"No marriages or babies until you have a college degree in your hands." I can't remember how many times I told my daughters this throughout their lives. I went back to school full-time for a BSN when my youngest was two. Not an easy thing to do when raising three little girls. I am happy to report my mission was completed the day my youngest daughter Taylor graduated with her BS in Photography 5 years ago. I remember a conversation with her after beginning her dream job back then. She lovingly congratulated me on accomplishing exactly what I wanted for my girls. The thing she didn't realize was . . . they all listened to me! They believed what I said. They plowed through the obstacles along the way, never losing sight of the end goal. What a great metaphor when thinking about being a Christian! We must believe what we read in the Bible and the messages from all of heaven in the Volumes. Living a life driven by the words of Christ will lead us to the end goal . . . heaven. Not always easy, but worth leaping over every hurdle.
In today's Gospel (John 10:22-30), Jesus reassures us He knows who we are:
The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
In Volume Four, Jesus again asks us to unite ourselves to Him:
"Believe Me when I say to you that you will never have peace, true peace, while you are separated from Me. And your eternity must be considered. You will spend eternity in one of two places, dear little soul. You must give this serious thought and determine where you would like to reside. You say you do not believe in God or you do not believe that God would send people to hell forever. I tell you today that it is not I, the only God there is, who condemns souls to hell. It is the soul himself who chooses to reside in hell. Do you know why the soul chooses hell? Because there are like-minded souls there. A soul who aligns himself with darkness does not choose heaven because that soul would not be comfortable in heaven. You must understand that you can be angry with God but God is not at fault. You can blame God for all that is wrong with your world and perhaps this will work for you on earth. I assure you though, on this day that this will cease to work for you at the moment of your death. At that time there will be only yourself to blame as the Truth is inescapable. You will be facing the one, the only, and the true God and attempting to tell Him that He does not exist. How do you think this will go for you? It will not go well, dear soul, and that is why I am speaking to you now."
Lay apostles, do you find yourself veering off the path to heaven? If you are, think about why. Is it because if you listened to His words you would have to eliminate certain things in your life? Do you lack complete trust in Him because you have been let down in the past? My friends, Jesus only wants what is good for us. He wants us to make choices with Him in mind. Letting go of behaviors or habits which lead us away from Him can be freeing rather than restraining. Take the first step . . . just a baby step . . . and get back on track. He is waiting with open arms!
Thank you, Lord, for allowing my daughters to accomplish their goals in life with You in mind. Please continue to lead them in their careers/lives to do everything for Your Glory!
God bless,
Bonnie
Showing posts with label Jerusalem. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jerusalem. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Accomplishing the End Goal
A repost from 2013, one of my favorite subjects, my girls:
No marriages or babies until you have a college degree in your hands. I can't remember how many times I told my daughters this throughout their lives. I went back to school full-time for a BSN when my youngest was two. Not an easy thing to do when raising three little girls. I am happy to report my mission is complete. Taylor just finished her BS last month and began her dream job today. As we spoke on her drive to Boca Raton this morning, she lovingly congratulated me on accomplishing exactly what I wanted for my girls. The thing she doesn't realize is . . . they all listened to me! They believed what I said. They plowed through the obstacles along the way, never losing sight of the end goal. Now, the hard work and dedication is paying off. What a great metaphor when thinking about being a Christian! We must believe what we read in the Bible . . . and believing is the easy part. Living a life driven by the words of Christ will lead us to the end goal . . . heaven. Not always easy, but worth leaping over every hurdle.
In todays Gospel (John 10:22-30), Jesus reassures us He knows who we are:
The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
No marriages or babies until you have a college degree in your hands. I can't remember how many times I told my daughters this throughout their lives. I went back to school full-time for a BSN when my youngest was two. Not an easy thing to do when raising three little girls. I am happy to report my mission is complete. Taylor just finished her BS last month and began her dream job today. As we spoke on her drive to Boca Raton this morning, she lovingly congratulated me on accomplishing exactly what I wanted for my girls. The thing she doesn't realize is . . . they all listened to me! They believed what I said. They plowed through the obstacles along the way, never losing sight of the end goal. Now, the hard work and dedication is paying off. What a great metaphor when thinking about being a Christian! We must believe what we read in the Bible . . . and believing is the easy part. Living a life driven by the words of Christ will lead us to the end goal . . . heaven. Not always easy, but worth leaping over every hurdle.
In todays Gospel (John 10:22-30), Jesus reassures us He knows who we are:
The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
In Volume Four, Jesus again asks us to unite ourselves to Him:
"Believe Me when I say to you that you will never have peace, true peace, while you are separated from Me. And your eternity must be considered. You will spend eternity in one of two places, dear little soul. You must give this serious thought and determine where you would like to reside. You say you do not believe in God or you do not believe that God would send people to hell forever. I tell you today that it is not I, the only God there is, who condemns souls to hell. It is the soul himself who chooses to reside in hell. Do you know why the soul chooses hell? Because there are like-minded souls there. A soul who aligns himself with darkness does not choose heaven because that soul would not be comfortable in heaven. You must understand that you can be angry with God but God is not at fault. You can blame God for all that is wrong with your world and perhaps this will work for you on earth. I assure you though, on this day that this will cease to work for you at the moment of your death. At that time there will be only yourself to blame as the Truth is inescapable. You will be facing the one, the only, and the true God and attempting to tell Him that He does not exist. How do you think this will go for you? It will not go well, dear soul, and that is why I am speaking to you now."
Lay apostles, do you find yourself veering off the path to heaven? If you are, think about why. Is it because if you listened to His words you would have to eliminate certain things in your life? Do you lack complete trust in Him because you have been let down in the past? My friends, Jesus only wants what is good for us. He wants us to make choices with Him in mind. Letting go of behaviors or habits which lead us away from Him can be freeing rather than restraining. Take the first step . . . just a baby step . . . and get back on track. He is waiting with open arms!
Thank you, Lord, for allowing my daughters to accomplish their goals in life with You in mind. Please continue to lead them in their careers/lives to do everything for Your Glory!
God bless,
Bonnie
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Lent Day 31 - Patience Like Jesus
Reading the daily Gospels over the last few days leads me to one conclusion . . . poor Jesus!!! It must have been so frustrating knowing the thoughts of and hearing those who couldn't grasp He was the Son of God. This is really important for me during my Lenten journey trying to practice patience. I realize my frustrations don't even compare to what our dear Savior experienced (and continues to experience from His Children today). I probably would have been asking my Heavenly Father if I could just throw a few lightening bolts around to wake them up. But of course, that wouldn't have worked, right? I can only strive to have the patience of Jesus . . . as always, I am a work in progress!
In todays Gospel (John 7: 1-2, 10, 25-30), Jesus continues His mission of saving souls:
Jesus moved about within Galilee; he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.
But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.
Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, “Is he not the one they are trying to kill? And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.” So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, “You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come.
In Anne a lay apostle's book Whispers From the Cross, Jesus urges us to patience and love for one another:
"I am grateful to all who give their life to Me. My gratitude will accompany those who served me throughout their eternity. But I beg each of you to hear Me. Do you recognize the promptings of the Spirit? I will tell you how you will know. Is your heart often moved to pity? Do you find that there are times when you feel impatience and instead offer gentleness? Are you one who conducts others to peace or do you gather round and contribute condemnation when it is being levied against another? Do you talk about Me or about My enemy? Do you look out at a world in pain and see goodness or do you see darkness everywhere? Please, stop your service long enough each day to listen for My whispers from the cross. I am begging you to love each other. Very often I am rejected but I never stop loving. You must be like Me. Love, regardless of how you are repaid. I cannot force anyone to love Me, dear apostles. But I can love them. I want you to do the same. Love God’s children in My name and you will be rewarded. Love for Me."
Lay apostles, we have so many opportunities to practice patience every day . . . in the grocery store checkout line; with our children and/or grandchildren; with moody co-workers. It's quite amazing . . . since I have been focusing on patience this Lent, I am annoyed less! And at times when I find myself growing impatient with a situation, I call on Him to send some graces down . . . in an instant, my joy returns. Now if I could only shorten the time between impatient and calling on Him! Pray for me!
Thank you, Lord, for the lessons in patience You send my way. I know I need a lot of practice, so please remind me to call on You sooner!
God bless,
Bonnie
In todays Gospel (John 7: 1-2, 10, 25-30), Jesus continues His mission of saving souls:
Jesus moved about within Galilee; he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.
But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.
Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, “Is he not the one they are trying to kill? And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.” So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, “You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come.
In Anne a lay apostle's book Whispers From the Cross, Jesus urges us to patience and love for one another:
"I am grateful to all who give their life to Me. My gratitude will accompany those who served me throughout their eternity. But I beg each of you to hear Me. Do you recognize the promptings of the Spirit? I will tell you how you will know. Is your heart often moved to pity? Do you find that there are times when you feel impatience and instead offer gentleness? Are you one who conducts others to peace or do you gather round and contribute condemnation when it is being levied against another? Do you talk about Me or about My enemy? Do you look out at a world in pain and see goodness or do you see darkness everywhere? Please, stop your service long enough each day to listen for My whispers from the cross. I am begging you to love each other. Very often I am rejected but I never stop loving. You must be like Me. Love, regardless of how you are repaid. I cannot force anyone to love Me, dear apostles. But I can love them. I want you to do the same. Love God’s children in My name and you will be rewarded. Love for Me."
Lay apostles, we have so many opportunities to practice patience every day . . . in the grocery store checkout line; with our children and/or grandchildren; with moody co-workers. It's quite amazing . . . since I have been focusing on patience this Lent, I am annoyed less! And at times when I find myself growing impatient with a situation, I call on Him to send some graces down . . . in an instant, my joy returns. Now if I could only shorten the time between impatient and calling on Him! Pray for me!
Thank you, Lord, for the lessons in patience You send my way. I know I need a lot of practice, so please remind me to call on You sooner!
God bless,
Bonnie
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Accomplish the End Goal
No marriages or babies until you have a college degree in your hands. I can't remember how many times I told my daughters this throughout their lives. I went back to school full-time for a BSN when my youngest was two. Not an easy thing to do when raising three little girls. I am happy to report my mission is complete. Taylor just finished her BS last month and began her dream job today. As we spoke on her drive to Boca Raton this morning, she lovingly congratulated me on accomplishing exactly what I wanted for my girls. The thing she doesn't realize is . . . they all listened to me! They believed what I said. They plowed through the obstacles along the way, never losing sight of the end goal. Now, the hard work and dedication is paying off. What a great metaphor when thinking about being a Christian! We must believe what we read in the Bible . . . and believing is the easy part. Living a life driven by the words of Christ will lead us to the end goal . . . heaven. Not always easy, but worth leaping over every hurdle.
In todays Gospel (John 10:22-30), Jesus reassures us He knows who we are:
The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep.
My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
In todays Gospel (John 10:22-30), Jesus reassures us He knows who we are:
The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep.
My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
In Volume Four, Jesus again asks us to unite ourselves to Him:
"Believe Me when I say to you that you will never have peace, true peace, while you are separated from Me. And your eternity must be considered. You will spend eternity in one of two places, dear little soul. You must give this serious thought and determine where you would like to reside. You say you do not believe in God or you do not believe that God would send people to hell forever. I tell you today that it is not I, the only God there is, who condemns souls to hell. It is the soul himself who chooses to reside in hell. Do you know why the soul chooses hell? Because there are like-minded souls there. A soul who aligns himself with darkness does not choose heaven because that soul would not be comfortable in heaven. You must understand that you can be angry with God but God is not at fault. You can blame God for all that is wrong with your world and perhaps this will work for you on earth. I assure you though, on this day that this will cease to work for you at the moment of your death. At that time there will be only yourself to blame as the Truth is inescapable. You will be facing the one, the only, and the true God and attempting to tell Him that He does not exist. How do you think this will go for you? It will not go well, dear soul, and that is why I am speaking to you now."
Lay apostles, do you find yourself veering off the path to heaven? If you are, think about why. Is it because if you listened to His words you would have to eliminate certain things in your life? Do you lack complete trust in Him because you have been let down in the past? My friends, Jesus only wants what is good for us. He wants us to make choices with Him in mind. Letting go of behaviors or habits which lead us away from Him can be freeing rather than restraining. Take the first step . . . just a baby step . . . and get back on track. He is waiting with open arms!
Thank you, Lord, for allowing my daughters to accomplish their goals in life with You in mind. Please continue to lead them in their careers to do everything for Your Glory!
God bless,
Bonnie
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Persecution
Today I must vent a little. All of the sudden, the Conclave assembled to elect our new Holy Father is all over the media. All of the sudden, Catholics matter and are very newsworthy. Hmmm . . . how ironic. Last month when Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI retired, every news station had something to say. One night as I was cooking dinner, Jay was flipping through channels and landed on coverage of our Holy Father's decision to retire. As soon as the segment was over, they went straight into a story about a Catholic priest in trouble. Really? I was so disgusted. But then, it's the standard nowadays. There has always been persecution . . . the most prominent being Christ. The more I think about this, the more normal it all seems. If people insisted on murdering the Son of God, what makes me think anyone is free of inhumane behavior or attacks? So, how do we handle all the criticism and insanity? We do just as Jesus did. Pick up our cross and continue in perseverance with the end goal in mind . . . heaven.
The Gospel from 12Mar2013 (John 5:1-16) demonstrates the insanity Jesus encountered is no different than the liberal media of today:
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be well?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.” Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.” Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.
Now that day was a sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who was cured, “It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.” He answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Take up your mat and walk.’“ They asked him, “Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?” The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there. After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you.” The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well. Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath.
In Volume Four, Jesus the King tells us to ignore our persecutors as He did and serve God above all else:
Lay apostles, persecution is the norm, so why are we surprised when we see it occur on the evening news? It's wrong, yes. It's inhumane at times, yes. View your persecutions with Jesus in mind. The next time you are chastised, take it on the chin for Christ, no matter how harsh the reality is. See it for what it is . . . harassment because of our beliefs. And, fear within the persecutor because his actions may be contrary to a belief system they refuse to follow due to sin they are not willing to give up. Think about it the next time you feel judged. And respond as Christ did.
Thank you, Lord, for bravery in persecutions. Without You, I am nothing. With You, I am humble. Give me the courage I need to make it home to heaven.
God bless,
Bonnie
The Gospel from 12Mar2013 (John 5:1-16) demonstrates the insanity Jesus encountered is no different than the liberal media of today:
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be well?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.” Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.” Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.
Now that day was a sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who was cured, “It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.” He answered them, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Take up your mat and walk.’“ They asked him, “Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?” The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there. After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you.” The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well. Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath.
In Volume Four, Jesus the King tells us to ignore our persecutors as He did and serve God above all else:
"You, children, have seen how I lived through scripture and through the revelations I have made through many servants across the ages. What chance was there that I would have permanently rejected God? There was no chance of that, of course. My fears were groundless. And yet, I had to spend time with My fear and examine My fear so that I could come to that conclusion. Once I had come to the conclusion that I was going to serve God, and through that service to God save humanity, there was nothing left to fear. My future was decided. My path was lit up and I followed that path. From the time of My arrest I felt no uncertainty. Those holy souls who witnessed My passion would tell you that I did not rail against My fate. I did not curse God. I did not even curse humanity or My persecutors. I was the lamb. My sacrifice was perfect, both physically and mentally. Dearest brothers and sisters, whom I call as friends, you have the perfect example in Me. Follow My lead and look closely at your fears. When you have done this you will see that there is no good reason to spend time with fear and your time is much better spent consoling others, spreading My peace and Good News, and praising God, with Whom you are destined to spend eternity. Every breath of praise, every sentence of praise, every song of praise you utter will surround you with an oxygen-like substance in heaven. You will breathe in all of your prayers and you will exult in every earthly acceptance of suffering or hardship. Your prayers and obedience give God glory, this is true. But your earthly prayers and obedience also give you glory in eternity."
Lay apostles, persecution is the norm, so why are we surprised when we see it occur on the evening news? It's wrong, yes. It's inhumane at times, yes. View your persecutions with Jesus in mind. The next time you are chastised, take it on the chin for Christ, no matter how harsh the reality is. See it for what it is . . . harassment because of our beliefs. And, fear within the persecutor because his actions may be contrary to a belief system they refuse to follow due to sin they are not willing to give up. Think about it the next time you feel judged. And respond as Christ did.
Thank you, Lord, for bravery in persecutions. Without You, I am nothing. With You, I am humble. Give me the courage I need to make it home to heaven.
God bless,
Bonnie
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