Spiritual Reflection: Nothing Separates Us

Take It to Heart

Paul is convinced that nothing will ever separate us from God.

Romans 8: 31-39

 (click the link if you don't have a Bible handy)

How convinced are you?

As you read this passage, allow Paul's passionate belief to echo in your heart, and be drawn into his poetic understanding of God's love. Neither death, nor life, nor height, nor depth can keep us away from God or, more important, keep God away from us. Paul pointed to proof of God's love: God's willingness to sacrifice his Son for our sins. God showed his unconditional love for us in this one act. And Paul is certain that there is no reason to expect anything different from God in the future. We live in that future, united with God.

What does this love mean in your family life?

How can you model this love with family members?

Spiritual Reflection: Mistaken Self-Love

CHRIST:

My Child, here is the secret of all perfection---forget self-interest and follow My will in all things. You want what you consider good for you, but you are often wrong in your calculations. I want what you consider good for you, but you are often wrong in your calculations. I want what is really best for you, and I am never mistaken. If you want to be the kind of person I want you to be, learn My truth and do My will. Then leave the rest to Me.

2. Every human fault arises from a mistaken self-love. Men overcome their faults only as far as they really abandon their selfishness and follow Me. Some make a half-halfhearted effort,and some make a ninety percent effort, but only a few make a full effort with no reservations.

3. If you gave all you goods to the poor, without giving your heart to Me, you have done nothing as far as eternal life is concerned. Even great penance means nothing unless you are determined to fight against your faults. There is no substitute for true virtue. The basis for true virtue lies in this---that you accept and prefer My Will in all things.

4. You are not so wise as you think. You do not always know what is best for you. No man is richer, no man is happier than he who loves My Will in all things. Empty your heart of every other desire, and place you daily life in My hands. Work, and pray, and do all that is right and good for you. When things do not go as you desire, do what you can to remedy them. After you have done all that common sense demands, accept the results as My Will.

THINK
Here is the key to God's peace and yet I hesitate to use it. Can God be mistaken? Can He be wrong? Why do I not find His peace within me? It is simply because I have not yet succeeded in placing my life in His hands. I am not quite sure that He will do what I would like. Yet I know that He loves me more than I love myself. He wants what is surely good for me, not merely some deceptive good thing. Do I want to look our for myself, even if it means committing a sin here and there? Sin hurts me far more than I realize.

PRAY
My Jesus, show me at last a life of obedience and loyalty to your Will. Let me forget self and become more unselfish with those around me. Wherever I can, I hope to do things for others. Sin must be hated for what it is...self-deception and stupidity. How can I ever do anything wrong, knowing that it hurts me and offends You? I will try with Your help, to live mm daily life as a true and loyal follower of Yours. What You forbid is forbidden because it is bad for me. How can I ever insist on sinning again? You have proven your love for me in a thousand ways. I hope to prove my love for You by trying to act as You want me to act in my daily life.

Source: My Daily Bread, CONFRATERNITY OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD 

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Spiritual Reflection: An Act of Faith

Grieved at their hardness of heart, he said to the man, “Stretch our your hand.”Mark 3:5 

The Pharisees in Jesus' time looked for every possibility to catch Jesus in an infraction of the law. There were so many laws to follow. Wikipedia says there are about 613 which were followed. No wonder the Jewish leaders were so obsessed with following the law. With that many laws to be faithful to, it was a virtual impossibility, for any human to come close to obeying all of them. 

At every turn in his ministry since Jesus asked John the Baptist to baptize him in the Jordan to the Wedding at Cana, Jesus was making his own rules. The Pharisees were keeping track of all the infractions, so they could report them all to their leaders. With today's verse about the man with a withered hand, the Pharisees were just waiting to see if Jesus would heal this man on the sabbath in the synagogue so they could accuse him.

 When Jesus healed the man the Pharisees immediately rushed out to report to Herod and his associates to conspire against him. As Jesus, again, breaks the sabbath law, he continues to teach and heal and he appointed the Twelve. The Pharisees continue the conflict. Jesus' family thinks he is crazy. His adversaries, the Pharisees, accuse him of being possessed by Satan. Jesus separates himself from his family.

 Questions for discussion below:  

Why does Jesus cause so much conflict?

Why do people-especially religious leaders reject him?

A concept to include in your thoughts...

Think about the parallels for your faith in everyday life today as well.

 

Forgive, but Set Limits & Expectations

This is a follow-up to yesterday's story about a wayward nineteen year old. He is sorry because he got caught stealing thousands of dollars of jewelry and pawning it.

Aren't we all. 

But, after counseling with other professionals, the consensus opinion was to set limits which we had already done for the bad behavior.

The key decision!  My wife and I decided not to prosecute. Instead we made him face his horrible actions with the written evidence in front of the police chief. He allowed this audience, and told my grandson so, because the next time he sees his name come across his desk, the meeting will be in the interrogation room, and off to prison or jail for a one year minimum.

For a street savvy kid like he is, it didn't seem to impact him sufficiently. We have had a face-to-face meeting with him, laid down the new rules, taken his house key away from him and forbidden him to be in the house unless one of us is there with him. He can come in, eat, take a shower, but the office, and the rest of the house is off limits, until we decide to change the rule. Until he is gainfully employed, and has earned his keep with some employer, we will remain ever vigilant as long as he is on our premises. Otherwise, it is hit the street, you are now on your own. Blood relative, or not!

Time will tell! We all know that the leopard doesn't change his spots; they just grow in size!

Handling a Lie & a Theft in Your Home

If you are an employer, it seems the treatment of these two offenses can be found in the company policy manual, but parents and grandparents, on the other-hand, have a different role in these matters. I think the care-taker grandparent in this case, has an even different  role than the parent.

Yesterday was not a good day! We were confronted with the theft of $1,800 of my wife's jewelery which is hidden in a special drawer in a hunt stand. The theft could only be carried out by one person, our grandson, and when confronted he immediately admitted to the theft and the pawning of the items in the local pawn shop. It seems he went to the pawn shop on three separate occasions, and the pawn shop owner paid him: $60, $60, and $70 out of his pocket for the $1,800 dollars worth of jewelery. 

My wife just came back from the pawn shop and discovered that he had been there in January and pawned several other pieces of jewelery, plus something for a friend he runs around with. More lies, and now this seems to be much more serious than we thought.

I am sure many have faced this type of issue, but since we live in a small town, we are faced with not wanting to make these incidents public knowledge. 

Before today, we forgave another costly incident in September 2010, and now this mindless theft for no real purpose, leaves us in a real dilemma. It is going to be very hard for me to trust him again, and I am sure that my wife, who is usually more compassionate that I, will have the same issues to deal with in her mind. There don't seem to be any easy answers to this situation as I type these words.

The real issue is when and if  you should prosecute your relatives for grand-theft, or do you give them another chance?

Why does the US Gov Fund Mosques with US Taxpayer Dollars, You Might Ask?

This title is outrageous enough! With our nation facing the worst debt crises in our history we read about more fraud, theft, and deception in the budgeting of our hard-earned tax dollars. Listen and view this U-Tube report on the waste of the US taxpayer dollars.

This U-Tube concerns every single one of us!

Charlie Courtois

THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM

Yesterday, was a non-computer day….The monitor died, the box didn’t seem to work, and one of my wife’s closest friend’s husband committed suicide. We were discombobulated all day to say the least. Without a working monitor I learned something new today! It will help many weak and agnostic people think about facts seldom ever considered.

THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM

“We saw His star in the east and we have come to worship Him.”
—Matthew 2:2

Here is a six minute trailer about this production. There are some things that come along that can capture your attention, this is one of them. For believers, and for non-believers who claim there is no proof of Jesus Christ, and that He is a myth, you will see tangible proof of what the people of Israel saw and knew over 2000 years ago. The DVD is one hour, and when you get through watching it, you will do so a second time and maybe a third time. I did! If you are like me, I shunned Astronomy, still do to this day. This DVD really opened my eyes.

Words are not enough! Just watch the trailer, and you’ll want to get it and view it. I have no vested interest in the production or distribution of this material. I just think it is a fascinating discovery of scientific scholarship. Science truly complements religion, and does not contradict it.

THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM

Watch the DVD, you'll be amazed.


“We saw His star in the east and we have come to worship Him.”
—Matthew 2:2

Here is a six minute trailer about this production. There are some things that come along that can capture your attention, this is one of them. For believers, non-believers who claim there is no proof of Jesus Christ, and that He is a myth. The DVD we just got is one hour, and we you get through watching it, you do a second time and maybe a third. I did.

 This information will turn many heads!