† Quote of the Day "Trials, tribulation, anguish, anxiety are permitted by the very One Who gives peace." — Fulton Sheen Today's Meditation "My daughter, faithfully live up to the words which I speak to you. Do not value any external thing too highly, even if it were to seem very precious to you. Let go of yourself, and abide with Me continually. Entrust everything to Me and do nothing on your own, and you will always have great freedom of spirit. No circumstances or events will ever be able to upset you. Set little store on what people say. Let everyone judge you as they like. Do not make excuses for yourself, it will do you no harm. Give away everything at the first sign of a demand, even if they were the most necessary things. Do not ask for anything without consulting Me. Allow them to take away even what is due you – respect, your good name – let your spirit rise above all that. And so, set free from everything, rest close to My Heart, not allowing your peace to be disturbed by anything. My pupil, consider the words which I have spoken to you." —Jesus to St. Faustina, 1685
An excerpt from Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska - Divine Mercy in My Soul Daily Verse "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him,and he will make straight your paths." — Proverbs 3:5-6 | St. Apollinaris Claudius St. Apollinaris Claudius (2nd c.), also called St. Apollinaris of Hierapolis, was a bishop in what is today Turkey. He became famous for his polemical writings against the heretics of his day, showing that their theological errors were taken from the pagans. His most famous work was an Apologia for the Christians addressed to Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in the year 177 A.D. In it he reminded the Emperor of a miracle he received because of the Christians: when his army was nearly defeated in an attempt to conquer the Germanic barbarians, it was the prayers of the Christians among his soldiers which obtained the needed relief and the military victory, even though Christianity was illegal. In light of this miracle, Apollinaris requested the Emperor's protection of Christians from persecution. St. Apollinaris' work earned him the moniker, "Apollinaris the Apologist." His writings are largely lost, and what we know of his work comes to us from other early Christian writers including St. Jerome and Eusebius. His feast day is January 8th. | Wednesday after Epiphany Reading I 1 John 4:11-18 Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also must love one another.
No one has ever seen God.
Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,
that he has given us of his Spirit.
Moreover, we have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world.
Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God remains in him and he in God.
We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us.
God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.
In this is love brought to perfection among us,
that we have confidence on the day of judgment
because as he is, so are we in this world.
There is no fear in love,
but perfect love drives out fear
because fear has to do with punishment,
and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love. Responsorial Psalm Psalm 72:1-2, 10, 12-13 R. (see 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment. R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute. R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. Alleluia 1 Timothy 3:16 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to you, O Christ, proclaimed to the Gentiles.
Glory to you, O Christ, believed in throughout the world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mark 6:45-52 After the five thousand had eaten and were satisfied,
Jesus made his disciples get into the boat
and precede him to the other side toward Bethsaida,
while he dismissed the crowd.
And when he had taken leave of them,
he went off to the mountain to pray.
When it was evening,
the boat was far out on the sea and he was alone on shore.
Then he saw that they were tossed about while rowing,
for the wind was against them.
About the fourth watch of the night,
he came toward them walking on the sea.
He meant to pass by them.
But when they saw him walking on the sea,
they thought it was a ghost and cried out.
They had all seen him and were terrified.
But at once he spoke with them,
"Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!"
He got into the boat with them and the wind died down.
They were completely astounded.
They had not understood the incident of the loaves.
On the contrary, their hearts were hardened. | Daily Meditation: 1 John 4:11-18 No one has ever seen God. (1 John 4:12) John's statement may seem out of place in his chapter about loving one another. What does God's invisibility have to do with our call to love our neighbor? When Jesus walked the earth, he visibly demonstrated the love of God: "The only Son, God, who is at the Father's side, has revealed him" (John 1:18). Now that Jesus has ascended to heaven, we can make Jesus' love visible when we "love one another" (1 John 4:12), because "whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him" (4:16). John is telling us that whenever we love each other, God's love is present. In our words and acts of love, the unseen God himself is made visible. Think of all the people who doubt the existence of God. They may have attended Mass years ago but stopped going because they never felt his closeness there. Or maybe they prayed for something but gave up on the Lord when they didn't get what they asked for. Or they couldn't understand why God allows evil to persist in the world. Whatever their situation, they can experience the Lord through someone like you. Everyone longs to know that God loves them, that he sees their pain, and that he hears their prayers and wants to answer the longings of their hearts. And God wants you to show them the way. As a saying attributed to St. Teresa of Ávila reminds us, "Christ has no body now on earth but yours." You may think that the best way to show God's love is through dramatic gestures or extravagant gifts. And that can certainly be effective. But anyone in a relationship that has stood the test of time can testify that it's not grandiose gestures that keep a marriage or a friendship strong. It's the little things. Like greeting someone by name. Cleaning the dishes without being asked. Remembering someone's birthday or anniversary or bereavement date. Picking up their favorite food. Calling an out-of-state friend to stay connected. Taking time to listen to a neighbor. As you make these simple efforts, you will be making God's love visible. Sometimes you may have occasion for grand gestures of his mercy and kindness. But most often God is asking you to make him known in consistent, small ways. Today, be on the lookout for opportunities to do just that! "Lord Jesus, help me to show your love today." Psalm 72:1-2, 10, 12-13
Mark 6:45-52 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Hear AI Read it for u | In the Holy Scripture we hear today: "He meant to pass by them.
But when they saw him walking on the sea,
they thought it was a ghost and cried out.
They had all seen him and were terrified.
But at once he spoke with them,
"Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!"
He got into the boat with them and the wind died down.
They were completely astounded.
They had not understood the incident of the loaves.
On the contrary, their hearts were hardened...." end Gospel quote, word of the Lord. | From a Spanish reflection today:
"Today the invitation is to remember our lives in order to discover the astonishing nature of everyday life, the miracle of our own existence that, for it to occur, required an infinity of unique events, "programmed" millennia in advance. The amazing of life, of our body, of our mind and of the spirit that moves us, of the events that we suffer or enjoy: a sum of prodigies. The wonder of the planet we inhabit: a large number of scientists, including several Nobel laureates, claim that an infinitesimal variation in the constants of matter and their correlations would make life impossible.
Let us celebrate the miracle and thank Almighty God for His "miracle work" toward us." end quote, Virginia Fernández.
The 4th watch? What time of the night was that? Artificial Intelligence gathers info and says:
"The fourth watch of the night is the time between 3 AM and 6 AM. The term comes from the Roman practice of changing guard every three hours during the night, with the fourth watch being the last.
The fourth watch is significant in the Bible, appearing in Matthew 14:25 when Jesus walks on water to reach his disciples in a storm:
* "Time of spiritual power
Some believe the fourth watch is a time of great spiritual power, when miracles occur and battles are won.
Time of God's manifestation
Some believe the fourth watch is when God manifests himself and does his best work.
Time for prayer and reflection
For some, the fourth watch is a time for prayer, quiet reflection, or communion with God.
Time of divine direction
*Some believe that Jesus is watching over us during the fourth watch, and that he may come to our aid eventually."
Our Lord was said to have fed the 5,000, and then He went off alone to pray, sending the disciples on the boat to meet at the other side.
But, He wouldn't actually let them go alone. He met them in the darkest hour. And they were afraid. Why? He said it was because their hearts were hardened.
While on earth, this amazing world we live in, we have much to learn. First, to have a soft heart. Then, we must learn to have no fear, for perfect love casts out all fear.
What does this mean? We are a fearful people! Have no fear? God is constant. His walking on water is a perfect sign to us in a rocking world. He is constant. And they saw Him in the dark of night. What does this mean? They thought He was a ghost. He is our light in the dark.
He came to break hardened hearts.
I have a theory, you don't have to go by it, but it is good to know, perhaps it is a teaching already. But I have learned that we can be hardened by receiving the Holy Eucharist, the bread turned the body of Christ Himself.
However we are in our disposition to Him, that is, our openness to Him when we receive Him, is to the degree we will receive Him.
That is to say, if you receive Him with a sinful heart, an unrepented heart, a heart unwilling to change, then, you will walk out the same or worse.
If you go receive Him while unbelieving, then, you will leave the Mass the same or even worse, according to the degree of your unbelief, or willingness to believe.
If you have a very small willingness to change or believe, it would take an entire lifetime of receiving Him to ever change or fully believe.
And if you receive Him in mortal sin, you've sealed your fate in spiritual death.
I said this last night in an adult confirmation class that our priest asked me to help him teach while he is away.
I warned them, not to receive our Lord with sullied hearts, that is, with filth. How hard for a hardened heart to change.
How can we avoid this degradation, a disintegration of heart, this separation from Him?
We must prepare ourselves, in a solid and true confession, so as to receive Him more fully.
And what about those that are not Catholics, because some may be reading this and have no Holy Sacraments that have been availed from the beginning of faith including our Holy Mass, even before the bible was fully put together?
Your hardened heart has ramifications that ring eternal. You are hardened in sin, and you cannot seem to change. You have gotten nowhere in your faith, and you are stagnant, aren't you? How you wish you could ascend the mountain of the Lord! What is this ascension in our world? The mount of Golgotha, the Goliath even, Calvary, and what is this all about? Self sacrifice, to God Himself.
Hardened hearts, it is going to take much effort to give oneself.
Giving until it hurts is where it counts.
Only then will our frowns turn upside down. A voice cries out in the desert until today.
Our days will be made glad, and the Son will shine, the sun of all light, the very source will overpower us, and we will bask in His shadow of light.
The world has tried for thousands of years to suppress us, and hide us in darkness. But we will no longer live hardened in our sin. His people are in Hebrew "Ka-dosh", set apart, meaning, Holy. We are set as a light on a hill, and the bread will no longer be our detriment, but the very nutrient, the essence of our very being.
My Lord, You are Fearfully, terribly magnificent.
My Lord, my heart has been hardened for way too long.
You know my heart and you know my ways, You who formed me in my mother's womb. I live and move in You, my whole being thrives, In YOU!
Oh Help us Love Thee More and More! |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Isaiah 61:1 The Year of the Lord's Favor 61 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor;1 he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;2 | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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