TO BE WITH GOD

“Even before the world was made,God had already chosen us to be His through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before Him.” (Eph.1: 4)

Many people believe that the nature, sun, moon, stars and even human beings never had a beginning. There is an endless eternal cycle of birth, life and death that constantly repeats itself. This eternal cycle never began and never ends. It always has been and always will be.

Whereas, the Bible tells us something different. It teaches that there was a time when the world did not exist, only God existed. The God of the Bible is not a force  or an unknown absolute, but He is a person. He knows, thinks, has emotions and loves. This God decided to reveal Himself by creating the world and thus the world began.

When God created the world, He created it good. As you read through the first chapter of Genesis, notice how often the author refers, “…..and God saw it was good.” This means that not only there was no sin but everything functioned perfectly. There was no storms, no famine, and there was no destruction in the perfect world that God made.

Among all His creation, Man is the most wonderful one.

God created Man in His own image, blessed them and put them in charge of everything when He said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea, birds of the air and every living creature that moves along the earth.”

The Bible teaches that Man is unique among all of God’s creation. We are the only ones being created  in the image and likeness of God. We are given the capability of being friends of God and communicating with Him as one person to another.

After creating all the wonderful things of the world, God finished with his greatest creative art; the creation of man and woman.

In the Bible we can see every evening, God the Father goes with His children for a walk. Walking in the midst of His children, hand in hand, or His hands over their shoulder, inquiring the happenings of the day and above all enjoying the happiness of his children.

Believers in Christ,our God is not an untouchable force or a remote but He is a person. He thinks about us, He plans for us, he talks to us, He loves us and above all he cares for what he has created. Similarly, He expects the same from us.

God our Father, invites us to be with Him and to share our life. He even abandoned the heavenly glory and came down to the ground to be with His beloved ones in the form of a man.  Praise God for His love!

Throughout the Bible, we see God calls His children to maintain the beauty and holiness of His Creation, the World.

God picked Abraham as a foundation of a new humanity.

The Lord said to Abraham, “Leave your country, your relatives and your father’s home and go to a land that I am going to show you. I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you. But I will curse those who curse you. And through you I will bless the nations.”(Gen.12: 1-3)

Abraham was certain of God’s call and His Power. When he listened and obeyed promptly, God blessed and fulfilled His promises.

God has created us to know Him, to love Him and to serve Him. “It is He who made us capable of serving the new covenant, which consists not of a written law but of the Spirit. (2 Cor.3:6)

The One who calls you is faithful and He knows our weakness and knows how to handle us. 

Abraham was a man of faith. Moses had big doubts about his leadership abilities and resisted God by  bringing up his unworthiness like fear, cowardliness, speech difficulty and hot temper, but God who chose him before he was in his mother’s womb comforted him.

As we flip through the pages of Bible, we can read God’s various encounters with His chosen prophets. Physical inability,disqualification,a sinful past etc…nothing can act as a barrier or revoke God’s plan for us.

Let us listen to His Calling and accept it. 

Let us Pray

Loving Father, you have chosen every individual to be with you. Before the world was created you had chosen us and takes care of us to be partner of Your Glory. During the acceptable time O Lord, You call us to be at Your service. 

O Lord, You called Abraham, Moses and his descendants and they accepted Your voice and obeyed duly. Moses stayed with You for forty days and nights without food and water writing your commandments. 

Through the intercession of Abraham, Moses and his descendants. O Lord, give us the courage to proclaim Your Glory and declare and make known the prosperity of Your Bountiful Goodness.
O Lord, Your praise shall I sing throughout my life.

The Love of God

Psalm 103

Praise the Lord, my soul !

All my being, praise His holy name!

Praise the Lord, my soul,

and do not forget how kind He is.

He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.

He keeps me from the grave

and blesses me with love and mercy.

He fills my life with good things, 

so that I stay young and strong like an eagle.

The Lord judges in favor of the oppressed

and gives them their rights.

He revealed His plans to Moses

and let the people of Israel see his mighty deeds.

The Lord is merciful and loving,

slow to become angry and full of constant love.

He does not keep on rebuking;

He is not angry forever.

He does not punish us as we deserve

or repay us according to our sins and wrongs.

As high as the sky is above the earth,

so great is His love for those who honor him.

As far as the east is from the west.

so far does He remove our sins from us,

As a father is kind to his children,

so the Lord is kind to those who honour him.

He knows what we are made of;

he remembers that we are dust.

As for us,our life is like grass.

We grow and flourish like a wild flower;

then the wind blows on it and it is gone --

no one sees it again.

But for those who honor the Lord,

His love lasts for ever,

and His goodness endures for all generations

of those who are true to His covenant

and who faithfully obey his commands.

The Lord placed His throne in heaven;

He is king over all.

Praise the Lord,you strong and mighty angels,

who obey his commands,

who listen to what He says.

Praise the Lord, all you heavenly powers,

you servants of His, who do His will ! 

Praise the Lord, all you heavenly creatures

in all places he rules,

Praise the Lord, my soul !

GOSPEL OF JOHN

Since we are most loved by a Mother, Jesus gave us His own, Be with us Mary along the way, Guide every step we take, Lead us to Jesus your Loving Son, Come with Us Mary Come

JESUS CHANGES WATER INTO WINE

On the third day, a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ Mother was there and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ Mother said to Him, “They have no more wine.”

“Dear Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

His Mother said to the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for the ceremonial washing, each holding twenty to thirty gallons.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests had too much to drink but you have saved the best till now.”

This is the first of the miraculous sign Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee.He thus revealed His glory and His disciples put their faith in Him. 

This is the Word of the Lord. 

Thanks be to Lord Jesus Christ!

GOD OF COMFORT

The Lord says, "The spirit is willing but the body is weak so let us watch and pray that we will not fall into temptation."  (Matt. 26:41)

“Woman, why are you crying? Who is it that you are looking for? (John 20:13)

Everyone is crying for something or the other, there are numerous persons, things or situations that make us cry and the list would be long.

Children cry in the absence of their mother or to express their hunger and aches.

Teenagers cry at the drop of a hat for heart breaks, broken dreams, failures, fights with friends etc…

As years pass, along with us our list of unhappiness also increases. Joblessness, insecurity, hardships, poverty, sickness, lack of prosperity, wayward life, irresponsible life partner, childlessness, bad habits, demise of loved ones etc..Some are depressed due to the fact that are trapped in a net of bad habits, friends and can’t overcome it.

Where do we cry?

Little ones cry in front of their mother or anyone who can they feel can understand and fulfill their needs. Teenagers run into their room to seeking refuge or to any place where they are free to express themselves. Some go to their good friends. It is natural that we have to express ourselves when we are about to shed a tear or when our heart is burdened. 

Elderly people would mostly find refuge in their neighbors or relatives. Some share it with those whom they are close to and some rely on alcohol, drugs and smoking.

Others divert their mind towards television, excessive food consumption and online addiction.

Are we truly relieved? Have we been successful in solving our problems?

We are only successful in getting temporarily relief. Sometimes the person we trust or seek comfort might publicize our pain or even blame us.

What does the Good News tell us regarding it?

This is what the Lord says, “A sound is heard in Ramah, the sound of bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more.” (Jer. 31:15) She was crying to the Lord who could truly comfort and answer her. The  Lord who heard her cry says, “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears for your work will be rewarded."

Again Ephraim is weeping in front of God. The Lord answers,"I have surely heard Ephraim mourning.”

“You have disciplined me like an unruly calf and I have been disciplined. Restore me and I will return, because You are my Lord, my God.”

In his repentance after being astray he cries to God Saying, “My heart is heavy. I am humiliated and ashamed because I bore the disgrace of my youth.”

God moves with compassion to his confession and says, “Ephraim, you are my dear son. The child in whom I delight.”

Though I often spoke against him, I will still remember him. Therefore my heart yearns for him. I have great compassion for him.

My dear ones in Christ, If we cry in front of our Lord, who can truly understand the depth of our pain, He will surely call us by our name. He takes our pain and sorrows. He can neither laugh nor blame or publish it because He alone can read our mind because He is our Creator. He rewards us with a permanent solution.

Remember in your deepest grief that God is not absent, but He is planning our redemption. It is wise to make up your mind and walk towards the Son of God, who cries for our every need to God our Father, the True Provider. He is the one and only source where we can find solace.

Every soul has its own sorrow! How then can we humans mutually comfort each other? When such situation arises, our words of advice and comfort can only be laced with some selfishness or pain aligned with our experiences of our lives.

You may be the wandering prodigal son, away from all your well wishers, seeking your pleasures. They may be sad about you, may be your  hot tempered decisions might have made your parents/ loved ones paralytic or to mental disturbances.

The Bible clearly says, “If anyone should cause one of these little ones to lose his faith in Me, it would be better for that person to have a large millstone tied round his neck and be drowned in the deep sea. How terrible for the world that these are things that make people lose their faith! Such things will always happen –but how terrible for the one who causes them!”  (Matt. 18:6-7)

“Happy are those who mourn; God will comfort them!” (Matt. 5:4)

If you move forward with a new and confident heart His outstretched arms will hug you and He will embrace you. He will abolish all your sorrows in His Heart. Then He will lead you to the quiet pools of fresh water and give you new strength and guide you to the right path along with His staff. His Honor love and goodness will follow all your life. Let not your heart be troubled. He invites you even if you are far away from him.

“Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest.” (Matt. 11: 28-29)

                                                  LET US PRAY

Lord Jesus, you had lifted up all your deep distress and sorrows to Abba Father and prayed ‘Let Your Will be done.’ 

Look upon me with your comforting heart into my teary eyes and distressed heart. You had instructed your disciples to be vigilant and pray so as to not fall into temptation.

Yes, my gracious Lord, grant me to overcome all habituated nature which rewards me/my family and community, confusion and dispute. Draw my hardened heart towards your heart in which dwells all the fullness of divinity and which the Father was well pleased. 

Enter into the midst of my family and make it Your own and let your Holy Spirit inspire us, soon one cry may resound from home to nations.

May the Triumphant Heart of Jesus and Holy Spirit increase our faith to take the right decision at all times of trials. This we pray in Jesus’ name.

Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation

Peace and Victim of sinners, Pray for us.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pray for us

St. Anthony of Padua, Pray for us. Amen!

                                                                                                                                                                                                           LORD OF PARDON

            The Lord says, “I will never turn away, anyone who comes to me.” (  Jn.6:37)

 This is the supplication of a man, who has offended God, his Creator.

God is just --- He rewards the good and punishes the wicked. He is also merciful as born out of book of Books and history of mankind.

He has made assurance of pardon to sinners who are repentant. God asked sinners  to be humble and to acknowledge their sins and to be sorry for them. "If  we acknowledge our sins , He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all iniquities." (1 John 1:9)

If we say that we have not sinned, we make God out to be a liar, and His Word is not in us.

We shall not hesitate to seek pardon and mercy of God. We should go to Him, the moment we fall into sin.

"Delay not be converted to the Lord and differ it not from day to day, for His wrath shall come on a sudden." (Eccl 5: 8-9)

God listens to the prayers of a humble penitent sinner.

 "A humble and contrite heart O God! Thou will not despise." (Psalm 50:19)

Be frank to admit your sins and hide them not when you confess them and ask forgiveness for them. 

"He that hides his sin shall not proper, but he that shall confess and forsake them shall obtain mercy." (Prov 28:13)

The Lord Himself spoke of the joy of a pardoned sinner. "There will be joy in Heaven over one sinner who repents more than over ninety-nine, who have no need for repentance." (Luke 15:7)

The Apostles themselves understood the measure to obtain pardon.

"Repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be bloated out." (Acts. 3:19)

Since we all are sinners it is required to approach  the channel of grace of pardon in the Sacrament of Penance. Our Lord Christ after His Resurrection appeared to the Apostles and given them the power to forgive sins. 

"Receive the Holy Spirit, whose sins you shall forgive, they shall be forgiven and whose sins shall retain, they are retained. (John 20:23)

                                                STORIES OF PARDON

Keep in mind dear ones in Christ, that these stories concern the goodness of our Lord, who is always dispose to forgive, repentant sinners.

Story I
There was  once a man with two children. The younger one went to his father saying, "Father, give me the property that shall belong to me." So then the father divided his possession between the two children and the younger of the two went afar; travelling to another town, where he wasted the possession which he inherited. Famine reigned in that place and the young man suffered so much that he had to get employment in a piggery.The time came, he had to eat even what was offered to the pigs.

In his moments of quiet and contemplation, he began to think about his home. "In my home there is abundant food, while here I am suffering from hunger. It would be better  that I return to my father to ask him forgiveness for my foolishness." And he kept his promise to return to his home. Meeting his father he said," Father, I am not worthy to be called your son because I have  sinned against you and Heaven".

Father was profuse in grant of pardon to his son, who was repentant of his sins.

He even prepared a banquet to celebrate the return of the son who had left him and sinned. The elder son became envious and told his father, "Father, for many years I have stayed with you, serving you but you have not prepared such a banquet as you have offered to my brother. 

The father pacified him saying, "Son, we have to rejoice because your brother had been separated from us and he has now come back to our midst."

Synopsis

The Father in the story is the picture of our Sovereign Lord. The prodigal son is a mirror of man who have sinned against Him. 

A sinner who repents of his sins and goes back to God and promises to live a new life in His grace will obtain pardon for his sins.

Story II

There was a man in Jerusalem about 38 years of age, who was suffering from a scare disease. He was one of the sick who went to the pool of Bethzatha. Many who were deaf, lame, blind and paralytic were waiting for the descent of an angel of  God, who would cure them of their ailments. 

Jesus was passing by and He saw the man down his disease. "Do you want to get cured?" asked Jesus and the answered, "Lord, nobody will help me to go down the pool because I have always been left behind whenever the water moves."

Jesus told him, "Arise and Walk!"

Immediately the sick man stood up and got healed. But it was a Sabbath day --- a day of rest for the Jews. They therefore got mad at Jesus asking the cured man, "Who was it that healed you?"

The same man went to the temple and Jesus met him. The Lord told him," Now you are cured and don't ever sin again for something worse may happen to you."

Synopsis

This story again is one of pardon granted by the Sovereign Lord, to those who admit their weakness and are repentant of their sins.

After being sorry for the sins and obtaining pardon of the Lord, it is wise that the sinner does not go back to the place or occasion of sin.

The Lord is merciful to those who really repent. 

Beads of the Sacred Heart

Soul of Christ, sanctify me

                                                    Body of Christ, save me

Blood of Christ, inebriate me

Water from the sides of Christ, wash me,

Passion of Christ, strengthen me.

Good Jesus, hear me, within Your wounds, hide me 

Suffer me not to be separate from You,

From the Malignant enemy, defend me and

Bid me come to You that with Your Saints  

                              I may praise God for all eternity. Amen. 

Jesus meek and humble of heart

Make my heart unto yours.

Sweet Heart of Jesus, Be my love

Sweet Heart of Mary, Be my salvation. 

LIFE IN FULLNESS

PART II

God says, "I Will give them a new heart, I will instill a new Spirit. I will remove     their stony heart and give them an obedient heart." (Ezek 11:19)

When my Lord entered in me and healed my soul and anointed me with a new oil which kept on increasing my faith and strengthened my physical activities more easily, though I had weak spinal cord and many complications. Timely advice and encouragement of my spiritual guru (teacher) provided mental strength and firmness in my decision. 

The Spirit of the Lord gave me the proper realization that Christ saved me, so I have to serve and truly follow his steps. I buried all my past and planted new seed of Word of God on it. My heart and mind became hollow while I started praying for persons whom I encountered in my life.

 As the days passed, God inspired me to pray for all those who are bedridden and then He took me to see the pathetic stage of the world and the young generation.

I lifted up the above tragedy and kept weeping secretly along with the Savior. 

Then Rosary and praises adorned my lips all throughout. Giving thanks to the Lord is one of the most joyful sessions in my life. I gained lot of Spiritual nutrition to grow more and more in the Word of God. Holy Spirit provided the wisdom and His fruits and karism transformed me to the “the Fire of God”. 

The Lord observed me and found I was mature enough to be polished and used. I underwent polishing under His consent.

As a thief, hardships came from four sides to rob the Lord from me, I had given away everything except for my LORD. 

Those who were initially happy and supportive, gradually led into the thorny barriers of insults, rejections, disapproval, sheer hardships and persecutions. Constant omens were thrown to me from all my near and dear ones. 100 percent whom I trusted turned back and troubled me.

 The Bible says, “Who then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it or hardships or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death? NO!!! In all this things we have complete victory through Him who loved us.” (Rom. 8:35)

 So I am certain till today, dear ones, nothing can separate us because the love of God is ours through Christ! Amen!

I started praying and forgiving them and ignored their deeds. Then, I concentrated more on my dedication and spent more time reading Holy Bible, that as a good weapon, repeatedly confessing, that the double edged sword --- the Word of God. 

Do not let the devil defeat you, Instead conquer evil with good deeds as a servant of God, is to be faithful to his Master. Meditating these words, I observed strict discipline to be crowned that will last forever. Our message is that God was making all mankind his friends through Christ. He did not keep an account of their sins. So I say forgive and pray for them.

So this is the hour to receive Gods favor, today is the day to be saved. Try not to put obstacles in anyone’s way. Instead in everything we do, we show that we are Gods servants by patiently enduring troubles hardships and difficulties. We have “Righteousness” as our weapon, both to attack and to defend ourselves. So let us open our hearts wide, which we ourselves have closed. 

How can right and wrong be partners? How can light and darkness live together? How can Christ and devil agree? How can Gods temple come to terms with pagan idols?

God has promised that He will make his Home with His people and live among them. I will be their God and they are my people. 

Holy God clears that, nothing to do with unclean which He cannot accept.

So then dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that makes our body and soul unclean and be completely Holy by living in the awe of God.

CONCLUSION PRAYER

Abba Father, since I have accepted Jesus your Son, as my Lord and Savior. I wish to live in union with Christ. I accepted Him as the cornerstone and want to build my life on him. I confess that my Lord is supreme over every spiritual rulers and authorities. Strengthen and deepen my faith so that I can crush and throw away all worthless defeat of human wisdom from ruling spirit of the universe. Do not allow, I pray, anything to enslave me. Make my heart fleshy so that I can forgive everyone I encounter in my life, as you have forgiven all my wrongdoing completely.

Thank you my Abba father, for being kind enough to save me. In Jesus’ name I forgive ____, I forgive____, I forgive____. Pardon me and have mercy on me. Anoint me to proclaim the truth that God invites you and is waiting for you preparing a special banquet and a big home that is full of righteousness. Yes, Lord whatever I do here all such things are only a shadow of things in the future. Yes, Jesus  You are the reality. Under Christ’s control, my body is nourished and held together by its joints and ligaments and it grows as per Gods command.

 In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen!

                                                 SPECIAL DELIVERANCE PRAYER:

We drive you from us whoever you may be, unclean spirit, all satanic powers, all wicked legions, in the name and by the power of our Lord Jesus. The Most High God commands you, Son of God commands you, God the Holy Spirit commands you, stop deceiving human creatures and pouring out to them the poison of eternal damnation. Stop harming the church and hindering her liberty. Amen! Halleluiah!

“God arises, his enemies are scattered and those who hate him flee before him. As smoke is driven away, so are they driven, as wax melts before the fire, so the wicked perish at the presence of God.”