I had the blessed privilege of serving as Fr. Al Lauer's chief editor for this booklet, One Bread, One Body (OBOB), for the last ten years of his life. He would never have mentioned what he endured to feed you with God's Word, but today's first reading from Colossians would have been dear to his heart.
He found his "joy in the suffering" he endured "for you" (Col 1:24), his beloved readers of OBOB. In his own flesh, he took part in the sufferings of Christ for your sake (Col 1:24). He wrote page after page daily for twenty years, whether on his deathbed, in the hospital preparing for or recovering from surgery, in airports or on airplanes, or crowded public places if necessary. In his last few years, he continued to write teachings despite painful intestinal blockages and, eventually, terminal cancer.
He wished your "hearts to be strengthened and...closely united in love, enriched with full assurance by [your] knowledge of the mystery of God — namely Christ" (Col 2:2). He wanted to teach you "the full measure of wisdom," that is, the Scriptures and the teachings of the Church, "hoping to make" each of you "complete in Christ" (Col 1:28). "For this" he worked and struggled, "impelled by that energy of [the Lord's] which [was] so powerful a force within" him (Col 1:29).
Fr. Al Lauer loved each of you. If a man can so love and suffer for you, know for certain how much more you are loved by Jesus, the God-Man, Who gave His life for you. Live in His love (Jn 15:9). "Then go and do the same" (Lk 10:37).
| PRAYER: | Jesus, I lay my life at Your feet. Use me as You see fit. |
| PROMISE: | Jesus "said to the man, 'Stretch out your hand.' The man did so and his hand was perfectly restored." –Lk 6:10 |
| PRAISE: | Jesus set Margie free from smoking cigarettes. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College