1/15/2011

A gift is freely given

When have you given away something precious?
Perhaps you gave away a favorite book.
Perhaps you gave away a family heirloom (a ring or a watch...)
Perhaps it was a favorite sweater or an only pet.
Perhaps you have given away money to charity or to a beggar on the street.
Perhaps you have gifted someone with a favorite home-cooked meal
or some fresh-baked cookies.

These are but a few precious items we may have given away.
The true question is in the giving of your time and your heart, however.

When was the last time you gave away a smile

to someone who may have been frowning at you?
When have you given of your time unexpectedly and without prior appointment?
When was the last time you gave away a moment in prayer for the forgotten souls
(in particular, the souls in purgatory)?
When did you pause to acknowledge the presence of God, in your life?
To be lifted in a moment of ecstasy while contemplating the wonders of our world?


We must learn to live in a fast-paced world
by
keeping a dignified and unhurried pace in our walk
so that we may not let precious moments pass us by...

1/14/2011

Life is a Gift

At every stage in life...
life is a gift.


From the moment a new life
is conceived in the womb of his/her mother...

life begins...
as it is freely given by God.


What beauty and wonders life brings!
What sadness, trials, joys and triumphs we experience!
All of this is freely poured out through the gift of life...
By the hand of the one and only Father of us all!