† Quote of the Day "When you sit down to eat, pray. When you eat bread, do so thanking Him for being so generous to you. If you drink wine, be mindful of Him who has given it to you for your pleasure and as a relief in sickness. When you dress, thank Him for His kindness in providing you with clothes. When you look at the sky and the beauty of the stars, throw yourself at God's feet and adore Him who in His wisdom has arranged things in this way. Similarly, when the sun goes down and when it rises, when you are asleep or awake, give thanks to God, who created and arranged all things for your benefit, to have you know, love and praise their Creator." -St. Basil the Great Today's Meditation "True devotion to Our Lady is constant. It confirms the soul in good, and does not let it easily abandon its spiritual exercises. It makes it courageous in opposing the world in its fashions and maxims, the flesh in its weariness and passions, and the devil in his temptations; so that a person truly devout to our Blessed Lady is neither changeable, irritable, scrupulous nor timid. It is not that such a person does not fall, or change sometimes in the sensible feeling of devotion. But when he falls, he rises again by stretching out his hand to his good Mother. When he loses the taste and relish of devotions, he does not become disturbed because of that; for the just and faithful client of Mary lives by the faith (Heb. 10:38) of Jesus and Mary, and not by natural sentiment." —St. Louis De Montfort, p. 55
An excerpt from True Devotion to Mary Daily Verse "For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus, neither...counts for anything, but only faith working through love." -Galatians 5:5-6 | Our Lady Of Loreto Our Lady of Loreto is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with the house where Mary was born, the site of the Annunciation, and the dwelling place of the Holy Family. The tradition and history of the Holy House goes back to Apostolic times. In the 13th century the house was mysteriously moved in one piece from Nazareth in the Holy Land to a final resting place in Loreto, Italy, carried by angels, a miracle to which the Church attests. It was transported to prevent its destruction by Muslims who destroyed the basilica which housed it. A new basilica was built around the Holy House in Italy, known as the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto, one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the world. Written at the door of the basilica are these words: "The whole world has no place more sacred ... For here was the Word made Flesh, and here was born the Virgin Mother." Our Lady of Loreto is the patron of aviators, fliers, pilots, and builders. Her feast day is December 10th. | Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent Reading 1 Isaiah 40:25-31 To whom can you liken me as an equal?
says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high
and see who has created these things:
He leads out their army and numbers them,
calling them all by name.
By his great might and the strength of his power
not one of them is missing!
Why, O Jacob, do you say,
and declare, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD,
and my right is disregarded by my God"? Do you not know
or have you not heard?
The LORD is the eternal God,
creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint nor grow weary,
and his knowledge is beyond scrutiny.
He gives strength to the fainting;
for the weak he makes vigor abound.
Though young men faint and grow weary,
and youths stagger and fall,
They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength,
they will soar as with eagles' wings;
They will run and not grow weary,
walk and not grow faint. Responsorial Psalm Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 8 and 10 R. (1) O bless the Lord, my soul!
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. O bless the Lord, my soul!
He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion. R. O bless the Lord, my soul!
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes. R. O bless the Lord, my soul! Alleluia R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Behold, the Lord comes to save his people;
blessed are those prepared to meet him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus said to the crowds:
"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." | Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Matthew 11:28-30 Take my yoke upon you . . . and you will find rest. (Matthew 11:29) What do you think of when you hear the word "yoke"? Is it a heavy burden, something that weighs you down? Or is it something that lightens the load? In today's Gospel, Jesus was speaking to people who were laboring to keep not just the Law of Moses but also the many complicated interpretations that had been added to it over the centuries (Matthew 11:28-29). These people must have felt burdened by their own failure—you could even say inability—to keep up with all these additions and interpretations. So when Jesus mentioned a yoke, they might have expected even more rules to follow. That hardly seemed like a call to rest. So why did he invite these heavy-laden people to take up his yoke? Because Jesus knew that being yoked to him does give us rest—and in a couple of ways. First, we know rest because Jesus is the One sharing the yoke with us. That means he's walking alongside us, inviting us to lean on him for strength. We don't have to carry it alone. Second, and even more important, as we walk beside Jesus, we are learning from him (Matthew 11:29). Since he is right next to us, we can enter into his relationship with his Father. We can take on his way of thinking, and we can begin to look at the people around us through his eyes. We can learn how to walk as he walks, in mercy and justice and compassion. This is how we fulfill the Law: we come to Jesus and listen, we come to him and learn, and we come and walk beside our perfect Teacher. What burdens are you carrying today? Whatever they are, come to Jesus and take up his yoke. Let go of perfectionism or self-sufficiency. Let go of feelings of shame for not measuring up. Jesus is calling you to walk beside him, yoked to him. He is calling you to stay close to him and learn from him, to grow in likeness to him. As you draw close to his meek and humble heart, you will find that his "yoke is easy, and [his] burden light" (Matthew 11:30). "Jesus, I am overjoyed to be yoked to you. Thank you for loving me, guiding me, and walking every step with me." Isaiah 40:25-31
Psalm 103:1-4, 8, 10 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Audio of 2 Cents | From today's Holy Gospel: "...Jesus said to the crowds:
"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light...." Word of the Lord. | From Bishop Barron: "Relief comes when we submit to his kingship, his new way of ordering things. We are meant to imagine ourselves as pack animals who have been tied under a yoke and are under the command of a farmer. It seems rather demeaning, but this is what submission to Christ's lordship looks like: We serve his purposes and go where he wants us to go. Is Christ commanding your life in every detail? Is he the Lord of your family life? Of your recreational life? Of your professional life? Is he the Lord of every room in your house, including the bedroom? Are you totally given over to him, under his lordship? I know that this may sound oppressive, but remember, "My yoke is easy, and my burden light." When we surrender to the path of love that he has laid out for us, our lives become infinitely lighter, easier, and more joyful, for we are moving with the divine purpose." end quote.
Our Lord said "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart".
I was discussing today with a salesperson in our shop, about the world, the year having flown by so fast, and what of the nonstop wars? I said "does anyone really know why we were in the latest atrocious wars, like Vietnam?" Not really. He said to police others, and his uncle had just turned 18 in that war and was killed burning alive in an army tank, and his dad was a sniper, who knows what lives he had to take. And the wars of today? Just a slaughtering of human being for really no good reason, other than what this man said "ego wars". I said that there seems to be evil spirits involved in particular areas, because some wars are 100 years old and some several centuries old.
What about all this? There is no humility, and so violence comes in. There is no obedience, so death comes in. Such was the word of the Lord with Adam and Eve after the first disobedient act.
Our Lord asks us to take His yoke, being meek and humble...and boy, what a cross?
Have you tried that yoke? It is no joke!
Are you able to tie your tongue instead of vomiting ill will?
Are you able to let others win, instead of fighting? Our Lord always spoke truth...all the way to the cross, not in fighting and angry mode, but in the same style as HIS Father, and earthly step father, Joseph, Love, and Humility. Our Lord said to finalize the Gospel today: "...and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light".
It is harder to fight to the bitter end...because in the end, you will remain bitter. Amen?
And so our Lord invites us to the cross. Just like Mother Mary, gently treading, dripping blood all the way to the mount, to be mounted on the wood that would serve as a pole, to lift high the sins we have committed, that we might see what we have done to Him with our ways, our sinful ways. So that we might repent, and leave our ways, to follow His way, of being meek, and humble, thus, showing the way to the world...God's will.
God's will is the guiding light, and as much as we preach love, mercy, and peace....how impossible it really seems to be in our present age. Unless, one of us repents. Unless, one of us decides to sacrifice ourselves for the love of God, and neighbor.
How we have been fooled to live otherwise is beyond comprehension.
I pray that we may realize God's cross, and embrace it too. For that, we will need strength, but not human strength, but grace.
Sister Anne Emmerich said that Mother Mary told Elizabeth about her annunciation, where she felt lifted by angels, and she was in ecstasy. She was fully disposed to God, and when she conceived, her heart broke into two, and a longing became real...for her other half...until Jesus was born.
If only we realized the supreme importance of this message.
Our longing for our Lord Himself...the yoke that call us... |  Click for Audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Ephesians 4:29 "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." . . . . . . . . Word of the Lord! | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
