God’s Eyes (Tobit 2:14) by Kevin McNicholas

02 Jun God’s Eyes (Tobit 2:14) by Kevin McNicholas

“Where are your charitable deeds now? Where are your righteous acts? Look! All that has happened to you is well known!” ~ Tobit 2:14 (full readings)
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Kevin’s Reflections:  Tobit’s wife Anna was right to call him out here! Anna said this out of love, to help Tobit recognize God in his sufferings, rather than to wallow in his anger about being blinded. Anger and unforgiveness can make us blind to what God truly wants for us, and Tobit was blind in both the literal and spiritual sense here. We are on earth to serve God by building one another up, and it came as a real revelation to me when I learned that we are in relationship with one another to bring each other closer to Heaven. Eternity with God is a far greater prize than anything the world could ever offer me. I try to choose the right thing, but as Tobit did, I sometimes miss out on what God is truly trying to tell me. He always tells me to do right, but in His way, not in mine. His plan for righteousness is always greater than mine! Looking at situations, and more importantly, seeing others with God’s Eyes rather than my human perspective is very difficult sometimes. It is much easier to harbor anger towards others who have wronged me, and I have a long memory when it comes to that! It is my struggle to accept that we all share in the suffering of Christ when we allow persecutions without retaliation. I need to remember this: if others hurt us as Christians, they persecute Christ as well. He is Risen to conquer sin and death, and since He has already won the victory over sin and opened the gates to Heaven, I think my path to sanctity could be marked by forgiveness, since that is what I most struggle with. If I want to be a Saint and spend eternity with God, I first need to learn to forgive others from my heart, rather than holding on to how I was wronged. Today I am going to pray for the forgiveness of my sins, and also for the courage to forgive those who have wronged me.
* Kevin is a School Social Worker in Southern Illinois. He and his wife Laura have been blessed with two living miracles: a 2 1/2 year old daughter named Elliana (“the Lord Answers”) and a 1 year old son named Jeremiah (“God is Exalted”). They have also been blessed during the 9+ years of their marriage to be able to visit Catholic pilgrimage sites worldwide, as well as to serve their Parish and community..

Faith Challenge:   Pray today for the courage to forgive the one person you struggle with the most. I have found it is often those closest to us who are hardest to forgive, our most loved ones can hurt us the most, though more importantly, they can love us the most. Forgive out of love for God.

Counter-Culture News: LifeSiteNews, LifeNews, American Family, Vatican, Project Rachel..
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Our Prayers: Pray LIFE Runners Creed to End Abortion.  Add Prayers. Pray with meals, bedtime, wake up, unceasingly. Consider mid-week Family Rosary (17 min). Let’s pray now.
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Feast Day:  Saint Erasmus
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Faith Quote:  “The purpose of every relationship is to bring each other closer to God and spend eternity in Heaven.” ~ Laura Goetten McNicholas

Through Christ our Lord,
Kevin McNicholas
Lk 1:37