Fueled by Faith Friday

All day I kept thinking it was the weekend before realizing at dinner it is Friday. So I am excited to use an oldie but goodie for today's blog posting title.

This is the first reading from Dad's funeral mass that was held yesterday morning. My older brother, Brian, read it.

We chose this scripture since it is the one from the day Dad passed. He literally drew his last breath as we read and prayed with these at his bedside.

Here is my takeaway from this reading. Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe. You may be shamed, mocked, ridiculed, but never doubt yourself. My Dad taught us what it meant to live with conviction and to keep your word.

The passage contains the phrase, He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone, which makes me think of how often we get wrapped up in appearances or outward looks. We are quick to cast aside that which we think might not belong as we are busy bees building away and work, work, working along without really stopping to notice what we are truly doing along the way. Yet, it is what is on the inside that counts and can serve as the strongest or most important foundation.

Never underestimate a rejection or settle for being broken as being the end of the story. It is through being broken that sometimes the strongest we will ever be will emerge! It is through our weaknesses that God can shine through and show how strong we can be with Him.

Just thinking back on yesterday, alone, so many reminders of what could have been rejections that could have held Dad back and kept him from growing into the cornerstone of our family that he is popped up...one was that we got off the highway on Fisher Street. Fisher was Dad's unwanted birth name. The gospel selected by Monsignor for the funeral mass was about the death of Lazarus and when his sister said, "Lord, had you been here, my brother would not have died". Dad could have easily walked away from his faith and/or God over the years when hardship after hardship presented itself, such as losing his job when he had five people relying on him or when his health kept him away from a grandchild's special event. He could have said, "Lord...if you had been here, this would not have happened" yet he didn't. Another special reminder came in the form of a childhood best friend telling Mark that the local church would have a mass for Dad....on June 26th. She had no way of knowing that is Mom and Dad's wedding anniversary!


Yesterday was hard but we were fueled by faith as we accompanied Dad to his final resting spot.