† Quote of the Day "No act is charitable if it is not just." — St. Bruno Today's Meditation "Man threw away everything he had—his right to speak freely, his communion with God, his time in Paradise, his unclouded life—and went out naked, like a survivor from a shipwreck. But God received him and immediately clothed him, and taking him by the hand gradually led him to heaven. And yet the shipwreck was quite unforgivable. For this tempest was entirely due, not to the force of the winds, but to the carelessness of the sailor. Yet God did not look at this, but had compassion for such a great disaster. … Why? Because, when no sadness or care or labor or toil or countless waves of desire assaulted our nature, it was overturned and fell. And just as criminals who sail the sea often drill through the ship with a small iron tool, and let the whole sea into the ship from below, so when the devil saw the ship of Adam (by which I mean his soul) filled with many good things, he came and drilled through it with his voice alone, as if it were an iron tool, and stole all his wealth and sank the ship itself. But God made the gain greater than the loss, and brought our nature to the royal throne." —St. John Chrysostom, p. 19
An excerpt from A Year with the Church Fathers Daily Verse "Therefore, my beloved brothers, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain." — 1 Corinthians 15:58 | St. Agatha St. Agatha (231-251 A.D.) was born in Sicily into an affluent family. At a young age she made the decision to devote herself to Christ, resisting every offer of marriage. Struck by her beauty and wealth, a magistrate named Quintian desired to marry her. He plotted to use his political power to force her hand, and threatened to prosecute her for the crime of Christianity unless she accepted his sexual advances. When she refused, he forced her into a brothel. Even there, she refused to relinquish her chastity. Furious, Quintian imprisoned and tortured Agatha, ordering her breasts to be cut off. Upon this barbaric treatment, God sent St. Peter the Apostle to Agatha in a vision, and he healed her wounds. St. Agatha's torture continued until an earthquake caused her captors to flee, and she died shortly after. St. Agatha is the patroness of rape victims, torture victims, martyrs, nurses, and against breast cancer. She is one of the seven women, besides the Virgin Mary, mentioned by name in the Roman Canon of the Mass. Her feast day is February 5th. | Memorial of Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr Lectionary: 325
Reading 1 Hebrews 12:4-7, 11-15 Brothers and sisters:
In your struggle against sin
you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.
You have also forgotten the exhortation addressed to you as children: My son, do not disdain the discipline of the Lord or lose heart when reproved by him; for whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges. Endure your trials as "discipline";
God treats you as his sons.
For what "son" is there whom his father does not discipline?
At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain,
yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness
to those who are trained by it. So strengthen your drooping hands and your weak knees.
Make straight paths for your feet,
that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed. Strive for peace with everyone,
and for that holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
See to it that no one be deprived of the grace of God,
that no bitter root spring up and cause trouble,
through which many may become defiled. Responsorial Psalm Psalm 103:1-2, 13-14, 17-18a R. (see 17) The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him.
Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him.
As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him,
For he knows how we are formed; he remembers that we are dust.
R. The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him.
But the kindness of the LORD is from eternity to eternity toward those who fear him,
And his justice toward children's children among those who keep his covenant.
R. The Lord's kindness is everlasting to those who fear him. Alleluia John 10:27 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord;
I know them, and they follow me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mark 6:1-6 Jesus departed from there and came to his native place,
accompanied by his disciples.
When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue,
and many who heard him were astonished.
They said, "Where did this man get all this?
What kind of wisdom has been given him?
What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!
Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary,
and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon?
And are not his sisters here with us?"
And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them,
"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and among his own kin and in his own house."
So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,
apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
He was amazed at their lack of faith. | Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Hebrews 12:4-7, 11-15 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood. (Hebrews 12:4) Did you notice that today's first verse from the Letter to the Hebrews was also the last verse of yesterday's reading? It must be important! Yesterday, this verse encouraged us to look to the saints and, above all, to Jesus, when we are tempted to lose heart in our trials. They suffered all sorts of hardships—even to the point of shedding blood—and yet kept their joy. Today we see the verse from a different angle. We begin to understand that the struggle against sin is an expected part of our lives as children of God. The verse doesn't say "if we struggle." It assumes we will struggle against sin. And so we are invited to allow that struggle to teach and train us how to live as God's children and to be more like Jesus. It also shows us that the fact that we even struggle against sin is proof that we long to be freed from it and grow in holiness. We all know what it's like to be beset by a particular sin that always seems to trip us up. The "discipline of the Lord" comes in when we humbly acknowledge, once more, our weakness and turn to him for mercy (Hebrews 12:5). We are "trained" by it when we seek God's grace to help us change ingrained habits that lead us to sin (12:11). We might try to avoid conversations at work that lead us to gossip, or put our phone away after a certain time in the evening, or keep a gratitude journal to help uproot a negative mindset. This is what it means to enter into the struggle against sin. And we can be assured that every time we take up this struggle, the Lord responds by pouring out his blessings and helping us grow closer to him. These words from the Letter to the Hebrews are meant to be an encouragement to us, to strengthen our "drooping hands" and "weak knees" (12:12). The truth is that we will always face the struggle against sin. Those who went before us did, too. But be encouraged! As you allow the Lord to train you in this way, you will become a witness of healing, peace, and righteousness. You will show the world what a child of God looks like! "Lord, I welcome your work of 'discipline' in my life. Help me take up the struggle against sin so that I can become a more faithful child of God." Psalm 103:1-2, 13-14, 17-18
Mark 6:1-6 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Hear AI Read it for u | From today's Holy Gospel: "Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary,
and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon?
And are not his sisters here with us?"
And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them,
"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place
and among his own kin and in his own house."
So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,
apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
He was amazed at their lack of faith...." - Word of the Lord! | From Bishop Barron today:
"Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus is rejected by the people of his own town. For as he says, "A prophet is not without honor except in his native place." But he astounded crowds throughout Galilee because he taught with authority.
As far as we can determine, Jesus was not formally trained in a rabbinic school, nor was he educated to be a temple priest or a scribe, nor was he a devotee of the Pharisees, the Saduccees, or the Essenes. He was, if I can use a somewhat anachronistic term, a layman. And this made his arrival on the public scene all the more astounding.
For this Nazarene carpenter with no formal religious education or affiliation began to speak and act with an unprecedented authority. To the crowds who listened to him preach, he blithely declared, "You have heard that it was said, but I say . . ." He was referring, of course, to the Torah, the teaching of Moses, the court of final appeal to any faithful rabbi; and therefore, he was claiming for himself an authority greater than that of Israel's most significant teacher and lawgiver." end quote.
From Roberto Juarez:
"The inhabitants of Nazareth did not accept Jesus because they had a pre-established image of Him. Do I have preconceptions that prevent me from growing spiritually or recognizing God's action in my life?
Jesus was unable to perform many miracles in Nazareth because of the unbelief of the people. Our faith allows God to act in our lives. Am I fully trusting God or am I allowing doubt to pull me away from His power?..." end quote.
And a 2nd Spanish reflection ended:
"At the end of the passage, Mark tells us that "he could not perform any miracle there, except to lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them." This does not mean that Jesus was incapable of performing miracles, but that the lack of faith in his people limited God's action. Faith, therefore, is key to allowing God's grace to work in our lives. If we do not open ourselves to it, we run the risk of remaining superficial and losing the opportunity to experience the depth of divine love.
Today, we invite you to meditate on our own faith. Are we willing to let the Lord speak to us in new ways, to acknowledge His presence in everyday life, even when it challenges our preconceptions? Like the disciples, may we be able to open our hearts to his word and actions, without letting our familiarity with him blind us to his transforming power." end quote Alejandro Carbajo.
"That kid that grew up in your hometown, yeah, he was a pretty good kid and all but, guess what? People are saying that He is claiming He is the Messiah, the Savior of the world! Can you believe that?"
Those were the rumors that was supposed to be the good news. But, just as in the time of Adam and Eve, all the news is messed up with a doubt. There is room for doubting and this can be the number one killer of our faith.
Faith is too washed down. We have been trained to not believe instead of being believers. We don't want to be gullible, right? But at the same time, when are we ever going to truly believe?
When are you going to believe what?
That God loves you. That you are worthy of His love. That you can be forgiven, if only, we ask. If only we decide to overcome doubt with faith.
Can you believe what we have heard just minutes ago? How about years ago? Do we need to see to believe? Then come and see! I remember Fr. Mark Beard, a priest from Luisiana, he claims he was not a believer, but at the obedience of his father, He went to a place of visionaries, a pilgrimage of sorts, and then he believed. He didn't see miracles, he didn't see visions, he did not see the sun dancing, but he saw something that captivated him...he said it was the people in their faith, going to Mass, packing the Masses, going to confessions, and their faith lit up his faith. He came back a changed man, left his girlfriend and became a priest, all this as he was nearly 50 years old, a partying working man, now a powerhouse of a priest. Sadly, he was wrecked in a traffic accident and lost his life, but gained Heaven for his soul, family, and parish, and even many in the world that can see his homilies online.
As he says in his videos "My brothers and my sisters"...our time on earth is short, what are we going to do with it?
I shared his words with an invitation to our men's conference.
view at our website WTXmen.com. |  audio | WOW AMAZING. Random Bible Verse 1
John 6:47 [John 6] 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
