Among Friends

[gloriajean]

Hello my friends!  Hope your Friday is going well.  We are meeting Darla and Greg tonight at 6:30 at a furniture store - they are getting new livingroom furniture, recliners to rock babies etc. and then we are going out to dinner somewhere with them.  15 weeks she is now, still a high risk, but we keep praying they will be born healthy. With identical twins in one placenta there's the risk of one twin eating the other twins food, so that has to be monitored. So far so good.  

Please keep Darla and her twins in your prayers and I thank you!

Do not be afraid to ask everything of God. He is always present and always

loving us. Lord, I trust in You and ask for Your help in all that I do and need

and want. I also ask for Your help in accepting Your answers when they are

different than I would want or expect.

S C R I P T U R E   F O R   T H E   D A Y 

"Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but
I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I
do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,  I
press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ
Jesus."  ~Philippians 3:12-14

M E D I T A T I O N   F O R   T H E   D A Y 

In a race, it is when the goal is in sight that the heart and nerves and
muscles and courage are strained almost to the breaking point.  So with us.
The goal of the spiritual life is in sight.  All we need is the final
effort.  The saddest records are made by people who ran well, with brave,
stout hearts, until the sight of the goal ... and then some weakness or
self-indulgence held them back.  They never knew how near the goal they were
or how near they were to victory.

P R A Y E R   F O R   T H E   D A Y 

I pray that I may press on until the goal is reached.  I pray that I may not
give up in the final stretch.

Lenten Reflections by Bishop Robert Barron

Lent Day 3

Freedom from Sin

The Church speaks the deepest truth about sin. It refuses to explain it away or make excuses for it or call it by another name. This is one reason for the Church’s deep unpopularity throughout the ages.

Do you remember that terrible story from the fall of 2006 in which a mad man made his way into an Amish school house in Pennsylvania and killed, in cold blood, five little girls and then himself? It would be hard to imagine a more heinous crime.

Yet, in the immediate wake of that terrible event, the families of the slain children went to visit the family of the man who had killed their little girls—and they pronounced their forgiveness of him. Their wounds, psychological and emotional, must have been as evident as the physical wounds on their kids.

And yet, they pronounced forgiveness. Mind you, it was not so much their own peace that they were offering; it was Christ’s peace, the peace beyond all understanding. But they were vehicles of it, the means by which it rushed into the world.

Can I suggest a reading of Christ’s words to the disciples that might be a tad surprising? “If you forgive men’s sins, they are forgiven them; if you hold them bound, they are held bound” (John 20:23). This does indeed have a juridical sense; Christ is indeed commissioning his priests to be the instruments of sacramental forgiveness. 

But I think that there is a broader sense here as well, a sense in which these words apply to all Christians, priests and laity alike. Jesus is giving his Church the enormous privilege and responsibility of bearing the divine forgiveness to a fallen world.

And see how the words of the Lord apply precisely: if you (my followers) forgive men’s sins, they are forgiven; and if you don’t, they are still held bound by them. 

The Church’s great mission is the pronouncement of the forgiveness of sins, the letting-free of a sin-bound world. 

Have you accepted that mission?

A Prayer To St. Joseph

 

O blessed Joseph, faithful guardian of my Redeemer, Jesus Christ, protector
of thy chaste spouse, the virgin Mother of God, I choose thee this day to
be my special patron and advocate and I firmly resolve to honor thee all
the days of my life. Therefore I humbly beseech thee to receive me as thy
client, to instruct me in every doubt, to comfort me in every affliction,
to obtain for me and for all the knowledge and love of the Heart of Jesus,
and finally to defend and protect me at the hour of my death. Amen

"I know by experience," says St. Teresa of Avila,

"that the glorious St. Joseph assists us generally in all necessities.

I never asked him for anything which he did not obtain for me."

A Prayer to St. Rita for sick people

Dear Rita, model Wife and Widow, you yourself suffered in a long illness showing patience out of love for God. Teach us to pray as you did. Many invoke you for help, full of confidence in your intercession. Deign to come now to our aid for the relief and cure of (name of sufferer). To God, all things are possible; may this healing give glory to the Lord. Amen.

  Being Christ's follower is a lifestyle! 

"ASSURANCE"

"they shall never perish"..........John 10:27-29
"yet shall he live"..........John 11:25,26
"is passed from death unto life"..........John 5:24
"neither death, nor life...shall...separate us"..........Romans 8:38,39
"an inheritance incorruptible"..........1 Peter 1:4

"WHEN FACED WITH TEMPTATIONS"

"tempation...is common to man"..........1 Corinthians 10:13
"the devil...seeking whom...devour"..........1 Peter 5:8,9
"the man that endureth temptation"..........James 1:12
"i have overcome the world"..........John 16:33
"do all things through Christ".......... Philippians 4:13

"IF SIN OCCUR"

"If we confess our sin"..........1 John 1:9
"return unto the Lord"..........Isaiah 55:7
"a contrite heart...wilt not despise"..........Psalm 51:17
"seek my face, and turn"..........2 Chronicles 7:14

"LIVING AS A CHRISTIAN"

"desire...milk of the word"..........1 Peter 2:2
"Thy word have I hid in mine heart"..........Psalm 119:11
"were written for our learning"..........Romans 3:16,17
Study to show thyself approved"..........2 Timothy 2:15

"PRAYER"No Matter Where I Go!

No matter how far away I go,
My Lord is always there.
No matter what the world may do to me, 
My Lord will always care.

In the darkest corner of the earth, 
God's light cannot be hid.
He stands beside me through the night, 
And I know that I am His.

What can this world do to me, 
Why do I no longer care, 
It is because my Lord stands beside me, 
All my sorrows and grieves to bear.

Be glad my brothers and sisters, 
Can't you feel it in the air, 
He stands before us waiting, 
Give Him your every care.

Lord God in heaven how I thank thee, 
For loving this simple little man, 
It is amazing that the King in all His glory, 
Would come down to hold this sinners hand.

I have seen so many wonders, 
And the beauty in this earthly land, 
But nothing can compare, 
With seeing Jesus hold your hand.

When Christ lifts us up to glory, 
We are no longer a part of this earthly land, 
Oh come with me sinner, come with me now, 
Come take hold of the Masters hand.

- Author Unknown

"by prayer and supplication"..........Philippians 4:6,7
"ye shall ask"..........John 15:7
"And when thou prayest"..........Matthew 6:5-15
"Praying always with all prayer"..........Ephesians 6:18
"Take ye heed, watch and pray"..........Mark 13:33

Suffering because we are Christians may tempt us to forsake our faith. memory of past experiences can give us courage to face present persecution. Christian endurance is never complete until our Master returns. We can trust Him. His reward justifies all the suffering we must endure. 
Read Hebrews 10:32-39.

THE HOMELESS MAN
Author Unknown


It was a cold winter's day that Sunday. The parking lot to the church
was filling up quickly. I noticed as I got out of my car that fellow
church members were whispering among themselves as they walked to the
church. As I got closer I saw a man leaned up against the wall outside
the church. He was almost laying down as if he was asleep. He had on a
long trench coat that was almost in shreds and a hat topped his head,
pulled down so you could not see his face.


He wore shoes that looked 30 years old, too small for his feet with
holes all over them, his toes stuck out. I assumed this man was
homeless, and asleep, so I walked on by through the doors of the
church. We all fellowshipped for a few minutes, and someone brought up
the man laying outside. People snickered and gossiped but no one
bothered to ask him to come in, including me.


A few moments later church began. We all waited for the Preacher to
take his place and to give us the Word, when the doors to the church
opened. In came the homeless man walking down the aisle with his head
down. People gasped and whispered and made faces. He made his way down
the aisle and up onto the pulpit he took off his hat and coat.


My heart sank.


There stood our preacher...he was the "homeless man." No one said a
word. The preacher took his Bible and laid it on the stand. "Folks, I
don't think I have to tell you what I am preaching about today." Then
he started singing the words to this song. "If I can help somebody as
I pass along. If I can cheer somebody with a word or song. If I can
show somebody that he's traveling wrong. Then my living shall not be
in vain."

"IS YOUR LIVING IN VAIN?"

February 12 - Jesus Calling

I am ever so near you, hovering over your shoulder, reading every thought. People think that thoughts are fleeting and worthless, but yours are precious to Me. I smile when you think lovingly of Me. My Spirit, who lives within you, helps you to think My thoughts. As your thinking goes, so goes your entire being.

Let Me be your positive Focus. When you look to Me, knowing Me as God with you, you experience Joy. This is according to My ancient design, when I first crafted man. Modern man seeks his positive focus elsewhere: in sports, sensations, acquiring new possessions. Advertising capitalizes on the longing of people for a positive focus in their lives. I planted that longing in human souls, knowing that only I could fully satisfy it. Delight yourself in Me; let Me become the Desire of your heart.

“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”
—Matthew 1:23

Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.
—Psalm 37:4

[luvswesties]

Hi Gloriajean, I am keeping Darla and those little babies in my prayers.  

God bless

[lovestopaint]

You know I will Gloria.

Blessings to all.

Harlene(lovestopaint)

[marmot24]

Good morning Gloria and all...I've been including Darla and babies in my daily prayers and I'm so happy to hear she's doing well. 

Thank you for printing the prayers to St. Joseph, I've been reading them daily also, praying for my daughter whose going thru a divorce. I've always loved St. Joseph and my oldest son's birthday is on March 19, St. Joseph's day.

Its bitter cold here in PA today, so we're staying inside. So blessed to have heat and a warm house.

update on baby Dakota...she over 7 pounds and doing fine, tho she has to drink soy milk now, as she was having some stomach issues.

Happy Valentines Day to all.  Marmot

[gloriajean]

Thanks much, luvswesties, Harlene and Marmot for your prayers for Darla and the babies.  I so appreciate all your prayers.  I have special devotion to St. Joseph, too, and I have that prayer I posted in my notes for prayer. I will pray for your daughter who's going thru a divorce, that's hard on parents.  Our  very cold is lifted now, for the next week we are having above zero temps, like 20's and 30's - a heat wave!!  Last night it was almost 20 below.  Thanks for letting us know how baby Dakota is doing, My girls had to drink soy milk too after nursing.