†Saint Quote
"To convert somebody, go and take them by the hand and guide them."
— St. Thomas Aquinas † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"We trust ourselves to a doctor because we suppose he knows his business. He orders an operation which involves cutting away part of our body and we accept it. We are grateful to him and pay him a large fee because we judge he would not act as he does unless the remedy were necessary, and we must rely on his skill. Yet we are unwilling to treat God in the same way! It looks as if we do not trust His wisdom and are afraid He cannot do His job properly. We allow ourselves to be operated on by a man who may easily make a mistake—a mistake which may cost us our life—and protest when God sets to work on us. If we could see all He sees we would unhesitatingly wish all He wishes."
— Fr. Jean Baptiste Saint-Jure, p. 90
AN EXCERPT FROM
Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence †VERSE OF THE DAY
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"
Psalm 27:1 |  click to read more | | ST. CLARE OF ASSISI St. Clare (1194–1253) was born in Assisi, Italy, to an aristocratic family, the daughter of a wealthy count. From childhood she was pious after the example of her mother, and as she grew up her longing for God increased. When she was eighteen she heard St. Francis of Assisi preach a Lenten mission in the local church. His holy example kindled her desire to renounce the world and follow Christ. She secretly begged Francis to help her live as he did, in simplicity according to the Gospel. St. Francis agreed. On Palm Sunday, Clare attended High Mass in all her finery for the final time. There she received a mystical experience which confirmed her desire to renounce the world and follow Christ after the example of St. Francis. That same night she secretly fled her father's house, along with two companions, to a chapel where St. Francis awaited her with his friars. She exchanged her fine clothes for a rough tunic and veil, and had her hair cut off. Francis placed Clare for a time with Benedictine nuns to escape the wrath of her family. She was soon joined by her sister, Agnes, and other young women whom St. Francis inspired. He permanently housed the women, with Clare as abbess, in the Church of San Damiano outside Assisi. This became the first foundation of the Poor Clare nuns. St. Clare lived there for the next forty years in prayer, penance, and fasting. She is the patroness of eyes and eye diseases, the telephone, and television. Her feast day is August 11th. | Memorial of Saint Clare, Virgin Lectionary: 415
Reading I Dt 34:1-12 Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo,
the headland of Pisgah which faces Jericho,
and the LORD showed him all the land—
Gilead, and as far as Dan, all Naphtali,
the land of Ephraim and Manasseh,
all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea,
the Negeb, the circuit of the Jordan
with the lowlands at Jericho, city of palms,
and as far as Zoar.
The LORD then said to him,
"This is the land
which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
that I would give to their descendants.
I have let you feast your eyes upon it, but you shall not cross over."
So there, in the land of Moab, Moses, the servant of the LORD,
died as the LORD had said; and he was buried in the ravine
opposite Beth-peor in the land of Moab,
but to this day no one knows the place of his burial.
Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died,
yet his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated.
For thirty days the children of Israel wept for Moses
in the plains of Moab, till they had completed
the period of grief and mourning for Moses. Now Joshua, son of Nun, was filled with the spirit of wisdom,
since Moses had laid his hands upon him;
and so the children of Israel gave him their obedience,
thus carrying out the LORD's command to Moses. Since then no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses,
whom the LORD knew face to face.
He had no equal in all the signs and wonders
the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt
against Pharaoh and all his servants and against all his land,
and for the might and the terrifying power
that Moses exhibited in the sight of all Israel. Responsorial Psalm 66:1-3a, 5 and 8, 16-17 R. (see 20a and 10b) Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing praise to the glory of his name; proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God: "How tremendous are your deeds!"
R. Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!
Come and see the works of God, his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam.
Bless our God, you peoples; loudly sound his praise.
R. Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words, praise was on the tip of my tongue.
R. Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire! Alleluia 2 Cor 5:19 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 18:15-20 Jesus said to his disciples:
"If your brother sins against you,
go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.
If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.
If he does not listen,
take one or two others along with you,
so that every fact may be established
on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church.
If he refuses to listen even to the Church,
then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.
Amen, I say to you,
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth
about anything for which they are to pray,
it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them." | Daily Meditation: Deuteronomy 34:1-12 You shall not cross over. (Deuteronomy 34:4) Do you ever dream of your own "promised land"? For some of us, it may be that bucket list of things we hope to have accomplished before we die. For others, it's more poignant, like getting debt free or reconciling with an estranged family member. Whatever it is, we all understand that getting to our promised land requires hard work—and that it isn't guaranteed. Moses is the perfect example of someone who worked hard to get to his—literal—Promised Land but who didn't make it. It's true, he got to gaze on the land before he died, as today's first reading tells us, but he never set foot in it. Isn't this remarkable? No one would call Moses a failure. We don't look at him and shake our heads in disappointment. Instead, we recall his dedication, his humility, and his courage and wish that we could be a little more like him. We all have times when it feels as if we're stuck in the desert and our promised land seems far out of reach. Our debt may not have diminished much, despite our best efforts, or our distant family member may still refuse to take our phone calls. Through it all, we yearn for some kind of sign that we're on the right path and that we'll finally get there. But sometimes the journey matters more than the destination. Sometimes we learn lessons along the way that bring us closer to our one true promised land: heaven. Sometimes we have to leave our dreams in God's hands and trust that he will continue to work even after we have gone to be with him. Just ask Moses, who never entered the Promised Land but who had to leave it to Joshua to finish the journey. This is God's promise for us today: even if we never see all of our dreams come true, he will still bless our dedication to him. We don't need to enter our earthly promised land in order to find our true Promised Land. God loves us deeply, he treasures our obedience to him, and he honors every good thing we try to do for him. And in the end, that's what matters most. "Lord, help me find peace in my journey to the land you have promised me." Psalm 66:1-3, 5, 8, 16-17
Matthew 18:15-20 |  Listen to 2cents | From today's first Holy Scripture:
"The LORD then said to him,
""This is the land
which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
that I would give to their descendants.
I have let you feast your eyes upon it, but you shall not cross over." Feast your eyes on this, says our Lord. The next step of the journey, and how does it look? They said it was a land flowing with milk and honey. He said it was the promised land. And the next generation would inherit the land. Now we are speaking about faith for Moses, and faith for the next generation. Now we are speaking about you and me. | We pray today:
"Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!
Come and see the works of God, his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam.
Bless our God, you peoples; loudly sound his praise.
Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!"
Towards the end of today's 1st Holy Scripture, it said about Moses, "Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died,
yet his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated."
For God had lit a fire in his soul, from the moment they met at the burning bush...a new desire for God and His will. And the light was never dimmed, and that vigor is what the world desires to see, to follow..to God's heart. | In the Holy Gospel we heard:
"Jesus said to his disciples:
"If your brother sins against you,
go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.
If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.
If he does not listen,
take one or two others along with you,
so that every fact may be established
on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church.
If he refuses to listen even to the Church,
then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector." | Our Lord lays out the law, on how to reconcile. The first step is the hardest:
1.) If they sin against you, go and tell him/her.
So, how often do we do that? Let's say, someone stole something from you. Let's say, someone took your loved one from you. Let's say, someone killed someone. Let's say, someone called you names or lied about you. Now our Lord says to approach them, didn't say confront or fight or argue. Pray for grace on the approach, that they might be saved. But if they deny you- Now go to step 2. 2.) Take one or two others along with you, so that every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Sounds like court, right? But who is the judge? The offender? Pray for grace in the approach. Apparently, they are being offered mercy, as is evident in the first case. A chance to make amends. Now we got a group effort in reconciliation. And if denied the offer, go to step 3. 3.) "If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church. If he refuses to listen even to the Church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector." Pray for grace to approach them as a merciful church. Now we have to present the offender, the thief, the adulterer, the blasphemer, the scandal, to the church. 3rd time for mercy. Years and years ago, I heard a secretary was stealing from church. They left the church after being found out. Where was mercy? Years ago, a priest was said that was stealing money. I asked the councils to forgive the debts. The priest was removed from our parish. I desire mercy more. I desire unity more. There are people bad mouthing me, and how I wish they'd just repent and unite. You see, it's not about Me, but God's will.
All in hopes that you will relent, and repent. What if God is asking you to repent today? To give up one of your two faces? Let's not point the finger now! And it goes deeper when our Lord continues in the Holy Gospel: "Amen, I say to you,
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth
about anything for which they are to pray,
it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them." Notice from the first part, where one person praying wasn't enough?
Now you got two or 3 praying in His name, right?
Notice it's not all about living faith alone. We are Church. We are the body. We are stronger together. A man on an island can die alone easier, but not so if two or three are together, helping each other to the other shore.
If you've ever studied exorcisms, the extreme form of deliverance, there, the exorcist has people praying with him and for him, and for the person needing deliverance.
Do you see the absolute crucial truth of our Lord now? We are not our Lord who needs nothing or nobody to deliver someone, we need each other and a group of faithful to be with, to live with in prayer.
Now let's sum things up. Moses was invigorated. Moses is motivated. My sole purpose is to invigorate you. I noticed something here lately, that those whom I have helped invigorate, later on, they in turn, invigorate me! What fire you put forth now, will help you reignite yours if need be, later.
So for our Lord's Kingdom's sake, keep the fire flowing, and going, spreading into people's souls.
Not only would they be saved, but you as well, and perhaps even, the whole world! Let us pray:
Lord, Moses had that fire You induced Him with. I pray for that fire for all of us here, taking in this message. I pray for that fire that is ushered forth from Thy Holy Throne of fire. That which emanates and permeates, and becomes the living being You desire to be. I was made for this, we were made for this, to show God that God is True, and not only that, but MY FATHER. OUR FATHER in Heaven is all truth and therefore, true Love.
Love you. amen. | from your brother in Christ,
Adrian |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: John 4:13–14
13 Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.1 The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
