Your grace is enough

So, I had my iPod with me on my commute this morning and I switch playlists to "Empty and Beautiful" by Matt Maher. What an album! The first cut is "Your Grace is Enough" and man, it's a catchy tune. So, I'm listening and dancing a little when I realize something...the grace of God IS enough for me. There's a prayer written by the founder of the Jesuit order, St. Ignatius of Loyola that fits right in with this thought. In the prayer, Ignatius asks for the love and grace of Christ- and, with these, he is rich enough and would ask for nothing more. And that is so fitting for a life with Christ. If we have His amazing love and endless grace, then we are rich enough indeed. We can get so caught up in what the world says will make us happy that we forget who is the only source of true joy- Jesus Christ. Grace is enough, everything else that is good in our lives is a bonus. The Grace given to us by the Father is something we cannot earn, but is a gift that He bestows on us because He loves us. 

1 Timothy 3:15

Reflections on St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me a channel of Your Peace.
Where there is hatredn let me bring Your Love
Where there is injury, pardon
Where there is doubt, true faith
Where there is despair, let me bring hope
Where there is darkness, only Light
And where there is sadness, ever joy
Oh Divine Mastern grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console.
To be understood as to understand
Or to be loved as to love with all my soul.
For it is in pardoning that we are pardoned. It is in giving of ourselves that we receive. And ot is in dying that we are born into eternal life.
- Saint Francis of Assisi

I have always loved that prayer, because it expresses the true mission of every Christian. Francis of Assisi continues to inspire many Christians to live the Gospel as Christ taught. He often told his followers to "preach the Gospel at all times; and when necessary, use words". The quote reminds me to not just talk the talk, but walk the walk. We live our faith when we comfort the grieving, feed the hungry, defend the weak, stand for what is right and proclaim to the world that Jesus Christ is Lord and His Kingdom is here. One of the symbols associated with Franciscans the world over is the Tau cross. The letter Tau is the last in the Hebrew alphabet. To me, this would have appealed to Francis and his followers as they always sought to be the least in society. The Tau reminds me of a Franciscan friar standing tall, arms open wide to love all humanity.