Category: Hope

The Days Are Coming

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Advent, Hope, spirituality1 Comment

First Sunday of Advent, December 2, 2018

Click here for readings

Today, in Mercy, we begin our journey through Advent.  We will be accompanied by the great prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures.  We will walk with the saints and sinners of the Gospel. We will be comforted by God’s promises.

Jer 33_15 sprout

We will be in the company of all the Church here on earth and in heaven, as we wait once again for the astounding miracle of Christ’s birth.

Every year we make the journey – some of us for scores of times, some of us just beginning.  And every year, we open and stretch our hearts to hope that God will once again transform the world with Grace.

Jeremiah, in today’s first reading, shared such a hope:

The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will fulfill the promise
I made to the house of Israel and Judah.
In those days, in that time,
I will raise up for David a just shoot ;
he shall do what is right and just in the land.
In those days Judah shall be safe
and Jerusalem shall dwell secure;
this is what they shall call her:
“The LORD our justice.”

Change but a few “geographies” in the passage, and we are speaking of our own time. May we who have been blessed with the promise of Christ once again claim it during this Advent.  May we engage the grace being offered so that our world – and our own hearts – grow in justice, security and peace.

Music:: Comfort Ye My People from Handel’s Messiah – The English Concert, directed by Trevor Pinnock. Soloist: Kurt Streit

“Beyond Gold” Friday

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Courage, Hope, joy, Love, Mercy, Thanksgiving1 Comment

Friday, November 23, 2018

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112318.cfm

Today in Mercy,  we continue in the mood of thanksgiving. 

Do you  have a computer calendar that pops up reminders for you — appointments, due dates, anniversaries, etc.?

TGVNG cal

On this date, I am reminded of two very happy events:

  • the birth of one of my precious grand-nephews three years ago – a gift of beauty, love and hope to our family
  • the jubilant wedding of two dear friends six years ago – a covenant and sign of love, fidelity and courage in today’s unloving world

As we get older (as I have been blessed to do), our calendar blocks become more crowded with memories – with the years’ accumulation of joys and blessings. “Thanksgiving Friday” is a good day to mentally page through the gift of years, remembering, thanking, praying for all that has brought love, hope and encouragement to our hearts.

Every life we love copy

It’s a good strategy to resist the commercial lure of “Black Friday” and to keep our focus on what truly counts as GIFT – those treasures that are beyond gold in our life’s story.

Hopefully, God’s goodness came to us yesterday, and comes to us daily, in abundance and joy – of family, friends and blessings shared. 

But for some, God draws us closer through loneliness, loss or sadness shared. The great grace is that God abides with us in every season, and reveals Mercy’s loving face in both our sorrows and our joys. 

May we praise God and know the Comforting Presence in whatever the season of our hearts. Let us pray this for one another.

Music:  10,000 Reasons – Matt Redman

We Are God’s Temple

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Church, Community, Hope1 Comment

Friday, November 9, 2018

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/110918.cfm

psalm46 stream

Today, in Mercy, we celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome.  It’s a big deal feast and, as a young religious, I never really understood why. I thought to myself, “It’s a building, right? Why are we celebrating a building.” As I matured, I learned. 

Perhaps some of you are familiar with Ken Follett’s book “The Pillars of the Earth”. Or perhaps others of you have visited the Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona, Spain. You may have been, as I was, overwhelmed at the sheer enormity and span of these cathedral-building endeavors which reflect our desire to enshrine God.

What is it in us, as human beings, that will move us to give lifetimes and centuries to capturing God? What is it in us that will try to concretize our awe at the Almighty?

It was just such an inner drive that motivated the builders of the Lateran, the oldest and highest ranking of the four major basilicas in Rome.  This “temple of stones” was understood by its builders to represent the living Church – you and me, who together are built up by Christ into his own Body.

What kind of  temple are we, sisters and brothers – we who are all too aware now of the cracks in our structure? 

We are, as Ezekiel visions and the psalmist confirms in today’s readings, a temple fed by the life waters of God.

Our Gospel shows that Jesus knew and believed this. He cleansed the temple in Jerusalem of its weaknesses. He then compared it to his own body, which is the true dwelling place of grace among us. He asked us to imitate him in the way we treasure and live our lives in this world because we too are Temples of God’s Grace.

A living fountain of grace flows through this living temple. God is in our midst as we build, and rebuild, the Church – brick by human brick.

May this feast renew our hope for our Church, cause us to call upon God for deeper courage, and witness to all the enduring power of faith.

Music:  We Are God’s People – Fred Bock

This is a recently written hymn with an old time kind of sound. 

English hymn text writer, Bryan Jeffery Leech, took the primary theme from Johannes Brahms’ 1st Symphony, 4th movement and wrote lyrics which have become a hymn standard. We Are God’s People is a majestic statement befitting Brahm’s regal theme. Allan Robert Petker has created an anthem setting and has intertwined many of the other themes that Brahms utilized in his 1st symphony.

The Sweet Scent of God

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Faith, Hope, Jesus, spirituality3 Comments

Thursday, November 8, 2018

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Lk15_5 lost lamb

Today, in Mercy, we meet the Shepherd bringing the lost lamb home.  Haven’t we all, at sometime in our lives, been carried on those sacred shoulders?

Whether by our own prayers, or the prayers of those who love us, have we not been rescued from sorrow, foolishness, isolation or fear?

This beautiful Gospel assures us of the one thing we most deeply need – we are cherished, irrevocably, by God.

This morning, if we need to ride those shoulders, let us trust ourselves to them in prayer. 

If, by grace, we are already home, let us pray for those feeling most lost or abandoned – those most beset by a hostile world. May our merciful action help lift them to peace and the sweet scent of God so close beside them.

Music: I Will Carry You – Sean Clive

I will carry you when you are weak.
I will carry you when you can’t speak.
I will carry you when you can’t pray.
I will carry you each night and day.

I will carry you when times are hard.
I will carry you both near & far.
I’ll be there with you whenever you fall.
I will carry you through it all.

My arms are wider than the sky,
softer than a little child,
stronger than the raging,
calming like a gentle breeze.
Trust in me to hold on tight because 

I will carry you when you can’t stand.
I’ll be there for you to hold your hand.
And I will show you that you’re never alone.
I will carry you and bring you back home.

Not pain, not fear, not death, no nothing at all
can separate you from my love.
My arms and hands will hold you close.
Just reach out and take them in your own.
Trust in me to hold on tight.
I will carry you.

Oh, Fig!

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Faith, holiness, Hope, repentance, spiritualityLeave a comment

Saturday, October 27, 2018

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/102718.cfm

Today, in Mercy, our readings are not reassuring. They basically tell us that it’s a tough world out there, and it might get us – body and/or soul. They tell us to straighten up and live right before it’s too late!

Lk 13_7 fig tree

I don’t really like the “in your face” readings, but they certainly are clear and effective. Just picture that poor fig tree, trying like crazy – for three years – to bear fruit! I know that I’ve been trying my whole life to overcomes some of my fruitlessness. I certainly hope God continues to be patient with me!

Nevertheless, the message of today’s Gospel is clear. Don’t take that patience for granted.Repent of any small godlessness you’re clinging to.

  • Forgive the recent and long ago hurts you’ve locked up inside.
  • Make amends for any meannesses you can remember.
  • “Show and Tell” your love to the people who love you.
  • Show and Tell your blessing to the people who don’t.
  • Be Mercy every time you get a chance.

Paul says it like this: Live the truth in love.

Let’s do it while we can.

Music: Amazing Grace ~ sung by Sean Clive

The Night Watches

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Courage, Faith, Hope, Prayer, spirituality2 Comments

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Readings: Click here

Today, in Mercy,  Luke’s Gospel describes the expectant fidelity God gives us and desires from us.

The master of the house was away on a long journey. Likely he would have tried to return home in daylight, because the ancient roads were dark and menacing at night. Perhaps the evening meal was already prepared in anticipation of his arrival. But he does not appear over the distant rise where all the household’s eyes are trained.

Lk 12_28 night watchJPG

You know how they waited. You’ve waited for loved ones coming home in bad weather. You’ve waited for beloved holiday guests when flights are delayed or traffic is snarled.

You watch for headlights cresting down the far road. You listen for the sound of a car door closing. Minutes seem like hours. The perfectly prepared meal cools, and your energy slackens as you pick at the olives and breadsticks.

Sometimes our prayer life feels like that. We do all the things necessary to welcome God’s grace, but instead we feel distant from the Divine Presence. We long for God’s warm blessing over the feast of our life, but God tarries somewhere at the other edge of our hope.  We feel like these Gospel servants who wait, exhausted, even into the early morning hours.

But we don’t give up. Our hope remains steadfast because God has promised. And it is in that fidelity that our eyes are opened to realize that God had been present all along — just not looking as we had expected.

It turns out that God is the One who had been waiting… waiting for us to see.

Music: A country tune today, maybe overly simple. But I find some country music has a profound nugget of truth buried in the twang. I hope you can enjoy it.

He Was There All the Time ~ Gary S. Paxton

I Always Thank God for You

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Community, Hope, Love, Prayer, Thanksgiving2 Comments

Saturday, October 20, 2018

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/102018.cfm

Ephesians 1_18 Blessed be

Today, in Mercy, we read the magnificent Ephesians prayer, spoken by Paul over his beloved community — and over us.  The phrases are like sacred honey, each one to be individually savored and consumed.

  • I never cease giving thanks for you
  • May God give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation
  • May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened
  • May you know what is the hope that belongs to God’s call
  • … what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones
  • … and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe

Wow! What if we prayed for one another like that? What if we prayed for ourselves like that?

Sometimes we, and our companions on life’s journey, do require prayers for a specific need: recovery from illness, strength in a time of trial, courage in darkness.  

But we should pray for one another every day – a prayer that transcends specific needs – a prayer for wisdom, faith, understanding, and wild confidence in God’s loving  power in our lives.

Such a prayer, like Paul’s, helps create a web of spiritual resilience for our beloveds, around them and within them. This is the power of the Communion of Saints.

Let us pray like this for each other.

Music: Ephesians Hymn I, Suzanne Toolan, RSM

Look Good or Do Good? Hmmm.

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Gospel, holiness, Holy Spirit, Hope, joy, Love, Mercy, peace, spirituality2 Comments

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/101718.cfm

Today, in Mercy, our readings continue the theme of sincere faith versus hypocritical practices.

Paul really lets the Galatian community have it. Apparently, their behavior had slipped pretty low!  Paul’s list of things to be avoided contains some shocking stuff, like orgies, bursts of fury, and drinking bouts. Sounds bad! A lot worse, I hope, than any list he might make about us if he were writing now. I wonder?

Lk 11_42 spices

In our Gospel, Jesus let’s loose on some of the Pharisees too. He points out that they practice the tiniest, visible observances so that people see them as holy. But they ignore the more important requirements of love, justice and mercy. In other words, they look good but don’t do good.

As we pray with these readings, we could try to address the small hypocrisies in our own lives – a kind of “weed the garden” approach. Surely it would help our spiritual life to get rid of anything like orgies, fury and drunkenness. But I think most of us, dear readers, are pretty much beyond that. 🙏

I prefer to take my cues from Paul’s accompanying list of virtues to be pursued: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. How obvious are these things in my life? When I lie my head on the pillow at night, are these the things I remember about my day? Have I given these gifts to others? Have I received them with gratitude?

As we read about the tithes of mint, rue and other garden herbs, the cooks among us might like to imagine life as a great bouillabaisse, perfectly seasoned for God with all the spices on Paul’s menu. What little herb do you need to add right now?

Music: The Fruits of the Spirit ~ Selah

Bless the Children

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Faith, Hope, joy, Love1 Comment

Sunday, October 7, 2018

Readings:  http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/100718.cfm

Today, in Mercy, our Psalm for the day offers us a tender blessing.  One of the most striking phrases of the blessing is “May you see your children’s children.”

Psalm 128

Indeed, how grateful we are for the children in our families — no matter how old they are! What a gift to be renewed by their simplicity, openness, and dearness.What a joy to watch these next generations rise to their adulthood in grace and honor. What a particular blessing to live to see their children claim a heritage of life and goodness.

I hope you won’t mind me continuing on a personal note, as I did in yesterday’s reflection. On this celebration weekend, my family also marks the birthday of my oldest niece – a paragon of responsibility, honor and goodness. She was the first bright star of our next generation and our family treasures her.

Similar to yesterday’s reflection, we should also let our younger family and friends know how we love them, what great hope and joy we find in them, how grateful we are for them.  We should pray constantly for their life in the spirit, for their strength in this shifting world, and for their friendship with God. We should be light for them, as our elders have been for us.

May we never take for granted what we have been given by the ones who come after us, who carry our hope and life into the future.

Music: – sung by the inimitable Bob Dylan, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature – a singer whom one either loves or hates. I hope you love his rendition of Forever Young.

The Illusion of Time

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Eternal Life, Faith, Hope, Love, spiritualityLeave a comment

Friday, September 28, 2018

                      Readings:  http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/092818.cfm

Today, in Mercy, we read about time, that elusive framework that binds our days.  We are so conscious of time, still it defies all our efforts to define or control it. It lumbers when we want it to skip. It flies when we long for it to tarry. Once it has passed, we wonder where it went. We find the long, vibrant years compressed to a distant, gossamer memory.

Eces3_1 time

Time can create in us a sense of urgency, a deadline for us to make a mark on its surface. But Ecclesiastes counsels us to be patient, telling us there is a time for everything – a segment in our life story for us to plumb each emotion. 

As we read through his antiphonal list of life’s realities, we are conscious of the ones we would rather eliminate – the down side of experience. But the scribe suggests that even life’s shadowed side serves to hone us for eternity. 

Faith allows us to stand in balanced trust on the crossbeam of our shifting lives. Hope causes us to expect light out of every darkness. Love convinces us that our timeless God abides with us beyond time’s testing.

In our Gospel, Jesus is conscious that he is coming to the end of his time. As many of us do when we are feeling unsure of ourselves, Jesus asks his disciples what people are saying about him. They respond in glowing accolades – Elijah, the Baptist returned from the dead, the Christ, Son of God. But Jesus knows it is not a time for accolades. He rebukes them with a somber forecast of darkening times.

Even Jesus, Son of the Eternal God, experienced time’s shifting waves. Praying the Gospel daily, living with Jesus through his highs and lows, is the steady fulcrum in our own uneven seas.

Music: In His Time ~ CRC Worship