"And all things, whatever ye shall ask in prayer, BELIEVING, ye shall receive" - Matthew 21:22.
"With GOD all things are possible!" - Matthew 19:26.
"If ye abide in me and my words abide in you, ye SHALL ASK what ye will and it SHALL BE DONE UNTO YOU" - John 15:7.
So, then the key to a productive prayer life is FAITH.
For over and over, we are exhorted to BELIEVE.
So, then, why are so many of us living in despair? Simply stated, it is because we do not know the power we have in prayer!
The word "victory" is defined by Webster as: success in any struggle or warfare.
Prayer is the weapon GOD has given us to secure victory in every phase of our spiritual lives. Not only are we assured of success in prayer, but concerning even the desires of our heart, they too will be met, for we are instructed to ask ... and if we know His Word and believe His Word, we cannot ask amiss... and we shall receive - Mark 11:24.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Lent is here!
Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights...- Exodus 34:28
(Elijah) ... traveled forty days and forty nights, until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God - 1 Kings 19:28
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights,
he was hungry - Matthew 4:1-2
Therefore we see how Lent is a time of preparation in view of something special. We see how it is the passage from an old state into the promise of renewal: a new life with God.
Our tranformation during Lent can only happen through PENANCE and REPARATION. We must root out negativity from our life, we must cleanse our soul, we must pray for atonement of our own sins and those of our world.
And it starts TODAY!
Sunday, February 26, 2012
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel"- Mark 1:15
"The Lord is not slack concerning His promises, as some men count slackness, but is long suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" - 2 Peter 3:9
"If God is for us, who can be against us?" - Romans 8:31
SALVATION is God's will for us! God loves us with an everlasting love and He cares for us.
He wants us to be happy, He wants us to be free. He wants to see us fully alive.
The question is: do we? Do we see ourselves as He sees us? Do we truly want to be free and happy?
Do we chose to live in His light or do we hide in darkness?
By giving something up during Lent we are actually taking one giant leap in direction of the light. We are acknowledging that we must renew ourselves, we are accepting that some things are not necessary in our lives, and we are showing restraint.
Go ahead. Give something up. You'll be amazed at how free you feel!
March 14, 2012
"In the land of the living I will walk with God all my days." - Psalm 116:9
"Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James and John and led them up on a high mountain, apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them." - Mark 9:2
"And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus." - Mark 9:4
This is exactly the middle of Lent.
We are mid-course between our "old man" and our "new creation" in this Spring Cleaning of the soul.
How far have you, we, traveled? Where are you, we, today? Have we traveled back in time, reviewing our negativity and vowed to correct it? Have we fasted and sacrificed so we could give to others less fortunate? Have we been transfigured and had our "Aha!..." moment? Have we renewed our baptismal vows?
PENANCE and REPARATION.
Remember?
Sunday April, 08 2012
"I am the Lord your God, who brought out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondange." - Exodus 20:1
"Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem." - John 2:13
"Why do you seek the living among the dead?" - Luke 24:5
The Christ is risen! Alleluia! It's Easter!
This is the time of Christ's resurrection, his return from death to eternal life. This is the remembrance of how, as God incarnate, he conquered death for all by crossing and transcending the boundaries between life and death.
The Passover.
He is now alive for ever. By rupturing the cosmic boundaries He brings us the gift of immortality. A new life which has no end.
The 40 days of Lent prepared us for this supernatural passage where the barriers between life and death have been crossed.
But, make no mistake: this act of crossing the realms of life and death is the result of a spiritual transformation begun at Lent.
It's the result of the actions of reparation that we FREELY offered, just as Jesus FREELY offered his life for us.
We are in Him and He is in us.
I wish you a Happy Easter! Alleluia!
April 23, 2012
"... meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ ..." - Colossians 4:3
"No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment ... nor do they put new wine into old wineskins... But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved." - Matthew 9:16-17
" ... by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." - Acts 4:30
Passover and Easter brought us from enslavement to new found freedom, from old to new. From dirt to purity.
If only we allowed it to be so.
For the mystery of Christ is truly His hand stretched out to heal, with wonders and signs. And it's all in the asking, really. The mystery of His life given up for ours is what opens the doors EVERY DAY into the unending love of God for us. And the minute we ask, He hears and He responds. At times we might feel like He didn't listen to anything we said, but that's just not true. He heard and He responded. Only our lack of faith obscures our understanding of God, of His will, of His ways.
The secret we must learn is in the wineskin: NEW WINE will be poured into NEW WINESKINS. Can we wrap your minds around that?
For real!
.