by Sister Mary Kabat
I often find myself humming songs I hear during the day or songs
from my past. When I prayed the Scripture readings for this
Sunday, a song came from out of my past, way back from high school!
What the world needs now is love, sweet love ... no not just
for some but for everyone.
That song from Burt Bacharach would probably not appeal to people
today, but its message is still sorely needed. In all three
Scripture readings this Sunday, our loving God challenges us to
open our hearts as wide for others as His heart is opened wide for
you and me and for every one of His children who are so precious to
Him. God is asking us to open our hearts as a loving parent
and to see all persons as a beloved sister and brother. In
other words, as St. Paul writes in the Letter to the Philippians,
"complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love,
united in heart ... have in you the same attitude that is also in
Christ Jesus." Phil 2: 2, 5
So when the car ahead of me is going more slowly than I would
like, I imagine that my elderly Dad is driving that car and I
become much more patient. When someone does something that
irritates me, I imagine that person is my sister whom I dearly
love, and the irritation disappears. When I am angry about
something not so really important, I imagine that I am adding more
anger to our world already overfilled with intolerance, hate and
violence and my heart with God's grace begins to soften.
Dear Loving God, make our minds and hearts more and more like
yours.
Loved the reflection about putting a father or sister in the picture when the temper ignites. I have those feelings many times in the xcourse of the day especially on the road.
God Bless and glad to see you're writing again. We will keep you in our prayers.
jack
Thanks Sister. I always liked that song too. What the world needs now is love. How true!
Inspiring reflection, Sister Mary.
Thank you!
Mary, what a powerful message. Your thoughts really made me think of that person driving 10 miles an hour & you are so right we don't need anymore anger in our world. Thank you
Mary, I so love the way you incorporate the Scriptures into everyday life...and everyday experiences we can all relate with. Thanks for your inspiration fran