†Quote of the Day
"We should strive to keep our hearts open to the sufferings and wretchedness of other people, and pray continually that God may grant us that spirit of compassion which is truly the spirit of God."
–St. Vincent de Paul †Today's Meditation
"By accepting the sufferings 'offered' by life and allowed by God for our progress and purification, we spare ourselves much harder ones. We need to develop this kind of realism and, once and for all, stop dreaming of a life without suffering or conflict. That is the life of heaven, not earth. We must take up our cross and follow Christ courageously every day; the bitterness of that cross will sooner or later be transformed into sweetness."
—Fr. Jacques Philippe, p. 49 An Excerpt From
Interior Freedom †Daily Verse
"Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me."
–John 14:23-24 |  click to read more | | St. Vincent de Paul St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660) was born in France to a peasant farming family. As a child he grew up herding sheep, and showed such an aptitude for his studies that his father sold the family oxen to fund his seminary education. After his ordination in 1600, St. Vincent worked in Toulouse as a tutor to pay for his doctorate. In 1605, while traveling by sea, he was captured by Turkish pirates. He was taken to Tunis in Africa and sold into slavery four times before escaping in 1607 along with his master, whom he had coverted to the faith. St. Vincent then continued his studies in Rome, and afterwards returned to France. He served as a parish priest and ministered to the nobility; however, two life-changing encounters with destitute people inspired him to begin work among the poor and marginalized. He gathered the wealthy women of his parish to collect funds for missionary projects. From this group came the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. He also founded an Order of priests, the Vincentians, who, during a time of general laxity and ignorance among the clergy, devoted themselves to the Evangelical Councils while serving in small towns and villages. He committed himself to the education of priests and conducted many retreats for their spiritual formation. He also ministered to convicts suffering deplorable conditions in prison, and won many to the faith in addition to building them a hospital. St. Vincent renewed the faith of France during a time of spiritual crisis. For this he was named the patron of charitable works. He is also the patron of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, an organization dedicated to the service of the poor, now working in 132 countries. His feast day is September 27th. | Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest • Readings for the Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, priest Reading 1 Jb 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23 Job opened his mouth and cursed his day.
Job spoke out and said: Perish the day on which I was born,
the night when they said, "The child is a boy!" Why did I not perish at birth,
come forth from the womb and expire?
Or why was I not buried away like an untimely birth,
like babes that have never seen the light?
Wherefore did the knees receive me?
or why did I suck at the breasts? For then I should have lain down and been tranquil;
had I slept, I should then have been at rest
With kings and counselors of the earth
who built where now there are ruins
Or with princes who had gold
and filled their houses with silver. There the wicked cease from troubling,
there the weary are at rest. Why is light given to the toilers,
and life to the bitter in spirit?
They wait for death and it comes not;
they search for it rather than for hidden treasures,
Rejoice in it exultingly,
and are glad when they reach the grave:
Those whose path is hidden from them,
and whom God has hemmed in! Responsorial Psalm Ps 88:2-3, 4-5, 6, 7-8 R. (3) Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
O LORD, my God, by day I cry out;
at night I clamor in your presence.
Let my prayer come before you;
incline your ear to my call for help.
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
For my soul is surfeited with troubles
and my life draws near to the nether world.
I am numbered with those who go down into the pit;
I am a man without strength.
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
My couch is among the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
Whom you remember no longer
and who are cut off from your care.
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
You have plunged me into the bottom of the pit,
into the dark abyss.
Upon me your wrath lies heavy,
and with all your billows you overwhelm me.
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord. Alleluia Mk 10:45 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man came to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 9:51-56 When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them,
and they journeyed to another village.
| Daily Meditation: Luke 9:51-56 Jesus . . . resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem. (Luke 9:51) His public ministry had begun in Galilee, but now "the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled" (Luke 9:51). He would head for Jerusalem—preaching, teaching, and healing along the way. Ultimately, he would accomplish what his Father had sent him to do: through his death and resurrection, he would save the world. Luke writes that Jesus "resolutely determined"—literally, "set his face"—toward the holy city (9:51). Jesus knew exactly what lay ahead, and yet he did not flinch. Even if he were dreading what was to come, he would not turn back. Have you dreaded doing something that you knew God was asking of you? There are times when following God's will seems to be difficult if not impossible. Perhaps it's a sin pattern that you struggle with. Maybe you see a need that you don't have the time or energy to fulfill. You might be tempted to throw up your hands in discouragement and give up. But what if you were "resolutely determined" to do it anyway? What if you made what God was asking of you something you wanted just as much as he does? That's what Jesus did. He didn't just assent to the Father's will; he was wholeheartedly committed to it. He wanted to save us from sin and death, no matter what it cost him. So how do you become more determined to accomplish something God wants, especially when you don't want to do it or don't know how you will do it? You can start by being honest with the Lord. Share your struggle. Then ask him to help you see the situation through his eyes. Ask him to give you his mercy and compassion, both for the people involved and for yourself. Finally, ask—and keep asking—for the grace to be as resolute as Jesus was and to desire his will more than your own. This prayer always pleases the Lord. You will still struggle, as Jesus did in Gethsemane. You might also stumble from time to time. But don't let it deter you. Just get up and try once again to follow your Savior, who set his face toward Jerusalem just so that he could one day call you his own. "Jesus, grant me the grace and determination to do your will." Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23
Psalm 88:2-8 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"Why is light given to the toilers, and life to the bitter in spirit?" I've yet to meet a soul that did not need prayer. The whole world needs prayer. Do you pray for the whole world? Jesus does. Mary does. All the saints do. We're kind of a big deal...a place where there is value...and I'd say in God's will...there is value. How do we value God's will? | We pray today;
"For my soul is surfeited with troubles
and my life draws near to the nether world.
I am numbered with those who go down into the pit;
I am a man without strength." We would like to know God's will, but do we seek His will? We would like to love God, but do we seek God's love?
We would like to live forever, but do we seek His Way? | In the Gospel today we heard:
_"When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him."
They said in another translation "He set His face like flint".
From Isaiah 50:7 "For the Lord God will help Me, therefore shall I not be confounded; therefore have I set My face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.."
This scripture is engraved in my head, my soul even. I've even thought about tattoing my truck with something to symbolize this, with an arrowhead and scripture.
Our Lord was set to do God's will. He let Himself be taken like a sheep to the slaughter.
I recall my own dad on his last day here on earth a few months ago, he seemed to have said "what are we waiting for, let's get this done", he was ready and said farewell to the world after having blessed all his loved ones and made amends and received God's blessing three times.
And so let us get the next verse in our heads: "He sent messengers ahead of Him".
We are messengers of God's word. We have received His message and now we are to spread the message.
Our God is coming. In your lifetime, when it is your last day, all the last things must come into play and our life set straight and focused on what God wants.
Everything you see is fleeting, and vanities, but much good is hidden in the treacherous life we live with so much depression and oppression with dark spirits keeping us from a life fervent and on fire for God our Father.
And so, the Holy Spirit has me writing to you; my child, do not grow despondent, do not fall asleep, I'm calling you to myself, where I AM I want you to be. I AM a Father to billions and uniquely in love with each one of you. Nobody can ever love you forever...only I who formed you with love, and know and hold your every tear in my heart. I will console you. I will do this says the Lord. For now, you are in the world, but take heart, I AM with You Always. |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: Luke 6:37–38 [Luke 6]
Judging Others 37 "Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you." | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment