And he said unto me. My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV The Word for Today.
A quote from the Saints:
If there is anyone who is not enlightened by the sublime magnificence of created things, he is blind. If there is anyone who, seeing all these works of God, does not praise Him, he is dumb. If there is anyone who, from so many signs, cannot perceive God, that man is foolish. —-St Bonaventure+
A Christian’s goal should be to create the Kingdom of God here on earth, as it is in Heaven. Not only, to get to Heaven.
To finish the Bible in one year, Read Psalms 142-145 and John 7 : 1-13
Verses for today – Listen here:
Reflection for Today.
Also read the verses, if you like.
Psalm 142
1 [Psalm Of David When he was in the cave Prayer] To Yahweh I cry out with my plea. To Yahweh I cry out with entreaty.
2 I pour out my worry in his presence, in his presence I unfold my troubles.
3 However faint my spirit; you are watching over my path. On the road I have to travel they have hidden a trap for me.
4 Look on my right and see — there is no one who recognises me. All refuge is denied me, no one cares whether I live or die.
5 I cry out to you, Yahweh, I affirm, ‘You are my refuge, my share in the land of the living!’
6 Listen to my calling, for I am miserably weak. Rescue me from my persecutors, for they are too strong for me.
7 Lead me out of prison that I may praise your name. The upright gather round me because of your generosity to me.
psalm 143
1 [Psalm Of David] Yahweh, hear my prayer, listen to my pleading; in your constancy answer me, in your saving justice;
2 do not put your servant on trial, for no one living can be found guiltless at your tribunal.
3 An enemy is in deadly pursuit, crushing me into the ground, forcing me to live in darkness, like those long dead.
4 My spirit is faint, and within me my heart is numb with fear.
5 I recall the days of old, reflecting on all your deeds, I ponder the works of your hands.
6 I stretch out my hands to you, my heart like a land thirsty for you.
7 Answer me quickly, Yahweh, my spirit is worn out; do not turn away your face from me, or I shall be like those who sink into oblivion.
8 Let dawn bring news of your faithful love, for I place my trust in you; show me the road I must travel for you to relieve my heart.
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Yahweh, since in you I find protection.
10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your generous spirit lead me on even ground.
11 Yahweh, for the sake of your name, in your saving justice give me life, rescue me from distress.
12 In your faithful love annihilate my enemies, destroy all those who oppress me, for I am your servant.
Psalm 144
1 [Of David] Blessed be Yahweh, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle,
2 my faithful love, my bastion, my citadel, my Saviour; I shelter behind him, my shield, he makes the peoples submit to me.
3 Yahweh, what is a human being for you to notice, a child of Adam for you to think about?
4 Human life, a mere puff of wind, days as fleeting as a shadow.
5 Yahweh, part the heavens and come down, touch the mountains, make them smoke.
6 Scatter them with continuous lightning-flashes, rout them with a volley of your arrows.
7 Stretch down your hand from above, save me, rescue me from deep waters, from the clutches of foreigners,
8 whose every word is worthless, whose right hand is raised in perjury.
9 God, I sing to you a new song, I play to you on the ten-stringed lyre,
10 for you give kings their victories, you rescue your servant David. From the sword of evil
11 save me, rescue me from the clutches of foreigners whose every word is worthless, whose right hand testifies to falsehood.
12 May our sons be like plants growing tall from their earliest days, our daughters like pillars carved fit for a palace,
13 our barns filled to overflowing with every kind of crop, the sheep in our pastures be numbered in thousands and tens of thousands,
14 our cattle well fed, free of raids and pillage, free of outcry in our streets.
15 How blessed the nation of whom this is true, blessed the nation whose God is Yahweh!
Psalm 145
1 [Hymn of Praise Of David] I shall praise you to the heights, God my King, I shall bless your name for ever and ever.
2 Day after day I shall bless you, I shall praise your name for ever and ever.
3 Great is Yahweh and worthy of all praise, his greatness beyond all reckoning.
4 Each age will praise your deeds to the next, proclaiming your mighty works.
5 Your renown is the splendour of your glory, I will ponder the story of your wonders.
6 They will speak of your awesome power, and I shall recount your greatness.
7 They will bring out the memory of your great generosity, and joyfully acclaim your saving justice.
8 Yahweh is tenderness and pity, slow to anger, full of faithful love.
9 Yahweh is generous to all, his tenderness embraces all his creatures.
10 All your creatures shall thank you, Yahweh, and your faithful shall bless you.
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingship and tell of your might,
12 making known your mighty deeds to the children of Adam, the glory and majesty of your kingship.
13 Your kingship is a kingship for ever, your reign lasts from age to age. Yahweh is trustworthy in all his words, and upright in all his deeds.
14 Yahweh supports all who stumble, lifts up those who are bowed down.
15 All look to you in hope and you feed them with the food of the season.
16 And, with generous hand, you satisfy the desires of every living creature.
17 Upright in all that he does, Yahweh acts only in faithful love.
18 He is close to all who call upon him, all who call on him from the heart.
19 He fulfils the desires of all who fear him, he hears their cry and he saves them.
20 Yahweh guards all who love him, but all the wicked he destroys.
21 My mouth shall always praise Yahweh, let every creature bless his holy name for ever and ever.
John 7 : 1-13
1 After this Jesus travelled round Galilee; he could not travel round Judaea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him.
2 As the Jewish feast of Shelters drew near,
3 his brothers said to him, ‘Leave this place and go to Judaea, so that your disciples, too, can see the works you are doing;
4 no one who wants to be publicly known acts in secret; if this is what you are doing, you should reveal yourself to the world.’
5 Not even his brothers had faith in him.
6 Jesus answered, ‘For me the right time has not come yet, but for you any time is the right time.
7 The world cannot hate you, but it does hate me, because I give evidence that its ways are evil.
8 Go up to the festival yourselves: I am not going to this festival, because for me the time is not ripe yet.’
9 Having said that, he stayed behind in Galilee.
10 However, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went up as well, not publicly but secretly.
11 At the festival the Jews were on the look-out for him: ‘Where is he?’ they said.
12 There was a great deal of talk about him in the crowds. Some said, ‘He is a good man’; others, ‘No, he is leading the people astray.’
13 Yet no one spoke about him openly, for fear of the Jews.
Sermons by various teachers regarding the verses above.
Catholic Daily Readings and Reflections
Reading 1, Jeremiah 18:1-6
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh as follows,
2 ‘Get up and make your way down to the potter’s house, and there I shall tell you what I have to say.’
3 So I went down to the potter’s house; and there he was, working at the wheel.
4 But the vessel he was making came out wrong, as may happen with clay when a potter is at work. So he began again and shaped it into another vessel, as he thought fit.
5 Then the word of Yahweh came to me as follows,
6 ‘House of Israel, can I not do to you what this potter does? Yahweh demands. Yes, like clay in the potter’s hand, so you are in mine, House of Israel.
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 146:1-2, 2-4, 5-6
1 Alleluia! Praise Yahweh, my soul!
2 I will praise Yahweh all my life, I will make music to my God as long as I live.
3 Do not put your trust in princes, in any child of Adam, who has no power to save.
4 When his spirit goes forth he returns to the earth, on that very day all his plans come to nothing.
5 How blessed is he who has Jacob’s God to help him, his hope is in Yahweh his God,
6 who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them. He keeps faith for ever,
Gospel, Matthew 13:47-53
47 ‘Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that is cast in the sea and brings in a haul of all kinds of fish.
48 When it is full, the fishermen bring it ashore; then, sitting down, they collect the good ones in baskets and throw away those that are no use.
49 This is how it will be at the end of time: the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the upright,
50 to throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.
51 ‘Have you understood all these?’ They said, ‘Yes.’
52 And he said to them, ‘Well then, every scribe who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of Heaven is like a householder who brings out from his storeroom new things as well as old.’
53 When Jesus had finished these parables he left the district;
Audio Drama: Old Testament New Testament Each book is read in its entirety. You can listen to the bible, one book at a time in contemporary English.
Dr. Myles Munroe
I am including a video by Dr. Myles Munroe, I’ve listened to him back in the nineties, and rediscovered him recently. Now his perspective seems to be a good way to also look at scripture. In Pursuit of Purpose – Book Highlights
Sermons Rosary Prayers Catholic Answers
Did Mary have other children? No, Listen here
Called to Communion
Pray the Rosary
Rosary Mysteries
The following 4 videos are the 4 Mysteries that we pray on certain days of the week. I like these videos, because I can pray it alone, with only the images, or go along with the sound. The images help me to focus on the particular mystery that I am contemplating as I say the Hail Mary on each bead.
Joyful Mysteries
Luminous Mysteries
Sorrowful Mysteries
Glorious Mysteries
Prayers of the Rosary
Links to “How to pray the rosary” Popular Catholic Prayers
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried,
He descended into hell; the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Glory be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
(this prayer is optional and may be said after all Glory Be to the Fathers…..)
O my Jesus, forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of hell.
Lead all souls to heaven, especially those who are in most need of thy mercy.
Console the souls in Purgatory, particularly those most abandoned. Amen
Hail Mary,
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
The Hail, Holy Queen
Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve;
To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us and after this our exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
That we maybe made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Closing Prayer
O God, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation.
Grant, we beseech Thee, that while meditating on these mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
that we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(The Fatima Prayer:)
Most Holy Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – I adore thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference’s whereby He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.
Prayer to St. Michael
Saint Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do you, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.
Thurzo Gizella Bible Study 
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