Now is the Time

 Prayer

This practice is done every minute of every day: Someone is praying. Sometimes, it's a short prayer before a job interview or just before taking a test. We practice this thought in times of need, thanksgiving, intercession for someone other than yourself, and praise to the Creator.

Prayer covers many areas. We can all find something to pray about, but do we actually do it? Prayer does not have to be done at a particular time or place, although it is helpful as it can become a habit. We pray because God, the creator of the universe, is the only one who can answer our request. 

Take the time in the course of your day to pray to God because the world is in great need right now, with wars and disasters. 

Filtered Truth

Truth is truth. Right?

I have written several blogs about truth. Follow the tagline truth to see all the ways truth is manipulated. 

This post is about filtered truth. And just as a filter works on anything, it is meant to remove the unwanted and release the final wanted results. 

What makes this different from other forms of filters about truth?

Most filters are not 100% effective. Truth is always the truth 100% of the time.  With that defined, let's apply the two together. 

We seek truth every day.  It applies to all aspects of life, work, home, personal relationships, and most importantly, our faith. We have those truths in our lives that are known without a doubt. But we must seek and know other truths to make decisions and function in the world. This is where the filtered truth happens. 

Some examples:

Work: A procedure is explained to you by a supervisor, but it is filtered by only giving you part of the information needed to perform the task.  Why? Because there is power in knowing all the truth about information and procedures of a task.

Personal Relationships: We meet and interact with people all the time. We typically expect the truth in conversation, but the reality is that conversations are filtered. This could be for various reasons, both good and bad.

Faith in God: This one is very different from the other two. The truth in faith can be manipulated to work for an agenda that is wrong, as God tells us (Proverbs 14:25).  We must accept the truth of God. The Word as we know it comes from the Bible and the tradition of the spoken Word of the Apostles, which was passed down from generation to generation. This truth can be trusted to be unfiltered and good. God will not deceive us. He gives us all we need to know. It is up to us to discover and hear His absolute truth for us and to beware of filtered truth.

Photo - pixabay - R-steray      

1 Peter 3:18-22

Beloved:

Christ suffered for sins once,

the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous,

that he might lead you to God.

Put to death in the flesh,

he was brought to life in the Spirit.

In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison,

who had once been disobedient

while God patiently waited in the days of Noah

during the building of the ark,

in which a few persons, eight in all,

were saved through water.

This prefigured baptism, which saves you now.

It is not a removal of dirt from the body

but an appeal to God for a clear conscience,

through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

who has gone into heaven

and is at the right hand of God,

with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.

Lent = Love

This year, Lent was on Valentine's Day.  It is an appropriate day because we often think of Lent as a time of suffering and sacrifice, and we do not generally think of that as a type of love. But Lent is all about love. God wants us to be with Him for all eternity because we can sometimes be stubborn and want to do things our way, not God's. And like a parent, He looks after us and always wants the best. So, this Lent let us become the best child of God and return to Him with all the love we can.          

The Door of Faith

Faith is an absolute trust in a belief.  Faith in something is knowing that it is accurate and correct; it is unseen and not a tangible object that can be held. 

Faith lives and dwells in your soul. And occasionally, our souls question and doubt the presence of faith. Faith struggles at times to even exist.

Why do we struggle with something that we can't see or touch? 

The struggle is when evil sets up camp in our souls, building walls to keep the good out.  Faith co-exists with hope, and these two together form a powerful motivation for anyone who deals with everyday life. If faith and hope are absent from our hearts, despair, and sadness consume our souls, and evil fights to keep out what is good. 

To all, keep faith and hope alive.  Recognize that God's presence is always there at the door to your soul. You just have to open the door and welcome this great gift He gives us.

Photo - pixabay - 4651889     

The Holy One of God

 

 Mk 1:21-28

Then they came to Capernaum,

and on the Sabbath, Jesus entered the synagogue and taught.

The people were astonished at his teaching,

for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.

In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;

he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

Have you come to destroy us?

I know who you are—the Holy One of God!"

Jesus rebuked him and said,

"Quiet! Come out of him!"

The unclean spirit convulsed him and, with a loud cry, came out of him.

All were amazed and asked one another,

"What is this?

A new teaching with authority.

He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him."

His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.

In today's Gospel reading at Mass, the unclean spirit acknowledges Jesus as the Holy One of God.  One would think during this time, the people would hear this and realize Jesus is truly the Son of God, but as we know, this is not enough, and they would need more proof. 

How often do we act as those did during that time by seeing and not believing?

And for as much as evil sometimes seems to rule, we should always know who the Son of God is, and no one is above Him. 

Act of Contrition

O My God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to confess my sins, to do penance and amend my life. 

Amen. 

Eternity

Forever is forever.

Think about that for a moment.

When we say forever, it means never-ending. It goes on for eternity.  Now, apply it to your spiritual life. Do we pray and hope for life after death, to live forever? I think most live just for the day and the moment. Not thinking about how our thoughts, words, and deeds affect our forever life after we die. But most of the time, especially in our younger days, it seems like we will live forever. The actual reality is we start the dying process once we are born into this world. The time for us to prepare for our eternal life is now. God has given us the guidelines for us to follow through the Bible. For thousands of years, He has been telling generation after generation how to live forever in heaven with God. But do we listen? I would say most of the time, we don't hear Him. That's why praying and reading the Bible every day is vital. Any day, your time ticket will arrive for the journey to eternity, and that ticket is a one-way to either Heaven or Hell. 

Where do you want to spend your forever life?

Photo - pixabay - TheFunkypixel

Reason

Our ability to reason is what separates us from the animals. Animals function on instinct, which is built in by God.  On the other hand, we can think through daily situations.  The wonderment we experience takes us deeper into the thought of creation and interacting with those around us. Reason can also be detrimental to our healthy being when it is interrupted by mental illness or drugs.  We probably have all taken this ability for granted because it's there; it's part of our process like your heart beating.  

Take a moment to thank God for your reasoning ability. 

The Next Big Thing?

What is the next big thing to happen?

  

There is so much going on now in the world.  The number of events happening is hard to track, and these are not from a local viewpoint.  

What am I referring to? 

The tension in Europe with the threat of World War III

AI - artificial intelligence, no one really knows how to control it. 

In the United States - there is a massive influx of people from all over the world crossing our southern border. The last reports are 10,000 crossing daily. 

The immorality of society. 

The financial markets are down. 

Rumors of food shortages in the winter. 

How does anyone prepare for any of this? 

Some things are not in our control, while others we can do. The more important matter here is to pray.  We can ask God to help us during these difficult times for help. Praying is not difficult; it's just a conversation with God. Sometimes, we do all the talking; sometimes, God does, but we must be open to hearing Him.  

Forever Changed

Following up on my last post.

In the last few days, the world experienced a catastrophic earthquake in Morocco, and we in the United States were reminded of the 9/11 attacks. 

The world is an ever-changing place from one day to the next. One minute, our daily routines are all set in motion, and the next minute, the world, as you know, is changed forever.  

We should all think that our lives could drastically change forever any day. We should thank God every morning that we made it to another day. Just as the people in Morocco and those in New York City on 9/11 all started their day thinking it would be the usual daily routine. Their lives were changed forever. Prepare your soul now.

Lord, we pray for all those in Morocco who lost loved ones and for healing those who lost loved ones in New York.

Photo - pixabay - ELG21 

The Holy Spirit

Some thoughts on the Holy Spirit.

First, The Holy Trinity - all in one

    The Father

    The Son

    The Holy Spirit

God revealed himself in the Old Testament, and as years passed, He brought into the world His Son, who fulfilled the prophecy revealed in the Old Testament. Jesus was born, died, resurrected, and ascended into Heaven. And now the world waits for His return.

So, is that it? 

No, because we have God, the Father, And Jesus, our Savior, with us daily. How is this possible? The Trinity is three in one. Once Christ ascended into Heaven, he did not leave us. The Holy Spirit came to Mary and the Apostles and has been with us ever since. The Holy Spirit works in our lives daily, just as Christ did. 

Something to think about.

Psalm 103

1

Of David.

I

Bless the LORD, my soul;

all my being, bless his holy name!

2

Bless the LORD, my soul;

and do not forget all his gifts,

3

Who pardons all your sins,

and heals all your ills,

4

Who redeems your life from the pit,

and crowns you with mercy and compassion,

5

Who fills your days with good things,

so your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

II

6

The LORD does righteous deeds,

brings justice to all the oppressed.

7

He made known his ways to Moses,

to the Israelites his deeds.

8

Merciful and gracious is the LORD,

slow to anger, abounding in mercy.

9

He will not always accuse,

and nurses no lasting anger;

10

He has not dealt with us as our sins merit,

nor requited us as our wrongs deserve.

III

11

For as the heavens tower over the earth,

so his mercy towers over those who fear him.

12

As far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our sins from us.

13

As a father has compassion on his children,

so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.

14

For he knows how we are formed,

remembers that we are dust.

15

As for man, his days are like the grass;

he blossoms like a flower in the field.

16

A wind sweeps over it and it is gone;

its place knows it no more.

17

But the LORD’s mercy is from age to age,

toward those who fear him.

His salvation is for the children’s children

18

of those who keep his covenant,

and remember to carry out his precepts.

IV

19

The LORD has set his throne in heaven;

his dominion extends over all.

20

Bless the LORD, all you his angels,

mighty in strength, acting at his behest,

obedient to his command.

21

Bless the LORD, all you his hosts,

his ministers who carry out his will.

22

Bless the LORD, all his creatures,

everywhere in his domain.

Bless the LORD, my soul!

The Nicene Creed

 

I believe in one God,

the Father almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all things visible and invisible.

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,

the Only Begotten Son of God,

born of the Father before all ages.

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us men and for our salvation

he came down from heaven,

and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,

and became man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,

he suffered death and was buried,

and rose again on the third day

in accordance with the Scriptures.

He ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory

to judge the living and the dead

and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,

who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.

I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins

and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead

and the life of the world to come.

Amen.

One Book

So many books out nowadays would have never been published 40 years ago. Books that target specific immoral issues infecting our society. Some would say I don't read books anymore. Any information I need is online. But here is the main difference.  Books can be around for hundreds of years. Online information can change almost daily. The books printed today could still have an impact on those who read them later on. The unethical, unrighteous, and evil words on the pages of some books will possibly influence future societies.

One book has been around as long as 600 B.C., and a newer version about 1,800 years ago. It has all the information one would need to live a good and moral life and learn from the mistakes of others. It is in some way, an encyclopedia of life and death.  And today, it is the most popular book ever printed, which is the Bible. 

If you have one, pick it up and re-read it. If you don't, find one, because it will change your life forever.

Photo - pixabay - bohdanchreptak

July

The month of July - the month of America

We start the month with a bang in celebrating our independence from England. 

Those early colonies didn't really know how great our country would be.  The United States has had its share of problems, but overall, it's still better than any free country worldwide. 

If you are a citizen of the U.S., take some time this month to reflect and be thankful to be living in the United States.

God Bless America

Photo: pixabay - TheDigitalArtist

Matthew 28: 16-20

The eleven disciples went to Galilee,

to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them.

When they saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted.

Then Jesus approached and said to them,

“All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father,

and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

Bluebirds 23.5

 Finally, hatched !!!

Date of picture April 18th

God will Prevail

Scanning the news stories this morning, I discovered this MSNBC interview about using God as an excuse.

Follow the Link https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/athena-butler-the-republican-party-is-using-god-as-an-excuse/vi-AA19UMh7?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=0799da64adac4a7e8e45bcaedd01cbb1&ei=75

Everyone in this great country has the right to voice their opinion; with that said, here is mine.

The interview follows up on the recent events in the Tennesse state legislature, the expulsion of members of the State House, and the difference in opinions about right and wrong. The video clearly expresses the extreme progressive left criticizing the words and actions of the members of the super-majority-led conservative party in the State House.  These representatives are relaying the voices of their constituents, who are God-fearing people and believe the laws of God should be followed in all matters of life with no exceptions. God did not give us rules to live by just so we could pick and choose the ones we agree with and disregard the ones we don't. 

God knows what is best for us. God created the universe, so I trust God knows what He is doing. No one is perfect. We have to do our best every day to make the right decisions. But the MSN video completely disregards the Truth of God; they are choosing to criticize what conservatives see as a way of life and twisting the words of the Bible to fit their narrative. 

God's Word in the Bible was given to us to follow to the end of times. It does not change according to which way the political and cultural winds are blowing. No exception. God knows what is best for us because He loves us.  There is no place for racism, prejudice, or any other hatred. But with that said we must not give in to the progressive ideology that all things Christian are evil. Christians for over 2,000 years have been defending their faith, and it will not be stopped by whatever is trending on the day's news. God will prevail. 

Photo - pixabay - bpcraddock 

Bluebirds 23.4

These eggs have been here for a few weeks.  They will be hatching soon, hopefully.