Tuesday, March 12, 2019


Tuesday First Week of Lent
NAPPING DAY


Deuteronomy, Chapter 20, Verse 8
The officials shall continue to speak to the army: “Is there anyone who is afraid and weakhearted? Let him return home, or else he might make the hearts of his fellows melt as his does.”

Fear begets fear and Faith begets faith. Remember everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle and carrying a heavy load.

Do not fear and continue in faith with our fathers knowing that St. Michael, the archangel, is the guardian angel and protector of the Catholic Church.

Some people believe we are on the cusp of the end times. Pope Leo XIII[1] by divine enlightenment was revealed the struggles of the Church against the powers of hell and it was opened to him that hell would be conquered by the intervention of God led by St. Michael the warrior angel. Pope Leo instituted the prayer of St. Michael after Mass.

Saint Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle; be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into Hell, Satan and all the other evil spirits, who prowl throughout the world, seeking the ruin of souls. Amen

Yet, do not fear the end times nor the devil and his cohorts for each time you receive communion you are empowered more then they!

Tuesday First Week of Lent[2]
EPISTLE. Isaias Iv. 6-11.

IN those days Isaias the prophet spoke, saying: Seek ye the Lord while He may be found call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unjust man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God: for He is bountiful to forgive. For My thoughts are not your thoughts: nor your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are exalted above the earth, so are My ways exalted above your ways, and My thoughts above your thoughts. And as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return no more thither, but soak the earth, and water it, and make it to spring, and give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall My word be, which shall go forth from My mouth : it shall not return to Me void, but it shall do whatsoever I please, and shall prosper in the things for which I sent it, saith the Lord Almighty.

GOSPEL. Matt. xxi. 10-17.

At that time: When Jesus was come into Jerusalem, the whole city was moved, saying: Who is this? And the people said: This is Jesus the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee. And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and the chairs of them that sold doves: and He saith to them : It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer: but you have made it a den of thieves. And there came to Him the blind, and the lame in the temple; and He healed them. And the chief priests and scribes seeing the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying: Hosanna to the son of David; were moved with indignation, and said to Him: Hearest Thou what these say? And Jesus said to them: Yea, have you never read: Out of the mouth of infants and of sucklings Thou hast per fected praise? And leaving them, He went out of the city into Bethania, and remained there.

Prayer. Look down upon Thy family, O Lord, and grant that our minds, which are afflicted by the mortifications of the flesh, may shine in Thy light with the desire of Thee.

Lenten Calendar[3]

Read: Lent is a time many often rededicate themselves to prayer. Check out these 9 ways to pray. . . from USCCBs We Are Salt and Light for ideas on how to expand your prayer life this season.

Reflect: Lent is to be lived as a time of conversion, as a time of renewal for individuals and communities, by drawing close to God and by trustfully adhering to the Gospel. In this way, it also allows us to look with new eyes at our brothers and sisters and their needs." (Pope Francis, General Audience, March 5, 2014)

Pray: Try one of the 9 ways to pray from the article that you have never tried before.  

Act: If you found you liked one of the 9 ways to pray from above to be helpful to you, share your experience with a loved one.  

Aids in Battle[4] Demons are not a figment of your imagination

The Devil and other demons would like us to believe that they are outdated, unenlightened superstitions, but the Catholic Church remains firm, clear, and consistent in her teaching about this reality.

·         Our heavenly Father has placed over each of us an angel under whose protection and vigilance we may be enabled to escape the snares secretly prepared by our enemy, repel the dreadful attacks he makes on us.
·         Never was anyone, conceived been liberated from the Devil’s dominion except by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the mediator between God and humanity, who was conceived without sin, was born and died. He alone by His death overthrew the enemy of the human race, cancelling our sins, and unlocked the entrance to the heavenly kingdom, which the first man by his sin had locked against himself and all his posterity. COUNCIL OF FLORENCE (ECUMENICAL, 1431– 1445), SESSION 2
·         Men are separated into two diverse and opposite parts, of which the one steadfastly contends for truth and virtue, the other of those things which are contrary to virtue and to truth. The one is the kingdom of God on earth, namely, the true Church of Jesus Christ; and those who desire from their heart to be united with it, so as to gain salvation, must of necessity serve God and His only-begotten Son with their whole mind and with an entire will. The other is the kingdom of Satan, in whose possession and control are all who follow the fatal example of their leader and of our first parents, those who refuse to obey the divine and eternal law, and who have many aims of their own in contempt of God, and many aims also against God. POPE LEO XIII, HUMANUM GENUS (PAPAL ENCYCLICAL, 1884), 1
·         Satan manages to sow in man’s soul the seed of opposition to the one who “from the beginning” would be considered as man’s enemy— and not as Father. Man is challenged to become the adversary of God! The analysis of sin in its original dimension indicates that, through the influence of the “father of lies,” throughout the history of humanity there will be a constant pressure on man to reject God, even to the point of hating Him: “Love of self to the point of contempt for God,” as St. Augustine puts it. POPE JOHN PAUL II, DOMINUM ET VIVIFICANTEM (PAPAL ENCYCLICAL, 1986), 38

Thanks to Fear of the Lord, there is no Fear of Evil[5]

History, in fact, is not alone in the hands of dark powers, chance or human choices. Over the unleashing of evil energies, the vehement irruption of Satan, and the emergence of so many scourges and evils, the Lord rises, supreme arbiter of historical events. He leads history wisely towards the dawn of the new heavens and the new earth, sung in the final part of the book under the image of the new Jerusalem (cf. Revelation 21-22).

·         It must be reaffirmed, therefore, that God is not indifferent to human events, but penetrates them realizing his "ways," namely his plans and his efficacious "deeds."
·         According to our hymn, this divine intervention has a very specific purpose: to be a sign that invites all the peoples of the earth to conversion. Nations must learn to "read" in history a message of God. Humanity's history is not confused and without meaning, nor is it given over, without appeal, to the malfeasance of the arrogant and perverse. There is the possibility to recognize divine action hidden in it. In the pastoral constitution "Gaudium et Spes," Vatican Council II also invites the believer to scrutinize, in the light of the Gospel, the signs of the times to see in them the manifestation of the very action of God (cf. n. 4 and 11). This attitude of faith leads man to recognize the power of God operating in history, and thus to open himself to fear of the name of the Lord. In biblical language, in fact, this "fear" does not coincide with dread, but is the recognition of the mystery of the divine transcendence. Because of this, it is the basis of faith and is joined with love: "the Lord your God requires of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul" (cf. Deuteronomy 10:12).
·         Following this line, in our brief hymn, taken from Revelation, fear and glorification of God are united: "Who will not fear you, Lord, or glorify your name" (15:4)? Thanks to fear of the Lord there is no fear of the evil that rages in history and one takes up again with vigor the journey of life, as the prophet Isaiah declared: "Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: ‘Be strong, fear not!’" (Isaiah 35: 3-4).

Napping Day[6]

Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o’clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap. Barbara Jordan`

You got up early and got a great start to the day, you’ve been trucking along being a productive adult, getting your work completed and attending the meetings you have to attend. Throughout it all you’ve been a trooper, you even made it through lunch without much trouble. But now it’s creeping into the late afternoon, and you’re just out of go. What do you do? You take a nap! Napping Day encourages you to remember these benefits of youth and take a little time out of the day for you! Napping Day’s history is simply the history of napping, and it used to be something we all did in the middle of the afternoon. In fact, the siesta is still a time-honored tradition in Spain that happens right after the afternoon meal and has been a practice since time out of mind. In fact, if you’re in the Mediterranean, it’s pretty much standard everywhere you go. In Italy they call it the riposo, pisolini, and even old Charlamagne (yes that Charlamagne) has been recorded as having taken 2-3-hour naps in the middle of the afternoon. So, is it just laziness? Well, no. You see in part it’s because the hottest hours of the day occur in the middle of the afternoon, and it makes sense to take a brief break at that point. It also has to do with the circadian rhythms and the change-over point between the wake cycle and sleep cycle, there’s a time that’s essentially perfect for a nap. There are even notable benefits to taking a nap in the afternoon, including evidence pointing to a 37% reduction in occurrences of coronary mortality in those who take an afternoon nap regularly.

How to Celebrate Napping Dayzzzzzzzzzzzz

·         Well, the way to celebrate Napping Day is pretty simple isn’t it? You just take a little time in the afternoon (whenever your afternoon is, some of us are day sleepers) to rest. After the afternoon meal is perfect, and in the long-run it can help you actually feel better and more energized for the day ahead. It may be tricky if you have a regular work schedule, but whenever you can… Take a nap!


The Way[7] Resolutions

"Read these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in the end you will be a more worthy soul."

Make few resolutions. Make them definite. — And fulfil them with the help of God

Daily Devotions
·         Drops of Christ’s Blood
·         Universal Man Plan
·         Nivevah 90 day 49
·         Manhood of Christ Day7
·         comment on your “Coffee with Christ”


[1] http://www.stjosephschurch.net/leoxiii.htm
[2] Goffine’s Devout Instructions, 1896
[3]
[4]Thigpen, Paul. Manual for Spiritual Warfare. TAN Books.
[5]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2019-03-12
[7]http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-point-1.htm

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