Today salvation will come to your house.

"Zacchaeus received Jesus with joy."   (Luke 19: 6 RM)

What a gracious act.  Zac was short and because he wanted to see Jesus so badly and the crowd around Jesus was huge, Zac climbed a tall tree.  No problem for Jesus. He knew where Zac was.  "Come down Zac.  This is your day.  I am going to have dinner with you."  Zac hurried down and "received Jesus with joy."  (Luke 19: 5)

Some of us have the opportunity to receive Jesus frequently in Holy Communion or in His word.  Do you receive Him with joy?  "Today salvation has come to this house."   (Luke 19:  9)  What a mighty reward for Zac and his family.

Do not let your heart  grow lukewarm.  Pray for the grace of joy and enthusiasm.

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I long to depart this life

"I  long to depart this life and be with Christ, [for] that is far better."  (Philippians 1:23 NABRE)

Are you one of those who have put down deep tap root on earth?  Do you find the thought of death and leaving behind everything you worked so hard for disarming?  This was me not long ago.  Then I started reading the word of God and found it is life-changing.

Listen to Paul :  "For to me life is Christ, and death is gain."  (Philippians 1: 21 NABRE)  

David in Psalm 42 expresses the same prayer:  "My soul is thirsting for the living God.  As the hinds long for running waters, so my soul longs for You, O God.  When shall I go and behold the face of God?"

Pray for the grace of hope.

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Jesus calls Prayer a Necessity.

"Jesus spent the night in prayer to God."   (Luke 6 : 12)

This was before He chose the twelve Apostles.  Jesus taught His disciples the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.  Jesus calls Prayer a necessity.

We are urged to pray constantly always and for everything giving thanks in the name of Jesus Christ to God the Father.  (Ephesians 5: 20; 1 Thessalonians 5: 18)

"For we have not been commanded to work, to keep watch and to fast constantly, but it has been laid down that we are to pray without ceasing."  (CCC 2742)

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Put on the full armor.

"Put on the full armor of God."  (Ephesians 6 : 11 NIV)

In the famous Ephesians 6: 10 - 20 passage, St Paul urged us twice to put on the full armor of God.
Two quick questions:
First, what is the armor of God?
It is not guns, gun ships, rockets, etc.  The armor of God are spiritual weapons of Truth, Righteousness, Faith, Word of God, and Prayer.  These spiritual weapons demolish without mercy demonic strongholds.  These are the weapons of Christianity.  This is the open secret of the survival of the Christian Faith in the past 2000 years.  Every other power had collapsed and consigned to the dust of history, viz: Roman Empire, British, French, Ottoman (Islamic) , etc.

The answer to question #2  "Why put on the full armor?" is clear.  The full armor makes survival and victory possible.
The battle is not for the future.  It is raging now.   "The battle is not yours, but God's."   (2 Chronicles 20: 15)  So we need the armor of God.

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If you honor your father and mother, it will be well with you and you will enjoy a long and happy life.

"Honor your father and mother."  (Ephesians 6:2)

Quoting the 4th Commandment, St Paul reminds us of this great Law.
My parents are dead.  Am I then excused from this Commandment?  Not at all.  My father and mother are all legitimate authorities, viz:  civil, religious and commercial authorities.  All seniors are included in this Law.

What does honor mean?  Obey, respect, esteem, treat as precious.
Who can resist this sales pitch from the word of God?
Honor your father and mother is the first commandment with a promise. If you do this, it will be well with you and you will enjoy a long life.   (Cf Ephesians 6: 2 - 3)

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The Lord bless you from Zion and may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem.

"Blessed are you who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways."   (Psalm 128: 1 RM)

To be blessed is to be happy and sheltered by God's favor.  Who will not like to be always happy, with a sunny outlook because you know that come what may, it shall be well with you.

Scripture also promises that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  What is wisdom?  Wisdom is that quality of capitalizing on your experience and knowledge that produces a person of good judgment.

Psalm 128 also promises that those who fear the Lord and walk in His ways shall enjoy the fruit of their labor in peace.

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Imitate Jesus Christ.

"Be imitators of God."   (Ephesians 5:1 RM)

You cannot imitate anyone you do not know.  To imitate God, you must know who God is.  God is invisible, so how do you know God?  God made Himself visible in Jesus Christ.  So be imitators of Jesus Christ.  "Know the Heart of God from the word of God."  (St Gregory the Great)  St Jerome, another Doctor and Father of the Church teaches:  "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ." 

If you want to know God and imitate Him, feed on the word of God every day.

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