I am old enough to recall the lives of the many deceased relatives and friends of mine. Like most lives, they had happy times as well as sad ones. All I can say is that if we only seek happiness but do not have Christ, then we are merely going through the motion. It is the Lord who can give us the right perspective on life, giving it meaning and direction. Living for God frees us from the prison of living for ourselves. It's living a new life not bound by this world.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
Our Attitude Toward God
In today's Gospel reading from Luke 10, Jesus appointed seventy-two other disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit to proclaim the Kingdom of God. He said to them, "Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, cure the sick in it and say to them, 'The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.' Whatever town you enter and they do not receive you, go out into the streets and say, 'The dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that we shake off against you.'" It truly matters to the Lord and to us whether we welcome him or not. For our own good, we must seriously consider him before dismissing him outright.
*Total Submission to God
To submit to the Lord totally is to trust in him gladly in everything, even if he needs to punish you for whatever reason, knowing that his mercy is great.
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
**Reaction to Liturgy*
I became a Catholic prior to Vatican II, so I am familiar with the old Latin Mass. Now we have the priest celebrating Mass facing us, standing between us and the tabernacle. This morning at Mass, the Lord unexpectedly made me see that the priest could easily become the center of our attention rather that the Lord. In the old days, the priest stood facing the tabernacle like the congregation, so we all focused in the same direction upon the Lord. Hearing the language I understand instead of Latin is fine with me; it's taking the focus away from the Lord that's disconcerting.
**How to Acquire Humility
Humility is a great virtue. Without it, never mind trying to get into heaven. If you remain humble, God will exalt you. How can we become humble? Simple—you simply surrender yourself to the Lord!
*To Be Childlike
Today is Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels. The Gospel reading came from Matthew 18. Jesus said to his disciples, "Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven." How do good children behave? Well, they believe in and obey the father without question, knowing that he takes complete care of them. This is what we adults should be like to the Father. After all, aren't we all God's beloved children?
The Lord Is My Shepherd . . .
The Lord God our creator has implanted in our soul a thirst only he can quench. That is why those who have become one with the Lord no longer lack anything.
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
***Warning to a Disordered World***
If you had read my post "Bright Hope for Our Time" about the prophecies made by Our Lady of Good Success yesterday, you would understand what's going on in the Church and the world right now. We have all become disordered. Another small example was just in the news. A gay male senior at a high school in Tennessee was crowned as a gender-neutral homecoming queen. Here's a teen boy wearing a gold dress believing that he was a queen. It is only by giving our heart completely to God that we can keep it pure and in good order. You can believe or claim that you are a Christian and still be influenced and swayed by the Evil One without realizing it. To come to the point, you can belong to God or to Satan, and if you are in-between, you are taking an awfully big chance hoping that you can be saved.
**Greatest Happy Ending*
It is just plain impossible for us to escape God unless we become absolutely nothing, which again only God can make happen. So the smart, sensible thing for us to do is turn to him and give ourselves totally to him. And he turns out to be our most loving creator and Father!
***Saint Thérèse
Today is October 1, the memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus. Deuteronomy 32.10-12 was the entrance antiphon: The Lord led her and taught her, and kept her as the apple of his eye. Like an eagle spreading its wings, he took her up and bore her on his shoulders. The Lord alone was her guide. Matthew 18.3 was the Communion antiphon: Unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. What marked Thérèse as a saint were her childlike belief in Jesus and trusting in his guidance alone. It's a singular faith that was simple, pure, and unwavering. She is my model saint.
Monday, September 30, 2019
**Bright Hope for Our Times*
This is a video about Our Lady of Good Success. She prophesied in the 16th century for our times through Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres, a Spanish mystic in Quito, Ecuador. I chose this presentation over some of the others on the same subject. You'll be amazed how the prophecies have come true and heartened by what's still going to come. There is also a Part I you can look up and watch.
***To Be Safe from Satan
Satan is tricky. He is the master of deception. What he presents always looks or sounds good outwardly, but is always defective in some way. He can even produce false miracles and apparitions to fool you. That I can tell you from my own experience. Only God is perfect in every way. I really appreciate the advice of St. John of the Cross. He counsels that if you are seriously interested in seeking union with God, then focus upon the Lord alone and do not let anything else distract you, no matter how attractive, alluring, wonderful, or even miraculous it seems. Of course, these are not his exactly his words, only what he essentially stated. I'll always remember that.
Our Pressing Issue
We are rightly concerned about our environment, our living space, our air, our water, etc. But our inner peace, our soul, our eternal existence are so much more important. Common sense tells me that the earth is not to be mankind's permanent abode. First of all, the earth is a finite body, so it's surface area and its resources are limited. If the human population keeps growing, one day we'll run out of space as well as resources. God would not have put us on such a planet if we are not going to come to some kind of an end one day. That end could be his Second Coming, I don't know. So the #1 issue should be our own eternal survival, as each of us will only live a short time on earth and be gone.
*Beyond Expectations*
Communion experience. Today's Communion antiphon, Jeremiah 15.16: Lord God, when I found your words, I devoured them; your words were my joy, the happiness of my heart. When we yearn for the Lord, hearing his words is a joy, gladdening our heart. But we do not see him, nor can we touch him. Then the Lord gave us his own flesh and blood to consume to satisfy our yearning for him, exceeding all our expectations.
***Evil amid Us
Luke 17.1: Jesus said to his disciples, "Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the person through whom they occur." When you cause others to sin, it is indeed a grave sin. It saddens my heart to see that the hierarchy of our own Church is promoting globalism and a new humanism and is much concerned about "global warming" instead of condemning the continuous global murdering of the unborn, addressing the issue of general disbelief in the Real Presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, questioning why so many Catholics are leaving the Church, etc. When evil has infiltrated the Church hierarchy, it's a sign that something momentous is happening. It's time to take complete refuge in the Lord.
*Our Power to Know God
If we ignore God, we'll never know him. If we let God be our God, then we can get to know him most intimately. To know God is impossible or easy—it's all up to us. The truth: we are not free until we relinquish our control of ourselves to God.
Sunday, September 29, 2019
**A Spiritual Warning
The evil forces of our godless world are so deceptive and prevalent that we must be deeply grounded in the Lord and remain vigilant in order not to be influenced by them. Seeking to achieve union with God is absolutely the best way to keep your soul pure and safe. Be one with the One who one day will completely trounce evil.
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