Mass today

Well I went to mass this morning because I didn't have to work early, and Im glad I did. As I usually am. The gospel was about Jesus saying that as we follow Him, be prepared to have our mothers/fathers/siblings/etc. as our enemies. I've heard this gospel many times, and until now I really couldn't get a grasp on why Jesus would say something like that. I understand that people who are faithful to the Church and to Christ are misunderstood/marginalized/persecuted..Call it what you want...But family? Come on now. But then the seminarian whose staying at my church for the summer said that if our family gets in the way of us growing closer to God, then they may be our enemies. And I guess as I get older and I expand my mind a bit more Im not viewing things as black or white- that is, when I was younger and heard this gospel I thought that it literally meant that if you said you loved God and wanted to serve him family members would become automatic enemies..Now in many cases this does happen, but how about if we don't come right out and say "I want to be a better Catholic..Or I want to grow closer to Jesus.." But instead, we turn our actions around and stop becoming so focused on gaining wealth, prestige, and begin to see this life as passing away- how might people react? I can testify to the fact that some family members might be a bit weirded out and distance themselves...And I guess the point is if that becomes a deterrant to our faith then its by that our family members are our enemies. And I know in Jesus' time the word "brother" or "sister" could mean any close relative or friend..So I wonder if the same holds true for the word "family?" Perhaps that includes close friends/mentors/etc..I dont know. But, thats my 2 cents on today =)

Gym

OK folks, I go to the gym nearly every day..Hoping to achieve that perfect body, that body that is seen on magazines, on t.v., etc..I burn at least 300 calories a day, but, I never seem to achieve the results I want. So, I've been going tanning after my workouts in hopes on achieving something...Something desirable.. But, never happens. I was thinking of this just now because first of all, Im getting ready to go to the gym. Second of all, I was at a class that the seminarian/deacon we have at my church is giving. Its on Genesis and we were reading the beginning when there was the tree of Good and Bad and yada yada yada.. Well, Eve obviously listens to Satan and wishes to become like God so she eats that stuff from the bad tree. I guess maybe even perfection (Garden of Eden) wasn't good enough for her. She wanted to find something new and enticing. Well, I feel like that sometimes. I feel God's love and presence in my life even moreso since I've been going to adoration on a daily basis, but sometimes things just arent good enough. I take matters into my own hands to try and make my life a Garden of Eden sort of place, yet fail because a human's ideas of perfection are quite different from God's.

found itttt!! =)

I Have a Problem

by
Ray Comfort






Father, I have a problem.
It's weighing heavy on me.
It's all I can think about,
night and day.



Before I bring it to you in prayer.
I suppose I should pray for those
who are less fortunate than me--




Those in this world who have
hardly enough food for this day,
and for those who don't have
a roof over their heads at night.



I also pray for families
who have lost loved ones
in sudden death,
for parents whose children
have leukemia,
for the many people who are
dying of brain tumors,
for the hundreds of thousands
who are laid waste with
other terrible cancers,
for people whose bodies
have been suddenly
shattered in car wrecks,
for those who are lying
in the hospital with agonizing
burns over their bodies,
whose faces have been
burned beyond recognition.



I pray for people with emphysema,
whose eyes fill with terror
as they struggle for every
breath merely to live,
for those who are tormented
beyond words by irrational fears,
for the elderly who are wracked
with the pains of aging,
whose only "escape" is death.



I pray for people who are watching
their loved ones fade before their eyes
through the grief of Alzheimer's disease,
for the many thousands
who are suffering
the agony of AIDS,
for those who are in such despair
they are about to commit suicide,
for people who are tormented
by the demons of
alcoholism and drug addiction.



I pray for children
who have been abandoned
by their parents,
for those who are sexually abused,
for wives held in quiet despair,

beaten and abused by
cruel and drunken husbands,
for people whose minds
have been destroyed
by mental disorders,
for those who have lost everything
in floods, tornadoes,
hurricanes, and earthquakes.



I pray for the blind,
who never see the faces
of the ones they love,
or the beauty of a sunrise,
for those whose bodies are
horribly deformed by painful arthritis, for the many whose lives
will be taken from them today
by murderers,
for those wasting away
on their death beds.



Most of all,
I cry out for the millions
who don't know the forgiveness
that is in Jesus Christ...
for those who in a moment of time
will be swept into Hell
by the cold hand of death,
and find to their utter
horror the unspeakable
vengeance of eternal fire.
They will be eternally damned
to everlasting punishment.



Oh God, I pray for them.





Strange....



I can't seem to remember
what my problem was,,,,,,





In Jesus' name I pray...Amen!

I find that children can be much more reasonable than adults.

Never make someone a priority when they only make you an option.

ATTENTION fellow bloggers..I have strep throat,so that means you poor darlings will not get an update on my faith life for another day or so..hang tight

currently...i feel like death on 2 legs

I did it!

I woke up with plenty of time to spare before work! Well, I had a really sore throat so I guess that didn't help me with sleeping--I hope I didnt catch that from a certain someone, you know who you are! JK :) Well anyways, I was online just now and ran across something that reminded me of a time in my life that I can now look back on and say "What the hell was I thinking?" YOu know, we all do it-make stupid decisions. Sometimes we can easily move on from those stupid decisions, assuming they don't land us in a wheel chair- but other times its a little bit more difficult to forgive yourself for certain actions. Forgiving other people is definetly hard, but sometimes forgiving yourself is a whole different animal. Im not saying that I haven't forgiven myself for certain mistakes I've made in my life, because I do go to confession just about every week, and that certainly helps in the department of "forgiving yourself." I guess its realizing that if God can forgive even the hardest of hearts, He can forgive you as well. And I figure if God can forgive me, why would it be so hard for a simple person (compared to God) to forgive themself. I guess a lot of it is a long the lines of the expectations we hold for ourselves, our self esteem, etc. I don't really know. But I just figured I'd start a blog topic on that.

O-B-A-M-A

Voting is a great thing people in America are allotted....But I notice a lot of times we don't have complete freedom over who to vote for..Its a very biased process, where you have people trying to sway you this way and that- theres really no clear way to just go and make up your own mind. Its actually kinda like trying to find a good newspaper to read- theres always gonna be a bias to the article. Theres no doubt about it..A lot of times I'll admit that I get sick and tired of trying to do the good Catholic thing and vote on behalf of the issues that matter. I didn't vote for Obama, I settled for the lesser of the two evils- Mccain.. Neither really appealed to me- McCain had a weak campaign, and, well where theres Obama theres Oprah...And Hillary Rotten Clinton.. Well, I mention politics because there is this priest out there, Fr. Frank Pavone, who sent out a newsletter for the Priests for Life following the election (don't ask why I get "priests for life newsletters-i just do)..In his newsletter Father mentioned something like the majority of Catholics voted for Obama because the favored such and such over human life.. Really, why did the majority of Catholics vote for Obama? Perhaps the same reason the majority of Catholics are Catholic in name only, and the majority don't believe in the True Presence?? Really-they voted for Obama because of a lack of connection to the faith.
Maybe there were some faithful Catholics who voted for Obama for other reasons. I have a couple of friends who are die-hard pro-life Democrats (oxymoron!)who did vote for Obama. They are Democrats because they feel as though Republicans don't help in regards to social justice and poverty..Well, as a Republican I would of course have to find reasons to disagree with that and what not..But thats not what Im setting out to do right now.. I guess the thing is my friends had good intentions when they voted for Obama-they didnt vote in hopes that thousands more babies would die, but so that other people may have a chance to have food on their table and a home. Now will that happen under Obama's reign? Probably not, but, I guess my point is I hate it when people are quick to point the finger at what folks didnt do, and don't bother to see the meaning behind their actions. Is voting for Obama the wisest decision? Hell, is even nominating Obama a wise decision?? I don't know. Only God really knows. But hes here and we need to learn to deal with it- hence I took Spanish in case Hillary got more power, therefore I shall move to Spain.. :) ADIOS!!!