A New Creation

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They say that change is constant. 

A caterpillar being transformed into a butterfly is the epitome of change. It’s good to keep in mind, though, that this change doesn’t come easily and it doesn’t happen overnight. The caterpillar eats voraciously, and nearly continuously, to grow strong. After she builds her chrysalis and is transformed into a butterfly inside it, she has to work to emerge from it. Her struggle to break through the hard shell is necessary for her to develop strong, healthy wings. Some people have tried to ‘help’ butterflies emerge, but this actually harms them: The caterpillar’s and butterfly’s respective work is what lets her reach her ultimate goal. In all stages of the butterfly’s development, there’s no stagnation. There’s constant work and constant change. 

The same is true for us in our spiritual life. We’ll become stronger in our faith when we resist stagnation – when we work at our spiritual growth and ask God to work with us. We’ll grow stronger in our faith by learning, through prayer and experience, how God wants us to express that faith. We’ll discover how we can show our love for God and for our neighbor with our personalities and talents and all the other resources He’s given us. What God asks of us may very well change with the seasons of our life. As we mature and as our faith grows stronger, we’ll learn to follow God’s promptings and change as He guides us to. And over time, we’ll be transformed – we’ll live with and for Christ more and more. We’ll become kinder, wiser, more patient, more generous, more compassionate, more charitable, more forgiving, more loving, and more prayerful. We’ll become more and more focused on God and less on ourselves. We’ll become more like Him.

To let our Lord accomplish all of this in us, we have to be open to change; we have to allow ourselves to be changed by the One Who created us. To become more like God, we have to become a new creation – we have to become the people He created us to be.

This doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen without effort on our part. So, let’s ask our Lord for the grace to open our hearts to Him, and to help us see how He wants us to change. Let’s ask Him to help us identify and abandon our old, stagnant ways. Let’s ask Him to draw us closer to Himself and to help us take advantage of opportunities to spend more time with Him during our day. Let’s ask Him to show us how we might find new ways to show His love to the people in our family and in our community. 

Let’s ask God for the courage to let Him transform us into the people He created us to be.

“So whoever is in Christ is a new creation...” – 2 Corinthians 5:17

Let everything I do be with You, for You, and because of You.

Thank you for reading my reflection.  All thanks to God for giving me the ideas and guiding my words!    © 2025 Gina Bedell   

  

Through these reflections, I invite you, the reader, to reflect on a given topic and then seek deeper answers through prayer, additional spiritual reading, and/or consultation with clergy or other qualified persons in order to grow in your faith and understanding of God’s love and will for your life. 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below.  Comments are always welcome! 

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P.S.

Pray for peace at home and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the people around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Work With the Spirit

 

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It may surprise you to learn that St. Paul worked as a tentmaker. Even while traveling great distances to announce the Good News of Christ’s resurrection, he worked. This is surprising because we tend to put the early apostles on a pedestal, thinking they did nothing but pray, perform miracles, and hear the voice of God. But Paul and the others worked as they traveled and preached; it wasn’t necessarily an all-or-nothing endeavor. Paul surely taught them while he worked: Through his words and interactions with his coworkers, he showed them the loving power of God.

God uses you in your work, too. He uses all of us, if we let Him. 

Remember that, through your baptism, the Holy Spirit lives in you. Like a deep well that requires only a bucket to reach the hidden waters below, you have only to ‘dip into’ the power of God to access the love, patience, compassion, peace, and more that He has made available to you through your baptism.

How? First, through prayer. Prayer keeps Him close in mind. Sit quietly, thank Him for loving you, and pay attention to the thoughts that come to you. Read the psalms or any book of the New Testament and see what words strike you. 

Then, draw on the patience that dwells in you when dealing with a difficult client or child. Ask the Spirit to give you insight into how to handle a particular situation – and then pay attention to the ideas that come to mind. Ask Him to help you be fair and honest in your work, in your dealings with coworkers and how you use your time. Ask Him to guide your words when discussions get tense – and then let Him. Ask Him to bless the people who will benefit from the work you do. All these and more will bring our Lord into your workplace.

As Christ spoke to the apostles, He speaks also to and through all of us. We simply have to be open to hearing His words. Start by taking a few moments to thank Him for your job and the people you interact with – that’s prayer. Then, pay attention to how He speaks in your workplace. For example, when you get a friendly call or email just when you need a pick-me-up, that’s Christ speaking through that other person. When you offer encouragement or other kind words to another person, you’re letting Christ speak through you.

As Teresa of Avila said, “God has no hands or feet or voice except ours, and through these He works.” 

No matter what kind of work we do, one of our jobs is to let others see God through our words and interactions with others while we work, just as Paul and the other apostles did. 

“(Paul) stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade.” – Acts 18:3

“Lord, let the work I do be done with You.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate toward a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

God: "Work With Me"

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Corrie ten Boom’s family used the resources from their watch-repair business in Holland to keep countless Jews safe from the Nazis during WWII. They were eventually arrested for their underground work and for hiding Jews in their home. In her gripping autobiography The Hiding Place, Corrie relates how God’s loving power was evident while they worked and even in the concentration camps. She says, “Every experience God gives us… is the perfect preparation for the future only He can see.”

In the Old Testament, when Solomon was about to begin his reign as king after the death of his father David, God tells Solomon to “Ask something of Me and I will give it to you.” When Solomon asks only for wisdom in leading the people – not riches for himself – God rewards him and gives him not only wisdom but riches and honor also (see 1 Kings 3:4-13).

In our own lives, no matter what work we do, when we work with and for Christ, He’ll give us all we need and more besides.

“Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you.” – Psalm 86:4

Imagine our Lord saying to you:

If you were to ask Me only for riches, that’s all you would receive.

If you ask Me for satisfying employment, you’ll receive fulfilling work to occupy your days, self-confidence and pride in a job well done, and enough money to sustain you.

If you were to ask Me for things, that’s all you would have: material things that break, rust, or get used up. 

If you ask Me for graces, like wisdom, courage, strength, and patience, then these graces will fulfill your life, bring you happiness and peace, and allow you to work toward acquiring the things you’d like to have. Your happiness and peace are more important, more fulfilling, and more valuable to Me than the things you have.

Look not for riches but for work that you enjoy, that fills your soul with peace.

The gifts you’ve been given were for the purpose of doing work that fulfills you. 

Your life is not your job.

Keep Me with you and even the most difficult tasks and the most labor-intensive job will have meaning for you far beyond your paycheck.

Don’t ask for things only for yourself. Ask, rather, for those things that will benefit others. Then you will also be given what you need.

Work with the Lord, and He’ll give you more than you ask for.

“Happy the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord, his God.”

– Psalm 146:5

“Lord, let my work be done with and for You.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell     

Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace in Ukraine, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate toward a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Whether you’re at home, traveling, or working this Thanksgiving Day, I hope you experience many moments that put a smile in your heart. As you celebrate the holiday, may you feel contentment and gratitude for all of God’s creation and those priceless gifts we call family and friends. If you’re grieving or struggling, if ‘celebrate’ is the last thing you feel like doing, may you sense our Lord speaking His love to irreplaceable you through people who wrap you in their love and appreciation today and in the days ahead. 

This Thanksgiving Day, may you notice many things to be grateful for:

Thankful that you can stay in the comfort of your own home, or thankful for the time and means to travel.

Thankful for work to do, and thankful for the people who will benefit from your work.

Thankful for good health, or thankful for those who care for you while you recuperate.

Thankful for struggles that have brought out an inner strength you didn’t know you had, and thankful for the individuals who helped you get through those trying times.

Thankful for all the people our Lord has blessed you with.

Above all, thankful for God’s unconditional and ever-present love. God is Love; whether you’re aware of it or not, this Love is always with you to guide you, strengthen you, give you hope, and bring you joy.

May you have a spirit of gratitude that is deeper and richer than a mental ‘attitude of gratitude.’

I’m thankful for all of you who read my reflections, pass them on to others, or give me feedback on what I’ve written. God gets all the credit: I thank Him for giving me the ideas and the words to write. If something I’ve written touches your heart, it makes me happy to know that I’ve conveyed the message clearly.

May this special day of giving thanks remind us all of God’s goodness and fill us with joy. Happy Thanksgiving!

“In all circumstances, give thanks…”  – 1 Thessalonians 5:18

“Thank You, Lord, for the countless blessings You have given to me.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace around the world. Donate toward a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

Much to Share

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Remember when the large Lays potato chip bag had  “Get your own bag” written on it? None of us really bought into the idea that that was a single-serving size! The one-ounce bags are for individuals. The much larger bags have enough chips to feed a crowd; despite the marketing efforts, we know that they’re intended to be shared. 

The same is true of our spiritual gifts: they’re meant to be shared. We may not think of our interests, strengths, and talents as spiritual gifts, but they are. They’re the skills God has given us that allow us to do the things we love to do, as well as the things we have to do. 

Some gifts we use for our hobbies. We thank God for the talents that let us engage in activities we enjoy that feed our bodies, minds, hearts, and souls. We also look for ways to share these talents with others to bring joy to them and benefit our community. 

Some gifts we use at our place of work. We thank God for the skills that let us support ourselves or our families. The Spirit led us to that job based on the strengths He gave us that are suited for that particular line of work. Our work is also where we give dignity to others. In everyone we encounter, we’re given the opportunity to bring out the best in them by letting them know that they and the work they do are important.

Also, we find ways to apply the skills we use at work to serve others or to build up our community in any of a number of ways.

Let’s thank our Lord for the abundance of talents we’ve been given and see them as spiritual gifts. Let’s find ways to share them to bring joy to others – not only with our own family, but also with our community.

“To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.” 

– 1 Corinthians 12:7

“Lord, let me see my talents as gifts from You to be enjoyed and shared with others.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

You can also find my posts on Facebook!

P.S.

Pray for peace around the world. Donate toward a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.

His Purpose at Work

 

“Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples... He said to them, ‘Cast your net over the right side of the boat and you will find something.’” –John 21:1, 6

The apostles are good at what they do. They’re able to provide for their families with the fish they catch. This night, though, they’ve caught nothing. Their usual way of doing things isn’t working. He tells them to cast their nets over the right side. We usually interpret ‘right’ here as being the opposite of left, but if we read it as ‘correct’ the message changes a bit. They do it His way and haul in a boatful of fish.

What about you? Maybe you used to feel productive, but lately you haven’t. Maybe you feel stagnant. Picture yourself telling Jesus how empty life feels sometimes. Imagine Him saying something like this to you:

“You’re doing good things; now, change how you do them. Try My way. Change your attitude from that of ho-hum obligation to one of anticipation and expectation of what I may do through you in your work. Let Me reveal Myself to you and those around you. Drop the attitudes of ‘Is this all there is?’ and ‘There’s nothing to look forward to.’ You have ME to look forward to. Look up and out instead of downcast and you’ll see Me. ‘Cast your net over the right side of your boat and you’ll find something’ -- you’ll find Me.”

Our Lord’s not asking for an attitude adjustment; He’s asking for a purpose adjustment. Look beyond the work itself and see it as part of His mission. You play an important role in His work of loving the world! He needs you to reveal Himself to the people around you. You may see it as only a job, but consider: Your friendly smile may reassure a stressed coworker or customer. The father of a feverish child might offer a silent prayer of thanks when he sees you’ve stocked the store shelf with the medicine his little son needs. The products you sell may be treasured gifts that strengthen friendships. Your compassionate ear may help a young woman feel valuable, which motivates her to take better care of herself. The music you share lifts the spirits of your listeners. The small children you care for will learn from you how to show love and respect to others.

Your way was good; now our Lord may be asking you to let Him show you a more fulfilling way – with Him as your purpose. Let Him use you to reveal His love for the world through your work.

“Lord, I want to work for and with You. Show me the way.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! Feel free to share it with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Thanks!

 

p.s.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...