†Saint Quote "Quote of the Day "We must faithfully keep what we have promised. If through human weakness we fail, we must always without delay arise again by means of holy penance, and give our attention to leading a good life and to dying a holy death. May the Father of all mercy, the Son by his holy passion, and the Holy Spirit, source of peace, sweetness and love, fill us with their consolation." –St. Colette †Today's Meditation "What prevents us from receiving more abundant graces from God may be quite simply our not being sufficiently grateful and not thanking him for the graces he has already given us. There is no doubt that if we thank God with all our heart for each grace received, especially for the inspirations [of the Holy Spirit], he will grant us more." —Fr. Jacques Philippe, p. 28 An Excerpt From In the School of the Holy Spirit †Daily Verse "Let love be sincere; hate what is evil, hold on to what is good love one another with mutual affection; anticipate one another in showing honor. Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality." –Romans 12:9-13 | click to read more | | Blessed Carlo Acutis "For the first time in history we will see a saint dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a sweater…" These are some of the words spoken on the occasion of the beatification of Blessed Carlo Acutis in October of 2020. Blessed Carlo was born on May 3, 1991 and grew up in Italy. He enjoyed amateur computer programing and video games. From an early age he had a great devotion to the Holy Eucharist. He researched sites of Eucharistic miracles and then created a website to categorize them. This website still exists and has also been turned into a traveling exhibition of Eucharistic Miracles which has been seen around the world. Blessed Carlo Acutis suffered from leukemia and died on October 10, 2006 at the age of 15. He is remembered for his cheerfulness and compassion for those in need. He is the patron of computer programmers and youth and was beatified on behalf of Pope Francis on October 10, 2020. His exposed relics can be viewed in Assisi. His feast day is October 12th. | Wednesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 469 Reading 1 GAL 5:18-25 Brothers and sisters: If you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissensions, factions, occasions of envy, drinking bouts, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God. In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit. Responsorial Psalm PS 1:1-2, 3, 4 AND 6 R. (see Jn 8:12) Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life. Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked Nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent, But delights in the law of the LORD and meditates on his law day and night. R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life. He is like a tree planted near running water, That yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers. R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life. Not so the wicked, not so; they are like chaff which the wind drives away. For the LORD watches over the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes. R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life. Alleluia JN 10:27 R. Alleluia, alleluia. My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow me. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 11:42-46 The Lord said: "Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb, but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God. These you should have done, without overlooking the others. Woe to you Pharisees! You love the seat of honor in synagogues and greetings in marketplaces. Woe to you! You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk." Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, "Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too." And he said, "Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them." | Daily Meditation: Galatians 5:18-25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25) Freedom—it's a theme that Paul takes up often, and it's also something he is passionate about. He tells the Galatians that they are free from having to abide by the Jewish requirements of circumcision (Galatians 5:2-6). And furthermore, they have been set free from slavery to "the works of the flesh" (5:19). Why? Because through Christ, they have been baptized into the freedom of a life in the Holy Spirit. Through this great sacrament, they "have crucified their flesh with its passions and desires" (5:24). This is true for all of us. We have all been baptized and received the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, though, we are still quite familiar with the sins Paul lists in today's reading. We are all works in progress. We all have areas where we feel "stuck" and can't seem to make headway, even when we try our hardest. But Paul has a better solution than trying even harder: be "guided by the Spirit" (Galatians 5:18). The more we get in touch with the Spirit and learn to follow his guidance, the more we will experience freedom in Christ. Over time, the Spirit will transform our desires so that we can live in a way that produces joy, peace, and generosity. As we call on the Spirit and try to follow his promptings, our attraction to the works of the flesh will diminish. This is what St. Augustine meant when he said, "Love God and do what you will." Of course, we will still stumble and fall at times. But God "does not ration his gift of the Spirit" (John 3:34). We can ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with his love and grace every day, especially in the moments when we are feeling the most tempted. He will never run out of grace; he will never tire of helping us. God has given you his Spirit because he wants you to experience ever-deepening freedom. The Spirit's delight is to empower you to bear good fruit. This promise is real. Take hold of the gift God offers you. Let the Spirit be your guide, today and always. "Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of your love." Psalm 1:1-4, 6 Luke 11:42-46 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture: "If you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law." Life in the Spirit is a life in the Lord, and in His will, in His life, and this is apart from the law...of the world, and flesh. The spirit is willing, and they say the flesh is weak. But is that the end of it? What does this mean? It means to grow in the Spirit and strengthen the flesh. Do God's will. And this takes a concerted effort...to open one's own heart to let Him do His bidding with our very lives. | We pray today; "Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life. Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked Nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent, But delights in the law of the LORD and meditates on his law day and night." They say "tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are". So can I hang out with my alcoholic friends? And those that seem to be on drugs, or away from God? Depends on where you hang out and what you are doing, right? I'm not going to the bars with them, nor to parties. No, I meet these folks in the common ground, I am their friends not in what they do, but in daily life, at work, or family, and I try to make them friends of Christ...intimate friends with our Lord who speaks and moves in silence, in the subtle parts of life, and in a willing soul. | In the Gospel today we heard our Master and Teacher: _"You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk." Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, "Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too." If the shoe fits! Right? How does it feel when you are called out in front of everyone on your weaknesses? Guys are notorious for this, I see it all the time at work, poking fun at one's weakness, in looks or ways. I remember nicknames they put on each other, like a guy missing his thumb they called him "the fork". And it goes on from there. But how does it feel when you are called out? To me, it doesn't feel good at all, but I'm learning that these are moments to grow in a virtue few dare to care for....humility. My friend, I see in the world, everywhere and in the church...a severe problem; a severe lack of humility. Where has this virtue gone? And it happened in the days our Lord walked this earth. | "Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them." I notice one thing in every environment, work, family, church, that people seem to love to tell others what to do, but not many like to be told what to do. And when someone finally decides to do something, they want to "feel appreciated". Boy do we got things wrong! The only one to please is our Lord in Heaven with holiness, purity, and this one thing in Heaven that everyone is missing on earth....Holy Obedience! If there's one thing I miss from my dad, my boss, is getting scolded, and reprimanded, and being told what to do. That's what a dad, a father is supposed to do! Right? I see dads at malls and other places, they are always putting children in their place. And so I've noticed that the Father does this to me still, through others, through priests, and mad parishioners, they get mad and tell me what to do! WOW! Bring it on! This flesh needs to be whipped and scourged. Mortifications are rare, nobody mortifies their flesh to listen to the spirit. Used to be everyone would fast, or hurt themselves physically to get the Spirit to do God's will! Lord, thank you for Your precious words and always trying to straighten us up... You know best, I need to be made less. ... adrian | click to hear | Random Bible Verse 1 John 4:13–14 [John 4] 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 | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment