Category: Conversion

Touch

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith, Gospel, healing, spirituality10 Comments

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
June 30, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/063024.cfm

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors
and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak.
She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.”
Immediately her flow of blood dried up.
She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Matthew 5:25-29

After praying with this passage from Mark, I wrote this homily almost a decade ago. I liked it very much. And even though it is long, I thought some of you might like to read it or to pray with it this Sunday.

https://lavishmercy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/homily-mk-5-21-43-.docx

Music: Touch the Hem of His Garment – Sam Cooke

One of my favorite voices from the 50s and 60s, Sam Cooke is considered one among the greatest R&B artists of all time. Some of you may recall his pop hits like “You Send Me” and “Twisting’ the Night Away”.

Early in his career, he sang with a Gospel group, the Soul Stirrers.

In 1950, Cooke replaced gospel tenor R. H. Harris as lead singer of his gospel group The Soul Stirrer. Their first recording under Cooke’s leadership was the song “Jesus Gave Me Water” in 1950. They also recorded the gospel songs “Peace in the Valley”, “How Far Am I from Canaan?”, “Jesus Paid the Debt” and “One More River”, among many others, some of which he wrote. Cooke was often credited for bringing gospel music to the attention of a younger crowd of listeners, mainly girls who would rush to the stage when the Soul Stirrers hit the stage just to get a glimpse of him. (Wikipedia)

Wish

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Faith, Forgiveness, Gospel, healing, spirituality1 Comment

Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr
June 28, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062824.cfm

When Jesus came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
And then a leper approached, did him homage, and said,
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”
He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“Of course I will do it. Be made clean.”
Matthew 8:1-3

This leper, this beautiful soul, trusts that Jesus’s wish is the same as his own. He wants to be clean, to be free of all that may tarnish a life as one passes through the years. And Jesus does share the leper’s wish. He transforms that “wish” into a “will” — “of course, I will do it!”.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:
As we look over our lives, perhaps we too carry a few unhealed pockmarks or scars. These may be past grudges, unforgivenesses, or harbored hurts. They may be a current resistance of heart, an indifference to need, an unexamined selfishness.

Like the leper, we may long to be free of any canker that we have carried too long. Jesus wills that for us too. Believing in, learning from, and imitating him is the path to healing.

Poetry: The Leper – John Newton (1725-1807)

Oft as the leper's case I read,
My own described I feel;
Sin is a leprosy indeed,
Which none but Christ can heal.
Awhile I would have passed for well,
And strove my spots to hide;
Till it broke out incurable,
Too plain to be denied.
Then from the saints I sought to flee,
And dreaded to be seen;
I thought they all would point at me,
And cry, Unclean, unclean!
What anguish did my soul endure,
Till hope and patience ceased?
The more I strove myself to cure,
The more the plague increased.
While thus I lay distressed, I saw
The Savior passing by;
To him, though filled with shame and awe,
I raised my mournful cry.
Lord, thou canst heal me if thou wilt,
For thou canst all things do;
O cleanse my leprous soul from guilt,
My filthy heart renew!
He heard, and with a gracious look,
Pronounced the healing word;
I will, be clean - and while he spoke
I felt my health restored.
Come lepers, seize the present hour,
The Saviour's grace to prove;
He can relieve, for he is pow'r,
He will, for he is love.

Video: Jesus Heals the Leper – from The Chosen

Gate

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Charity, Community, Conversion, Faith, spirituality2 Comments

Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
June 25, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062524.cfm

“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the Law and the Prophets.“Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,
and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few.”
Matthew 7:12-14

Jesus says that the gate is narrow which leads to life. It’s a warning that makes me want to sit up and pay attention to my life! Just what is it that I should take from Jesus’s words?

I think Jesus is telling us that our lives are occupied with a lot more unimportant stuff than important stuff. What is it that really matters each day in my thoughts, actions, relationships, plans?

Jesus says that the measure of what matters is this:
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

I want to be respected, noticed, cared for, appreciated and loved. That’s what I hope others “do unto me”. When I pray over my day at night, have I treated others this way? Have I found the narrow gate Jesus is describing?

Prose: from How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie

You want the approval of those with whom you come in contact.
You want recognition of your true worth.
You want a feeling that you are important in your little world.
You don’t want to listen to cheap, insincere flattery,
but you do crave sincere appreciation.
You want your friends and associates to be,
as Charles Schwab put it,
“hearty in their approbation and lavish in their praise.”
All of us want that.
So let’s obey the Golden Rule, and give unto others
what we would have others give unto us.
How? When? Where?
The answer is: All the time, everywhere.”

Music: Do Right to Me, Baby (Do Unto Others) – Bob Dylan

Don’t wanna judge nobody, don’t wanna be judged
Don’t wanna touch nobody, don’t wanna be touched
Don’t wanna hurt nobody, don’t wanna be hurt
Don’t wanna treat nobody like they was dirt
But if you do right to me, baby
I’ll do right to you too
Got to do unto others like you’d have them
Like you’d have them do unto you
Don’t wanna shoot nobody, don’t wanna be shot
Don’t wanna buy nobody, don’t wanna be bought
Don’t wanna bury nobody, don’t wanna be buried
Don’t wanna marry nobody if they’re already married
But if you do right to me, baby
I’ll do right to you too
Got to do unto others like you’d have them
Like you’d have them do unto you
Don’t wanna burn nobody, don’t wanna be burned
Don’t wanna learn from nobody what I gotta unlearn
Don’t wanna cheat nobody but don’t wanna be cheated
Don’t wanna defeat nobody if they’ve already been defeated
But if you do right to me, baby
I’ll do right to you too
Got to do unto others like you’d have them
Like you’d have them do unto you
Don’t wanna wink at nobody, I don’t wanna be winked at
Don’t wanna be used by nobody for a doormat
Don’t wanna confuse nobody, don’t wanna be confused
Don’t wanna amuse nobody and don’t wanna be amused
But if you do right to me, baby
I’ll do right to you too
Got to do unto others like you’d have them
Say, like you’d have them do unto you
Don’t wanna betray nobody, don’t wanna be betrayed
Don’t wanna play with nobody, don’t wanna be waylaid
Don’t wanna miss nobody, don’t wanna be missed
Don’t put my faith in nobody, not even a scientist
But if you do right to me, baby
I’ll do right to you too
You got to do unto others like you’d have them
Like you’d have them do unto you

Wave

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, peace, spirituality5 Comments

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time
June 23, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/062324.cfm

A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat,
so that it was already filling up.
Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion.
They woke him and said to him,
“Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
He woke up,
rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be still!”
The wind ceased and there was great calm.
Then he asked them, “Why are you terrified?
Do you not yet have faith?”
Mark 4:37-40

Many years ago, at a particularly critical crossroad in my life, a revered mentor rescued me. She did it with a simple phrase, “Do not go down under this wave.”

Her counsel challenged me to stand up and reach for my faith, despite having been knocked down by gross misjudgment. Her confidence led me to realize that with faith we can find God within our circumstances, releasing a power we may not have recognized before.

In today’s passage, Jesus urges his disciples to live this kind of faith. God is with them, even when seemingly asleep. Fully trusting that Presence will allow their lives to unfold in peace, despite any passing storm. And yes, all storms are passing. 🙂

Poetry: I Go Down to the Shore – Mary Oliver

I go down to the shore in the morning
and depending on the hour the waves
are rolling in or moving out,
and I say, oh, I am miserable,
what shall—
what should I do? And the sea says
in its lovely voice:
Excuse me, I have work to do.

Music: Every Storm Runs Out of Rain – Gary Allen

Mantle

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith, spirituality3 Comments

Saturday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
June 15, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061524.cfm

Elijah set out, and came upon Elisha, son of Shaphat,
as he was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen;
he was following the twelfth.
Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him.
Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said,
“Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,
and I will follow you.”
1 Kings 19:19-20

Elijah delivers God’s call by placing his mantle across Elisha’s shoulders. The mantle is a symbol of prophetic power, authority, and duty. Elisha welcomes God’s call and the gifts and responsibilities it holds. This story offers us themes of vocation, mentorship, and spiritual eagerness to profess and practice God’s love in the world.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

Each of us continually receives God’s call to grow in holiness. This is our vocation, the mantle of invitation to live our lives for and with God. We may choose our call in marriage, religious profession, ordination, or the single life.

Like Elisha, we could be minding our own business in a “field” somewhere when the awareness of God’s call falls over us in a mantle of grace. This call will repeat itself in new ways throughout the course of our lives. Again like Elisha, we pray to be spiritually open and eager to respond.

Poetry: Vocation – William E. Stafford

This dream the world is having about itself
includes a trace on the plains of the Oregon trail,
a groove in the grass my father showed us all
one day while meadowlarks were trying to tell
something better about to happen.
I dreamed the trace to the mountains, over the hills,
and there a girl who belonged wherever she was.
But then my mother called us back to the car:
she was afraid; she always blamed the place,
the time, anything my father planned.
Now both of my parents, the long line through the plain,
the meadowlarks, the sky, the world's whole dream
remain, and I hear him say while I stand between the two,
helpless, both of them part of me:
"Your job is to find what the world is trying to be."

Music: The Call – Vaughn Williams

Come, my Way, my Truth, my Life:
Such a Way, as gives us breath:
Such a Truth, as ends all strife:
Such a Life, as killeth death

Come, My Light, my Feast, my Strength:
Such a Light, as shows a feast:
Such a Feast, as mends in length:
Such a Strength, as makes his guest

Come, my Joy, my Love, my Heart:
Such a Joy, as none can move:
Such a Love, as none can part:
Such a Heart, as joys in love

Whisper

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Faith, Hope, spirituality6 Comments

Friday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
June 14, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061424.cfm

A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains
and crushing rocks before the LORD—
but the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake—
but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake there was fire—
but the LORD was not in the fire.
After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound.
When he heard this,
Elijah hid his face in his cloak
and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.
A Voice said to him, “Why are you here, Elijah?”.
1 Kings 19:11-13

Elijah has been a fiery prophet, credibly demonstrating the call to believe in one God. But despite magnificent Divine demonstrations, the people have not been faithful. In today’s reading, the great Elijah goes to the mountain depressed and defeated. God tries to speak to Elijah in further stunning revelations, but Elijah can face only the whisper of God’s Will.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

This passage may lead us to consider the quiet, whispering influence of God in our lives. To do only that would neglect salient points in these verses. At this point in his life, Elijah feels that he has failed in his life’s mission. Israel has failed in fidelity to the Abrahamic covenant. The situation is a mess, God is fed up, and the time for judgment has come.

  • Do we ever feel that way about our world, our Church, even our own lives?
  • Do we ever wonder if what we have tried to be and do in life really matters?
  • Have we gotten so focused on our frustrations and fears that we miss the magnificent display of God’s love and hope for us?

If so, perhaps we can at least, like Elijah, open our hearts to the Divine Whisper ever-present to us. If we have drifted from wholehearted faith, how is God drawing us back with Gentle Presence?

Poetry: i thank you, God – e.e.cummings

i thank You God for most this amazing
day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky;and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes
(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun’s birthday;this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings:and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)
how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any—lifted from the no
of all nothing—human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?
(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

Music: Courage of the Wind – David Lanz

Unprincipled

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Discipleship, Faith, Gospel, Prayer, spirituality, Truth2 Comments

Tuesday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
June 4, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/060424.cfm

Therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned,
be on your guard not to be led into the error of the unprincipled
and to fall from your own stability.
But grow in grace
and in the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.
To him be glory now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
2 Peter 17-18

Peter tells his listeners that ” …we await new heavens and a new earth
in which righteousness dwells.” But in the meantime, we must be alert for all that would distract us from Gospel truth and practice.

Peter’s world opposed the message of the Gospel. So does our world, filled now with unprincipled politics, economics, communication, and even “religious” propaganda. These forces fall against the believer like so many dominoes deconstructing the pattern of our faith.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

Once again we ask for strength and insight to see the Gospel clearly and to stay aligned to its beauty and truth. This can be accomplished only by prayer, and developing a reverent familiarity with the Gospel. Further, reading reputable spiritual guides is important to enrich our understanding of the sacred word.

Poetry: Am I True to Myself? – Edgar A. Guest

I have to live with myself and so
I want to be fit for myself to know.
I want to be able as days go by,
always to look myself straight in the eye;

I don’t want to stand with the setting sun
and hate myself for the things I have done.
I don’t want to keep on a closet shelf
a lot of secrets about myself

and fool myself as I come and go
into thinking no one else will ever know
the kind of person I really am,
I don’t want to dress up myself in sham.

I want to go out with my head erect
I want to deserve all men’s respect;
but here in the struggle for fame and wealth
I want to be able to like myself.

I don’t want to look at myself and know that
I am bluster and bluff and empty show.
I never can hide myself from me;
I see what others may never see;

I know what others may never know,
I never can fool myself and so,
whatever happens I want to be
self respecting and conscience free.

Music: Keep Me Faithful – written by James Montgomery (1771-1854); adapted by Cornerstone Collective

Build

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Discipleship, Faith, Prayer, spirituality1 Comment

Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr
June 1, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/060124.cfm

Build yourselves up in your most holy faith;
pray in the Holy Spirit.
Keep yourselves in the love of God
and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ
that leads to eternal life.
Jude 17: 20-21

Jude’s epistle indicates that we have responsibility to keep our faith strong. He also suggests that faith is an evolutionary process enriched by practice and reflection.

Today in God’s Lavish Mercy:

Let’s take a look at how, by God’s grace, we have grown in our faith over the years. What circumstances have deepened us in our spiritual understanding? How have we refined our spiritual practices to ready ourselves for transformation? What curves in the road have tested us? What heights have blessed us? What depths have matured us?

Poetry: To Find God – Robert Herrick

Weigh me the fire; or canst thou find
A way to measure out the wind?
Distinguish all those floods that are
Mixed in that wat’ry theater,
And taste thou them as saltless there,
As in their channel first they were.
Tell me the people that do keep
Within the kingdoms of the deep;
Or fetch me back that cloud again,
Beshivered into seeds of rain.
Tell me the motes, dust, sands, and spears
Of corn, when summer shakes his ears;
Show me that world of stars, and whence
They noiseless spill their influence.
This if thou canst; then show me Him
That rides the glorious cherubim.

Music: Increase My Faith – Brian Courtney Wilson

Ambition

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Discipleship, Faith, Service, spirituality1 Comment

Wednesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
May 29, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052924.cfm

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
came to Jesus and said to him,
“Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”
He replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?”
They answered him,
“Grant that in your glory
we may sit one at your right and the other at your left.”
Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I drink
or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”…

… You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles
lord it over them,
and their great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.
Mark 10: 35-38; 42-44

James and John are filled with the enthusiasm of their calling, but they are young in its understanding. They look past the challenge of their present circumstances to the glory on its other side. Jesus sets their ambition straight, as he does ours. First we must drink the cup that Jesus drank.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

We too want our ultimate destination to be a place beside Christ. But to come to that place, we must follow Jesus closely in the choices of our own lives.

Poetry: Create in Me – Anna Beth Fore

Create in me a pure heart
filled with love, joy, and peace.
Calm these inner struggles
and give my soul release.

Renew my love and passion
for my Savior and my King.
Fill me with psalms and songs,
an offering to you I bring.

Cleanse me every day, Lord,
and make me pure and holy.
Comfort me with your Spirit
as he lives inside of me.

Transform me with your love,
your mercy, and your grace.
Strengthen me when I am weary
so that I can finish the race.

Welcome me with open arms
when my life on Earth is done.
Let the angels sing, “Hallelujah,”
when the battle on Earth is won.

Music: Are You Ready to Drink the Cup? – Cyprian Consiglio

Gird

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Cross, Discipleship, Faith, spirituality2 Comments

Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
May 28, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052824.cfm

Gird up the loins of your mind, live soberly,
and set your hopes completely on the grace to be brought to you
at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Like obedient children,
do not act in compliance with the desires of your former ignorance
but, as he who called you is holy,
be holy yourselves in every aspect of your conduct,
for it is written, Be holy because I am holy.

1 Peter 1: 13-16

Our reading from Peter uses strong phrases to direct our hearts fully to Christ.

  • Gird up the loins of your mind
  • Let your hopes rest completely on grace
  • Do not act from your former ignorance
  • Be holy

When my niece was a young teen, she had a placard in her bedroom that read “Put on your big girl pants and deal with it.” I thought it was an amazing charge for a thirteen-year-old kid. But she expected it of herself and proved eminently capable of practicing the advice.

James is giving early Christians the same kind of advice. Our capability to respond lies in the hope we place in the grace of Jesus Christ.

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy:

We ask for courage and fidelity in our commitment to Christ and to the Gospel.

Poetry: Don’t Quit – Edgar A. Guest

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low but the debts are high,
And you want to smile but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit…
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit!
Life is strange with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many failures turn about
When we might have won had we stuck it out.
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow…
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor’s cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out…
And you can never tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.

Music: Jesus, My Beloved – Jonathan Ogden