I am sure we all know what the initials
“RIP” stand for when we see them on a tombstone.
It stands for “Rest in Peace”. (Not - Rise If Possible!)
For you and me, if we wore a T-shirt
with the big letters RIP – they most likely stand for “Rest If Possible”. In our
society, we are plagued with busyness.
In fact, we can be so busy that RIP can
also mean “Ripped Into Pieces”.
Maybe that is why we look forward to
Vacations and Summer. We want to get away from it all, to have some rest and
some peace. And yet we carry along our mobile devices so as to be connected to
the world.
We are always busy; we are always “on
the go”. But where are we going?
Today’s Gospel invites us to discover
the importance of resting in the Lord.
The Apostles were retuning from their first
mission of healing, teaching and preaching. There were exhilarated, but they
were also hungry, exhausted, and in need of rest, both physical and spiritual.
And that’s when Jesus jammed on the
brakes and told them, "Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and
rest a while."
When we think about it, rest and peace
are so elusive, aren’t they?
For example, parents will never rest
from their responsibilities, and they will always worry about their grown up
children.
Those who are sick long for a good
night’s rest without pain.
Those who have done something wrong
long for peace and reconciliation.
So, what is it that Jesus is teaching
us in the Gospel?
Life is about getting to know God,
loving God and serving God.
We all need silence and space for
ourselves and also for God. We need to
rest in the Lord with our heart - to meditate and contemplate His presence.
We need to give ourselves - Times with
God. TIMES
Sometimes we do not know how to be
still and listen, and we deny God the chance to recharge us or to give us His
Peace!
Prayer, Silence, and Adoration are
essentially being with God, listening to God and talking with Him.
Allowing God the opportunity to be with
us and recharge us with spiritual energy and strength is important. Always
being aware of His Presence..
We can focus on bringing God into our
Times as opposed to waiting to find the time.
Start with:
Ø
5
or 10 min or silence each day.
Ø
Bring
God into all that you Do - each endeavor.
Ø
Stop
and Pray and be aware of God
Ø
While
in a line or waiting at a Light say a Hail Mary
Ø
Thought,
smile, wink to God in midst of your activity.
Ø
Thank
you for sunset, beauty, person in your life.
Ø
Make
your life a Blessing to God by how you live it.
The Lord speaks powerfully to us in His
Love Letter (Bible), when we spend time each day meditating on the message God
gives us it will open our hearts.
Too much constant activity without rest
and we cannot function. We must be
Re-Created from time to time.
We need to rest and to re-energize just
as Jesus intended to do together with His apostles.
My Dear Friends, let us remind
ourselves that Christian life consists of meeting with God in the secret place
of our heart, so that we may serve people more effectively in the market place
of the world.
Yet like Jesus whose heart was moved by
the crowd, we can make ourselves available when really needed.
In doing so, we may be able to pattern
ourselves after the Good Shepherd Himself, Jesus, who surely will be pleased
with us.
Close with Isaiah 41:10
Do not be afraid: I am with you;
do not be discourage for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you,
I will uphold you up with my victorious right hand.
Praise Be Jesus Christ, Now and Forever, Amen!
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