Message of 8-4-08
Published: Sat, 08/02/08
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
- - -
MESSAGE OF THE DAY
Do not look for rest in any pleasure, because you were not created
for pleasure: you were created for Joy. And if you do not know the
difference between pleasure and joy you have not yet begun to live.
- Thomas Merton
(Hint: joy is a state of being ensuing from being "right" with God.)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Jer 28:1-17; Ps 119:29, 43, 79, 80, 95, 102; Mt 14:22-36
R. (68b) Lord, teach me your statutes.
Remove from me the way of falsehood,
and favor me with your law.
Take not the word of truth from my mouth,
for in your ordinances is my hope.
Let those turn to me who fear you
and acknowledge your decrees.
Let my heart be perfect in your statutes,
that I be not put to shame.
Sinners wait to destroy me,
but I pay heed to your decrees.
From your ordinances I turn not away,
for you have instructed me.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
REFLECTION ON THE SCRIPTURES
- from "Daily Bread"
http://www.preacherexchange.com/daily_bread.htm
"Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."
We may think things have never been as bad as they currently are.
Yet a simple review of history in any era will show us that trouble
and disaster seem always to loom. In every time, God sends humble
prophets to tell us that the only path to lasting and certain
security lies in trusting the Lord, following his revealed will in
all things, in doing the right thing, even when it seems not to be
expedient or does not follow the world's wisdom or the trend of the
times. Let us trust in the Lord and do everything we can to bring
love, peace and justice for all to our troubled world, and
earnestly make Peter's prayer our own: "Lord, save us."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
LECTIO DIVINA PROCESS
- http://heartlandspirituality.org/vocations/prayer.html
First, you choose a passage of Scripture that you will pray with.
It might be the Gospel reading used in the liturgy of the day, or
anything else you want. The process then follows these steps:
* Reading (lectio) After settling in and quieting yourself,
read the passage slowly, prayerfully. Just let it sink in for a
minute or two, then read it a second time, paying closer attention
to the words or phrases that speak to you.
* Reflecting (meditatio) What do you hear God saying to you in
this passage? What words or phrases caught your attention?
* Responding (oratio) What do you want to say to God in
response to what you've heard? Here you can also voice your prayers
of petition, remorse, thanksgiving, praise, and so forth. If you
sense God speaking to you in your thoughts, feelings or
imagination, you respond as you would in any conversation.
* Resting (contemplatio) If, at any time, you feel drawn to
simply rest in the awareness of God's loving presence, you let
yourself do so. Remain in loving silence as long as you feel
comfortable, perhaps using a simple word or phrase from the
Scripture passage to help deepen your openness to rest in God.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
THEOLOGICAL GEMS FROM EMIL MERCH'S "THEOLOGY OF THE MYSTICAL BODY"
from http://www.innerexplorations.com/chtheomortext/theolgems.htm
400. God's plan for the diffusion of light as well as for the
communication of life is magnificent in its simplicity and unity;
it unfolds wholly in Christ, that is, in the whole Christ.
_________________________________________________
* Web Archive: http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?dailyseed
* RSS: http://www.aweber.com/z/rss/?dailyseed