Community Chat

[gloriajean]

God gives abundantly to those who pass His gifts on to others. Lord, let
Your blessings flow in to me and then out from me. I will neither be
selfish
nor let my gifts stagnate.


Scripture for the day:

"For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the
things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set
their minds on the things of the Spirit." ~Romans 8:5

Meditation for the day:

God can draw us all closer to God in the bonds of the spirit. God
would have all people drawn closer to each other in the bonds of the
spirit. God, the great spirit of the universe, of which each of our
spirits is a part, wants unity with God and all God's children.
"Unity of the spirit in the bonds of peace." Each experience of our
life, of joy, of sorrow, of danger, of safety, of difficulty, of
success, of hardship, of ease, each can be accepted as part of our
common lot, n the bonds of the spirit.

Prayer for the day:

I pray that I may welcome the bonds of true fellowship. I pray that I
may be brought closer to unity with God and other people.

Hello my friends! Today was really a warm day - very nice out in the patio!
It was an ordinary day - made chow mein for supper because I had left over
rice and chicken, now I have left over chow mein which will be good for a
meal tomorrow. I chopped all the veggies plus mushrooms in the food
processor and they were done in no time. Love my stainless steel large
skillet! Today I typed a long letter to Father Al, remember he's in a
Nursing Home. His mind is very clear, nothing wrong with that, but his body
is not so good anymore, he said yesterday that he needs the walker and
someone always has to be helping him, like a dog on a leash! He is my
sister's age and from my hometown. Fr. Jerry would tell me how Fr. Al was
doing, and it was not good physically - but we have good conversations on
the phone. Linus called the appliance store this morning, and they said
that it's getting closer when they can use him. He's also going to go to
the Good Earth Food Store tomorrow because they are looking for help, so
he'll want to inquire what they are looking for. One good benefit there
would be a good discount on the groceries, but he doesn’t know if they want
full time help or part time. Also he won't work Sundays anymore.
Sorry to be rattlin' on - my blessings this day - a big blessing was that he
lost his wallet, I prayed to St. Anthony, and it was found in the car under
the seat! It was frantic here for awhile looking and calling places.
Finally after awhile he asked if I prayed to St. Anthony, because he found
it, and didn't know how it got there, he had looked in the car before!
It's good to call upon our Saints for help.

PRAYER TO MARY CONSOLER OF THE AFFLICTED

O Immaculate Mary, Dear Mother, Consoler , I take refuge in your most
lovable Heart with all the trust of which I am capable .You shall be
dearest object of my love and my veneration.

From you , the dispenser of heavenly treasures , I shall always seek
peace in my troubles, light in my doubts, defence in my dangers, help in
my needs .

Be therefore my refuge my strength, my consolation O Mary Consoler .

At the hour of my death , graciously receive the last beats of my heart,
and obtain for me a place in that heavenly country,where as one , all
hearts shall praise forever the adorable Heart of Jesus , with your
most lovable Heart , O Mary , my Mother, Consoler of the Afflicted ,
pray for us , who have recourse to you.

1. I believe that if anything is worth doing, it would have been done
already.

2. I shall never move quickly, except to avoid more work or find excuses.

3. I will never rush into a job without a lifetime of consideration.

4. I shall meet all of my deadlines directly in proportion to the amount of
bodily injury
I could expect to receive from missing them.

5. I firmly believe that tomorrow holds the possibility for new
technologies, astounding discoveries,
and a reprieve from my obligations.

6. I truly believe that all deadlines are unreasonable regardless of the
amount of time given.7. I shall never forget that the probability of a
miracle, though infinitely small, is not exactly zero.

8. If at first I don’t succeed, there is always next year.

9. I shall always decide not to decide, unless of courses I decide to change
my mind.

10. I shall always begin, start, initiate, take the first step, and/or write
the first word,
when I get around to it

11. I obey the law of inverse excuses which demands that the greater
the task to be done, the more insignificant the work that must be done prior
to beginning
the greater task.

12. I know that the work cycle is not plan/start/finish, but wait/plan/plan.



May God bless you with discomfort
at easy answers, half truths, superficial relationships,
so that you will live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people,
so that you will work for justice, equality and peace.

May God bless you with tears
to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war,
so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and change their pain
into joy.

And may God bless you with the foolishness
to think that you can make a difference in the world,
so that you will do the things which others tell you cannot be done.








By a misplaced blow with a hammer, a man smashed one of his thumbs.
"That's too bad," said a friend, when he heard about the accident.

But the man was a kind of philosopher. He replied, "No, it isn't. It is one
of the best things that ever happened to me. It taught me to appreciate
thumb. I never knew its value to me before. On the first day, by actual
count, I found out after I injured my thumb, that there were 257 things I
had been doing with my thumb everyday in my life, without giving it a
thought. And I never realized that my thumb is practically indispensable to
me."

We never seem to value our commonest blessings until we are deprived of
them. Someone has remarked (evidently from personal experience) that the
best thing that can happen to us is to lose everything we've got and then
get it all back again.

The second time around, we'll treasure it and appreciate it much much more.

TIME TO THINK
Author Unknown
October 8, 2009


My brother-in-law opened the bottom drawer of my sister's bureau and
lifted out a tissue-wrapped package.

"This," he said, "is not a slip. This is lingerie." He discarded the
tissue and handed me the slip. It was exquisite; silk, handmade and
trimmed with a cobweb of lace. The price tag with an astronomical
figure on it was still attached. "Jan bought this the first time we
went to New York, at
least 8 or 9 years ago. She never wore it. She was saving it for a
special occasion. Well, I guess this is the occasion." He took the
slip from me and put it on the bed with the other clothes we were
taking to the mortician. His hands lingered on the soft material for a
moment, then he slammed the drawer shut and turned to me. "Don't ever
save anything for a special occasion. Every day you're alive is a
special occasion."

I remembered those words through the funeral and the days that
followed when I helped him and my niece attend to all the sad chores
that follow an unexpected death. I thought about them on the plane
returning to California from the Midwestern town where my sister's
family lives. I thought about all the things that she hadn't seen or
heard or done. I thought about the things that she had done without
realizing that they were special.

I'm still thinking about his words, and they've changed my life. I'm
reading more and dusting less. I'm sitting on the deck and admiring
the view without fussing about the weeds in the garden. I'm spending
more time with my family and friends and less time in committee
meetings. Whenever possible, life should be a pattern of experience to
savor, not endure. I'm trying to recognize these moments now and
cherish them. I'm not "saving" anything; we use our good china and
crystal for every special event-such as losing a pound, getting the
sink unstopped, the first camellia blossom. I wear my good blazer to
the market if I like it. My theory is if I look prosperous, I can
shell out $28.49 for one small bag of groceries without wincing. I'm
not saving my good perfume for special parties; clerks in hardware
stores and tellers in banks have noses that function as well as my
party-going friends. "Someday" and "one of these days" are losing
their grip on my vocabulary. If it's worth seeing or hearing or doing,
I want to see and hear and do it now.

I'm not sure what my sister would've done had she known that she
wouldn't be here for the tomorrow we all take for granted. I think she
would have called family members and a few close friends. She might
have called a few former friends to apologize and mend fences for past
squabbles. I like to think she would have gone out for a Chinese
dinner, her favorite food. I'm guessing - I'll never know.

It's those little things left undone that would make me angry if I
knew that my hours were limited. Angry because I put off seeing good
friends whom I was going to get in touch with - "someday". Angry
because I hadn't written certain letters that I intended to write -
one of these days. Angry and sorry that I didn't tell my husband and
daughter often enough how much I truly love them.

I'm trying very hard not to put off, hold back, or save anything that
would add laughter and luster to our lives. And every morning when I
open my eyes, I tell myself that it is special.

Every day, every minute, every breath truly is... a gift from God.

May God litter your life with blessings!

"You've got to dance like nobody's watching, and love like it's never
going to hurt."

"People say true friends must always hold hands, but true friends
don't need to hold hands because they know the other hand will always
be there."

May your Tuesday be filled with many blessings! God bless everything you
do.