Joseph, Joseph:

Joseph, Joseph:
by Joseph Furnari

There you go again, you foolish man. You of all people letting your emotions cloud your mind and heart. Why all of a sudden are you overly concerned about a building that houses our worship of God. You have been overly concerned by appearance of painted walls and ceilings. The cross should be here, no it should be there. This decoration is good; that doesn’t look right over there. Our place of worship should be spotless and perfect in all ways.
How soon you forget coming from a church building, a Cathedral of greatness and beauty. Yet how many times the house felt so barren; lacking in the love of Jesus. How can you have forgotten it is the presence of Jesus that glorifies whatever temple He dwells in, be it a building or the temple of yourself.
Once again I will remind you of the coming of Jesus. He chose to be born in a stable, yes a stable with all that goes with a stable that houses animals. It was there that Joseph had to take Mary to protect her and Him from harsh weather and prepare for His birth. You have been in stables; You know it is not a pretty place. The odor of animals manure smelling, decaying hay strewn about; not a perfect place for the Son of God to be. So many buildings of beauty and comfort. He could have chosen temples, castles, the finest of the fine. Even the worst room at the Inn would have been a better place than this.
Then they came. Kings and wise men to give glory to Jesus. They were not concerned with conditions at the stable. All they saw was the glory of Jesus. It is His presence that overcomes all that surrounds Him. It is He that I should be concerned with and not overly concerned with his
surroundings.
There is more I would remind you of; Jesus dwells in you in spite of your imperfection and flaws. He does not demand you be perfect before He would abide in the temple that is you with all your faults.
Don’t you remember the feeling of a special joy and uplifting when someone you shared Jesus with walks into a room or large gathering. The special joy of embrace and oneness.
I would take this opportune time to remind you of scripture. Mary’s visit to Elizabeth who also was with child, and the child, John, leapt with joy at the presence of Jesus, the child to be born to Mary. That was a special moment for John and Jesus. This reminder to you of a great gift of God to feel his presence in another person, pimples and all
Be aware, now. Do not be overly concerned with beauty and cleanliness alone. You must always strive to see Jesus, be it in Cathedral or stable because if you cannot find Him in both places how will you ever find him in your brothers and sisters?
More important, how will your brothers and sisters find the Jesus in you!.