 clickable | | In, But Not of, the World Perhaps we never truly feel we belong to this world, even if we cling to it, make it serve us, and try to get it to accept us. A necessary detachment from the market forces of power and egotism can be cultivated even while engaging with those forces. We call this cultivation of detachment, which allows us to see and relate to the world as it is, "regular meditation." Learning how to meditate regularly is what we call the asceticism, spiritual practice or discipline. Lent is first about remembering that we need such a discipline in our lives, because the world as we see it doesn't exist any more than do permanent success or immortality. We relate to the real world as soon as we can say, "I do not belong to this world." Only then may we have something useful to give to the world and be able to serve others in the games of thrones. —from the book Sensing God: Learning to Meditate during Lent by Laurence Freeman, OSB |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"The devotion to the Eucharist is the most noble, because it has God as its object; it is the most profitable for salvation, because it gives us the Author of Grace; it is the sweetest, because the Lord is Sweetness Itself."
— Pope St. Pius X † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"I've appointed the Devil to tempt and to trouble My creatures in this life [St. Catherine of Siena reports that Our Lord said to her]. I've done this, not so that My creatures will be overcome, but so that they may overcome, proving their virtue and receiving from Me the glory of victory. And no one should fear any battle or temptation of the Devil that may come to him, because I've made My creatures strong, and I've given them strength of will, fortified in the Blood of My Son. Neither the Devil nor any other creature can control this free will, because it's yours, given to you by Me. By your own choice, then, you hold it or let it go if you please. It's a weapon, and if you place it in the hands of the Devil, it right away becomes a knife that he'll use to stab and kill you. On the other hand, if you don't place this knife that is your will into the hands of the Devil—that is, if you don't consent to his temptations and harassments—you will never be injured by the guilt of sin in any temptation. Instead, you'll actually be strengthened by the temptation, as long as you open the eyes of your mind to see My love, and to understand why I allowed you to be tempted: so you could develop virtue by having it proved. My love permits these temptations, for the Devil is weak. He can do nothing by himself unless I allow him. So I let him tempt you because I love you, not because I hate you. I want you to conquer, not to be conquered, and to come to a perfect knowledge of yourself and of Me."
— St. Catherine of Siena, p. 159-60
AN EXCERPT FROM
Manual for Spiritual Warfare † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Listen to me, you that pursue righteousness, you that seek the Lord. Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug."
Isaiah 51:1 |  click to read more | | ST. BENJAMIN St. Benjamin (d. 424 A.D.) was a deacon martyred in Persia during a forty-year-long Christian persecution under two tyrannical Persian kings. He was imprisoned for a year due to his Christian faith and then released with the help of the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II. As a condition of his release he was ordered to no longer publicly proclaim his faith. Benjamin declared that it was his duty to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and he refused to be silenced. He continued preaching Christ crucified, and, when word reached the king, he was arrested again. In response, Benjamin asked the king what opinion he would have of any of his subjects if they were to renounce their allegiance to the king and join in war against him; in the same way Benjamin could not renounce his allegiance to Christ. This comment enraged the king, and he ordered Benjamin to endure cruel tortures. Sharpened reeds were repeatedly jammed underneath his fingernails, toenails, and other tender parts of the body. He died when a knotted stake was jammed into his bowels. St. Benjamin's feast day is celebrated on March 31st. | Saint Stephen of Mar Saba (725 – 794)
A "do not disturb" sign helped today's saint find holiness and peace. Stephen of Mar Saba was the nephew of Saint John Damascene, who introduced the young boy to monastic life beginning at age 10. When he reached 24, Stephen served the community in a variety of ways, including guest master. After some time he asked permission to live a hermit's life. The answer from the abbot was yes and no: Stephen could follow his preferred lifestyle during the week, but on weekends he was to offer his skills as a counselor. Stephen placed a note on the door of his cell: "Forgive me, Fathers, in the name of the Lord, but please do not disturb me except on Saturdays and Sundays." Despite his calling to prayer and quiet, Stephen displayed uncanny skills with people and was a valued spiritual guide. His biographer and disciple wrote about Stephen: "Whatever help, spiritual or material, he was asked to give, he gave. He received and honored all with the same kindness. He possessed nothing and lacked nothing. In total poverty he possessed all things." Stephen died in 794.
Reflection Saint Stephen of Mar Saba knew the value of solitude. Even though he was generous and served whoever came to him, he relished his time alone. Maybe we can learn from him the value of solitude and seek it out a little more in our lives. | Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Lectionary: 252
Reading 1 Nm 21:4-9 From Mount Hor the children of Israel set out on the Red Sea road,
to bypass the land of Edom.
But with their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses,
"Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,
where there is no food or water?
We are disgusted with this wretched food!" In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,
which bit the people so that many of them died.
Then the people came to Moses and said,
"We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us."
So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses,
"Make a saraph and mount it on a pole,
and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live."
Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole,
and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent
looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. Responsorial Psalm 102:2-3, 16-18, 19-21 R. (2) O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day when I call, answer me speedily.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
The nations shall revere your name, O LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the LORD has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
"The LORD looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die."
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you. Verse Before the Gospel The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower;
all who come to him will live forever. Gospel Jn 8:21-30 Jesus said to the Pharisees:
"I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come."
So the Jews said,
"He is not going to kill himself, is he,
because he said, 'Where I am going you cannot come'?"
He said to them, "You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins."
So they said to him, "Who are you?"
Jesus said to them, "What I told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from him I tell the world."
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them,
"When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him."
Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him. | Today's Meditation: John 8:21-30 The one who sent me is with me. (John 8:29) We know that God sent Jesus into the world to accomplish the mission of saving us from sin, but did you know that he didn't send him out alone? As Jesus makes clear in today's Gospel, his Father was with him at every moment. Now, because of our baptism, this is also true for us. When God sends us out, he remains with us. Here is a story that illustrates this truth. Emily's brother, Dennis, was seriously ill. Dennis had been estranged from his family and was living in a run-down section of Las Vegas. Both Emily and her mother constantly worried about Dennis and wanted to reestablish a relationship with him, but they didn't know how to contact him. When Emily heard that her dear friend Nina was planning a visit to Las Vegas, she asked if Nina could possibly try to find Dennis. It was a lot to ask! Nina would have to venture out into a rough section of the city, and she had only a few leads as to where Dennis lived. But she agreed to try. As Nina drove into one neighborhood where she hoped to find Dennis, she almost turned around a few times out of fear for her safety. But she kept praying, asking God to protect her. As she got out of her car and began asking people where she might find him, she felt a gentle nudging from the Holy Spirit to be persistent. Each person she asked led her a little closer. In the end, she found Dennis—and he actually welcomed her! Nina's visit with Dennis was a blessing for both of them. She told him how much his family loved him and longed to reconnect with him. She took a picture of him, and they exchanged phone numbers. Ultimately, the relationship between Dennis and his family was restored—just a few months before both Dennis and his mother passed away! Just as he did with Nina, God will be with you in whatever work or mission he asks of you. You might not always see the fruit of your efforts, but you can trust God to guide you, protect you, and give you every grace you need. "Father, I believe that you are with me as I do the work you have sent me to do." Numbers 21:4-9
Psalm 102:2-3, 16-21 |  clickable | God gathers up our despair, our wretchedness and fear, and works for good (Rom 8:28). He is like a father picking up the pieces of shattered crockery that a child has hurled onto the kitchen floor, and crafting them into something else, maybe something even better.
— Sally Read
from Annunciation: A Call to Faith in a Broken World | my2cents:
""We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us."
So...it's a sin to complain against God? What were the people complaining about? They said they were tired of what God provided. Ultimately, they were saying they were tired of God's ways. Tired of His Bread. They said it did nothing for them. Insubordination. Being displeased with what God provides. Is it not enough that you have life? Or do you not have life within you? What are your complaints today? What do your prayers sound like? Do they sound like "please Lord take my pain away", or worse, do they sound like no prayer at all, a complete turning away? Life has been slowed down for a reason. A good reason. Perhaps now we will have time to pray. Perhaps now we will have nothing to complain about. Perhaps now, our hunger will be for only one thing...that what the Lord provides. | Today we pray: "Let this be written for the generation to come, and let his future creatures praise the LORD: "The LORD looked down from his holy height, from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners, to release those doomed to die. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you." And it isn't all about you anymore is it? When my first child came into my life, my life became less about me. When my second child came, it became even less of me. With 8 kids now, I haven't touched my boat in 3 years, my atvs, my anything, sold my street bike 7 years ago, and I won't take on any more pets, because, now...it is about the children, but let me stop you there as you read, it's not about them alone, but them and God their true Father and true calling. When I look into my child's face, I don't see my kid, I see God's child. And that same look becomes an extension on to other people I encounter. | ""I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come."
I once wrote a song about today's Holy Gospel. The Lord speaks, saying He's going where we can't go. After years of following Him He says this strange line. "You belong to this world, but I do not belong to this world. That is why I told you that you will die in your sins." The way God dies for us is the epitome of love. Nobody can die like Him, we can take the chalice but nobody can do what He has done. We can be tortured, and even crucified, but nobody can do what He has done...redeemed the entire world to Himself. His body would lay down and it would infuse itself into light. His Body is now wherever He desires it to be. For this reason, we hear what He says next: ""When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me." Whence there is healing, you will know He IS. Whence there is now salvation availed, you will know He IS. Whence He is exalted and glorified, we will know HE IS. The world will test you, and if you let it, the world will crucify you. And this will give glory to God. That's why saints and their mothers in the past gloried in their martyrdom, praising God every step of the way, defying the world saying like our Lord "I Am not Of This world". Faith. | "The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him."
We are not alone, now more than ever God is ever closer to us through Jesus and even deeper through the Holy Spirit. He is a whisper away, so long as you have breath, that what we call prayer.
See how far obedience takes you, and from there, let love take you the rest of the way.
Jesus says He does what pleases the Father...not what pleases anybody else. Lord, help us be a people that pleases you above all...and in doing so, loves you above all. |  click to hear a message | Random Bible verse from an online generator: WOW! 1 John 2:15–17
Do Not Love the World 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life1—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit my website Going4th.com, surely you'll find me there. God Bless You! Share the Word. Share this, share what is good | |
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