|
NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Nine "From resentment or excessive preoccupation with the past. Deliver me, Jesus. I think we need good St. Paul once again this morning: "This is the covenant that I will make with them...I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds. I will remember their sins and their misdeeds no more." - Hebrews 10:16-17 A recurring theme I see in many of the men and women we serve is to let their past define who they are today - to feel like they have no choice. Not true! Our choices, our sins, our hurts, our experiences from the past certainly have influenced who we are today, that is life, but they do not and should not define us today. We are NOT the sins of our past. Our choices today do not have to be our choices of yesterday. If the Lord can put our past behind Him, as St. Paul reminds us, can't we also put our past (or just as importantly, the past of others!) behind us? May we pray today to allow the Lord to, "...put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds." May we know today that the only moment from our past that matters is the moment God our Father created us and destined us for greatness, at the moment of conception. We are, every one of us, beautifully and wonderfully made by the Creator of all! Let us claim that truth today! Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us. 
0 Comments
NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Eight "From anxiety about the future. Deliver me, Jesus." Certainly in the world today anxiety is felt by many. A reminder from St. Paul about trust in the Lord is fitting: "Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4: 6-7 Anxiety about what is ahead of us is a tough one to fight. But Saint Paul reminds us that if we hand-over our fears, our needs, and our struggles (through prayer) our Lord will replace them with peace and trust. Recently I had a conversation with a man who struggles with sobriety. He shared with me that he knows that the struggle will always be a part of his life, but he is also very aware that his journey requires a daily choice. His words, "I get up every day and I have to choose not to drink." It is the same with our anxiety and our trust in God, will we choose to trust Him today? Will we get up every morning and hand Him our worries and our fears? Pope Saint John XXIII had a morning offering to the Lord - Obedience and Peace. Throughout his life he desired only to do God's will and to do it without anxiety or complaining. The lived example of this great Saint demonstrates for us that he also knew trusting God fully requires from us a daily choice! Have no anxiety about anything... Holy Saints of God, pray for us. Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us. Photo by Arturo Rey on Unsplash NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Seven "From refusals and reluctances in accepting Your will. Deliver me, Jesus." After allowing this petition to "marinate" a little, I can see the reluctances to God's will in my life. The times I have kept His desires at arms length, or the times that I have been incredibly slow to move on something that I feel is clearly what God is asking of me. I remember years ago speaking to a priest friend about something I felt God was asking of me and Father simply looked at me and said, "What are you waiting for." If I am honest with myself, I was waiting for God to change His mind! God's will is not always our will. But God's will for our lives is the only path to true and lasting happiness. His will should be our only desire! Whatever God is asking of you today, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? Saint Pope John Paul II, pray for us. Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.  NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Six "From the rebellion against childlike dependency on You. Deliver me, Jesus." This morning as I prayed this petition a scene from a movie I recently watched came to my thoughts. The scene is three brothers on a battlefield, all three are wounded but two are seriously wounded. One of the young men, as he lies suffering on the ground, looks to his brother and simply says, "I want Mom." This "childlike" heart of knowing where our comfort comes from should indeed be the heart that we have for God our Father. He is our strength in all of life's struggles and joys; He is always with us; no further away than a thought or a whisper. The Entrance Antiphon of today's Mass is appropriate: "To you I call; for you will surely heed me, O God; turn your ear to me; hear my words. Guard me as the apple of your eye; in the shadow of your wings protect me." May we turn to God today with childlike hearts filled with longing for His love! May we bring our needs and the needs of others before Him, knowing that He desires what is best for us. Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.  NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Five "From all suspicion of Your words and promises. Deliver me, Jesus." Every time I pray this petition in the Litany of Trust one particular homeless young man comes to my heart. This young man when having a bad day has expressed how he doesn't trust God. With everything he sees around him, he does not believe that God is trustworthy, his words not mine. What makes my heart ache is that this young man falls into the trap of today, which I see in so very many people. This trap is where God gets no credit for the good in our lives yet, He gets blamed for all of the bad. There never seems to be any self-reflection of our own personal role in the ups and downs of life. Remember, God does not want puppets - He wants sons and daughters who love and trust Him. He will never force Himself upon us, He always waits for an invitation from us. May we open our hearts today and invite God in to order and make new the struggles we feel. May the good Lord replace our suspicion and fear today, may He replace it with hope and trust. Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.  NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Four "From the fear that trusting You will leave me more destitute. Deliver me, Jesus." As I prayed with this petition, I realized once again that learning to trust God does come with the challenge (which can be difficult) to give up my focus on me - what I want. Truly trusting Him leads me to seek what He wants in my life, rather than what I want. In fact, trusting God calls me to examine every day my "wants" vs my "needs". Often I find what I want is not what I need and will therefore never bring me happiness. Will following God leave us destitute, NEVER. If we examine with an open heart, we will clearly see that He always leads us to and provides for, our needs - that is if we are doing our part as well! Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us. NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Three "From the false security that I have what it takes. Deliver me, Jesus." Sometimes in our lives we come up against some struggles that are just too much for us to handle alone. Or, we find ourselves unable to conquer our weakness, faults and addictions. Jesus promises that He is always there as our strength to handle and conquer any struggle, hurt, illness or difficulty. Do we turn to our Father, God when we need His strength? Do we turn to Him when we need His wisdom, His eyes to see things as He sees them? Let us humble ourselves to recognize when God's strength alone is what we need! Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.  NOVENA OF TRUST - Day Two "From the fear that I am unlovable. Deliver me, Jesus." On what do we base our worth? Do we measure ourselves by our job, our finances, our beauty or weight, or our education? Worse yet, do we measure ourselves by our struggles, our falls or the opinions of others? There is only one opinion, one Other that we should care about - the One who loves us unconditionally. We are priceless in the eyes of God and those are the only eyes that matter! Repeat to yourself often, "I am beautifully and wonderfully created and I am loved", and know that it is true! Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us. NOVENA OF TRUST - Day One "From the belief that I have to earn Your love - Deliver me, Jesus" From the belief that I have to earn Your love.... Do we know in our hearts that God's love is freely given and showered upon us? Do we realize that nothing we do can earn more love from God - as He gives us all of His love? "My Divine Heart is so passionately in love with [humanity] that it can no longer contain within itself the flames of its ardent charity." - Revelation to Saint Margaret Mary Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us. NOVENA OF TRUST BEGINS TOMORROW! Tomorrow, the Feast of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, we begin our Novena of Trust. Twenty-Nine days of "marinating" in the Litany of Trust written by the Sisters of Life. The Novena will be available on our Facebook Page and on our website - Director's Page. Each day we will take one petition from the Litany and allow it to settle into our hearts. A suggestion would be for you to give 10 minutes (or more if you have it) each day to sit with this Novena, giving intentional focus to your prayer. How will the Lord guide your thoughts and your experiences? Who might He ask you to pray for? With so many challenges to our peace of heart in the world today, may we take this opportunity to sit together and ponder the Voice of God! Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.  |
Director -Deacon Dennis Moore
Archives
May 2021
Categories |
RSS Feed
Proudly powered by Weebly