Gazing Lovingly

A Reflection on the Psalm for August 16th, 2020:
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Psalm 67

R. Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you!

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations. 

R. Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you!

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. 

R. Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you!

The earth has yielded its increase; God, our God, has blessed us. May God continue to bless us; let all the ends of the earth revere him. 

R. Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you!

Pause. Pray.

And then read more...

I once attended a weekend retreat where the Spiritual Director presented a series of posters of the solar system to demonstrate how vast and deep the Lord’s love is for each of us. He systematically moved through the pictures showing us planets, stars, Earth, Canada, Nova Scotia, and then asked us to close our eyes and picture the Lord smiling upon us individually. I can still recall the overwhelming amazement that I felt in realizing that, despite there being 7.8 BILLION people on Earth, the Lord was gazing lovingly at each hair on my head at that precise moment. He was making His face to shine upon me.

This is the gift of God’s grace. There is nothing I could do that would allow me to deserve this kind of love, and in a world where most “love” has conditions attached, this was incomprehensible to me for the longest while.

While I have no living children who grew under my heart, I do have two who grew in my heart through my marriage to their father. One of them recently became a father himself. I can gaze upon the wee miracle of our granddaughter for hours. Her every word, action, smile delights me. I hear myself constantly encouraging her, letting her know that she is smart, gifted, talented, and loved. I willingly sacrifice time, money, friends, and commitments for her. I want to be a better person for her — to create a world where she will be happy and safe. I sing her praises to everyone and have been known to drop everything to run and greet her when she arrives at our home. The other morning, she picked a weed from the yard to present to me and as she stood in front of me, hand outstretched holding that weed, face and knees dirty from being in the dirt, I knew that I was being given the most beautiful bloom on earth. And when she wrapped her arms around my neck and said, “Wuv ooo,” my heart burst in gratitude for this perfect being.

Doesn’t this sound like God’s love for us? He showers me with blessings, constantly encouraging me through His word and the people He places on my path. As I present Him with my weeds, He gazes upon my dirty face and soiled knees from the dirt I have found myself in, and He loves me without hesitation.

Sharing this message is the mission of every child of God. As we do that, confidently, in our small ways, one person at a time in our daily environments, He assures us that the world will change and yield its increase, bearing much fruit.

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Let us Pray:
Lord, thank You for your abundant gift of grace, freely given, unable to be earned. Make me a flowing channel of Your love, allowing me to infect the entire world with Your peace and healing. May every person I encounter in Your name be left with the blessed assurance of Your overwhelming love, filling the earth with Your bountiful fruit. Amen.




Sandy Graves

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