God is in Our Midst
The last couple of days my reflections on the readings has been on the passages that refer to God being with us. I am always a bit puzzled by the passage which says that whatever two or three of us agree on and pray for will be granted. There are so many things that I have joined with others and prayed for something with great fervor and desire yet the prayers do not seem to be answered with what I would call "granted." Peace in our world is one example. Sometimes we have prayed for an increase of vocations to our community or for the healing of a dear friend who is sick.

So I ask what the words of scripture might mean. The other day while I was reflecting on the readings I noticed that the other reading was all about loving God and neighbor. Maybe this is the prayer that is most valid--the prayer asking for the grace to be more loving. Maybe all the prayers are ultimately answered if I become more loving of God and neighbor as a result of joining with others and praying for something that we all agree is good and worthy of being granted.

I am trying to recognize that the great blessing that comes from our praying together is that God is in our midst as we gather and we are all blessed with a greater capacity to love.

Today I want to recall over and over that God is here.