Divine Appointment…

Posted on February 7, 2012 by fromtheheartofj

“Rising very early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place where he prayed.”

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Where is your deserted place to pray? That place where you usher in the day? Wrapped in the holy hush of the new day?

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Is it a prayer chair? …a nook in the garden?…on a threadbare carpet beside the bed?

Where is that place you greet the day?

That place that you bow your head and heart in humility in the truth…

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You are God…I am creature.

Where is that deserted place you pray that affirms you in love and purpose as you offer the gift of the new day to the Father?

May we know who we truly are in God in the gift of each morning and may we experience the deep abiding peace that comes from finding that deserted place ….

Which becomes our sacred place of divine appointment.

The Word…

Posted on February 5, 2012 by fromtheheartofj

Lord, who can grasp all the wealth of just one of your Words?

What we understand is much less than what we leave behind…

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Like thirsty people who drink from a fountain.

Your Word, Lord, has so many shades of meaning, just as those who study it have many points of view.

The Lord has colored His Word with many hues, so that each person who studies it can see in it what he loves.

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He has hidden many treasures in His Word, so that each of us is enriched as we meditate on it.

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The Word of God is a tree of life that from all its parts offers you fruit that is blessed.

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It is like that rock that is open in the dessert, which from all its parts give forth a spiritual drink.

(Ephraim the Syriac, Deacon from the 4th century)

“Your Word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path.” Ps 119: 105

Have a blessed Sunday.

What Gets You Up in the Morning?…

Posted on January 16, 2012 by fromtheheartofj

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What gets you up in the morning?…

A desire to check off items from the to – do list?

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A recipe for burnout.

What gets you up in the morning?…

A desire to accumulate riches, honors, and personal gain?

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This shrine to self is built on a shaky foundation.

What gets you up in the morning?…

Cruising through the day not much thought why?

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Those are shallow waters to swim in.

What gets you up in the morning?…

We exist for the PRAISE of God’s glory.

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How do we praise God with our lives?

By being the best “you” that “you” can be right where God has placed “you”!

Doing all for God in thanksgiving and praise for the gift of life He’s given you.

Even the smallest and most mundane occasions in our daily life become a gift of love back to Him.

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Sweeping the kitchen floor…presiding over a business meeting…taking out the trash…exercising…making meals for the family…taking time to talk to those who cross our path…8 hours at a desk job.

All given to Him…for Love of Him.

What gets you up in the morning?

The Apostolate of Daily Life!

Morning Offering Prayer: Oh my God, I offer You all my thoughts, words, actions, joys and sufferings of this day in union with my Lord, Jesus Christ. I want to make each of them an act of perfect love giving constant witness of You to those around me. “

“In Him we were also chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the one who accomplishes all things according to the intention of His will, so that we might exist for the praise of His glory, we who first hoped in Christ.” Eph 1:11-12

All Natural…No Preservative Self…

Posted on January 3, 2012 by fromtheheartofj

“Everyone who has this hope based on Him makes himself pure, as He is pure.”1 John3:3

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To HOPE is to keep one’s eyes on the top of the cross….

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while keeping vigil at the foot.

How good, gracious, and merciful is our God that by merely hoping…

Our eyes set on Him who is our HOPE…

We are made PURE.

To be PURE is to be all we are called to be…

no fakes, no masks, no pretense, no artificial flavors…

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100% pure, all natural, no additives, no preservatives.

By being in Your Presence Lord in prayer…

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which in itself is an act of HOPE…

We become more purely who we are…who we are meant to be.

New Year’s Prayer…

Posted on January 1, 2012 by fromtheheartofj

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A New Year’s Prayer
May God make your year a happy one! Not by shielding you from all sorrows and pain, But by strengthening you to bear it, as it comes; Not by making your path easy, But by making you sturdy to travel any path; Not by taking hardships from you, But by taking fear from your heart; Not by granting you unbroken sunshine, But by keeping your face bright, even in the shadows; Not by making your life always pleasant, But by showing you when people and their causes need you most, and by making you anxious to be there to help. God’s love, peace, hope and joy to you for the year ahead.
Anonymous

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in His great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” 1 Peter 1:3

Happy New Year!