Novena for Life IX

Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. ~~Romans 3:5

So with unending HOPE we pray.

Meditating on the Gift of Life

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Thanks be to God!!!

Novena for Life II

[God's beloved Son] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creations. ~~Colossians 1:15~~


Good day to you all. Let us pray.

Living Life for Eternity

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Thanks be to God!

Praying with St. Paul...

We don't have all the answers. We more often then not make spur-or-the-moment decisions that may or may not be correct. Do we shop for what we need or what we want? Does greed rule our lives when charity should be our goal? Do we judge when understanding and compassion should be our goal? Are we angry and frustrated when serenity and faith should be our goal? Do we think we can do everything ourselves or should spiritual direction be our goal? Do we seek the advise of those who will tell us what we want to hear or should be we going to the source of the Truth be our goal? St. Paul says it so well. Let us reflect with this excerpt from Praying with St. Paul.

The Ultimate Self-Help Book
Jack Sacco

"All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching,
for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped
for every good work."
(2Timothy 3: 16-17)

We live in an age of self-help gurus. Everywhere you look there are self-proclaimed life coaches, mentors, experts and pundits.

all claim they can help us reach our potential while not-t00-subtly implying they will show us the easy road toward wealth and fame. Each has a website. Each has a book. Each has an abundance of tapes and CDs for sale. Each has a seminar that you must attend. And each promises that, for just a few hundred dollars, they can reveal to you the secrets to true happiness and incredible riches.

The trouble is that the information they contain is generally rehashed babble lifted directly from previous self-help books. Most are conglomerations of doublespeak and nonsense with the singular intention of making the guru, not the student, wealthy and happy.

Taking advantage of an emerging spirituality and the marketing thereof, self-help books in recent years have included more and more spiritual overtones. They speak of God, sometimes referring to him as a "higher power" so as not to offend potential buyers. The problem is that they willingly preach a new and unauthorized gospel to people who are too enamored with the potential payout to recognize or even be concerned about the dangers.

This isn't to say that most motivational books don't contain some elements of truth in them. Even a stopped clock is correct twice a day.

But the Sacred Scripture doesn't simply contain "elements of truth. It is TRUTH. And it is the Truth against which all other truths should be measured. We don't need to seek the advise of a plethora of competing self-help gurus when we have the inspired word of God to light our way. That Word, that Truth, will provide each of us with the information we need to become competent and equipped for every good work.

Father, inspire us to read and understand your word, so that we may grow in goodness and be better equipped to do your will. May the Scripture provide us with the inspiration we need to live a life of happiness and contentment.

By Jack Sacco
(a graduate of the University of Notre Dame,
an award winning author, living in Los Angeles
His book Where the Birds Never Sing was
nominated for a Pulitzer Prize)

I am guilty of all the above. I want answers NOW, help NOW, relief NOW, consolation NOW. Scripture has that and more. I just need to slow down and perhaps instead of being so demanding, acquiescence should be my goal.

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Thanks be to God!

The Year of Saint Paul

Photo by Luiz

When, as members of the Catholic Church we are blessed with a Jubilee Year, it is a time of celebration and jubilation of who we are and from where we are rooted. It is a source of pride, and in my case, a reason for continuing to reflect even more diligently on who I am and continue to listen to the call, in whatever form it might take.

Brief History of Saint Paul (early years):
"Parish Life"
Saint John the Baptist Church
Newburgh, IN

The first reference to Saul (as he was then known) is during the persecution of the first Christian communities, specifically, his involvement in the execution of Saint Stephen. In Acts 7:54-8: 1, we read that Saul was at the execution and approved it.
One day on the way to Damascus to fine more Christians to bring back to Jerusalem for punishment, a blinding light came from the heavens so bright as to strike Saul to the ground. The voice of God then spoke to him: "Saul, why do you persecute me?" Bewildered, Saul asked "Who are you, Lord?" The voice answered, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."

The Lord said that he was to be "an instrument" to spread the Good News among the Gentiles and throughout Israel. Historically, some scholars have placed this event at approximately 33 AD, occurring just after the execution of Saint Stephen.

It is important to note that Paul's heavenly vision is considered to be the single most significant event in the early history of Christianity, apart from the birth and life of Jesus Christ himself.

Here is today's offering from Praying with Saint Paul: Daily Reflection on the Letters of the Apostle Paul, edited by Father Peter John Cameron, O.P.

A Generous God
by
Monsignor James Turro

"For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not from you; it is the gift of God."
(Ephesians 2:8)

"This is not from you, it is the gift of God." Perhaps there is not a more deep-seated, urgent desire in man than the desire to be self-sufficient--not really to need anybody or anything--God included. This of course is a fond hope. Consider that though we as a race have mastered space and in large part defeated physical illness, however we have not been able to vanquish death nor have we succeeded in achieving untrammeled and unending happiness. Clearly we need God and the happiness and security he alone can confer. Humbly we must acknowledge that we are not equal to the task of acquiring much of what we require to lead a fulfilled and successful life. We have a desperate need of God and his gifts for us to lead a fulfilled life.

We must look beyond the happiness that God confers upon us to countless other gifts and favors with which he brightens our lives. One thinks of faith--in every way, a gift of God. It is the faith of God and the things of God. It gives us to understand that just about everything short of God is limited and flimsy; only God can truly, deeply satisfy.

As one reflects on God's generosity toward oneself, a not inappropriate resolve is to emulate God's lavish generosity in our dealings with other people--an imitation of Christ.

Faith, this great gift of God, must be prized and jealously guarded. We must never jeopardize this faith in any way--not by the thoughts we think or the life we lead. It should be a hardy faith--not a faith that one possesses but a faith that possesses one. A mere profession of faith honors God because, when all is said and done, it is taking God at his word.

O God, you have heaped high the graces which you have been
pleased to offer me; give me one thing more--a grateful heart.

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Enough said, except for

THANKS BE TO GOD!!!