How Can I ?

There so much to be grateful for to Merciful God, His Angels and Saints and to His people in the first half of this year which ends today. I feel overwhelmed with gratitude to God's Mercy and to love and care of so many great people I have been blessed to meet and interact with in the past six months. Thank you!

"How can I repay the LORD for all the great good done for me? I will raise the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD". (Ps 116:12-13)

New Year 2015

The last day of the 'old year', December 31, has been always to me a special and opportune time to recapitulate the proceedings of the past twelve months in the eyes of faith and in a quadruple ambiance of prevailing feelings of:

1. Adoration and praise of God,
2. Gratitude to God and people I was blessed to meet, work and interact with,
3. Repentance for what was lacking in me and my service and asking for pardon from God and people I offended, even if not purposefully,
4. Hope and consecration to God's Mercy and Providence for the year to come.

It is no different today. This is exactly how I feel, meditate upon, think about, recollect and pray.

I will not dare to attempt to commit to this post what has happened in the past twelve months of this year. Instead, I will celebrate a special Thanksgiving Mass this evening immersing in Divine Mercy Ocean this year, all people I met, everything that has happened, all that we and I were able to achieve, everyone and everything, with all my hopes, dreams, passions, plans for the next year.

Thank you, Lord! Thank you, all my loved ones, friends, benefactors, readers of my blog and all I met this year! At the same time I ask God and all of you for pardon and absolution for my mistakes, failures and shortcomings.

I wish us all a wonderful New 2015 Year full of God's Love, Light, Power, Joy and Peace. A year full of personal accomplishments and genuine satisfaction.

Sweet Little Curious Fellow

Yesterday's Sunday Gospel read:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink,
or about your body, what you will wear.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds in the sky;
they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns,
yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are not you more important than they?
Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span?
Why are you anxious about clothes?
Learn from the way the wild flowers grow.
They do not work or spin.
But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor
was clothed like one of them.
If God so clothes the grass of the field,
which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow,
will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?
So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’
or ‘What are we to drink?’or ‘What are we to wear?’
All these things the pagans seek.
Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given you besides.
Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.
Sufficient for a day is its own evil.” (Mt 6)

This passage brought a fond and fresh memory of a recent event. 

In the final couple of days of the visit of my friends from Poland last month (this also explains why I kept away from the blog for so long), one of them, Peter, ventured out around my house to try to get some decent macro shots, trying out my macro gear - Canon 100m f2.8 L lens on Canon Eos 5d mark II and Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX. 

With his permission, I present one of the great shots he was lucky to take. This sweet little curious fellow on the rock actually is the size of the half of the fingernail! Yet his gorgeous presence makes me speechless at the masterpiece of God's creation.  The splendor of God's creation does not mean only birds or flowers. Little curious spiders are the part of this splendor also if you dare to have a closer look at their regal attire.

Slave In Master's House?

The Gospel reading of today's Sunday posed a valid question to ponder on in my personal reflection upon my own life and attitude. When I come for Sunday Mass to the church, do I enter it as a slave in the Master's house? Or do I enter it as a beloved son of God in the Loving and Merciful Father's House?

We have asked this question ourselves today in the Holy Mass when we reflected upon this Gospel's passage in the homily. And it appeared to many of us that we feel and act as slaves in the Master's House, trying to fulfill our duties and obligations, God's and Church commandments out of fear of God, fear of sin or pure sense of responsibility. Perhaps we have stopped in developing our living relationship with God at the point where this kind of cold, accountant-like, business-like relationship is the ultimate what we can think of.

Where is the space for love in this kind of relationship with God?

What is our treasure to which our hearts are powerfully drawn? Is it Loving and Merciful God? Or someone or something else?

What is my genuine motivation to be and live as Christian, the Child of God and the living member of His family - the Holy Church?

Is my keeping God's commandments, Church commandments and fulfilling my duties in the community based on sense of responsibility and duty rather than genuine love of God?

Food for thought.

Wrapping Up The Retreat

As I waved my farewell to Fr. Alphonce vanishing in his pickup driving down the hill on his way to Mwanza, I felt overwhelmed by the goodness of the Lord who gave us these past four days of intense preaching, prayer, Eucharist and detachment from daily worries. I am deeply grateful to God for sending Fr. Alphonce to us. He was instrumental in bringing the message from God to us and I am happy that many of our parishioners showed up and participated. I pray now for his safe return to Mwanza and God's reward for his sacrifice for our sake. And I pray for ourselves, for abundant fruit of our inner conversion, our living faith which express itself in good deeds and staying away from the Evil One and his kingdom on earth. I pray for all of you, my friends and readers. God bless, protect and lead us all!

Sacred Time And Space

Today's Liturgy of Third Sunday of Lent brings forth yet another message from God to us who follow His Son in the wilderness of spiritual desert of Lent and lenten spiritual, mental and corporal exercises...

Rainbow

The First Reading of tomorrow's First Sunday of Lent Liturgy speaks forcefully about God's love and commitment to us and our salvation:

Shabby Tools

Going through my photo albums, I came across these pictures (below). Twenty years passed since I took the first one in January 1992. The remaining two are the recent ones (taken a couple of years ago). Looking at them I cannot but pray in gratitude to God who made all this possible using us, shabby tools. Surely, there is nothing impossible to God. Please, praise the Lord with me for His power and might, for His love and patience towards us, for His eternal plan towards Kiabakari and all people who have been already touched by the Message of Divine Mercy here. Misericordiam Domini in aeternum cantabo!...

It Wasn't Right

In Tanzania we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady on Sunday preceding or following the August 15 (unless it is Sunday of August 15 itself). That is why we celebrated the Solemnity today in my parish as elsewhere in Tanzania. In my homily I focused on Divine Logic and God's meticulousness  in guiding life of Our Lady...

Beyond Words

Prophet Elijah met with Living God face to face in a silent intimate encounter. He walked forty days and nights to reach the sacred meeting point... When he finally met with God, he did not need to say anything. His meeting happened beyond words...on a level where only pure Love and ecstasy lives...

Wow Factor

"Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of?" (Dt 4:33nn) The Lord challenged us with this question this morning in the First Reading. He challenged our ability to see things in our lives with children's eyes and hearts. The ability, the innocence, the sensitivity of the person touched by the greatness of God's things happening in front of our eyes on daily basis, which we, adults, sadly, got used to and take for granted or allowed ourselves to never see them again...

Two Months

In exactly two months I will be back to Tanzania. Well, I am still in Tanzania as we speak, but in the meantime, there will be long list of things to do including a relatively short trip to Poland, mainly because of a need to go through a solid medical checkup, trying to get down to roots of my recent glitches and finding a suitable remedy to keep me going further on...

Offer

"The LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night. God said, “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”"(1Kgs 3:5). This is the first sentence of today's First Reading. What an astonishing offer! God gives Solomon a total freedom to ask anything from Him. As I sat yesterday afternoon reflecting upon this Sunday readings, I questioned myself what I would do if God came to me with the same offer. What would you ask Him of, knowing He will not deny it nor refuse?

The Seed

When we communicate with God, we tend to ask Him for prefabricated goods, final products, toys that do not demand much input or effort on our part, but bring us instant pleasure and gratification. Unfortunately, God has only one thing to offer. The seed...

Good Morning, Kiabakari!

Woke up this morning to the splendor of God's creation. What a fantastic morning hour it is! A quiet start to the day, unfolding lazily in front of my eyes with all its regal colors shed generously by the rising sun over the Kukirango valley with lingering fog in the gorges, flowing from Butiama hills... Magnificent glory...

Chant

I have suddenly found myself this morning longing for a peaceful place to celebrate Holy Week and The Paschal Triduum, filled with echoes of gregorian chants, just like in the abbey of Solesmes. There is nothing more sublime in sacred music than a gregorian chant. It's notes are like finest feathers falling from angels' wings floating in the space consecrated by the presence of God and set in motion by human breath, filled with awe of God-With-Us... The perfectly crystal clear manner of praising Living God in the midst of the living community of His children...

What You Have Said Is True

Still under deep impression of today's Gospel reading. Samaritan woman meeting Jesus. She presented herself in truth in the eyes of Jesus and earned His praise. He did not condemned her for inappropriate behavior, for having many husbands and for living in a relationship without valid marriage. He focused one her opening to Him in truth. The truth of a woman met the Truth Incarnate...

Echoes of Eden

It struck me, meditating on the First Reading of today's Gospel of the First Sunday of Lent, Year A, that the original sin, committed by our first parents, no matter if you believe in the story literally or metaphorically, echoes throughout the ages in the Fourth Commandment of God: "Honor your father and your mother, that you may have a long life in the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you." (Ex 20:12)

Simple Man

One of the qualities I consider as essential to my identity and comfort in life. Just to be a simple man. Sitting in the shadowy corner and doing my things in unassuming way, away from people's attention, away from spotlights, away from clapping hands... And the warm sensation of satisfaction filling my heart whenever I am able to do something worthy of my personal accolade.  A simple man. Oh, how I dream of disappearing completely from the public life and responsibilities! How I dream of following my lifelong inner call of leading a secluded life as a hermit. I hope one day, God willing, it will happen. Entering a life I dream of, far from people's eyes and completely standing in the presence of the One who created me, saved me and still tolerates my follies day by day... Will it ever happen? Will it happen?

Happy Birthday, Bro!

February 17 is the birthday of my three years younger and only Brother, Christopher (Krzysztof). Wishing him well and praying for him and his beautiful family in a special way today. Happy Birthday, Bro! May Good Lord bless you abundantly and keep you and your family close to His Sacred Heart! Forty five and counting, and still going strong! Well done! Prayers appreciated for him and his family, my dear readers!