From the Pastor’s Desk:

When everything shut down in March due to Covid 19, our Bishop challenged the priests of our diocese to spend more time in prayer. Prayer is our communication with God. How do we make more time for prayer and find space for prayer? Perhaps the better question would be, do we make time for prayer in the midst of all the stuff we are doing? Is prayer in a priority place in our daily lives or at the bottom of the “to do list” and it never gets done. Priests and religious are through our vows, to pray the Liturgy of the Hours (the prayer of the church) each day. So why pray more? Our relationship with God should be at the heart of who we are and all that we do. Prayer cannot be taken for granted nor left to last place. We need that personal time to give God praise, worship, thanksgiving and petition. We need the Lord beside us every day, and throughout the entire day. We need to be in touch with our God and allow Him to touch our minds and hearts through Sacred Scripture and in the silence of our hearts. This is not a luxury, it is a necessity if we want a strong relationship with God. All of us have rituals, whether we are single, or married with children. Look over your daily schedule, and plan a few minutes at the beginning of your day with that first cup of coffee, thanking God for the day and offering Him all that you will do that day. Invite Him along on your daily journey. Ask for His guidance as you think of the events you know you will encounter. If you drive to work, put on a spiritual CD, or simply talk to God along the way. Find the brief moments that are apart of all of our days in which we can talk with God about what we are experiencing. What is important is making the effort to be with the Lord, even if it is only for a few minutes, and establishing a consistent pattern as part of your schedule. If you are like me, when I get away from my schedule things do not always get completed. Our whole purpose for being is to one day be with the Lord in His kingdom, in the place He has created for us. But there is a hard question to be answered, “If we don’t want the relationship with God now, why would He want us after death?” Prayer is so important in our relationship with God, since it is how we communicate with our God, that we cannot push it to the bottom of our “to do list” that never gets done. SECOND COLLECTION Aug. 29-30 benefits the Congregation of the Mother of the Redeemer- Carthage, MO Each year, a variety of religious communities involved in the missionary work of the Church around the world, are invited to send a priest to parishes of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau to preach about the ministry of evangelization that brings the Gospel to many struggling people in other nations. This year we are invited to help support the ministry of our Vietnamese missionaries in Carthage that do so much both locally and around the world. Without the missionary work of the Church, we would not be able to bring to life the command of Christ before he ascended into heaven: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations" (MT 28:19). Thank you for contributing to the missionary labor of the Church by supporting the Mission Cooperative Plan. Simply write your check to your parish and note that it is for the Mission Cooperative Collection. All funds will be processed by the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and then sent to the order for their work.