† '..if you wish, you can....

†Quote of the Day "Health is Gods great gift, and we must spend it entirely for Him. Our eyes should see only for God, our feet walk only for Him, ou

Web Version   Subscribe   Forward   †Quote of the Day "Health is Gods great gift, and we must spend it entirely for Him. Our eyes should see only for God, our feet walk only for Him, our hands labor for Him alone; in short, our entire body should serve God while we still have the time. Then, when He shall take our health and we shall near our last day, our conscience will not reproach us for having misused it." –St. John Bosco †Today's Meditation "We will never be free of trials and temptations as long as our earthly life lasts. For Job has said: 'Is not the life of human beings on earth a drudgery?' (Job 7:1). Therefore, we should always be on our guard against temptations, always praying that our enemy, the devil, 'who never sleeps but constantly looks for someone to devour.' (1 Pet 5:8), will not catch us off guard. No one in this world is so perfect or holy as not to have temptations sometimes. We can never be entirely free from them. Sometimes these temptations can be very severe and troublesome, but if we resist them, they will be very useful to us; for by experiencing them we are humbled, cleansed, and instructed. All the Saints endured tribulations and temptations and profited by them, while those who did not resist and overcome them fell away and were lost. There is no place so holy or remote where you will not meet with temptation, nor is there anyone completely free from it in this life; for in our body we bear the wounds of sin—the weakness of our human nature in which we are born."—Thomas á Kempis, p. 31 †Daily Verse "[Jesus] asked his disciples, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven." –Matthew 7:21 click to read more Blessed Gennaro Sarnelli Bl. Gennaro Sarnelli (1702 – 1744) was born to a noble family in Naples, Italy. He was very well educated, and completed his doctorate in civil and canon law at the age of 20. He gave much of his time to caring for the incurably sick, through which he discerned a call to the priesthood. He was ordained in 1732. He became good friends with St. Alphonsus Liguori, founder of the Redemptorists. Shortly afterward, Blessed Gennaro became a Redemptorist priest. Gennaro's special work was preaching to those who were the most spiritually deprived, while also caring for the temporal needs of impoverished children. He was a great defender of the dignity of women, and worked intensely to free women and girls from forced prostitution. Blessed Gennaro was also a talented writer, penning over 30 books ranging in subjects such as theology, law, prayer, spiritual direction, and contemporary moral issues. He worked so hard that his health suffered, and he died when he was only 42 years old. He was beatified by Pope St. John Paul II in 1996. His feast day is June 30. Friday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Reading I Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said: "I am God the Almighty. Walk in my presence and be blameless." God also said to Abraham: "On your part, you and your descendants after you must keep my covenant throughout the ages. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you that you must keep: every male among you shall be circumcised." God further said to Abraham: "As for your wife Sarai, do not call her Sarai; her name shall be Sarah. I will bless her, and I will give you a son by her. Him also will I bless; he shall give rise to nations, and rulers of peoples shall issue from him." Abraham prostrated himself and laughed as he said to himself, "Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Or can Sarah give birth at ninety?" Then Abraham said to God, "Let but Ishmael live on by your favor!" God replied: "Nevertheless, your wife Sarah is to bear you a son, and you shall call him Isaac. I will maintain my covenant with him as an everlasting pact, to be his God and the God of his descendants after him. As for Ishmael, I am heeding you: I hereby bless him. I will make him fertile and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall become the father of twelve chieftains, and I will make of him a great nation. But my covenant I will maintain with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you by this time next year." When he had finished speaking with him, God departed from Abraham. Responsorial Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5 R. (4) See how the Lord blesses those who fear him. Blessed are you who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways! For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored. R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home; Your children like olive plants around your table. R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him. Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the LORD. The LORD bless you from Zion: may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him. Alleluia Mt 8:17 R. Alleluia, alleluia. Christ took away our infirmities and bore our diseases. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 8:1-4 ‐-------- When Jesus came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. And then a leper approached, did him homage, and said, "Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean." He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, "I will do it. Be made clean." His leprosy was cleansed immediately. Then Jesus said to him, "See that you tell no one, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them." click to hear 2cents Listen to audio version Reflections with Brother Adrian: From today's 1st Holy Scripture: "When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said: "I am God the Almighty. Walk in my presence and be blameless." end of Bible Verse quote. Why at 99 years old would Abram be told still to be blameless? And to walk in His presence? Wasn't he already doing all of this? The message isn't just for Abram....it is for all if us...you can feel the words calling out to you deeply. And a message for all coming generations. We pray today: ".See how the Lord blesses those who fear him. Blessed are you who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways! For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored." In the Gospel today we heard: "Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean." He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, "I will do it. Be made clean." His leprosy was cleansed immediately. Then Jesus said to him, "See that you tell no one, but go show yourself to the priest...." end of quote Gospel verse. From Bishop Barron: _"Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus heals a leper. In our sickness, our weakness, our shame, our sin, our oddness, many of us feel like this leper. We feel as though we're just not worthy, that we should keep our distance. That the leper came to Jesus tells us the world about this man's courage, determination, and perhaps his desperation. He was an outsider, a despised figure—yet he came to Jesus. Once in the Lord's presence, the leper "did him homage"—he worshiped him. The suffering man realizes who Jesus is: not one prophet among many but the Incarnation of the God of Israel, the only one before whom worship is the appropriate attitude. Whatever trouble we are in, we have to come to Jesus in the attitude of worship. He is the Lord and we are not. This is the key step in getting our lives in order: right praise. Then comes the beautiful phrase, essential in any act of petitionary prayer: "If you wish, you can make me clean." He is not demanding; he is acknowledging the lordship of Jesus, his sovereignty. "Thy will be done" is always the right attitude in any prayer."_ end quote Bishop Barron. Our Lord is the embodiment of the will of God especially when He says "I desire mercy". He does wait for us in mercy. If we would only cone to Him. He does desire to be found. If only we would seek Him. He does desire to love. If only we would love Him. He does desire for us to heal. If we would only seek His healing He sees fit. For His ways are greater. Let's pray: Lord, Father, that we may always seek to walk with Thee, blameless, hand in hand in true joy forever! Random Bible Verse 1 Ephesians 4:25 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com God Bless You! Peace Going4th For questions or comments contact Adrian@going4th.com. For more go to www.Going4th.com ©2023 Going4th | Andrews TX Preferences   Subscribe   Forward   Unsubscribe     Powered by GoDaddy Email Marketing ®

† '..And so I say to you

†Quote of the Day "Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to w

Web Version   Subscribe   Forward   †Quote of the Day "Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." –St. Paul (Philippians 3:13-14) †Today's Meditation "People often think of Christian morality as a kind of bargain in which God says, 'If you keep a lot of rules I'll reward you, and if you don't I'll do the other thing.' I do not think that is the best way of looking at it. I would much rather say that every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, and with other creatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war and hatred with God, and with its fellow-creatures, and with itself. To be the one kind of creature is heaven: that is, it is joy and peace and knowledge and power. To be the other means madness, horror, idiocy, rage, impotence, and eternal loneliness. Each of us at this moment is progressing to the one state or the other." —C. S. Lewis, p. 92 †Daily Verse "[Jesus] asked his disciples, 'Who do men say that the Son of man is?' And they said, 'Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Simon Peter replied, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' And Jesus answered him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.'" –Matthew 16:15-19 click to read more Sts. Peter and Paul St. Peter and St. Paul (1st c.) were the foremost Apostles of Jesus Christ; St. Peter was the leader of the Twelve, while St. Paul followed Christ after His ascension into heaven. Together the two saints are the founders of the Church in Rome through their apostolic preaching, ministry, and martyrdom in that city. They are the solid rock on which the foundation of the Catholic Church is built, and they will forever remain her protectors and guides. To them Rome owes her true greatness, for it was under God's providential guidance that they transformed the capital of the Roman Empire into the heart of the Church, with the mission to radiate the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ throughout the world. Both saints were martyred in close proximity to one another; Peter first, then Paul, though some traditions claim they were killed on the same day. St. Peter was crucified upside down and buried on the hill of the Vatican where St. Peter's Basilica now stands. St. Paul was beheaded on the via Ostia and buried where the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls now stands. St. Peter and St. Paul are the patron saints of Rome and they share a feast day on June 29, a tradition going back to the earliest centuries of the Church. See more about St. Peter. See more about St. Paul Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles Readings for the Vigil Readings for the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles Reading I Acts 12:1-11 In those days, King Herod laid hands upon some members of the Church to harm them. He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword, and when he saw that this was pleasing to the Jews he proceeded to arrest Peter also. –It was the feast of Unleavened Bread.– He had him taken into custody and put in prison under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. He intended to bring him before the people after Passover. Peter thus was being kept in prison, but prayer by the Church was fervently being made to God on his behalf. On the very night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter, secured by double chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while outside the door guards kept watch on the prison. Suddenly the angel of the Lord stood by him and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and awakened him, saying, "Get up quickly." The chains fell from his wrists. The angel said to him, "Put on your belt and your sandals." He did so. Then he said to him, "Put on your cloak and follow me." So he followed him out, not realizing that what was happening through the angel was real; he thought he was seeing a vision. They passed the first guard, then the second, and came to the iron gate leading out to the city, which opened for them by itself. They emerged and made their way down an alley, and suddenly the angel left him. Then Peter recovered his senses and said, "Now I know for certain that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people had been expecting." Responsorial Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9 R. (5) The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him. I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall be ever in my mouth. Let my soul glory in the LORD; the lowly will hear me and be glad. R. The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him. Glorify the LORD with me, let us together extol his name. I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. R. The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him. Look to him that you may be radiant with joy, and your faces may not blush with shame. When the poor one called out, the LORD heard, and from all his distress he saved him. R. The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Taste and see how good the LORD is; blessed the man who takes refuge in him. R. The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him. Reading II 2 Tm 4:6-8, 17-18 I, Paul, am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance. The Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safe to his heavenly Kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen. Alleluia Mt 16:18 R. Alleluia, alleluia. You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 16:13-19 When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." click to hear 2cents Listen to audio version Reflections with Brother Adrian: From today's 1st Holy Scripture: "Suddenly the angel of the Lord stood by him and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and awakened him, saying, "Get up quickly." end of verse. So angels speak loudly? Are they heard by audible ears? Chances are not. Chances are that only Peter heard the mind words from the angel. But notice the urgency that we are to respond to the call "get up quickly" and Saint Peter answered the call all the way through. We pray today: _"The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Taste and see how good the LORD is; blessed the man who takes refuge in him. The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him."_ end of Psalm. The second reading shows us St. Paul; "The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safe to his heavenly Kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen." In the Gospel today we heard: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church..." From Bishop Barron: "Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus declares that the gates of hell ("the netherworld") shall not prevail against his Church. And Jesus insists that this society, grounded in Peter's confession, would constitute an army so powerful that not even the fortified capital of the dark kingdom itself could withstand it. It is fascinating to me how often we construe this saying of Jesus in precisely the opposite direction, as though the Church is guaranteed safety against the onslaughts of hell. In point of fact, Jesus is suggesting a much more aggressive image: his Church will lay successful siege upon the kingdom of evil, knocking down its gate and breaching its walls. And notice, too, how Jesus uses the future tense—"I will build my Church." Therefore he cannot be speaking simply of Peter personally but of all those who would participate in his charism throughout the centuries. The integrity of this ekklesia will be guaranteed up and down the centuries—not through appeal to popular opinion (as instructive as that might be) nor through the ministrations of an institutional or theological elite (as necessary as those might be) but rather through the pope's charismatic knowledge of who Jesus is. " end quote Bishop Barron. They say that there at their Basilicas are the bones of these saints, Peter and Paul. And there our church was built, also on their enemies land...Rome, who had our Lord crucified, Rome who killed thousands of Christians, now Rome known as the city of Love...that is meant to say God's Kingdom and His will, perhaps the smallest of Nations, yet a city on a hill...a light for all nations...is all that is necessary to be able to see the salvation of the world. And this goes for you...are you trusting God's word and giving your life for His cause? Such is a true disciple...and a more true light of salvation. Let's pray: God Our Father, today you give us the joy of celebrating the feast of the apostles Peter and Paul. Through them, your Church first received the faith. Keep us true to their teaching. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Random Bible Verse 1 Matthew 6:24 24 "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.1 If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com God Bless You! Peace Going4th For questions or comments contact Adrian@going4th.com. For more go to www.Going4th.com ©2023 Going4th | Andrews TX Preferences   Subscribe   Forward   Unsubscribe     Powered by GoDaddy Email Marketing ®