Good morning to my parish families and friends,
If you are anything like me sometimes we head off on our journeys with things that we think we need, and we really do not need them. An example of this would be all that extra suntan lotion and those towels that we sometimes pack in our bags when we go to the beach. Lots of times we end up carrying all that stuff back to the house.
In today's scripture passage (Lk 9: 1-6) Jesus tells his disciples to take only what they need on the journey. In essence, He is telling them that all they need is Him. If they have Christ on their journey each day then there is not a heck of alot else they need.
Sometime we get distracted by our possessions and become "possessed" by them. Sometimes we shop for things that we "want" and do not need. When we do this the consumer becomes consumed. The best way to deal with this situation is to keep it simple. Take only what we need on our journeys today - Jesus.
May I suggest that each morning when we arise the first thing we should do is give thanks to God. Once we have reflected on all the blessings that we have, then ask God for one particular grace to get through the day (I.e. joy, patience, forgiveness, etc.). We should only ask for one grace. Then we will understand that God has given us all that we need to go on our journey each day.
St. Padre Pio.....pray for us!
Fr. Pat