Community Chat

[gloriajean]

God never promised to make your troubles go away, but He did promise to give

you the strength and power to overcome them. Lord, when I am weak, strengthen

me, when I forget, remind me and when the day is done, accept my thanksgiving

because without You I am nothing.

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

"Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
~Matthew 6:10

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

I need pray only for strength and that God's will be done. I can use
God's unlimited store of strength for my needs. I can seek God's will
for me. I can strive for consciousness of God's presence, for God is
the light of the world. I have become a pilgrim, who needs only
marching orders and strength and guidance for this day.

P R A Y E R F O R T H E D A Y

I pray that I may seek God's guidance day by day. I pray that I may
strive to abide in God's presence.

Greetings to you, my friends! Hope you all had a good day today! I was blessed to day with a good nap, a call from Darla, talked a long time, and I made our evening meal with just left-overs from the fridge - left over meats, left over rice, left over mushrooms and onion, and fried them all together and added one can of mushroom soup and called it a meal. It was good and a good dish created with just leftovers. Then we went out tonight for cards. Met a new couple. Oh, and we won. Always nice meeting new people. Tomorrow sometime I do hope and pray I get my new computer back and don't lose a thing except the infections.

Monsignor Dennis Clark

Heb 1:1-6 / Mk 1:14-20

A young man was walking along the beach when he stumbled on a magic lantern. He rubbed the lantern and a genie popped out with a hearty greeting, "Have I got good news for you! This very afternoon you will receive three gifts: a miracle cure for all ailments, a huge diamond, and a dinner date with a famous movie star."

Of course, the young man was elated, so he rushed right home where he was greeted at the door by his mother. "Some odd things have being happening this afternoon," she said. "At noon someone delivered a barrel of chicken soup. A half hour later, a telegram came saying a long lost relative has left you a minor league baseball stadium, and just a few minutes ago, MGM called inviting you to dinner tonight with Lassie!"

+ + +

So much for good news! As with much of life, that fellow was raised up for a moment and then let down fast. We know the experience well: a hungry longing for something more, a momentary hope that it’s within our grasp, then disappointment and back to hungry longing.

It is to all of us who know that hungry longing that Jesus is speaking His invitation, "Come with Me! Follow in My path." Many of us are ready to say "Yes" to Him, but we still have a question: How do we follow Him? What is His way? We know the generic answer: Jesus’ way is the golden rule: "Love God with your whole heart and your neighbor as yourself." But how does that translate into the concrete? How do we actually put together a life out of that?

We begin by remembering that love is never in the abstract — general good feelings are nice but they aren’t love. Love is always in the concrete. We give our love and care to this specific person or that one at this specific moment or that. Furthermore, we love and care with what we have and with what we are, and not with what somebody else has or is.

The specific shape of the loving and caring to which we are called individually is defined by the specific gifts that God has entrusted to our personal care. That means, on the one hand, that you are very probably not called to be Mother Teresa, and I am definitely not called to be our parish organist. But it also means we have to work very hard at seeing, naming, and developing what are our own special gifts so that we can share those gifts with those who need what we have to give.

The deep and hungry longing for joy, which we all know so well, will never be fully satisfied in this life. But if we see, and name, and develop our own special gifts and then share them open-heartedly with all who need them, we’ll begin to experience the joy we’ve always longed for. We’ll begin to know the peace for which we were made.

That’s the Good News we’ve been waiting for! Joy and peace can be ours here and now! Thanks be to God!

"Prayer is the place of refuge for every worry, a foundation for cheerfulness, a source of constant happiness, a protection against sadness."

-- St. John Chrysostom

For Reflection:

Am I worried? Down-hearted? Unhappy or despondent? While there could be other reasons, is it possible that my emotional disposition is related to a lack of prayer? How have these words of St. John Chrysostom proven true at other times in my life? What resolution does this lead me to make?

You should not be fearful, for most of the things we fear never come to pass.

You should not cross bridges before one comes to them, for no one yet has succeeded in accomplishing this.

You should not take problems to bed with you, for they make very poor bedfellows.

You should not borrow other people's problems. They can better care for them than you can.

You should not try to relive yesterday for good or ill, it is forever gone. Concentrate on what is happening in your life and be happy now!

You should be a good listener, for only when you listen do you hear ideas different from your own. It is hard to learn something new when you are talking, and some people do know more than you do.

You should not become "bogged down" by frustration, for 90% of it is rooted in self-pity and will only interfere with positive action.

You should count thy blessings, never overlooking the small ones, for a lot of small blessings add up to a big one.

Finally, give thanks to the Lord, from whom all blessings come.

Just for today, Lord

I will live through the next 12 hours and not try to tackle all of life's problems at once.

I will improve my mind. I will learn something useful. I will learn something that requires effort, thought, and concentration.

I will be agreeable. I will look my best, speak in well-modulated voice, be courteous and considerate.

I will not find fault with friend, relative or colleague. I will not try to change or improve anyone other than myself.

I will have a program. I might not follow it exactly, but I will have it. I will save myself from two enemies, hurry and indecision.

I will do a good turn and keep it secret. If anyone finds out, it won't count.

I will do two things I don't want to do. Just for exercise.

I will believe in myself. I will give my best to the world and feel confident that the world will give it's best to me.

Closing Prayer:

St. Francis' Prayer of Discernment Said Before the Crucifix

Most High, glorious God,
enlighten the darkness of my heart,
and give me right faith,
certain hope,
and perfect charity,
wisdom and understanding,
Lord, that I may carry out
your holy and true command.
Amen.

Good night everyone and sweet dreams to all. May your Tuesday be filled with many blessings all thru the day! Now I'm hoping I can get this presentable for the thread. Thanks for understanding. You are the greatest!