Community Chat

[gloriajean]

Hello my friends! Peace of Jesus to you all! Today was busy, but filled with many blessings along the way, like our Lord loves to do for us! We overslept for our morning Mass, so went to the noon one at the Cathedral - Ray and Ann were there, and we met up with them again at the Good Earth Food Co-op where we both shop - mostly organic. Ray has to be so careful with what he eats, no sugar at all, or he gets sick. No meats with stuff added, it's the stuff added that is no good for you - we don't buy meats that are not clean either, so we had a nice visit at the store. There is nothing there made in China! Anyway, that was one blessing, we had Ollie here today, so got to see Lori, another blessing, and Ollie was good. Another blessing - thanks, Harlene, for the beautiful hand painted Thanksgiving card which came in the mail today. She is so talented!! May I share with you a recipe I make often, and will make it tomorrow. I bought some blackberry syrup made in Minnesota, up north, so I'm anxious to try it with this:

Apple Pancakes

1 egg

1 cup or more of buttermilk or yogurt

3/4 cup flour, any kind

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup wheat germ (I've substituted Oat Bran)

1 grated apple which I grate in the food processor

Mix together.

Here are the inspirations:

We are judged by our actions, not by our intentions. Lord, may I show

my love for You through charity and goodness toward others.

Scripture for the day:

"Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may

give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise." ~Psalm 106:47

Meditation for the day:

We can always remember that we are weak but that God is strong. God knows

all about our weakness. God hears every cry for mercy, every sign of

weakness, every plea for help, and every sorrow over every failure, every

weakness felt and expressed. We only fail when we trust too much

in our own strength. We need not feel bad about our weakness. When we are

weak, that is when God is strong to help us. When we trust God enough, our

weakness will not matter. God is always strong to save.

Prayer for the day:

I pray that I may learn to lean on God's strength. I pray that I may know

that my weakness is God's opportunity.

My Hand In God´s

Each morning when I wake I say,

"I place my hand in God's today;"

I know He'll walk close by my side

My every wandering step to guide.

He leads me with the tenderest care

When paths are dark and I despair---

No need for me to understand

If I but hold fast to His hand.

My hand in His! No surer way

to walk in safety through each day.

By His great bounty I am fed;

Warmed by His love, and comforted.

When at day's end I seek my rest

And realize how much I'm blessed,

My thanks pour out to Him; and then

I place my hand in God's again.

By Florence Scripps Kellogg

LOOPHOLES FOR DETERMINED SINNERS

by Sharon Bouriaque

1. If you must envy, envy the woman who hugged the feet of the eternal God,

or envy the children He held in His arms.

2. If you must steal, steal more time away from your daily routine and spend

it with Jesus.

3. If you must murder, work on crucifying the "old man" who lives inside

each born-again believer. [Caution: The old reprobate is extremely hard to

kill and does not tend to stay dead very long.]

4. If you must lie, tell the "old man" he can do as he pleases today.

5. If you must be a man of strife, put on the whole armor of God and

remember that we war not against flesh and blood, but against principalities

and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, and against

spiritual wickedness in high places.

6. If you must "get high" be intoxicated with the Holy Spirit.

7. If you must fear, fear that within yourself which can cause you to fall.

8. If you must be angry, rage against those sin-weaknesses in yourself.

9. If you must covet, covet those things that be of God: love, joy, peace,

longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.

10. If you must hate, hate the works of the flesh: adultery, fornication,

uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance,

emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness,

revellings, etc.

11. If you must be overly ambitious, reach for a star: " ... To him who

overcomes, I will give the Morning Star." Rev. 2:26 & 28.

12. If you must be lazy, lie down in His green pastures and walk beside His

still waters.

13. If you must be shameless, walk this earth boldly, having no shame of

your King or His gospel.

14. If you must be gluttonous, open your mouth wide for God to fill. Psalm

81:10

15. If you must be stubborn, trust in the Lord and you'll be as Mount Zion,

which cannot be removed, but which abides forever.

16. If you must be nosy, poke your nose into the gospel of Christ, which is

something angels desire to look into. I Peter 1:12

JUST "DO IT"

By Marion Smith

Ephesians 6:11-13put on the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of

righteousness, the belt of truth, the shoes of peace ,and I would

pick up the sword of the spirit and the shield of faith

I was so delighted when I finally memorized the pieces of the armor of

God, as Paul tells us about in the Bible-Ephesians 6:11-13. I would

put on the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the

belt of truth, the shoes of peace ,and I would pick up the sword of

the spirit and the shield of faith.

This entire procedure would take place as I lay in bed each morning.

I felt like I was really equipping myself against Satan, and to a

certain degree, I was. All my bravado came crashing down one day, as

fear of an impending airline flight began to creep into my mind. I

have always been afraid to fly, but I thought I had overcome this

apprehension, with God’s help. I wrestled with all the negative

thoughts Satan kept placing in my mind, trying to dispel the dread

that increasingly crept into my mind and heart. I was still putting on

the armor of God each morning, wondering how Satan could get such a

hold on me . I asked my prayer partners to pray for me, helping me

overcome this unrealistic fear. I was ashamed that I didn’t have more

faith in God, and that I allowed Satan to grab me like that. Well, the

prayers were answered, because my fears were totally destroyed and I

really enjoyed my flight .

After I returned home I began to think about the armor passage in

the Bible. It dawned on me –more was needed with some of those

pieces of armor that just placement on the body. Take the sword of

the spirit(God’s Word)..I needed to have scripture handy- ready to

rebuke Satan as he whispered his lies into my ears. And what had I

done with the shield I picked up each morning? I guess I must have

just grabbed it limply and left it dangling at my side. This shield is

made up of my beliefs, and was intended to quench the fiery arrows of

Satan. God gave me that shield to USE, quenching those fiery arrows .

I needed to pick it up and reject those lies from Satan.

The same is true for the belt of truth. I pray if I am ever tempted to

lie or deceive anyone, that belt would just squeeze me tight –getting

my attention about living my life God’s way. Also, those shoes of

peace- I need to point them down the path of amity when conflicts

arise.

Yes, I need to put on my armor each morning, but I also need to take

these pieces and USE them. Yes, I need to “Just Do

It”!!!!!

Brings tears to one's eyes:

A man from Norfolk , VA called a local radio station to share this on Sept

11th, 2003, TWO YEARS AFTER THE TRAGEDIES OF 9/11/2001.

His name was Robert Matthews. These are his words:

A few weeks before Sept. 11th, my wife and I found out we were going to have

our first child. She planned a trip out to California to visit her sister.

On our way to the airport, we prayed that God would grant my wife a safe

trip and be with her. Shortly after I said 'amen,' we both

heard a loud pop and the car shook violently. We had blown out a tire. I

replaced the tire as quickly as I could, but we still missed her flight.

both very upset, we drove home.

I received a call from my father who was retired NYFD. He asked what my

wife's flight number was, but I explained that we missed the flight.

My father informed me that her flight was the one that crashed into the

southern tower. I was too shocked to speak. My father also had more news for

me; he was going to help. 'This is not something I can't just sit by for; I

have to do something.'

I was concerned for his safety, of course, but more because he had never

given his life to Christ. After a brief debate, I knew his mind was made

up.. Before he got off of the phone, he said, 'take good care of my

grandchild. Those were the last words I ever heard my father say; he died

while helping in the rescue effort.

My joy that my prayer of safety for my wife had been answered quickly became

anger. I was angry at God, at my father, and at myself. I had gone for

nearly two years blaming God for taking my father away. My son would never

know his grandfather, my father had never accepted Christ, and I never got

to say good-bye.

Then something happened. About two months ago, I was sitting at home with my

wife and my son, when there was a knock on the door. I looked at my wife,

but I could tell she wasn't expecting anyone. I opened the door to a couple

with a small child.

The man looked at me and asked if my father's name was Jake Matthews. I told

him it was. He quickly grabbed my hand and said, 'I never got the chance to

meet your father, but it is an honor to meet his son.'

He explained to me that his wife had worked in the World Trade Center and

had been caught inside after the attack. She was pregnant and had been

caught under debris. He then explained that my father had been the one to

find his wife and free her. My eyes welled up with tears as I thought of my

father giving his life for people like this. He then said, 'there is

something else you need to know.'

His wife then told me that as my father worked to free her, she talked to

him and led him to Christ. I began sobbing at the news.

Now I know that when I get to Heaven, my father will be standing beside

Jesus to welcome me, and that this family would be able to thank him

themselves .

When their baby boy was born, they named him Jacob Matthew, in honor of the

man who gave his life so that a mother and baby could live.

This story should help us to realize this: God is always in control.

We may not see the reason behind things, and we may never know this side of

heaven, but God is ALWAYS in control.

Please take time to share this amazing story. You may never know the impact

it may have on someone. God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the

called.

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His love endures Forever. Psalm

136:1