A person without God in their life doesn’t see the difference in being “lucky” and being “blessed.”  It is only when I credit God for events in my life that I feel blessed; I experience boundless joy and unlimited love.  

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks with the Samaritan woman.  She was a sinner… undeserving of His love.  She was a woman… in a time and place when Jesus should have had nothing to do with her.  She was a Samaritan… a mixed race.  So, here I am in the year 2017… a sinner, a woman and an American… with a mixed family heritage of Irish, Polish, Greek and Czechoslovakian.    

Jesus asks the woman to draw water from the depths of the well.   Just as Jesus asks me to draw from the depths of my soul to have a “heart to heart” with Him.  During this Lenten season, He challenges me to let go of the things that bring me darkness and pain, those that cover me with a blanket of snow.  He challenges me to lift high my own cross and be strong, to see His light of hope like a spring day, so that I may delight in the joy of His Resurrection.  

I’ve learned that if I left this life without scars and without wounds, I wouldn’t have truly lived life to the fullest.  By collecting up my broken pieces, scars and wounds, I am made new... time after time!  Who would ever think that growing up with an alcoholic Dad would equip me with a compassionate heart in working with teens?  Twelve years ago, when I opened my eyes as I lay on the ground after colliding with a dump truck head-on while riding my bicycle, I knew God wasn’t finished with me yet!  When I was laid off as Youth Minister at my former parish, feeling abandoned and hurt, I never imagined that coming to OLC was part of His plan!    He turns my weaknesses into my strengths.  

I can put a hole in a paper trying to erase my mistakes in life, but healing from my brokenness is what always leads me to feel blessed.  He plants new life that takes root and blooms!  I am offered endless opportunities to offer Him my sinful self, knowing that God will fill me with His own love.  Yes, I am blessed!

In Christ,