Tag Archives: blessings

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Coming in early for a rare, but appreciated day of rest…….

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When I was driving with Deacon PT yesterday, he reminded me, as they often have to do (post-stroke) that I was scheduled at only one parish this weekend and I do not have to do a sermon at all. No offense, but that was pretty exciting news to me! I therefore have all of today to catch up with things around the house, print some bulletins, and go buy a couple of tables for St. Patrick’s……a delightfully easy day!

Tom make matters even better, Ben slept 12 hours straight last night, Scotty was not killed in his goalie-duty against Bishop Chatard High School (though he will not be walking without pain for days), and Steph and Amanda will probably head out to “run errands” meaning the ability to instruct or direct my day will be greatly limited on her part! (run errands probably means shopping). Needless to say, I am sure many men who read this may be jealous!!

So I am posting early to make my responsibilities later less or even non-existent, but am praying for the latter. God occasionally blesses me with a great one, and this day qualifies. And I am very optimistic that there is not too much out there that could mess this up!

God is good! I am thankful for this day!

God Bless you too my friends!

Tom+

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The Return of the Two Yutes……..

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It has been an exciting day! Stephanie and Scott returned from New York a day early and we spent the day hanging out at home. Stephanie made candy with Amanda, and Scott and I drywalled a few spots we have been meaning to in the basement. We accomplished a lot, but more than anything it just felt good to have them home.

Ben of course is beside himself! He is SO EXCITED to play with them both. They all miss each other and it is no wonder…..when they are together they play hard! The three of them laughing together is perhaps my favorite sound, and I was so blessed to hear that all through the day.

There is no other news besides that, but for me that is enough! I will go to bed tonight quite content! God is good, and He has blessed me with wonderful children, many smiles, and a lot of laughter.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tom+

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Merry Christmas!

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Well all the services have taken place and we are home. The day has been long but fruitful, and as I reflect upon it I can easily admit how very blessed I am. I love what I do, and love the people I am called to do it among. Celebrating Christmas with them is a blessing to me that I am so very thankful for.

I am writing this entry in bed, next to Ben, who is out like a light. Amanda is still downstairs wrapping the last gift. I got Ben because she has had him all day and he was grouchy…..and, I am the world’s worst wrapper. It frustrates me and then it just gets worse. I am so meticulous about so many things, but wrapping is not one of them! Yep, another blessing…..Ben is out and grouchy no more. This has turned out to be a pretty sweet deal.

Anyway my friends, I want to wish Christmas Blessings to you this Christmas Eve. Have a blessed day tomorrow as well!

Merry Christmas and God Bless!

Fr. Tom+

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Of the Lord’s Work in many places…….

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I was wondering tonight, why I was so tired and then I remembered that yesterday I became just a year and a half away from eligibility for my AARP card! We left St. Patrick’s tonight at around 11pm, and it is all set to go but for one bathroom which will be completed about 2 weeks from now.

It felt different working there at St. Patrick’s since it is just a couple of miles from where we currently live. Since I am the priest of currently four churches, I thought WOW, this is so close to my house, but then I thought I am in lots of places and A LOT! As a matter of fact, I am only there at St. Patrick’s tomorrow because Deacons PT and Dan thought I should be at the first service when it was mostly done. Otherwise I would have been in both Nashville and Greenfield. It is funny to me……we are all so committed to all of our Missions, and to us it really doesn’t matter where we are. It is about serving God’s people and being among them. All of us, including Deacon Tony and Father Chuck, are just thankful for the opportunities we have to serve. I am blessed to work with such a wonderful gaggle (the proper term I believe for a group of clergy) of people.

Anyway, I am exhausted and going to bed. I hope and pray you and I all have a blessed and productive day tomorrow!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Fr. Tom+

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Everybody’s working for the weekend……….

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With a lot of prayers and a lot of work, I am happy to report that the work on St. Patrick’s should be finished sometime tonight before midnight! I am SO HAPPY. The people have been so patient and it will be such a blessing to have a completed and permanent home.

Often things like this get completed and it feels like a finish line when in fact it is just a beginning. We have a new church, new chairs, room to do things, yet we are called not to put our feet up and enjoy it, but rather to use it! We will use this to teach classes, to worship, to spread the Good News, and to grow God’s Kingdom. And just as the goal of the early Church was to expand, so too from St. Patrick’s do we hope to plant other churches!

I will not kid you, I am exhausted! We have been working non-stop for weeks and now Christmas is upon us! It is going to get a bit more intense before it gets easier! But thank God for the opportunities and the blessings He has bestowed upon us and our ministry! There is no greater privilege and no better place that I could imagine to be!

Come visit or join us at ANY of our missions!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Fr. Tom+

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Of rolling my fat self over the hump………

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Just when I thought the world was getting back to normal, I awoke to all this rain. It is December, and though I am from just a couple of hours north of where I currently live, there is SNOW there and there has been for most of November and December. Sure, rain is easier to shovel and a lot easier to drive in, but I really do think it should snow in December, not rain.

Of course if the Lord really was interested in my opinion my beloved Chicago Bears would be doing a lot better, so I guess I should just accept it and carry an umbrella instead of gloves and a hat. It’s not the first thing in my life I had trouble understanding, and I am certain it will not be the last. I am just glad I am not a kid anymore……this whole thing would make backyard/neighborhood ice rinks a little hard to maintain!

Today, overall, has been a good day. I got a lot accomplished, including a visit to my regular doctor. He is a great guy and a real Godsend to me through all I have gone through. No big changes for me other than an adjustment in some medications. The good news is that I look to have survived and am good for another 100,000 miles. Amanda and the kids will just need to save for a vacation…..there will be no inheritance!!

Oh I kid, I kid…. I am just happy to say I feel like I am on the other side of all of this, and that I only anticipate getting stronger. My weight is back up, but tonight is the end of it…..I am going back down. And we are getting rid of the gym in our garage and have decided to park, get this, cars there. Imagine that! So I will be finding a gym close to the house to visit soon.

Time has been good to me, and the Lord has blessed me deeply. I will not take that for granted. I am committed to living a long and healthy life, and hope to be a burden to all three kids someday. But for now I will just enjoy life and live it day by day.

Off to bed early for me tonight. I hope and pray your day has been every bit as blessed as mine.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tom+

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Blessings of an unexpected kind……

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On my way to the hospital this afternoon to do a call, I happened to be the first person to come upon a head-on collision that must have occurred just minutes before. It was between an SUV and a full-sized pick-up and it was bad. Both were off the road and the pick-up had sheered off part of a telephone pole. It was a surprise someone wasn’t killed. The man in the SUV was out and walking, but the man in the pick-up, an elderly gentleman was still pinned in by his steering wheel. I was able to lean over him and undo his seat belt that he said was hurting him, but other than that, I was able to do very little. Another passer-by, a woman, stayed there with me talking to him until the EMS arrived.

I would bet that neither of these men imagined this would be their afternoon. The young man was on his way to pick up his daughter, and I know was thankful that she was not with him at the time.

But in looking at it, there was a lot to be thankful for. Both men were alive. Though both vehicles were totaled, hitting the telephone pole the way it happened AND just missing the cables, he actually went between them with just inches to spare, made it an accident and not a fatality. As I left and went to the hospital, I said a prayer and remembered how blessed we all are. After all, things can change in an instant. Everyone I saw today, I am happy to report, will return to their homes again. Praise God!

I am off to hang out with Scotty and Ben! Have a great night and God Bless!

Tom+

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A preemptive Thanksgiving wish……

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Because I usually blog at the end of each day I thought it would be a good idea to mention Thanksgiving tonight. Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday, truly American, where we gather, often with family and friends, to give thanks for our blessings.

Where ever you find yourself tomorrow I hope you pause to give thanks for God’s blessings upon your life. I will be praying for you and lifting you up to the Lord as well. I appreciate you checking in on me and my life through this blog. That’s right, I consider this, and you, one of MY many blessings. And for you I am thankful.

God bless you my friends, and may your Thanksgiving be filled with an awareness of how very blessed by God we all really are. And may your heart reflect its thankfulness.

Have a great day tomorrow!

Fr. Tom+

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Ramblings on fatherhood and family…….

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Though Deacon Morgan and I worked the Diabetes Walk this morning, most of my day was spent being the chief jungle gym and entertainer of my son Ben. We had quite a day too. After an intense playtime and a nap, which he apparently felt was sufficient but I felt was far too short, we went to the Tractor Supply (my idea), the Scrapbook Store (Amanda’s idea), and then Panera Bread (Ben’s idea). It was a great “dad day.” Steph and Scott are so independent, and at 16 and 15 are so embarrassed when I try to carry them! Each of them has a different relationship with me, but I love them all the same! And it was nice today to have a fun-filled toddler day.

Spending time with my family is important. I know so many clergy that serve the Lord, but who do so at the expense of their family. Why would you ever want to care for other’s families at the expense of your own? The Lord calls us to care for own own house as well as those of others. And that doesn’t just apply if you are clergy either. Our families are important, and we are called to be leaders within them first…..more than in our jobs, or even in our churches.

As for me, I think I would feel funny (okay guilty) for talking about family values if I didn’t indeed live them. I believe we should all be that way too. But it’s more than that. For if we live faithfully, we will also see the Lord’s blessings in our lives. This is to say that I see my chasing Ben around the Scrapbook Store as a real gift to me. I see hanging with all my family as God’s blessing upon me.

Anyway, it has been a great day and I am so very thankful for it! So it is off to bed for me. Thanks for checking in and God bless!

Tom+

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Inclimate weather to some becomes abundant blessings and peace to others…….

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Well it’s Friday night, it’s a wonderful 55 degrees, and Puddy and I are out here in blogging-mode, and we would be at it if my wife wouldn’t keep remembering things she needs to tell me. I hate to break it to her, but it is futile…..my mind is all fogged up and I probably will not be remembering much! But I really consider it her fault anyway…..she KNOWS I have memory problems yet chooses to tell me stuff in spite of them. Go figure. I just nod my head and act like I am taking it all in. Sure, many husbands do that……I just have a good excuse!

But now we (Puddy and I) are out here alone and can write all we want! We are back from the first women’s lacrosse game of the indoor season, and I am happy to say we did very well. These girls are a lot of fun to coach, and it was great to get out on the field with them again. We will play through February indoors and then the regular high school season starts in March…..next break is JUNE!!

So tonight I just intend to relax. I have a sermon yet to write and a lot of work to do before Sunday, but I know when I have had enough……tonight will be all rest. I have, in addition to the cat, a glass of wine and the hopes of seeing my bed early. Sure it’s Friday night, but if you can’t live into your teenage kid’s stereotypes about old people, then you just risk disappointing them! We are all created in the image of God, but I am sure even the Good Lord knows the value of an early evening…..even on a Friday!

It’s funny, I remember when I thought that life was all about the social parts. I used to think if I wasn’t doing something on a Friday or Saturday night that there was something wrong with me. I see that now in young people, and even in some adults. But there is so much more to life than what we do.

As I type, I can feel and hear the wind blowing the corn in the field behind my house. It keeps my life in perspective and grounded. It’s a beautiful sound. It’s very powerful and moving to me too, more so than any nightclub of my youth or a football game. It reminds me that the All-powerful and loving God who created me, is still there, causing the wind to blow, the sun to rise and fall, and all the other things that make this life possible. How great is that???

Anyway, I suppose we will stop for now and just enjoy the night (actually Puddy, pronounced like “pudding” does not type) for it is quite a gift for us both!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless. I hope you have enjoyed a day full of God’s blessings…..only to be surpassed by the day I pray He gives you tomorrow!

Fr. Tom+