Tag: #power

Everybody Hurts

The following passage from Romans is part of my personal email signature:

Romans 5:3-4 More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…

I will admit, I added it after I was diagnosed with cancer more as a reminder for me than anything else. So it has been part of my email for about a month now. The first week I began including it, I read it every time I sent an email. But as time passed, I read it less often. It finally got to a point where I had actually forgotten that it was part of my signature.

Then last week, I needed to send an email to a company from whom I had ordered some items for Christmas. I sent the email from my personal account, stating the reason for my inquiry and asking for a reply. I didn’t think anything about the passage from Romans when I sent it because, frankly, I had forgotten that it was there.

Then I got a response from Candace, the customer service associate, who handled my inquiry. This is the exact text from her email:

Hi Jennifer,
Thank you for reaching out to us, I have taken a look into your order and the scheduled date of arrival is 12/15. If there is anything else that I can do please let me know.
P.S. The closing scripture in your email is absolutely beautiful and powerful you never know what impact words really can have on someone. I Thank you for that!!!

I share this because what she wrote in her post script is so true, you never know the impact that words can have on another person. I am grateful that this scripture passage spoke to her. I know it spoke to me when I read it, so much so that I added to my signature. But I am also grateful for all of those people who have reached out to share their words of hope and encouragement and those who continue to reach out as I begin this journey with cancer…this journey I never ever thought I would be taking. But I am.

And while it is difficult for me to accept this as suffering (I am not in pain, I haven’t had surgery yet, I have not begun treatment, I don’t feel sick, etc.), I realize it is just maybe a different kind of suffering (I am mentally exhausted, I am physically fatigued, I am spiritually drained, I am emotionally worn out). I also realize that everyone is dealing with some kind of suffering in their life, and most of the time we have no idea what that looks like for them.

Remember the REM song, Everybody Hurts? Well, it’s true. Everybody does hurt – sometimes, we just don’t know how or why. Suffering is something very private and very unique to each person. So be kinder than necessary and remember that your words can make a tremendous impact. They can hurt or they can heal. They can inspire or tear down. They can touch a friend or impact a total stranger. Words have power.

Thank you to all of you who have called, emailed, texted, messaged me, sent notes and cards and letters. Your words, your kindness, has made an incredible impact. I am grateful for each of you. Please pray for me and I will continue to pray for you.

Tea and shortbread cookies that were a ‘feel better’ gift.

Everyday Miracles

It has been cold a rainy the past few days, but I must admit, I truly love this time of year. The crispness of the air, the damp chill, the smell of the dry leaves, falling from the trees and the way they crunch beneath your feet, apple cider, sweaters and boots and fleece vests and hoodies, crackling fires, and amazing October sunsets; I love all things autumn. In fact, I love all seasons, the changes of the seasons and the beauty of each transition. But Fall is my favorite!

As I drove into work this morning, just before dawn broke I could not help but ponder the wonder and majesty of God. I know there are people who do not believe in God, or are unsure if God does truly exist. I understand that it is difficult to comprehend the concept of a merciful God when we see all that is going on in the world. I was one of those people at one time, so I fully understand that thought process. But that is where free will comes into play.

I attended the all school mass this morning; we have a weekly mass with all of the students each Thursday (and on first Friday’s each month). Fr. Michael our chaplain was away on a diocesan priest event, so Fr. Michael from the Marian’s of the Immaculate Conception said mass.

Today is the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch. Fr. Michael shared quite a bit about St. Ignatius of Antioch and how he was martyred (killed by wild animals). During his homily, father shared the following “I am writing to all the churches to let it be known that I will gladly die for God if only you do not stand in my way. I plead with you: show me no untimely kindness. Let me be food for the wild beasts, for they are my way to God. I am God’s wheat and bread. Pray to Christ for me that the animals will be the means of making me a sacrificial victim for God. No earthly pleasures, no kingdoms of this world can benefit me in any way. I prefer death in Christ Jesus to power over the farthest limits of the earth.”

He indicated that Ignatius was deeply in love with God and that each of us should strive for the same. He also stated, and this is what struck me hardest, God doesn’t send anyone to hell, we choose it by our actions. Wow, is that ever powerful. And that is free will!

God doesn’t send anyone to hell, we choose it by our actions.

Fr. Michael, MIC

We choose hell by our actions, God doesn’t condemn us to hell. That truly is free will. Free will allows us to choose. God wants us to choose Him, by how many times do we choose something other than him? How many times do we choose money, fame, prestige, power, titles, positions, pleasure, our own wants and desires, sleep, alcohol, food, etc. over God. How many times do we choose selfishness, arrogance, conceit, prejudice, gluttony, pride, anger, and self-centeredness? Or do we choose not to believe at all? Do we choose to deny the presence and the existence of God, or only believe in God when it convenient?

What will you choose today?

As I came back to my office after mass, I looked out my window. The sunlight was just beginning to break through the grey clouds. It was streaming through, dancing on the leaves of the trees, leaves tipped with bright yellow as the trees begin their transition. And I wondered how people could not believe in a loving God, a God of grace and mercy and forgiveness. All of this beauty that surrounds us speaks of God’s majesty and power and love. Then I realized that people probably aren’t seeing this magnificence.

We get so caught up in the minutia of day to day living; we forget to take in all of the splendor that is around us. We forget to choose God. And its not just the beautiful landscapes, the oceans, mountains, valleys, lakes and rivers or the fields and meadows, the long spans of desert and winding country roads. It’s the daily interactions that we have with one another. It’s taking a walk with friend, it’s calling your parents just to “check-in”, it’s sending a random text to a person you haven’t talked to in a while, it’s buying coffee for the car behind you in the drive-thru, it’s making a little extra dinner to share with the elderly woman who lives alone down the street, it’s visiting your sick friend in the hospital, holding her hand and telling her it’s going to be alright, it’s showing compassion to those who are less fortunate than you and extending a hand in friendship to a stranger.

It is all those little things that we do on a daily basis – usually without even thinking about them – brewing coffee for your coworkers, making breakfast for your family, packing lunches for your kids, doing the laundry, cleaning the house, car-pooling, preparing dinner, reading your children a bedtime story and tucking them in at night, having a glass of wine (or beer) with your spouse after a long day. The magnificence and beauty, the choosing God, is in all of these little things, but we are so caught up in the stress of day to day that we fail to see their impact, their brilliance. We fail to see them for what they really are, everyday miracles.

Today take a little time to look for everyday miracles and be an everyday miracle for someone else. Today choose God. And please pray for me and I will continue to pray for you.