Five Minutes with Tony Agnesi

My friend was an atheist and a struggling alcoholic.  In one of several attempts to overcome his alcohol addiction, he placed a 3X5 card on our shared bulletin board with the words,  “That was Yesterday.”   In this podcast, Tony talks about experiencing a metanoia, and turning away from yesterday and looking forward to tomorrow. Scripture : On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him.  He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”  He said, “Who are you, sir?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.  Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.  The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, for they heard the voice but could see no one.  Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing;so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus.  For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank.  A

One evening, while driving to the jail, I realized that, in my haste, I hadn’t prepared anything to talk about. As I began to reflect on what might be a good theme for the night, Bob Dylan’s old song, Gotta Serve Somebody, came on the radio.

Then, my navigation screen flashed, the car slowed to 40 mph, and the message on the navigation system read, “Powering Down, Seek Service Immediately!” In this podcast, Tony talks about a breakdown in South Carolina on a trip to Florida, and how everything worked out, as if by divine intervention, once he surrendered to God’s will. Scripture :  He who plans a thing will be successful; happy is he who trusts in the Lord!  Proverbs 16:20 But he who trusts in the Lord will prosper.  Proverbs 28:25 The fear of man brings a snare, but he who trusts in the Lord is safe.  Proverbs 29:25 Reflections :  Have you ever thought you were in complete control and found out you weren’t?  Have you ever been in such a tough situation that you simply had to turn things over to the Lord?  Is is difficult for you to give up control?

 In this podcast, Tony discusses the difference between being healed and cured. He talks about the paralytic and his encounter with Jesus from Luke’s gospel. As we live our lives, with the trials, diseases, and infirmities we might experience, it’s OK to pray for a cure, but more importantly, let’s pray for healing! Scripture:  One day as Jesus was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem, and the power of the Lord was with him for healing. And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; they were trying to bring him in and set [him] in his presence. But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles into the middle in front of Jesus. When he saw their faith, he said, “As for you, your sins are forgiven.”  Luke 5:17-20 Reflection: Do you understand the difference between healing and a cure? What is

 As I pulled into my office parking lot, I was approached by a man with a gasoline can.  “Hey man, can you help me with a few dollars for gas?” He asked. “No,” I replied hurriedly, as I made my way into the office.  What he didn’t know, is that he has approached me three times with the same gas can story, and that he has been observed in our parking lot and a few  of the nearby lots with the same story for the past month. In this podcast, Tony discusses the question of what we should do when approached by a panhandler on the streets. Scripture:   And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.  When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.   Lu