Community Chat

[gloriajean]

To reach Heaven, we must sail. Sometimes we sail with the wind and sometimes
against the wind,
but we must sail, not drift or be anchored. Lord, Thy Will be done so that I
will stay on course all
the days of my life.

Scripture for the day:

"Prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on
the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed. Like
obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires that you formerly had
in ignorance. Instead, as he who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in
all your conduct; for it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'"
~1 Peter 1:13-16

Meditation for the day:

No work is of value without preparation. Every spiritual work needs to have
behind it much spiritual preparation. If we cut short times and prayer and
times of spiritual preparation, many hours of work may be profitless. One
poor tool working all the time, but doing bad work because of lack of
preparation is of small value compared with the sharp, keen, perfect
instrument working for only a short time, but which turns out perfect word
because of long hours of spiritual preparation.

Prayer for the day:

I pray that I may spend more time alone with God. I pray that I may get
more strength and joy from such times, so that they will add much to my
work.

Greetings my friends! Where did the weekend go? Well, it was a good weekend
for us here - hope it was for you all too. Koda got picked up tonight, so
things are back to normal now. He wasn't any trouble at all. He slept with
us - Sammy too sometimes. but mostly Sammy sleeps on the floor. I asked
what breed he is - he's part Westie and part Yorkie.
Today was filled with a lot of blessings for us. First a great Mass and
Homily by our own Father Matthew. Then Linus's brother and sister-in-law
came over for a visit, a nice, long visit, and that was so nice! They
brought us some fish (another blessing) they live on the lake. And we got a
phone call from Ester - remember the Filipino we visited in California 3
years ago? Jodi took over the thread then. She mentioned her husband,
Larry, has had heart surgery in the past, and tomorrow he's having an
angiogram done. She goes to the Philippines in the summers to do Mission
work - she teaches, has taught all her life! She's in California now until
June. She and Larry plan to visit us this spring - can hardly wait to see
them again. We've known them all our married lives. Met her when she
taught religion and Linus was the co-ordinator then and I was the secretary
plus I worked at the Catholic School one year being the Secretary until they
didn't need one anymore, so we got to know Ester well. She was on a visa
from the Philippines for teaching. Linus taught her how to drive, I taught
her how to cook and bake and she never will forget all the fun she had with
us. She taught us some Filipina dishes, and taught us how to play tennis.
She was such a good tennis player. She always was small, about 100 pounds or
less. Still is. Then her visa was up and she was told she had to go back to
the Philippines - she quickly called Larry - know only shortly, dated some,
and asked him to marry her so she could stay here, he was in the Navy, and
they married and Linus was best man! Yes, they are special to us. So it
was such a blessing phone call!! I'm sure there'll be more blessings
tomorrow - even if they are ordinary! Hope Linus' knee won't hurt too bad.
He will wear a brace. If so, he may have to go the Workman's comp again
being it's work related and he may have to have that surgery. Praying he
won't - but God's will be done! Maybe that's the way God will heal him.
Sorry to have babbled on so much tonight!!


Follow Jesus

Study Jesus Christ and his divine doctrine,
and then follow his illustrious example.

from Quiet Moments With Padre Pio: 120 Daily Reading


This Prayer to St. Joseph is over 1900 years old, from the "Pieta Prayer
Booklet".

O St. Joseph whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the
Throne of God,
I place in you all my interest and desires. O St. Joseph do assist me by
your powerful
intercession and obtain for me from your Divine Son all spiritual blessings
through Jesus Christ, Our Lord; so that having engaged here below
your Heavenly power I may offer my Thanksgiving and Homage
to the Loving of Fathers.
O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating you and Jesus asleep
in your arms. I dare not approach while He reposes
near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss
His fine Head for me, and ask Him to return
the Kiss when I draw my dying breath.
St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls, pray for us. Amen.

Say for nine consecutive mornings for anything you may desire.
It has seldom been known to fail.

Save Us, Lord

We implore You, Master,
to be our helper and protector.
Save the afflicted among us;
have mercy on the lowly;
raise up the fallen;
appear to the needy;
heal the ungodly; restore the
wanderers of thy people;
feed the hungry;
ransom our prisoners;
raise up the sick;
comfort the faint-hearted.
Amen.

Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Getting Along Better

Proven Ways to Get Along Better With EVERYONE
Before you say anything to anyone, ask yourself 3 things:

Is it true?
Is it kind?
Is it necessary?

Make promises sparingly and keep them faithfully.

Never miss the opportunity to compliment or say something encouraging to
someone.

Refuse to talk negatively about others; don't gossip and don't listen to
gossip.

Have a forgiving view of people. Believe that most people are doing the best
they can.

Keep an open mind; discuss, but don't argue. (It is possible to disagree
without being disagreeable.)

Forget about counting to 10. Count to 1,000 before doing or saying anything
that could make matters worse.

Let your virtues speak for themselves.

If someone criticizes you, see if there is any TRUTH to what he is saying;
if so, make changes. If there is no truth to the criticism, ignore it and
live so that no one will believe the negative remark.

Cultivate your sense of humor; laughter is the shortest distance between two
people.

Do not seek so much to be consoled, as to console; do not seek so much to be
understood, as to understand; do not seek so much to be loved as to love.

[Author Unknown]

TOMORROW IS NOT PROMISED

Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they were
meant to be there, they serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or
help figure out who you are and who you want to become.

You never know who these people may be: your neighbor, child, long lost
friend, lover, or even a complete stranger who, when you lock eyes with
them, you know at that very moment that they will affect your life in some
profound way.

And sometimes things happen to you and at the time they seem painful and
unfair, but in reflection you realize that without overcoming those
obstacles you would have never realized your potential strength, will power,
or heart.

Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens by chance or by means of
good or bad luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness and
sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul.

Without these small tests, whether they be events, illnesses or
relationships, life would be like a smoothly paved straight flat road to
nowhere, safe and comfortable, but dull and utterly pointless.

The people you meet who affect your life and the successes and downfalls you
experience create who you are, and even the bad experiences can be learned
from. In fact, they are probably the poignant and important ones.

If someone hurts you, betrays you or breaks your heart, forgive them, for
they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious
to whom you open your heart...

If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they
love you, but because they are teaching you to love and opening your heart
and eyes to things you would have never seen or felt without them.

Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take from it everything
that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again...

Talk to people you have never talked to before, and actually listen, let
yourself fall in love, break free and set your sights high...

Hold your head up because you have every right too. Tell yourself you are a
great individual and believe in yourself... for if you don't believe in
yourself, no one else will believe in you either.

Create your own life and then go out and live in it! "Live Each Day As If It
Were Your Last...Tomorrow is Not Promised"

.....Author Unknown

"Stepping Stones"


The Lord came to me like a dream one day and asked, "why do you sorrow?"
I answered, "Lord my life is so full of pain, I can't face one more
tomorrow."

The Lord sat down beside me, and gently took my hand.
He said, "Let Me explain to you, and then you'll understand.

Each sorrow is a stepping stone you must surmount each day,
And every stepping stone you climb is a sorrow that's passed away.

The road of life is a mountainside, with crevices in which to be caught,
But as you struggle on your way, I, the Rock, will lend support.

Every stepping stone you climb, makes spirit and heart grow strong.
Exercising character and faith, this road seems painful and long.

The way is paved with stepping stones, to uplift your heart and soul,
Though difficult, they aid your way, to a City paved with gold.

I know that you are tired, for I too have walked this way,
My sorrows did they multiply, but I cleared many stones away.

I left My Rock to lift you up, I left behind My story.
To give you strength to make your climb, to that special place in glory.

And never fear, the Rock is here, you'll never climb this mountain alone.
Surmount life's sorrows, continue on, for they are but stepping stones.

--Author Unknown

WANNA BE A PUMPKIN?
Author Unknown


A woman was asked by a coworker, "What is it like to be a Christian?"

The coworker replied, "It is like being a pumpkin. God picks you from
the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. Then he
cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the
seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc., and then He carves you a new
smiling
face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to
see."

This was passed on to me from another pumpkin. Now, it is your turn to
pass it to a pumpkin. I liked this enough to send it to all the
pumpkins
in my patch.

-- Liz Curtis-Higgs

PUMPKINS & JESUS

P is for the People that Jesus came to save
U is for the Unconditional love to each one He gave
M is for the Message that we should all be sharing
P is for the Priceless gift God above showed he is caring
K is for the King of Kings
I is for the Insight He brings
N is for the Nails in His hands
S is for our Savior who gave His life so that we could stand.

So when you see a pumpkin don't think about some guy named Jack.
Instead remember Jesus Christ, Lord of Lords, who is one day coming
back.

Daily Prayer


Lord, our God, may your Son reign in our minds
so that we may think as He would have us think.

May He rule our hearts
so that we may love as He would have us love.

May He direct our whole behaviour
that it may be more like His.

Lord, for what we have, we are so grateful.

Help us especially to be sensitive and generous towards
others.
And finally, may we really want your Kingdom to come.

Amen.

May peace and love always be in your hearts, my friends! God bless you!
Enjoy His blessings.