Got this from a friend and thought I'd share with you.
Leo.
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He summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over unclean spirits. – Mark 6:7
Ray Keller once asked a man who just completed his second tour of duty from the Iraq war, "What was the most important thing you learned from the war?" The soldier's response was quick. "Well, Mr. Keller, I learned that it is better to be in a team than to be alone."
The man explained that while in Iraq, they would walk around and survey the area. They would have a certain formation such that he would focus on looking ahead while his partner would watch his back. He in turn would watch the back of the one in front of him. His commander explained to him that loners have no place in the war. He would need to work well in a team to survive.
While we are encouraged to spend time being alone with God, we need the help of partners who would "watch our backs" — whether they be your spouse, your cell group mates, your mentor, your godly friend…. We need them if we are to win our daily battles.
It would be good to recognize your teammates and partners and thank God for them!
REFLECTION: Am I a good partner? Am I a good team player? Have I thanked the people who have helped me?
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for all the people in my life, especially those "who watched my back" in the past and those who are my present partners in the different aspects of my life. May You bless them abundantly. Amen.
I especially liked his quotes which depict how we "live", but do not really "live" -- That everything could very well be idle preoccupations, but not really leisure. It is so true sometimes! "The part of life we really live is small.” For all the rest of existence is not life, but merely time (Lucius Seneca)
But... as I was reading on, into the comments on this post, I came to read someone's comments, which consisted bible passages. It not only enlightened me, but made my heart jump a little. And I began to think, that philosophy is still philosophy after all, it is MAN's ruminations. But when it comes to the Word of God, I feel that it is not just "ruminations" but it is the answer of Life.
Maybe this faith to believe this, is God's grace too, for I realise that no one can really have hope in a book such as the bible, unless they have been given that "spiritual insight" by God.
So then, will people who are not believers ever be able to get that spiritual insight? Yes, by God's grace. So if their hearts are open, if they would just go directly to question this God about HIS truths, I believe HE would show himself to them.
From PROVERBS 3:1-10 Have you considered these words: 1 My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, 2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. 3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. 4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. 8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. 9 Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
Have you considered what Jesus said about living for the after life instead of this life?
Treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-24) 19″Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22″The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 24″No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
2 Corinthians 4:18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
1 John 2:17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.
He will be speaking at YAM's session this 18th July 2009! Come and hear him!
SATURDAY 18 JULY – (8 PM to 10 PM) Youth As Warriors Of The Faith Speaker: Deacon Harold Burke Sivers OLPS, St. John-Luke Room (Level 2)
Deacon Harold from Portland, Oregon is regularly featured on the globally broadcasted Eternal Word Television Network – EWTN. Many of his talks onMale Spirituality, Family & The Eucharist have been received with rave reviews globally.
A bunch of us went to watch the St. Paul Musical put up by the Church of St. Mary of the Angels. It was a good work on the whole and we were pleasantly surprised that it turned out as a warm and well-written story that has its characters, and mainly its main lead, St. Paul, grow as the story progresses.
We were a little puzzled why the writers did not mention Ananias at all, didn't he play an important role in helping Paul to see again? However, on the whole, we liked the story progression and how it moved through the start of Paul (as Saul), through his conversion and his trials and finally, death.
What touched me, was the scene before his death. Chained in prison and awaiting death, he asks (sings) if he has finally totally surrendered and done his best? Or is this not enough? And he concludes that for him, to live is Christ, to die is Gain.
Watch the Video!
To me, that was a significant reminder of how St. Paul actually lived his life. He actually had a very close relationship with Jesus. Ever since his conversion, he was TOTALLY changed. How many of us, experienced the presence of Jesus which was no doubt ONE point in our conversion story, but then again, the hardness of the world creeps in and we stop or slow our conversion process?
How many of us, hear or feel God's love, and then after a few months, stop. We then go in never-ending circles trying to "experience" God in new ways, but never realising, that we already experienced God and the next step is to really develop that relationship and be HIS FRIEND, to go out and spread HIS WORD, to people who have not heard about Jesus?
On the other hand, St. Paul as we watched last night, was full of zeal, pushing ahead for the prize, never stopping, never ceasing. He stood up for Christ, and endured all things. Truly, where can we find such a person today? If there were, if we are going to be someone like that, we must really really really love Jesus and we will need to certainly, be willing to accept persecution from Friends and Society.
Watch "ONE Body"
And so I leave the musical, enlightened, reminded, and curious once again, of the depth of the life of St. Paul, in all his humanity. We see him as a great person in the bible who wrote a lot of 'letters'. But sometimes, we just forget his humanity, that he is very much just like us, and that WE can very much be like him -- but it requires our 100% conversion.
So I am challenged, to get back on the conversion process, coz I may have stopped somewhere in the middle, who knows. When life is so comfortable that I'd want to take a backseat and enjoy life, perhaps, it's time to remember, that St. Paul, never once put HIMSELF first, it was always CHRIST.
Pius IX (1846-1878) decided to replace older statues of Sts. Peter and Paul, with the current larger ones on Easter 1847. The statue of St Paul was sculpted in 1838 by Adamo Tadolini (b. Bologna 1788, d. Rome 1868). He had studied in Bologna under the direction of De Maria; in 1813 he came to Rome, like De Fabris, and came to the attention of Canova, the greatest sculptor of the period, who took him into his studio.
The statue of St. Paul is 5.55m in height, on a pedestal 4.91m high. It was restored in 1985-86 through the generosity of the Order of the Knights of Columbus.
Everlasting God, our Father, we pray for the East District Youth Day 2009, that all participants will experience HOPE through Your presence in the Holy Eucharist. May our young people be renewed, to rise on wings like eagles, run and not get weary. Dearest Mary, Mother of God, we ask for your intercession for our young people, may they experience the joy that comes from doing all that Jesus Christ, your Son calls them to do. Amen.
