†Quote of the Day
"Occupy your mind with good thoughts, or the enemy will fill them with bad ones. Unoccupied, they cannot be."
–St. Thomas More †Today's Meditation
"A man must go through a long and great conflict in himself before he can learn fully to overcome himself, and to draw his whole affection towards God. When a man stands upon himself he is easily drawn aside after human comforts. But a true lover of Christ, and a diligent pursuer of virtue, does not hunt after comforts, nor seek such sensible sweetnesses, but is rather willing to bear strong trials and hard labors for Christ."
—Thomas a' Kempis, p. 64 An Excerpt From
Imitation of Christ †Daily Verse
"And he said, 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.'"
–Job 1:21 |  click to read more | | Blessed Imelda Lambertini Bl. Imelda Lambertini (1322–1333) was born to a noble and devout family in Bologna, Italy. As a child she developed a great love for prayer, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the Holy Eucharist. She spent much of her time in the Dominican monastery praying with the nuns, and at nine years of age requested to enter there as a postulant. Her parents and the nuns allowed her to enter, however, in that era children her age were not permitted to receive Holy Communion. Imelda repeatedly pleaded to receive Communion, but each time she was denied. Nevertheless, she developed a close relationship with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. When the feast of the Ascension approached, Imelda begged to make her First Holy Communion on this feast. Again, she was denied. On the Vigil of the Feast of the Ascension she was in the chapel praying, as usual, as the other Sisters received Holy Communion. Afterwards a glowing host was seen suspended in the air above the child. The priest understood this as a sign that the child should be permitted to receive, and he ministered the Holy Eucharist to her. Imelda remained kneeling in prayer in thanksgiving as the nuns left the chapel. When they returned for her, they found her just as they had left her, but her body was lifeless. It was understood that Imelda died of pure ecstatic joy after receiving Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, as she had so ardently desired. Bl. Imelda Lambertini is the patron saint of First Communicants. Her feast day is May 12th. | Acts 15:22-31 The Apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole Church, decided to choose representatives and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers. This is the letter delivered by them: "The Apostles and the presbyters, your brothers, to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia of Gentile origin: greetings. Since we have heard that some of our number who went out without any mandate from us have upset you with their teachings and disturbed your peace of mind, we have with one accord decided to choose representatives and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we are sending Judas and Silas who will also convey this same message by word of mouth: 'It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.'" And so they were sent on their journey. Upon their arrival in Antioch they called the assembly together and delivered the letter. When the people read it, they were delighted with the exhortation. Psalm 57:8-10, 12 R. I will give you thanks among the peoples, O Lord.
or R. Alleluia.
My heart is steadfast, O God; my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and chant praise.
Awake, O my soul; awake, lyre and harp!
I will wake the dawn. R. I will give thanks to you among the peoples, O Lord,
I will chant your praise among the nations.
For your mercy towers to the heavens,
and your faithfulness to the skies.
Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
above all the earth be your glory! R. Gospel Acclamation Alleluia, alleluia.
I call you my friends, says the Lord,
for I have made known to you all that the Father has told me. Jn 15:15b Alleluia, alleluia. John 15:12-17 Jesus said to his disciples: "This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another." | Daily Meditation: John 15:12-17 Go and bear fruit that will remain. (John 15:16) Berries, grapes, bananas, apples, oranges, and more. We expect to find these in the produce section of any grocery store. What we don't always remember are the people who planted, fertilized, picked, and packed this fruit along the way. The fruit we enjoy is the result of their labor. Something similar is true of spiritual fruit: it's the result of labor. But when it comes to growing this kind of fruit, the Holy Spirit does the lion's share of the work. He is intimately involved in pruning, fertilizing, and helping this fruit to grow. Sometimes the pruning comes in the form of a gentle nudge as he urges us to change in a certain area. Other times he uses circumstances that stretch us. But in every case, the Spirit asks us to respond to his work as we try our best to make the changes he is moving us toward, even if we do it in small steps. At the same time, he is reminding us that his grace is always available to us. We can rely on that grace even as we make the effort required to grow his fruit in our lives. So what are the different kinds of fruit that the Spirit will bear in us? There's the fruit listed by St. Paul: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23). There's the fruit of evangelization, as we share God's love with the people around us. There's the fruit of godly relationships, where we learn to love one another as Jesus commands us (John 15:12). And there is so much more—all valuable fruit that makes the kingdom of God present in and around us. Perhaps today you can focus on the fruit of peace. Reflect for a moment about how the Holy Spirit knows every concern on your heart. Let that truth bring you a greater sense of peace and surrender to him. Maybe the Spirit is asking you to let go of some worry and to trust that he is there for you. Or maybe he is asking you to find a little extra time today to be with him. Whatever it is, know that as you respond, you'll find greater peace, and you'll become a more visible sign of his love to the world! "Holy Spirit, help me to bear fruit that remains." Acts 15:22-31
Psalm 57:8-10, 12 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"And so they were sent on their journey. Upon their arrival in Antioch they called the assembly together and delivered the letter. When the people read it, they were delighted with the exhortation." end of scripture verse. A sigh of relief! How does it feel to sigh in relief? Peace enters, right? Now what? Thankfulness. Right? Shouldn't we be grateful? And that is what the Eucharist means. | We pray today:
"I will give thanks to you among the peoples, O Lord,
I will chant your praise among the nations.
For your mercy towers to the heavens,
and your faithfulness to the skies.
Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
above all the earth be your glory!" | In the Gospel today we heard: " It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another." | "Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus calls us his friends.
Psychologists tell us that a true friend is someone who has seen us at our worst and still loves us. If you have encountered me only on my best days, I have no guarantee that you are my friend. But when you have dealt with me when I am most obnoxious and you still love me, then I am sure that you are my friend.
The old Gospel song says, "What a friend we have in Jesus!" This is not pious sentimentalism; it is the heart of the matter. What the first Christians saw in the dying and rising of Jesus is that we killed God, and God returned in forgiving love. He saw us at our very worst and loved us anyway.
Thus they saw confirmed in flesh and blood what Jesus had said the night before he died: "I no longer call you slaves. . . . I have called you friends." They realized, in the drama of the Paschal Mystery, that we have not only been shown a new way; we have been drawn into a new life, a life of friendship with God." end quote Bishop Barron.
. . . . . I chose you my friend. You didn't choose Me!
Wow!
Shouldn't that amaze us? Shouldn't we be happy that our Lord has chosen us? Well?
Did you know that for the first couple of centuries in the Catholic Church, all of the first popes were murdered? I mean, martyred? Because you don't murder someone that has already given their life to God! Right?
And so, can you imagine the feeling of being chosen as the next Pope in those days? "I Chose YOU!" Oops! Oh boy, now what? Your neck is on the line...to bear fruit, in the short amount of time you got on earth.
This message is meant for everyone who has chosen Christ.
Be ready, and always be ready.
For what? To be found giving fruit! Did not our Lord sigh in disbelief when a fig tree was found not giving fruit? And they told Him "but it's not even the time to give fruit" From Mark 11: "When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14 Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it." end of verses.
And what does our Lord do next? He goes into the temple. And then? He overthrows the tables, and whips out all the "animals" out of the temple.
What animals? We can be like animals when we are not found doing our Lord's business.
You see? It is always the time to be doing God's work. This is His Holy Will of Holy Love. Why is He so adamant about it?
Because GOD IS LOVE. HE wants real love fruits, real love works out of us. It's one thing to serve God or church or God in Church, but it is a whole other thing Love in Church and thus, in every single soul. ...†....
Let's pray:
Lord, Help us understand the seriousness of this mission on earth...to live as Jesus, for love of the Father, God Himself! Our Father! | Wow! Amazing! Jeremiah 31:3 "... the LORD appeared to him1 from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you." Thank You Lord! Thank You Father in Heaven! | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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