†Saint Quote
"The glory of God is man fully alive, and the life of man is the vision of God."
— St. Irenaeus †MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"I will first, dearest daughter, speak to thee of the dignity of priests, having placed them where they are through My goodness, over and above the general love which I have had to My creatures, creating you in My image and likeness and re-creating you all to the life of grace in the Blood of My Only-begotten Son, whence you have arrived at such excellence, through the union which I made of My Deity with human nature; so that in this you have greater dignity and excellence than the angels, for I took your human nature and not that of the angels. Wherefore, as I have said to you, I, God, have become man, and man has become God by the union of My Divine Nature with your human nature. This greatness is given in general to all rational creatures, but, among these I have especially chosen My ministers for the sake of your salvation, so that, through them, the Blood of the humble and immaculate Lamb, My Only-begotten Son, may be administered to you."
— St. Catherine Of Siena, p. 137-8
AN EXCERPT FROM
Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena † VERSE OF THE DAY
"I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
John 13:34-35 |  click to read more | | ST. MACRINA THE YOUNGER St. Macrina the Younger (d. 380 A.D.) was born in Cappadocia to a family of saints. Her mother was St. Emelia, and her father was St. Basil the Elder. Her grandmother was St. Macrina the Elder, after whom she was named. Her holy parents had ten children. Macrina was one of the oldest, and received an excellent religious education from her holy mother. Her parents betrothed her to a pious youth, but he died before the marriage took place. Macrina then consecrated her virginity to God and lived a life of great asceticism. She remained living with her parents, helping to raise her younger siblings, directing the household servants, and supporting the family with her domestic skills. Among her siblings were St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory of Nyssa (who both became Cappadocian Fathers and Doctors of the Church) St. Peter of Sebaste, and St. Theosevia. When their father died, Macrina became the main support for the family. It was Macrina who profoundly influenced the spiritual discipline of her younger brothers. When all her siblings were grown, Macrina convinced her mother to give up their family belongings, set their servants free, and convert their home into a monastery. Many of their servants joined them in this spiritual pursuit; they all lived together as a family, sharing all things in common. When her mother died, Macrina led the religious community. The biography of St. Macrina's life was written by her brother, St. Gregory. Her feast day is July 19th. | Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 395
Reading I Ex 14:5-18 When it was reported to the king of Egypt
that the people had fled,
Pharaoh and his servants changed their minds about them.
They exclaimed, "What have we done!
Why, we have released Israel from our service!"
So Pharaoh made his chariots ready and mustered his soldiers
six hundred first-class chariots
and all the other chariots of Egypt, with warriors on them all.
So obstinate had the LORD made Pharaoh
that he pursued the children of Israel
even while they were marching away in triumph.
The Egyptians, then, pursued them;
Pharaoh's whole army, his horses, chariots and charioteers,
caught up with them as they lay encamped by the sea,
at Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon. Pharaoh was already near when the children of Israel looked up
and saw that the Egyptians were on the march in pursuit of them.
In great fright they cried out to the LORD.
And they complained to Moses,
"Were there no burial places in Egypt
that you had to bring us out here to die in the desert?
Why did you do this to us?
Why did you bring us out of Egypt?
Did we not tell you this in Egypt, when we said,
'Leave us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians'?
Far better for us to be the slaves of the Egyptians
than to die in the desert."
But Moses answered the people,
"Fear not! Stand your ground,
and you will see the victory the LORD will win for you today.
These Egyptians whom you see today you will never see again.
The LORD himself will fight for you; you have only to keep still." Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me?
Tell the children of Israel to go forward.
And you, lift up your staff and, with hand outstretched over the sea,
split the sea in two,
that the children of Israel may pass through it on dry land.
But I will make the Egyptians so obstinate
that they will go in after them.
Then I will receive glory through Pharaoh and all his army,
his chariots and charioteers.
The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD,
when I receive glory through Pharaoh
and his chariots and charioteers." Responsorial Psalm Exodus 15:1bc-2, 3-4, 5-6 R. (1b) Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
I will sing to the LORD, for he is gloriously triumphant;
horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
He is my God, I praise him;
the God of my father, I extol him.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
The LORD is a warrior,
LORD is his name!
Pharaoh's chariots and army he hurled into the sea;
the elite of his officers were submerged in the Red Sea.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
The flood waters covered them,
they sank into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O LORD, magnificent in power,
your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory. Alleluia Ps 95:8 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 12:38-42 Some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
"Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you."
He said to them in reply,
"An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign,
but no sign will be given it
except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights,
so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth
three days and three nights.
At the judgment, the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah;
and there is something greater than Jonah here.
At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation
and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon;
and there is something greater than Solomon here." | Daily Meditation: Matthew 12:38-42 Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you. (Matthew 12:38) Jesus had performed many miracles right in front of them, but still these scribes and Pharisees continued to demand a sign from him to prove that he was the Messiah. They were so intent on seeking signs, in fact, that it escaped their notice that Jesus himself was the sign, standing there right before their eyes. Have you ever found yourself asking God for a particular "sign"? It's only human to wish for such things. Perhaps we long for confirmation of a pending decision, or we are looking for God to show us in a concrete way that he is answering our prayers. Sometimes a little bargaining can even creep into our requests. "Lord," we might pray, "I need a sign from you that you are working in this situation. If you show up in this way, I will believe." Jesus' response to the Jewish leaders is revealing. Sometimes we are looking for external signs when, in fact, Jesus himself is the only sign we really need. That "sign" is always right before us, blessing us, encouraging us, and guiding us. No doubt there are occasions when the Lord uses different signs in our lives. We only have to remember that Gideon asked for a sign involving a woolen fleece, and God gave it to him (Judges 6:36-40). But we also have to be open to other ways in which God might lead or guide us. We can't let our own presumptions close us off to how God wants to speak to us. We also don't want to be tempted to discouragement when a sign doesn't appear in the form we expect or desire. Nor do we want to place any limits on how God wants to act in a specific situation. So go ahead and ask Jesus for a sign. But be open as well to other ways in which he might be speaking to you. Whatever sign you are seeking, remember that ultimately, Jesus himself is the most powerful sign that God our Father has given us. He is the sign of God's love and care for us—and there is no greater sign than that! "Jesus, as I am looking for signs, help me not to miss your presence in my life." Exodus 14:5-18
(Psalm) Exodus 15:1-6 |  Listen to 2cents | my2cents:
The people took off with Moses, and saw the Egyptian army coming. They wished they'd never had left, and why? When things are nice, there is no fear. When there is fear, you have regret, and you wish to go back to comfort. But our Lord speaks:
""Fear not! Stand your ground,
and you will see the victory the LORD will win for you today." And I sung at Mass today "Be still my love...Know that I am God" (song by David Kauffman). | "The LORD is a warrior, LORD is his name!
Pharaoh's chariots and army he hurled into the sea; the elite of his officers were submerged in the Red Sea. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory."
At the Promise Keeper's conference at the football stadium this weekend, they told us men that we can no longer be on the sidelines and invisible. And it is true, we must be the body of Christ, a Warrior, against lies, against the ways of the world. And we sung Holy is His name. I want to thank you for your prayers, for there were miracles I witnessed...of spiritual healing, forgiveness, and faith. | More on that miracles thing in a bit, so let's read what the Pharisees told our Lord: ""Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you."
Most often, we want miracles. And they happen, but not to all. More on that, but first, let's see what our Lord says in response: "An evil and unfaithful generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it
except the sign of Jonah the prophet."
And our Lord goes on to say that He will be buried for 3 days like Jonah, and then He speaks about repentance at the sign. And this is crucial for a believer. It is the Creed that we know and pray. That we believe in Him, that we repent, that we believe He has risen, and we believe in the Holy Spirit.
How far will this message go?
As far as you allow it to be. | On the way to the conference, even the night before, I heard one man had cold feet and might not go. I prayed a deliverance prayer for evil to release the chokehold, and the man began to reply and said "see you there". On the way there, one man going with us learned that his own brother was going to be there, a brother he had fought with and was not speaking to for nearly a year, and he began to get frustrated. I didn't know this was the case, and the other brother had just told me the night before "I'll see you there". So, I prayed a deliverance prayer on the one with me, and he came out of a gas station saying "something strange happened, i've forgiven my brother!". We went to the conference and the brothers met and throughout the whole weekend were like little brothers, laughing, getting along good, and were happy to be with each othe (see a video I made and see two men laughing together here). A miracle? Truth is, by all thoughts of man, the other brother would never be caught dead in a Christian men's conference, but he went. Allbeit, I had to convince him to tough it out because he wanted to walk out halfway through it. But he stayed. I told him "what else is more important that you have to go? Just wait." I believe that if he was looking for a message, it didn't happen until the last few seconds of the last few words of the event, and his brother pulled me to aside was everyone was exiting "Adrian, I need to talk to you" so we went "I just saw my brother leaving in tears!" and we knew what this meant, because he is a hard man, an ex convict, a man that needs nobody and no one else, in his own eyes a tough man. We looked at each other amazed, something perhaps is happening. A miracle? So how many miracles have I given you? Around 4 off the top of my head here?
And so on the way home, I spoke to them about miracles, and that I have witnessed many tremendous miracles (even greater than the ones mentioned) and it seemed one man wanted to know. As if what had just happened wasn't enough?
An evil generation seeks a sign? Why? So they don't have to believe first. So they don't have to live by faith. So they don't have to give anything or trust anything.
So I explained that a miracle has different effects on different people. Some don't see it. Some do. So what good would it do to explain to you? Have faith. Let's pray:
Lord, I want to thank you for signs I've never asked for.
You are amazing. Everything you've done is amazing.
I pray that we can amaze you. With what You have already given us...everything!
We praise You, We Love You. |  click to hear | Random Bible Verse from online generator: Titus 3:4–7 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
