[media presentation below] GospelThink Wednesday, July 5 MATTHEW 8:28-34 Demons could never stand up to me because I am with God. Prayerthoughts a. “Coming from the tombs,” There are many who are “outcast” in one way or another. In general, should I treat them better than I am? b. The men were obviously in pain. What can I do to alleviate some of the pain of the people that I thought of in letter a? c. The demon addresses Jesus as God. Sometimes “evil” is caused by people who think they are close to God. Is there some evil in my life that I have not tried to conquer? d. “Swine” were unclean according to Jewish Law. Therefore, to the Jewish mind, the “swine” were not important and could be destroyed. Should I have a better attitude toward the practices of other religions? e. Why do you think the people begged Jesus to leave their district? f. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will read Genesis, chapter 21, and write an important thought from it. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  GOD CARES, NO MATTER WHAT  + It is an interesting reading from Genesis today           – Isaac’s descendants will be the chosen race                      – that left Ishmael and Hagar out of the picture                                – but God cared for them as well                                          – the story exemplifies the idea of caring, no matter what the circumstance  + Jesus gave the same example of caring for people           – here in the Gospel, caring for people possessed by demons                      – the main point: Jesus has complete control over the demons because Jesus is God                                – and the secondary point Jesus will care for people no matter what, even though it means disturbing others, in this case, the swine-herders and the townspeople who did not want him to stay around  + Our spiritual thought could center around our work of caring for others, our work of justice and goodness to others           – for people interested in the spiritual life in a stronger way, as we are, it means looking seriously at how we behave outside of the confines of church:                            – how we act toward each other, and how we do the things that we should be doing                      – and understanding everything that we do with the overall umbrella of “caring for others”  + We might want to spend some time today thinking specifically about whether we “care for others” or not by going through what we normally do and asking ourselves how well we are caring for those around me. MEDIA PRESENTATION Movie: “News of the World” — beginning session ALWAYS GUIDING The Gospel MATTHEW 2:19-22 When Herod had died, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” He rose, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel, But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go back there. And because he had been warned in a dream, he departed for the region of Galilee.

Gospelthink: The Lord directed Joseph to begin Jesus’s life in Galilee. Do I see that the Lord is directing my life in some way?

Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, a former Confederate soldier made his living traveling from town to town reading newspapers to local residents. After an evening of work, Kidd set out for his next location and discovered an overturned wagon. He found the body of a lynched black slave freedman and a live young Indian girl named Cicada who only spoke the Kiowa language. Intending to take the child to the Bureau of Indian Affairs at a Union checkpoint, and finding that the person was not being available, he had to accept the responsibility of taking Cicada to her home. Kidd gradually came to understand that he should take care of Cicada himself and take her to her home.

In the infancy section of Matthew’s Gospel, God is very direct in showing Joseph what he must do in order to arrange the life of Mary and their son Jesus. God uses both dreams and Joseph’s own reasoning to direct the holy family’s early life. Although not as direct as God was with Joseph, it is a spiritual fact that God is very much in charge of our own lives as well. We have used St. Paul’s words to the Romans several times in these meditations, because they express God’s directing our lives and directing our lives toward what is good. Paul writes:”We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). In other words, our faith recognizes that God is directing our lives, and directing us toward a good. We may not see how God is working, but for the believer, God is very much a part of our lives. As Captain Kidd interacted with the Indian girl Cicada that he found on his path, he may not have realized that it was God’s plan, but good man that he was, he knew that he had to do something in order to help this person in the world in which they both lived. He was following God’s plan. One of the guiding principles for a Christian is that God is working in our lives. We may not see it or even think about it, but God is very much directing us as we strive to do what is good. What it should mean for us is that no matter what direction our lives have taken, our desire must always be to bring about some good in what we do. As Captain Kidd in the movie “News of the World,” we see the good that can be done, and we set about doing it.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, I believe that you are directing our lives in some way. As we see the things that we do, and the things that happen to us, give us the grace to always accept what happens with the thought that we can bring about good in this world. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: We may not realize it, but God is always directing our lives.   DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: (session: approximately 55 minutes) 1. What scene during this session of the movie is most striking? Why? 2. Granted that we know little of Jesus’s early life, in your opinion, what was most difficult about it? 3. What would have been the most difficult thing about living in the Western part of our country around 1870? 4. Have you had any dreams that have helped shape your life? If so, mention one. 5. In your opinion, do most people acknowledge that God is directing their lives? 6. Do you believe in “luck” or in God’s directing what happens? 7. Who is most in need in our own little world at this time? What can we do about it? 8. What is a “good” that most everyone in the world can do?