Archive for October 25, 2018

Outpouring Session 2018

Posted: October 25, 2018 by CatholicJules in Life's Journeys, Personal Thoughts & Reflections
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Let me begin by thanking everyone who offered prayers for last night’s outpouring of the Holy Spirit session for the LISS participants. It was a beautiful session filled with the love of God.

Sharing the evening from the perspective of an ordinary servant of God…..

Unlike the previous year we did not have an intercessory group from our church to pray for the participants, while the
outpouring session was taking place. Instead we had a team from another church praying for us from their location. So I offered to lead our small group in the rosary and a short prayer for the participants just before the session was to begin.

At about 6:15pm I went down to have dinner and buy back some food for my family. A lady from the food stall gave me a hard time with my order. I raised my voice and told her to cancel my order and went to look for something else to eat. What! I had just allowed my peace to be robbed just before the prayer session was to begin? I prayed for forgiveness and went back home to shower. Before I left the home, I asked for my wife to pray over me. She placed her warm hands over my head and prayed. Then I felt a tiny palm on the left hand side of my head I opened my eyes to see my 7 year old daughter praying with her mother. I felt the peace of my Lord return to me.

When I reached church I knocked to see if Father John was in his office, he was! Praise the Lord, I managed to be fully reconciled with the Lord through the Sacrament. As I left the office I saw the overall leader of the group and casually mentioned that I had just had the Sacrament of reconciliation. He smiled and it must have prompted him to call out to Father Andrew who was walking by for the Sacrament as well. I proceeded to St Thomas room to prepare for the prayer session, where I met Clement who was preparing for his briefing later. I shared with him what happened to me at the coffee shop and he shared that he too had a tough day at the office. His peace was robbed when a team leader of sorts from another team kept blaming and putting down Clement’s team. I then shared with him how I had gone for reconciliation with Father John and he too quickly went and did likewise. Praise the Lord!

After praying and interceding for everyone at our little prayer session in the presence of our Blessed Mother; we sang a closing hymn praying Veni Sancte Spiritus!

Then off I went to perform my role as usher together with my fellow sisters and brothers in Christ. What a wonderful opportunity to lead the participants individually to the Lord to be filled by His Grace and love. Praise the Lord!

After everyone had been prayed over I got down on my knees before the Blessed Sacrament, thanked and Praised God for His hand upon us; And the mighty outpouring of His love and gifts. Then I felt His loving embrace envelop me and it was a little overwhelming and I teared with joy in my heart.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. Now and forever. Amen

On Today’s Gospel

Posted: October 25, 2018 by CatholicJules in Personal Thoughts & Reflections
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Here is a truth you can bank on. The more you fall in love with Christ Jesus, the more you will be filled with His love. The more you are able to make sense of everything in the world. The more you will be able to see through the eyes of God’s wisdom. Your heart will be set ablaze with the love of Him and your most passionate desire will be to share His love with everyone.

Another truth which is not often spoken about is that the devil is real. He is driven by his hatred for men and women, to cause division and to conquer their souls. To rob them of their heavenly inheritance. To try and separate them at all cost from the love of God. He does not need to do this by loud explosive acts. More often than not, it is by a soft whisper of a deadly suggestion that plays on one’s pride, ego even lust and greed. Who then do you think is the cause of division in families? Whom has he chosen to do likewise?

A family united in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ stands firm forever. So it is that a family that prays together, stays together. For rooted on the Word of God they have built upon the rock. And just as they stand united in Him here on earth, so will they stand united in Him in heaven. Amen

First reading

Ephesians 3:14-21
A prayer that faithful may know the love of Christ

This is what I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name:
Out of his infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the utter fullness of God.
Glory be to him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; glory be to him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.

Gospel

Luke 12:49-53
How I wish it were blazing already!

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I have come to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were blazing already! There is a baptism I must still receive, and how great is my distress till it is over!
‘Do you suppose that I am here to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on a household of five will be divided: three against two and two against three; the father divided against the son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’