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Quote of the Day
"Who will teach me what is most pleasing to God, that I may do it?" — St. Kateri Tekakwitha
Today's Meditation ""My daughter, know that My Heart is mercy itself. From this sea of mercy, graces flow out upon the whole world. No soul that has approached Me has ever gone away unconsoled. All misery gets buried in the depths of My mercy, and every saving and sanctifying grace flows from this fountain." —Jesus to St. Faustina Kowalska, (1777)
Daily Verse Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken." — Isaiah 1:18-20 | St. Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680), also known as the 'Lily of the Mohawks,' was born in present-day New York. Her father was a Mohawk chief, and her mother an Algonquin who had been converted to the Christian faith by Jesuit missionaries. When Kateri was four years old, a smallpox epidemic killed her entire family and left her partially blind, disfigured, and crippled. She was raised by her uncle, who detested the Christians. As she grew up, Kateri longed for the Catholic faith of her mother, and was very drawn to the missionaries evangelizing near her village. At the age of twenty she was baptized with the name Catherine (which was translated as "Kateri") after St. Catherine of Siena. Her uncle opposed her conversion to Christianity, and as a result she was ostracized by her people and treated harshly. When it was clear that her life was in danger, a priest helped her flee to a French Jesuit mission in Montreal, Canada—a journey of over 200 miles alone and on foot. There she lived a solitary life of prayer and penance, rejecting an opportunity for marriage. Her great sanctity, virtue, and love for Christ amazed everyone who knew her. She was also known as a miracle-worker. Kateri died of illness at the age of twenty-four. She was beatified by Pope St. John Paul II in 1980, and canonized in 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI as the first Native American saint. Kateri is the patron saint of environmentalists, orphans, exiles, and those who are ridiculed for their piety. Her feast day is July 14. | Exodus 1:8-14, 22 A new king, who knew nothing of Joseph, came to power in Egypt. He said to his subjects, "Look how numerous and powerful the people of the children of Israel are growing, more so than we ourselves! Come, let us deal shrewdly with them to stop their increase; otherwise, in time of war they too may join our enemies to fight against us, and so leave our country." Accordingly, taskmasters were set over the children of Israel to oppress them with forced labor. Thus they had to build for Pharaoh the supply cities of Pithom and Raamses. Yet the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread. The Egyptians, then, dreaded the children of Israel and reduced them to cruel slavery, making life bitter for them with hard work in mortar and brick and all kinds of field work—the whole cruel fate of slaves. Pharaoh then commanded all his subjects, "Throw into the river every boy that is born to the Hebrews, but you may let all the girls live." Psalm 124:1-8 R. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
Had not the Lord been with us,—
let Israel say, had not the Lord been with us—
When men rose up against us,
then would they have swallowed us alive;
When their fury was inflamed against us. R. Then would the waters have overwhelmed us;
The torrent would have swept over us;
over us then would have swept
the raging waters.
Blessed be the Lord, who did not leave us
a prey to their teeth. R. We were rescued like a bird
from the fowlers' snare;
Broken was the snare,
and we were freed.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth. R. Gospel Acclamation Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. -Mt 5:10
Alleluia, alleluia. Matthew 10:34–11:1 Jesus said to his Apostles: "Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one's enemies will be those of his household. "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. "Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is righteous will receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because he is a disciple—amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward." When Jesus finished giving these commands to his Twelve disciples, he went away from that place to teach and to preach in their towns. | Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Matthew 10:34–11:1 Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. (Matthew 10:38) So many of the crosses we bear in this life are not ones we would voluntarily choose. Sickness, the loss of a loved one, a ruptured relationship: they are all part of life in a fallen world. But in today's Gospel, Jesus is asking his disciples to take up their crosses—and he promises that everyone who "loses his life for my sake will find it" (Matthew 10:39). What does it look like for us to take up our cross and follow Jesus? We can find the answer by looking at Jesus himself. When he walked the earth, he laid down his life each day so that he could preach the good news and heal the sick. Then he took up his cross—literally—and offered his life out of love so that we could be redeemed and reconciled with our Father. Jesus' whole mission was the way of the cross! Self-offering: that's the key for our mission as well. We take up our cross when we lay down our lives out of love for the Lord and our brothers and sisters. That is how we "follow after" Jesus—by following in his footsteps (Matthew 10:38). This doesn't usually involve grand gestures. It happens day by day through small sacrifices. Like reaching out to someone who is lonely, even though we have a lot on our agenda that day. Or giving more to a local charity, even if it means not being able to satisfy some of our material wants right away. Or spending an hour before the Blessed Sacrament, even if it means forgoing lunch. Or being patient with a child when we are short on sleep. Every day we face a myriad of opportunities to take up our cross and follow Jesus. Some days these crosses might seem small and insignificant. But the more we "lose" our lives for others, the more we will "find" Jesus. And finding him more, we'll be filled with more of his self-giving love, and we'll become more like him. Then we will be able to joyfully embrace the unavoidable crosses that will come our way. This is how Jesus invites you to follow him. He is the way and the reward! Ask him for the grace to offer yourself for others today, just as he so willingly offered himself for you! "Jesus, I want to follow you. Help me to take up my cross!" Exodus 1:8-14, 22
Psalm 124:1-8 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Hear AI Read it for u | From today's Holy Gospel: " Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ...." end quote. | "This encourages us. It is not about doing extraordinary things, but about living the ordinary with love. There the Kingdom is built. • Do I offer small gestures of daily love with generosity and faith? Jesus invites us to look into our hearts. Am I willing to follow Him, even if it costs me relationships, comfort, or prestige? Am I taking up my cross in faith? Am I faithful in small gestures?
Let us ask him to give us a Spirit, to be courageous, faithful and generous disciples. May we not be afraid to choose Him, to carry our cross with Him and to love from the smallest." - Roberto Juárez.
"Friends, in today's Gospel, the Lord explains what it means to become a disciple. Once we make the decision to follow Jesus, then every other claimant to supremacy must fall away. Every one of us has something that we consider greatest. Perhaps it is money, material things, power, the esteem of others, your country, your political party, or your ethnic identity. Or perhaps it is your family, your kids, your wife, your husband. Now mind you, all of these are good things. However, when you place any of them in the absolute center of gravity, things go awry. When you make any of them your ultimate or final good, your spiritual life goes haywire. When you attach yourself to any of them with an absolute tenacity, you will fall apart. This is what Jesus means in our Gospel for today. Not that you should hate your family or country or wealth but rather that you should detach yourself from them lest they become idols. And only if we do this are we truly ready for mission. If we try to do this work while we are stuck to any number of attachments, we will fail. Period." - Bishop Barron.
Whoever loves family more than Jesus...is not worthy of Jesus our Lord and our God.
What a strange idea. We grow up and are taught certain "values" right? But who is teaching those values? Those are values of people who are godless!
I am not a fan of tattoos. A chief exorcists suggests that those who have them should get them "decommissioned" because they open doors in of themselves, especially if they are of God things, believe it or not, as if they are a mockery with a sinful act of mutilating your body. What got me off on this tangent? A vision of a relative, who tattooed his wife's name on his arm and another tattoo of his family's last name. Why am I so disgusted with it? Because, he left his wife and kids. And, he NEVER goes to any family events. And so I hate those tattoos on his arms, and what they actually mean to him....NOTHING. But he is trying to come back, always trying...and I am there trying to help him, back to his family, and wife and kids. Why did he leave the family? He was tricked into drugs and a party lifestyle, little by little, more and more until he lost absolutely everything, except his health until today. But what caused the sin in the first place? Living a life alone...without God. There, you lose it all. We need Him more than anyone or anything...in order to love family as we ought...self sacrificing, unity, willing their good and joy over ours.
I encourage all men that I meet to this life. Yes, family is important...but what about their souls? Sure you can provide for them...but what about salvation? Why is teaching them anything else more important?
This hatred our Lord speaks of, is not the hatred we think of in demonic division, no. He speaks with mercy, and what we call "righteous anger".
There seems to be more near death experiences we are hearing about...one youtuber brought on little children NDEs online and one said that "God's eyes were like fire". Another said that He saw Jesus always had beautiful eyes, but there are times they turn into fire as well. It is the fire of righteousness.
I consider myself a family man, and I find it a struggle at times in daily prayer, when it seems not many are fired up about praying the rosary late at night. That's when I get fired up. I do not want their spirit to affect God's will...that we should pray together, of all the time of the day...why not gather to pray? Of all the things we do together...why not hold hands with Our Father, and sacrifice ourselves for Him?
And this is how it is with most ministries. It is a struggle. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
And so, we must pray for grace to be strong, strong in the willingness to be humble and obedient, and loving with God's care, God's business.
Or else, we could get choked or burned seeds in our lives.... |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Romans 5:1 [Romans 5]
Peace with God Through Faith 5
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we1 have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
