Preparation and Easter Joy

"Father, may our Lenten observance prepare us to embrace the paschal mystery and to proclaim your salvation with joyful praise ……." (Mass Prayer in Lent)

Our Lenten Observance:

• Prayer
  
• Fasting
  
• Almsgiving
  

When we pray, fast and give alms during Lent, we prepare ourselves to embrace more fully the paschal mystery. The paschal mystery is the mystery of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Without adequate preparation, we cannot enter fully into this mystery. With good preparation, we come to identify more closely with Christ. If we die with Christ, we rise with Christ. We come step by step to appreciate the power of the cross in our daily lives.

Come and Drink

"Come to the waters, all who thirst; though you have no money, come and drink with joy." (Isaiah 55:1)

Come and drink your fill of the Holy Spirit. It is free. I am thirsty. I ask for this water every day. When can I drink my fill of this water?

Do not ask for signs. Look for the fruits:

• Peace and tranquility
  
• Joy and consolation
  
• Light and guidance
  
• Gentle touches of the Holy Spirit
  

Who is invited to drink? Everybody is invited. Anybody who is thirsty should come and drink. Many are thirsty but instead of coming to the water, they go to personal development philosophy hoping to fill their thirst with its muddied water.

Weeping at Night

"At night fall, weeping enters in but with dawn, rejoicing." (Psalm 30: 6)

I wept during my Desert Experience. Today, I am rejoicing in the Lord. The Lord "changed my mourning into dancing."

O Lord, forever will I give you thanks.

Big Promotion

"I will extol you, O Lord, for you drew me clear and did not let my enemies rejoice over me. O Lord, you brought me up from the nether world; you preserved me from among those going down into the pit." (Psalm 30: 1-4)

I was first rescued from NCAU and then from ZAN. God transferred me from Egypt into His glorious kingdom and gave my enemies zero opportunity to laugh at me.

Today, we have the funeral Mass of Ngozi. May God also transfer her from this valley of tears into His glorious kingdom. Amen.

Plant Vineyards

"They will build houses and live in them, they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit." (Isaiah 65: 21)

Anyone who is in Christ is a new creation. This person can build a house and enjoy it. He will enjoy the fruits of his labor.