The following are words given by participants at the streamed meeting. 1 Corinthians 14:29 says that "Two or three prophets should speak, and the others weigh carefully what is said." 1 Thess 5:19-21 tells us not to despise prophecies, but to test everything and retain what is good.
At beginning of meeting, Scripture Reading Romans 6:23 - "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord."
Jesus is always with us and he always prays for us every day and every night.
Scripture Reading John 16:20-24 - "I tell you truly you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices; you will grieve for a time, but your grief will be turned into joy. When a woman is in labor, she is sad that her time has come when she has borne her child. She no longer remembers her pain, for joy that a man has been born into the world. In the same way, you are sad for a time but I shall see you again, then your heart will rejoice with a joy no one can take from you. On that day you will have no questions to ask me. I give you my assurance, whatever you ask the Father he will give you in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name; ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full."
Scripture Reading Psalm 63:1-4 - "O God, you are my God - I shall seek you earnestly! My soul thirsts for you; my flesh yearns for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus, I have seen you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory. Because your loving kindness is better than life; my lips will praise you. So, I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in your name."
Prophecy - During that last song, "Glorify the Lord", I just got a powerful anointing of the Lord; it just filled my house. I understood that he was saying, "Glorify my name and you will feel my presence with you all your day."
Confirmation of what was just said. - I felt, too, that God's glory was just going out to all the earth. And also, that we were practicing for heaven because that's what we will be doing there.
Scripture Reading Ezekiel 21:1-7 - "The word of the Lord came to me: 'Mortal, set your face to Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel, and say to the land of Israel: Thus says the Lord: I am coming against you and will draw my sword out of its sheath and will cut off from you both righteous and wicked. Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall go out of its sheath against all flesh, from south to north, and all flesh shall know that I, the Lord, have drawn my sword out of its sheath. It shall not be sheathed again. Mourn therefore mortal, mourn! with breaking heart and bitter grief before their eyes. And when they say to you, 'Why do you mourn?', you shall say: 'Because of the news that has come; every heart shall melt, and all hands will be feeble, every spirit will faint, and all knees will turn to water. See, it comes and it will be fulfilled,' says the Lord God."
Scripture Reading Romans 14:17-19 - "The kingdom of God is not a matter of food and drink, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit; whoever serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by others. Let us then pursue what leads to peace and to building up one another."
Every bead on the Rosary is a bullet of faith.
Lori Ann spoke on "Give Them Something To Eat". Charles Dicken's novel, "A Tale of Two Cities": "It was the best of times and the worst of times." Four kinds of beliefs: Pantheism = people believe god is everything in the world and everything in the world is god. Dualism = where good and evil are always battling it out and evil will never be vanquished. Deism = the belief that there is a God, but he's not involved in our lives although he might help us out if we asked him but mostly we're on our own. Materialism = belief having the most stuff wins. Dr. Christian Smith's survey found most of the American adolescents believe in a moralistic therapeutic deism which is that there is a God. He is good and wants all of us to be good and for the most part God stays out of our lives but we will all go to heaven. The Catholic catechism tells us that God did not create the world for himself. He created it for us and he does not leave us to ourselves. He wants to be in an intimate relationship with us. Jesus exuded love and compassion. He healed the sick. Matthew 14:15-16: Feeding of the Five Thousand - "When it was evening, the disciples approached Jesus and said, 'This is a deserted place and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy some food for themselves.' Jesus said to them, 'They need not go away; you give them something to eat.'" Each one of us is called to be a missionary. When John the Baptist was asked, "Who are you?" by the Jews from Jerusalem. He told them who he was not. He was not the Messiah, not Elijah, not a prophet. Do we know who we are not? Of course we are not God. Right? But isn't that exactly how we act when we take on difficult circumstances without praying first? Or judge someone offhandedly, or put our agenda to the person standing in front of us? The Lord told St. Catherine of Siena, "You are she who is not, whereas I am He who is." John the Baptist said, "I am a voice crying out in the desert." How would you respond? I am the person saying the Rosary on the plane? I am the shopper smiling at strangers in the store for love of Jesus. Our mission is an essential aspect of our identity as Christians; the missionary who, despite all his or her human defects, lives a simple life, taking Christ as the model. We have so many excuses. I'm too old. I'm not well. Basically we're afraid. We have to model Christ in our actions. We are told that we are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. Theatre popcorn is so salty that it makes you thirsty, thirsty enough to spend money on drinks. If we want to draw people to Christ we have to be so salty that it makes people thirsty for Christ. If we are afraid, remember: Perfect love casts out fear. Acts 18 says, "You will receive power and you will be my witnesses." #1 - We have to preach the gospel to our own hearts every day. Fill our hearts with gratitude. #2 - Let people know that God loves them and wants a relationship with them. #3 - Wet their appetite. Share God's work in your life. We've all failed and sinned. Sin has consequences. The bad news is Hell is real. The good news is Jesus wants us to seek forgiveness, and confession restores us into grace. #4 - We need to give an invitation to respond. Listen to their story. It is sometimes more important to listen than to preach. To model Jesus, we must not judge. Offer solutions at the right moment, after they ask. It's only then that they'll listen. #5 - Jesus needs to be acknowledged as Lord. We are called to go out and share the word but not to force our opinion on them. Listen for an opening. Be attentive. He promised us the power to do what we are called to do. Faith is caught and we need to be contagious Catholics. We need to mingle. Don't give up on our family, our relatives. Love them and pray for them. We share through our words and deeds. We look for signs of faith and celebrate it. We thank God for good leaders and pray for the bad ones. What weakens or destroys our witness? #1 - When our walk doesn't line up with our talk. #2 - Cynicism about the church. Don't cut down your priest or the pope. #3 - Imbalance. Trying to prove you are right. Instead, make love your aim. #4 - Ingratitude for all the grace we've received. #5 - Secular education of TV and culture. #6 - Cafeteria Catholicism. Choosing what we like in church teaching and discarding the rest. What strengthens our witness? Confession and the Eucharist. We know that Jesus is the truth. Don't just keep the faith. Spread it around.
Oh Jesus, give me the grace to encounter you every day in my prayer and in my silence. Help me to step out of my comfort zone in order to follow where you are calling me. This lent, may your love shine through me to everyone I meet.
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