Tag: #TotalTrust

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

 

Be Faithful Like Jesus!

Jesus models for us how to deal in any situation, be faithful to God!

We read in the Gospel of St. John,

“If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there shall My servant be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” John 12:26

We must look at this Gospel selection from the context that we are in liturgically. We are in the Season of Lent, the last days of that season and in the time called Passiontide.  We are preparing our hearts for Holy Week.

In this time, we know that Jesus would experience some horrendous abuse of those in authority in His culture. Jesus would experience denials and betrayals of those near and dear to Himself. Jesus would ultimately be murdered on the Cross. Yet He remained faithful through it all. Jesus would be honored by Father God and He would rise again!

Jesus is the Model for us all!

Our entering into the Passion of Jesus is not just for the days leading up to the Glorious Resurrection Sunday. Rather, Jesus sets a pattern for all of us follow in how we to live as His followers.

We will rise again regardless of whatever we have to experience! There is no stopping a child of God!

Have a most blessed and fruitful Passiontide!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

 

Joy Matters!

Happy Laetare Sunday!

We celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Lent. We are at the middle section of the Lenten Fast and we have already come so far in the Holy Season. Our selection from the Gospel of St. John reminds us why, no matter what we are going through, we can choose joy. We read from the text:

For God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.

John 3:16

This message is our base! When life gets ugly, and the storms are raging, John 3:16 reminds us that whatever we are going through, it will pass. Jesus will get us through everything we have to deal with if we give it to Him!

Enjoy this wonderful reminder of why we have Lent. It is all about Jesus. He came into the world so that the power of sin and death cannot, will not, have the final say.

Be joyful. We have Victory in Jesus.

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

Come to Jesus and Be Healed!

We have reached the last Sunday before the Lenten Fast. Today in our Gospel section we meet Jesus our only hope. He is the one that can reconnect us to ourselves and to others.

We read in St. Mark’s Gospel:

And a leper came to him (Jesus) begging Him, and kneeling said to Him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, He stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I will;be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him and he was made clean.”

Mark 1:40-42.

The man seeking Jesus knew there was no other way in his world without the intervention of Jesus in his life.  Jesus, in His part, came into this World to do exactly what this leper needed; to be a healer.  Among many different reasons Jesus came to be with us, to be a healing presence in our lives.

As we conclude, for a while, these general Sunday topics, we leave with the knowledge that Jesus can and will heal our deepest concerns that keep us from living wholesome lives. Jesus can bring us to healing of what keeps us from Him and from one another.

Our requirement is to call on Jesus and to let Him take control!

Be healed!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2

 

 

 

Let God and Follow Jesus!

There are so many things in our world that may occupy our thoughts and actions. These things may have value or may be a distraction. We may be able to do something about them or maybe it is out of our control.

But what brings meaning to our lives?

What is the purpose of our lives?

The Disciples in today’s Gospel selection from St. John helps us to see what brought meaning to their lives.

We read:

The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.

John 1:35-37

These two disciples were looking for something to make sense out of their lives. We can imagine that they had the normal concerns for people in their time, but something was missing.

This may be a reminder to us. We may be going through some situation that is occupying our lives. But if we follow these Disciples, and follow Jesus, we will find peace!

We may be in the midst of a stormy time, but do not focus on the storm, focus on Jesus and walk through the storm doing what you are able to do!

May we bring Jesus into our lives and TAKE BACK OUR PEACE!

Pax. The Hermit of Peace

https://gofund.me/e4fbd23a

Say Yes to God!

We have a choice to make as we live our lives. That choice can change the course of our lives and the lives of others. As we close the Advent 2023, we see one choice recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke that changed the course of the world. It happened in an exchange between Mary and the Archangel Gabriel over 2000 years ago, and result of which we celebrate tonight as we begin Christmastide with the Vigil and the Vespers of Christmas.  We hear Mary here:

 

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the Handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the Angel departed from her.

St. Luke 1:38

 

This one yes brought God into the World in the person of Jesus! The Incarnation began with the Annunciation and Mary’s Yes!

 

This one Yes becomes one of the biggest celebrations in the world, knowing what it signifies or not knowing it!

 

However, Mary’s Yes reminds us to say Yes to God Too! Our “Love Yes” makes Jesus present in our lives and in the lives of others. And as the song says:

 

“I say yes Lord yes, to your will and to your way! I say yes Lord yes, I will trust You and obey!”

 

Fourth Sunday of Advent Blessings!

Christmas Eve Blessings!

 

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.  

 

https://gofund.me/e4fbd23a

 

 

 

 

 

 

Be St. Joseph Like!

As Advent 2023 comes to a close, we have St. Joseph, the Foster Father of Jesus, the Husband of the Virgin Mary, as a role model.  We see in the Gospel of St. Luke:

 

He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While he was there , the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her first born son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Luke 2:5-7.

 

The Christmas Story is so profound in its simplicity! We see St. Joseph providing for his young family the best that he could and the World received received her Savior!

 

Below is a little meditation that I hope will help us deal with struggles the way St. Joseph did so many years ago.

 

Have a blessed end of Advent 2023 and always remember to be a blessing!

 

Pax. The Hermit of Peace.

 

https://gofund.me/e4fbd23a

The Shema Life

Living Divine Love!

The ancient Hebraic statement of faith is central to Jesus and the Holy Family of Nazareth and must be central to those who follow Jesus!

Jesus states in the Gospel of Matthew:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul and with all of your mind.”
Matthew 22:37

And along with this statement of faith, which is and continues to be central to those who follow Him, Jesus tells us how this statement of faith is to be accomplished. This love must be lived in daily living:

“You shall love your neighbor as you yourself.”
Matthew 22:39

The Trinity of Love!

Jesus brings together the Way of Life of His People Judaism and confirms it for the whole world in His Life, Passion and Death on the Cross and Holy Resurrection! There are three movements of Divine Love which would bring Heaven on Earth, if we, as a people, put it into practice. This Trinity is, love of God, love of self, so that we can truly love our neighbor as God wants us to!

We cannot change anyone, but we can allow God to change us, and in doing so, we can inspire others to surrender to God, who can and will change them too!

Remember, if we know we are powerless, and we know that God is the Ultimate Power in the Universe, and we surrender ourselves to God, God has the power to change us!

Blessings! Pax.

The Hermit of Peace.

https://gofund.me/a1d90db2