and cured all kinds of diseases among the people. MT 4:23
1 JOHN 5:5-13
My Soul's Beloved,
No cradle Catholic can ever thank God enough for the gift of faith freely bestowed upon them. You chose us to be born in a Catholic home and to be raised Catholic. We learnt the truths of faith step by step as we grew to maturity. We did not have to struggle, to search, have insurmountable doubts as so many do, because we were given the grace to believe.
Faith in You is the one sure, steady light that guides our footsteps even when the road is dark, narrow, and difficult. God loves us - we believe this irrefutable truth because He sent You into the world. He gave You up to death after enduring brutal, vicious, evil, cruel, and horrendous suffering for our sake and for the sake of the world. You who are God made Man gave Yourself up because Your Father willed it. Love willed that You pay the price for our salvation and Love obeyed. We could neither save ourselves nor repay the debt we owe You for our salvation.
This is why we need fear no evil - You have overcome the world. You redeemed us and we are Yours. No one and nothing can snatch us from You. We are saved by Water, Blood, and Your Spirit and we are members of Your Body bound to You irrevocably now and for all eternity.
All who believe the living testimony of Your saving sacrifice, has overcome the world for it is the testimony of the Son of God. The gift of gifts, the Holy Spirit, given to us at our baptism and who abides in us, continually witnesses to the Truth of who You are and the Truth of our salvation.
This is the testimony:
God has given us eternal life
and this life is in his Son;
anyone who has the Son has life,
anyone who does not have the Son does not have life.
and this life is in his Son;
anyone who has the Son has life,
anyone who does not have the Son does not have life.
This is the time, now is the hour for every Catholic to wake up, and to no longer take for granted what we have received. It is time to set the world on fire with divine love. You came to bring salvation to all and this is our mission to make You known and loved so all may come to the knowledge of Truth, believe, and be saved.
PSALM 147:12-15, 19-20
My Soul's Beloved,
My Soul's Beloved,
Praise must be the song that echoes unceasingly in the hearts of all who love You. We are the children of the Church You founded. She is Your spouse and You are her everlasting Cornerstone. Built on the Rock of Peter, she is invincible. While a multitude may stumble and fall around her, those who are fed by her on the Holy Eucharist and are strengthened by the graces received through the Sacraments You instituted, are able to withstand all the assaults of the Enemy.
She enjoys peace for the Prince of Peace is her Spouse. Your Word in its fullness which is found in her alone upholds her. The Bread of Life made of the finest wheat nourishes her children. She is ruled by the Law of Love for the God of Love is her Father, the Son of the God of Love is her Spouse, the Spirit of the God of Love breathes in her giving her life. Let us praise our God unceasingly for His tender mercy and loving-kindness.
LUKE 5:12-16
My Soul's Beloved,
Lives that are guided by faith and ruled completely by Your will experience true joy and abiding peace like the leper in today's Gospel.
Luke describes him as a man covered in leprosy. Physically he was severely afflicted, the disease had eaten into his body causing his flesh to rot. You were his only hope. Faith guided him to You, and when he saw You, recognizing that You are God, he fell prostrate before You and begged, 'Sir, if You want to, you can cure me.' He did not demand to be healed but said, 'If You are willing you can make me clean.' He desires nothing more than to be healed and yet he says if You are willing make me whole again.
This is the only way we must approach You in prayer. We come in faith knowing You are God, we prostrate humbly before You, and only then should we make our needs known to You asking that they be granted according to Your will. God knows best what is needful for our lives and our salvation, and will gladly give us all we need as we make our pilgrim journey from this life to the next.
Your response is immediate, prompt, St. Luke says, You stretched out Your hand, touched him, and said, ‘Of course I want to! Be cured!’ The Law of Leviticus prohibited the touching of lepers, they were considered unclean and anyone touching them was considered as becoming unclean as well. But You came precisely to touch our sin-filled, putrifying souls, and with Your divine touch You make us clean and whole once more.
Your touch healed him and instantaneously the leprosy left him. You ordered him to tell no one of his healing but to go show himself to the priest and make the offering as prescribed by Moses as evidence to the priest of what God had done for him.
Thank You, Beloved, for always welcoming the sinner and for healing us of all our illnesses in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Thank You for teaching us once again the importance of spending time alone with You in prayer. You, as the Son of Man, needed to be united to Your Father in prayer how much more do we, poor, weak, sinful creatures, need the grace and strength that comes from spending time alone with You.
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