Ijournal entry 083115 #35. Month of August - dedicated to the Immaculate a Heart of Mary .
Quotes from Fr. Robert Barron, Henri Nouwen, and St. Alphonsus De Liguori. Book: "CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH": on Modesty. Article: "God's Word vs. Your Feelings", by Joyce Meyer. Video presentation "Aquinas on the Intentionally of the Passions", by Fr. Nicholas Lombardo
Quotes from Fr. Robert Barron, Henri Nouwen, and St. Alphonsus De Liguori. Book: "CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH": on Modesty. Article: "God's Word vs. Your Feelings", by Joyce Meyer. Video presentation "Aquinas on the Intentionally of the Passions", by Fr. Nicholas Lombardo
Month of August - dedicated to the Immaculate a Heart of Mary
"It was in this Heart that the Father placed his Son, as if in the firstTabernacle. Mary was the first pyx that held Him, and it was the blood of her Immaculate Heart which communicated to the Son of God his life and human nature, from which we all, in turn, receive "grace upon grace."(Jn 1.16). By Sr. Lucia
John 1:16 "From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace"
The Cheese & Crackers
🔵 "For Biblical people, the body can never be construed as a prison for the soul, nor as an object for the soul’s manipulation. Moreover, the mind or will is not the “true self” standing over and against the body; rather, the body, with its distinctive form, intelligibility, and finality, is an essential constituent of the true self. Until we realize that the lionization of Caitlyn Jenner amounts to an embracing of Gnosticism, we haven’t grasped the nettle of the issue". By Fr. Robert Barron
⚫️ "Calling God "Abba, Father" (see Roman 8:15; Galatians 4:6) is a cry of the heart, a prayer welling up from our innermost beings. It has nothing do with naming God but everything to do with claiming God as the source of who we are. This claim does not come from any sudden insight or acquired conviction; it is the claim that the Spirit of Jesus makes in communion with our spirits. It is the claim of love." By Henri Nouwen
🔴 When a person commits a fault, God certainly wishes him to humble himself, to be sorry for his sin, and to purpose never to fall into it again; but he does not wish him to be indignant with himself, and give way to trouble and agitation of mind; for, while the soul is agitated, a man is incapable of doing good." By St. Alphonsus De Liguori
The Veggies
Luke 6:27-28 "But I say to you that hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you"
My Response- Our God always shows us the way by example. We do not always obey him or remain loyal, but He continues to bless and love us passionately. We abandon and betray Him at the drop of a hat by our sinful lives, but He on the other hand promises to love and be with us until the end of time. How much mercy and grace is that?
My Response- Our God always shows us the way by example. We do not always obey him or remain loyal, but He continues to bless and love us passionately. We abandon and betray Him at the drop of a hat by our sinful lives, but He on the other hand promises to love and be with us until the end of time. How much mercy and grace is that?
Ephesians 3:20 "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us"
This contemplation came in church one day. The scripture that comes into play is about a man being forgiven his debt, then going out and demanding from another what is owed him without exercising mercy, much less Christian charity and forgiveness.
The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
This contemplation came in church one day. The scripture that comes into play is about a man being forgiven his debt, then going out and demanding from another what is owed him without exercising mercy, much less Christian charity and forgiveness.
The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
Matthew 18(21-35). "21Then Peter approaching asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount.* He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.”
Unexpectedly The Holy Spirit used the passages from Matthew to bring to mind how much is being forgiven me, and how my attitude towards a couple of people is sinful and exhibits unforgiveness. What should be done is not being done, it is to pray for those who are offensive, irritating, obstinate,etc. If the realization is there that grace isn't present for one to see their spiritual errors and the ways they fall short, my reaction would not be to become aggravated and harping internally, but to be compassionate, forgiving, and mindful of my own grave faults, failings, and wrong doings. The right attitude is that of Christ Jesus, found in this scripture:
Unexpectedly The Holy Spirit used the passages from Matthew to bring to mind how much is being forgiven me, and how my attitude towards a couple of people is sinful and exhibits unforgiveness. What should be done is not being done, it is to pray for those who are offensive, irritating, obstinate,etc. If the realization is there that grace isn't present for one to see their spiritual errors and the ways they fall short, my reaction would not be to become aggravated and harping internally, but to be compassionate, forgiving, and mindful of my own grave faults, failings, and wrong doings. The right attitude is that of Christ Jesus, found in this scripture:
Luke 23:34 " Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots"
Thanks be to God for increasing my awareness of sin & promoting a greater knowledge of self that will lead to wholeness as my sin sick soul is healed. One treated with great mercy, should be mindful to extend the same.
Thanks be to God for increasing my awareness of sin & promoting a greater knowledge of self that will lead to wholeness as my sin sick soul is healed. One treated with great mercy, should be mindful to extend the same.
The Potatoes
"CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: on Modesty"
This daintily little spiritual morsel isn't just about improper fashion, and decency, but it also refers the modification of impatient behavior, and unhealthy curiosity. No one is exempt from careful and frequent examination of their thoughts, words, and deeds.
Modesty:
“Modesty protects the intimate centre of the person. It means refusing to unveil what should remain hidden. It guides how one looks at others and behaves toward them in conformity with the dignity of persons. Modesty protects the mystery of persons and their love. It encourages patience and moderation in loving relationships. Modesty is decency. It inspires one’s choice of clothing. It keeps silence or reserve where there is evident risk of unhealthy curiosity. It is discreet. There is a modesty of the
feelings as well as of the body. Modesty inspires a way of life which makes it possible to resist the allurements of improper fashion and the pressures of prevailing ideologies. Modesty exists as an intuition of the spiritual dignity proper to man. Teaching modesty to children and adolescents means awakening in them respect for the human person” (CCC 2521 – 2524)
The Meat
Article: "God's Word vs. Your Feelings", by Joyce Meyer
Info from this site:
https://www.joycemeyer.org/articles/ea.aspx?article=gods_word_vs_your_feelings
"Every day, we are faced with a decision: Will we respond to life's circumstances according to God's Word or will we react emotionally? The initial temptation is to react emotionally, but in every circumstance, it's truly your decision. Let's examine three circumstances you're going to have to face at some point in your life. I've also included some questions to ask yourself, which I encourage you to answer honestly. They will give you a good idea of how big a part your feelings play in these circumstances.
🔘 Circumstance #1: ChangeMost changes take place without our permission. But we can choose to adapt. Adapting doesn't change the circumstances, but it does keep you living in peace and joy as you go through change.Everything changes except God, and letting all the changes in our lives upset us won't keep them from occurring. People change, circumstances change, our bodies change, our desires and passions change.
🔺First Things First - Our thoughts are the first thing we need to deal with during change because thoughts directly affect emotions. When circumstances change, make the transition mentally, and your emotions will be a lot easier to manage. If something changes that you are not ready for and did not choose, you will more than likely have a variety of emotions about it.
🔻The Power of God's Word - “Emotions rise up and then move out, wanting us to follow them. When I feel that, I know I need to take action.” By acting on God's Word and not merely reacting to the situation, you'll be able to manage your emotions instead of allowing them to manage you. I strongly recommend confessing the Word of God out loud. Even though what you confess may be the opposite of how you feel, keep doing it. God's Word has inherent power to change our feelings, bring comfort to us, and quiet our distraught emotions. 🔻Ask Yourself
- How do I respond to change? (initially most time change is unwelcomed.)
- Do I act on God's Word or merely react to the situation? (Maybe the majority of the times the Holy Spirit helps me by the great mercy of God. Sometimes it is the "wild child" that makes her grand entrance.)
- After the initial shock, am I willing to make a transition mentally and emotionally? (Yes, the mindset is God's will, as He will and how He wills. The magic words for me are: You just have to take it, you just have to take it, God is allowing this, you just have to take it. That helps to to resign myself, and God steps in to comfort me after a while.)
🔘 Circumstance #2: WaitingIf you have not developed patience, then having to wait may bring out the worst in you. At least that was the case with me until I finally realized my emotional reactions were not making things go any faster. We would all like to be patient, but we don't want to develop patience because that means behaving well while we are not getting what we want. And that's hard!
🔻The Road to PeacefulnessThe more we want something, the more our emotions will act up if we do not get it. Common sense tells us it is rather foolish to get into a rage over a parking space or other simple things people tend to get upset about. As you develop patience, don't merely think about how hard and frustrating it is, think about how peaceful you will be when waiting never bothers you,
James 1:4 "And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing"
🔻Ask Yourself
- How do I behave when I have to wait? (Sometimes a little antsy, and sometimes God strengthens me to respond to grace. Grace is always given, it is we we repel and don't respond to God's touch.)
- What situations are difficult for me? (Waiting for unpleasantries to be resolved.)
- How do I act when I'm working with someone who is really slow? (Tolerant for the most part, but will be making comments to foster changes. If the situation persists, probably irritability will prevail and will have to pray to persevere with fortitude.)
- How do I act if someone takes the parking space I've been waiting for? (Just move on and avoid eye contact when aggravated. Saying a prayer for the person, and usually expecting rude behavior, so surprised and happy when someone acts uprightly.)
- On a scale of 1 to 10, how well do I handle myself when things don't go my way? (Think about an 8 most time, sometimes more, sometimes less.)
🔘 Circumstance #3: Difficult PeopleNo one likes being around difficult people. I think there are a lot of people in the world like that today, largely because of the stressful lives most of them have. People are trying to do too much in too little time and have more responsibility than they can realistically handle. When someone is rude to me, I can feel my emotions rise up and then move out, wanting me to follow them. That's when I know I need to take action. I have to remember that the person being rude probably has a lot of problems. She may not even realize how she sounds.
🔻Working with the Holy SpiritI certainly remember lots of times in my life when people asked me why I was being so harsh. I didn't realize that I was. I just had a lot going on and felt pressured, so the pressure came through in harsh voice tones. That didn't excuse my bad behavior, but it was the root of the problem. I am very thankful I know the Word of God and have Him in my life to help and comfort me. But a lot of difficult people don't have that. I have had to work very hard with the Holy Spirit for the ability to act on God's Word when people are rude…instead of merely reacting with a behavior that matches or tops theirs.
Jesus teaches us how to respond to those who treat us well and those who do not:
Luke 6:32–35 "For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit [is] that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount. But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked"
If you are in a situation that requires you to be with one of these hard-to-get-along-with people every day, I urge you to pray for them instead of reacting emotionally to them. Our prayers open a door for God to work through.
🔻Ask Yourself
- How do I react to people who are rude? ( Remaining calm and even tempered while attending to the matter at hand and departing as soon as possible)
- Do I respond in love as the Word says we should, or do I join them in their ungodly behavior? (Rarely join in the ungodly behavior. As time goes on we are able to submit to the Holy Spirit more than to the evil spirit. For ungodly behavior is evil. We are to live holy and if we see sin as sin, and how offensive it is to God, the motivation will be there to no be slackers but uphold the high standards of God in all situations at all times. That is the goal, right?)
- Will I act on the Word of God and love them for His sake? Or will I react emotionally, perhaps acting worse than they act? ( Lord have mercy, please oh please, oh God, help me to love the unloveable and aggravating. To get mad and treat others with disdain, is being worse than the offender. We who know better and are graced, should do better. At times guilty, guilty, guilty, Lord Jesus Christ, please have mercy on me and help me to conquer in this area.)
- Have I ever let a rude person ruin my day? (It can unsettle by spirit for a while, but the Holy Spirit will help me to let go and let God.)
🔻Live Beyond Your FeelingsFeelings will come and go. We can't escape them, but we can choose to live by God's Word and not our feelings. Even when it doesn't feel right, we can live with an incredible peace and joy. I encourage you to go through the questions again and search God's Word in every circumstance you face. He will help you live beyond your feelings!"
The Dessert
Video presentation "Aquinas on the Intentionally of the Passions", by Fr. Nicholas Lombardo
Link to the video: https://vimeo.com/38092785
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