No gift is so precious as love. Gratefully trust God and give Him your love.
Lord, I give You my heart.
Scripture for the day:
"Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus
Christ, the Father's Son, in truth and love." ~2 John 1:3
Meditation for the day:
God is with us, to bless and help us. God's spirit is all around us.
We need not waver in our faith or in our prayers. All power is God's.
We can say that to ourselves often and steadily. We can say it until our
hearts sing with joy for the safety and personal power that it can mean to
us. We can say it until the very force of the utterance drives back and puts
to nothing all the evils around us. We can use it as a battle cry. All
power is the Lord's. Then we can pass on to victory over all our sins and
temptations, and we can begin to live a victorious life.
Prayer for the day:
I pray that with strength from God I may lead an abundant life. I pray that
I may lead a life of victory.
Hello my friends! Hope you all had a good day today! It was really nice out
today - hubby and I enjoyed the birds from our patio while having coffee in
the morning as usual and just being there is full of God's blessings all
around! Hubby had the day off and got a lot of jobs done around here
including the lawn being mowed. I got some drawers cleaned out. Seems like
there's no end to that. My writing desk and other drawers are cleaned out!!
Been playing Scrabble on Facebook with Lori and friends, and sometimes Linus
comes and helps me with it! He seems to enjoy that! Didn't have to cook
today - left-over soup is always good and we went to Mass at noon today and
after that we went to Perkins. I love their Butterball Turkey Dinner!
I was really hungry by then too. Other than this, just an ordinary day with
lots of ordinary blessings from the King of Kings! Grateful for them all!
Homily of the Day
August 24, 2011
Holiness of Heart
by Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.
Rv 21:9b-14 / Jn 1:45-51
Why this reading today from John? It is believed that Bartholomew and
Nathanael are one and the same. Well then, what was Nathanael Bartholomew
(son of Tholomy?) doing beneath the fig tree?
Something I read once suggested he was reading or reflecting on one of the
psalms as he sat beneath the fig tree. Maybe it was one of these:
Psalm 17 " a cry for justice from the Psalmist. Was Nathanael crying out for
justice in his day as he looked at his own life and the lives of his fellow
Jews in the Roman occupation?
Psalm 24 " a call to worship. Was Nathanael seeing himself as unworthy to
praise God, and Jesus called him worthy when they met?
Psalm 32 " confession of sin, similar to Psalm 24 in this respect. Did
Nathanael see a need for cleansing that he met in the Son of God?
Psalms 34, 35, 36, 52, 55, and 119 also have the word for guile in them.
Look at them all for similar ideas.
(WARNING: Psalm 119 is the longest psalm in the Bible. You could spend a
long time looking through that one! The word shows up in verse 78.)
I like this interpretation of our gospel reading for today. If I had to pick
a psalm Nathanael was reading, I would have to go with Psalm 24. There have
been many times I have felt unworthy of my calling to be a follower of
Jesus, let alone a priest. It is good to feel unworthy, as long as we also
know that Jesus has called us, set us free, and named us "without guile."
Today, beg the Lord for mercy. Cry out for holiness of heart. Then hear the
Lord say: "Now here is one I approve of."
I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.” Jeremiah 31:25
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1
Chronicles 16:34, Psalm 106:1, Psalm 107:1, Psalm 118:1, Psalm 136:1,
Jeremiah 33:11
Minute Vacations
It is good to take time to ‘stop and smell the roses’. It is good to
take vacations, where you can chill, and relax, and begin to notice
God’s handiwork all around you. It is refreshing; you can breathe it
into your soul.
But sometimes we can’t take vacation. We can’t get away from our
routine. Sometimes when our feet hit the floor in the morning, that’s
it! The only spare time you might have would be maybe the shower or in
the car! So you have to take minute vacations.
Minute vacations. Take a look out your window at the beautiful sky.
Glance at the flowers growing wild by the roadside. Look up to the
cloud patterns. See the brilliant shine on a tree with fresh
raindrops, the vivid variety of color in fruits and vegetables-
ordinary, every-day things. Take a deep breath, and realize, God is so
good, thank you Lord! Just begin to thank Him. It’s amazing what can
happen simply by doing a seemingly insignificant thing like this.
It is good to take minute vacations, Especially when it is out of
doors. There is something healing about being outside, even for a
brief moment. And thank the Lord; it’s habit-forming! An attitude of
gratitude will take you far, definitely promote change – a lightness
in your step and a smile in your heart.
Thank you Lord for helping us be aware of endless Minute Vacations
that you provide each day for us, amen.
inspirational messages by Sally I. Kennedy
Bless me, O Lord
Heavenly Father, Almighty God.
I humble myself before your Presence. What a joy it is to come to you.
I thank you and I praise for your infinite Majesty, Omnipotence and
Perfections.
Please forgive me all my sins.
Lord I come to you in my nothingness.
I want to worship you and adore you, to love you with all my heart, with all
my mind, with all my soul and with all my strength.
I want to burn with desire for you like an angel.
I need you my Lord, I am nothing without you.
I ask you to raise me before your Glory.
Shine your light upon me, allow me to walk with you and always do your Holy
Will , protect me and bless me O Merciful Lord.
Fill me with your Holy Spirit, grant me peace, love and joy. Heal me, bless
me and sanctify me O Lord; make me a blessing for all those around me.
Amen.
Good night all - Sweet Dreams - God bless your day!
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