A LAMP TO MY FEET. A LIGHT FOR MY PATH.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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It is written:

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the human heart conceived,
what God has prepared for those who love Him.” [a]

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– 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NIV) [a] Isaiah 64:4

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REFLECTION…

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These words which St Paul quotes from Isaiah

sum up the content of God’s plan

– all those gifts which man’s mind cannot grasp

and which God has ready from all eternity

for those who love Him.

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These Gifts are nothing less than God’s love for mankind.

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PRAYER…

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Holy Spirit,

be with me today…and every day.

Be my Teacher, my Guide,

my Counsellor, my Friend.

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Fill me with Your gifts,

especially the gifts of wisdom,

discernment, knowledge,

understanding, compassion, and love.

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Open my mind,

reveal to me the Truth,

and fill me with awe of my Maker’s great love for me.

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Amen

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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My Lord and my God, I am in awe of You.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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“Who can this be?

Even the wind and the sea obey Him.”

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– Mark 4:41 (JB)

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REFLECTION…

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When we believers read this verse,

we know the answer

…with conviction.

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The one who the wind and the sea obey, can only be Jesus

in whose presence all will bow

and acknowledge as Lord.

We know that “all things came into being through Him,

and without Him not one thing came into being.” (Jn 1:3)

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PRAYER…

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I believe, Lord Jesus, I believe.

I believe that You are the only Son of God,

in whom all things were made.

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I believe that You are the Resurrection and the Life,

and I entrust myself and all that I have to You

because You command

and creation bows down and obeys

…so who am I to go against Your will?

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My Lord, take over

lead me where You will

and do with me as You please.

I want to serve only You, Lord.

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Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, take over…I want to obey You.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.

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– Psalm 86:5 (NIV)

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PRAYER…

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You, Lord, are forgiving and good,

abounding in love to all who call to You.

Grant me the grace to always seek You out,

to always acknowledge Your nearness,

to always place my hope in You.

Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, You are forgiving and good!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Be completely humble and gentle;

be patient, bearing with one another in love.

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– Ephesians 4:2 (NIV)

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REFLECTION…

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To humility, gentleness, and patience

we add a sincere loving disposition

which "binds everything together in perfect harmony" (Col 3:14)

and which is the mark of the true Christian.

“Be completely humble and gentle;

be patient, bearing with one another in love.”

Such a simple message that reflects Christ’s teachings

…and yet…we so often allow pride and selfishness to take over!

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QUOTE…

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“What a lesson of humility is to be found here with regard to man,

with regard both to one’s neighbour and to oneself!

What a school of good will for daily living,

in the various conditions of our existence!"

– Pope John Paul II

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PRAYER…

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Lord Jesus,

I so want to learn from You,

to be more like You.

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Send Your Spirit upon me, Lord,

to teach me how to be humble, gentle and patient

and, above all, how to love like You love.

Fill me with these virtues, O Lord,

so that I can be more like You.

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Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, I want to love like You love.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said to His disciples,

“You have been given the secret of the Kingdom of God.

But the others, who are on the outside, hear all things by means of parables,

so that,

‘They may look and look,
yet not see;
they may listen and listen,
yet not understand.
For if they did, they would turn to God,
and He would forgive them.’”

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– Mark 4:11-12 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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There are those who approach Jesus with love and humility

as well as with eagerness to believe,

to know and to learn more about His truth,

These find that Jesus will gladly enter their expectant hearts

and that He will caringly give them the gift of understanding.

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The meaning of His teachings, of His actions, of His example,

will then be revealed to them,

and they will slowly be enlightened

…and will acknowledge Him as Lord,

as the turn to Him

and seek to love Him with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.

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On the other hand, there are those

who are blinded by their pride and egoism

and although they may appear to observe

– they do not actually see;

although they seem to listen

– they are not willing to understand.

They harden their hearts

and reject God’s grace.

Such are those whose pride steers them away from God,

and who arrogantly will not admit their self-centeredness.

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It is the humble who are forgiven.

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PRAYER…

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Here I am, Lord

– teach me.

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Here I am, Lord,

Your servant is listening

– help me understand Your truth.

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Here I am, Lord,

– open the eyes of my heart

that I may see Your glory.

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Forgive me and renew me, Lord.

Grant me the grace

to always love You

with all my heart, my mind, my soul and my strength.

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For this I pray. Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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O Lord, thank You for the gift of faith.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“Whoever does the will of God

is my brother and sister and mother.”

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– Mark 3:35 (NRSV)

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REFLECTION…

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Wow!

Our Lord Jesus is telling us

that if we follow Him

we will share His life as intimately

as if we were a member of His family.

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Whoever does God’s will

receives the Key to the Kingdom.

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QUOTE…

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“Everyone who does the will of the Father,

that is to say, who obeys Him,

is a brother or sister of Christ,

because he is like Him who fulfilled the will of His Father.

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But he who not only obeys but converts others, begets Christ in them,

and thus becomes like the Mother of Christ"

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– St. Thomas

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PRAYER…

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Lord Jesus, my God,

Your love for me knows no limits!

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Lord, I thank You for Your willingness

to make me a close member of Your family;

for Your readiness to entrust me

with the key to the door to Your home.

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I pray that I will never misuse

the freedom that You so generously gave me,

and decide against being a family member

of Your glorious household.

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Lord, how can I ignore Your promise

and throw away the key

which opens wide the door to Your realm?

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Lord, stop me from ever consciously and wilfully

refusing to do Your holy will.

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Oh, Divine Hand that never lets go of me,

let me never let go of You

and help me to always do Your will!

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Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Oh, Divine Hand that never lets go of me,

help me to always do Your will!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“I tell you the truth,

all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven,

but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit

will never be forgiven.

This is a sin with eternal consequences.”

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– Mark 3:28-29 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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To blaspheme the Holy Spirit,

does not properly consist in offending against the Holy Spirit in words;

it consists rather in the refusal to accept

the salvation which God offers to man through the Holy Spirit,

working through the power of the cross.

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Such blasphemy is to reject the Holy Spirit,

to refuse radically to recognise sin and repent of it,

and to block the healing and forgiveness offered by the Lord.

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So the sin is not unforgivable because of its seriousness,

but because the sinner lacks the proper disposition to seek forgiveness

and, thereby, to be forgiven.

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How can the Lord forgive us

and reconcile us to a sharing in His life

if we refuse to recognise the sin as a sin

and to say,

“Please forgive me, Lord, for I have sinned against You

…and against my neighbour”?

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This hardness of heart

leads to a sustained and firm rejection of the love and mercy of God,

which in turn leads to damnation.

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[Today’s reflection is from an explanation by Fr William P. Saunders of CatholicStraightAnswers.com]

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PRAYER…

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Lord,

I recognise that I have sinned against You

and against my neighbour,

out of self-centeredness

and lack of love.

Please forgive me.

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I am sorry and beg pardon for all my sins,

and detest them above all things,

because they have crucified my loving Saviour Jesus Christ

and, most of all, because they offend Your infinite goodness.

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And I firmly resolve, by the help of Your grace,

never to offend You again,

and to carefully avoid the occasions of sin.

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I love You, Lord God.

Forgive me, Lord God.

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Amen.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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I love You, Lord God.

Forgive me, Lord God.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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The Lord is my light and my salvation;

whom shall I fear?

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The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?

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– Psalm 27:1(NRSV)

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REFLECTIVE QUOTE…

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“The Lord is our light […].

The inner man, enlightened in this way,

does not waver;

he follows the right path,

and can endure all things.

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He who contemplates his final homeland from afar

can bear all adversity;

he is not saddened by worldly things;

rather he finds his strength in God;

he humbles his heart and is persevering,

and his humility makes him patient.

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The true light,

which comes into the world to enlighten all men,

is the Son,

revealing Himself to all;

He gives His light to those who [revere] Him;