Hello my friends! Please remember to pray for Bellabutterfly who will be going through surgery tomorrow (Friday) and will be hospitalized several days she posted. May God grant her a successful surgery and fast healing. Had a nice day here today, with Lori coming for lunch - Linus cooked a ham in the oven - at the house he'd grill it. It was good, and lots left over, so I'll be making ham and bean soup soon. I usually make it with dry beans and soak them overnight, haven't got them now, can you make it with cans of beans? Got black, pinto and kidney beans in cans. May God touch you with these inspirations.
To have a great day isn't always doing what you like, but trying to
like what you must do. Lord, today I will spruce up my attitude
and have a great day no matter what my circumstances.
S C R I P T U R E F O R T H E D A Y
"Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and
I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I
am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." ~Matthew 11:28-30
M E D I T A T I O N F O R T H E D A Y
Our spiritual life depends upon the unseen. To live the spiritual life
we can believe in the unseen. We can try not to lose the consciousness
of God's spirit in us and in others. As a child in its mother's arms,
we can stay sheltered in the understanding and love of God. God can
relieve us of the weight of worry and care, misery and depression, want
and woe, faintness and heartache, if we will allow it. We can lift up
our eyes from earth's troubles and view the glory of the unseen God.
Each day we can try to see more good in people, more of the unseen in
the seen.
P R A Y E R F O R T H E D A Y
I pray that I may rest and abide in the presence of the unseen God. I
pray that I may leave my burdens in God's care.
SYMPTOMS OF INNER PEACE
Author Unknown
* A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based
on past experiences.
* An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.
* A loss of interest in judging other people.
* A loss of interest in judging self.
* A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.
* A loss of interest in conflict.
* A loss of ability to worry (this is a very serious symptom).
* Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation.
* Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature.
* Frequent attacks of smiling.
* An increasing tendency to let things happen rather than make them
happen.
* An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well
as the uncontrollable urge to extend it.
TEN INCHES OF WATER
Author Unknown
A boy was sitting in a park bench with one hand resting on an open
Bible. He was loudly exclaiming his praise to God. Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! God is great! he yelled without worrying whether anyone
heard him or not.
Shortly after, along came a man who had recently completed some
studies at a local University. Feeling himself very enlightened in the
ways of truth and very eager to show this enlightenment, he asked the
boy about the source of his Joy.
Hey, asked the boy in return with a bright laugh, Don't you have any
idea what God is able to do? I just read that God opened up the waves
of the Red Sea and led the whole nation of Israel right through the
middle.
The enlightened man laughed lightly, sat down next to the boy and
began to try to open his eyes to the realities of the miracles of the
Bible. That can all be very easily explained. Modern scholarship has
shown that the Red Sea in that area was only 10 inches deep at that
time. It was no problem for the Israelites to wade across.
The boy was stumped. His eyes wandered from the man back to the Bible
lying open in his lap. The man, content that he had enlightened a poor
naive young person to the finer points of scientific insight turned to
leave.
Scarcely had he taken two steps when the boy began to rejoice and
praise louder than before. The man turned to ask the reason for this
resumed jubilation.
Wow! Exclaimed the boy happily, God is greater than I thought! Not
only did He lead the whole nation of Israel through the Red Sea, He
topped it off by drowning the whole Egyptian army in 10 inches of
water!
Christmas Reminders
May the Christmas presents remind you of God's greatest gift---His only begotten Son.
May the Christmas candles remind you of Him who is the Light of the world.
May the Christmas tree remind you of another tree on which He died for you.
May the Christmas cheer remind you of Him who said, "Be of good cheer."
May the Christmas feast remind you of Him who is the Bread of Life.
May the Christmas snow remind you of the cleansing power of Christ.
May the Christmas bells remind you of the glorious proclamation of His birth.
May the Christmas carols remind you of His glad tidings which we proclaim---to all mankind.
May the Christmas season remind you in every way of Jesus Christ your King.
Mary, Mother of Jesus
Mary, Mother of Jesus,
give me your heart
so beautiful, so pure,
so immaculate,
that I may be able to receive
Jesus in the Bread of Life,
love Him as you loved Him,
and serve Him as you served Him
in the distressing disguise
of the poorest of the poor.
Amen.
Prayer composed by
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
Advent Day 5 - God's Holy Mountain
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Waiting, expecting, hoping, anticipating—somehow these speak to the depths of our hearts, probably because our whole existence here below is characterized precisely by these attitudes. The world is filled with wonderful things and experiences—deep joys and satisfactions. But we all know that nothing here below finally satisfies us or gives us the joy that we ultimately want. In fact, it is usually the best times in life, rather than the worst, that awaken in us most fully this longing and searching.
No matter how much we know, we want to know more; no matter how much we love, we want greater love; no matter how much beauty we attain, we sense that there is a perfect beauty that we haven’t seen. This attitude of longing is ingredient in the structure of our consciousness.
The prophet Isaiah was someone who knew this attitude well. He gives us, in the second chapter of his book, an image that has burned its way into the consciousness of believers up and down the centuries: the image of God’s holy mountain, the place where the deepest longings of the heart are fulfilled.
Where is this holy mountain? Well, the mountain of the Lord’s house is Zion, where the temple of Yahweh was situated. It was the place of right praise. According to the Bible, the key to happiness, and the fulfilment of our longing, is nothing other than right praise and worship of the true God. For when we give glory to God in the highest, we rightly order all of our desires: we love God first and then all other things for the sake of God.
Bad praise—getting this order out of whack—is always what goes wrong with us. When we allow the mountains of wealth, or pleasure, or power, or honor to become the highest mountain, we experience emptiness and longing.
But when the worship of the true God is established as the highest mountain, then it will function as a magnet, drawing all people to itself. This beautiful image haunted all of the tribes and nations streaming toward Zion and continues to haunt the religious imagination of believers all over the world. It's to that mountain we go. |
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