The Morning He Left
Yesterday, Matthew left for Air Force Basic Training.
We dropped him at the airport. Final hugs. A picture together - the three of us, right before he walked into the terminal. He flew to Orlando, then on to San Antonio after checking in on base and getting his orders.
Before we left home, Andrew and Joseph were there with Suzanne and I as I prayed over him and blessed him:
All-powerful and ever-living God, when Abraham left his native land and departed from his people, you kept him safe through all his journeys. Protect this airman. Be his constant companion and his strength in battle, his refuge in every adversity. Guide him, O Lord, that he may return home in safety. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
I prayed over him the way I've laid hands on hundreds of people as a deacon - but this time it was my son, and it was different. That's what ordination is for. Not just for strangers. For the people closest to you, in the moments that matter most.
The day was exciting, nerve-wracking, and emotional all tied up in one. He's nervous. We're nervous. It's an unknown.
But he's going to do great.
Read the full reflection: The Morning He Left
This Week
I've started with the Knights of Columbus this week - in the field now as an agent for Edwardsville and Glen Carbon. It's good to be helping Catholic families protect and provide for their futures.
I'm also working more deeply with the Diocese and Foundation on some exciting projects - more on that as it develops.
The sabbatical from active parish ministry continues.
This Sunday's Readings
The Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time brings the Parable of the Sower.
Notice what the sower doesn't do. He doesn't test the soil first. He doesn't wait for ideal conditions. He just sows - generously, even wastefully. Some seed fails. He keeps sowing.
The harvest is not your job. The sowing is.
And sometimes the sowing is one person at a time. You plan an event and hope for fifty people. Three show up. Maybe one. Don't be discouraged. The sower doesn't measure success by the soil that rejected the seed. He measures faithfulness by whether he kept sowing.
Isaiah puts it this way: "My word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it."
The word you speak - to your child, to your coworker, to the one person who showed up - that word will not return void.
Keep sowing.
Two Lamps
Last Friday: Issue 09 - The Convent at Bharananganam
Saint Thomas the Apostle and Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception. Kerala, India, late July 1946. The dying Sister Alphonsa is visited by the apostle who planted the seed of the Syro-Malabar Church nineteen hundred years before.
Published on the Feast of St. Thomas - our Thomas's name day.
Lux Perpetua
The Living Thread and The Lost Crown continue. The two tracks are converging - Joshua is beginning to see how the threads connect.
What I'm Praying This Week
For Matthew - his first days at Basic, his adjustment, his formation.
For the other parents in this strange limbo of waiting.
For the Knights work - the families I'll be serving.
For all of you who sow seeds you may never see bloom.
Domus Formation
WeAreDomus.com - Start a free trial. Hearth & Altar for families. Eventide & Altar for the second half of life. Iron & Altar for men. Vessel & Altar for women.
WeAreDomus.com/Daily - The free daily email. Catholic news for families.
Final Word
"All-powerful and ever-living God, when Abraham left his native land and departed from his people, you kept him safe through all his journeys. Protect this airman."
Go, Matthew. We love you. We're praying for you.
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