Nonsensical Ramblings of Mark

I was blessed that I had parents that loved (and still love) God. Through the sacrifices they made to send me to authentic Catholic schools from K-12 and their insistence on me going with them to Mass every single week (and don't even get me started on Holy Week - I regularly blow my boys' minds with stories about that!) I was introduced to and began to love God like they did. He has been my rock these many years and they made sure he was at the forefront of my mind and heart. I have been stressed lately in so many areas and this morning I was reminded of a hymn we sang when I was a boy called Come to the Water  and it resonated with me in a deep way. I was thankful I was alone because no one wants to see me when God reminds me of how needy I am and how rich he is: O let all who thirst;  Let them come to the water And let all who have nothing;  Let them come to the Lord: Without money, without price;  Why should you pay the price Except for the Lord? And let all who se

Last week we attended calling hours to comfort a friend whose father had passed away. Everyone stood around talking about the deceased like they were not even there. That's because they weren't. They were somewhere else.

Like many of you I watched the news out of Thailand with great anticipation as the boys and their soccer coach were rescued when the cave they were exploring was unexpectedly flooded. Not to be overly pedantic, but the events that surrounded their finding and subsequent rescue was not, in the strictest sense, miraculous. It was, however, a a reminder of the goodness and providence of God. There is no reason other than the divine grace and mercy of God that these boys and their coach should be alive. He is good. But that is not why I am writing today. As I watched the rescue operation kick into full gear I couldn't help but notice the amount of people involved in rescuing these boys and their coach. I am sure there were more people than what has been reported helping with the operation, but many estimates put close to 200 people on the scene planning, swimming, putting themselves in danger, and one even dying, to save the Wild Boars. That, to me, is absolutely incredible. That, to