Posting this Gospel message here today because it is one that sustains me. My lifelong rooted faith upholds and guides me, often my grounding. This is from our great Bishop robert Barron and the reminder is that storms are going to occur. Life is not going to be abreeze and I know mune has not been.
Friends, in today’s Gospel, Matthew 7:21–29, Jesus gives us the parable about building on rock or on sand. On what precisely is the whole of your life built? ------- Your heart is your deep center, the place where you are most authentically yourself. That is your point of contact with God. There you will find the energy that undergirds the other areas of your life: physical, psychological, emotional, relational, and spiritual. If you are rooted in God at the level of your heart, then you will be following the intentions and commands of God, and you can withstand anything. But this does not mean that if we follow God’s commands, the winds and floods will not come. In Jesus’s parable, both builders, the one who follows the commands of God and the one who doesn’t, experience the rain and the floods that symbolize all the trials and temptations and difficulties at the surface of life. But if at the very center of your life you are linked with God—that power that is here and now creating the cosmos—then the storms and floods will come, but they will not destroy you. I am miffed at myself for being stupid while renewing my passport online. I have no imminent travel plans and could have waited longer because it expires in December but thought I;d get it done the other day. Trouble is I went on line and thought I was on the government site but it was a copany known as HelloGov. I got duped. Entered my credit card as requested and did not read fully, this was for their intermediary fee, I have since learned. Turns out they charge more than the passport renewal fee. It took me all day because I still had to get an official passport photo taken. I was dumb to think I could take my own using my phone. Then the site referred me to UPS drop off in town which does not take photos. So over to LaCrosse. Stopped at the UPS store and no they do not take passport photos. So I went over to Wagreens where we've had them taken in the past. I later learned our local post office also takes photos now. Finally all this and completing the forms online and had to print the forms to mail in with my expiring passport. Had to scan and send them first so they could verify and me being dumb still did not realize this was a private intermediary company. Finally all packaged and dropped off at Fed Ex box in town, oh part of the fee was for Fed Ex. Aaanyway it took the day. Not until the next day when I saw the separate charge by HelloGov to my credit card did I learn they are a middleman. What a bunch of BS ....I am going to ne extra cautious now online. They have received the packet and are reviewing it to send along to US agency, I doubt this expeedites anything and it certainly is not worth the extra $ 226 they charged me when the passport is only $212. But I learned all this too late so wasted $226. I try to console myself that it's only money but it galls me. Online is great but this experience alerted me, BEWARE.. I know others have been scammed by many things so this was a relatively inexpensive reminder to me, still I threw away $226. |
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