CANDLES IN THE DARK

God is Good

(Jewish)

wo men set out on

a journey

together. One was a

believer; the other, a

sceptic. They took

with them a donkey, a

lantern, and a rooster

(which always sat on

top of the donkey’s

head).

As they travelled,

the believer

constantly expressed

his faith in God. “God

is good in all

circumstances,” he

said.

The sceptic,

however, would

respond, “Let’s wait

and see just how good

God is.

When they came to

the first town, they

were disappointed to

find that all the inns

were filled. Settling in

for the night exposed

to the elements, the

sceptic asked

sarcastically, “Well,

do you still think God

is good?”

“Of course,” said the

believer. “God has

determined that this

is the best place for us

to sleep tonight.”

“But why?”

wondered the sceptic.

“It shall be made

known,” answered the

believer.

Just as they were

settling down to sleep,

there was a horrifying

roar from the trees

nearby. A lion

approached, hungry

and on the prowl. The

two men were so

petrified they could

not move. Suddenly

the lion attacked,

pouncing on the

donkey, killing it, and

dragging it into the

trees to eat it.

The two men

eventually climbed a

tree to avoid further

danger. As they clung

to the branches,

shaking in their

shoes, the sceptic

asked, “So, you still

think God is good,

huh?”

“Of course!” said the

believer. “Why, if it

had not been for the

donkey, the lion

would most surely

have attacked us

instead. Thanks to

the donkey, our lives

have been spared.”

After a few minutes,

when the lion

disappeared, the men

began to inch down

the tree. A shrill cry

from the rooster sent

them scurrying back

up the branches,

however. When they

looked into their

camp, they noticed

that a panther had

attacked the rooster,

caught it, and was

devouring it.

“You still think God

is good?” asked the

sceptic.

“Naturally,” came

the response of the

believer. “Why, if that

rooster had not let out

its cry, you and I

might have down this

tree into the waiting

jaws of the panther.”

Some minutes later,

after the danger had

passed, the two men

were about to slide

down the tree when a

strong gust of wind

whipped through the

camp, destroyed the

lantern, and thereby

extinguished the

flame. They were left

in total darkness,

unable to move

another inch from the

tree until morning

light.

“And what about

this?” asked the

sceptic. “Is your God

still good?”

For once, the

believer was silent.

The next morning,

however, the two men

descended from the

tree and went back to

the village for good

and provisions. But

they found nothing. It

seems that a band of

robbers had swept

into the town the

night before, robbed

every person in the

village, and then fled

into the countryside.

“At last,” the believer

said, “God’s ways

have been made clear.

If we had stayed the

night in the inn, we

too would have been

robbed. If the wind

had not destroyed the

lantern, the robbers

would have seen our

light alongside the

road and would have

robbed us as well.

Now are you going to

tell me that God is not

good?”

….overleaf

EASTER – 6TH SUNDAY

WEEK: 21 May

Babysitting Money

Changes Lives

After graduating from

high school in 2005, New

Jersey’s Maggie Doyne

opted to be a globe

trekker for a year. It was

her trip to Nepal that

ended up changing the

course of her life.

As reported by the

website A Mighty Girl,

Doyne saw the

devastating effects that

the Nepalese Civil War

had on the country’s

children.

She contacted her

parents and asked them

to wire her all the money

she had saved from years

of babysitting: $5,000.

She then used those

funds to open an

orphanage.

By 2015, Doyne’s

dream had expanded

beyond anything she had

imagined. She is now the

mother and legal

guardian of close to 50

children, and she’s

helped build a

community school,

medical clinic, and

organic food garden. Her

work earned her the CNN

Hero of the Year Award.

One of the keys to

Doyne’s success is

listening to the needs of

her Nepalese neighbours

before starting any

project. She says, “It’s

become so much more

than just a little girl with

a backpack and a big

dream. It’s become a

community....[I] hope this

sets a precedent for what

our world can be and

look like.”

The wise woman builds

her house. Proverbs 14:1

May I use my talents to

build up love and

community, Lord.

Monday 22 May

St Rita of Cassia

If You’re Not Part

of the Solution…

David Oyelowo’s acting

career may take up a lot

of his time, but he

remains a man who is

grounded in his Christian

faith and is willing to

share it with others. As

such, he and his wife run

a youth group at their

church because he

realizes these young

people need God in order

to deal with the negative

cultural influences all

around them.

During a “Christopher

Closeup” interview,

Oyelowo said, “I think the

challenges young people

face are greater now than

when I was a teenager

[because of] social media

and just how much we

are bombarded from

every side by images of

pornography or drugs or

just morally questionable

things.

“‘Sex sells’ has gone on to

become a religion—and

that’s a challenging thing

for young people,

especially those who are

trying to stay pure [and

not] ruin their lives by

getting into all kinds of

different things that

would and could do that.

So, my belief is: if you’re

not part of the solution,

you’re part of the

problem. I’ve been

afforded this platform,

which hopefully can

oxidize some of that, so

you just try and do your

part.”

They are to teach what

is good. Titus 2:3

Lead me in being a

problem solver, Divine

Wisdom.

Tuesday 23 May

Thank God Each Day

The late writer William

Arthur Ward had some

thought-provoking ideas

on prayer you might

consider:

“Wonderful things

happen to us when we

live expectantly, believe

confidently, and pray

affirmatively.

“Seeking to find how I

should pray, this came to

mind: Thank God each

day.

“Prayer does not

always bring us what we

want; rather it helps us to

become the kind of

persons we should be.

“The value of prayer is

not in what it gives us,

but in what it makes us.

“It is not primarily a

method of getting, but it

is a splendid way of

growing.”

In one translation of

Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is

said to have spent a night

“in communion with God.”

“Communion,” is a

definition of prayer from

the heart, with the heart,

to the heart of God. Pray

today.

Your servant has found

courage to pray this

prayer to You. 2 Samuel 7:27

T

Jesus, teach me to

integrate prayer into my

daily life.

Wednesday 24 May

Testing the Unknown

Many jobs entail risk, but

one that seems almost

synonymous with danger

is that of test pilots. Their

job is to check and

evaluate the safety,

operation and durability

of an aircraft that’s never

been flown before. They

must be on guard at all

times, and attentive to

the slightest detail.

It’s a demanding job

that requires confidence

and bravery because no

matter how carefully test

flights are planned, there

is always the element of

the unknown.

Truly, there is an

element of risk and

uncertainty in every new

venture. Don’t be afraid

to step into the unknown

simply because it is

unknown. Progress

always entails risk. Plan

ahead intelligently and

have courage.

For God, all things are

possible. Mark 10:27

Remind me, Redeemer,

that indeed all things are

possible with You at my

side.

Thursday 25 May

ASCENSION OF THE

LORD – Day of

obligation

The Footprints of Jesus

When Deacon Greg

Kandra travelled to the

Holy Land with a tour

group, they saw a stone

that legend says holds the

final footprint of Jesus

before He ascended into

heaven. While others

claimed to see a faint

outline, Deacon Kandra

didn’t see anything. He

wondered if his faith was

too weak, but later came

upon a new perspective.

Deacon Kandra wrote

on his Aleteia blog: “I’ve

come to realize that the

most enduring footprints

of Christ are not to be

found on a pebbled

hilltop in the Middle

East...They are the

footprints He has left on

lives. And they are

everywhere...You will

find them in New York

City, at the Catholic

Worker, where

volunteers ladle soup

every day to dozens of

homeless men and

women. His footprints

are there, in the soup line.

“You will find them on

the floors of nurseries

where mothers walk all

night caring for their sick

infants, and on the coffee-

stained carpets of church

basements, where

weekly AA meetings are

held...Look carefully. You

might even find them in

your own living room.”

Whoever has seen Me

has seen the Father. John 14:9

Help me to see Your

presence in every aspect

of my daily life, Son of God.

Friday 26 May

Philip Neri

Devotion, Part One

Jesse Brown grew up dirt

poor in Mississippi, the

son of a deacon and a

missionary.

As a child, he fell in love

with the idea of being a

Navy pilot, even though

that was an impossible

dream for African-

Americans at that time.

Tom Hudner,

meanwhile, was a white

New Englander raised in

a well-to-do family. One

of the main lessons his

father taught him was, “A

man will reveal himself

through his character,

not his skin colour.”

Hudner went on to join

the Navy when the U.S.

was in the midst of World

War II because he

wanted to help.

Brown managed to defy

the odds and enter the

Navy as well, despite

racism still being

rampant in the U.S.

Adam Makos, author of

a biography about Brown

and Hudner called

“Devotion,” credits

Brown’s Christianity

with his approach.

During a “Christopher

Closeup” interview,

Makos said, “[Jesse] saw

what America could be,

and he knew he loved the

spirit of this country. I

think that faith was his

anchor. It gave him that

promise that things can

be better.”

More of the story

tomorrow.

[Men] look on the

outward appearance,

but the Lord looks on

the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7

May my faith guide me to

treat everyone equally,

Creator.

Saturday 27 May

Devotion, Part Two

Though Jesse Brown had

faced discrimination

throughout his life, his

experience in the Navy

during the Korean War

actually broke down

racial barriers, as it did

for many people of

different ethnicities and

religions.

During a “Christopher

Closeup” interview,

“Devotion” author Adam

Makos explained,

“[Everyone fighting]

knows that their lives are

all intertwined, so true

value shines through at

that time, true character.

Hatred and things like

racism, they go right out

the window, because we

really have to rely on

each other. So, I think

those men came home

from that war, and they

were changed forever in

their attitudes about

other races. It was more

or less the civilians in the

United States who

carried on that legacy of

racism for the next 30

years.”

Superficial differences

sure didn’t matter to

Hudner and Brown, who

became good friends.

And one fateful day

during a mission over

dangerous North Korean

territory, Hudner

demonstrated the

lengths to which he

would go out of devotion

to his fellow aviator.

More of the story next

week.

The same Lord is Lord

of all. Romans 10:12

Help me to re-examine

any prejudices I hold in

my heart, Lord.

The Christophers

Volume 51

WISDOM STORIES TO LIVE BY

Under the Gaze of Christ

Have you ever driven by a highly-polluted area and wondered what can be done to stop people dumping their rubbish? At the turn of the Millennium, Peru city authorities tried a novel approach. Some of the streets in the capital city were scarred by terrible littering – people even stopping to urinate in the streets. The authorities responded

by placing pictures of Jesus and Mary on the walls of buildings lining the most polluted streets. Why? Because the people of Peru are, on the whole, committed to Roman Catholicism. The authorities have found that people are far less likely to litter the streets under the gaze of Jesus and the Virgin Mary.

Source: based on Reuters News

Story January 2001.

“I wish my voice could

reach all sinners:

Come to Christ

where all is love.”

God is Good

Logic often eludes a

person of faith, but

never persistence.

Faith may, in fact, be

composed more of

perspiration than

inspiration. This

humorous tale

reminds us that it is

often impossible to

reconcile conflicting

views of the world.

What is required is

consistency.

Perhaps this

parable might

encourage you

through the simple

realization that if

things are bad now –

they could always be

worse.

REFLECTION

for the week

Our own experience with

loneliness, depression and

fear can become a gift for

others, especially when we

have received good care.

As long as our wounds are

open and bleeding, we scare

others away. But after

someone has carefully

tended to our wounds they

no longer frighten us or

others.

When we experience the

healing presence of another

person, we can discover our

own gifts of healing. They,

our wounds allow us to enter

into a deep solidarity with

our wounded brothers and

sisters. HENRI NOUWEN