Monthly Archives: February 2012

Lift someone up

It was Jesus turn to visit the mother-in-law of Peter today. He brought healing, not simply by uttering a few words of wisdom and a few special prayers of a God. But by simply lifting her up from her fallen-ness. Jesus brought life back to her, because he was willing to life her up from the miseries of human life. He was able to bent down, sit down, and be at the level of a woman who was not feeling well not simply physically but socially, spiritually and emotionally.

Lifting someone up at times is not easy. For they pull us down. Stooping down is not easy, for it makes us uncomfortable. But the reality is many people need a boost up. They are waiting for someone to lift them up not finally many times, but spiritually and emotionally. Those that are feverishly burning the other and ourselves will leave us the moment we have to courage to lift someone else up to the level of grace. Nothing else matters.

Act on it: Stop, and listen when everything in you says oh, it is a waste of time that I am spending with this person today. Give a hand, with a touch on the shoulder and a gaze into their eyes, assure someone they are not alone this day. It takes simply two minutes to gaze into the depth of someone’s fears, anger, anxiety and apathy. They will be lifted out of their fever and fear, and you shall do what Jesus did.

Fr. Jos+
copyright: Fr. Jos Tharakan

Look for Jesus

Haven’t you seen a child that wakes up in the morning looking for his mother? What drives the child is the memory of the mother, the one who tucked him or her in, the one who said the stories and sang the lullabies the night before when he was scared or lonely to go to sleep. Memories of great times is what makes him want mommy even more the following morning. He is looking for mommy all over.

I am sure you have memories of Jesus manifest in your life more than usual at some point in time. I am sure you have exclaimed with great relief thank God for this unexpected blessing I got. If you search hard enough there will be days and days of blessed moments, from which you have to extract the memories of love, friendship, and care. Extract the moments of surprise and jubilation. They are not to be forgotten or left behind.

This very act of bringing into memories of blessedness is what is called looking for Jesus.

Action plan: Take about three minutes of this day reflecting on the most blessed moment of your life. Bring all the characters from that moment into the forefront of your thought. Allow the people involved in that incident to be part of your life again no matter where they are and or what they have done. Look for Jesus. He was once with them, and will be again in the future.

Fr. Jos+
© Fr. Jos Tharakan

Learn to forgive

Do you know anyone in your life who hasn’t been hurt by someone else? Look into your own life and think about the number of times you were hurt by someone by a uncaring word, thoughtless verbal attacks, careless conversation and the list can go on and on. Imagine the number of times you must have done the same without actually meaning to hurt someone. If you find yourself simply not capable of doing it, think again. Our memory cheats us many times. We have done it over and over, truly without any malice. People are hurt because we were uncaring and thoughtless in the past.

Now letting the hurts go might give us an insight into what others must have been feeling. Let go of what does not belong to you. For it was the uncaring words of someone else and a thoughtless actions of somebody else. Not yours. So, give it up. Don’t hold on to what is not yours and life will be easier.

Act up on it: Take a few minute of this morning, nothing more than three minutes of course. Find from the lockers of your mind three names you find hard to believe that they hurt you. Think about three people you must have done the same to. Learn to forgive because in forgiveness, we shall be forgiven without our asking for it.

Fr. Jos+
© Fr. Jos Tharakan

Seized By The Spirit

Seized By The Spirit

As you awaken into the fullness of this day, allow the Spirit of God to seize you. This would mean that you are aware of the moments of this day where the Spirit of God could lead you into different actions than you would otherwise do. Jesus was seized by the Spirit on a regular basis. His day became full by the events of the Spirit rather than the choices of a human. He was open to the inner voice that guided him through to the evening hours of the night.

When seized by the Spirit, we are never unable to fulfill the demands of daily life, no matter how hard it might feel like. There will be a joy that is beyond your control that strengthens you to accept, adapt and change to the growing need of someone around you. It is only when you are seized by the Spirit you can be seized by God.

Action Plan: Take a three minutes of reflection this morning, consciously wondering, what other options are available to me this day to be a bette person? What choices will I be left with as the day progresses into the evening? Allow the Spirit to seize you through the moment by taking short breaks to let this Spirit be present to you.

Happy and Blessed Day
Fr. Jos+
copyright: Fr. Jos Tharakan

Learn to Trust

We live in a world that has lost it’s trust. We don’t trust our financial institutions, political leaders, religious leaders and sometimes our own family members. There is enough reason for it. Blaming the failures of others won’t take us too far. It will fill us with fear, frustration and anger. We will not see a way out of it either. Therefore, let us turn the focus to ourselves today.

How about being a person whom others can trust? How about becoming that person you wish others could be so that everyone else around you will learn to trust you because you keep your word, your love and life? It is building a habit of trusting yourself, and all that you are about to do in keeping with your words, a world of trusting partnerships are made.

Action plan: Ask yourself if you are willing to trust yourself? Believe people around you have the best intention, even when they fail to fulfill it. Failure to fulfill something is not the lack of good intent, it is the lack of good discipline. Therefore build great discipline and good focus.

God be with you.

Blessings

Fr. Jos+ (C)

Pray For

Jesus continued to pray for people even beyond the horizons he was familiar with or used to, or for that matter comfortable with. In that bunch were people who were thinking of killing him, conniving against him and obstructing the justice of God. Jesus prayed for those who will understand him and follow him as well. But more, he prayed for those that were not in the bunch.

Praying for people beyond our imagination is not an easy thing to do. For example those who think of harming you, your family, and your country. Pray for those that are not in your bunch today and pray for those that are away for whatever be the reason. People are away not in body many times. They are away for reasons only known to us and not to them. It can be a misunderstanding, fear, anger, disappointment caused or whatever. If you can go into the innermost hidden corners of your heart, you will find a way to see who needs your prayers today.

Action Plan: Take a three minutes break. Close your eyes, and think about those whom you have shut down for reasons that you don’t wish to talk about to a confessor, priest, preacher, friend or even your spouse. Pray for that person you would like to talk about least even to the one who is most dear to you. Pray for those that are not in your bunch in the minutes of silence and then Lent will be on.