Message of 8-22-08
Published: Sat, 08/16/08
A Daily Spiritual Seed
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
- - -
MESSAGE OF THE DAY
"To desire God is the most fundamental of all human desires. It is
the very root of all our quest for happiness. Even the sinner, who
seeks happiness where it cannot be found, is following a blind,
errant desire for God which is not aware of itself. So that, from
one point of view, it is impossible not to desire God."
- Thomas Merton, "New Seeds of Contemplation" -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Ez 37:1-14; Ps 107: 2--9; Mt 22:34-40
R. (1) Give thanks to the Lord; his love is everlasting.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say,
those whom he has redeemed from the hand of the foe
And gathered from the lands,
from the east and the west, from the north and the south.
They went astray in the desert wilderness;
the way to an inhabited city they did not find.
Hungry and thirsty,
their life was wasting away within them.
They cried to the LORD in their distress;
from their straits he rescued them.
And he led them by a direct way
to reach an inhabited city.
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his mercy
and his wondrous deeds to the children of men,
Because he satisfied the longing soul
and filled the hungry soul with good things.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
GOSPEL MEDITATION
from "Praying the Daily Gospels," by Philip St. Romain:
- http://www.liguori.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=6614
Matthew 22: 34-40 (The two great commandments)
Still trying to discredit Jesus, the Pharisees attempt to bait
him into heresy. Jesus again proves the wiser, simplifying the Old
Testament to two laws of love, both of which are dependent on and
inseparable from the other.
- "The brotherhood of man is impossible unless we recognize the
fatherhood of God," Taylor Caldwell wrote. Do you agree?
- "You are as close to God as you are to your neighbor" is another
popular saying. Think of one way to show love to the five most
important people in your life during the next week.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
PRAYING WITH SCRIPTURE (Benedictine Approach)
1. Relax. Settle in. Be aware that God is here, now, loving you.
2. Read a short passage of Scripture as though God were speaking
directly to you in it.
3. Choose a phrase from the passage that strikes you and repeat it
slowly, prayerfully, non-analytically.
4. When your heart is full, express to God the needs and sentiments
awakened by your meditation. When you're done, read another passage
and repeat steps 3 and 4.
5. If, at any time, you feel moved to simply be present to God in
loving silence, put the Scripture aside and rest in God.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
NOTES FROM A CLASSICAL WORK
- "The Practice of the Presence of God," by Brother Lawrence
Brother Lawrence taught:
That the end we ought to propose to ourselves is to become, in this
life, the most perfect worshippers of GOD we can possibly be, as we
hope to be through all eternity.
- Fourth conversation
______________________________
Vista Print: 250 complementary business cards and discounts for
other services
- http://cpaqlty.com/r/1263/a/135877/l/x850s8
- - - -
* Web Archive: http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?dailyseed
* RSS: http://www.aweber.com/z/rss/?dailyseed