Becoming God's Instruments The need to be in control can be such a slippery slope on the spiritual journey: When do we take charge and act? When do we hold back and trust? So many of us live delusional lives and think we're in charge not only of our lives but also of our holiness and soul training. And that is the very reason why frustration reigns supreme: We resist letting go and trusting in the fingers of the potter. We refuse to surrender. And yet, training the soul to become God's instrument occurs only in the radical act of trust. The risen Christ rightly reminded Peter, "Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go…Follow me" (John 21:18–19). Instruments are fashioned when we hand over control to the Lord and Divine Master and follow his lead to a place we know not where. Soul training is steeped in the gratuity of grace that is never exhausted and never expires. —from the book Soul Training with the Peace Prayer of Saint Francis
by Albert Haase, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset."
— St. Francis de Sales † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"The experience of the Church and the saints demonstrates a general law: what comes from the Spirit of God brings with it joy, peace, tranquility of spirit, gentleness, simplicity, and light. On the other hand, what comes from the spirit of evil brings sadness, trouble, agitation, worry, confusion, and darkness. These marks of the good and the evil spirit are unmistakable signs in themselves."
— Fr. Jacques Philippe, p. 51
AN EXCERPT FROM
In the School of the Holy Spirit † VERSE OF THE DAY
"And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kindly to everyone, an apt teacher, patient, correcting opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know the truth, and that they may escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will."
2 Timothy 2:24-26 |  click to read more | | ST. FRANCIS XAVIER St. Francis Xavier (1506–1552) was born in his family castle in Navarre in what is today Spain. While studying in Paris he met St. Ignatius of Loyola and joined him in the foundation of the Society of Jesus. Instead of devoting himself to academic pursuits as he had planned, and in which he enjoyed great success, he became the first Jesuit missionary priest. His missionary activity began in Goa, India and extended across the Orient. St. Francis Xavier was known throughout the Far East for his humility, care of the poor, and miracles including healings, speaking in tongues, and prophetic powers. His passion for Christ and zeal for souls won him many converts to the faith. It is said that during his missionary journeys he baptized over 40,000 people. He is considered by many to be one of the Church's greatest missionaries since St. Paul the Apostle. In his travels he left behind flourishing churches that were the foundations of the Catholic Church in Asia. He is the patron saint of navigators, missionaries, African missions, India, Japan, China, and New Zealand. St. Francis Xavier's feast day is December 3rd.
See More About This Saint > | Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Priest Lectionary: 178
Reading 1 IS 26:1-6 On that day they will sing this song in the land of Judah: "A strong city have we;
he sets up walls and ramparts to protect us.
Open up the gates
to let in a nation that is just,
one that keeps faith.
A nation of firm purpose you keep in peace;
in peace, for its trust in you. "Trust in the LORD forever!
For the LORD is an eternal Rock.
He humbles those in high places,
and the lofty city he brings down;
He tumbles it to the ground,
levels it with the dust.
It is trampled underfoot by the needy,
by the footsteps of the poor. Responsorial Psalm PS 118:1 AND 8-9, 19-21, 25-27A R. (26a) Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in princes.
R. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Open to me the gates of justice; I will enter them and give thanks to the LORD.
This gate is the LORD's; the just shall enter it.
I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me and have been my savior.
R. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
O LORD, grant salvation!
O LORD, grant prosperity!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD;
we bless you from the house of the LORD.
The LORD is God, and he has given us light.
R. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia IS 55:6 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Seek the LORD while he may be found;
call him while he is near.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel MT 7:21, 24-27 Jesus said to his disciples:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. "Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine
but does not act on them
will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
And it collapsed and was completely ruined." | Daily Meditation: Matthew 7:21, 24-27 Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the Kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 7:21) In today's Gospel, Jesus tells a parable of two men who have some things in common. They both built homes. They both endured storms. And they both represent people who heard Jesus' words. The difference was that one put Jesus' words into action while the other did not. And the one who didn't faced ruin when the storm blew down his house. If we are like the wise man in the parable, we will build our lives on the "rock" of Jesus (Matthew 7:24-25). And that will give us the strength and inner peace to withstand the storms of life. But exactly how can we do that? Start with prayer. Just as you can't have a friendship with someone you never talk to, you can't have a relationship with Jesus without prayer. Prayer establishes a channel for us to encounter the Lord and to grow in holiness. It's also extremely helpful to read the Bible, listen carefully to the homilies at Mass, and take advantage of opportunities to grow in understanding our faith. These activities are the start of a good foundation in faith, but they're not everything. As Jesus said in today's parable, it is by acting on his words that we create a solid, deep-rooted faith. When we become Jesus' eyes to notice the shy new student, we extend our ability to see Christ in every person. When we become his ears and listen to the coworker with a problem, we learn that "the Lord is close to the brokenhearted" (Psalm 34:19). When we become his mouth by sharing conversation with a lonely neighbor or when we become his hands to make a meal for a sick friend, we strengthen not just our relationships with the people around us but with God as well. And in each instance, our foundation in Christ becomes more and more solid. Just before sharing today's parable, Jesus tells us to "beware of false prophets"—people who act holy but whose actions tell a different story (Matthew 7:15). That applies to us as well. Jesus doesn't want us to limit our faith to personal devotions; he wants to see it stir our hearts to action. That's how we build a strong, safe foundation. "Jesus, be my Rock as I strive to practice what you preached." Isaiah 26:1-6
Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 19-21, 25-27 |  clickable | How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
— Psalms 119: 103-105 | my2cents:
""Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock." That is from Isaiah.
Lord, Eternal Rock, we desire to set our lives on You!
From Psalms:
Psalms 18:2
"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower."
Samuel: 2 Samuel 22:3 | " The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. "
And violence from humans? Or violence that waits in eternity? As the Lord our God sees fit. As we place our trust in Him. | We pray today: "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord."
Be grateful my friend, this will bring holiness, the very Thanksgiving Eucharist in your life. Secondly, trust not one soul, not even yourself on the whole holiness and purity and salvation thing. All of this is in His hands, His bounty, His mercy. Thirdly, blessed is the one bringing you Himself. You must bring Him to the world. | ""Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven."
When did we see you naked or hungry? They cried out to our Lord after dying.
He replies "You did it to Me". By these 5 words, Mother Teresa lived. You did it for Me. There, one word changed. I changed 'you did it TO me', to 'you did it FOR me".
Mt 25:40 says: "Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Here it is my friend, the foundation for the foundation He is about to ask of all of us in the Gospel: | ""Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. "
Want to set your house, your life on THE Rock? Jesus is asking us to found ourselves on Him.
How? Remember? LOL. Let's go back to the previous verse, "only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven."
That is how you set your foundation: only doing His will.
Let me cast some doubt and doubt clearings for you to acknowledge His will:
When you strive for humility, and you get humiliated, let it be, that is meant to be.
When you seek wisdom, and you get severely tested, let it be, it is meant to be.
When you want to help the needy, and some annoying person comes seeking attention, learn to give, Jesus says "it is Me".
When you read the bible about helping widows and orphans, and the prisoners, how will it be? Can you? Will you? If you can, would you? If you are a woman can you go to help prisoners? There are women prisoners that are lost in drugs and problems right? If you are a man, can you help a widow? What if you are a married man? Things can get finicky then, right? What business are you getting into? My friend, that's why you are bound, and where there is a will, Jesus will find a way. Last night, I was teaching 1st communion via computers online, and it is amazing how much you learn when you teach. There is this one picture that shows the gates of Heaven blocked with a board called Sin. I told the students "we are the ones that put up that board when we choose sin". Sin blocks Heaven. God didn't do it. The board is on our side of the fence. I believe I've "checked all the boxes" when it comes to having helped, orphans, prisoners, the poor and hungry, a widow of a worker that died suddenly at home once, we helped through work, but my friend, I am wrong to say I done everything our Lord has asked. I seek our Lord's will every day and night. What does He ask of me? What does He ask of you? I'm afraid sometimes of what He really asks for.
Today's Gospel asks us to be wise. To set our foundation on Him. What does sand mean? What does the rock mean?
Sand is time and temporal. Rock means solid and eternal.
We are not to set our lives on temporal matters, but on eternal.
And He offers Himself as the eternal choice.
The world serves a purpose, a choice, and a free will in our heart is to choose. Every matter counts in your life. Every moment counts. For we do not know the hour, but we know He is coming.
This moment could be your last, or this could be an everlasting moment. Lord, my rock, my refuge, my shield in whom I trust, I set my site and sight on You and I know you look on your child with great mercy and Love. I open my heart now to receive your mercy and love, and live in mercy and love of You forever. | Random Bible verse from online generator 1 Corinthians 4:20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
