Faith and Service

For some people, Service is only a job,” a means to an end, something that is essential for survival.

For others, service is a system which supplies public needs such as utilities and transportation

For others still, service is life’s thrust, a way of helping those in need through volunteer activities.  

For people of faith, service is the sum of all Christ’s teachings.

I serve not to seek fame, power or recognition.

I serve not for pay, praise or to acquire wealth.  

I serve because I am being served by God who has kept me going in spite to my shortcomings.  

Through Jesus God enables me to taste his providence, so that I may be his channel of providence for those waiting to encounter him through me

I serve because it gives me joy for I know that God has chosen me to bear fruits that will last

Beyond Words

I cannot find the right words,

Make the correct moves,

Sing the right tones.

How can I describe my feelings of gratitude to God?

When my best dance steps seems like a dodder, my voice a screech.

But God does not need lavish meals for he is never hungry

Beautiful fancy houses he care not for since he sleeps not

He will not accept the invitation to attend parties and dances

So what gifts can I give in return for all he has done for me?

None! I hear in echo

God does not need food, parties or gifts

So I have decided to give him myself

I return to God all that I am, will be

So that he can sing, dance and live in me
And make me all that I an ever be

The Joy of Community Life

The congregation for the Institution of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life described fraternal life in community as a “living organism”, a gift of the Holy Spirit where the love of God is poured into the hearts of members to enable them to live an animated life of Christ , strengthened by their foundational charism.

Last week a friend (whom I will call Justina) invited me to visit her in Atlanta for this Mother’s Day, and I declined. I explained that my Novitiate program is a little tight for casual visits. Then she immediately suggested coming to see me instead. But when I declined again Justina became confused and concerned about my welfare. I spent the next five minutes trying to convince her that I am not being held against my will. My discussion with Justina left me with the impression that she sees religious life as a place where people are confined and restricted, a place where people do not have the freedom to do whatever they want to do.  But I know that she is wrong. Like all institutions, religious life has its own defined structure which works for all those who are called to this lifestyle.  Since coming to experience community living with the Sisters of Divine Providence, I know that I have grown in leaps and bounds. I have been challenged in different ways but most importantly I have experienced unconditional love and support from all our sisters. So I am happy, feel at home and am able to share my personal stories.  

As an essential part of religious life, community life is truly a gift to the world. We are not about money or about our own interests. As a communion of believers, our purpose is to model a true reflection of the reign of God’s kingdom. Often the story of the first Christians in Acts comes to  mind. Just as the believers devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers in Acts 2, so do Sisters. From community prayers, daily we gather around the Lord’s Eucharistic table for our daily nourishment. I participate in our weekly sharing, monthly spiritual direction and annual retreats. I have read a lot about our founder Blessed John Martin Moye, have observed our sisters is various ministries and am daily excited about the joy that comes from being the face of God’s Providence within and outside the community. In striving to live our four fundamental virtues of simplicity, poverty charity and abandonment to Providence, I have experienced God’s actions at a deeper level.

In Buying the Field, Sandra Schneiders stated that sisters are not simply a group of like-minded people living and working together for a better world with an occasional reference to Jesus as memory or model. But in community we live the life of the risen Lord. Always open to the spirit, our last Provincial chapter of 2014 challenged us to “risk personal transformation and  mirror God’s all-embracing love” In the spirit of mirroring God’s all-embracing love and in our effort to strengthen our relationship with each other I was invited to share my experiences with our sisters. As a Nigerian from a different culture, it is clear that I bring a unique diversity to our province and it was an honor to share some of my personal stories, values, and traditions. I was indeed humbled by the experience, but also realized that our sisters are living prophetic lives. I translate their desire to know me better as their openness to the spirit who is present and is working through people. All of humanity is one big global village where all humans are related since all are made in the image and likeness of God. As a community, this will better prepare each of us to continue to respond in faith to the God whose boundless love has gathered us from different nations, tribes and tongues (Rev. 7:9). This is important for it is only in knowing and respecting the goodness in each other that we can broaden our hearts to accept and see all as God sees them. In sharing my/our stories, we deepen our commitment to the experience of a life consecrated by God to God and for the glory of God alone. I am happy to be in a place where I am free to love and serve as God is calling me, where I have a sense of belonging, where there is true community of life and faith

 "We must become bigger than we have been: more courageous, greater in spirit, larger in outlook. We must become members of a new race, overcoming petty prejudice, owing our ultimate allegiance not to nations but to our fellow men within the human community"    Hailie Selasie

Below is the link to my cultural event

http://www.cdpkentucky.org/newsdetail.php?cur=233

Overcoming life’s Mediocrity

As long as habit and routine dictate the pattern of living

New dimensions of the soul will not emerge – Henry Van Dyke

Life is generally good, but we don’t always see it that way, especially when we are feeling trapped or helpless. Some people will agree with me that our world is increasingly becoming fast paced. From the moment we open our eyes at dawn to the time we shut it at night, it is a continuous cycle of activity, from one to the next. Sometimes we even have no time to enjoy a simple meal, or family times because we have our minds set on the next thing on our “to do” list. Most of us wake up at the same time every day, eat the same breakfast, take the same route to work, work with the same people for years. While our bodies detest some of what we do, our rational intellectual minds always remind us that we cannot quit since we have bills to pay and life’s needs to meet. So we feel stuck. I am not advocating that it is wrong to have set routines. It would be unconventional not to have one. Everybody needs some kind of order lest they have more chaos to contend with. Routines are great in creating structure which is essential for effective management in any setting. The point I am trying to make here is that life can become monotonous if one is not careful. For example, there are people who have good jobs, receive good pay checks and appear pretty comfortable, but are not happy.  What can be said about those who have no jobs or lack some basic comforts like accessibility to cable or internet network, or ability to make annual trips?

My question is them is: how can we keep life exciting and fulfilling when we have to do same things every day all week, year round?  Here is my little list of things to do:

a.    Be in touch with your feelings: show emotions when you experience them.

b.   Enjoy the people in your life, show them that you care and they will respond. 

c.    Try new methods of prayer such as novenas, vocal or centering prayer (meditation); attend mass in a different parish, join your church choir.

d.   Explore New Interests: How to sing or play a musical instrument, a new menu, Video games, sports, and craft. Look for volunteer opuntuniities.

e.    Change old habits: Give up watching television for a week and listen to the radio or read the newspapers instead 

f.      Hang out with different people: Eat in different restaurants,

Change your job or take a different way to work, if possible

g.   Move to a city if you can afford.

h.   Save up for a vacation and actually take it, and don’t go to the same place all the time

i.       Form new relationships; make new friends.

Of all the things listed above, the one that appeals to me the most is my desire to explore new ways of having a deeper relationship with God. As a Christian, I believe that prayer is the most powerful weapon against mediocrity. In prayer, I am able to hand the realm of my affairs to God who is more than able to sustain my joy. When God becomes my deepest satisfaction in life, every other thing is bonus.

“Today I divide my day between being an actor, a producer and a distributor and the monotony is broken” – Ajay Devgan

Yes Lord I will

Saul thought he had a plausible resume

Said he was a good Jew who kept the law

Called himself a pious pharisaic Jew

Saul refused to eat or drink until all Christian were put to death

Letter at hand, off he went far and wide

In the north, south, east and west he slayed and crushed believers

Then God arose from his throne but not in anger

God descended upon Saul but not with a hammer

In his blindness Saul received the sight of radical Faith 

Then Paul rewrote his resume, 
forfeiting his name, his fame and his belief

Accepting baptism he embraced a new life 
and discovered a new passion

Only with his cooperation 
did Paul find his way back to his original call.
For now he lives not for himself

The Lord is longing to rewrite your resume
For none knows the Lord the way he deserves
At the door of your heart He patiently stands
Longing, knocking, calling and waiting
He wants to do something new
Are you going to respond?

I Fling My Life

Gladly do I give my life to Thee,

Not solemnly, not grudgingly,

But I will l take my life and fling

It at thy feet and sing and sing

Happy to bring you this small thing

Mary Dixon Thayer

Faith and Relationship

We are in an era of so many distractions. Every day we are bombarded with all kinds of alerts from emails, cell phones, Facebook, twitter and other social networks. Our jobs, families, friends, social and religious commitments also compete or demand our attention such that there are days or weeks we feel completely exhausted and or disgruntled. Consequently, one may decide take a break from social media and watch something relaxing on television. Within minutes, you are bombarded with more commercials than you have time for. How do we deal with all of these? The challenge for me lies in learning the art of balance. According to Cornell University's Steven Strogatz, social media sites can make it more difficult for us to distinguish between the meaningful relationships we foster in the real world, and the numerous casual relationships formed through social media. By focusing so much of our time and psychic energy on these less meaningful relationships, our most important connections, he fears, will weaken.

Life is all about relationships. Beginning from the time we learned to interact with our parents and siblings while growing up, to how we formed relationships with friends, classmates, colleagues and co-workers over time. Our modern understanding of relationship has become more inclusive. Nowadays talk about relationships also includes the way we treat animals and the environment. This is why, in 1987, the United Nations World Commission of Environment and Development defined sustainable development as "a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development and the institutional change are in harmony and enhance both current and future generations to meet their needs." Relationship is unique and dynamic but regardless of who or what we are relating with, there is a profound peace which comes from living a balanced life. A balanced individual understands the difference between doing and being, being abstract and concrete, and being active or passive.

As a woman in initial religious formation, I have been thinking a lot about how my relationship with God is connected with how I relate with others and all of creation. I have come to realize that it is important for me to set healthy boundaries that will continue to help me maintain a close relationship with God.  I have no desire to be caught up in the distraction and consumerism imposed by information and technology. It is not that I dislike social media, it has undoubtedly brought about many good things. On the other hand, research has shown social networking has many pitfalls. Apart from the fact that social media has contributed in making relationships more abstract than concrete, research has shown that people are becoming more isolated and youth are developing related health conditions among others.

We are balanced by listening, respecting the dignity of others, and expressing our feelings constructively. A balanced lifestyle does not come without effort. As a Christian, I will continue to strive to model all my relationships after the example of Jesus whose relationship with others was grounded in deep care, compassion and forgiveness. My relationship with God and others is deepened when I am attentive to my thoughts, feelings and actions. Relying on God’s providence, I will focus on the things that make me happy, demonstrate respect and care for the earth and which bring Glory to God