A Father who keeps His promises

"Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry,
bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own flesh?
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!”
If you remove the yoke from among you,
the accusing finger, and malicious speech;
If you lavish your food on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
Then your light shall rise in the darkness,
and your gloom shall become like midday;
Then the LORD will guide you always
and satisfy your thirst in parched places,
will give strength to your bones
And you shall be like a watered garden,
like a flowing spring whose waters never fail."  (Isaiah 58: 7 - 11)

We see above a wonderful set of promises and the conditions for obtaining them by a Father who keeps His promises.

Condition #1:  ""Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry,
bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own flesh?"

Promise #1:  "Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!”

Condition #2:  "If you remove the yoke from among you,
the accusing finger, and malicious speech;
If you lavish your food on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;"

Promise #2:  "Then your light shall rise in the darkness,
and your gloom shall become like midday;
Then the LORD will guide you always
and satisfy your thirst in parched places,
will give strength to your bones
And you shall be like a watered garden,
like a flowing spring whose waters never fail."

O God our Father, you are certainly the God who keeps His promises.  In this season of Lent which you declared to be the acceptable time to gain your favors, grant us the grace to full the conditions for these great promises.  We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Lord blesses His people with peace

"May the LORD give might to his people;
may the LORD bless his people with peace!"  (Psalm 29: 11)

Where does my help come from?  From the Lord who made heaven and earth?
Where does my peace come from?  From the Lord who is the Prince of Peace.
When I call upon Him, He hears me and takes pity on me.  He comes to my help because He hears the cry of the poor.

Take up your cross and follow me

"Then he said to all, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."  (Luke 9: 23 - 24)

Lord, what does it mean to deny my self today?
What does it mean to take up my cross and follow you?
Yes, of course, I wish to come after you.  But I must understand what you expect of me?  So the first grace I need today is the gift to understand  your expectations of me here and now.  How do I get this grace?

O Divine Spirit, Lord and Giver of life, source of all inspiration and power,  I turn to you now to ask for the gift of wisdom and understanding today.  Help me to discern how to deny myself today.  Grant me the grace to discern the cross or crosses that Our Lord Jesus Christ wants me to take up and follow Him.  Amen!

G o d

g r a n t

 m e   t h e

serenity   to   accept   the

 things   I   cannot   change;

the   courage   to   change 

the things

I  can,

and the

wisdom

to know

t h e 

difference.

A M E N !

"Let your life be free from love of money but be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never forsake you or abandon you.”
Thus we may say with confidence:
“The Lord is my helper,
[and] I will not be afraid.
What can anyone do to me?”  (Hebrews 13: 5 - 6)
Thank you Lord, I am beginning to understand.

Today is the acceptable time

"Working together,a then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.*
For he says:
“In an acceptable time I heard you,
and on the day of salvation I helped you.” (2 Corinthians 6: 1 - 2)

Father, I call upon you this day, Ash Wednesday that I hear your soothing word.  Yes, I believe that today is the acceptable time.  Hear my prayer!  Fill me with your Holy Spirit.  Fill me with His gifts.  Grant me the grace to have a good Lent.  Amen.

God blessed the seventh day and made it holy

"God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation."

Thank you Father for the gift of Sunday and Sunday rest.  It is a gift that expresses your wisdom and love for the  universe you created.

"What is man that you are mindful of him,
and a son of man that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god,
crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him rule over the works of your hands,
put all things at his feet:
All sheep and oxen,a
even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fish of the sea,
and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
O LORD, our Lord,
how awesome is your name through all the earth!"  (Psalm 8: 5 - 10)

The great gift of Sunday is one gift that reveals to me the desire of God in all His commandments. Every single commandment of God exists to enhance the well-being of man.

Whoever approaches my throne of grace shall receive mercy

"Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed."  (Mark 6: 56)

Jesus never fails to heal anybody who approaches Him with boldness and confidence. The woman with the issue of blood touched the cloak of Jesus and was healed.  This incident made touching a deep expression of faith.  As many as touched the cloak of Jesus in Mark 6: 56 were healed.  In Blessed Sacrament Chapels, people are not content to adore and worship the Real Presence of Jesus, some must approach the Altar to touch the Monstrance.  I believe that anybody who is moved by faith to touch the Monstrance will receive mercy.

Do whatever He tells you

"After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing."  (Luke 5: 4 - 6)

Simon Peter lowered his net at the command of Christ and the result was a great number of fish was caught.
At the Wedding Feast at Cana, Mary said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." (John 2: 5).  They did and water was turned into wine.

I too like Simon Peter and his companions have toiled "all night" and many nights have caught nothing.  What is Christ's word to me?  I want to do whatever Jesus tells me?  But what must I do?  I want to act "at your word" Lord Jesus.  What is your word to me?

"Let your life be free from love of money but be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never forsake you or abandon you.”
Thus we may say with confidence:
“The Lord is my helper,
[and] I will not be afraid.
What can anyone do to me?"  (Hebrews 13: 5 - 6)

Thank you Lord Jesus for the above word.  I cherish it.  But how I wish that your word to me is as concrete as that to Simon:   “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”  (Luke 5: 4)  Or your word at Cana:  "“Fill the jars with water. Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” (John 2: 7 - 8)

Lord, help me to trust your Providence instead of complaining that your word and command to me is more demanding.  Show me how to live this word of life to me concretely always and everywhere.

Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, I know now the word that you ask me to "Do whatever he tells me."  I turn to you in prayer to ask for your help.  Obtain for me the light, guidance and faith I need to obey this command.

Trust and Obey!  There is no other way to have the best of Jesus!
Simon Peter and the servants at the Wedding Feast of Cana have this inner attitude of trust and obedience.  If I develop this inner attitude of trusting and obeying Jesus in little things, I will always enjoy His light and guidance in bigger things.