Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

[I first shared this post nearly ten years ago. It seems like a good time to take another look.] I was prompted a few weeks back to go through and empty out my desk drawer. It had been far too long since I had de-cluttered it. I had forgotten the hidden treasures it contained. Then I saw them – about 15 of them. Suddenly, I realized how long it had been since I last went to prison.    Odd, isn’t it. The one place I visited where I was always immensely blessed is filled with men and women whom the majority of us would never voluntarily choose to have anything to do with - no matter that our Faith teaches that all of us, including the greatest sinners among us, were created in the image and likeness of God and that each of us, without exception, by and through the unearned and undeserved grace of Almighty God, can, despite what we might have done in the past,   become new creations in Him who made us. Every one of us – no exceptions! We must, of course, hum...

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) In today’s Gospel we are reminded of the form God’s justice will take – each of us will be held accountable for the things we have done and that we have failed to do, the manner in which we have loved others or failed to do so. It really is that simple. Stop acting like others are there to serve us; serve others first. There are Lazarus’ all around us - most of the time we either don’t see them or consciously chose to ignore them.   If we don’t open our eyes and lend a helping hand now, we will be in the same plight as the rich man in today’s Gospel. When we know the truth and fail to act on it, we condemn ourselves to eternal punishment. Is it time to change the way we live?