"The Harvest Is Abundant, But The Laborers Are Few"

"The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few.  So ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest." (Matthew 9)

After saying this Jesus calls his disciples, gives them the ability to cast our demons and heal sicknesses.  He sends them out to proclaim Jesus's message to the lost sheep of Israel.

Jesus is the master of the harvest.  His disciples are his laborers.  The people are the harvest. 

How does this apply to us today?  I don't know anyone who has the ability to cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers or drive out demons.  I know I can't.

But I think we can still be laborers for Christ's harvest.  We can learn about Jesus's message.  We can follow his teachings.  We should be virtuous in our actions.  We shouldn't be afraid to talk to people about Jesus and invite others into his flock.

It's important to make the proclamation that Jesus told his disciples to pass on the the lost people of Israel:

"The Kingdom of God is at hand."  

That statement is as true today as it was 2000 years ago.

Shopping for Bibles

I am far from an expert on anything to do with The Church or the faith.  In fact, the purpose of this little blog is to document and share my process of learning about my faith and becoming closer to Jesus through that learning.  So don't take anything I say as definitive-I may misstate things or interpret them wrong.

One thing that it seems everyone learning about God is a bible.  They are available for free on line and can be gotten relatively inexpensively if you prefer the feel of an actual book in your hands.  They can also be very expensive.

If you search "Bible" on Amazon you get an overwhelming list of all kinds of different bibles with a number of translations.  Its an alphabet soup of KJV, NIV, ESV, ASV, NAV, etc.  Even if you search for Catholic Bible there are a number of accepted translations.  What one is the best to get?

Most of these are "Protestant" versions.  I don't think that makes them "bad" bibles from the Catholic point of view, but they are different in some sort of way.  Maybe some of the passages are different or the interpretations are presented differently.  But different isn't necessarily bad.

I would recommend doing a little research on the particular translation, as I am sure there are some that may cross the line on interpretation, and I am far from the expert on every bible.

Just to put this out there, for Catholics there are several approved translations, but the main ones are the Revised Standard Edition and the New American Version.  So I guess if you are Catholic you should start with those.

But I contend this-The best Bible is the one you will read.  Maybe you found an old King James Version and like the way it feels, so you read that.  Maybe you have a New American Version and like the way the pages smell so you read that.  Maybe you have a Children's Bible and like the pictures so you read that.  In my uninformed and humble opinion the most important part is the reading of God's Word, not necessarily the translation.  Just opening the book and reading the stories will allow God to inspire you, and that's what's really important.

So open the best selling book of all time, The Bible.  And be inspired.

I thought I should include a list of approved bible translations according to the US Council of Bishops.

The First Brothers and the First Murder

I have read the story of Cain and Abel, the first two sons of Eve, before and never really understood it.  For those who may not be familiar with it basically Cain was the keeper of the field and Abel was the keeper of the flock.  Both brought offerings to God.  God favored Abel's offering more.  Cain got jealous and killed his brother.

I never understood why God favored Abel's offering over Cain's when I read the story.  Until today.  I missed the nuance of the phrasing.  Abel's offering was from the best of his flock.  Cain's offering was from the fruit of the ground, basically leftovers.

God favored Abel's offering because it was a more complete sacrifice rather than from giving God something from his excess, like Cain did.  Jesus echoes this sentiment in Mark 12, when he says the poor widow who gave only two coins gave more then the rich men who put large amounts of money in the temple collection.  She offered from what she needed, not from the excess like the rich men did.

Today, we give the sacrifice of our heart in love and faith to God.  Like Abel, we should offer our whole heart to him, not just what is leftover after our love for secular things like football and Taylor Swift.  To not give God our whole heart is the same as giving him the fruit that fell on the ground, like Cain did.  If we put God first in our mind and heart, he will show us favor back, both in our life and when we meet Him at the final judgement.   

Judge Jesus

Jesus was sent to Earth and became man to be our savior.  He gave his life on the cross to save us from original sin.

But he also has another job.  He will come to judge the living and the dead.

We've all seen court shows.  People's Court or Judge Judy.  Or maybe we've seen a courtroom drama on TV or at the movies.  In those cases we see the defendant or their lawyer try to explain the defendants transgressions.  Maybe the person didn't do the crime.  Or maybe they were tricked into a situation or had no choice.  Or maybe the slick lawyer can find some loophole in the law to help his client.

Evidence is introduced.  There might be discussions about the defendants past.  Witnesses might be called to talk about the character of the defendant.

The judge looks at the case and then decides the person's guilt.

When we face final judgement there won't be any need for all those processes and procedures.  Jesus knows all we have done.  Jesus knows why we did it.  And His judgement is final.

It is our job to live righteously. Show hope, faith and charity. Ask for forgiveness when the time arises.

Face Judge Jesus with your best case.  And he will allow you passage to eternal life. 

Even if Our World is Collapsing Around Us, Jesus Never Abandons Us

The world today is far from perfect.  There is war.  There is poverty.  There is hunger.  It may seem as if we are living through the end of the world.  

On a personal level we might be dealing with fear, stress or sadness.  It may seem as if we are heading on a journey to our own personal hell.

But even no matter how bad things may seem, Jesus never abandons us.

The entirety of the Old Testament is littered with stories of disasters and lack of faith in God. Adam and Eve disobeyed God.  Man attempted to build a tower to the sky to show they were equal to God.  After Moses led the Israelites from slavery, they worshiped golden calves instead of God.

And still "God so loved the world he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life." Jn 3:16

No matter how bad things may seem, Jesus is there for us.  On the darkest of days all we need to do is ask for Jesus.  He will always be there for us.  That's what he became man to do-to save us all.  We just need to have faith in Him.

Only Say the Word and My Servant Will Be Healed

One of the things that has increased my faith Christ over the past few years is the series "The Chosen."  It is the story of Jesus and his Apostles from their first moments together to the eventual Crucifixion and Resurrection.

The story is taken from the Gospels, but it is the show's creator's vision and interpretation of the stories.  So I'm not sure its really the accepted account by the Catholic Church, but seeing the stories come to life has brought me to tears on many occasions.

The story in the Gospel today is the culmination of the centuriation's belief in Jesus.  In the show the centuriation is Gaius.  He wishes for Jesus to heal his young servant boy.  Jesus offers to come to his house, Gaius refuses saying he is not worthy to have Jesus enter under his roof.  Jesus is so amazed by the faith of a man who has spent a lifetime worshiping many Roman gods that he heals the young boy.

This story shows that no matter what we have done in the past and whatever we have chosen to praise before today does not matter to Christ.  There is time for all of us to be redeemed in His eyes.  He is accepting of all who believe in him.  If a Roman soldier who persecuted Jesus's peoples can be saved none of us is beyond his forgiveness and redemption.

Pray for me this Advent.  I am praying for all of you.

New Year's Resolution in Faith

Happy (Liturgical) New Year!!  Today starts the season of Advent, the beginning of the Church year and a time when we prepare for the coming of the baby Jesus.  Everyone knows about Lent, the time before Easter, but Advent doesn't seem to get the same attention.  We don't give up something or abstain from meat on Friday or make other sacrifices Advent as we do during Lent.

Today Advent is looked at as a countdown to Christmas.  I know when I was young I used to look at the 4 candles on the Advent wreath as a timer until Christmas morning.  What I am finally learning is that Advent is not about the day at end but the journey to get there.

If we look at Advent as the New Year we can make a "New Year's Resolution in Faith."  We should look at our relationship with God and figure out what we can do over the next 4 weeks to get closer to out Lord.  Pray more, read the scriptures or attend church are some ideas.

Personally, I am going to reflect daily on the Word of God, the Gospel.  There is no better way, in my opinion to get closer to God than by reading his words.

I am also going to follow the story of salvation from creation to Jesus by practicing the "Jesse Tree."  I never heard of it until this year but a Jesse Tree is a series of daily readings tracing the salvation story.  It is usually done by families with young kids as the daily readings end with putting a special ornament on a tree to represent the day's journey.  I'm not a kid, but I still have much to learn about, so taking advantage of the Jesse Tree tradition can only help my relationship with Jesus.

Pray for me, this Advent.  I'm praying for all of you.