Authentic prayer is a gift from God, a gift we receive with joy because God initiates and we simply respond.
For his 100th general audience,Pope Francis continued his catechesis on the family by considering family prayer. In his opening statements, the pope pointed out that most people find it difficult to find time to pray.
Pope Francis teaches that love of God, not guilt will inspire us to pray.
Obviously, an effective mother is passionate about teaching and loving her kids.
It is passion, an inner drive, that is not dependant on seeing results right away. It is passion from the Holy Spirit that prevents discouragement or burnout because it is an inner fire that motivates and energizes mums.
We must learn to connect spirit to spirit, heart to heart with little people in and through God if we want to teach and form them into children of God.
Reflections on Matthew 14:22
Jesus simply says, “Come.”
Without hesitation, Peter gets out of the boat and walks on the water.
WOW.
Peter actually walks on the water.
Nobody talks about that shining few seconds of miraculous faith.
No, commentators focus on Peter’s lack of faith.
Would you have even stepped out of that boat while the sea rolled beneath your feet? Could you have walked on water like Peter did, even if it was only for a few moments?
As a Christian, living in the Mystical Body off Christ, I can choose to live in the joy of the Lord or stay in my misery, isolated from the Spirit of God who dwells within.
When I live in my head, I live in a prison of whirling thoughts cut off from others and God.
If I go deeper into my being and live in my human emotions, in pain or in self-manufactured “happiness”, I end up stuck as a victim of others and in my sinful, independent self.
However, if I allow God to draw me even deeper into my core, united to Him, joy springs up automatically.
Now I exist in a state of effortless prayer connected to God. Living in my spirit , as a child of God, I am in my true self.
This joy is the contagious Presence of the Holy Spirit, blessing others with a taste of the Father’s love.
Well, people are writing with fear and panic underlying their comments and artic
les in the face of the States sanctioning same-sex marriages.
Why?
We are people of hope, not doomsayers or fearmongers.
Christ has already triumphed over sin and death. We are not called to focus on disasters, on evil, on sin. Christ commanded us to refrain from condemnation and judgment so we will not be judged and condemned by our Master. Our mandate is simple; allow the Light of Christ to grow ever more brightly within us, especially as the darkness deepens. Then we will be a light unto the world. He will conquer darkness through us. We are simply channels of truth, light and mercy. This is the central message of the New Testament.
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I have always heard that the mother is the heart of the family, especially a stay at home mother with a crew of kids, who also helps with a hobby farm. So Why was I not missed when I spent hours locked in the chicken coop?
You must first understand that even if this was a subconscious belief, I behaved as if I was the most important member of the family. It took a drastic experience to shake me out of my arrogance.
God has a sense of humour and will use any and all experiences to teach us.
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Why don’t we, as Catholics, give the Holy Spirit permission to do His job? The Holy Spirit is our inner Companion who leads us; we do not live in fear of spiritual revelations. Many of God the Father’s children are so afraid that the devil will lead them astray, they do not even listen to His interior whispers of love. Surely we trust more in God the Almighty, ruler of heaven and earth than the devil, a mere fallen angel?
”But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” John 16:13