crossing the threashhold of my big blue backyard

Symbiotic · 04-04-2005, 06:52 PM

yes, he was...

the pope is a good role model, but Jesus should be your first role model...

lizwrenne · 04-04-2005, 07:52 PM

"The shortest verse in all of Scripture is also one of the most profound, “Jesus wept” (John 11:35).

Why did Jesus weep? Those in the crowd that day thought He was weeping because of how much He loved His friend, Lazarus, who had died and whose body had been in the tomb for four days. Yes, Jesus loved His close friend, but that’s not why the tears streamed down our Savior’s cheeks.

He wept because those assembled there, those in the crowd, didn’t see what Jesus saw and couldn’t comprehend the bigger picture that Christ, Himself, would open up for them. Death is not an end…not for those whose hearts belong to the Lord.

Jesus wept not for Lazarus, but for the people, because they viewed death as final. If this life is all you have and all you believe in, than you have good reason to weep. If you believe in God’s promise, Christ’s salvation and the Spirit’s guidance, however, than you know that this life is not where it ends. There is something amazing, something beyond words, something inexplicable waiting “for those who love Him” (1 Cor. 2:9).

I wept today for our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II; he was and is my hero.

I found myself weeping, not out of sadness necessarily (though I am sad), but out of mourning for our world and our culture. We have lost a lion, a fearless leader who never allowed popularity or politics to dictate or manhandle God’s truth. He never wavered and He never bent. Some call that archaic – I call it gallant. He refused to play word games or deal in a world of grays when it came to life issues, like so many “powerful” politicians so willingly do. Just like Jesus at Calvary, his power came in his humility. He didn’t soften truth to make people more comfortable, he didn’t allow political pressures to mediate or misdirect his message. He rose to the occasions. He dealt in black and white, not allowing our Church to sink into a pit of uncertainty or popular conformity. He answered in authenticity and not mediocrity. He responded to his vocation not only as a priest but as a creature of God. He did what he was called to do and stood for life in the face of a culture of death.

I stared into the eyes of His Holiness John Paul II not three months ago. It was three weeks before his admittance into the hospital, his second to last General Papal audience. Many assembled there saw a fragile and meek leader. I saw a lion draped in the wool of a sheep. His body was frail but his mind sharp. The powerful gentleness in his eyes spoke volumes, his presence so humble.

Getting to meet him with my wife at my side, being able to kiss his ring and say thank you for the way he let the Holy Spirit work through him and for his words that had touched my soul, was an answered prayer. Getting to hold his hand before God called him home is a blessing I still cannot completely believe or fathom. Every Catholic, young and old, should be so blessed - staring into his eyes was a window into his soul, I saw Jesus, I truly did.

I was reminded of the words of one writer following World Youth Day in Toronto who said, "Watching John Paul II is like watching a soul drag a body behind it." How true that is.

This week we might weep because we loved all that John Paul II was and all that he stood for…I certainly do. We might also weep wondering what will happen now that the most courageous voice of truth, a voice that speaks for the unborn and defenseless is now silent. Both are understandable, but just like outside the tomb of Lazarus, unnecessary. God is as present and in control today as He has been since the dawn of time, fear not.

Today is a day to rejoice because God has called home one of His own and one of His beloved, a man truly after His own heart. Today is a day to rejoice because Karol Wojtyla’s (JPII’s) life will forever stand as a living testament that one person can still make a difference, if steeped in humility, abandoned to grace, dedicated to the Eucharistic Jesus and devoted to His Blessed Mother. A great thing happened this day: one of our brothers in the faith gets to finally experience the ecstasy of Heaven, as we should all hope to do and should live to insure.

His Holiness John Paul II will be remembered for so many things and, most likely, not appreciated for the fullness of his incredible ministry for decades (even centuries) to come. Only after people have taken the time to read, pray and live out his writings and words will he ever be viewed in the light he should, a light he spread far and wide, the
light of Christ (John 8:12). The truth, though, is that JPII is yet another in a long and beautiful list of souls who have given themselves to Christ and to the service of His Church who will receive honor from those still on earth NOT because they desired it, but because they deserved it.

He will be remembered for his staunch political identity and savvy, his assistance in the dismantling of communism in Eastern Europe, his forgiveness of his would-be assassin and his love of youth. All are true and worthy of praise.

He’ll be remembered in Heaven because his was a life led by the Spirit and abandoned to the grace and direction of God. Yours can be, too, if you let it. The greatest way to honor John Paul II is to take his meekness and his determination as examples of how to live your life in the face of a culture that won’t understand it. Hold fast to the ideals he safeguarded and stand firm in the truths he espoused, for they were not his but Christ’s.

Today, this day, commit yourself to seeking out your vocation and following it in humility. Today, take a bold step forward in being the man of God or woman of God He calls you to be, in the spirit of our fallen but risen hero, Pope John Paul the Great. That is the greatest tribute you could ever pay to him, to the greater Church and to our Lord,
Christ, Himself.

When I looked into his eyes a few weeks back, I recalled something I read when reading about and studying his life, several years ago. When he was a boy growing up in Wadowice, Poland, there was a shop across the street with a sundial in front of it and when he stared out of his bedroom window each day he could read the inscription. The inscription, carved in stone, read, "Time flies. Eternity waits."

That is the mantra of urgency and humble faith through which he has lived his life and lived out his pontificate, and it is a piece of wisdom that I keep tucked away deeply within my head and heart. I will never forget it. I will never forget the look in his eyes, the strength in his hands or the love that God has for us all, in giving us such a servant to guide those willing to follow. God is faithful. John Paul II is faithful. If only I can have an ounce of that faithfulness - my wife, family and world will be truly blessed. We shall see…

Time flies, eternity waits."

-Mark Hart

backupguitar · 04-04-2005, 07:52 PM

he is. But the pope is a rols model in our time.. ya know? And he is a person with sin as we are and yet a great man of God that lived a life like we all should try to live

backupguitar · 04-04-2005, 07:55 PM

Mark heart is da bomb lauren. How ya doin? we should catch up..come over

**Small** · 04-05-2005, 10:18 PM

Totally a non-sequitor, but, um, uh, something.

ImOnFire · 04-05-2005, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by backupguitar

Mark heart is da bomb lauren. How ya doin? we should catch up..come over

Huh? That confused me....did you call me Mark heart?

lizwrenne · 04-06-2005, 05:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ImOnFire

Huh? That confused me....did you call me Mark heart?

mark hart, not walz. biiig difference, must i say.

man, i've had so much homework, it's been insanely bad....driving me nuts. at least i won't have to worry about being on here too often, seeing that i probably have just about no time for it...score. have a sweet day y'all (man, i've always wanted to say/type that...)

natedawg5280 · 04-06-2005, 01:42 PM

Will you please answer me Lauren?

ImOnFire · 04-06-2005, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lizwrenne

mark hart, not walz. biiig difference, must i say.

YES! By saying something stupid, I proved that I am not on your ignore list..Lauren, is Nate on your ignore list???

lizwrenne · 04-06-2005, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ImOnFire

YES! By saying something stupid, I proved that I am not on your ignore list..Lauren, is Nate on your ignore list???

ignore list? where'd you get an idea like that? to be perfectly honest, i've been incredibly busy this past week...and i don't see it ending on friday, or even next friday. this weekend is gonna be insane with the act and all that jazz...pile on some forensics. and then take into consideration that i'll be on retreat next week...my entire 'next weekend' will be shot as i try to make up the work...so i don't suppose that i'll be on here much in the next two weeks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by natesawg5280

Will you please answer me Lauren?

yes, i already did. in the lizspeare! translation: yes, and there is more stuff in there that no one got...which upsets me so! all that time...and no one even bothered. you know what...i bet small got it. the good ol' kid, so clever, so wise, so english adept...

sabertooth181 · 04-06-2005, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lizwrenne

yes, i already did. in the lizspeare! translation: yes, and there is more stuff in there that no one got...which upsets me so! all that time...and no one even bothered. you know what...i bet small got it. the good ol' kid, so clever, so wise, so english adept...

i didn't get any of that.

ImOnFire · 04-06-2005, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lizwrenne

ignore list? where'd you get an idea like that? to be perfectly honest, i've been incredibly busy this past week...and i don't see it ending on friday, or even next friday. this weekend is gonna be insane with the act and all that jazz...pile on some forensics. and then take into consideration that i'll be on retreat next week...my entire 'next weekend' will be shot as i try to make up the work...so i don't suppose that i'll be on here much in the next two weeks.

Its just that, everytime I make a post in your journal..scince I can remember....it hasnt been replied too, just like it wasnt even there. Once i eve said "Lauren, am I on your ignore list?" something like that..or close...and you didnt even respond to it. So forgive me for thinking that!