Sunday, March 10, 2013

Joshua 5:9-12 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 Psalm 34:2-7 Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

4th Sunday in Lent

Never will I abandon you. My spirit lives in you. You have been purchased at an irredeemable price. I will never let you go. With Me you will find it possible to do all things. Trust Me! Remain in My love.


Ruth 2:20b, 3:9b
"This man is a close relative, one with a right of redemption over us.” 
3:9 “Who are you?” he asked. The answer came, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread the corner of your cloak over me for you are a kinsman who has right of redemption over me.”
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 Joshua 5:9-12
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
Psalm 34:2-7
Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 


 Joshua 5:9-12
As long as the manna, the heavenly bread was required, God provided it to them.  Forty years while in the wilderness they were being purified before they entered the promised land. God took care of all their temporal and spiritual needs.  Once they entered the promised land the heavenly bread ceased for they had come into the land of plenty that God had reserved for them.

Purify me too Lord in this holy season of Lent - provide all I need to sustain me and lead me sloly but surely thorugh Your passion and death teaching me all the time how to die to self and endure suffering until I reach the glory of Your   Resurrection and taste the triumph and victory that You won for me on the Cross.  

Save us Savior of the world for by Your Cross and Resurrection You have set us free! 

2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Our body is a temporary dwelling place for our soul.  We cannot let the flesh dominate the spirit but must allow our spirit, possessed by the Holy Spirit of God, to master the desires of the flesh.  God loved us first and so He gave us His Son to be the means by which we are saved and come to the knowledge of the Truth that God our Father is Love.  

In Jesus, all who believe become a new creation and ambassadors of Christ, witnessing to all what God has done for us through Him. Christ who was sinless took upon Himself our sins, our guilt, our shame and our death in order that we might become partakers in God's awesome holiness and perfection. 

Psalm 34:2-7

My Beloved, we pray day and night for those who still walk in the dark. Grave sin has replaced the glory of the Lord once present in the soul. Now they walk in places without joy, heavily laden with the weight of guilt, sin and shame; unable to see a way out of the hell hole of that they have slowly created for themselves.

Hear us as we raise our sighs and cries to You O holy God and make haste to save those we love lest they perish in their sins and are lost forever.  Be merciful O Lord and hear the sound of our grief and in Your tender pity and compassion answer us O Lord.

Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 

PRODIGAL LOVE

It was a glorious morning,
On a bright, clear, sunny day,
When Jesus told this parable,
Here’s what He had to say.


“There was a man who had two sons,
The younger of them said,
“I want my share of all that will
Be mine when you are dead.”
The saddened father looked at him
And shook his graying head,
He knew so well his foolish boy,
His heart was filled with dread.

When he had received his portion
Of the property,
He left without a backward glance
His home and family.
Making friends with sinners,
In a country far from home,
Squandering his wealth
Until he found himself alone.

Desperate he looked for work
When famine struck that land,
He was sent to feed the pigs,
As a hired hand.
Soon wisdom dawned upon him,
His sinfulness he rued,
He resolved to go back home,
To work in servitude.

The father from a distance
Recognized his son
Heart brimming with compassion
He began to run.
“Forgive me Father, I have sinned,
I’ve given ample proof,
That I am quite unworthy
To live beneath your roof.”

The father interrupted
His son’s apology,
Calling for a robe and ring,
And sandals for his feet.
“Rejoice with me let’s celebrate,”
The joyful father said,
“My son is home with me at last,
This boy I feared was dead.”

Too often in the past I too
Have wallowed deep in sin
Silencing the voice of conscience
Speaking from within.
Conversion came through tragedy,
And heart rending loss,
Embraced by God the Father,
In the shadow of the cross.


Myra D’Souza / 17.12.2009

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