Pulse 94.1 Fm

God in the Everyday–Fr Mike Delaney–Highs & Lows (Recently Fr Mike was asked to share a high and a low from the past week or so. Apart from his low of it being a bitterly cold Hobart day, everywhere Fr Mike went and whatever he did he kept experiencing God moments. The children at the school, the funeral, phone calls, – all spoke powerfully of God working in his life and in the lives of others. Amazingly that happens every day but sometimes we are too busy to notice.)

Faith Testimony– Dominic Beltrame (Vancouver, Canada) Dominic tells Journey Editor, Max Norden, that he follows in the footsteps of his older brother by joining the National Evangelisation Team, but in his case with a slight difference in that he decided to combine his gap year with travel to both Ireland and Australia while being a NET member. Dominic tells of his experiences in both countries and the differences he sees between Ireland and Australia.

The Bush Deacon–Josh Clayton–Rain (After years of drought, we finally have rain, but as Josh observes, the absolute devastation that rain and floods have caused in so many parts of our world over these last few months and years makes him ask, why do we always want something different? He says we can learn much from Jesus and the gospel stories to live with what we have and let our faith inform us and help us to understand that challenges placed before us help us to encounter God and help us to enable others to encounter God. Josh says there's something beautiful about rain. There is something beautiful about water, and especially the impact it has on us and the life that it brings, and most importantly the waters of baptism that changes us forever.)

On The Journey This Week: Deacon James Arblaster’s Gospel reflection on faith and gratitude. Mother Hilda on the African philosophy of Ubuntu which translated means I am because you are. A faith testimony from Dominic Beltrame (NET member from Vancouver). Plus, Fr Mike Delaney on his daily highs and lows and seeing the power of God working in his life and inn the lives of others, and Josh Clayton looking at the impact water has on us and the life that it brings.

On The Journey This Week: Deacon James Arblaster’s gospel reflection on service; when we serve our neighbour, we are doing our duty, kneeling shoulder-to-shoulder with God-made-man, Jesus. Mother Hilda on truly getting to know another person, Plus, Fr Mike Delaney says we should have a footy club supporter’s passion for spreading the Gospel message, Trish McCarthy is inspired by rainbows, and Deacon Josh Clayton on being dedicated to our vocation in life.

Gospel Reflection–Deacon James Arblaster–The Servant Challenge (Deacon James delves into what Jesus meant when he said, “We are merely servants: we have done no more than our duty.” Often when we go out of our way to serve the needs of others, we feel that we have gone above and beyond our call of duty. But Jesus reminds us in this gospel that our state in life is one of natural service and self-giving for others. He calls us to measure our service performance by the standard that he set for service to others. When we serve our neighbour, we are doing our duty, kneeling shoulder-to-shoulder with God-made-man, Jesus, as he serves the broken of this world as their healer and Lord.)

Wisdom from the Abbey–Mother Hilda–I Saw You (Mother Hilda sees the depth of expression in the Amazon peoples welcoming each other with the greeting “I saw you but I had not met you” meaning I only know you when I pass the time of day with you. And the even more powerful greeting from Native Americans who acknowledge that I only know you when when I walk a mile in your moccasins. Mother Hilda wonders if that isn't some of the meaning of that final chapter in Matthew's gospel when Jesus is describing the last judgement. Surely when our judgement comes, it will be music to our ears to hear the Father say, I saw you and I met you. It will be music to the ear of the Father to hear you say, Father, I saw you and I met you.)

God in the Everyday–Fr Mike Delaney–Footy Grand Final (As a life-long Geelong “Cats” supporter, Fr Mike says he had to mentally prepare himself for last weekend’s AFL grand final. After receiving many phone calls of support from friends and parishioners wishing him and Geelong all the best for the grand final, Fr Mike wonders what impact we might have if our church communities had the passion of a football supporters’ group to channel that passion into spreading the Gospel message.)

Milk & Honey–Trish McCarthy–Rainbow of Colour (Trish has been thinking about the symbolism of the rainbow that God showed Noah in the Old Testament and says that it can be extended into our everyday lives. It's encouraged that we eat a rainbow of colour on any one day, but every now and then, maybe once a month throw in a colour day. Take on the challenge of having a periodic Green Day whereby most of the foods we consume are green. Green salad with baby spinach, steamed broccoli, avocado, pumpkin seeds or a green vegetable soup with leeks, broccoli, zucchini, celery. These can be so delicious. Another day might be purple, comprising of eggplants, berries, grapes, purple cabbage.)

The Bush Deacon–Josh Clayton–Elizabeth (Josh wonders why the death of Her Majesty the Queen has had a large impact on so many. For Josh it was her genuine faith, and how that transformed her life and helped her to see the calling she had every day. From her life we can learn about faith and about vocation. We may not get a tiara or crown put on our head, but we can live our life as God calls us to, in a way that will transform lives and be the people God calls us to be.)

On The Journey This Week: Fr Mark De Battista’s reflection on a gospel with an interesting twist, the seeming care for others isn't coming out of love but instead out of self-interest. Mother Hilda on what makes a person officially awesome. Plus, Fr Anthony Crook explores why personal spirituality, and a sense of religious belonging is so protective and comforting to us, Trish McCarthy has a tip on being a better communicator, and Fr Dave Callaghan says Christianity is not a spectator sport.

Gospel Reflection–Fr Mark De Battista– Judgement (Jesus tells a beautiful parable about a rich man gorging himself, and a poor man named Lazarus. It’s about judgement, the final judgement with the decision a choice between good and evil and ultimately a choice between heaven or hell. An interesting twist, though. Once the rich man is told that there is a great chasm between them, he wants Lazarus sent to warn his five brothers. His seeming care for his brothers isn't coming out of love but coming out of self-interest. So, the next time you must make a decision, be it big or small ask yourselves, in your heart, are you doing this because you really care and love the person you are doing this for? Or if you're doing it because you want to make yourself more comfortable?)

Wisdom from the Abbey–Mother Hilda–Officially Awesome (Mother Hilda has taken to doing brain games, little mental exercises that are supposed to boost our mental strength. After doing particularly well in one of the word games, the computer said she was now officially awesome. What is it that makes a person officially awesome? Surely not a word game! Isn't it love, kindness, concern for one another, capacity to forgive, willingness to give another start? We don't have to succeed in anything, because of God's love and its effect in our lives, you and I are all officially awesome.)

Positive Psychology–Fr Anthony Crook–Spirituality and Well-Being (part 3) (In this episode Fr Anthony begins to look at the experience of moral injury, such as a loss of spirituality, feelings of guilt, problems with forgiveness, feelings of betrayal or loss of meaning and purpose, and the role a pastor, chaplain, or spiritual advisor has in assisting people who suffer moral injury. [continued next episode])

Milk & Honey–Trish McCarthy–Use Your Words (Trish’s observation of her friend’s baby daughter trying to communicate with her mother reminds Trish of the many times we get to the point of frustration or run out of words to express our emotions and thoughts. Her encouragement is to invest in and expand your vocabulary. Learn some new words to communicate what you experience, the more words we have to draw upon, the more effective our communication will be.)

The Call–Fr Dave Callaghan–Christianity is not a spectator sport (We live in a world that is obsessed by sport It is much safer being a spectator, watching it all from the safety and comfort of our lounge room. The same principle unfortunately applies to Christianity. We love to speak about the Saints, the holy people who have gone before us, but we would never dare to follow them. The whole reason why these holy men and women have charged off in pursuit of Christ, in pursuit of holiness, is so that we would follow, that we would be inspired by their example, and know that the same thing as possible for us.

Wisdom from the Abbey–Mother Hilda–The Teapot (Mother Hilda says the true story of an intellectually and physically disabled woman’s reaction to her hand-crafted ceramic teapot by lovingly kissing it is just like God’s reaction to us. Every day God places a kiss on your head and his eyes fill with tears. He's so proud of what he has made in you. And all you have to do is keep living your life and letting God give you a kiss.)

God in the Everyday–Fr Mike Delaney–Starting Anew (After being a participating Church in a recent Billy Graham Evangelistic Association tour in Tasmania, Fr Mike wonders what would happen if we went looking for people who were spiritually lost. The Gospel parable was easy – looking for a lost sheep, a lost drachma, a lost son – we know what they look like. The person next door or family member might not appear to be lost so we don’t think of helping them or looking for them. What would happen if we actually went looking? If we spoke to them and asked if they would like to join us for an Alpha experience or some other event where there is a focus on Jesus and his love? Or perhaps if we just reached out to them in friendship and love?)

Milk & Honey–Trish McCarthy–Peace (Trish has been thinking about being at peace with oneself and with the world. It prompted me to ask the question. Am I living in such a way that I experience being at peace with myself and at peace with the world that God created for me? This doesn't just relate to my spiritual journey, but overflows into my physical life as well. The food we eat, our physical activities, or our relationships. Sit still long enough today and ask God to fill you with his peace, a peace the world cannot give. And in doing so, seek to transfer that peace into everyday living.)

Living the Gospel–Pete Gilmore–Don’t Run Your Car on Empty (Pete doesn’t know a lot about cars, but one thing he knows is that you should never do is let your car run on an empty tank too often otherwise the sediment at the bottom of the tank to be sucked up by the fuel line and cause damage to the car. We're not too dissimilar to cars. In the letter to the Ephesians, Paul pleads with us to “keep being filled with the Holy Spirit.” In the book of Acts, the author constantly reminds us that almost any time someone speaks, it's because they've just been filled with the Holy Spirit. There's no better time to visit the faith petrol station for a top up right now, wherever you are you can pray this prayer in Jesus’ name, “Come, Holy Spirit. Amen.”)