//Terry Hershey//
Wage Peace
Minute Meditation – Your Body Can be Trusted
Rather than being taught how to listen to and honor your body’s messages with discernment, you have most likely been taught to seek mastery over your body through controlling things such as the amount of food consumed, the intensity of exercise, and your dress size. In some circles, this is even painted in religious language and made to seem pious— as though achieving dominance over your physical self indicates some kind of spiritual gift. But this mastery mindset separates the divinely intertwined parts of yourself. If you are seeking to dominate your body, there is no way to hear and trust the messages she is trying to send you. Your body is not something separate from you for you to control.
Your brain was not created to dominate your body, but to live together in a harmonious relationship. Trusting your body will teach you something about trusting yourself. When you practice deep listening within your body, you will begin to learn how to listen deeply to your truest self, too. Everything is connected. There is no separation within the parts of God’s own self, and there need not be any separation in you, either. This is one mysterious way you embody the image of God.
—from Luminous: A 30-Day Journal for Accepting Your Body, Honoring Your Soul,
and Finding Your Joy by Shannon K. Evans
//Franciscan Media//
Daily Message from Pope Francis – We Cannot Lose Sight of Heaven
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2021
“I would like to reiterate that if we want to preserve fraternity on Earth, “we cannot lose sight of Heaven.”… Yes, true religiosity consists in adoring God and loving one’s neighbour. And we believers cannot exempt ourselves from these essential religious choices: rather than demonstrating something, we are called to show the paternal presence of the God of heaven through our harmony on earth.” Pope Francis
Meditation of the Day – Action Relies Upon Contemplation
“Action relies upon contemplation for its fruitfulness; and contemplation, in its turn, as soon as it has reached a certain degree of intensity, pours out upon our active works some of its overflow. And it is by contemplation that the soul goes to draw directly upon the Heart of God for the graces which it is the duty of the active life to distribute. And so, in the soul of a saint, action and contemplation merge together in perfect harmony to give perfect unity to his life.”— Dom Jean-Baptist Chautard, p. 62
//Catholic Company//
Daily Devotion – Partnership
“As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brethren, they are messengers of the churches, a glory to Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 8:23 NASB
| Paul knew that his ministry was a partnership. He couldn’t do the work alone. He needed others. Writing to Christians in Corinth, he described Titus as his “fellow worker.” Titus merited this position because he had been “tested and found diligent” and proven trustworthy (v. 22). Paul stressed partnership in an earlier letter to this same church where there were divisions. Some were loyal to Apollos while others favored Paul. But Paul said divided loyalties must be eliminated. Everyone needed to work together. Using the analogy of crops, Paul described how some watered while others planted. But it was God who caused the growth. Using the same word he used to describe Titus, Paul said that we are God’s “fellow workers” (1 Corinthians 3:4-9). Paul was reinforcing the principles Jesus taught. The world may urge us to think first about ourselves but, in God’s Kingdom, rewards are given to everyone who contributes in any way. As Jesus said, “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward” (Matthew 10:41). Each believer is important. Each believer has unique gifts. And we are to work together in harmony as fellow workers and partners. Seek to fulfill God’s call on your life. Seek to serve Him and the body of Christ. Invest the resources God has given you. He knows your heart and what you do. And He will reward you based on your faithfulness. PrayerFather, use me to impact lives for Your Kingdom. Help me to be a faithful servant and a trustworthy partner. In Jesus’ name, amen. Extended Reading: 2 Corinthians 8 |