PRESENT WEEK'S GLIMPSE OF GOD

GLIMPSE OF GOD FOR THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 18, 2026

YOU INSPIRE BECAUSE YOU ARE AN INSPIRATION,

 AN INSTRUMENT OF GOD TO BE HIS VOICE AND HIS PRESENCE TO OTHERS.

This week’s Glimpse of God comes as I look around and see the many people, events and situations that have been a source of inspiration and peace to me. I believe that as a resurrection people, we are called to live in hope and be a sign of that hope to all we encounter. It is through our conversations, our activities, our deeds, and our attitudes, amid and through our fears and anxieties, that we can choose to be defeated by our fears, or conquer our fears and be victorious with a greater courage, faith and trust, and our choices are reflected for all to see.

As one reading this Glimpse of God, I believe that you and I have been inspired by others, and we have inspired others, through various conversations and by their example and ours, to continue to live as a resurrected people, living in faith, trust, and hope. There are also events and situations that are a source of inspiration, but for this glimpse, I am choosing to focus on those that we know who have inspired us. Although our hope may seem minimal because of  various life situations and events, discouragement, world events, mass shootings, war, addictions and financial stress, I believe that as you and I live each day, there have been special people, events and situations in our life that have inspired us to continue to put one foot in front of the other, not knowing where the path may lead, but trusting that we are not walking alone.

For me, there are many who inspire me to become my best self, the person that God created me to be, and that I have the potential to become. By their presence they exude the warmth, love, and compassion of God, and in their faith and through their silence, they invite me to hear and listen to His voice, so that I can respond to Him as He calls me. They inspire or connect with the Spirit dwelling within both of us to be God’s messenger to others.

At our baptism God breathed into the us the breath of life, hence, as God’s beloved sons and daughters, we are the breath of God, we are His voice. The words that come forth from our mouth should be words that build up others, extend compassion and mercy, offer peace, share joy, give hope, and impart healing.

As you continue to walk on your journey of faith with the many challenges that life brings, can you take a moment of more to reflect on those who have been a source of inspiration to you; spouse, mentor, parents, children, siblings, friends, religious, coworkers, parishioners, and how they have invited you to become your best self, the person that God created you to be, and you know that you have the potential to become. Amid life stresses,when isolation, discouragements, anxiety, and fear may have edged their way into your life, can you envision those who are your source of inspiration, and recall how they have, through their words and example, walked with you so that you could take the next step?  Being an inspiration is a selfless act of one who desires to share the good news of Christ to those who desire to hear it.

It is an invitation to the selfless, not the selfish, and to the humble not the proud, to those who have an open heart and mind so that they can hear the voice of God from within.

Being an inspiration is about speaking, exuding, and sharing God’s word and presence in our life, so that we can build up, encourage, console, support, and forgive others so that they have a greater desire to become their best and better self, the person that God created them to be and have the potential to become. We are all capable of being an inspiration to others since we all possess the breath of God. It is how we choose to use that breath that will either inspire others or bore them, raise them up or tear them down, encourage them or discourage them. You are a source of God’s inspired word; how will you choose to inspire others this week? 

SUNDAY – “I” intellect (a high IQ is not required to hear the voice of God)

Having a high IQ, a doctorate, a large bank account or the latest iPhone, is not a prerequisite for being an inspiration to others. Although they may influence you to inspire others who are seeking to attain certain aspirations and achieve specific goals, God’s voice is not a reward for one’s personal achievements. God’s breath of life, His voice was given to us at our baptism, and whether we choose to be His voice is our choice. God does not force us to be His instruments or to do His will. He invites us because He will never go against our free will. He wants us to choose Him. Being an inspiration is not something new to us, or that we need to go to class to learn about because when we compassionate, generous, humorous, joyful, and merciful we are unconsciously inspiring others because they are seeing God’s action in the flesh of humanity as we do the will of God. His presence, His Holy Spirit is within us, and when we ask for the grace to respond to the Holy Spirit, God will show us how we can do that so that He is glorified. For today: pray for those who inspire you not because of what they possess, but rather what they do not possess, and how the spirit of simplicity enables and empowers them to be a humble servant of God. 

MONDAY – “N” noise (noise prevents one from hearing inspiration)

The noises of the outside world can inhibit one from hearing the voice of God from within. Sometimes those noises cannot be controlled and therefor need to be heard, while there are other times when we allow the noise to enter our heart, mind, and spirit so that we cannot hear what is truly going on in within our self and what or how God is trying to connect with us. Inspiration is not noise but rather silence with words. We are silent and God speaks through us with His inspired word. Inspiration is not about what we want to say to set a person straight, to prove them wrong, or make them feel bad, it is not a ticket for us to judge another. Being an inspiration is about speaking, exuding, or sharing God’s word, His presence in our life, so that we can build up, encourage, console, support, and forgive others so that they have a greater desire to become their best and better self, the person that God created them to be and have the potential to become. For today: Take a few minutes to reflect on how you use noise to avoid the silence and ask God to give you the grace to be still so that you can know that He is God and is always there and is speaking to your mind and heart. 

TUESDAY – “S” silence (silence brings forth the ability to hear the inspiration)

Some say silence is golden. I would or could imagine that the some could be new parents of an infant, a home with many children, those who live near a train station or an airport, to name a few. Silence is a gift of tremendous value, one that the recipient can either take for granted or appreciate.  When one needs to search for a place of silence, it can be like a treasure hunt or easy as opening a gift, you either know where to go or you have to search extensively to find it. It is not that difficult if one truly seeks to hear and listen to God’s voice from within. Amid the busyness or the noise that each day brings, if one seeks silence, one can be refreshed by even a minute of silence, of hearing God’s voice in the silent time and going forth renewed and inspired. Hearing and listening to the voice of God is about the desire to lift one’s mind and heart to God so that He can speak to you, and you can respond as He invites you to. God knows your heart and your desire, and He answer it as He knows best, so be ready for surprises. For today: Thank God for the gift of silence and ask for the grace to invite that gift more into your daily life. 

WEDNESDAY – “P” peace (inner peace arising from inspiration)

When one seeks peace in and through God, one finds peace, without God there can be no peace. If one has an open heart and a humble spirit and truly seeks to inspire others by being their best self so that others desire to be their best self, God will answer that desire with the gift of His peace.  A peace that will not take away the cross or lessen life challenges but rather will strengthen one so that one can carry the cross knowing that they are not alone, that they will not be defeated, and they will conquer and overcome the temptations that want to get the better of them. As God speaks to one’s heart, one might feel the need to share that message with others. If it was a message of hope, one might share it with those who are struggling as they are, if it was a message of consolation, one might share it with those who grieving, if it was a message of courage, one might share it with those who are afraid to carry their cross. In all these messages, God offers His peace to those who hear the message, share the message  and allow it to take root. For today: Pray the prayer of Saint Francis when you feel non-peace, agitated, frustrated, or discouraged. Pray it again with gratitude when you experience the gift of God’s peace. 

THURSDAY – “I” inter-dependent (dependent upon one another)

We need each other. We are not on this earthly journey to travel alone. Jesus did not minister alone, He chose the twelve apostles, twelve men who were sinners and new to the ways of Jesus. Jesus knew their hearts and their weaknesses, yet He chose them to be His witnesses and His closest friends. He sent them in two by two, never one, to go and share His good news, for He knew too that they could not do it alone nor did he want them to.

We should not think that we can go life’s journey by ourselves.  We are a people created to be with others, to walk with each other and to help build up the Kingdom of God with each other. As we walk on our earthly journey, we will encounter others who are spiritually ahead of us, behind us, off the beat and path, and in the shadow, yet we are all walking towards our heavenly reward, eternity with Jesus.

If we choose to be alone, to exclude others, to deny others entrance into our heart, we are not allowing the life and breath of God to take root, we are not allowing our heart to be expanded and we are not allowing others to be our Simons of Cyrene or our Veronicas.

For today: Who has been a Simon of Cyrene or a Veronica to you, and who have you been Simon of Cyrene and Veronica to (Station 5 and 6 of the Stations of the Cross)? As much as it may have been difficult for you to reach out to them or just to accept their act of kindness and help, can you see how God inspired them to reach out to you? Do you see how you were also inspired to accept their help instead of rejecting it? Pray a humble prayer of gratitude.

FRIDAY – “R” reverence (reverence one who inspires as well as oneself)

Being reverent is an inward sign of love and humility that emerges with respect and openness to being God’s open and humble instrument as He chooses us to be. We must first respect and reverence our self if we are to respect and reverence God or others.   At our baptism we are blessed with the Holy Water that makes us a holy and blessed creation, one that should always be treated with reverence and respect. Yet we often do not reverence or respect our self because of sin, shame, guilt, and despair. Being an inspiration is about acknowledging our failures before God, and others if we choose, and choosing to grow from them, be transformed by them, and seeking the grace of God to overcome them. It requires a reverence for our self and others that even with our faults and failings, we are and will always be God’s beloved children, loved unconditionally and His greatest creation. We are called to reverence that which is holy, where God resides and as the Body of Christ, Jesus dwells within each one of us and therefore should be treated with great respect and reverence. For today: Bless yourself with the sign of the cross and at each sign take a minute to recall how loved, blessed, chosen, and reverenced you are by God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In the name of the Father, you are created and beloved. In the name of the Son, you are called, and chosen, in the name of the Holy Spirit, you are inspired and gifted. In the Amen you are united with the Blessed Trinity and seek to trust in the mystery and grow in faith. 

SATURDAY – “E” embrace (embrace the voice and action of God)

You are God’s gift. You are God’s inspiration to others and others are an inspiration to.

Others know that you seek to live as God’s witness, with a spirit of humility, simplicity, and joyfulness, and it is by your life example, that others are inspired. You also recognize in others the action and presence of God and you are inspired by their example. Inspiration requires a spirit of humility and humility expands one’s heart to love greater. It is in that spirit of humility that God graces us with the ability to love self and others more. When one inspires us or we inspire others, we are inspiring sinners who strive to become saints. God’s voice can and does come through the greatest sinners as they experience personal conversion. One can be inspired by a stranger’s random act of kindness, to words of consolation and support, by a smile in the midst of a tough time, reconciliation that has brought about a deep and lasting peace. We are all God’s beloved children, and He speaks through all of us. We should not close our heart, mind and eyes to those who are different or the stranger because it may be through them that God chooses to speak to us. For today: embrace the action and voice of God’s inspiration however and by whomever it may come to us.