Home > News > Fr Ben's April Message

Fr Ben's April Message

24 March 2024

Share this article:share on twitter share on facebook

Fr Ben's April Message

 

This month I’d like to share with you a reflection that a member of our church sent on to me. It arrived in my email box in quite a timely manner, when I had been praying for God to send me some guidance. As is almost always the case, that guidance came through a person, just when I needed it – God’s timing is always perfect. Perhaps as you read this, it will be the perfect time for you to read it too.

It was a piece found on Facebook, and appeared on a blog by Ken Gray. The Facebook post said.

“I visited Matthew, the owner of Lucy’s Flour Shop a little while back. As I nibbled on an enormous chocolate chip cookie I began to tell him a story.

A few years back on a bitterly cold December evening, there was a visitation at the funeral home across the street from his bakery. The people, bundled up in coats, scarves, and blankets were lined up around the building waiting to hug the family of the deceased. Seemingly out of nowhere, a man showed up and began giving away hot coffee to the people outside. People who entered the funeral home with coffee in their hands whispered of a mysterious man handing out free coffee, and how much they appreciated it.

I looked at Matthew and said, “I have a suspicion that you were that man. Is that right?”

Matthew very humbly replied, “Yes, I felt so bad for them and wanted to do something, but all I could do was make coffee, so I made coffee.”

I responded that he blessed so many people that night by helping them warm up and by showing there’s good in the world. He added a positive note to a devastating situation.

I paused, then added, “That visitation was for my sixteen-year-old son. Thank you for being so kind.”

Ken Gray remarked that we can sometimes feel as if we have no power to make any difference to our world or to any situation. And yet we can do something, however small, that can make a huge difference to the lives of others. We’d all like to be able to fix our world, with all it’s troubles and disasters. But if each of us were able just play our part, to ‘make coffee’ in our community, in our nation, in our world, then our lives would look and feel so different.

Ken Gray signs off his blog with the questions, “What is my coffee?”. And what is yours?

God bless,

 

Fr Ben"