ICEMANforChrist

"Do not be afraid ; just have faith." Exodus, Chapter 14, Verse 13 But Moses answered the people, “Do not fear ! Stand your ground and see the victory the LORD will win for you today. For these Egyptians whom you see today you will never see again. At Christ’s transfiguration Moses along with Elijah appeared with Him. The purpose of the transfiguration was to fortify Peter and the other apostle’s faith for pain and hopelessness they must have felt at the loss of their friend Jesus on Good Friday. They must have felt much like the throng with Moses, noted in this verse, standing by the Red Sea awaiting the certain death by the Egyptians.  I wonder did the apostles hear a quiet voice saying in their soul-Do not fear; stand your ground and see the victory of the Lord. Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mt. 5:3) Saint John Bosco [1] St. John Bosco was the founder of the Salesian Society, named in honor of St. Fr...

How great is your goodness, Lord, stored up for those who fear you. Exodus, Chapter 9, Verse 27-30 27 Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron and said to them, “I have sinned this time! The L ORD is the just one, and I and my people are the ones at fault. 28 Pray to the L ORD ! Enough of the thunder and hail! I will let you go; you need stay no longer.” 29 Moses replied to him, “As soon as I leave the city I will extend my hands to the L ORD ; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail so that you may know that the earth belongs to the L ORD . 30 But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the L ORD God.” This was the seven plague of God on the Egyptians and of course Pharaoh had closed his ears and heart to God. Thunder was to the Egyptians the voice of God but they did not listen nor did the hail melt the ice of their hearts to the true God. Because God loves us He sometimes permits plagues in our lives that will bring about an ex...

Exodus, Chapter 9, Verse 20 Those of Pharaoh’s servants who feared the word of the L ORD hurried their servants and their livestock off to shelter. Even Pharaohs servants when they heard the word of God took action. Blessed are we that hear the word of the Lord! Today we are a community living in the fulfillment of faith in Christ and He asks us to do something unthinkable, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live f...

His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him. Exodus, Chapter 3, Verse 6 I am the God of your father, he continued, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. This is Moses first encounter with the Living God. Moses responded with natural fear thus he tried to hide himself just as Adam did in the garden. Yet, how does one hide from God. The beginning of Holiness is to not try to hide but to face our Lord manfully and admit we are what we are and He is what He is. After this Moses was 100 percent for God; he was His man. Moses here began a journey with God that eventually led to the birth of Christ true God and true man and we beheld him face to face. Today try and be 100% for God. As iron, cast into the fire, loses its rust and becomes bright with the flame, so too a man who turns his whole heart to Me is purified and all sluggishness and changed into a new man. [1] Feast of St. Th...

Exodus, Chapter 2, Verse 13-14 13 The next day he went out again, and now two Hebrews were fighting! So he asked the culprit, “Why are you striking your companion?” 14 But he replied, “Who has appointed you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses became afraid and thought, “The affair must certainly be known.” Moses was a prince of Egypt and also a Hebrew. Moses as a man sought justice for his Hebrew brothers and in a fit of anger killed an Egyptian that was brutalizing a Hebrew slave and secretly buried him in the sand. Secrecy is an important element in sinfulness. When we find ourselves wanting to keep something secret we should ask ourselves are we going down a road that we want to go; is this secrecy that we desire really an attempt to hide our sinfulness from God; who sees all things. Think twice the next time you seek secrecy. International Day of Victims of the Holocaust [1] Holocaust Memorial Day is a day...

Exodus, Chapter 1, Verse 21 And because the midwives feared God, God built up families for them. God’s mercy is just like the drops of water which grooves stones to make gorges and canyons; small acts of mercy have a similar effect on the hearts of sinners making them into monoliths of strength. Therefore they resisted Pharaohs decree to kill the children of Israel. Likewise we must resist the laws that are enacted that defy the law of God. The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church [1] addresses the issue of when and how St. Peter's teaching that obedience to God comes before obedience to men applies in the modern Christian's life. Presciently, or perhaps better, prophetically, Pope Benedict XVI foresaw and foresees increasing conflict between American Catholics and a public authority increasingly secularized and increasingly hostile to the moral values of its Catholic citizens. The conflict is caused by the increasing demands of the State to "to d...

Exodus, Chapter 1, Verse 17 The midwives, however, feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt had ordered them, but let the boys live. The book of Exodus retells the story of the leaving of the children of Abraham from the land of Egypt. God blessed Abraham’s descendants and they prospered and overpopulated the land. Egyptians then oppressed the Israelites and took action to control their population by commanding midwives to kill the male children born to the Israelite’s. Nothing ever changes it seems the midwives, were the king of Egypt’s version of our Planned Parenthood. Yet, they the midwives feared God more than the King and spared life. I do not think anyone in the Planned Parenthood organization has any fear of God. The midwives of Egypt were ordered to kill only the male children of the Israelites. In our modern world I wonder who the equivalent of the King of Egypt is. I wonder who or what sex and races are the equivalents of the Israelite children? Let ...

Genesis, Chapter 50, Verse 21 So now, do not fear . I will provide for you and for your children.” By thus speaking kindly to them, he reassured them. Again, Joseph is a precursor of Christ is an example of love and forgiveness of God; therefore mirroring the message of Paul, “Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer. So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold new things have come. And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ” Christ further advises us in Mathew’s gospel that if we have a brother who sins against us we should 1) Go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens ...

Genesis, Chapter 50, Verse 16-19 16 So they sent to Joseph and said: “Before your father died, he gave us these instructions: 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: Please forgive the criminal wrongdoing of your brothers, who treated you harmfully.’ So now please forgive the crime that we, the servants of the God of your father, committed.” When they said this to him, Joseph broke into tears. 18 Then his brothers also proceeded to fling themselves down before him and said, “We are your slaves!” 19 But Joseph replied to them: “ Do not fear . Can I take the place of God? So Joseph now had his brothers within his power to crush them and he did not. No, Joseph wept and made peace with his brothers knowing the intent of God is that all men be free in mind, body and spirit. Joseph knew that only free men can sow their gifts before God and that “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each must do as already determine...