Steven Covey wrote Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, one of the highly effective habits is “Put first things first”!  In 1977 there was a country western song titled, “Roses for Mama.”  It’s about a grown son on his Mother’s birthday, he is on his way to FL for some vacation and stops at a florist shop to have flowers sent to his mom.  He knows he should visit her … but he decides to send her flowers.

At the florist shop the man encounters a little boy who wants to buy 5 roses for his mother; because he is five years old, but he doesn’t have enough money.  The man pays for the boy’s flowers, and then purchases his own flowers.  As the man drives away from the florist shop, he passes a cemetery.  Glancing in the cemetery he sees the little boy kneeling on a grave, with roses in his hand. The man pulls into the cemetery and asks the boy what he’s doing.

The boy explains that his mother died and that he comes there all the time to talk to her; but today is her birthday, so he brought her flowers.   The man turns around and drives back to the florist.  There he asks the florist if his mother’s flowers have been sent?  When the florist tells him no, the man cancels the delivery and takes them himself.

That story is about “Putting first things first!”

We live in the midst of the gradual destruction of the moral fiber of our society by an increasingly amoral and immoral culture.  To overcome this cultural decline we must Put First Things First and accept the call to become saints, to let God guide our lives.   

Jesus gave us the “Sermon on the Mount”; it is the blueprint for Christian life.  Today reflect on the beatitude, “Blest are the clean of heart for they shall see God.”  Being “pure of heart ” means responding to Jesus’ call to dedicate our lives, our actions, and our activities to Him. 

May God Be Praised!