Christ Jesus, replace the fears and troubles in my heart with your peace…

 
John 14:21-27-31a
 
Just as there are storms in the weather of the land, so storms come and go in the weather of our hearts. Some storms are expected and ‘normal’, giving us ‘cloudy weather’ for a while.  But it is the unexpected, ferocious storms, like the derecho storms that swept through Ontario last weekend, that seem to come out of the blue, that can wreck our lives with their fierce winds of change and the devastating tornados that sometimes rip through our hearts, minds, souls and strength.  It is these fierce storms that especially build up fears and troubles that seem to consume our very beings and threaten to spit us out on a garbage heap.  Thanks be to God, we are designed for peace that the world cannot give!  And when we seek that peace in the person of Christ Jesus who seemed to have been wrecked  by his own derecho [de-reck-o] storm – the crucifixion – we too can experience the resurrection that he experienced on the third day. Again and again, we find out and know that the clouds and winds do eventually clear away, so that the sun shines upon us again. That sun of God’s mercy, IS always there, above and beyond any clouds, any storms, even any derechos, that life can throw at us. The fact is, it is through God’s mercy that any tree, any flower, any plant, and any human being, grows and flourishes. And like all things, God uses even the storms to adjust his creation to bring it to fullness and new life. Today will I let myself be stormed-tossed, and consumed, or will I seek a safe refuge in the presence of Jesus, to breathe in the presence of the Holy Spirit and drink deeply of His Peace? Christ Jesus, replace the fears and troubles in my heart with your peace.
 
He has raised up a power for his people, praise for all his faithful, for the people … who are close to him. (Psalm 148:14)
 
There is a light in this world, a healing spirit more powerful than any darkness we may encounter. We sometimes lose sight of this force when there is suffering, too much pain. Then suddenly, the spirit will emerge through the lives of ordinary people who hear a call and answer in extraordinary ways.
Saint Mother Teresa
 
Soli ad gloriam
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