WHAT DID YOU HEAR IN YOUR TALK WITH GOD TODAY

            God is always near us, and He is always speaking….so in your time with Him today, what did you hear?  You say He doesn’t talk to you? Oh but He does…we just don’t hear because of where our attention is addressed.  God speaks in His Word…but you can’t remember what you read or comprehend it….He doesn’t expect you to memorize it because the conversation is so long.  Who remembers every word we shared in conversing with people in our day? Aaah but we do remember “what” we talked about don’t we?

            One thing is for sure…He will never speak the opposite of his Word!  So if you know the 10 Commandments…basic right?  Which ones can’t we obey?  We know we are not supposed to commit adultery and looking at someone…lusting…is wrong if we are married…right?  We know we will give account for every word we speak---so gossip probably isn’t ok.  These are basic things….but God also speaks in His Creation.  Who doesn’t love the beauty of the world?  Romans tells us that He is revealed in His Creation, and understood by such---which is why Jesus used ordinary things to explain spiritual concepts in the Gospels.  The snowflakes are each unique….the Word says that “before you were in the womb, I knew you”….pretty unique huh…just like a snowflake. He also says….”the children of Abraham will be as innumerable as the stars”….winter skies are so fantabulous with the deep dark and glistening of stars….and we know space reveals soooo many…..yep…God’s People are many….generation after generation...living on after leaving this earthly realm!  Just as it takes light years for a star’s light to be seen by us….it’s taking that long for the City of God to be completed….within us…one soul at a time!  Squirrels bury nuts in the winter, bears hibernate, trees go dormant….so the Word tells us to “hide His Word in our hearts that we may not sin against Him”…says also…”to pray in your closet” or “go to a mountain alone to pray”….dormant….fasting….?  Well suppose you aren’t a nature lover? Then there’s the nice person who let you in front of them in the grocery line, the person who brought you a little gift, or maybe someone made you soup when you were sick….God works in people around us for “our good” and for His Glory.  Maybe you were just a praying person….what did you feel “impressed” upon your spirit?  Did you hear some music today? Did it bring back a memory?  Did it make you feel joyful or cheerful? All of these are God speaking….take time to listen.  You won’t be disappointed. 

            Oh yeah….the devil is the “prince of this world”….he is speaking too.  You do know how to distinguish his voice from His, right?  Never against The Word!!  Satan’s words will be about me, me, me…poor pitiful me…how unfair life is….depressing, discouraging, despairing, doubting, disrespecting, despiteful….notice all the “d”s? Dou’t go there.  God is not dark! He is Light!! Shine On!!!!

So What About Other Things?

October is the month of Halloween, and all the scary movies abound on tv, and the kiddos get costumes and grownups have dress-up parties to have fun.  Is it wrong? Is it just part of the fun, not meaning any harm?  Well that depends on what you do and why!  Having costume parties and trick or treat are not going to harm anyone's soul outright.  Yet for impressionable minds of the young, is it a good idea to encourage them about ghosts, spirits, vampires, zombies and such?  Have we as parents invested any time in teaching them who Jesus Christ is and what He did for us? Do they know about God?  Yeah we probably did that...we are good parents right?  However, have we considered the things that we do not realize "snare" us into wrongful beliefs and can actually invite "bad" spirits into our lives?

With the internet and movies and books being so widely available to the masses of people in our time--there do exist "unholy voices" in the world.  How are we to discern what is right and good from that which is not?  I am aware that many good folks have given up on outright Christianity because of the perceived failures of humans who have tarnished the Name of Christ...yet they desire to do good and be decent people!  They seek a "religion" that works for them.  Religion is a belief system and form of worship....so it doesn't have to necessarily be called Christianity.  Satanists have a "religion".  These are extreme opposites yet both have a religion and form of worship.  Then there's the "middle ground".  This is the place where all sorts of things are mixed together to form a set of beliefs and style of worship...it is of no denomination...therefore it seems to bring more freedom to the soul....but does it?

There are those who worship God in the form of nature and that claim deities to Mother Earth, Father Sky, and The Great Spirit.  They actually have a great deal of respect for the world, the universe, and their fellow man...aren't these things good? Yes they are in a practical sense...yet, have they considered...those are more than one spirit?  Where is Jesus in them? Is He one among many?  Many Christians are actually saying that Wicca is compatible to Christianity in principle.  The good done in any religion is good.  God wants us to respect and value the elements, the earth, the universe, and our fellow man.  The Native American spirituality is classic example of  mixing old and new and not seeing anything wrong with it...it sounds good and does good....I know, I used to participate in it...it was a great way to worship God without the hypocrisy I saw in the Church....but when I thought about how many spirits were invoked...I realize, there is only One I need--the Holy Spirit who comes from the Lord Jesus Christ...there is no other Name under Heaven by which man can be saved.  It is His Spirit...not many.  The sky is of God but is not God. The earth is another of God's wondrous creations that we must respect...but it is not God.  There is only one Creator.  Therefore Christians who are seduced by these "spiritual" forms of worship--don't realize they are calling on any "other" spirits.  God says in His Commandments that HE is a jealous God....HE doesn't want to share us with any other entities!  He loves us enough to die for us!

The subject of the occult is another avenue of confusion.  New Age Spirituality sounds good, but are Christians who say Christ is the only way, aware of taking..."another way"?  Psychics, tarot cards, tea leave readings, palm readings, mediums, "white" witchcraft (which does no harm to another because they believe that harm comes back 7-fold or 3-fold..depending on which you adhere to), crystals, chakras, channeling, karma, stages of light, energies, horoscopes, etc...are all forbidden to the Christian. Why? They invoke "other spirits".  They open doors to deception, to oppression or even possession of other spirits.  How many bad things have happened to Christians, their loved ones, or what kinds of suffering do they endure--that may have been caused by dabbling in places where they ought not?  All of these sound intriguing, some are just forms of our entertainment, others actually give us a sense of "knowing"....satan tricked Eve by being subtle...by asking an innocent question to which which she didn't think through clearly.  She had everything!  She had the Divine Life within her...she walked with God!  There weren't any sickness, death, fear, guilt, worry, nothing we all suffer now--until she cursed herself, Adam and all of humanity.  Nothing happened to her at first....so she shared with Adam.  Just because we don't see or feel any negative things at first....doesn't mean our "dabbling" won't cause some misfortune to our lives or our offspring.  How many diseases, troubles, bad luck, depressions, mental illnesses, etc...could be caused from our hypocrisy by "adding to our Christianity"?  God is a forgiving God.  He will forgive our sins when we confess and turn away from doing them again.  However, the physical issues that came from them may remain...sin has caused our bodies to die and decay....yet thru Christ our souls live on...and one day in our future...our bodies will be restored.  Until that day, we all die.

We don't need the full moon to appreciate and thank God for His earth, His sky,  or for praying for ourselves and others.  Christians don't need to know what is "on the other side and how our loved ones are doing".  Followers of Christ do not need "powers" of divination to make decisions or to predict the future.  And as for obtaining Heaven, we are promised that through Christ Jesus!  One does not gain entrance into Heaven through any other way....the Scriptures say the Jesus declared, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one comes to the Father except through Me".  (John 14:6)

So to those who claim salvation in Christ Jesus, be not deceived or carried away with other forms or other voices.  Be careful what you say, listen to, and think through what these things mean.  The reason for the Scriptures and the Creeds are to state outright what is that perfect will of God for us.  Some Christians have said that they think, what we say and do only have power if we give those things "power" by believing.  An example of a good luck charm or a voodoo doll or horoscope can only have effect if you truly "believe" and give it power.  Then why does Jesus say, "every idle word we shall give account for"--unless you water down His Word...to make it mean whatever you want it to?  Why did God forbid divination in the Old Testament? Then they claim, the Old Testament isn't relevant now that we have the new...then are the 10 Commandments no longer needed?  Now  can we change the first one...and have many gods?  Be careful brothers and sisters, the days are evil, that you not be seduced by things that are not good for you and your loved ones that may have....ill effects now...or later...or forever!  God bless and keep each of you in His Light and in His Truth through His Only Begotten Son...Our Lord Jesus Christ!

DO YOU PONDER?

I had to opportunity to teach about Heaven with my Sunday School Class...got them to think deeper about what the bible tells us!  I asked them what they wanted it to be, or hoped it would be.  Many times our ideas are influenced by movies we have seen or books we have read...sometimes talking about faith can be a very boring subject.  Sometimes, people create their own "gospel" and don't even realize that they do.  I had already written about Heaven on this blog.  Next week, our Class is going to talk about Hell.  That's a subject that has become mute in our world.  Folks just do not seem to believe in such things...and of course Hollywood may have much to do with that! It may be also, the lack of teaching on it, because it paints a different God than what we "want" to think about.  We can't wrap our heads around 'The Good God Who is Love and Life--casting anyone into eternal suffering'....just because we don't want to think anyone is there--does not mean they are not.

My focus today, is on the Cross.  Everyone in the world knows the Cross!  They know Christians believe Jesus died on it for our sins!  What other religion teaches that "their god" came into human form and died for them?  This is what makes our God such a wonderful God! He always has us in His Mind!  He knew before  the Curse of Sin came upon humanity that it was going to happen.  Instead of stopping it, He works with mankind.  He knew before satan's heart lifted up against Him--that this creature would turn away!  God could make us do what He wants but how much do we love dictators?  Just because God knows what will happen doesn't mean He wanted it to happen.  The bible says God is past, present and future all at once--HE is all-knowing!  He is ever-present, everywhere all the time!  He is Almighty...all-powerful...nothing is more powerful or can take anything away from Him! So did satan "trick" Him?  Did he get one over on the "Big Guy"?  Why doesn't GOD just deliver us from evil and from suffering so we can live good lives now?  Well, actually He already did.  Remember I said He was past, present, and future all at once...however in our human sinful bodies...we are just present.  We are limited in knowledge, in power, in time and space. It is a terrible mistake to put God on our level!  God knows EVERY creature...every insect, parasite, animal, planet, blade of grass, and human being--that exists NOW --but that had EVER existed or WILL EVER come into being!! Satan is limited. He is quite a formidable opponent though. We must never underestimate how knowledgeable and how unique his power is...but we must understand...he is NOT God! If God be for us--who can be against us?  That is directly out of the bible, but what does that truly mean?

We all know the Passion of the Christ--do we really?  Do we know what HE "saw" in His Spirit? Do we know what HE "heard" in His Spirit?  Do we know that HE took every single defect in His Creation upon Himself?  So His Perfect Life is given in exchange for our fallen one...He offered to 'break', 'deliver' and 'redeem' us! When you take a gift card to purchase something...you are redeeming it...getting something you did not actually pay for or earn; someone else bought the card so you could get your items.  Jesus paid for our sins...with His Life...and gave us His Life!  He is giving us what we didn't pay for and didn't earn...and probably don't deserve.  Some will argue that we are "paying" for it by the suffering and death that happens here on earth.  Well Catholics believe we can offer up our sufferings on behalf of others...not for ourselves.  The point being that, Christ did that for us, and we can bless ourselves in giving unto others as HE did for us! To struggle to give up our self, to deny our "self" to become like Christ is a challenge! Yet we are called to do just that!  He says we can do it with His Holy Spirit.  The suffering we endure here on earth is NOTHING compared to what HE did in the Garden of Agony or on that Cross for all of humankind!  We are being "changed" throughout our lifetime.  Of course, at the end of the 'day', we will still be incomplete--but Jesus promises to present us, His Body, without spot or wrinkle to the Father. Various denominations differ on how that is accomplished, and I am not here to debate that point.  My post today is to stir in your heart...that God is bigger than we consider on a daily basis! He has not forgotten anything that has happened to us, not a single event, not a single word has escaped Him, nothing is out of His Mind!  He is in existence our past, our present, and our future...HE CANNOT FORGET! HE is not capable of forgetting....IT IS ALL RIGHT THERE IN HIM!

Every malicious gossip, swear word, evil thought, selfish motive, and hateful behavior is present with Him!  He knows the evil that seeps in and through our world...walls do not hide things.  Your bedroom is not invisible to Him.  My computer is not hidden from His Eyes. Oceans and skies do not limit Him!  Every murder, every beating, all starving persons, people dying at the hands of war and terrorists, every rape or molestation, every child abused and used and kidnapped and/or killed, every fear, every worry, every pinch of anger, every single exploding atom, every earthquake and tsunami, every fire and flood, every car accident, every farm accident, every lie, every greedy act to profit, every sinful lust....every vulgar thing you can possible think of---HE suffered with on that Cross!  NOTHING escaped HIS EYES!

Being that HE is future as well, so EVERY sin has not been committed yet or HE'd be back!  Obviously EVERY person this is going to turn to HIM and be converted--has not done so yet.  Since HE already knows what is going to happen and when-- HE does have advantage over us...HE asks us to trust in HIM and His Word and to hold onto faith till we see HIM again!  Moses and all the Old Testament saints suffered and died NOT HAVING SEEN THE PROMISES IN THEIR DAY! They were not in Heaven when they died...HEAVEN was not opened until thousands of years later!  We have been blessed to learn and understand more of what those promises meant! We have been given to know Jesus Christ while still in our flesh!  Right now, they are blessed with experiencing what we have not yet seen!  Now THEY are dancing in the joy waiting for us! So much God suffered for His Children...and HE gave us the gift of His Life if we want it! It is NOT on OUR terms either...HE has the right to set the "conditions"!  People say HIS LOVE is unconditional and they take that to mean that they can do whatever they want and God will not reject them!  We must not assume that every person who dies is guaranteed entrance into Heaven! We are not capable of knowing what is in another's heart...only God is!  God's Love is available for all who want HIM!  He turns no one away who comes to HIM! NOTHING you did can turn HIM away from you---except you and holding onto your right to sin! There's the 'condition'. You have to turn in your life for His!  You have to surrender your will for His!  You cannot have your own way, your own life, and your idea about things---that is holding onto your life...you cannot have both--your life and His--yours is in darkness and His is in Light--and both cannot co-exist!  He offers to take your suffering and give you the Life you never could possibly dream of...the fulfillment in this time and space has not happened yet...and for many only occurred after they shed their earthly bodies...but HE does promise it is ours!

The problem is, it hasn't happened yet in our time and space!  We can't see it or prove it--therefore what is happening....science, technology and Hollywood is filling our heads with many other thoughts!  Many people have given up the thought of an afterlife, eternal joy and awesome life in Christ, or the consequence of rejecting His Gift and suffering for every sin they ever did!  The world has decided to choose what they want to believe--adding to the Gospel, changing it, watering it down, or just chucking it aside as fanciful literature or myths of undeveloped minds....or as a means of the rich and powerful controlling the world!  That is rejecting the Gift...that is accepting your own way bringing upon yourselves...your own suffering, fears, delusions in Justice.  Yes, God is Justice.  You can have your way...all through eternity! Are you sure you know what you are getting?  Are you absolutely positive that you KNOW what comes after death?  Do you really think God's Heart doesn't yearn for you, hurt for you, and anger over sins? He doesn't want you to suffer, but the choice is yours...turn to the Light or away into the darkness.  So you do it to yourself, HE doesn't.  If a soul goes to eternal damnation--they do it to themselves!  God is a good God and doesn't send people to hell....HE opened a door to Good and Life...He won't force you through it!  You are your own boss!  So if you choose not to believe....its in your power to do so!  Does HE already know if you are going to? Yes!  He already knows who is coming!  He already knows if you love Him or will discover HE has always loved you!  Ponder these things...

WHAT TO TEACH TEENS?

In today's world, so much is lost.  What do we teach our children, our teens, who have to muddle their way thru the  maze of puberty, school, sports, dating, social media, and religion?  There are so many avenues of choice for these youngsters!  The Internet, politics, socialized education, MTV, X-box, Itunes, and the draw of the occult in movies have all thrown "curve balls" and "forks in their roads" as to what they should think, where they should go and what kind of person to be.

It's not enough to give the do's and don'ts for them, and to put the Ten Commandments in their face...especially when the adults around them are breaking many of them.  I decided to take the 7 deadly sins and their counterpart virtues...and explain them in a way that is true to Catholic teaching.  Much of Catholicism is rather extensive and "heady" for many--so with the help of the Holy Spirit--I hope to make it applicable to the teenage life in religion class.  So for each month, we will take on one of the 7 sins and 1 virtue!  We will discuss them in terms of their age level and ways that affect them.  For example: Lust & Chastity.  The greatest threat to our teens is their raging hormones and the constant barrage of sexuality in every media that they encounter in their daily lives.  Peer pressure is an added weight to them.  Contrary to popular notions--Catholic kids or Christian kids are NOT HOLIER than everyone else!  Parents who deceive themselves that their children go to a religious school or to church every Sunday are not active sexually or contemplating it are the ones most surprised when things like pregnancy, rape, STD's, drugs, drinking, homosexuality, bi-sexuality, transsexuals, and transgender issues appear.  It isn't something that happens to "THOSE OTHER KIDS".  

How do we discuss girls dressing modestly when all the stores and malls only carry revealing clothing?  How do we convince our boys that masculinity is NOT proving how many girls he can score?  How do we seriously have conversations about alcohol when its a staple in many Catholic homes?  Why are we surprised that Johnny doesn't believe in God or Church anymore when society screams that there are many ways to God, or that the Christian God is a myth, or worse...that there is no God...science trumps theology?  It's not enough to tell them they should not do this or that...we have to be an example.  We have to explain a little deeper than memorizing the Commandments, the 7 deadly sins, the Virtues, the Rosary, the Lord's Prayer, etc...we have to take our teaching to a deeper level.

Ask a teen what lust is and watch their eyes gloss over...."like what do ya mean?"  How many 14 yr.olds know what "chastity or chaste" mean?  There is truly a "dumbing down" in America...kids today don't know as much as you think.  They are tech-saavy...but they lack a more meaningful vocabulary.  They lack critical thinking of how to "apply" what something means to them on a personal level. We assume this is a given--let me assure you...it is not.  Many adults are not capable of this either.  Everything has to be entertaining and exciting or they are bored....how does one make serious life-changing lessons appealing to a 14 yr. old?  They are not little kids and not yet adults...caught between is a very confusing place for student and teacher.

  How many activities can we come up with for Thanksgiving....for youngsters...TONS!  For the teen, its a bit more challenging!  They don't want to make cut-outs, placemats, and "I am thankful for" lists anymore.  They want to get class over with!  So how to make them thankful for God, the virtues, the Commandments, the Bible, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and for Salvation....when their minds are preoccupied with sports, dance, video games, music and the boyfriend/ girlfriend?  This age group is a challenge...can't go too deep but cannot be too shallow either.  We want to equip them with enough understanding and knowledge to make good choices and to grasp why God made them and what Jesus truly did for us--to have an impact on the choices they make in life! May God grant me His Words, His Lessons, His Power and teach thru me this year in the Confirmation Class.  May the Holy Spirit soften their hearts, open their understanding, and illuminate personally what each child needs!

WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON?

People are scratching their heads trying to figure out why so much evil is rampant in our society!  Yesterday's mass shooting at a Navy Shipyard in Washington D.C. bring up the fierce arguments of gun control versus constitutional rights...and every senseless act like this will continue to spark that debate.  The surgeon at the Washington hospital said there is an "evil" in our society. No kidding?  It's been there since the beginning and it has a name...satan.  Yet for all our modern technology and endless barrage of knowledge available at our fingertips...we refuse to consider there is a spiritual underworld affecting our present physical world.  That "card" has been played to the hilt!  Christianity is a myth and no longer relevant in a scientific world!  Much violence has been credited to religion--so therefore "we" are the cause of the evils in the world!  Sad to see so little common sense in the world--- a whole generation so puffed up with pride about how intelligent and advanced they are; but they are not able to see the obvious!

That old adage in Sunday School Class, "GARBAGE IN--GARBAGE OUT"...applies to much of the evils in our world.  I know that the Middle East has been fighting long before the video games came out, and they don't look at "women swinging nude on a wrecking ball" or "twerking" because they believe women have to be totally covered up so as not to cause men to sin in lust--but here in the United States we have lost our minds!!!  Our evil is a separate entity.  It is one that attacks its own for no apparent reasons, and they want to claim they are all mentally ill.  No one wants to admit...God forbid...there just might actually exist beings called evil spirits or demons!  Exorcists only make for good horror movies!  The world wants to stick their heads in the sand and claim every other "reasonable" explanation...okay how about desensitizing society?  We have allowed our children to grow up playing video games that have evolved into actual missions of real killing!  The movies have become so saturated with blood and guts as entertainment!  Religion and the formation of conscience have been tossed aside!  Now the grandchildren and great-grandchildren have become people with no moral standards, no conscience, no apparent sense of decency, and rebels against any notion of something called "sin".  Those of us who tried to stem the tide of "garbage" have been raked over the coals of society for our "bigotry", our hatred, our lack of compassion and divisive nature.  We experienced mocking for standing up to say children do not need to see such violence, blood and gore, sexual videos, pornography!  How prude and rude we are, that say kids are altered by such exposure!

The disgust we experience seeing "Hannah Montana" swinging naked on a wrecking ball in a video means nothing to anyone.  The kids in the world are watching tv while mom is on the computer, on Pinterest or Facebook, or on her cellphone....when dad is home, what is he doing? He's got his latest version of a killer video game that he waited in line all night to purchase when it came out!  The child goes to school in the first grade and tells his teacher he wants to shoot her, or takes a BB gun to threaten a classmate in kindergarten---and we can still deny that technology is changing our world for the worst??

I can't help but recall in the Old Testament when Moses was leading the Israelites out of the bondage of  Egypt, the people complained and complained and complained they wanted this and that---they begged for meat--and God finally got tired of their crap! Oh He gave them meat all right....He gave them so much to eat till they were sick!  Well the original sin was in wanting "knowledge" from the tree of good and evil---He has allowed us soooo much knowledge...till we are sick!!! We live in a sick world! People whose minds are darkened and filled with garbage!  They won't read the bible, they despise wholesome programming because its boring to them now, and they will never survive without their cellphones!  They prefer to be distracted, busy being totally idle, brainwashed by tv and movies and games, and "dead" in their spirits.

What bothers me, is those parents who are raising their kids the best they can and active in what they are exposed to...are so few in number.  So many Christians go to church, say all the right things and post the wonderful Christian things--are no different in their homes than those who are honest and say they hate church and God doesn't exist.  Christians are watching pornography, swearing and talking vulgar in front of their children, drinking, doing drugs, committing adultery, and playing killer games with their sons!  They are getting tattoos and body piercings and staying cool with their kids!  The same are viciously involved in competition in sports acting out the same vile spirit of meanness, arrogance, obnoxious, cheating, and "killer" aspect of playing.  Children who play little league get to see and hear the worst of examples!  What has happened?  There is evil in our society....it's the "garbage overflowing" from the minds and mouths and hearts of those who have evolved far advanced into the world of science and knowledge!!  Satan has many tools...the best ones are those we use on ourselves...while he laughs hysterically at humanity!!!

AMAZING WHAT I CAN LEARN WEEDING THE FLOWERS!

It's a sad thing to see a beautiful flower garden overrun by weeds...but then it's also sad to be so concerned about weeding and not plant seeds of beauty within one's own soul!  I didn't work as hard on the flowers this year, because I was so in need of working on the cultivating the beauty of my own spirit.  Selfish, yep! Sure was!  I knew that flowers would come and go...but I only have one life to live and one soul to nourish and One I must answer to.

This summer, reminded me how short life can be!  Two of my husband's great-nephews were murdered horribly this summer...very bright and thriving young men.  It rocked the community and it devastated the families and it messed with my faith big time!  Oh I never doubted God or blamed Him in any way---but the struggle was and still is...with the flesh versus the spirit!  The total war of satan against humanity is ongoing and we can get surprised by a grenade exploding the unexpected, unbelievable, the shock into our secure and mundane lives!  Who knew that morning that lives would  be lost, altered and shattered?  The agony of 9/11 hit our whole nation as a people...the horror of anyone who is a parent, grandma, high school kid, neighbor...learning two kids were brutally and savagely killed...is just as heart-wrenching!

People think Christians should be perfect, "ought to know better", and never disappoint others.  The very same folks will scream that its all fake, made up stuff, just a cult, and don't wish to believe it and call us feeble-minded and delusional.  Yet somehow they know...a Christian is supposed to be good.  Most are good.  We are human, and being human, are subject to the same passions to sin as everyone else...the only difference is--we strive daily to try to change that!

Being outdoors and working in removing the weeds choking out my flowers spoke to me about my neglect of my spirit.  I needed to go to prayer to first seek counsel on what "weeds" were overtaking my soul.  You know there are different kinds of weeds...some are really tough to remove even with both hands and gloves!  There are those that pop out easily...and some are vine-like and sneak around and twist into unseen places!  Now doesn't that sound familiar? When I got to pulling and digging...I ran into some other "enemies".  Amazing how some varmints have to hide under rocks...yep!  Move that big rock and ewwww....icky slimy bugs....same with our spirit.  Some otherwise unnoticed sins can be lurking in hidden places not so obvious!  That is why the Scriptures call the Holy Spirit the "searchlight of the soul"...He will illuminate what we need to see; but first we have to let Him look around and be willing to observe and hear what He tells us.

I had to spend time reading and renewing my mind to think like Christ.  The hardest part of that is that folks assume that means we should always think good things about people and accept whatever they do and always forgiving.  That would be nice if humanity were ever able to achieve it just by wishing it so!  Then there's the fact, that not everything is accepted.  There are things we are told NOT to accept, NOT to allow, and NOT to participate in as well.  God is Love but He is also Justice...Vengeance...Truth...and Wrath.  The world likes to only focus on God's Goodness and Love when its convenient and let's not discuss the downside of things.

My prayers were hindered because of anger this summer.  I kept at it, persevering and expecting the Lord to work on me...and HE did!  Am I perfect? NOT! Am I doing better? YES!  I am able to pray more fervently and submissively and clearly now.  I have to pray for me and my attitude, sins, and shortcomings first--then I can concentrate on others.  It's a daily walk.  Just as the sun arises anew each morning, God's faithfulness is fresh as the sunrise.  As the sun causes the flowers to bloom, God's Holy Spirit is at work in us to cause His Nature to thrive in us!  As we move closer to the trial of this young murderer...the emotions will flare up, the thoughts will run rampant, and the soul will struggle...it is the human condition.  We have to remember to look up and know...we are in the world and not of it! We have the power to overcome by the Power of the Holy Spirit to surrender those human passions to Christ...so that our feelings, thoughts, mouths are not used by the enemies of our souls....we cannot let the weeds and bugs overtake God's Nature...we need to tend to the fertile ground of our spirit to cultivate great and wondrous things...not the unsightly things!

NEVER SAY NEVER!

I have learned over the years to "never say never"!  Every time I did...I ate those words!  I said I would never return to the Catholic Church---I returned  in 2006. I said I would not forgive this person or that person....and I did!  I said I would never eat sour cream in salsa...and I eat it like that all the time!  Is this why Jesus said, "let your yea be yea and nay be nay"?  HE KNOWS WE ARE A WORK IN PROGRESS AND HE IS NOT DONE WITH US YET!

I love to tell people my story because I am not a Catholic because someone messed with my head or that it was ingrained in me as a youngster so naturally I would return to it in later years....nope none of that is why I came back!  I am a very inquisitive person, ( wonder if I drove my mother crazy with that word "why")?  My soul is never satisfied, and it is never content to stay in one mode!  The Holy Spirit drives me to seek more and more, because in doing so, I learn and I appreciate my God and my Lord Jesus Christ more deeply.

 The key is to always ask questions, God is very Gracious to answer!  Every question Jesus asks in the Gospels is not for Himself...they are for us to consider something not so obvious...when He said, "when the Son of Man returns will He find faith on the earth"?  Doesn't that sound like He is implying...perhaps there might not be...much?  So why are we surprised so many don't believe in God and want Christians to just shut up now?  He predicted that.  Why did Paul say some were sick and died because they took Communion unworthily?  If its just a symbol....how can it make you sick or die?  Why is it, the men on the Road to Emmaus could not recognize Jesus until after He blessed the bread and gave it to them?  "He was known to them in the breaking of bread"...these kinds of questions stirred my spirit.  No pastors could answer to my satisfaction.  When I kept digging, reading, praying, and seeking...God revealed and spoke to me about the Sacramental Life...or as the early Christians called ...The Way.  He opened my understanding.  God took my by the hand and taught me everything I know....no one in the Church did.  I returned after I learned--I was not brainwashed or coerced or led by anyone but the Spirit.

Of course, not everyone is born Catholic.  Not everyone is afforded to even hear the Gospel...and are born into poverty and Islam or Voodoo or Buddhism or Hinduism or even atheism.  Does God not care about them?  The bible says that our "understanding" needs to be opened.  If "the Cross is hidden to those who are perishing"....is God letting them all die?  So...I did what I always do and went to the Father to ask!
We assume alot as humans or I should say presume.  God loves all mankind.  He can reach anyone anywhere at any time...HE is not bound by time and space or any force.

  The bible speaks of different degrees of reward some 30, some 60 and some 100 fold.  The angels are of differing ranks...Lucifer was one of the Seraphim...highest rank of angels...next to God's Throne....and there are lesser angels....the very temple has an outer court, inner court, and then the Holy of Holies.  These are clues.  God's Word says," to him who knows to do good and does not do it, it is sin".  Well in our society and our world...there are good people who never heard the Gospel that are good souls...God does not forget that.  It also says, "love covers a multitude of sins"....seems the nastiest jerk may do a kind turn for someone (and we'd never know)...but God saw it and does not forget.  God is present all the time and at work drawing men to Himself.  That is why Pope Francis does not presume to judge anyone.  None of us can do that. WE only have guidelines of what God wants and doesn't want...we have a moral compass to give us "light" in a "dark" world in the Scriptures and the Church.

  Someone has to steer the sheep, feed them, protect them, guide them....and that is why Jesus chose 12 men, and had an inner circle of 3 and then appointed Peter....differing degrees based on purposes HE had in mind...then...came Paul! Paul was a "never say never" fellow too!  Perhaps that is why I like him so!  He too was opposed to some things he didn't understand until God knocked down a notch or two...taught him personally and then look what he did!!!  God knocked me down and picked me up and taught me too!  I ain't no saint, and I am not gonna transform the world but I did change alot---I did what I said I wouldn't!! Keep your heart open, your mind thinking, your soul moving, and always keep asking!!

THE KARATE KID?

Who doesn't want the internal peace and power of Mr. Miagi?  I strive for that self-control and internal power that the martial arts seem to convey.  I want to be in a state of contentment and the ability to choose how to react if at all.  I think this is what I love about the movie "The Karate Kid"!  The sense of justice, the inner peace and self-control, and the power to choose to react and how...and they make it look so easy!

Actually, I want the love, wisdom and joy that Mother Angelica displays on EWTN as well---that mix of the two--is that possible?  Isn't that what we hope for in our transformation through the Holy Spirit?  Why is it so hard to achieve?  We read the Scriptures, pray, spend time in meditation and devotion, and feel we have attained some sense of balance and peace in our soul...only to get up and walk outside into the real world and BOOM!!  Ugh! The world and its crap smacks us down so fast and we wonder how come we cannot seem to maintain the spiritual joy and peace and self-control!

The brothers and sisters religious detach from the world.  We as parents, spouses, siblings and employees can hardly detach in the way they do.  We have no time for one thing!  The obligations beckon and insist on so much time!  Society is so very mobile and integrated into technology that we have become saturated with its connectivity...addicts if you will...

I have been seriously trying to get myself weaned off of too much computer stuff.  It's hard when family and friends are all on facebook and you miss them.  The emails that used to be flooding our inboxes with jokes, rumors, lies and funnies...are all gone!  For Pete's sake, nobody wants to write a letter?  I sat down to write a few that I promised I would....and for a tad bit...my handwriting was atrocious because of lack of use! I didn't realize how much the keyboard had stolen from my hands! I bet you don't either!  It's actually funny to hear people say..."I am not much of a letter writer"....what they are saying is...I don't know what to write about and I don't want to work that hard...its so much easier to text and share and post!  Then there's the folks who are scared to death to give you their mailing address like you are the bogeyman! Are we becoming that scared of each other or so disconnected that anything closer than "share" is uncomfortable?

I am reading more books, listening to more music, talking to my teens more, working on those projects that I had not finished, and feeling a little more freer each day!  If ever I felt like a stranger or foreigner before on this planet....I really do now! Yet, I want to allow the Holy Spirit to grow stronger in me, so that I can have peace, self-control,wisdom, joy, power, love, faith, perseverance, endurance and humility.  It is only through Christ I can truly develop these things!  All the wax on and wax off will get me a nice clean car...but the peace and self-control only lasts until I drive through a mud puddle or a bird poops on it!

Do I want internet mentors like Lady Gaggy and Wiley Miley or Mother Angelica and John Michael Talbot?  What kind of music soothes my spirit?  Do the books I read cause me to think?  Are the tv shows and movies making me laugh, imagine and wholesome or are they causing me to become calloused to sin and accepting things that once were taboo?  Am I being influenced to change what I believe?  Do I feel depressed and like nothing good is in the world?  Does the spirit of unhappiness or lust fill my marriage?  Sometimes a simpler life with detachment can be lonely...but it can also be more rich and productive both physically and spiritually...and both Mother Angelica and Brother JMT know this!

I CRACK MYSELF UP!!!

I believe wholeheartedly in laughter!! It is one of God's most amazing gifts to us!  While there are things that are only funny to certain people, and humor that is not appealing to everyone----I am a firm believer in laughing at yourself!  It is a terrible thing to keep such wondrous humor to oneself! So here's my story...

My friend lives two doors down.  She is moving and its not a happy event...God has made it at least a humorous one!  We have one house that sits in between our homes.  Those neighbors moved out a few weeks ago.  I told my friend, that I would bring her some boxes home from school to help with her packing.  The next morning, I hop in my car and go to the post office and around the block to pull into my friend's driveway.  Its a beautiful crisp morning, so I bebop up to the house, open the door to the enclosed porch...and holy smokes!!! She got some SERIOUS packing done last night...EVERYTHING IS GONE! EVEN THE SWING!! So I head over to the front door....roll up my hand into a ball to knock...on.....the....door....but .....it's ....and I turn to gaze at ....my friend's house thru the window...OMGOSH! I AM IN THE WRONG HOUSE!!!!!!  Now I know that ALL THE NEIGHBORS AROUND SAW ME DO THIS....so I just nonchalantly walk to my car, open door, get in and drive around the block as if I had meant to go to that house!!  I then call my friend...explaining my misfortune...CRACKING UP AS I PULL UP TO HER DRIVEWAY---and gave us the best laugh we needed during this stressful time!!

Now, this same friend and I shared a belly splitting laugh over this one...but she is still reeling from what I did yesterday....(wincing as I am about to tell on myself again)....I took her to McDonald's drive thru to get something for her husband.  Mind you, I drove right up to the box and then kept going....never saw it!  She's telling me to order a diet, and a daily double....now folks....I ask her, "Diet what?" and she says, "just a diet" and I am perplexed...."diet what? How they gonna know what she wants? " and then I drove by the box a second time.

She says, "you drove by it again!" Ooops!

"Okay, we go around again, now what's a daily double", I ask, thinking it sounds like a lottery ticket.

"Its a sandwich!" and now she's laughing because I drove by the order spot twice.

"Alright then diet what?" The look on her face was priceless! "They ONLY  have diet coke here, they don't have diet anything else so I just say 'diet' and they know what I want!"....as I concentrated on what she was saying....drove by the box a  third time? She yells, "you did it again!!!"

"Where is it? I don't see the black box!"
"Right there! That white thing!" she replies.
"Oh that thing? I kept looking for a black box...."

So with this history behind us yesterday---the wrong house episode flipped us both out!!!  I shall miss her but I am happy to send her off with some joyful giggles!!!

TWO KINGDOMS

 I had a dream about explaining to someone the two kingdoms of this world...the one of this present life with all its woes and sorrows and toil--and the one of the everlasting that comes after.  I woke up thinking about the "veil" that covers our hearts so that the soul cannot see and know what is true and real.  The curse of sin that satan goaded humanity into caused the loss of Light within our souls, so that it is darkened or covered so that its understanding and vision are obscured and limited. (2 Corinthians 3:16). It hides the Truth of Christ, His Sacraments, and His Word.  St. Paul speaks of the natural man not able to grasp the Truth because they are spiritually discerned...without the Spirit of Truth--one cannot understand. (1 Corinthians 2:9-16).  How angry sometimes we get at those who can't see what is so very obvious to us! We forget that they cannot see what we know...we don't expect a baby to know algebraic equations do we?  So why do we get frustrated at those who insist on worldly thinking because their souls have not been converted into His Kingdom?  Jesus clearly describes two very conflicting and different worlds--The Word even  makes distinctions of "those of the world" and "those chosen out of it"... the world of Pharoah and Egypt with its wealth, worship of false gods, and sexual pleasures  and the world of Ceasar and Rome with its barbaric authority and power and class divisions... versus the Kingdom of God.

One must be born again into the Kingdom of God thru conversion and the transforming power of Christ thru the Sacrament of Baptism...born of water and of Spirit...cleansing away the original sin of darkness off of the soul and "marking" that soul for God in this present darkness--anointed with Holy Oil into the priesthood of believers in Confirmation, to the continual cleansing of Sacramental Confession or Reconciliation with Him, and receive His Life in the Hidden Manna of the Holy Communion...all partaking of the Grace He opens to us in following Christ.  He has offered this Grace also in Holy Matrimony, Holy Orders and Anointing of the Sick as well...thoroughly equipping us for every need while in this world!  We may physically be present in pharoah, ceasar, and satan's world here and now...and at the same time be spiritually present in the Kingdom of God...I believe this is why there are two creation stories in Genesis...and the meaning of the vision of "wheel within a wheel" in the Old Testament.  One kingdom is temporary  and the other is Everlasting!

THE SEASON OF CHANGE

It is apparent that autumn is rounding the corner, as the leaves are beginning to turn and the corn and beans are showing signs of impending harvest!  Schools are back in session and its a new year of routine and expectations for everyone.  The summers are filled with activities and long days...and we dread thinking of what comes after the fall season--cold, snow, ice and short days with darkened evenings.

Being at the lake alot this summer, and seeing nature from the water...sets my mind to contemplation.  The two most beautiful scenes are the sunrise and the sunset--the beginning and the end of the day!  Our lives are like a day...we are born....a beginning...and all the events and memories come full circle to the end of the day!  Oh what joy when a child is born!  The springtime of growing, developing and maturing...opening up to the fullness of beauty...to finally begin to change...and anticipate the harvest.  

We cry alot when there is death.  It seems so unfair, so final, and so stark in its stillness...compared to the love, warmth, smiles and joy of living.  I know, that death is only the beginning for those who love Christ! It is my belief that because of His Grace and Mercy--death is the doorway to the best the God Our Father has to offer us...yet sorrow sometimes overwhelms me.  To see one wither and age and go through loss of dignity, senses, intellect, and vitality is hurtful...even worse if its sudden, accidental or because of evil!  But I have resolved to think of birth as a sunrise and springtime...and  old age as the autumn of our souls...and death as the sunset...just the end of their day here on earth for the body...and springtime again for their souls!

  I think too much of what they should be doing here in this life--and not enough about how fantastic their sunrise was in Heaven! The most wondrous blessing is knowing that in God's Presence there is no sunset...the colors and beauty of that is present all the time...it never recedes into darkness!  There is no winter of darkness, coldness and fear!  Though I shall continue to think that if I wanted to enjoy the beauty of snow He would allow me that! Perhaps a winter wonderland with no slipping and accidents on ice?

Syria As The World Watches

The President of the United States, Barack Obama is going to speak in a few minutes on tv about whether to do anything to Syria since the use of biological weapons has killed 1,429 innocent people and of those were 426 children...we wait to hear if we will stand by and let them deal with their own problems or if we will militarily strike to let them know those kinds of weapons will not be tolerated.

We know that if the Syrian regime is taken down, a vacuum of power will bring disastrous results.  I guess the lesser of two evils is to allow Assad to continue or deal with much worse in the aftermath of regime change. They know the opposition forces can bring terrorists to power.  It is known the opposition forces are being helped by Sunni extremist Muslims...the same enemy we faced in Iraq are in Iran and are in the Taliban in Afghanistan...it is also known that they murder Christians...so do we stand by while children are innocently slaughtered?

We as Christians, ought to look at the picture of Our Blessed Mother holding her Son, Our Lord, after His Death.  How much death there is in the world!  The same evil spirits that roam the world seeking the ruin of souls are still very active 2013 yrs after His Death.  While men make choices based on intel, passions, greed, ego, and every motive to human flesh---we ought to be praying using weapons of the Spirit!  We ought to be confessings sins, fasting, praying for the world, country by country, lifting them up to the Father!  The "world" is blinded by their own spirit of flesh, they have no Insight from the Holy Spirit.  They think rationally and logically and do not consider things can be changed by prayer and by repentance.

I can speak to a person who does not read the bible, prays superficially, thinks Church is stupid and too bossy...and not be able to ever agree on anything.  The Christian who reads the Word, who examines themselves for sins and weaknesses and vices--who attends Church and prays as a People of God, who obeys God's Precepts....has a very different view of the world they live in!  The flesh lives in fear...fear of death, of losing control, of being overcome, of surrender.  The Christian strives to live in power...confident of life even in the face of death, of letting God have His Way, of walking in His Power thru His Holy Spirit.  The two sides will never agree and cannot.  One is a natural thinker, planner and reactor....the other is a supernatural thinker, a vessel for use, who acts not reacts....who will always see things in a different Light.

The images of dead children gassed to death is to appeal to the horror in this world.  Yet there are no images allowed of the horrors of abortions killing mass amounts of children each day.  The pull of our emotions to intervene to retaliate against Assad when we know the LORD says in Romans 12:20-21 that HE is the vengeance.  Yes, death is terrible!  The second death is worse!  It is one thing to die in the flesh---but to die in the spirit is eternal!  If we decide to strike Syria it is noted that we don't want to bring terrorists to power who may get their hands on nuclear weapons and biological weapons that may in the future be used against us! This is thinking long-term.

 We should be grieving for those who die without Christ...that is a long-term situation for them!  Like Mary grieving over her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, we should be grieving over the souls who die daily into eternal consequences!  Yes we should cry for the dead children...but also for those who killed them. Devil has immense power but our God is greater!  We must snag those souls from his grasp! Jesus wants those souls...every single one.  We must pray for the leaders of the world.  We must pray against the evils of terrorism.  We must make laws in view of God's Laws. We must elect leaders who fear Him.  We must not compromise with the world and its society of death...the Church must continue to be the Light in Darkness...not an machine gun taking down everyone who  does wrong.  WE must fight the fight of faith...both personally and in the Church. The Church says killing in Syria will only escalate...we must pray and we must get them to talk out a peace plan...a compromise.