He Cares For You

SCRIPTURE
- 1 Peter 5:6-7         
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you."   

REFLECTION
- Fr. Jason

MUSIC
- "Hands Be Still" by Ólafur Arnalds
- "Set the Course" by Jay Stocker

NOTES
-

PRAYER OF LETTING GO
To You do I belong, O God,
into Your hands I surrender my life.
Pour out Your Spirit upon me
that I may love You perfectly,
and serve You faithfully
until my soul rests in You.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_03 0:29

Welcome to the God Minute. Here we are at the beginning of October. There's just something cozy about this time of year. The cooler air, earlier sunsets, changing leaves, and that unmistakable feeling that a new season is settling in. So wherever you are today, settle in with us for the next few minutes. Let us pray. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Psalm 9. I sing of your glory. Give thanks to God with your whole heart. Tell the story of God's way. Be glad and dance with joy. Sing praises to the name above all names.

SPEAKER_01 1:34

You know each nation and see how they destroy one another. Chaos and darkness rise up and blind love's way. But love will always prevail.

SPEAKER_00 1:53

For you have established yourself in secret places, ready to enter and make your dwelling place within. Be gracious to me, O my God. I sing of your glory. From the depths of my being, I rejoice and give thanks for your faithful love.

SPEAKER_01 2:18

Arise, O God, have your way with us. Let your healing light stream forth, O God. Let us surrender everything to you.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

SPEAKER_01 2:37

As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.

SPEAKER_02 3:06

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him because he cares for you. The word of the Lord. Do you believe that God cares for you? All of us have a theology of the head. There's things that we believe in our mind, but in your heart, do you believe that God cares for you? Oftentimes I know in my own life I think that in my mind, but the way that I live and act doesn't always reflect that. And so often I want to do things on my own, or I think, I'll just do it my way and things will be okay. In the first place, then it takes real humility to admit that we can't do something. It takes humility to know that we need help. And so in our reading today, it says, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God. In other words, know that you need help. We need help. So often we carry so much alone. And in that isolation, we end up anxious or resentful or exhausted. But God, our Heavenly Father, offers us help. He offers to carry those anxieties when we cast them upon Him. Today is the memorial of Saint Therese of Lesoux, the little flower. And Saint Therese teaches us her little way. She teaches us to be childlike. St. John Paul II declared Saint Therese to be a doctor of the church, meaning one of the great teachers of the faith. And what she teaches is so simple but yet so essential. That we are children of God and that in the spiritual life we're meant to act like children, to be childlike, to follow that little way. And so, brothers and sisters, the invitation is there to allow God to care for us because we're little. We're little. Children need to be cared for. A child has to embrace his or her littleness and allow mom or dad to care for them. But it's true that soon a child, maybe a toddler, begins to sort of learn this thing where they want to do it themselves. And we can easily fall into that as well. It's part of our broken, fallen condition. But in the spiritual life, we're called to humble ourselves and to allow God to care for us. We're called to be children of God. Even as we grow up, even as we age, all of us, our deepest identity is to be a son or a daughter of God. What dignity there is in that. And certainly we all believe that in our minds. But do you believe that in your heart? In the deepest place of your heart, do you allow God to care for you, to carry you, especially through the struggles so that you're not alone in the anxieties of life? And so when you're burdened, embrace your littleness. As the scripture says, cast all your cares on him because he cares for you. Do you believe that? Do you believe that God really cares for you? Today, on this beautiful memorial of Saint Therese, embrace her little way and allow God to care for you because you are God's son or daughter, and He delights in being your father.

SPEAKER_03 7:21

Place it before Him now. Trusting the Father, we pray. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Let us pray. Faithful God, you know every weight we carry, even the ones hidden deep within us. When our hands are clenched around our worries, gently teach us to let go. When we are weary from carrying too much, draw us close and let us rest in your care. Quiet the fear that tells us we must manage everything on our own. Make our hearts small enough to trust and open enough to be held. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

SPEAKER_01 8:45

Amen.

SPEAKER_03 8:48

To you do I belong, O God. Into your hands I surrender my life. Pour out your spirit upon me, that I may love you perfectly and serve you faithfully until my soul rests in you. Saint Therese once said, I am too little to climb the rough stairway to perfection. Her little way was never about becoming strong enough to reach God on her own. It was about becoming small enough to let God lift her. Hmm. Something to ponder along with Father Jason's beautiful reflection. Thank you for joining us today, and may God bless us in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

SPEAKER_02 9:39

Amen.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

Look for Christ and the small things until we pray again tomorrow.