†Saint Quote
"We ought to speak, shout out against injustices, with confidence and without fear. We proclaim the principles of the Church, the reign of love, without forgetting that it is also a reign of justice."
–Blessed Miguel Pro †Today's Meditation
"When uncertain about God's will, it is very important that we tell ourselves: 'Even if there are aspects of God's will that escape me, there are always others that I know for sure and can invest in without any risk, knowing that this investment always pays dividends.' These certainties include fulfilling the duties of our state in life and practicing the essential points of every Christian vocation. There is a defect here that needs to be recognized and avoided: finding ourselves in darkness about God's will on an important question . . . we spend so much time searching and doubting or getting discouraged, that we neglect things that are God's will for us every day, like being faithful to prayer, maintaining trust in God, loving the people around us here and now. Lacking answers about the future, we should prepare to receive them by living today to the full."
—Fr. Jacques Philippe, p. 55 An Excerpt From
Interior Freedom †Daily Verse
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the holy Spirit."
–Romans 15:13 |  click to read more | | St. Nicholas Owen St. Nicholas Owen (d.1606) was born in England, the son of an Oxford carpenter. He became a carpenter himself, and joined the Jesuits as a lay brother during the era when Catholicism was outlawed in England. After serving jail time for defending the martyred St. Edmund Campion, Nicholas began working for and traveling with the Jesuits, staying in Catholic houses where he made repairs during the day and secretly constructed well-disguised 'priest-holes', or hiding places for hunted priests, during the night. He was so skilled at his craft that his priest holes saved hundreds of lives over his 20 years of work. While on a trip to London with a Jesuit priest they were betrayed by a household servant, captured, and tortured. After Nicholas' release he masterminded the priest's escape from the Tower of London. Years later, after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, Nicholas was again a wanted man. He hid along with a priest in one of his priest holes, and although 100 men searched for them diligently, they were not discovered. After eight days of hiding without food, Nicholas left the hole disguised as a priest in order to protect the real priest who was still concealed. He was captured and tortured on the rack in the Tower of London. Day after day he refused to give up any information about the underground Catholic Church in England. He died a martyr after his entrails burst open. St. Nicholas Owen is one of the 40 Martyrs of England and Wales. Father John Gerard wrote of him: "I verily think no man can be said to have done more good of all those who laboured in the English vineyard. He was the immediate occasion of saving the lives of many hundreds of persons, both ecclesiastical and secular." His feast day is March 22. | Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent Reading 1 Is 49:8-15 Thus says the LORD:
In a time of favor I answer you,
on the day of salvation I help you;
and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,
To restore the land
and allot the desolate heritages,
Saying to the prisoners: Come out!
To those in darkness: Show yourselves!
Along the ways they shall find pasture,
on every bare height shall their pastures be.
They shall not hunger or thirst,
nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;
For he who pities them leads them
and guides them beside springs of water.
I will cut a road through all my mountains,
and make my highways level.
See, some shall come from afar,
others from the north and the west,
and some from the land of Syene.
Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,
break forth into song, you mountains.
For the LORD comforts his people
and shows mercy to his afflicted. But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me."
Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you. Responsorial Psalm Ps 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18 R. (8a) The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is faithful in all his words
and holy in all his works.
The LORD lifts up all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful. Verse Before the Gospel Jn 11:25a, 26 I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;
whoever believes in me will never die. Gospel Jn 5:17-30 Jesus answered the Jews:
"My Father is at work until now, so I am at work."
For this reason they tried all the more to kill him,
because he not only broke the sabbath
but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God. Jesus answered and said to them,
"Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,
but only what he sees the Father doing;
for what he does, the Son will do also.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything that he himself does,
and he will show him greater works than these,
so that you may be amazed.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,
so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
Nor does the Father judge anyone,
but he has given all judgment to the Son,
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes in the one who sent me
has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,
but has passed from death to life.
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.
For just as the Father has life in himself,
so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.
And he gave him power to exercise judgment,
because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this,
because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs
will hear his voice and will come out,
those who have done good deeds
to the resurrection of life,
but those who have done wicked deeds
to the resurrection of condemnation. "I cannot do anything on my own;
I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,
because I do not seek my own will
but the will of the one who sent me."
| Daily Meditation: Psalm 145:8-9, 13-14, 17-18 The Lord is gracious and merciful. (Psalm 145:8) Have you ever wondered whether God has forgotten you? After years in exile, the Israelites certainly did! In today's first reading, the prophet Isaiah announces all the blessings that God has in store for his people. And yet even in the face of these promises, the people cry out, "The Lord has forsaken me" (Isaiah 49:14). But can the God who loves us so much truly forget us? Let's find the answer as we pray with today's responsorial psalm. The Lord is gracious and merciful (Psalm 145:8). "Father, you created me out of love. Even when I sin, you're not angry with me, nor do you ever give up on me. Instead, when I feel distant like the prodigal son, you are the merciful father, waiting with open arms to welcome me back (Luke 15:11-32). You are always ready to forgive my every sin." The Lord is good to all and compassionate (Psalm 145:9). "You know my trials and weaknesses, Lord, and you have sympathy for me, just as you did for the Israelites in exile. Your compassion knows no bounds! Open my eyes so that I can see how your goodness and compassion permeate every aspect of my life." The Lord lifts up all who are falling (Psalm 145:14). "My stumbling and falling do not drive you away. No, your overwhelming mercy draws me back to you. You promise to lift me up and lead me to you (Isaiah 49:10). It might take days or even years, but you desire my return as much as you desired the return of the exiles to their homeland." The Lord is just in all his ways (Psalm 145:17). "Lord, I don't always see what you are doing or how you are doing it. Sometimes I don't understand why things turn out the way they do. But I believe that you are just and always at work, comforting, forgiving, and shining your light into the darkness." The Lord is near to all who call upon him (Psalm 145:18). "Father, I know you are near to me, now and at every moment of my life. Help me to recall your goodness and mercy, especially in those times when I think you have forgotten me." "Gracious God, help me to hold fast to you even in the hard times!" Isaiah 49:8-15
John 5:17-30 |  click to hear 2cents | Listen to my2cents audio. Share the link if you like: Click to hear it | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"In a time of favor I answer you, on the day of salvation I help you; and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people, To restore the land..." Book of Isiah 49. Do you see what our Lord just did there at the end? We are favored...to do His will...to restore the land.
What a task! What a mission? Scary? Yes. Exciting? Only if you are daring, and courageous. If you are not excited, then, take the easier route of joy, and humility, and the true joy of true humility. Saints consider suffering for God as an honor. Then suffer for love.
We should take a cue from our Lord Jesus Himself. | We pray today:
"The LORD is faithful in all his words
and holy in all his works.
The LORD lifts up all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
The Lord is gracious and merciful..." Pslams 145. | In the Gospel today we heard our Lord:
"Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes in the one who sent me
has eternal life and will not come to condemnation..." | From Bishop Barron today:
"Friends, in today's Gospel, we see Jesus as the judge who shows mercy and love. It is hard to read any two pages of the Bible—Old Testament or New—and not find the language of divine judgment.
Think of judgment as a sort of light, which reveals both the positive and the negative. Beautiful things look even more beautiful when the light shines on them; ugly things look even uglier when they come into the light. When the divine light shines, when judgment takes place, something like real love is unleashed.
Someone might avoid seeing the doctor for years, fearful that he will uncover something diseased or deadly. But how much better it is for you when you do, even when the doctor pronounces a harsh "judgment" on your physical condition!
And this is why judgment is the proper activity of a king. It is not the exercise of arbitrary power, but rather an exercise of real love."
End Quote Bishop Barron. All who rejected the Son, will have to face the Son. When my dad, the boss at our family business passed away, the business matters fell on to me. You would think that after 30 years of being in business, and the last 20 more tight on it together, that I would be prepared to face what was coming with ease. Here's what challenged me though. A couple years before his passing, a sibling was yelling with vile hatred and cursing at me, and I knew in the argument, the devil was speaking, not my sibling at work. I prayed, and remained calm as all these accusations were coming at me. One which I remember fondly, was that one that said something that had truth and lies mixed in now that I look back: "EVERYONE HATES YOU, EVERYONE WILL LEAVE YOU WHEN DAD DIES". That made me feel awkward. And I joked "I think our dispatcher will stick around". I was trying to lighten up the vile hatred as they spat in my face with so much fury and anger. And I decided to pray and cast out the bad spirits quietly. The emotions subsided, and things settled. Fast forward a year or two, I can't remember, my dad actually passes, and it hurt really bad, I literally could feel a dagger, or something crossing the front of my heart to the back until lately, it has faded away. So, did everybody leave me as the devil had said? Only the two top right hand men, they took off to start their own business, some even attempting to take our employees and our customers. But nobody else decided to go. And my sibling is here, and that guy I joked would stick around is still here. But I was ready for everybody to leave. In other words, I knew what I was up against and I would do what I needed to do, to press forward in my father's business. How are things now? I wish I could say great! But everything is hard work and a challenge, things are just tough. But the son of my dad, the only son, was at first not really acknowledged as the boss, nobody really knew what to do or what to expect.
But the son decided to follow his father's wishes, with what he remembers was two things, his father wanted "faith and unity". And he meant it for family, and I'm sure he meant it for work.
So many things attack us, so that we will separate, quarrel. Just this weekend I had a nephew hospitalized on mushrooms, and his dad pulling a gun on another nephew for having given it to him, or so he thought...wrong. And just last week OSHA was called against us, saying we don't have a safety program, or eye protection or extinguishers, all lies, lies that really hurt because "who would do such a thing?".
You'd think things were easy, but they are not. Not at work. Not at home. Not at church. NO THING is easy.
What is easy? Sin.
What is hard? Purity.
So fight hard my child, and let's pray for each other.
Our Lord Jesus basically reiterated to the Jews what He said to His mom and dad when they found him after being "lost" for 3 days,
"did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?".
A huge pro life man just passed away here locally, was huge in helping close down the murder place of babies. I texted his wife that it is going to be hard, but to stick with prayer and Jesus, to lighten the load.
His yoke is easy....forever. Let's pray:
....†....
Lord, I want to focus more and more on Your business...Your Holy will from Heaven. Give us the guiding light and strength to be Yours always in faith and unity.
.......... |  Hear it click | Random Bible Verse 1
Isaiah 50:7 "But the Lord GOD helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame." | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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