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Archive for July, 2008

Thy Will Be Done

Posted in God's Will, tagged on July 25, 2008 | 2 Comments »

“Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 7:21-23
What does it mean to do God’s will? Does it mean to sit around and wait [...]

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Rays of Grace

Posted in Grace, tagged , , , on July 15, 2008 | 1 Comment »

One of the most beautiful things on earth to me are rays of sunshine through clouds or trees. Ever since I was a child, each time I see those rays, I’ve thought of Heaven and God. Recently, they’ve also made me ponder His love, mercy, and grace. The image is powerful enough to move me [...]

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If You Love Me

Posted in Conversion, God's Will, Love, Virtue, tagged , , , on July 10, 2008 | 1 Comment »

What does it mean to really love God?  Does it mean we have to have warm, fuzzy feelings for Him, to say we love Him, to show up at Church?  Jesus gives us the answer:
If you love me, you will keep my commandments.  John 14:15
How well we keep God’s commands is a measure of how [...]

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If only I could touch Him. . .

Posted in Sacraments, tagged , , , , on July 7, 2008 | 2 Comments »

In his homily today, the new deacon at my parish made a powerful connection between the Gospel reading of the hemorrhaging woman and our receiving the Eucharist, a connection that I hadn’t heard or thought of before.  The story is a familiar one:  how a woman suffering for twelve years says to herself, “If I [...]

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Prayer and Meditation

Posted in Prayer, tagged , , , on July 5, 2008 | 1 Comment »

After frequent participation in the Sacraments, prayer has contributed the most to my spiritual growth.  I did not really know what it meant to have a personal relationship with God until I cultivated a daily commitment to prayer.
The first fruits of my prayer were an increase in virtue and a decrease in sin.  It has [...]

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Lemonade from Lemons

Posted in God's Will, Prayer, tagged , , , on July 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment »

“Name it and claim it” is a twisted version of the gospel that is being proclaimed by some preachers, generally ones appearing on TV. It’s the spiritually immature belief that if we just attach “in Jesus name” to any prayer, we can get what we ask for.
“Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz. [...]

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Humility

Posted in Virtue, tagged on July 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment »

Many years ago I encountered the Litany of Humility, written by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930), Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X.  Everything in my being recoiled at the petitions in that prayer, because it asks God to give me the opposite of what I wanted.   I think I even said it [...]

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