† Quote ""He will provide the way and the means, such as you could never have imagined. Leave it all to Him, let go of yourself, lose yourself on the Cross, and you will find yourself entirely."" -St. Catherine of Siena Today's Meditation "Only he will receive, will find, and will enter who perseveres in asking, seeking, and knocking. It is not enough to ask Almighty God for certain graces for a month, a year, ten, or even twenty years; we must never tire of asking. We must keep on asking until the very moment of death, and even in this prayer that shows our trust in God, we must join the thought of death to that of perseverance and say; "Although he should kill me, I will trust in him" (Job 13:15) and will trust Him to give me all I need." –St. Louis Mary de Montfort, p.201
An excerpt from The Secret of the Rosary Daily Verse "And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way; the unclean shall not pass over it, and fools shall not err therein." -Isaiah 35:8 | St. Barlaam of Antioch (d. 304 A.D.) was an elderly, uneducated peasant laborer from a village near Antioch. He was arrested for his Christian faith under the persecution of Roman Emperor Diocletian. He was detained for a long time in a dungeon before being brought before his judge. At his trial he was severely scourged, his bones dislocated on the rack, and tortured in other ways in an attempt to force him to renounce his faith in Christ and sacrifice to idols. Instead of crying out, there was joy in his countenance. His meekness, answers, and resolute will confounded his persecutors. The judge, determined to not be humiliated by a peasant, then devised a plan that would force Barlaam to offer sacrifice to the gods despite his constancy. He had an altar with a fire prepared, and had Barlaam's right hand held over the fire and filled with incense and hot coals. This would force Barlaam's burning hand to recoil, causing the incense to fall before the pagan altar, which the judge could then proclaim as a public act of sacrifice to the idols. Instead, Barlaam endured the pain in perfect stillness. He held his hand steady until it burned off completely. Irate, the judge ordered his immediate death. St. Barlaam's feast day is November 19th. | Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31 It happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested
and tortured with whips and scourges by the king,
to force them to eat pork in violation of God's law. Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother,
who saw her seven sons perish in a single day,
yet bore it courageously because of her hope in the Lord.
Filled with a noble spirit that stirred her womanly heart with manly courage,
she exhorted each of them
in the language of their ancestors with these words:
"I do not know how you came into existence in my womb;
it was not I who gave you the breath of life,
nor was it I who set in order
the elements of which each of you is composed.
Therefore, since it is the Creator of the universe
who shapes each man's beginning,
as he brings about the origin of everything,
he, in his mercy,
will give you back both breath and life,
because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of his law." Antiochus, suspecting insult in her words,
thought he was being ridiculed.
As the youngest brother was still alive, the king appealed to him,
not with mere words, but with promises on oath,
to make him rich and happy if he would abandon his ancestral customs:
he would make him his Friend
and entrust him with high office.
When the youth paid no attention to him at all,
the king appealed to the mother,
urging her to advise her boy to save his life.
After he had urged her for a long time,
she went through the motions of persuading her son.
In derision of the cruel tyrant,
she leaned over close to her son and said in their native language:
"Son, have pity on me, who carried you in my womb for nine months,
nursed you for three years, brought you up,
educated and supported you to your present age.
I beg you, child, to look at the heavens and the earth
and see all that is in them;
then you will know that God did not make them out of existing things;
and in the same way the human race came into existence.
Do not be afraid of this executioner,
but be worthy of your brothers and accept death,
so that in the time of mercy I may receive you again with them." She had scarcely finished speaking when the youth said:
"What are you waiting for?
I will not obey the king's command.
I obey the command of the law given to our fathers through Moses.
But you, who have contrived every kind of affliction for the Hebrews,
will not escape the hands of God." Responsorial Psalm Psalm 17:1bcd, 5-6, 8b and 15 R.(15b) Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
Hear, O LORD, a just suit;
attend to my outcry;
hearken to my prayer from lips without deceit. R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
My steps have been steadfast in your paths,
my feet have not faltered.
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word. R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full.
Keep me as the apple of your eye;
hide me in the shadow of your wings.
But I in justice shall behold your face;
on waking, I shall be content in your presence. R. Lord, when your glory appears, my joy will be full. Alleluia See John 15:16 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I chose you from the world,
to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Luke 19:11-28 While people were listening to Jesus speak,
he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem
and they thought that the Kingdom of God
would appear there immediately.
So he said,
"A nobleman went off to a distant country
to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return.
He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins
and told them, 'Engage in trade with these until I return.'
His fellow citizens, however, despised him
and sent a delegation after him to announce,
'We do not want this man to be our king.'
But when he returned after obtaining the kingship,
he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money,
to learn what they had gained by trading.
The first came forward and said,
'Sir, your gold coin has earned ten additional ones.'
He replied, 'Well done, good servant!
You have been faithful in this very small matter;
take charge of ten cities.'
Then the second came and reported,
'Your gold coin, sir, has earned five more.'
And to this servant too he said,
'You, take charge of five cities.'
Then the other servant came and said,
'Sir, here is your gold coin;
I kept it stored away in a handkerchief,
for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding man;
you take up what you did not lay down
and you harvest what you did not plant.'
He said to him,
'With your own words I shall condemn you,
you wicked servant.
You knew I was a demanding man,
taking up what I did not lay down
and harvesting what I did not plant;
why did you not put my money in a bank?
Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.'
And to those standing by he said,
'Take the gold coin from him
and give it to the servant who has ten.'
But they said to him,
'Sir, he has ten gold coins.'
He replied, 'I tell you,
to everyone who has, more will be given,
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king,
bring them here and slay them before me.'" After he had said this,
he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem.
| Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Luke 19:11-28 Engage in trade with these until I return. (Luke 19:13) Imagine that you are one of the servants in today's parable. You are given a handsome sum of money and told to trade with it until your master returns. He doesn't give any advice or guidance for you to follow. He doesn't even say exactly when you can expect him to return. So you have all this money but no business plan, no market insights, and no real time frame. It would make sense to follow the third servant's lead and play it very safe. Just sit on the money so there's no risk of your master coming back to find you empty-handed! Like the master in this parable, Jesus has very generously given us a huge treasure: his grace and gifts. And just like the servants, we all have times when we wish we knew exactly how the Lord wants us to invest this treasure. What should we do with all this grace? Even more important, what should we not do with it? You can't expect Jesus to give you a detailed set of instructions or a step-by-step script. That's not exactly how he works. No, he wants you to be creative and find your own way to invest in the things that Scripture tells you are important to him. For instance, you've seen his tenderness in reaching out to those who are lost and broken (Matthew 4:23-25). How can you open your heart to people in similar situations? You've seen him sharing with his friends the things that are closest to his heart (John 16:12). How can you do the same? You've noticed how he is willing to take a stand against sin and injustice (Matthew 23:13). How can you take your skills, your resources, and your time and dedicate them to building his kingdom? Yes, you may stumble at times, especially if you are just starting out. But anyone experienced in money matters will tell you that investing involves taking risks. You will learn to do better over time. Even more, you'll learn how patient and merciful your heavenly Master is! So don't stay on the sidelines, paralyzed by fear and uncertainty. Today is a perfect day to take the risk of investing in the kingdom of God! "Jesus, thank you for calling me to spend myself on you!" 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31
Psalm 17:1, 5-6, 8, 15 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | From today's Holy Gospel: "...Then the other servant came and said,
'Sir, here is your gold coin;
I kept it stored away in a handkerchief,
for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding man;
you take up what you did not lay down
and you harvest what you did not plant.'
He said to him,
'With your own words I shall condemn you,
you wicked servant.
You knew I was a demanding man,
taking up what I did not lay down
and harvesting what I did not plant;
why did you not put my money in a bank?
Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.'
And to those standing by he said,
'Take the gold coin from him
and give it to the servant who has ten.'..." Word of the Lord. | From Roberto Juarez:
"In the end, the question will be simple: "What did you do with what I gave you?" Did you cultivate the good or did you keep it out of fear? Did you multiply your faith or did you leave it locked up? Did you risk anything for God or did you live defensively? Did you put your life at the service of the Kingdom?
Jesus does not want us to live asleep or hidden. He invites us to live awake, with confidence, with passion, with Christian courage.
The parable ends by reminding us that the King will return. Not to punish us, but to reap the fruit of our lives and to give us a place in his Kingdom.
As that day comes, we hear his clear word: "Negotiate while I return." Make life yield. Multiply love. Do not hide the Gospel. Do not be afraid.
May the Lord find in us faithful servants who can hear these blessed words: "Very well, good servant. You have been faithful in the little. Go and share in the joy of your Lord."
Amen. " End quote.
It seems the Lord is demanding...fruit. Does it sound right? That He gave us life, and expects something in return?
Fruit?
What if God created you...so He could live in you and work through you? How crazy would that be? Yet...it is true.
And yet, most of us won't allow that to happen. And we follow strange ideas, ideals, and idols. And He is limited. The only reason for the Sabbath is to allow Him to enter into ourselves, to pry open that door as we open our hearts to give thanks in the Holy Mass.
Is it too much of God to ask from us?
If you read the 1st Holy Scripture today in daily Mass readings, you hear of those that were tortured to death, the 7 sons of a mother that encouraged them to die rather than to sin.
Wow. Are there mothers like that today? That lead the way as it said she had "manly courage"?
And so they all were tortured to death to show the world, that God is number one and there is no other.
And I read daily headlines, more priests in Nigeria are kidnapped and beat up.
You see, the world is still at large in our freedom and accidents...in the making of God's will.
How many gold coins called talents has God given you? How many blessings has He given you? Or have you failed to see...the goodness of God?
If so, taste and see, while there is still time....to love is to give. | Random Bible Verse 1John 1:14 [John 1] 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son1 from the Father, full of grace and truth. . . . . . . . . Word of the Lord! | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
