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Deacon’s Beacon: Come In From the Cold

“Come in from the cold”

After a mild November and December, with the start of January, winter has come crashing down on us. In our back yard, we have a feral cat that we’ve been feeding for many years.

We have tried many times to have her move inside where she would be warm, loved and comforted; but she is afraid to make the move from the known to the unknown. So she remains outside alone, facing the cold and uncertainties of life.

I thought that this is similar to our relationship with God. God is always available to us. Inviting us to join with Him – but many times we’re afraid to “make the leap”. We see examples of this fear and uncertainty in today’s First Reading from the Book of Job.

Job’s life had turned from joy and success into pain and suffering. He says, “Is not man’s life on earth a drudgery?” Job is suffering out in the cold. Finally, Job realizes that all things come from God. He repents, trusts God and shares what he has.

Job’s response to pain and suffering may reflect his faith and trust in God. Our readiness to be compassionate and reach out to those suffering and in need reflects our spiritual growth and trust in God.

Job’s world is not much different than life today. Our daily news talks of mass migrations on many continents, wars around the world, poverty. Our own life has “issues” that cause stress and concern – they may be job issues, the rising impact of inflation, and other issues.

“Come in to the warm love of God”

God is always available to us, we only need to make the time to recognize His presence in our life – When we do this, we have faith in God. We recognize our reliance on God as the source of all good in our life.

As St. Francis deSales says, “We shall steer safely through every storm so long as our heart is right, our intention fervent, our courage steadfast, and our trust fixed on God.”

But, “What good is faith without good works?” (James 2:4) Our ministry to our brothers and sisters is where we live our “faith.”

In today’s gospel, Jesus visits Peter’s mother-in-law and heals her. She then gets up and waits on the visitors. As we are healed by God’s graces, we are called to service those in need. Fortunately, Our Lady of the Wayside offers many opportunities to be of service to people of need. Here is some information on a few:

Our sharing parish activities – Our Lady of Unity (OLU) Food pantry activities – On the second Sunday of the month we collect food donations at the OLW garage to deliver to OLU on the following Saturday. There are two teams (collecting and delivering)… The Christmas Giving Tree, collects gift cards for the OLU community. We will see more about these sharing activities in a future article.

Other Social Justice and Outreach activities include Respect Life, St. Vincent DePaul, Special Needs ministries, Knights of Columbus, and many more.

That Man is You (TMIY) Is an excellent opportunity for men to receive spiritual and practical ways to deal with the pressures of our secular society.

In ten days, Lent begins, an excellent time for prayer, reflection, and change. This is a wonderful time to examine our lives and see what changes we would like to make.

It’s our choice! Like the feral cat in the back yard, we can stay cold and lonely – or we can come in to the warmth and joy of God’s love.

For more information on these and other service ministries please contact me at irenetomc@hotmail.com.

Thank you and have a blessed and fruitful Lenten and Easter season.

Deacon Tom Corcoran.