†Saint Quote
""By reason of His immensity, God is present everywhere; but there are two places where He dwells in a particular manner. One is in the highest heavens, where He is present by that glory which He communicates to the blessed; the other is on earth—within the humble soul that loves Him."
–St. Alphonsus Liguori †Today's Meditation
"Furthermore, let us produce worthy fruits of penance. Let us also love our neighbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. Men lose all the material things they leave behind them in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. For these they will receive from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve. We must not be wise and prudent according to the flesh. Rather we must be simple, humble and pure. We should never desire to be over others. Instead, we ought to be servants who are submissive to every human being for God's sake. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on all who live in this way and persevere in it to the end. He will permanently dwell in them. They will be the Father's children who do his work. They are the spouses, brothers and mothers of our Lord Jesus Christ."
—St. Francis of Assisi, p. 333 An Excerpt From
Witness of the Saints †Daily Verse
"He who keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble."
–Proverbs 21:23 |  click to read more | | St. Brigid of Ireland St. Brigid of Ireland (451–525 A.D.), also known as St. Brigit of Kildare, was born to a pagan Irish chieftain and a Christian slave mother. Being the daughter of a slave woman, she also was a slave, and worked as a dairy maid. She became known for her virtuous life and her charity to the poor. Recognizing her great piety and special graces, a Christian king convinced her father to grant Brigid her freedom. Once free to follow her own course in life, St. Brigid refused marriage, consecrated herself to Christ, and became Ireland's first nun. She also formed Ireland's first convent at Kildare and became its abbess. She went on to found many other religious communities, as well as a School of Art famous for its metal working and illuminated manuscripts. St. Brigid was known for her extraordinary spirituality, even converting her father to the faith after he witnessed her fashioning the sign of the cross from strands of rushes. She was also a contemporary and friend of St. Patrick. When she died, her sisters kept a fire burning in an enclosure at her Kildare convent. This fire burned for centuries, tended by the sisters and not burning out until the 13th century. It was later re-lit and burned for 400 more years until the Protestant revolt. St. Brigid is the patroness of Ireland and many other causes, most notably of dairy and milk maids, chicken farmers, travelers, and sailors. Her feast day is February 1st. | Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Reading I 2 Sm 18:9-10, 14b, 24-25a, 30–19:3 Absalom unexpectedly came up against David's servants.
He was mounted on a mule,
and, as the mule passed under the branches of a large terebinth,
his hair caught fast in the tree.
He hung between heaven and earth
while the mule he had been riding ran off.
Someone saw this and reported to Joab
that he had seen Absalom hanging from a terebinth.
And taking three pikes in hand,
he thrust for the heart of Absalom,
still hanging from the tree alive. Now David was sitting between the two gates,
and a lookout went up to the roof of the gate above the city wall,
where he looked about and saw a man running all alone.
The lookout shouted to inform the king, who said,
"If he is alone, he has good news to report."
The king said, "Step aside and remain in attendance here."
So he stepped aside and remained there.
When the Cushite messenger came in, he said,
"Let my lord the king receive the good news
that this day the LORD has taken your part,
freeing you from the grasp of all who rebelled against you."
But the king asked the Cushite, "Is young Absalom safe?"
The Cushite replied, "May the enemies of my lord the king
and all who rebel against you with evil intent
be as that young man!" The king was shaken,
and went up to the room over the city gate to weep.
He said as he wept,
"My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom!
If only I had died instead of you,
Absalom, my son, my son!" Joab was told that the king was weeping and mourning for Absalom;
and that day's victory was turned into mourning for the whole army
when they heard that the king was grieving for his son. Responsorial Psalm 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6 R. (1a) Listen, Lord, and answer me.
Incline your ear, O LORD; answer me, for I am afflicted and poor.
Keep my life, for I am devoted to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God.
R. Listen, Lord, and answer me.
Have mercy on me, O Lord, for to you I call all the day.
Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
R. Listen, Lord, and answer me.
For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all who call upon you.
Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer and attend to the sound of my pleading.
R. Listen, Lord, and answer me. Alleluia Mt 8:17 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Christ took away our infirmities
and bore our diseases.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mk 5:21-43 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat
to the other side,
a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea.
One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward.
Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, saying,
"My daughter is at the point of death.
Please, come lay your hands on her
that she may get well and live."
He went off with him
and a large crowd followed him. There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors
and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak.
She said, "If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured."
Immediately her flow of blood dried up.
She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him,
turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who has touched my clothes?"
But his disciples said to him,
"You see how the crowd is pressing upon you,
and yet you ask, Who touched me?"
And he looked around to see who had done it.
The woman, realizing what had happened to her,
approached in fear and trembling.
She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth.
He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has saved you.
Go in peace and be cured of your affliction." While he was still speaking,
people from the synagogue official's house arrived and said,
"Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?"
Disregarding the message that was reported,
Jesus said to the synagogue official,
"Do not be afraid; just have faith."
He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside
except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James.
When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official,
he caught sight of a commotion,
people weeping and wailing loudly.
So he went in and said to them,
"Why this commotion and weeping?
The child is not dead but asleep."
And they ridiculed him.
Then he put them all out.
He took along the child's father and mother
and those who were with him
and entered the room where the child was.
He took the child by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum,"
which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise!"
The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around.
At that they were utterly astounded.
He gave strict orders that no one should know this
and said that she should be given something to eat.
| Daily Meditation: Mark 5:21-43 Daughter. (Mark 5:34) If you've ever felt isolated, dejected, or underappreciated, then you have something in common with the woman in today's Gospel. This woman, because she was hemorrhaging, was in a state of ritual "uncleanness," according to the Law of Moses (Leviticus 15:19). And Mark tells us that she was in this state for twelve full years. Imagine the toll this must have taken on this poor woman—and on her family! But then she touched Jesus, and just like that, she was healed. Finally, this woman, who had been so alone for so long, could be fully reunited with her family. Finally, the other women in her village didn't have to keep her at arm's length. Finally, she could worship God at the synagogue with everyone else. With her healing, she was now brought back into the community. Do you know what else happened to this woman that day? Jesus called her "daughter" (Mark 5:34). When he learned how she had been cured by touching his cloak, Jesus didn't draw back or rebuke her for possibly contaminating him. Instead of denying her healing, he took it one step further by calling her a child of God. Jesus welcomed her into his own family that day. He removed any sense of isolation or rejection she might have felt and replaced it with his own love and welcome. Daughter. Son. My beloved. Hearing God calling you by these names can change your life. It can tell you that you are not alone. It can tell you that your Father in heaven sees you, loves you, and wants to help you. It can encourage you to turn to him for even deeper healing. From the moment that she reached out to Jesus, this woman became the unofficial patron saint of the lonely. Now every one of us who feels abandoned or isolated can find ourselves in her story. Every day she calls out, "Reach out to Jesus! Come and let him call you his own. You belong to him!" "Jesus, I am so grateful that you call me your child!" 2 Samuel 18:9-10, 14, 24-25, 30–19:3
Psalm 86:1-6 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"Let my lord the king receive the good news
that this day the LORD has taken your part,
freeing you from the grasp of all who rebelled against you." There is one who is Savior, and His name is -He-Saves...Jesus is His name. The Lord is Savior. The Lord is King. The world is suffering a calamity, and it is a call for all of us to call upon our Lord and Savior. The Church has been suffering, for decades, and nobody seemed to realize this truth. I told an adult class last night, that I, as a music minister, rarely do I ever get to participate or get invited to do a wedding. Weddings are rare, being right with God has become a strange thing. And then, baptisms have become rare, because of contraception and abortions. But yesterday, I got a call from one that asked me to be his sponsor, godfather for Confirmation a few weeks ago. He got married, and he said something strange happened that he couldn't explain, and I knew he was talking deep. I said "now you have blessed God and the world" and I told the class last night to a couple to be married "you are going to show the world that you love God by getting married, and God will be the love that holds you together". A real life witness is one who tends to Our Father's business...Our Father's Holy will. | We pray in Psalms:
"Incline your ear, O LORD; answer me, for I am afflicted and poor. Keep my life, for I am devoted to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God. Listen, Lord, and answer me" | Our Lord speaks in the Holy Gospel:
""My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live." He went off with him
and a large crowd followed him."
Our Lord is with us. Jairus knows this. Our Lord went with him when he asked. Knock and the door will be opened. Seek and ye shall find, the goodness of the Lord. How many of us seek Him? Only in times of need? How many of us are needed to praise Him? Does He need another added to the billions of souls that seek Him? Last night I told the class that everyone in the world has a unique love from God. Everyone is a child of His made in His image. We are already saints. We've just to uncover our light by the layers we've added over ourselves through the years. And seek and ye shall find the treasure. And the light shall be revealed. | "Jesus said to the synagogue official, "Do not be afraid; just have faith."
Can you imagine, a house full of people crying, sobbing outloud, and telling the Master to go away, all the voices claiming doom and gloom? Our Lord spoke life. Do you know how important it is to speak life among doom and gloom? This contradictory speech is a light among the darkness. He said the child was sleeping. He told Jairus to not be afraid, just have faith.
Do you know how hard it is to not be afraid? It is very hard when you give into doom and gloom, anxiety and worry. I should know because I am going through this right now with my dad and his covid pneumonia in the hospital, now going on over a full month of being hospitalized, and still needing serious oxygen. You know from day one I've prayed for a miracle. You know full well I'm still asking for prayers. But if you've been following, you know there have been little miracles. There are days that give hope. And those days get us through the dark days. And what's funny, is that when I speak to my dad, as I will today upon visiting him, we speak about our faith, and he seems to be going through the same. Our faith is being tested. Our love is being tested. And we await in hope for our Lord to speak life and breathe life into our souls. Our Lord is Savior. I should know. I too have suffered in a hospital, immobilized, I could've been paralyzed in my motorcycle accident. I remember that I was in so much pain. People couldn't even touch my bed at my feet without me feeling pain, and morphine did not help. But I do remember being touched by God in those dark moments. And my life has never been the same. It took me a while to heal, but they say broken bones (it was a broke pelvis) heal to become a stronger bond. And I've now a stronger bond with our Lord since my accident. I wish my part was more, but He knows. Let's Pray: Heavenly Father in Heaven,
We come to You. Broken. Like the suffering bleeding woman, I come to You. Like Jairus, I come to You. Only You can save us and the whole world. Lord, the whole world needs You even though they have lived otherwise, we have turned away. Help us make a return, and recover, and have a stronger bond with You.
Most Precious Blood of Jesus, save us and the whole world. | from your brother in Christ,
Adrian Progress report, because I know you are praying, and most ask or worry. I sometimes wonder if peaking in progress is real faith. I know we do it all the time in the hospital watching the levels on monitors minute by minute, sometimes second by second. I pray for my faith, I pray for dad's faith. I pray that we can overcome the doom and gloom that surrounds us. And in that gift of God, may we find healing, and the source of healing...our Beloved Lord Jesus Christ in Heaven. |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: John 3:3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again1 he cannot see the kingdom of God." | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
