Message of 8-2-11
Published: Tue, 07/26/11
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
If you were to rise early every morning, as an instance of
self-denial, as a method of renouncing indulgence, as a means of
redeeming your time, and fitting your spirit for prayer, you would
find mighty advantages from it. This method, though it seem such a
small circumstance of life, would in all probability be a means of
great piety. It would keep it constantly in your head, that
softness and idleness were to be avoided, that self-denial was a
part of Christianity... It would teach you to exercise power over
yourself, and make you able by degrees to renounce other pleasures
and tempers that war against the soul.
- William Law (1686-1761), "A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy
Life"
(Try it. It works.)
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LECTIONARY READINGS FOR THE DAY
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Nm 12:1-13; Ps. 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 6cd-7, 12-13; Mt 14:22-36
R. (see 3a) Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
For I acknowledge my offense;
and my sin is before me always:
"Against you only have I sinned;
and done what is evil in your sight."
That you may be justified in your sentence,
vindicated when you condemn.
Indeed, in guilt was I born,
and in sin my mother conceived me.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not off from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
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REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL
- from http://www.dailyscripture.net/
Only God can change our hearts and make them clean and whole
through the power of the Holy Spirit. Like a physician who probes
the wound before treating it, God through his Word and Spirit first
brings to light our sinful condition that we may recognize sin for
what it is and call upon God's mercy and pardon. The Lord is every
ready to change and purify our hearts through his Holy Spirit who
dwells within us. His power and grace enables us to choose what is
good and to reject what is evil. Do you believe in the power of
God's love to change and transform your heart?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit and make my heart like
yours. Strengthen my heart and my will that I may I choose to love
what is good and to hate what is evil."
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SPIRITUAL READING
"The Way of Perfection"
- by Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
(Treats of the same subject of spiritual love and gives certain
counsels for gaining it.)
These last affections are a very hell, and it is needless for us to
weary ourselves by saying how evil they are, for the least of the
evils which they bring are terrible beyond exaggeration. There is
no need for us ever to take such things upon our lips, sisters, or
even to think of them, or to remember that they exist anywhere in
the world; you must never listen to anyone speaking of such
affections, either in jest or in earnest, nor allow them to be
mentioned or discussed in your presence. No good can come from our
doing this and it might do us harm even to hear them mentioned. But
with regard to the lawful affections which, as I have said, we may
have for each other, or for relatives and friends, it is different.
Our whole desire is that they should not die: if their heads ache,
our souls seem to ache too; if we see them in distress, we are
unable (as people say) to sit still under it; and so on.
This is not so with spiritual affection. Although the weakness of
our nature may at first allow us to feel something of all this, our
reason soon begins to reflect whether our friend's trials are not
good for her, and to wonder if they are making her richer in virtue
and how she is bearing them, and then we shall ask God to give her
patience so that they may win her merit. If we see that she is
being patient, we feel no distress -- indeed, we are gladdened and
consoled. If all the merit and gain which suffering is capable of
producing could be made over to her, we should still prefer
suffering her trial ourselves to seeing her suffer it, but we are
not worried or disquieted.
- Chapter 7
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