Lord Jesus, hear our prayer for the spiritual renewal of bishops, priests, deacons, brothers, sisters, lay ministers and seminarians, especially those of our own diocese. We praise you for giving their ministry to the Church. In these days, renew them with the gifts of Your Spirit.

You once opened the Holy Scriptures to Your disciples when You walked on this earth. Now renew Your ordained and chosen ones with the truth and power of Your Word.

In Eucharist you gave Your disciples renewed life and hope. Nourish Your consecrated ones with Your Own Body and Blood. Help them to imitate in their lives the death and resurrection they celebrate around Your altar.

Give them enthusiasm for the Gospel, zeal for the salvation of all people, courage in leadership and humility in service.

Give them Your love for one another and for all their brothers and sisters in You. For You love them, Lord Jesus and we love and pray for them in Your Holy Name.
Amen.

I'm praying for you!

:)

Prayer for Healing
Lord, look upon me with eyes of mercy, may your healing hand rest upon me, may your lifegiving powers flow into every cell of my body and into the depths of my soul, cleansing, purifying, restoring me to wholeness and strength for service in your Kingdom. Amen.

Prayer for Healing 2
O God who are the only source of health and healing, the spirit of calm and the central peace of this universe, grant to me such a consciousness of your indwelling and surrounding presence that I may permit you to give me health and strength and peace, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

I'm praying for you!

:)

And yet, my brethren, so it is, he has sent forth for the ministry of reconciliation, not Angels, but men: He has sent forth your brethren to you, not beings of some unknown nature and some strange blood, but of your own bone and your own flesh, to preach to you. . . . Not a temptation, my brethren, can befall you, but what befalls all those who share your nature, though you may have yielded to it, and they may not have yielded. They can understand you, they can anticipate you, they can interpret you, though they have not kept pace with you in your course. They will be tender to you, they will "instruct you in the spirit of meekness," as the Apostle says, "considering themselves lest they also be tempted." Come then unto us, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and ye shall find rest to your souls; come unto us, who now stand to you in Christ's stead, and who speak in Christ's name; for we too, like you, have been saved by Christ's all-saving blood. - Cardinal Newman

Happy Priesthood Sunday!

I'm praying for you!

:)

May you always have friends who are willing to hold you accountable.

I'm praying for you!

:)

Stole this from another blog:

Father God, in this world of conflict and confusion, my mind is torn apart by questions and doubts that steal my sleep at night and rob me of my peace during the day. But you are my light, the One who lights my flickering candle and keeps it burning. You know all the darkest corners of my soul, the things I try to hide even from myself, and you love me as I am. The stench of my sins did not drive you away from me, but you filled my heart with a strong desire to be healed and a deep longing for you.

That's why I come before you today and I pray with all my heart: show me the way out of this labyrinth, don't let go of my hand, so that even if I walk through a dark tunnel, I can still feel the warm touch of your hand guiding me. You are the light that gave light to my eyes, the love that gave love to my soul. In you I lack nothing, in you nothing can harm me, in you my victory is complete. Bring me to you and keep me by your heart.

Father, I know I am weak. My weakness is my pain and my torment. I can feel it every day, it's like a poison coming from inside and I am so weary of fighting it. But I am yours and that is my only consolation, the thought that gives me rest and strength to carry on. I am yours and to you I pray: Father, take care of what is yours. Take this burden off my shoulders, don't let me carry it alone.

I have put my soul in your hands, keep it safe. Release me from the grip of my own mind, protect me from my own destructive thoughts. I cannot do it without your help. You have walked this way of thorns yourself and you have carried the cross until the end. Help me do the same and never forsake me. You alone know what lies ahead. Remain in me, so that I can overcome the world and taste the joy you have prepared for your beloved.

In the name of our beloved Jesus Christ.

AMEN

I'm praying for you!

:)

‎"We are not some casual and meaningless product of evolution. Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is necessary." -Pope Benedict XVI

I'm praying for you!

:)

This is the absolute worst movie ever made, but you can browse through it if you want some laughs. 

I'm praying for you!

:)

“Love is not blind; that is the last thing that it is. Love is bound; and the more it is bound the less it is blind.” ― G.K. Chesterton

I'm praying for you!

:)

Google Quote of the Day - Havelock Ellis - "All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on."

I'm praying for you!

:)

Google Quote of the Day - Phyllis Diller - "A smile is a curve that sets everything straight."

I'm praying for you!

:)

Heavenly Father,
since the time of the Apostles
you have inspired the Church
to commission certain members
to assist in a special way
in the pastoral mission of Christ.
Bless the deacons
and all other ordained
and non-ordained ministers
that they may be humble
and faith-inspired in their service.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord.

I'm praying for you!

:)

Just thought you would like this. 

I'm praying for you!

:)

I'm praying for you!

:)

O Holy Ghost, Divine Spirit of light and love, 
I consecrate to Thee my understanding, 
my heart and my will, my whole being for time and for eternity. 
May my understanding be always obedient to Thy heavenly inspirations 
and the teachings of the holy Catholic Church, 
of which Thou art the infallible Guide; 
may my heart be ever inflamed with love of God and of my neighbor; 
may my will be ever conformed to the Divine will, 
and may my whole life be a faithful following 
of the life and virtues of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 
to whom with the Father and Thee be honor and glory for ever.

Amen.

I'm praying for you!

:)

Just spent a while meditating on this, so I figured I would share it:

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.a
Where [I] am going you know the way.”
Thomas said to him, “Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you know me, then you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said to him, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father.
And whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it. - John 14:1-14

I'm praying for you!

:)

I'm praying for you!

:)

May today there be peace within,

May you trust God that you are exactly where you

are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite

possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received,

and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into your bones,

and allow your soul the freedom to sing,

dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

-St. Therese

I'm praying for you!

:)

I'm praying for you!

:)

Actual conversation between Jesus and me today:

Me:

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/r/ryan+tyler/run+run+run_20308781.html

(I can't find a video anywhere)

Jesus:

Read Psalm 139:8

Me:

But, I don't want to be a nun!


Basically, I have this really odd fear that if I don't physically run away, God's going to grab me and make me a nun. Like, I'm going to just wake up one day and live in a convent.

Um, I'm not sure where I was trying to go with this...

I'm praying for you!

:)

So, one of my friends asked me if Eastern Orthodox could receive Communion in a Catholic church, and so I looked it up. The Catholic Church says it's okay, but the Eastern Orthodox churches apparently say it's not okay. You probably already knew that, seeing as how you're going to be pope someday :P

I'm praying for you!

:)

"Why would you get pancakes? They're so unhealthy!" - said the guy who got french toast at Pancake Pantry

I'm praying for you!

:)

You know what's really cool about science?

God could have made the universe any way He wanted. He could have made things pretty random, without any strict laws governing everything. He didn't have to make all biological systems similar, or make gravity a universal force. He could have made each individual organism so unique that we could never understand them without studying every single one. Of course, if everything just developed randomly, this would kind of make sense.

But He didn't! God made the universe out of a very constrained amount of matter, with certain physical laws governing everything. We share so much of our DNA with fruit flies and bananas, and yet we are so unique. The very essence of the universe, how connected we all are, just sings of the Trinity. In a way (of course, nowhere near the awesomeness of the Trinity), we are all of one substance. We're all made up of basically the same stuff. We have the same amino acids and DNA sequences and chemical compositions. And yet, even though we are the same, we are all so so so so different. Each member of the Body of Christ is truly of the same body but different persons within that Body. God made the universe in a fashion that would sing of His glory, and He truly made us in His image, allowing our very essences as humans to reflect in a small but wonderful way His own divine nature, the Holy Trinity.

I just had one of those "aha" moments where I almost understand something that is so very obviously beyond my human comprehension, so I actually paused for a while trying to find words to describe it, but after a lot of thinking, the above paragraph was as close as I got. I shall leave you to ponder it while I study biology.

I'm praying for you!

:)

I thought of something really profound to write about earlier, but I forgot it, so here's a song for you:

I'm praying for you!

:)

One of my friends posted this on Facebook:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pregnant-and-homeless-on-the-doorsteps-of-a-christian-megachurch

My prayer today for you is that you will always have the courage to actively fight for life.

I'm praying for you!

:)

Some food for thought:

"I am the LORD your God,

who brought you up from the land of Egypt.

Open wide your mouth that I may fill it." - Psalm 81:11

I was praying Morning prayer this morning, and this verse stuck out to me. In the middle of this passage about worshiping the LORD, why on Earth would God be telling us to open our mouths that He may fill them?

Of course, then it struck me. What do you put in a mouth? Food and words. So, in an Old Testament sense, this seems to be saying to open your mouth that God may fill it with His Word, that His Word may speak through you.

This becomes even more profound when we tie it to the New Testament. Jesus is both Word and food, the only one who truly fills us.

"Open wide your mouth that I may fill it" suddenly becomes a proclamation of the Real Presence, a promise that Christ, who alone is the Word and the Bread of Life, will enter our mouths and truly fill us with Himself.

Now, get thee to Mass (and Adoration).

I'm praying for you!

:)

"We live in an age of inventions. We need no longer climb laboriously up flights of stairs; in well-to-do houses there are lifts. And I was determined to find a lift to carry me to Jesus, for I was far too small to climb the steep stairs of perfection. So I sought in holy Scripture some idea of what this life I wanted would be, and I read these words: "Whosoever is a little one, come to me." It is your arms, Jesus, that are the lift to carry me to heaven. And so there is no need for me to grow up: I must stay little and become less and less." - Saint Thérèse de Lisieux

I'm praying for you!

:)

I know that St. Thérèse's feast day was yesterday (well, two days ago now, technically...), but I found this on Catholic Memes, and I couldn't resist:

I'm praying for you!

:)

In case you've been missing this.

I'm praying for you!

:)

‎"The kernel of Saint Thérèse's teaching is often called 'the little way,' meaning that no Christian is too humble or too insignificant to follow it and no thought or action too negligible to infuse with love. In other words, God cherishes not only great actions of love, but also minor, childlike ones. No matter what spiritual darkness you find yourself in, choose as your North Star a tender love for the persons that life's contingencies have put next to you. Do not go looking for more fascinating neighbors to love. Love those right nearest you.

You cannot see God, even if you try. But you can see your neighbor, the tedious one, who grinds on you: Love him, love her. As Jesus loves them. Give them the tender smile of Jesus, even though your own feelings be like the bottom of a bird cage. Do not ask to see Jesus, or to feel Him. That is for children. Love Him in the dark. Love for the invisible divine, not for warm and comforting human consolation. Love for the sake of love, not in order to feel loved in return."
-Michael Novak, No One Sees God

Oh, and this kind of fits in with today's readings, especially the first reading and the Gospel. In today's Gospel, as I'm sure you know, Jesus' apostles try to stop a man from driving out demons in His name because, as Fr. Baker said, "he wasn't in their club or whatever."

But actually, we're all called to holiness, even if it's in little ways.

Fr. Baker said that whenever Jesus passed by somewhere in the Gospels, something happened there, something changed. He went into the tax collection office and called Matthew. Then, Matthew threw a sketchy party with all of his sketchy friends, and he invited Jesus. Jesus went, but the party changed when He got there; he didn't let it stay a sketchy party.

So, Fr. Baker said we're meant to be Christ on this campus and in the rest of the world. When we walk in somewhere, like a sketchy party, our presence should show Christ to others and change whatever is happening there.

I'm still just desperately trying to think of a way to walk into a sketchy party and change the nature of the party in a loving way. If you can think of anything, let me know.

I'm praying for you!

:)