"Every perfect gift is from above,” the Letter of James says.

"Words, words, words.” So the world-weary Hamlet once dismissed the book he was reading. He had come to know too much about deceit from his troubled family to trust the accumulation of words. Well-spoken words may sound grand, but we learn that the integrity of the person behind the talk is more important than mere syllables strung together.

The Baptism ended and George, the child’s uncle, approached the deacon. “That was really good. Thank you for explaining all that and for being so real and authentic. I’m tired of priests that just go through the motions.”

Traditions come and go. The very thing built to withstand the test of time succumbs to time. Leanne, newly married, is preparing Sunday supper when she insists on slicing off each end of the roast before placing it in the pan. When her husband asks why, she admits she’s not sure but it’s what her mom always did.

What a big difference it made to Tina and Rick when the last of their kids went off to school and just the two of them were in the house. They discovered that they had no one to blame things on!

Let us ask for God’s mercy and pray to God to make us better disciples.

We may truly be said to worship God-though we lack perfection; but we cannot be said to worship Him if we lack sincerity.