Approach the throne of mercy with confidence

"Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them?"  (Luke 18: 7)

This is great assurance that persevering prayer will be answered.  If the answer is No, God will take the desire from the heart and replace it with something better.

"“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."  (Matthew 7: 7 - 8)

God is not man to lie.  He is always able and always willing to come to our help.  His promise to answer prayer was not made because God owes us anything.  God is perfect truth.  If He says it, it is the truth.  The word comes forth from the mouth of God.  It is for us to capture this word with a believing heart.

"So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help."  (Hebrews 4: 16)

The confident prayer at the throne of mercy will be answered.

Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it

"Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it."  (Luke 17: 33)

This is one of the great paradoxes of the Gospel.  To live you must die.   To be first, you must be last.  To grow more, you must first grow less.  To learn the secrets of the Kingdom, you must be childlike.

What does all this mean?  Things are not exactly the way you see it.  In the world, we walk by sight.  In the Kingdom, we walk by faith.  A childlike disposition opens us to the possibilities of sacred world around us full of mysteries.

Jesus teaches in the scripture above that to preserve your life, you must be prepared to lose it.  You must be ready to exchange what you have for something greater and higher.  Saints and martyrs have done this.  When St. Francis of Assisi abandoned his wealth and lifestyle, he found Jesus, the Pearl of great price.  St. Ignatius Loyola left behind his world and made the same discovery as St. Francis.  Every generation, thousands of people instead of preserving their lives are losing it to find new life in Jesus Christ.  Those who hold tenaciously to the old life will lose it anyway.  It is guaranteed. (Luke 17: 33)

If you abide in me, you abide in my word

"I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing."  (John 15: 5)

If you abide in me, you abide in my word.  If you abide in my word, you abide in me.
Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of me.
If you reject my word, you reject me.

"I have chosen you from the world to go and bear fruit that will last."  (John 15: 16, 19)
"I will bear a witness to you in the world, O Lord.  I will spread the knowledge of your name among my brothers."  (Psalm 17: 50; 21: 23)

We do well always and everywhere to give you thanks

"In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus."  (1 Thessalonians 5: 18)

The will of God for us is to give thanks in all adverse and good circumstances in everything that concerns our welfare:  health, family, finances, job, tools, food and future.

I like the AMP expansive translation on the above scripture:
"Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revelator and Mediator of that will].

The People of God learn habits of faith in the School of the Mass.  For example, the Mass Preface repeats constantly the lesson of Thanksgiving:
"Father, all-powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks."

"Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.
Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."  (Philippians 4: 6 - 7)

When we mix thanksgiving in prayer, fear, worry and doubts disappear.

Everything happens for a good reason because God is always in charge:
" We know that all things work for good for those who love God,* who are called according to his purpose."  (Romans 8: 28)

"Give thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father"  (Ephesians 5: 20)

Praise and thanksgiving are powerful means of connecting to God and disposing ourselves to receive God's abundant mercies.

We are unprofitable servants

"So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’”  (Luke 17: 10)

God chooses; God calls and God anoints.  God Himself empowers us for the job.  When all is from God, what can we claim?  What can we glorify in?
Now that you know, all that you need to activate the anointing is to ask at the moment of need.  Ask in faith because you know that the grace  you need is already available waiting to be activated.  After having asked, start acting as if you have received what you need.  Do not look back.

"For the grace of God has appeared, saving all and training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age, as we await the blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of the great God and of our savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people as his own, eager to do what is good."  (Titus 2: 11 - 14)

When grace is fully activated through prayer, faith and appropriation, it transforms life.

"Trust in the LORD and do good
that you may dwell in the land and live secure.
Find your delight in the LORD
who will give you your heart’s desire."

"The valiant one whose steps are guided by the LORD,
who will delight in his way,
May stumble, but he will never fall,
for the LORD holds his hand."  (Psalm 37: 3-4, 23-24)

Let your full trust be in the Lord and then do all the good you can.  Delight yourself in the Lord, He will fulfill the desires of your heart. You may stumble but will never be allowed to fall and remain on the ground.

"In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all [the] flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and supplication, pray at every opportunity in the Spirit. To that end, be watchful with all perseverance and supplication for all the holy ones"  (Ephesians 6:  16 -18)

Lord, increase our faith

"And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
The Lord replied, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to [this] mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you."  (Luke 17: 5 - 6)

Faith is that awesome gift of God by which we believe that God is who He says He is and that all that He teaches us is true and He does what He promises to do. Awesome gift!

"Fear is useless; what is needed is trust." (Luke 8:50, Mark 5: 36)
Faith vanquishes fear, worry and doubt.

With faith, we have access to God's promises of: pardon, peace, power, purpose, presence, protection and provision.
Without faith, we languish.

• Believe what you read.
• Teach what you believe.
• Practice what you teach.

The jar of flour shall not go empty

"For the LORD, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the LORD sends rain upon the earth.”  (1 Kings 17: 14)

God's providence has met the Prophet Elijah in an unusual place and time.  The same divine providence has confounded the expectations of the Widow of Zarephath

Jesus invites us to trust God completely to provide all our needs.

"One does not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”  (Matthew 4: 4)

"Help us to become more aware of your loving design so that we may more willingly give our lives in service to all."  The Church prays on the 2nd Sunday of the Ordinary Time.

To abandon ourselves completely to God's providence in everything, we pray:

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.  Amen!"

You cannot serve God and money

"No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”  (Luke 16: 13)

What is mammon?  It could be any of the following:  health, family, money, job, tools, food, future.  God is the source of all these.  For most people, mammon means one thing - money.  In the Gospels, there is a contrast between dishonest, tainted wealth and genuine riches.   The Gospel invites us to seek genuine riches which cannot rust or be stolen by thieves.

"I say to the LORD,
you are my Lord,
you are my only good.

They multiply their sorrows
who court other gods.
Blood libations to them I will not pour out,
nor will I take their names upon my lips."  (Psalm 16: 2, 4)

When we serve God alone and not mammon, we abandon ourselves completely to Divine Providence. We practice total detachment from anything that can ensnare our hearts to idols.

What are some of the blessings of financial peace?

1. We avoid pride that tainted wealth brings
2. We depend fully on God for all our provisions
3. We live one day at a time
4. We avoid temptations to gluttony and lust
5. We avoid wasting time window-shopping for what to buy
6. We avoid buying things we do not need

When we serve God and not money, we learn to recognize times and seasons as God's appointments.  We learn to adapt to times and seasons joyfully.

"I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.
I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me."  (Philippians 4: 12 - 13)

God is a proved Helper in trouble

"God is our refuge and our strength,
an ever-present help in distress."  (Psalm 46: 1)

Has God been for me a refuge and ever present help in distress?
To answer the question, I reviewed my life from the period I had the clearest memory (1970) to date (2012)  The answer is resoundingly YES.

God has always been my refuge and ever present help in all types of distress.  He is a well-proved help in trouble. Whether the distress involves family, health, finances, job, tools, food and future.  God is a very reliable Helper.  The amazing thing is that in over half of the period under review, God had always come to my help even when I was outside His law.  He love is not only constant but to very mysterious.

The Supreme Advantage of knowing Jesus

"[But] whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ.
More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ"  (Philippians 3: 7 - 8)

But whatever gains I had....:Family, Health, Education, Finance, Property, Job, Food, Friends, I gave up because of the supreme advantage of knowing Christ.  Those forgotten gains gave false confidence.  Knowledge of Christ gave the one thing that is necessary.  The one thing that is necessary is the one thing I need:  the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit reveals to me the person of Jesus, the Healer, the Feeder.  Jesus is all that we need.

There is a tide in the affairs of men.  All times and seasons are divine appointments.  Jesus is passing by today.

God is the source of all inspiration and power

"For God is the one who, for his good purpose, works in you both to desire and to work."  (Philippians 2: 13)

Abba Father, you are the source of all inspiration and power.  You give everything its place in the world and nobody can make it otherwise.  Fill me today with your inspiration.  Let my every work glorify you.  Amen!

The wedding feast of the Lamb is the Eucharistic celebration

"“Blessed is the one who will dine in the kingdom of God.”  (Luke 14: 15)

The dinner is the Church gathered in the Eucharist.

The Amplified Bible has this translation for the above scripture:
"(Happy, fortunate, and to be envied) is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!"

The Eucharistic bread is available for us every single day.  Most of us can dine in the Kingdom of God every day.  Some do this.  But how many feel truly fortunate and to be envied for the privilege of dining in the Kingdom?

"Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb. And he said to me, “These words are true; they come from God.”  (Revelations 19: 9)

The wedding feast of the Lamb is the Eucharistic celebration.  To accept the gift to dine in the Kingdom, the Eucharist, is to accept the ultimate sign of God's favor.

"This I know: God is on my side.
I praise the word of God,
I praise the word of the LORD.
In God I trust, I do not fear.
What can man do to me?"  (Psalm 56: 10 - 12)

The Eucharist is the sign of God's abiding love for us.

Jesus is our peace

"In you O Lord, I have found my peace!" 

O Prince of Peace, you are my peace.  Let me be enveloped completely by your peace.  You promise us the peace which the world cannot understand.  Let your peace cover my family, health, finances, job, tools, food and future.

In you, O Lord, I have found my peace.

Jesus is able to save us always and everywhere

"Therefore, he is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them."  (Hebrews 7: 25)

Jesus is always able to save us.  His name is Jesus, Savior.  Jesus says what it is and it does what it says.

He is supremely able to save us always and everywhere  because He is alive and lives forever.  Unlike the frail high priest, king or president, Jesus does not contend with any weakness or death.  He is always fully alive and all-powerful.

When we approach the Father through His Son Jesus Christ, we are assured of hearing and salvation.

Jesus my Savior, I trust in you.

Embrace my yoke and you will find the peace you crave for

"Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves."  (Matthew 11: 29)

What is this yoke of Christ to which He invites us?

Below is the yoke of Christ.  It is also called the Beatitudes:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.h Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.  (Matthew 5: 3 - 12)

The beatitudes reflect the character of Jesus Christ. This is who He is.  This is how He lived.

"For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” (Matthew 11: 30)

What makes the yoke easy and the burden light is grace.  The grace of God makes easy what is most difficult and revolting to nature.  It makes light what is most burdensome.  This is the secret of the saints.  Saints suffer imprisonment, persecution and even death because they have the grace of God to help them.  Without this grace, it is impossible for human nature to embrace these crosses.

Jesus Christ has promised us His grace if we embrace Him and His teaching.  With His grace on our side, all things become possible.  With our daily bread of this grace given at the beginning of each day, we are equipped to live fully for Christ in these areas of human struggle:  health, family, finances, job, tools, food and future.  Lord, give me this day my daily bread of your grace.  Amen!

If the Lord is my Good Shepherd, then I have everything I need

"The LORD is my shepherd;
there is nothing I lack."  (Psalm 23: 1)

If the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not lack food, clothing, shelter and rest.  In truth, I shall have everything I need.  What is my experience?  My good shepherd has provided all that I need beyond my wildest expectations.

My Good Shepherd says to me:  "Fear is useless; what is needed is trust."  (Luke 8:50)  He also says to me:  "But seek first the kingdom (of God) and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides."  (Matthew 6: 33)  It grieves my heart that although not a single word of His promises has failed me, I still fear, worry and doubt.

"Why are you downcast, my soul;
why do you groan within me?
Wait for God, for I shall again praise him,
my savior and my God."  (Psalm 42: 6)

We are children of God here and now

"See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him."  (1 John 3: 1)

Thank you Father for this immense privilege.  
Our response to God's love is in direct proportion of our awareness of His love for us.  Since this is true Father, grant me the grace to be fully aware of your love for me.  Grant me also the courage to respond fully.

The Lord is trustworthy in all His promises

"The LORD is trustworthy in all his words,
and loving in all his works."  (Psalm 145: 13)

This one thing I know for certainty:  The Lord is trustworthy in all His promises.  Today, I celebrate 5857 days of the Lord's faithfulness in the Enterprise.  From 1/5857 day, the Lord manifested His faithfulness one day at a time. His performance has exceeded  expectations in every area.  The one big area which has not been resolved is a WAIT situation and not a NO situation.  Thank you Jesus!  I will trust you everyday.  I will surrender every new day to your loving providence my: health, family, finances, job, tools, food and future.

"Today, as you see, I am going the way of all the earth. So now acknowledge with your whole heart and soul that not one of all the promises the LORD, your God, made concerning you has failed. Every one has come true for you; not one has failed."  (Joshua 23: 14)

Most fortunate are all who fear the Lord

"Blessed are all who fear the LORD,
and who walk in his ways.
What your hands provide you will enjoy;
you will be blessed and prosper."  (Psalm 128: 1 - 2)

There are two ways to fear the Lord:
You fear offending the Lord because of punishment.  You may also fear offending Him because He may withhold His blessings.
You may fear the Lord because you are keenly aware of His love and kindness towards you.  We call this reverential fear.

Both types of fear correspond to the human analogy of stick and carrot.
Fear the Lord, the Bible screams from every page.  It is not just good to fear the Lord.  Great blessings are attached to fearing the Lord.  The word of God declares you happy and very fortunate if you fear the Lord.  The Bible also teaches that it is not difficult to obey the commandments.  They are not burdensome especially when we consider that they come from a loving Father.

Let us fear the Lord.

Be kind and compassionate to one another

"[And] be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ."  (Ephesians 4: 32)

Lord, you have been most kind, most compassionate to me.  You have not only forgiven all my sins but you have done much more:  You have wiped out the record of my sins and freed me from all guilt.  I acknowledge all this freely.  I do not consider myself an ungrateful man.  I want to do what you ask me to do as a show of my profound gratitude to you.  But if I fail, O Great God, it is not because of ingratitude.  It may be because of forgetfulness at the material time and my human weakness.  This is why I pray O Lord.  Grant me your grace at the time of need to remember what you have done for me and to act as you expect me to act.  Amen.

"But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift."  (Ephesians 4: 7)