Thursday, September 23, 2010

In the presence of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina



In all the events of life, we must recognize the Divine will.
Padre Pio also says: "Adore and bless it, especially in the things which are the hardest for you".

We must remember that God is within us when we are in a state of grace and outside of us when we are in a state of sin; but His angel never abandons us. . .
He is our most sincere and faithful friend even when we sadden him with our bad behavior.

Prayer is the best weapon we possess. It is the key that opens the heart of God.
We remember to Pray, pray, pray...
St. Padre Pio, pray for us. Amen.





Tuesday, September 21, 2010

God, Teach Me to Love

I pray not for wealth, I pray not for honors, I pray not for pleasures, or even the joys of poetry. I only pray that during all my life, I may have love: that I may have pure love to love thee.

— from The Catholic Prayer Book

Saturday, September 18, 2010

The good we fail to do

(a reflection on Jas 4:17)

We can live our lives doing good things in service of others.
But, have we noticed the times when we fail to do good?


Our daily duties, activities or choices in life usually come about out of our own doing (we could say). In other words, what we do this day is based on a self-imposed schedule; and many times we are too rigid in following it. When this happens, we are missing little opportunities to go out of our daily schedule - to let 'surprise' moments happen.

For example; on my way to work one day I received a phone call from someone needing my heart to listen. I was already running late in my self-imposed schedule (I do also have an employer who expects me to me faithful in my work). However, there was a tug on my heart that spoke to me stronger than words can say: 'stop and listen here' 'be present to this moment, now'... So, I did. I stopped, took a deep inhale-the-gift-of-the-Spirit breath, and listened with the heart.

For the next few minutes my heart was changed for the good in a way I could not have imagined. All because I paused to do a good I might have failed to do...The conversation was brief, yet worthy of a heartfelt 'yes, I am here for you, now' (not later when I think I may have the moment to 'spare').

When we live our lives this way, we are growing closer to grasping a deeper reality of the gift of charity. Believe it or not, our Lord does arrange our schedule in a way that always works itself out for the good of all (after all He is the Master Planner of our lives).  

Friday, September 17, 2010

Growing deeper in Love

Growing deeper in Love

is growing closer to the Good.
The Supreme Good is the Love in God.
Growing closer to God is our perpetual prayer.
Think about it this way,

when we wish to reach a certain goal in our lives
(and hopefully, we do set these ahead of time mostly),
we train in a steadfast way all the way.
We take the mastering of the skill or the attainment of the good,
very seriously!
How much more seriously we ought to be

when growing in our relationship with God…
Our perpetual prayer is this:
Doing our little task in a most loving way,
always directed toward the Supreme Good!
We shall no longer be slaves to the distractions of this world…

We shall be called friends of Christ!
And, is this not the best place to be?
For all eternity?




Thursday, September 16, 2010

In the presence of LIFE

Today begins another seemingly normal day in my life...
It is raining outside my window though, and this causes me to shrug my shoulders a bit thinking about the moment I will have to walk outside and have to face the rainy day without my rain gear...(you see I forgot to carry an umbrella).


How often we forget or neglect to prepare ourselves for an unexpected moment life might bring?
It begins with the moment of our birth. We do not determine this moment for ourselves, it simply happens when God decrees it should be...Are we ready to face the challenges? As innocent babies we do not have the slightest clue as to what lies ahead for us...yet we trustingly live on and begin life as an adventure to be lived!

Life is not intended to be a problem to be solved (as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta once said). Life is a GIFT from God with all its possibilities for service to our brothers and sisters who are counting on us to show them the love of God as Jesus does.


So, I shall look forward to stepping outside in the rain! Because, come to think of it, by the time I'm ready to do so, it probably will stop raining all together anyway. God is so good to me!!!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

The birth of Mary

"Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and she shall name Him Emmanuel." (Is 7:14)
The virginity of Mary is not only of body but also of her spirit. It is a total dedication to God, a consecration, a marriage with Him.

Love and veneration for Mary's virginity are essential virtues of the true devotion to Mary. Unless we follow her by a total dedication to God's service, our lives will not be fruitful.


Prayer: Mary, most pure Mother, obtain for me the grace to dedicate my whole life, with all my strength of body and soul, to serve God. Amen.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

The Intercession of Mary

"Let us venerate Mary with every fiber of our being, from the deepest part of our heart, because this is the will of Him who wanted us to receive everything through Mary." -St. Bernard of Clairvaux


— from Mysteries of the Virgin Mary

For Your Marriage - Por Tu Matrimonio

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