightmare twice. I don’t really know what that means, but I will admit that it was a bit unnerving. And each time I woke up, I had difficulty falling back to sleep, be it a result of said nightmares or the fact that I had a million thoughts racing through my head.

So when my alarm went off this morning to get me up for mass, I was dazed and seriously considered just skipping it today. I mean I am traveling alone, certainly God has no expectation for me to drive to a church I don’t know in a town of which I am not familiar on a Wednesday morning. But I rolled out of bed, showered, got coffee, and went to mass.

I attended mass at St. Clement of Rome in Metairie, Louisiana today and I am so glad that I went. The readings have been from the Book of Jonah. Now I can’t say that I have really paid much attention to the Book of Jonah in the past, but right now, it’s really catching my attention. I mean, Jonah is really kind of jerk when you examine the readings. This is a guy who is mad because God is being merciful to the Ninevites. “Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry that God did not carry out the evil He threatened against Nineveh.” Wow!

The priest at St. Clement gave a wonderful homily on this reading today. He indicated Jonah was miserable and wanted everyone else to miserable with him. He was not grateful for all that Lord had done for him. He was so angry that God did not punish the Ninevites that had failed to see the mercy and grace that God had bestowed upon him as well. Father closed his homily by stating that “gratitude is the key to joy in this life.”

“Gratitude is the key to joy in this life”

-stated during the homily at St. Clement of Rome morning mass 10/9/19

So I don’t think it was any coincidence that when I left mass, I checked my “memories” of Facebook. Exactly one year ago this is what I wrote while traveling with the Reverend Mother in California.

I am wrapping up the book “One Thousand Gifts” by Ann Voskamp, which I highly recommend. I am certain I will have finished it before this week ends. While reading this morning, I came across this one excerpt that has impacted me, “While I may not always feel joy, God asks me to give thanks in all things because He knows that the feeling of joy begins with the action of thanksgiving.” Think about that for a moment and really let it sink in…joy begins with thanks.

Joy begins with thanks.

I have this quote written on a chalk board in my office that says “Before we ask God for anything, we must first thank Him for everything.” I wrote that down early in 2018, when my father was hospitalized and I discovered that my sister had cancer. The beginning of 2018 was a very trying time and I needed that reminder – to be thankful. It was a very difficult period and it was so easy to get angry and discouraged. I certainly didn’t see God’s plan or understand the purpose for those events. I needed to remind myself that I had so much for which to be grateful.

Watching a parent slowly die and knowing that there is nothing you can do about it makes you feel so helpless. Knowing that your sister is fighting a battle that you cannot comprehend makes you feel so small and insignificant. All I could do was pray. I prayed for healing and peace for my sister and I prayed for strength and recovery for my dad.

I remember the day I moved from praying for a full recovery for my dad to praying for a peaceful death. That was the hardest transition I think I may have ever made. I was trying desperately to find the goodness in his suffering. I was not in a place of thanksgiving. I was angry, I was frustrated, I was discouraged, I was questioning, I was depressed. It was not supposed to happen like this. But I continued to pray and in those moments of prayer, I felt a sense of peace, even if it was fleeting. Memories of wonderful times came rushing back to give me comfort.

One memory for which I am thankful, that very last game of gin that I got to play with my dad before he got so sick. It was a grudge match that went on forever. We played it on a hospital tray table at Trinity East where he was in rehab from his hip surgery. We talked and joked and laughed through the whole game. My mom was there too, which makes it even more special. It is a memory that I cherish and one of the last times that we really got to share quality time together.

While I miss him every day, I am thankful for all of the wonderful memories and all his sometimes humorous words of wisdom (especially when watching Wheel of Fortune – don’t buy a vowel, you dummy). And while my sister still has a long road ahead of her, I am grateful that she is on the road to recovery and has essentially beat cancer. But let’s be honest, cancer didn’t stand a chance because my sister is a bad ass.

Blessed Solanus Casey used to say “Thank God ahead of time.” I keep this in the forefront of everything. Today, take time to cherish those special memories that you hold deep in your heart and remember to thank God first. Gratitude is the path to joy. Thank you, Lord, for all that this day has in store.

Please Pray for me and I will continue to pray for you

Thank God First

I attended mass on Wednesday morning at the chapel with in the school building. It was the first morning service of the year. A 7:15am mass is held on Monday’s and Wednesday’s in chapel; the celebrant is the school’s chaplain. It was wonderful to see the small chapel packed with attendees that morning; teachers, students and parents. Fr. Michael, the school’s chaplain, is also an alum of the high school, so listening to his homilies (which I always love) inside the school from which I also graduated (although more than a decade before he did), is really edifying.

A line from today’s gospel read, “At daybreak, Jesus went out to a deserted place”. Father focused on this statement, talking about how Jesus, being the Son of God and the second person in the Trinity, even had to make time for God and would go off alone to pray. He reminded us of how important it is for us to make time for God.

So after mass, I sat quietly in the chapel (something I rarely do), and made time for God. I read the reflection for the day as I didn’t have time to read it before mass like I normally would. The reflection focused on the first reading from Colossians, with emphasis on the following line, “We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you.” (Colossians 1:3). It then talks about all of the struggles and issues of the Colossians, but indicates how Paul doesn’t immediately point out those problems, short comings or misunderstanding. Paul begins his letter with praise and thanksgiving for all of those things that Christ’s followers are getting right. He praises them for their faith, their love, their hope and trust in the Lord. Paul focuses on being thankful and recognizing all of the blessings that God has bestowed on the Colossians. He doesn’t begin by pointing out all the things they are doing wrong or all of the ways they need to improve.

This really is beautiful, because I think a lot of times we focus on the negative, on all the things that are going wrong. We all tend to overlook the blessings in our lives and take those “everyday” good things in life for granted. But concentrating on gratitude changes all that, it changes our focus and our outlook. If we begin with gratitude, we start with hope. And as Andy Dufresne tells Red in Shawshank Redemption, “hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.”

I know I tend to get caught up in everything that is going wrong, and I miss the blessing. I forget about hope. I forget about all of the good things, particularly when facing a challenge. There are a lot of things that I take for granted. Like being able to attend morning mass twice a week with students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni at my alma mater. Although it has just begun and has only happened once, it is one thing I absolutely love about my job.

Let us remember to look for the blessings in the midst of the struggle and to thank God for all of the good things in our lives. In fact, let us take the advice of Blessed Solanus Casey and remember to “Thank God ahead of time.” So today, make time for God, find a quiet place to spend time with Him, and remember to thank Him ahead of time for all the blessing that he will bestow upon you, and recognize all of the blessings that you have already received. Please pray for me and I will continue to pray for you.