Learning to be Quick to Listen

Did you know that there is a group that names a Single Christian of the Year? I didn't and thought the news story was perhaps kidding me. I did click and read it and was not surprised to learn that Tim Tebow of the Denver Broncos had been selected. Tebow says he is saving himself for marriage, meaning that he is still a virgin. He has been a good role model and has been very vocal about his belief in Christ. Hopefully he has brought many sports fans to the Lord and for that I thank him. While we are on the subject of sports, I wanted to pass along a story I read about Russell Shepard. He plays for the LSU Tigers and is originally from Houston, Texas. Apparently, he has a younger brother who is not as athletically skilled as Russell but nevertheless plays football. The younger brother is a senior in high school and got a scholarship offer to play at McNeese State University next year, which is located in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Russell was so thankful that his brother had received ...

Happy birthday Mother Teresa (or more officially Blessed Teresa of Calcutta). She would have been 100 years old today. I am sure she is working hard in Heaven just as she did on earth for her Holy Father. So many people have been blessed by her presence and work. For such a tiny person, she made a loud noise but not in the usual way. It was her example, her faith with works, that brought so many people to Jesus. She continues to do that thirteen years after her death. As she often said, "Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person." Happy birthday beautiful lady.

If you saw Jesus on the street today and He asked you to follow Him, what would you do? Quick, make the choice! In our heart, I am sure we would say yes Lord and follow Him. It is the question asked in Sidewalk Prophets current single You Can Have Me. They go on to add the catch, "But I had to give up everything; All I once held dear and all of my dreams; Would I love You enough to let go; Or would my love run dry; When You asked for my life" It is, of course, the question that Jesus asked his apostles. They did follow him and left behind their old way of life. It made me think, would I even see Jesus in the streets of today? There are so many distractions. We are all so busy. Would I take the time to stop and talk to Jesus? If the answer is no, that signals a deeper problem. If we are indeed too busy for Jesus, what are we doing with our time that is more important? What are we doing with our time that will take care of us eternally? Are we building up the Kingdom of God wit...

I for one have decided to boycott Best Buy and Geek Squad. Here is why. Two years ago, Father Luke Strand, then a deacon in his last year of studies to become a priest of the Milwaukee Archdiocese, came into the spotlight for his unusual looking car. Riding around town in a black Volkswagen Beetle with a Roman collar painted on the hood, a "God Squad" logo on the sides, and a personalized license plate GODLVYA proudly proclaiming his mission, he attracted attention on the roads. The car, along with his laid-back nature and outgoing personality, sparked faith-filled conversations with friends and strangers alike. Now an associate pastor at Holy Family Parish in Fond du Lac, Father Strand is again in the public eye for his God Squad vehicle: The logo is too similar to Best Buy's Geek Squad trademark. In mid-August, Father Strand received a letter from the Minnesota-based consumer electronics company requesting that he "cease-and-desist" his God Squad logo, because...

Pope Benedict XVI named Redemptorist Fr. Joseph Tobin as the new secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, colloquially known as the "Congregation for Religious." It’s the office with lead responsibility for some 190,000 religious priests and brothers, and roughly 750,000 sisters, worldwide. Tobin is the Superior General of the Redemptorists from 1997 to 2009 and becomes an archbishop by virtue of the appointment. As someone who has been influenced by Redemptorists growing up, I know that they are terrific priests that become very involved in the community life of the parishes they serve. This is a wonderful accomplishment for the order. Fr. Tobin was born in Detroit, Michigan, on May 3. 1952. He is the oldest of 13 children of Joseph (deceased) and Marie Terese Tobin. Tobin was baptized at and attended a Redemptorist Parish, Holy Redeemer Church, and entered the Redemptorist minor seminary in the autumn of 1966. He ent...

My help comes from the Lord. How often do I say this throughout the day? I am slowly coming to realize how true this statement is and hearing The Museum sing these same words helps to remind me in a beautiful way. It, of course, is a scripture quoted from the Bible . Psalms 121 :2-4 tells us, "My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. God will not allow your foot to slip; your guardian does not sleep. Truly, the guardian of Israel never slumbers nor sleeps." Now that provides the comfort we are all searching for. God, our guardian, is always there to help and protect us. He is ever present if we just turn to Him. I have a friend who is walking so strongly with the Lord. During a recent torrential thunderstorm, she remarked, "thank you Lord for washing my car, it needed it." I just smiled because she is really allowing God to permeate her every fiber. I like rain and think that lightening displays the power of God but I never thought to look at a st...

Hearing the readings this past Sunday at Mass has left a lasting impression on me. I returned to Ecclesiastes Chapter 1 to read the entire passage after hearing a teaser. We heard 1:2 which says, "Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!" But the next two lines are just as telling, "What profit has man from all the labor which he toils at under the sun? One generation passes and another comes, but the world forever stays." It speaks of the futility that many of us pursue in trying to collect as many possessions as we can. It reminds us of how easily it is to be consumed by false gods and idols rather than concentrating on God's plan for us. In 1:11 it says, "There is no remembrance of the men of old; nor of those to come will there be any remembrance among those who come after them." A very relevant remark for this age. We are constantly trying to reinvent ourselves, our society and our world but the problem with mo...

Some of the oldest images of the Apostles Andrew, John, Peter, and Paul were recently uncovered in the catacombs of Rome. Art restorers in Italy made the discovery using laser technology. They appear to be from the second half of the 4th Century or the early 5th Century. The tomb belonged to a Roman noblewoman in the Santa Tecla catacomb and had come to light over two years ago but the restoration process has just now allowed the images to be accessed so that proper identification could be made of the pictures. Some of the folks working on the project note that the images certainly had an influence on later pictures of the Apostles. The project leader, Barbara Mazzei, said that the find was very emotional. The project is being funded by the Vatican. It is times like these when I am glad that science continues to be used in matters like this. We walk by faith and now that the Apostles were real people but it is nice to have validation of this sort. Having these images also allows us to ...