†Saint Quote
"Quote of the Day
"Lord, help me to make time today to serve you in those who are most in need of encouragement or assistance."
–St. Vincent de Paul †Today's Meditation
"If during vocal prayer your heart is drawn to mental prayer, do not restrain it, but let your devotion take that channel, omitting the vocal prayers which you intended to say: that which takes their place is more acceptable to God, and more useful to your own soul."
—St. Francis de Sales, p. 63 An Excerpt From
An Introduction to the Devout Life †Daily Verse
"What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna."
–Matthew 10:27-28 |  click to read more | | †Blessed Juliana of Mont Cornillon Blessed Juliana of Mont Cornillon, also known as Juliana of Liege (1193-1258) was born near Liege, Belgium. She was orphaned at the age of five and placed in the convent of Mt. Cornillon near Liege. She made rapid progress in virtue and grew in love for the Passion of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Blessed Sacrament. At the age of thirteen she became a nun and devoted herself to caring for the sick in the convent hospital. She eventually became the superioress of her community. Taught in repeated visions that Our Lord wanted a liturgical feast in honor of the Holy Eucharist to be established, she worked diligently to have the feast of Corpus Christi instituted for the Universal Church, a task for which she endured much opposition. She was forced to flee her convent after its general superior excited the populace against her and her visions. She was later vindicated by the bishop and returned to her rightful place, only to be forced to flee a final time, ending her life in seclusion. The feast of Corpus Christi was finally instituted six years after her death by Pope Urban IV, who also commissioned Saint Thomas Aquinas to prepare the magnificent texts for the feast's Office and Mass. Her feast day is April 6. | Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent Lectionary: 253
Reading I Dn 3:14-20, 91-92, 95 King Nebuchadnezzar said:
"Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
that you will not serve my god,
or worship the golden statue that I set up?
Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made,
whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet,
flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe,
and all the other musical instruments;
otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace;
and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?"
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar,
"There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you
in this matter.
If our God, whom we serve,
can save us from the white-hot furnace
and from your hands, O king, may he save us!
But even if he will not, know, O king,
that we will not serve your god
or worship the golden statue that you set up." King Nebuchadnezzar's face became livid with utter rage
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual
and had some of the strongest men in his army
bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace. Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles,
"Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?"
"Assuredly, O king," they answered.
"But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt,
walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God."
Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed,
"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him;
they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies
rather than serve or worship any god
except their own God." Responsorial Psalm Daniel 3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56 R. (52b) Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name, praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you who look into the depths from your throne upon the cherubim; praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven, praiseworthy and glorious forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever! Verse Before the Gospel See Lk 8:15 Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance. Gospel Jn 8:31-42 Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham
and have never been enslaved to anyone.
How can you say, 'You will become free'?"
Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
A slave does not remain in a household forever,
but a son always remains.
So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free.
I know that you are descendants of Abraham.
But you are trying to kill me,
because my word has no room among you.
I tell you what I have seen in the Father's presence;
then do what you have heard from the Father." They answered and said to him, "Our father is Abraham."
Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children,
you would be doing the works of Abraham.
But now you are trying to kill me,
a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God;
Abraham did not do this.
You are doing the works of your father!"
So they said to him, "We were not born of fornication.
We have one Father, God."
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me,
for I came from God and am here;
I did not come on my own, but he sent me." | Daily Meditation: John 8:31-42 If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples. (John 8:31) In today's Gospel passage, Jesus is talking to a group of Jews who are beginning to turn against him. They had "believed in him," but when Jesus told them to remain in his word so that they can know the truth, they began to argue with him (John 8:31; see 8:33). Instead of embracing his word and allowing it to change them, they gave up on him when his teachings challenged them. We can find many of Jesus' teachings challenging as well. But we also know that remaining in Jesus' word means more than saying we believe in it. It means embracing that word and putting it into practice in our lives, even when it's difficult. That's the only way we truly grow as disciples of the Lord. No doubt because the price of discipleship can be high, God shows us examples in Scripture of what he gives to his disciples in return. Look at the powerful blessings that flowed from the faithfulness of the four men in our readings today: Abraham, whose faith-filled works Jesus praises; and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, whose commitment to worship the one true God brought a foreign king to faith (John 8:39; Daniel 3). In both cases, they paid a steep price for carrying out God's word. Abraham left his land and was ready to sacrifice his son Isaac. Daniel's three companions braved a fiery death sentence. But look at what came about as a result! The group of friends inside the furnace, whose faith had taught them that God's almighty power is to be exalted over all created things, received a life-saving miracle. And not only did Abraham's obedience win him countless descendants, but his family also became a sign of God's salvation to the whole world. We won't always see such obvious effects of remaining in God's word—at least not in this life. But everything will become abundantly clear when we get to heaven. We simply can't anticipate how much God will multiply our efforts to stay true to him and his word. As his truth takes root in us, it becomes more powerful and eternally life-giving than all the challenges we may face on earth. "Father, deepen my trust in your word so that I may be a witness of faith." Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92, 95
(Psalm) Daniel 3:52-56 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god
or worship the golden statue that you set up." Used to be obvious who pagan gods were. Today, they are more hidden. Today idols still exist. Golden statues are handed out as awards. These gods rear their heads, homage to man made pride ceremonies. What other awards are there? What gods are there? What trophies are out there? Some guys look for a "trophy wife" that looks a certain way and do certain things. Some look for power and prestige in their job and want to be noticed by their family and friends. What ideal are you set out for? We make up something worse...a false god to follow worship. One that is tailored to our whims and fancies. | We pray in Psalms:
""Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven, praiseworthy and glorious forever." | In today's Gospel we heard:
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." Set ME free? From what? That was the question of those who had it all...figured out. Those who have god in a box. Those who say they are free.
And so it is for our Nation today. They want more and more freedom to choose and the more "freedom" or "liberty" they want, the more it will cost humanity, and this is a crime against Love...God Himself.
Wouldn't you rather live- not so free? How about as a slave...of God?
God wants free slaves.
Just right now as I was writing, a long term and key employee walked in my office to solidify what I was afraid of...he is quitting. I could really use him as he is our go to guy for machinery expertise and as a lead project manager in many of our out of town and out of state projects.
So my dad passes away, and now this?
I told him that I knew that if I love something really I have to let go, and if it returns its meant to be. And yesterday I had all sorts of trucks down and orders to fulfill. Now what?
I'm no expert at what my dad could do, nor what this guy could do. Now what?
I pray. "Everything will pass" I thought. This too will pass. Everything is temporary. Things constantly evolve. And so, I prayed. Anchors away! Drop the anchor into God's abyss. Where the anchor lands I do not know, what is down there, I can't see, but, I do know that this boat will be anchored in Christ.
And this morning after much prayer even through the night, everything just kinda worked out good.
So when our Lord is asking the people to believe in Him, He is asking for that anchor to be cast into Him.
But that's a tall order for those who love their so called "freedom", libertarians that ultimately want freedom from God Himself! | Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me."
So what happened? Moses was almost deified, and so too was Abraham. Their laws took over and were overridden with more laws. This so called god was customized and it defaced the true Face of the Lord...the true Son of God.
And so, what new laws or ideas are being introduced today that go against our Lord? Think not of government, but what comes from your heart, for government to me is but a mere afterthought of what actually happens here and now, inside of me, and inside of you. This is where EVERYTHING matters. The devil is vying for your soul. It is a true battle out here. But the War has been won by our Lord. Yet it goes on in our hearts. And so, I write to you, to join me in this belief.
What happened yesterday, and today when all these problems challenged me? I look beyond and not at what is just in front of me. If it is of the devil, it will vanish, because I call upon Christ the Lord. But if it is of God, it will be forever and ever. The illuminating tool I use is faith and prayer to see the truth.
"But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God" Lord, I am Yours. May Your Truth burn into my soul and set us free to worship You, adore You, free to Love You with everything I've got, both now and forever. | from your brother in Christ,
Adrian |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: Proverbs 16:32
32 Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment