Message of 6-26-08
Published: Sat, 06/21/08
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
"I do not suffer; at least I suffer without suffering by a
sacrifice of not being concerned whether I receive esteem or
disesteem, approval or disapproval, contempt or praise."
- Peter Julian Eymard -
(Detachment is the key to unconditional love. As long as we desire
anything enough to be significantly disappointed if we don't get
it, we are not completely free within.)
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SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
2 Kgs 24:8-17; Ps. 79:1b-2, 3-5, 8, 9; Mt 7:21-29
R. (9) For the glory of your name, O Lord, deliver us.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
They have given the corpses of your servants
as food to the birds of heaven,
the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.
They have poured out their blood like water
round about Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury them.
We have become the reproach of our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
O LORD, how long? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
Remember not against us the iniquities of the past;
may your compassion quickly come to us,
for we are brought very low.
Help us, O God our savior,
because of the glory of your name;
Deliver us and pardon our sins
for your name's sake.
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GOSPEL MEDITATION
- from "Daily Bread"
http://www.preacherexchange.com/daily_bread.htm
"Then I will declare to them solemnly, 'I never knew you. Depart
from me, you evildoers.'"
Jesus' words are a wakeup call for every Christian. They are a
stern reminder that if we've been fortunate enough to hear God's
word, then we're charged with the responsibility to act on it. We
cannot simply sit off to the side and listen. We must take
ownership of our mission and do something. We must examine how and
why we prophesy. If our acts don't bring glory to the Father, then
our works are corrupt. We are no better than the false prophets and
we remain strangers to God.
"Loving God, help us to do your will and lead us to the kingdom, we
pray."
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PRAYING WITH SCRIPTURE (Carmelite Method)
A. Introduction: settling in, relaxing in awareness of God's
presence.
B. Reading the text slowly, prayerfully.
C. Meditation: imaginative representation of the material; reflection
on the meaning of the material and its application to one's life.
D. Affective prayer: conversation with God, attentive to sharing
feelings awakened in meditation. Prayer of petition, thanksgiving,
remorse.
E. Resting in God in silent loving awareness, if moved to do so.
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NOTES FROM A CLASSICAL WORK
- "Imitation of Christ," by Thomas A. Kempis
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, in this life you are never safe, and as long as you
live the
weapons of the spirit will ever be necessary to you. You dwell
among
enemies. You are subject to attack from the right and the left.
If,
therefore, you do not guard yourself from every quarter with the
shield of patience, you will not remain long unscathed.
Moreover, if you do not steadily set your heart on Me, with a firm
will to suffer everything for My sake, you will not be able to
bear
the heat of this battle or to win the crown of the blessed. You
ought,
therefore, to pass through all these things bravely and to
oppose a
strong hand to whatever stands in your way. For to him who
triumphs
heavenly bread is given, while for him who is too lazy to fight
there
remains much misery.
-------- Bk. 3, Chapter 35
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