The recent events in Paris give us cause to pause in our lives and consider the effects of evil and our response to it.
One of the dangers of going through periods of distress, hurt, and heartache is that we’ll begin to doubt God’s goodness, and to think that He doesn’t care. Nothing could be further from the truth. And this is one of the reasons why it’s essential for us to spend regular time in God’s Word. Scripture says: “In all their suffering He also suffered, and He personally rescued them. In His love and mercy, He redeemed them. He lifted them up and carried them through all the years.” (Isaiah 63:9)
God hurts when we hurt. Remember Jesus weeping when He saw Lazarus’ family grieving? (John 11:35) The Bible clearly states that the Lord sympathizes with us. (Hebrews 4:15) But He doesn’t stop there. As Isaiah says, He personally rescues us, lifts us up, and even carries us in times of hardship and pain.
God allows believers to experience adversity…but…Contrary to what the enemy would have us believe, God does not enjoy the hurting of His children. Jeremiah wrote: “For the Lord does not abandon anyone forever. Though He brings grief, He also shows compassion according to the greatness of His unfailing love. For He does not willingly afflict or cause them sorrow.” (Lamentations 3:31-33) Just as God allows pain to enter our lives, He sends healing and restoration. Is there anything you and I can do to help this process along? Yes, there is. We can cooperate with God by earnestly seeking Him in prayer, praise, and the study of His Word. And we can ask Him to speak to our hearts, and to help us learn whatever lessons He has for us in our struggles. As we faithfully follow His lead, we will minimize the intensity and duration of our trials.
If you love God with all your heart, you have His promise that He will cause your hard times to profit you. (Romans 8:28) Claim that promise in faith today, and watch for His hand of favor and blessing right in the midst of your trials! J.M Farro
Our parish priest, Fr. Larry Richards, reminded us during Sunday liturgy this past Weekend something very important.
I enjoy Instagram. I enjoy the quick little reminders and updates from those who I am following. I especially love the many #hashtag combinations created!
Photo Courtesy of Pinterest.
Mostly because the hashtags remind me of the many road trips our family would take to visit family in New Jersey and the ‘license plate’ games my sister and I would play in the back-seat of the car. (How many States can you find? Double numbers? Double letters?) But I especially found it to be so much fun deciphering the unique number/letter combinations that drivers would inscribe on their license-plates to create a message! Some seemed so perfect in description that you felt as if you were finding out a piece of information (from the inscription,) regarding who was contained within the vehicle! While others simply left you giggling and wondering about the mystery behind the message.
I suppose both a #hash&license ‘tag’ could be compared to the tag-lines on our blog sites too! Just a few little words to describe what you can expect to find at our sites.
These tags, hashes, and license messages, in a way, leave you with clues to what is contained behind the photo, driver, message, & blog-writer. And the added fun is sometimes the discovery of what these tags inspire in each of us!
Today I saw an insightful Instagram post from Proverbs Daily that has left me pondering myself and categorizing others. (Not in a judgmental way but rather in Awe, Wonder, and Recognition!)
And that’s when it hit me!!! What a great Weekend Thought to ponder:
Which of the following below would be TAG(s) for you??
Successful People:
Read Every Day, Talk About Ideas, Compliment, Embrace Change, Forgive Others, Learn Constantly, Accept Responsibility for their Failures,They want Others to Succeed, They have a Sense of Gratitude.
Unsuccessful People:
Watch TV Every Day, Talk About People, Complain & Criticize, Fear Change, Hold Grudges, Are Know-It-Alls, Blame Others For Their Failures, Secretly Want Others to Fail, Have a Sense of Entitlement.
(Are you pink or blue?)
Just like the #hashtags, tag lines, and license plate doodles,
I pray your noodle
has lots of fun
discovering (any) message behind the Weekend Thoughts
Today is the Feast Day of my gal-pal, St. Faustina!!!!
(aka: Helen Kowalska before taking her vows as a Sister of Our Lady of Mercy!)
And oh, how I love her!❤️
Our dog’s name is…Helen Kowalska too!
In 2014 as I began reading St. Faustina’s personal Diary, Divine Mercy in My Soul, I had no idea the spiritual growth I would experience from the written experience of her life-lived out. But today I lift up prayers of gratitude for all I have gained through her example! God has moved me forward, in many aspects, as He clarified for me during that time spent reading her Diary, what it means to love beyond measure…regardless of the burdens or sorrows that may come. She continues to guide me and remind me that everyone deserves mercy!
I will always be grateful for this gift and the immense peace which has remained in my heart as a result.
Our Parish priest, Fr Larry Richards, has taught us a wonderful way of incorporating scripture into our daily lives. We have learned from him:
“No Bible, no breakfast! No Bible, no bed!”
This morning I decided to do my “breakfast portion” of Scripture in our Chapel prior to Morning Mass. And since it is a day all about her, I invited my gal-pal St. Faustina to be with me as I invoked the Holy Spirit; hoping she’d nudge Him in a direction that was merciful!
“Speak to me Your Word, Oh Lord, that I may know you, love you, and serve You.”
And (as I’d hoped in my heart) St Faustina, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, (I believe) nudged Him in a kind & gentle direction; affirming what has been (being) revealed to me for quite some time. As I randomly broke open the Word this is where He rested my eyes:
Lamentations 3: 55-62 & 24 “I called on your name, Lord, from the depths of the pit. You heard my plea: “Do not close your ears to my cry for help!” You came near when I called you, and you said, “Do not fear.” You, Lord, took up my case; you redeemed my life. Lord, you have seen the wrong done to me; you will judge my cause! You have seen the depth of their vengeance, all their plots against me. Lord, you have heard their insults, all their devices against me—what my enemies whisper and mutter against me all day long. …”The Lordis my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.“”
A grateful giggle bubbled up inside me because of course St. Faustina would know the words I would rejoice over in celebration of this day for her! This restful heart He has been strengthening in me, she too found rest in these words as others mocked, judged & spoke poorly of her. And this is why she is so close to my heart! Her courage, to follow the ways of her Lord, despite the suffering she endured, has shone a light on my own humble attempts to love others despite what is returned to me. And to pray always for a conversion of heart; especially for those in need of the grace to love unconditionally in return.
Thank you St. Faustina!
For giving abundantly to me, through your example, with each reminder of what it means to place our trust in Him!
Enough thanksgiving from me…now it’s ALL ABOUT Helen!
When this saint was born in Poland on August 25, 1905, her parents named her Helen. In her short life on earth, she carried out the important mission of teaching the world about the mercy of Jesus. From the time she was seven years old, Helen knew she wanted to live a life consecrated to God as a sister. When she was twenty-five, she entered the convent of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy, taking the name Sister Faustina. Her work was simple. She cooked, tended the convent garden, and answered the door. Her kindness, serenity, and spirit of recollection were remarkable. But few people knew the real depths of her spirituality. God blessed Sister Faustina with many extraordinary gifts, including visions, prophecy, and invisible stigmata. In one of the visions Sister Faustina had, Jesus appeared in a white garment. He raised one hand in blessing and touched his heart with the other. Two rays of light, one red, the other pale, spread out from his heart. The red ray represented the saving blood of Christ; the pale ray stood for the cleansing water of Baptism. Jesus said, “Have an image painted just as you see me, with the words ‘Jesus, I trust in You.’” Jesus told Sister Faustina that the Sunday after Easter was to be the Feast of Divine Mercy.
Sister Faustina kept a diary in which she wrote down everything that Jesus wanted the world to know about his mercy. In it, she wrote about prayer as a loving relationship with God. Jesus told her that she was his secretary. It was her special work to encourage people to trust in the limitless mercy of God.
Jesus promised forgiveness and abundant graces to anyone who would honor the Feast of Divine Mercy. Devotion to Divine Mercy consists in trusting in God’s goodness, loving one’s neighbor, remaining in the state of grace with the help of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and receiving Holy Communion on Divine Mercy Sunday.
After only thirteen years of religious life, Sister Faustina died of tuberculosis on October 5, 1938. She was thirty-three years old. Pope John Paul II declared her a saint on April 30, 2000.
Jesus told St. Maria Faustina, “I expect you to show mercy always and everywhere. You cannot excuse yourself from this.”
The best way to show that we trust in the mercy of Jesus is to be merciful and forgiving to the people who hurt us.
Are we willing to do this?
hugs n’ blessings to all those who love enough…to forgive!
Helen reminds us to pray for all those who (for today) cannot!
hugsnblessings 