†Saint Quote
"Our perfection does not consist of doing extraordinary things, but to do the ordinary well."
–St. Gabriel Possenti †Today's Meditation
"When we continually 'see' the work of God in our life, there is less need for faith. When the perception of blessing or presence is removed, there is an opportunity to exercise faith on a deeper and purer level, which is very pleasing to God and unites us in a deep way with Him, even when His closeness to us might not be felt. John of the Cross tells us that it is this ever-increasing purification that most directly and immediately unites us to God. The act of deep trust and abandonment and fidelity that faith entails is very pleasing to God and brings us very close to Him."
—Ralph Martin, p. 170-171 An Excerpt From
The Fulfillment of All Desire †Daily Verse
"O God, thou art my God, I seek thee, my soul thirsts for thee; my flesh faints for thee, as in a dry and weary land where no water is. So I have looked upon thee in the sanctuary, beholding thy power and glory. Because thy steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise thee. So I will bless thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on thy name."
–Psalm 63:1-4 |  click to read more | | St. Gabriel Possenti St. Gabriel Possenti (1838-1862), also known as St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, was one of thirteen children born to a well-to-do Italian family in Assisi. As a young man he enjoyed the society and the worldly life of a typical teenager. He was known as a fancy dresser and a good dancer, he possessed good horsemanship and marksmanship, he frequented parties, and twice was engaged to be married. After his graduation from school he shocked everyone by announcing that he was going to be a Passionist priest, having been inspired to his vocation by the Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom his family had a great devotion. His life was then marked with prayer, sacrifice, and devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows, taking the religious name Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother. He was stricken with tuberculosis about a year before he was to be ordained, and died at the age of 24. Many miracles were attributed to him after his death, including the healing of St. Gemma Galgani. St. Gabriel Possenti is the patron saint of Catholic youth, seminarians, clerics, students, and Catholic Action. His feast day is February 27th. | Monday of the First Week of Lent Reading 1 Lv 19:1-2, 11-18 The LORD said to Moses,
"Speak to the whole assembly of the children of Israel and tell them:
Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy. "You shall not steal.
You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another.
You shall not swear falsely by my name,
thus profaning the name of your God.
I am the LORD. "You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor.
You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer.
You shall not curse the deaf,
or put a stumbling block in front of the blind,
but you shall fear your God.
I am the LORD. "You shall not act dishonestly in rendering judgment.
Show neither partiality to the weak nor deference to the mighty,
but judge your fellow men justly.
You shall not go about spreading slander among your kin;
nor shall you stand by idly when your neighbor's life is at stake.
I am the LORD. "You shall not bear hatred for your brother in your heart.
Though you may have to reprove him,
do not incur sin because of him.
Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen.
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
I am the LORD." Responsorial Psalm Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 15 R. (John 6:63b) Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The decree of the LORD is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart.
The command of the LORD is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever;
The ordinances of the LORD are true,
all of them just.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
Let the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart
find favor before you,
O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life. Verse Before the Gospel 2 Cor 6:2b Behold, now is a very acceptable time;
behold, now is the day of salvation. Gospel Mt 25:31-46 Jesus said to his disciples:
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
'Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.'
Then the righteous will answer him and say,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?'
And the king will say to them in reply,
'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Then he will say to those on his left,
'Depart from me, you accursed,
into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
a stranger and you gave me no welcome,
naked and you gave me no clothing,
ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.'
Then they will answer and say,
'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison,
and not minister to your needs?'
He will answer them, 'Amen, I say to you,
what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.'
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life." | Daily Meditation: Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18 You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Leviticus 19:18) You've probably heard this phrase countless times. It's a variation on "the Golden Rule" and the second of the two "greatest commandments" that Jesus describes in Matthew 22:39: treat your neighbor with love as you would want to be loved. In that simple phrase, we see boiled down all the dos and don'ts itemized in the law that Moses hands down in today's first reading. It makes clear that love is the foundation of the Law. Don't steal or defraud—love your neighbor. Don't lie—love your neighbor. Don't mock or mistreat someone with a disability—love your neighbor. Hold no grudges or hatred in your heart—love your neighbor. It almost seems too simplistic, but the truth is that this "law of love" can expand our hearts and bring life to our efforts at obeying the commandments. That's because we all know the joy of being loved by God. That's the ultimate love we were created to experience. If that is the kind of love we want, then that is the kind of love we should try to share with the people around us. In our concern for what is best for them, we should help them receive the love and life they were created for. That's the "why" behind our call to obey the commandments. To love others as we are loved: this is the best yardstick we could use for measuring our choices. Whether we're preparing for Confession or reviewing the events of our day before bed, the question "Did I love other people as I would want to be loved?" can give us a lot to explore. Is that word I spoke to my friend a loving word? Was the way I treated my coworker really the most loving thing to do? When I failed to meet a need that arose, did I miss an opportunity to love? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see your choices in the light of love. Ask him to help you make love the basis of the way you relate to the people around you and the reason why you try to obey the commandments. Because love is the foundation and the fulfillment of the Law. "Lord, I want to see all your commands as ways you are teaching me to love!" Psalm 19:8-10, 15
Matthew 25:31-46 |  click to hear 2cents | Listen to my2cents audio. Share the link if you like: Feb 27
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iAgBeqZ7ffv_CWq2jK3U693Z8Ixw3BOK/view?usp=sharing | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy."
And then our Lord tells us how to be Holy. And it boils down to true love in each command:
1 "You shall not steal.
2 You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another.
3 You shall not swear falsely by my name, thus profaning the name of your God.
4 "You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor.
5 You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer.
5 You shall not curse the deaf, or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
6 "You shall not act dishonestly in rendering judgment.
7 Show neither partiality to the weak nor deference to the mighty, but judge your fellow men justly.
8 You shall not go about spreading slander among your kin; nor shall you stand by idly when your neighbor's life is at stake. I am the LORD.
9 "You shall not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. Though you may have to reprove him,
do not incur sin because of him.
10 Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen.
11 You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
I am the LORD." | We pray today:
"The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul. The decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life." | In the Gospel today we heard our Lord:
"'Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.'
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life." | From Bishop Barron today:
"...Much of Mother Teresa's day was taken up with prayer, meditation, Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, and the Rosary, but the rest of her time, as we well know, was spent in the grittiest work among the poorest of the poor, practicing the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.
Fr. Paul Murray, the Irish Dominican spiritual writer and sometime advisor to Mother Teresa, relates the following story. He was one day in deep conversation with Mother, searching out the sources of her spirituality and mission. At the end of their long talk, she asked him to spread his hand out on the table and, touching his fingers one by one as she spoke, she said, "You did it to me."_ end quote Bishop Barron.
..... The other day, I was watching another NDE, near death experience, and this one stayed in my memory, because it caught my attention when the man said that he was replayed the life role of him, it's like this people come to the first judgement, and at this one, he was replayed the moment he was beating up another guy, but the strange thing was that the guy he was beating, all the beatings lashed at him, the beater was the victim, he could feel every punch in the face, and the nose breaking, everything he felt. And Scripture is fulfilled, "what you did to them, you did to me", right?
Scary. I told my kids last night that God is in everybody. I tell everybody that God is in everybody. Scary, right? Have you no fear of the Lord? People that don't follow His commands, can be said to have no fear of the Lord. And these people that fear not, have no fear of God are scary. Why? Because, I hate to say it, but, they have higher priorities. OUCH! Some are so nice though! Some are believed to be better than church goers! What do you say now? Communists and satanists can be the same as them. And these two are out to conquer the world with their-selves as being gods. This is terrible, to live as your own ruler, your own rules, your own commands and commandments.
Yet, that is the EXACT dilemma we face...from day one.
I hope this letter encourages you to see God as our true love, because all His commands point to true Love...Himself, even on the cross. ....†....
Lord, Help us make you number one in our entire lives.
.......... from your brother Adrian@Going4th.com |  click to hear | WOW Random Bible Verse 1
Micah 6:8 [Micah 6] 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,1 and to walk humbly with your God? | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
