Daily Thought For October 18, 2020

-

 Keep Alert & Stand Firm In Your Faith

"Keep alert, stand firm in your faith, be courageous. Let all that you do be done in love" (1 Cor 16:13-14). But what does it mean to be courageous? It means to overcome evil in all its forms. The worst evil is sin, which causes all sorts of suffering and can even lurk within us, negatively affecting our behaviour. And so, while it is right to be committed to the struggle against evil in its public and social manifestations, the first duty of believers is to fight against sin, the root of all the forms of evil which can take root in the human heart, and to resist its enticements with God's help.

Be assured that God does not hinder or waste your youth, nor does he disturb your happiness. On the contrary! Far from imposing limitations, God's power gradually brings about the growth of the whole person in body, mind and heart, a deepening of faith and the expansion of your love for yourselves, for your neighbour and for all earthly and spiritual realities. If you learn to be open to God's initiative, you will experience the power of the "one who is fully alive, Christ eternally young" (Message of the Second Vatican Council to Young People).

Jesus wants you to have life, and to have it in abundance (cf. Jn 10:10). The life which is revealed to us in God, while it may at times appear difficult, provides direction and deep meaning along the path of human development. The Church's traditions, the sacramental life and a constant recourse to prayer are not just duties or rites to be performed. Rather, they are unfathomable sources of grace which can enliven your youth and help it to grow in virtue, apostolic zeal and true hope.

St. John Paul II Message To The Young People of Cuba (January 23, 1008)

Popular posts from this blog

Daily Thought For October 23, 2022

-
  Powerful Reflection from The Word Among Us Let’s not get off on the wrong foot with the Pharisee in this parable. He seemed to be doing pretty well spiritually. He was not greedy, dishonest, or adulterous. He fasted twice a week and went so far as to pay tithes on all his income. He prayed at the Temple regularly. That was better than most people. So why did Jesus say he didn’t go home justified? Because the Temple was a place of encounter with God. A holy location where God and his children came together. This Pharisee seemed to be missing that connection with the Lord. Instead of speaking his prayer to God, he prayed “to himself” (Luke 18:11) and itemized his accomplishments. By focusing on his righteous acts, he was not really making himself present to God. He wasn’t inviting God to be present to him either. So he missed the chance to encounter God and receive his mercy and grace. In that sense, the Pharisee left the Temple basically the same way he had entered. The tax collector,
Read more

Daily Thought For May 12, 2016

-
With God Setbacks Become Opportunities EVERY TIME something thwarts your plans or desires, use that as a reminder to communicate with Me. This practice has several benefits. The first is obvious: Talking with Me blesses you and strengthens our relationship. Another benefit is that disappointments, instead of dragging you down, are transformed into opportunities for good. This transformation removes the sting from difficult circumstances, making it possible to be joyful in the midst of adversity.  Begin by practicing this discipline in all the little disappointments of daily life. It is often these minor setbacks that draw you away from My Presence. When you reframe setbacks as opportunities, you find that you gain much more than you have lost. It is only after much training that you can accept major losses in this positive way. But it is possible to attain the perspective of the apostle Paul, who wrote:  Compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus, I consider eve
Read more