Tag: #SonsOfPadrePio

Wait On The Lord!

Happy Father’s Day!

God, Our Lord Jesus, speaks to us in words that we can understand and apply to our lives. We read in the Gospel of St. Mark,

And Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, and he knows not how…” Mark 4: 26-27

This parable of Jesus reminds us that the Kingdom of God becomes present though our faithfulness. We plant, we nurture and growth happens. The process is for all aspects of our lives. The Kingdom of God grows in ourselves, in our families, at our workplaces, in the Church and in the world by planting and nurturing, and growth comes at its appropriate time.

In the Lord’s Prayer we see what we pray to happen in us, “Thy Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven.” This prayer is fulfilled in our faithfulness in daily practice of seeding and nurturing. We wait on God to bring the growth, but we are the tools God uses to make the Kingdom present.

Today, in the U. S., we celebrate our fathers and those who take the place of fathers in our lives. The process of seeding and nurturing is done by parents in the children they raise. The Kingdom of God arises in us because of their faithfulness!

Happy Father’s Day! Abundant blessings!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

Be Crazy in Love!

Be like Jesus!

If we love each other like Jesus loves us, we may be viewed as being crazy! Hate seems to be more normal in our world today. Perhaps it has been that way always! Jesus tells us in word and deed that this hate is contrary to Divine Culture. We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

When His relatives heard of this, they set out to seize Him, for they said, “He is out of His mind.” Mark 3: 21

The family of Jesus did not understand that Jesus’ purpose is to make the Divine present in the here and now. They would eventually understand because His relatives would continue His work after His Death and Resurrection.

Are we ready to live the Divine Culture of Love?

Perhaps we would be crazy to say yes because many of true believers get misunderstood and mistreated because others do not want the Culture of Love to reign. But for those who choose to say yes to the Divine, the peace and love and joy outweigh all of the suffering one might encounter in being true believers.

Choose to be out of one’s mind like Jesus!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

Feed on Jesus!

We become what we eat!

We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

And as they were eating, He took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take; This is My body.”

And He took a chalice, and when he had given thanks, He gave it to them, and they drank of it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many.”

Mark 14: 22-24

Jesus came to be with us and gave us Himself in His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, in other words, Jesus gave us His totality so that we we could remain with Him forever. This may seem otherworldly, but actually it in “This- Worldly”! Evil will attack us, and we need protection.

Jesus is Lord!

Jesus knew we would suffer because of following Him, hence He had to give us Divine Food so we could “Walk through the shadow of death “.

The more we consume Jesus worthily, the more we are Jesuslike!

Jesus will take over and we will regain peace through Him!

Happy Solemnity of Corpus Christi!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

Be Consecrated in The Truth!

Mother’s Day Blessings!

There is a New World that we live in that is different from the world we see. This is Heaven on Earth and those who belong to this world live in Jesus!

As we come to the end of Eastertide (next Sunday is Pentecost Sunday which ends the season) we are reminded that we are different than the rest of the world even though we must function in it. We have been consecrated by the Resurrected Lord Jesus and we are to live this consecration. We read in St. John’s Gospel,

“They are not of the world, even as, I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is the truth. As You sent Me into the world, I have sent them into the world” John 17:16-18

Jesus has brought us together to be with Him now and always. The people we interact with must see that we are different. And that the life we live is attractive and inviting. The best way to bring people to the Jesus’ Kingdom is to live as citizens of that Kingdom!

And may we never forget that the majority of people who live in the Jesus’ Kingdom were born and raised in it. We ask blessings on all of the mothers of our lives, both living and deceased!

Happy and blessed Mother’s Day!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/1b9dd565

Mother’s Day Blessings!

 

 

Love Triumphs!

The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus means that Love will have the final victory!

First let us wish our Eastern Orthodox Sisters and Brothers a Happy Resurrection Sunday!

We read in St. John’s Gospel,

“This I command you, to love one another.”

John 15:17 RSV-CE

The Commandment of Love is central to Jesus and His true followers. This makes perfect sense because He is the personification of Divine Love. Jesus entered our world so that we can enter into God who is Love. The problem is living this Love is difficult because those who follow this Love will often experience the pushback, to a greater or lesser degree, what Jesus experienced as He promoted Divine Love in human relations.

Love anyway!

Do not give up Heaven because people choose to live in hell!

True followers of Jesus will experience their crosses. Be strong, embrace your cross, and live the peace that passes all understanding!

Pax, The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/1b9dd565

 

 

We Are Loved! We Will Not Be Lost!

Happy Good Shepherd Sunday!

We are still celebrating Easter! And in this Fourth Sunday of Easter, we celebrate a key feature of our Lord in our relationship with Him. We read in the Gospel of St. John,

“I am the Good Shepherd, I know my own and my own know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for My sheep.”

John 10:14-15

It is so easy to get lost in the world. God knows how we can get ourselves into trouble. And because God loves us, God joined us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Sheep have not been known to be smart creatures. Without guidance, without a good shepherd, they can fall off a cliff. Sheep are easy prey for wolfs and other predatory creatures, they would lose their lives without the protection of a good shepherd. This is the reality for sheep, and I cannot speak for you, but I can speak for myself. I need a Good Shepherd, and I know Him as Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Having a personal relationship with Jesus is a life saver! His word leads us through dark places into sublime green pastures. Jesus will fill us with His love so that we are overflowing in His grace. We do not have to fear evil, because He has conquered that too!

Today let me leave you with a prayer from Fr. Dolindo Ruotolo,

“O Jesus, I surrender myself to You, take care of everything!”

My friends, once we have done all that we can do, leave everything in God’s hands.

Have a blessed Sunday!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

Rejoice and Be Glad!

Jesus Is Risen, He Is Truly Risen!

Happy Third Sunday of Easter! We see in our Gospel selection from St. Luke that the post-Resurrection Jesus comes to His Disciples. They could not believe their eyes. Is it truly our Lord? The Disciples had difficulty accepting the resurrection. It was too marvelous to believe! Jesus had to meet them where they were. We read in the Gospel,

And while they still disbelieved for joy, and wondered, He said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave Him a piece of broiled fish, and He took it and ate before them.

Luke 24:41-43

Jesus knew this action would be proof He was not a ghost.

With this proof, Jesus’ Disciples would give up everything to serve Him. For three hundred years, following Jesus could mean death.

The radical nature of the Resurrection must change our lives. We need Easter, We need Resurrection Sunday, because it reminds us how we are to live. There are so many messages in the world and they may take us off our Christian Life Path. Easter reminds us that we are a Resurrection People and that Love will be Victorious!

What Jesus said two thousand years ago, He is saying to us now,

“You are witnesses of these things.”

Luke 24:48

May we live as People of the Resurrection and witness to the world the Power of Love!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

Divine Mercy Matters!

Happy Divine Mercy Sunday!

There is an urgent need to live Divine Mercy in our lives. Our world needs to see it in how we treat ourselves and each other. We can change the trajectory of our lives and those we encounter. We can go from chaos to peace and lead others to peace too! We read in the Gospel of St. John,

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.”

John 20:21

As we close the high holy days of Easter, we are challenged by the words of the Risen Lord Jesus to be His presence in the world. God entered into our midst over 2000 years ago in the womb of Mary His Mother and as the world so desperately needed Him then, so do we need Him now. Humankind must always be challenged to live supernaturally!

We must live the Mercy that we say we believe in! People need to see that there is another way to live, the Mercy Way!

How we treat ourselves and others say volumes about what we really believe!

The world still has hope, and it begins with us!

We must ask ourselves honestly, are we living the fact that Jesus rose from the dead?

Are we living Divine Mercy?

Happy Divine Mercy Sunday!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a78b0bf0

Let Us Follow Jesus!

Let Us Rise with Him!

Happy Palm Sunday!

Today we enter into the ending of our Lenten Fast, and the beginning of Holy Week! We enter into the culmination of the Incarnation! And we enter this time with great exuberance! We read in St. Mark’s Gospel,

“Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the Kingdom of our father David that is to come! Hosanna in the highest!”

Mark 11:10

Let us be one with Jesus as He travels through this week of His Passion and Death!

If we stay with Jesus, though we will suffer because of the ever-present evil that is around us, though we may get misunderstood by those around us, we will experience the Victory in Christ!

The more we find time to walk with Jesus this week, the greater our blessings will be.

No matter what we are going through, remember that in Jesus we will find the Victory of peace, joy and love!

Have a blessed Palm Sunday and a blessed Holy Week!

Let us keep each other in prayer!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2