Happy Third Sunday of Lent!

As I wrote in last week’s bulletin, our annual DSA commitment is this weekend. I will be at each of the Masses for the homily so that we can fill out our DSA envelopes together.

Fr. Brian

Men of the parish are invited to come and enjoy growing in their spiritual walk with others. We will meet in the Knights of Columbus Hall from 6:30—7:30 on Wednesday, March 11 for our next Cor Meeting. We always have snacks and refreshments! Invite a friend or family member. We look forward to seeing you!

See what men are saying about it in the film below:

The mission of the Cor is to refocus Catholic men on Jesus Christ and to form and strengthen them in faith and virtue through a brotherhood committed to prayer, formation and fraternity.  The goal of each Cor gathering is to provide the opportunity for men to encounter Christ, to pray together, to be formed in their faith, and to strengthen their bonds of brotherhood, preparing them for courageous leadership and the mission of Evangelization for their families and communities.

This weekend is our Diocesan Services Appeal (DSA) Commitment Weekend.  All members of our parish community are invited to join in support of our annual appeal.  Your DSA gifts help the Church to be the hands and feet of Jesus—giving care and support to those who need it most.  Our parish goal is $16,638.00.  No gift is too small.  Every dollar donated helps those in our parish and in our unified efforts in the wider church.  Further, one-half of all paid contributions received, over and above our parish goal, will be returned for our local use here at Good Shepherd.

You can submit your DSA pledge envelope during Mass this weekend—or take your DSA envelope home to prayerfully consider your DSA gift.  Those giving a DSA gift by cash or check are invited to return their completed pledge form in the DSA envelope to our parish office.  Those who wish to pay by credit card or electronic funds transfer may enter your gift online at www.dioceseoflansing.org/appeal.

Entry Seven:

Thank you, Lord for REST!

I am always so grateful to you, O Lord. You have blessed me immensely here in Flushing, and sometimes I wonder why. Why, Lord, do you treat your servant so well? For I am undeserving of it. I continuously turn away from you in sin, and yet you extend your hand of mercy to me whenever I ask. When I am too tired to continue to work, you give me the strength to persevere. When the enemy continues to tempt me, I call upon your name, and you answer me. Lord, there is so much to be grateful for, and again this past week you continued to bless me while I was on vacation.

To be with my brother priests for a few days allowed for much-needed relaxation. It also allowed for a good amount of time to reminisce about seminary days and to laugh about how little we knew about what we were about to get ourselves into. It was incredible to think back and see how much we have grown in just a few years. This time together also gave us an opportunity to share how you, O Lord, have been working in our lives — all the times that you have blessed us and all the times that you have loved your people through us. We were all in agreement that there is absolutely nothing else we would rather be doing than serving your Church as your priests. A couple of us had careers prior to seminary, and there is absolutely nothing that compares to the fulfillment you give to us, Lord, when we allow you to do whatever you ask of us.

This time of vacation with the brothers allowed for downtime, relaxation, and some hiking! I did not realize how much rest I needed and how much you truly exert yourself when you are in the regular routine of life. This vacation was a time for rejuvenation — a time to be recreated. When you created the universe, Lord, you rested on the seventh day to show us the need for relationships and communion. For you are all-powerful, and you created the universe with a snap of your fingers, yet you rested to show us the need for recollection, staying still, and being in one another’s presence. You showed us that we, as finite beings, must have rest to reorient ourselves to you — to show us why we are working in the first place and to help us understand the goal of why we work and why certain things happened the way that they did. The time to unplug from technology and be with my brothers allowed for stillness and silence, which my soul longed for. Hiking on the trails in Gatlinburg provided me with energy because I forgot how enjoyable it is to be away from everything and be in the wilderness. Thank you, Lord, for supplying me with exactly what I needed, even though I had no idea how much I needed this rest. You continue to pour out your love in ways that I did not know were necessary for my growth and development. Remain always with me, Lord. Make your presence known to me so that I can always trust and rely upon you in whatever you ask of me. Help me to use my time more wisely so that I can be more available in serving you and your people.