Welcome to the middle of Lent! I hope it has been a good season for you to really examine and work on your relationship with God. I came across this article on Catholic Exchange and thought it correlated nicely with my idea of spiritual exercise.
Welcome to the middle of Lent! I hope it has been a good season for you to really examine and work on your relationship with God. I came across this article on Catholic Exchange and thought it correlated nicely with my idea of spiritual exercise. From the article:
Let’s face it, we are all weighed down to some extent by selfishness and assorted vices. Given a choice, very few of us will choose suffering over comfort. Many times, we don’t even realize how much we love to be comfortable. Fortunately, the Church gives us the season of Lent to examine our souls and remove the extra “weight” that keeps us apart from the Lord. Here are five simple steps that you can use during Lent to identify and eliminate some of this excess “poundage” from your life.
The article discusses examining ourselves, setting goals, and not giving up. Where have we seen this before? Oh yeah, losing Lenten “weight” can probably be seen as a requirement on becoming a Lenten Superstar! And if this Lent hasn’t been a period of deep reflection like you hope it would, don’t worry. You still have three more weeks of Lent. And like Jesus‘ parable of the workers in the field, God doesn’t care what time you get on board and follow Him just as long as you do.
So let’s attack these next few weeks with spiritual fervor and tenacity. Hands in… READY… GO LENT!
Dear children, In this special time of your effort to be all the closer to my Son, to His suffering, but also to the love with which He bore it, I desire to tell you that I am with you. I will help you to triumph over errors and temptations with my grace. I will teach you love, love which wipes away all sins and makes you perfect, love which gives you the peace of my Son now and forever. Peace with you and in you, because I am the Queen of Peace. Thank you.
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Dear children, In this special time of your effort to be all the closer to my Son, to His suffering, but also to the love with which He bore it, I desire to tell you that I am with you. I will help you to triumph over errors and temptations with my grace. I will teach you love, love which wipes away all sins and makes you perfect, love which gives you the peace of my Son now and forever. Peace with you and in you, because I am the Queen of Peace. Thank you.
Mary offers us Her help to become closer to Her son, Jesus Christ. This message reminds me of the Fourth Glorious Mystery where Mary was assumed into Heaven to guide us through the trials of life. Our faith tells us that with the help of Mary and the saints we can triumph over sin and temptation to find ourselves in God‘s grace.
In our prayers, let us remember those who are in despair or far from God’s grace. We should pray for those who cannot believe that God loves them and desperately desires our love in return. As Mary’s message points out, God will forgive all our sins, no matter how serious, and reunite us in His grace.
This rosary meditation focuses on the Third Sorrowful Mystery — The Crowning of Thorns. The Roman soldiers mocked Jesus by dressing Him in royal purple and crowning Him with thorns (Mk. 15:17). They then mocked Him and pretended to pay Him homage (Mk. 15:19). Would the soldiers have acted so cavalier and arrogant if they truly understood who it was they were mocking? While we are not as brazen as those soldiers, we often mock Jesus by giving lip service to our faith. Instead of faithfully following Jesus, we too often dishonor Him by putting the fleeting treasures of this life in front of the treasures waiting for us in Heaven. Particularly in this time of Lent we must make a sincere effort to put Jesus first in our lives and honor Him the way He deserves.
This rosary meditation focuses on the Third Sorrowful Mystery — The Crowning of Thorns. The Roman soldiers mocked Jesus by dressing Him in royal purple and crowning Him with thorns (Mk. 15:17). They then mocked Him and pretended to pay Him homage (Mk. 15:19). Would the soldiers have acted so cavalier and arrogant if they truly understood who it was they were mocking? While we are not as brazen as those soldiers, we often mock Jesus by giving lip service to our faith. Instead of faithfully following Jesus, we too often dishonor Him by putting the fleeting treasures of this life in front of the treasures waiting for us in Heaven. Particularly in this time of Lent we must make a sincere effort to put Jesus first in our lives and honor Him the way He deserves.
We are often very much like the Roman soldiers who pretended to pay Jesus homage. Sure, we may say that we are good Christians. We might recite prayers every night and go to Mass every Sunday. But do we truly believe that Jesus Christ is our king and savior? Will we follow Him even when times are difficult and our faith runs contrary to society’s norms? Or is our faith something done in isolation and detached from our “normal” lives? For example, how many of your beliefs conflict with the Church’s teachings? Or, when faced with a difficult situation, how often do you tell a “little white lie” or commit some other easy sin to serve your own ends? Do you go to Confession without intending to truly turn away from your sins and live with a converted heart? There are so many ways where we pretend to follow Jesus but our actions tell a different story. And while our transgressions may seem small and inconsequential, they are like the little thorns on the crown we offer to Jesus. When meditating upon this mystery think about how sincerely you praise and honor Jesus. Do you practice and live the faith you profess or are you like the Roman soldiers who only pretended to honor Jesus?
For whose kingdom are you living? We too often live for this worldly kingdom and not for Jesus’ kingdom of Heaven. There are so many things that compete for our attention — money, power, possessions, and lust just to name a few. But we must remember this verse from the Gospel of Matthew (6:24):
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
But how we try. However, as the verse says, by trying to serve two masters we often end up serving only one. Since money and possessions are physical, quantifiable things it is often easier to live for them than it is to live for our treasures in Heaven. After all, we only have it on faith that the riches of Heaven will far outweigh anything made in this world. But since our eternal reward isn’t something advertised during the Super Bowl by a fancy advertising agency, we too often kick it aside for the things that we can see, hear, and touch.
Ask yourself in this time of Lent, what master are you serving? What type of crown do you offer Jesus Christ?
Dear children! May this time be a time of personal prayer for you, so that the seed of faith may grow in your hearts; and may it grow into a joyful witness to others. I am with you and I desire to inspire you all: grow and rejoice in the Lord Who has created you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Dear children! May this time be a time of personal prayer for you, so that the seed of faith may grow in your hearts; and may it grow into a joyful witness to others. I am with you and I desire to inspire you all: grow and rejoice in the Lord Who has created you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
This rosary meditation focuses on The Second Glorious Mystery — The Ascension. After rising from the dead in the First Glorious Mystery, Jesus physically ascended into Heaven. We profess this every time we recite the Apostle’s Creed — “On the third day He rose again; He ascended into Heaven, He is seated at the right hand of the Father, and He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” We must remember that ultimately we will have to account for our thoughts, words, and actions in front of Jesus who reigns in Heaven. However, the Church gives us tools that allow us to remain close to God and correct our faults before facing our final judgment.
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This rosary meditation focuses on The Second Glorious Mystery — The Ascension. After rising from the dead in the First Glorious Mystery, Jesus physically ascended into Heaven. We profess this every time we recite the Apostle’s Creed — “On the third day He rose again; He ascended into Heaven, He is seated at the right hand of the Father, and He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” We must remember that ultimately we will have to account for our thoughts, words, and actions in front of Jesus who reigns in Heaven. However, the Church gives us tools that allow us to remain close to God and correct our faults before facing our final judgment.
“He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” Like many people, I find the idea of judgment scary. The word “judgment” conveys a trial, assessing guilt, and handing out punishment; none of which are very pleasant. In life, judging has a very negative connotation. We hear how we shouldn’t be so judgmental. Even when we are guilty (either legally or morally) many of us try to avoid admitting our faults and accepting the consequences. Instead we hide, we lie, or play the “blame game.” Deep down we want to be innocent, sinless, and virtuous but we often miss that mark. But in professing our inevitable judgment in the Apostle’s Creed we remind ourselves that we need to work at becoming more Christ-like. Understanding that our actions have consequences motivates us to avoid sin. And we avoid sin, not just to avoid punishment, but also realizing that sin separates us from Jesus Christ whom we love.
The purpose of knowing of our coming judgment is not to scare or depress us. In fact, God does not want to punish any of us. He desires all of us to one day enter into His kingdom. And He provides tools to help us avoid a harsh judgment. The most obvious tool He gives us is the Sacrament of Confession. This is our opportunity to set things straight with the Lord and remain in His grace. It’s our way of doing small course corrections so that we can remain on the path that ultimately leads us into His kingdom of Heaven. To put it another way, by routinely confessing our sins we confront our shortcomings while they are still small and manageable. Without acknowledging our sins those small shortcomings can turn into major problems and separate us from God’s grace not to mention make our lives miserable.
Another tool at our disposal to live in God’s graces is prayer. When we center our lives around God through prayer, that means we are not centering it around sin. In other words, earnest prayer can never be sinful so when we live a life of prayer we live without sin (unfortunately, no one has been able to obtain this lofty goal 100% of the time). The fact that we pray means that we acknowledge that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father and hears our prayers. After all, what would be the point of praying if we did not believe that Jesus hears us and guides us? When we pray we focus, even if only for a short time, on the Lord and ask for His help, thank Him, and listen to how He calls us to live. In short, we ask for the strength to live for His kingdom and earn our place that He has prepared for us when he ascended into Heaven.
When we meditate on this mystery, may we remember that our ultimate destination is Heaven. May we show our love for the Lord by not delaying our arrival in Heaven with a detour in Purgatory. And may we avoid mortal sin and risk loosing His kingdom entirely. Remembering our final judgment is not a terrible thing. Like remembering the consequences of breaking civil laws, we must always be mindful of the natural law that God imprints on our hearts and minds. Doing so will not only have its benefits in the afterlife, but will also manifest itself as an inner happiness in this life. Let us also remember to pray for those who are far from God’s graces. Let us pray for those who do not want to confront their eventual judgment but instead choose to hide, lie, and redirect blame. Because, as the old saying goes, “You can run, but you can’t hide.”
This year Advent feels like it is one week longer. In the past week I’ve gone to a 50th wedding anniversary, a wedding, and had a great time with my wife’s family for Thanksgiving. I’ve spent a lot of time talking to friends and family at the various events. At the anniversary, my cousin and I talked about prayer and the rosary. We touched on many ideas and I can’t go into detail on all of them in this post (but I will probably bring them up in the future). However, there was one rosary prayer of her’s that I found particularly interesting that seemed relevant to Advent and preparing our souls for the Lord.
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Welcome to the wonderful season of Advent! My wife and I were so happy about the start of this blessed season that we tore into our closet, took out all our Christmas supplies, and got busy decorating. I hope that everyone feels energized and excited about the best four weeks of the year.
This year Advent feels like it is one week longer. In the past week I’ve gone to a 50th wedding anniversary, a wedding, and had a great time with my wife’s family for Thanksgiving. I’ve spent a lot of time talking to friends and family at the various events. At the anniversary, my cousin and I talked about prayer and the rosary. We touched on many ideas and I can’t go into detail on all of them in this post (but I will probably bring them up in the future). However, there was one rosary prayer of her’s that I found particularly interesting that seemed relevant to Advent and preparing our souls for the Lord.
The prayer is simple. On each bead of the rosary you remember someone who needs prayers, something you are thankful for, something you are sorry for, or any other situation that you feel needs remembering. You don’t need to say a long prayer on each bead. Just saying someone’s name will suffice. So that is sixty thoughts total (counting the small beads at the start and the crucifix). The point is to just think about people and situations so that they go to the front of your mind, heart, and hopefully your actions. I think this helps prevent us from making our prayers too general. When we say someone’s name, we attach a face and a real soul to our prayers. It gives our prayers, sacrifices, and offerings a real, human dimension that we sometimes miss when we just pray generally.
What do you think is more effective? Saying, “Lord please help those in need” or, “Lord, please look over my aunt during her surgery?” Now, God knows everyone’s needs whether we voice them our not. But we don’t need to be specific for God’s sake, but for ours. Suppose you really do have a family member going in for surgery. Perhaps actually thinking and voicing his/her name will remind you to give that person a phone call or visit in the hospital. Or maybe you can fast specifically for that person. In other words, by thinking of specific people you focus your prayers and spiritual energy towards their specific needs.
Sounds easy? That’s what I thought until I gave it a try. Sure, the first twenty or thirty beads are simple enough since I can rattle off friends and family members. However, I found it quite challenging to think of sixty people and circumstances that are in need of prayer. That is a little disappointing considering the millions of things to be thankful for, people to pray for, and sins to feel genuine remorse for. So that will be my challenge for this Advent — to say my sixty small prayers after praying the rosary so that I may remember the needs of those for whom I haven’t prayed enough. In doing so, in making room for others in my prayers, I will also be making room for Jesus when Christmas arrives.
Give this a try and let me know what you think. Have a great Advent!
The Catholic Church celebrated All Souls Day on November 2. On that day we prayed for the souls in Purgatory who are undergoing their final purification before entering Heaven. However, I want to remind everyone that these souls are in constant need of our prayers. Praying for them should not be something we do once a year after we come down from our Halloween sugar high. We should remember the deceased every day throughout the year in all our prayers.
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The Catholic Church celebrated All Souls Day on November 2. On that day we prayed for the souls in Purgatory who are undergoing their final purification before entering Heaven. However, I want to remind everyone that these souls are in constant need of our prayers. Praying for them should not be something we do once a year after we come down from our Halloween sugar high. We should remember the deceased every day throughout the year in all our prayers.
The Church’s tradition is that the souls in Purgatory need our prayers to complete their purification. They no longer have the ability to pray for themselves so they are completely dependent on God’s mercy and our prayers. The Catechism of the Catholic Church recommends “almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead” (CCC #1032).
To think of it another way, one day you will be completely dependent on others’ prayers just as the dead are dependent on your prayers today. So don’t just pray alone for the deceased, but ask other people to pray for souls as well. As more people pray, the more souls will enter into God’s kingdom for all eternity. And one day, the people who you teach to remember the deceased in their prayers will be helping you enter into Heaven.
Purgatory must be a crowded place. Our Lord dictated the following prayer to St. Gertrude the Great to release 1,000 Souls from Purgatory each time it is said. Imagine how great it would be if we all prayed this every day so that millions of souls could enter into eternal rest?
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.
PS: Sorry for the long delay between postings. I’m trying to finish up some rosary meditations but I’m having problems finding the right message.
Dear children! Also today I bring you my blessing, I bless you all and I call you to grow on this way, which God has begun through me for your salvation. Pray, fast and joyfully witness your faith, little children, and may your heart always be filled with prayer. Thank you for having responded to my call.
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Mary’s message at Medjugorje on October 25, 2009:
Dear children! Also today I bring you my blessing, I bless you all and I call you to grow on this way, which God has begun through me for your salvation. Pray, fast and joyfully witness your faith, little children, and may your heart always be filled with prayer. Thank you for having responded to my call.
Her message, as always, is a simple one — pray and embrace your faith. She asks us to make our lives a living prayer. This means living a life dedicated to God. Living a life of prayer is not something reserved for priests or nuns, but is the way God desires us all to live. I always chuckle when people justify sin when they say, “I’m not a priest! You can’t expect me to live like one!” And you know what, they are right. God doesn’t ask us to live a life of prayer like a priest. In reality, God calls us to be more spiritual than any priest, nun, bishop, cardinal, or pope. Because everyone, even the Pope, usually fall short of how God wants us to live. All of us, from the daily-churchgoer to the non-churchgoer, can always improve our spiritual life in little and big ways. Mary’s message, asking us to have a heart filled with prayer, is simple to understand but takes a lifetime to implement. As She stresses in Her many messages, there is no time like the present to live a holy life.
I know that many times I focus on the rules of the Catholic Church in my articles. I mention using Church doctrine as a guide for discerning between right and wrong. I talk about praying the rosary every day and finding ways to integrate prayer into your life. To some, all of these rules just seems too rigid, too strict, and requiring too much effort or a giant leap of faith. This causes many people to become resentful of the Church and all its “rules” and abandon Her. I’m sure all of us can think of a handful of people who are feeling detached from God’s graces and are lost in life (it might even be you). Unfortunately, we forget about these lost souls as we go about managing our lives. We often don’t want to deal with the added burden of dealing with others’ misery. However, we must always pray for those who are lost and sacrifice for their conversion. After all, when compared to God and the majesty of Heaven, we are all lowly sinners in need of each others’ prayers. The next time you pray or fast offer it up to those who are in most need of God’s mercy.
The rosary has the ability to heal and mend what is broken in our lives. Fr. Dwight Longenecker, on Catholic Online, discusses how praying the rosary brings us inner peace by replacing all that is earthly with what is heavenly.
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The rosary has the ability to heal and mend what is broken in our lives. Fr. Dwight Longenecker, on Catholic Online, discusses how praying the rosary brings us inner peace by replacing all that is earthly in our life with what is heavenly.
From the article:
In a mysterious way Christ’s perfect life and the perfect love he shared with his mother, flow into the wounded places in our lives. This grace empowers us to return to the confessional with a clearer vision. It helps us to be open to the healing Christ brings through the Eucharist, and it gives us the strength to continue the daily hard work of being transformed into Christ’s image.
I really like this idea of replacing our “wounded places” with Christ’s love. It goes hand-in-hand with many of the message from Mary at Medjugorje when she asks us to clean out all that prevents us from fully accepting God’s graces.
The article also discusses how our lives mimic the values and themes seen in each mystery of the rosary:
Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical Rosarium Virginis Mariae writes, “The rosary marks the rhythm of human life, bringing it into harmony with the rhythm of God’s own life.”
Pope John Paul II said that we can reflect on all the joys, sorrows, and challenges in our lives by looking at the ones shown in the mysteries of the rosary. Over time, through rosary prayer, our ways begin to mimic Jesus’ ways revealed in those mysteries. For example, we see Jesus taking up the cross in the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery. We know that Jesus fell down repeatedly and yet He always got back up and continued on. We can learn that we all have our “crosses” in life and at times we might fall (either by sin or just lacking faith and spiritual energy). However, to imitate Jesus we must get up and continue working towards His kingdom.
The next time we pray the rosary, let us ask ourselves what each mystery reveals about our own lives. Are we imitating what Jesus did in those mysteries or are we ignoring His teachings and example?
Our Lady’s message from Medjugorje on July 26, 2009. Mary calls us all to a life of prayer. Sometimes the simplest message is often the hardest to carry out. After all, how much time do you spend in prayer every day? Or better yet, do you make your entire life a living prayer where you put God first above all other things?
Our Lady‘s message on July 25, 2009 is short and simple:
Dear children! May this time be a time of prayer for you. Thank you for having responded to my call.
That’s it. Of course, the simplest message is often the hardest to carry out. After all, how much time do you spend in prayer every day? Do you think you could stand before God and honestly tell Him that you spent enough of your life in prayer? Or better yet, do you make your entire life a living prayer where you put God first above all other things? I know that I have a tendency to isolate my faith where I set aside some time for God but then go about my day focused (or obsessed over) other things.
So ask yourself, do you make your entire life about loving God and having His love shine forth through you in all that you do? Or is there a disconnect between your prayers and how you live your life? Let us remember that prayer is more than just reciting an “Our Father” or “Hail Mary.” It is a time for us to talk to God and learn how we can incorporate His will into our lives. May our prayers bare fruit by living as God calls us to live.
This rosary meditation focuses on the Third Sorrowful Mystery — The Crowning of Thorns. The Roman soldiers mocked Jesus by dressing Him in royal purple and crowning Him with thorns (Mk. 15:17). They then mocked Him and pretended to pay Him homage (Mk. 15:19). Would the soldiers have acted so cavalier and arrogant if they truly understood who it was they were mocking? While we are not as brazen as those soldiers, we often mock Jesus by giving lip service to our faith. Instead of faithfully following Jesus, we too often dishonor Him by putting the fleeting treasures of this life in front of the treasures waiting for us in 
