By Msgr. David Baumgartner

Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Frazee

Here is a thought from last week’s bulletin, The seventh jar is here in your midst, upon this altar. 

My mother moved into senior housing on Monday, Jan. 24. She is moving from a two bedroom apartment to a two bedroom apartment. The new one is a little smaller. She has been sorting and packing full time since Christmas. The things she doesn’t want and nobody else will take end up in my garage. At the moment I have a large stick-built Christmas wreath, an under-the-counter radio/CD player, a lamp shade, glass bowls and a serving tray, a dinning room buffet…and more and it is not over. 

She has never liked the lamp shade. It came on a lamp that she likes. Thirty some years later she is ditching the shade, keeping the lamp and my sister is charged with the task of shade shopping. 

Is there something in your life that bugs you and has an easy fix? Don’t wait until you are 91 years old to tackle it. Do it soon and enjoy it for the next thirty some years. 

A similar thing can happen with the way we feel in our bodies and in our lives of faith. If a change in your diet will help you feel better, what are you waiting for? If a new prayer routine will bolster  your relationship with Jesus, why would you put it off? 

Our faith is far more important than a lamp shade. If there is something that is not working for you, it is worth the time, energy and reflection to tweak it or find a fix. There is no reason to fear or avoid the intensity of a love that burns hotter and brighter. This is what Jesus wants us to be in the world, on fire for him. 

Anybody need a lightly used lamp shade?