SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Saturday - August 01, 2020

Saturday - August 01, 2020

 You cannot please both God and the world at the same time. They are utterly opposed to each other in their thoughts, their desires, and their actions.

-- St. John Mary Vianney

 

August 1 2020

 

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Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Lectionary: 406

Reading 1JER 26:11-16, 24

The priests and prophets said to the princes and to all the people,
“This man deserves death;
he has prophesied against this city,
as you have heard with your own ears.”
Jeremiah gave this answer to the princes and all the people:
“It was the LORD who sent me to prophesy against this house and city
all that you have heard.
Now, therefore, reform your ways and your deeds;
listen to the voice of the LORD your God,
so that the LORD will repent of the evil with which he threatens you.
As for me, I am in your hands;
do with me what you think good and right.
But mark well: if you put me to death,
it is innocent blood you bring on yourselves,
on this city and its citizens.
For in truth it was the LORD who sent me to you,
to speak all these things for you to hear.”

Thereupon the princes and all the people
said to the priests and the prophets,
“This man does not deserve death;
it is in the name of the LORD, our God, that he speaks to us.”

So Ahikam, son of Shaphan, protected Jeremiah,
so that he was not handed over to the people to be put to death

Responsorial Psalm69:15-16, 30-31, 33-34

R.    (14c)  Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Rescue me out of the mire; may I not sink!
may I be rescued from my foes,
and from the watery depths.
Let not the flood-waters overwhelm me,
nor the abyss swallow me up,
nor the pit close its mouth over me.
R.     Lord, in your great love, answer me.
But I am afflicted and in pain;
let your saving help, O God, protect me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving.
R.     Lord, in your great love, answer me.
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”
R.     Lord, in your great love, answer me.

AlleluiaMT 5:10

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 14:1-12

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus
and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist.
He has been raised from the dead;
that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”

Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison
on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip,
for John had said to him,
“It is not lawful for you to have her.”
Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people,
for they regarded him as a prophet.
But at a birthday celebration for Herod,
the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guests
and delighted Herod so much
that he swore to give her whatever she might ask for.
Prompted by her mother, she said,
“Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”
The king was distressed,
but because of his oaths and the guests who were present,
he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison.
His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl,
who took it to her mother.
His disciples came and took away the corpse
and buried him; and they went and told Jesus.

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How to be a Prophet

I've been pondering how we can best make a difference for the kingdom of God in today's dark world, which seems to be getting darker every day.

Like Jeremiah and John the Baptist in Saturday's readings for Catholic Mass, we too are called to be prophets. It's a character trait in all of God's children. During our baptisms we were marked with oil as a sign of being consecrated to God the Father, anointed by the Holy Spirit, to join Jesus in his threefold mission as prophet, priest, and king.

As a prophet, you are a messenger sent by God. As a prophet, you speak on God's behalf, encouraging others in their faith journeys and calling people to conversion. Sometimes the message is about the future.

Think about this. How well is your prophetic character trait showing? What holds you back?

As I asked myself these questions, I concluded that I'm doing way too little in the face of the hugeness of the presence of evil in our world these days. What holds me back is something the devil wants me to believe: I'm too little, too insignificant, too incapable of making a difference in the hearts of those who are in mortal danger of eternal separation from God.

When I took this to the Lord, he told me that I/we need to stop listening to the accuser (the devil) about who I am, who you are.

God the Father is speaking to us all the time about who we really are. As his children, we are more capable -- by his grace -- to do everything that a true follower of Christ can do (per John 14:12, the Book of Acts, etc.). Mystical experiences and miracles are not limited by God; they are limited by us and the insufficient faith formation we've had. The vocation of prophet is not limited to a few super-saints and mystics; you and I have the same calling as they've had.

While I was still reflecting on this, God confirmed it by displaying a video on my phone. YouTube's suggestion of what I might be interested in seeing was uncanny. It was Father Mike Schmitz speaking on "Who You Are vs. Who You’re Called to Be". In summary, he says:

I had believed that a person is either good at something or bad at something, and if I'm bad at math I don't care about math. If I'm not good at this, then then why put forth the effort? Because I had "a fixed mindset".

Is this how you feel about being a prophet?

We can have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset. A growth mindset is: I acknowledge the truth, I acknowledge the reality, like: I'm bad at math; I currently struggle at math but I can get better.

Are you ready and willing to dare to be a prophet of Christ's light to those who live in darkness? The darker the world gets, the brighter the light of Jesus gets in us who choose to be his presence in the world today.

God sees us as we are. He sees where we struggle, he sees where we have strengths, he sees where we're weak, he sees where we're wounded. He sees us as we are, but he approaches us as we could be.

If there's a sacrament that is a growth mindset sacrament, it is the Sacrament of Confession. Acknowledge, "I am not as holy as I should be," and let the Lord pick you and up move forward. Let him give you his grace and move you forward.

See yourself as someone who's called to the struggle: "I'm called to enter back into the fray after I've fallen." Then every time you need help, every time you fall down and get back up, that's a victory. Every time you struggle, that's growth.

Today you might not be the person that you could be, but you are someone who can grow. You have been made to be a saint in that sanctity that comes from God's grace. Ask for his grace, and don't be afraid to struggle.

Please take the message into your own heart and be set free by God's grace to be the prophet you are called to be, sharing the light of Christ in the darkness around you.

7 steps to becoming the prophet you are called to be

1. Your "yes" to the calling is the first step.

2. Acknowledge the reasons you hold back and turn them over to the Lord, including in the Sacrament of Confession.

3. Ask the Holy Spirit daily to renew you and fill you to overflowing. A personal relationship with the Holy Spirit is a must.

4. Fill yourself with good faith formation. Learn something every day. Spend less time on secular entertainment. 

5. Pay attention to the Holy Spirit stirring up a message within you. When do you feel disturbed by something going on in the world or in the Church? That disturbance is the Holy Spirit giving you a message to speak.

6. Find outlets for the message. Jesus will point them out to you. Don't force yourself upon anyone. Just look for an open door that God is providing. If you can't see it yet, write the message in a journal for safekeeping. And hey, it's a good idea to write in the journal even when you have another outlet.

7. Spend time praising and worshiping God with words of joy, thanking him for fertilizing and growing the seeds you planted for him.

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God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”