Angels in Disguise

I am pretty sure that I saw an Angel the other day. The halo wasn’t there, but I am sure that it was hidden under the hat he had on. I couldn’t see the wings either, but I am positive that they were covered up by the heavy coat he was wearing. I know the cane he walked with was just a part of the disguise as well. You can’t expect an angel to just fly down the street in full glory without drawing some attention.

Still, in spite of his ordinary clothes I am convinced that I saw an angel. The way he stooped down to pick up a package an elderly lady dropped was my first clue. The way he bent down to scratch a stray dog’s head was further evidence of the fact. The clincher, though, was the way he beamed with a joyous smile as he gave something to a man collecting for charity and then wished him all the best with a voice that seemed to laugh and sing at the same time.

I wish this dear angel continued success in his chosen work of spreading love, joy, and light to the world. I know in my heart that the power of love and the goodness of God will be shared with everyone he meets. I know in my soul that there will be much singing, dancing, and rejoicing in Heaven when this blessed angel finally rejoins their midst. I know that my own heart and soul have grown stronger, better, and more loving for having seen him.

Angels do live among us. They surround us, guide us, protect us, and give us their beautiful example day after day. Some of them we can’t see, but some of them walk right by us leaning on their canes and covered in their tattered old coats and hats. May all of us recognize them for who they are. May all of us follow their example. May all of us choose and share love and joy like these angels do.

Blessings.

Asking God for Strength

When you pray, do you thank God for the many blessings  in your life? Do you ask for strength to get through something or do you pray that God will remove whatever obstacle from your path? Sometimes we go through trials to learn and to grow. Maybe we have to go through struggles in order to become stronger. I found the following story about a little boy who when he prayed; he didn't ask God to win but instead he asked God for strength. I think we could all learn a lesson from this little boy. Maybe we need to learn how to pray differently and instead of asking God to make things easy or asking God to do things for us, maybe we should ask for strength to get through whatever it is God is asking us to do. We are never alone. God is always by our sides, cheering us on. Sometimes even carrying us. I know He has carried me, when I couldn't even walk. God will give us strength to get through anything and we will come out of our trial stonger and better because of it..... all we have to do is ask...... Here is the story that touched me so deeply:

 My son, Gilbert, was eight years old and had been in Cub Scouts only a short time. During one of his meetings he was handed a sheet of paper, a block of wood and four tires and told to return home and give all to “dad”. That was not an easy task for Gilbert to do. Dad was not receptive to doing things with his son. But Gilbert tried. Dad read the paper and scoffed at the idea of making a pine wood derby car with his young, eager son. The block of wood remained untouched as the weeks passed. Finally, mom stepped in to see if I could figure this all out. The project began. Having no carpentry skills, I decided it would be best if I simply read the directions and let Gilbert do the work. And he did. I read aloud the measurements, the rules of what we could do and what we couldn’t do. Within days his block of wood was turning into a pinewood derby car. A little lopsided, but looking great (at least through the eyes of mom). Gilbert had not seen any of the other kids’ cars and was feeling pretty proud of his “Blue Lightning”, the pride that comes with knowing you did something on your own.

Then the big night came. With his blue pinewood derby in his hand and pride in his heart we headed to the big race. Once there my little one’s pride turned to humility. Gilbert’s car was obviously the only car made entirely on his own. All the other cars were a father-son partnership, with cool paint jobs and sleek body styles made for speed. A few of the boys giggled as they looked at Gilbert’s lopsided, wobbly, unattractive vehicle. To add to the humility, Gilbert was the only boy without a man at his side. A couple of the boys who were from single parent homes at least had an uncle or grandfather by their side, Gilbert had “mom”. As the race began it was done in elimination fashion. You kept racing as long as you were the winner. One by one the cars raced down the finely sanded ramp. Finally it was between Gilbert and the sleekest, fastest looking car there.

 

As the last race was about to begin, my wide eyed, shy eight year old ask if they could stop the race for a minute, because he wanted to pray. The race stopped. Gilbert went to his knees clutching his funny looking block of wood between his hands. With a wrinkled brow he set to converse with his Father. He prayed in earnest for a very long minute and a half. Then he stood, smile on his face and announced, ‘Okay, I am ready.” As the crowd cheered, a boy named Tommy stood with his father as their car sped down the ramp. Gilbert stood with his Father within his heart and watched his block of wood wobble down the ramp with surprisingly great speed and rushed over the finish line a fraction of a second before Tommy’s car.

Gilbert leaped into the air with a loud “Thank You” as the crowd roared in approval. The Scout Master came up to Gilbert with microphone in hand and asked the obvious question, “So you prayed to win, huh, Gilbert?” To which my young son answered, “Oh, no sir. That wouldn’t be fair to ask God to help you beat someone else. I just asked Him to make it so I wouldn’t cry when I lost.”

Children seem to have a wisdom far beyond us. Gilbert didn’t ask God to win the race, he didn’t ask God to fix the outcome. Gilbert asked God to give him strength in the outcome. When Gilbert first saw the other cars he didn’t cry out to God, “No fair, they had a father’s help!”. No, he went to his Father for strength. Perhaps we spend too much of our prayer time asking God to rig the race, to make us number one, or too much time asking God to remove us from the struggle, when we should be seeking God’s strength to get through the struggle. “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” – Philippians 4:13

 

Gilbert’s simple prayer spoke volumes to those present that night. He never doubted that God would  answer his request. He didn’t pray to win and, in the process, hurt someone else, he prayed that God give him the grace to lose with dignity. Gilbert, by his stopping the race to speak to his Father also showed the crowd that he wasn’t there without a “dad”, but His Father was most definitely there with him. Yes, Gilbert walked away a winner that night, with his Father at his side.

May we all learn to pray this way.

Blessings

Answering God's Call

In this day and age, it is much easier to spread God’s word than it was years ago. The internet is such a powerful tool. We no longer have to go door to door preaching the word of God. We can reach out to so many more people by sitting in our living rooms and typing on a computer. The internet is such a powerful resource and we need to use it to get God’s word out! We need to put God first in our lives because God wants to come first in our lives. He wants to be above all other things in our lives. He wants us to turn to Him first when we are in need. He wants us to have faith and believe that He can figure things out and that He has a better plan. It may not be our plan but it is His plan and His plan is so much better and more fulfilling than our plan. All we have to do is trust in Him. If we don’t put God first, He has the unique ability to get our attention one way or anther. The following story illustrates this perfectly: 

God called my name one day because He needed someone to talk to others about Him. I said to Him, “Lord, I can’t do it. I am so busy. I have work and school and spending time with my husband and I just took on coordinating a program for my community to help our children do better, but in my spare time I will help you look for someone else to help you.”

God asked me, “Well, where could I find someone? I thought I saw your name on my list of available people?”

“That was the prayer that I prayed last year, God. Things have changed since then.”

“How so?” asked God.

“I am working on my PH.D. and I am needed by so many people. My husband always wants something done and my community expects me to help and give to them, so……”

“Well, seeing that you are so busy. I will let you go,” God responded, “but we will talk again if you have some time.” 

I went on through the days and the weeks and the months completing my tasks as always. One evening, while studying for my comp exams, I received a phone call from the hospital concerning my husband. He had been in a terrible accident and was in critical condition. I dropped everything and ran to the hospital where I found my husband hanging on for dear life. I immediately began to pray, “Dear Lord, Don’t take him now. I can’t bear it.” The next morning I left the hospital tired and weary and walked into my classroom just in time to begin my comps. As the professors began asking me questions, I opened my mouth to speak but nothing would come out. I began praying hard. I became angry with God because He wasn’t there for me. After leaving my exams, I called into work. I explained to my supervisor what had happened and she demanded I take some time off. After visiting my husband in the hospital that evening, I went home and fell into a sunken state crying and despairing. Just then I heard someone calling my name.

 

“Lord, is that you?” I asked.

“Yes, it is.” He replied. “Do you have some time?”

I lashed out in anger and resentment. “How is it that when I needed you today, you couldn’t be found? My husband is dying. I am flunking out of school and I may not have a job.”

The Lord interrupted me in my foolish speaking. “I was looking for someone to go out and speak to others about me when you cried. When I came to answer, you had moved onto something else. So, I decided to let your husband rest and keep you home for a few days. For you see, before your husband, your school or your job needs you, I NEED you. And if all of these things take you away from me, I almost have to take them away from you in order to get a moment with you.”

I calmed down and began to cry, for I remembered my prayer of wanting to go and do for the Lord.

“I just wanted to recheck with you and see if you knew of anyone that I could send to be a witness for me and tell others about me….. anyone at all?”

“With tears in my eyes and feeling so unworthy I said, “ Lord, send me, I’ll go.”  

We should never be so busy that God has to ask us if we have time for him. He gave His one and only son for us so we could have the gift of eternal life. Remember, Jesus never sinned, yet He died for our sins. We should be more than happy to do God’s work, to witness and to tell everyone we can about Jesus. Let’s not allow ourselves to be so busy that the voice of God is drowned out. Let’s also not allow ourselves to ignore God or tell Him we are too busy for Him. God is never too busy for us. We should never be too busy for Him. 

May God grant you peace, joy, love and blessings in your everyday lives.

Repentance

True repentance is acknowledging that you did wrong. Then you turn from your sin by changing your behavior (you do something different when faced with tthe same situation). If you don't change your behavior then you didn't truly repent in your heart and you aren't really forgiven. God wants our lives to line up with the truth of His Word. If I attend Mass week after week, yet refuse to put into practice anything that I hear at the Mass, how can I expect to go to Heaven when I die? I will be judged by my obedience to Christ and His Word. Those who hear the Word of God preached week after week, yet refuse to apply it to their own lives, will be judged more severely than those who never heard it.

Unfortunately, people become offended when exposed to the hard truths of God’s Word. As a result, many church leaders refuse to preach some messages for fear of losing people and money from their congregations. But the truth must be proclaimed. The Word of God must be preached - the hard messages as well as the easy ones.
 

Jesus is coming back. The day of God’s judgment is near, and many of us will not be able to stand before the Lord on that day. Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on Judgment Day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!" [Mt 7:21-23]. Not everyone who goes to church will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those who do the will of God. Many will say to Christ on that day, "Lord, Lord, I went to church week after week. I gave money to the church. I even taught Sunday School!" But because that person refused to repent of his sin by lining his life up with the Word of God, he will not be recognized by the Lord Jesus Christ as one of His own. Christ is looking for repentance, as well as, church activity.

I am reaching out to those people who hear the Word of God being preached week after week, yet refuse to put it into practice in their lives because they simply do not want to repent. They like living as they do and have no intention of changing. Now is the time for repentance, not tomorrow. If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts. Repent, do God's will and be saved!

Make it a great week!

Blessings.

Angels

I believe in angels. I believe that each and every one of us has a guardian angel watching over us. Sometimes they deliver messages to us. Sometimes they keep us from danger. Sometimes they just watch over us. Whatever they may do,  I believe that they are real.

Whether or not, we, as mothers, are guardian angels, I don't know. I do know that God entrusts us to care for His children for their time here on earth. After all don't we all belong to God?  Aren't we all just on loan here until we one day go and live with God? Doesn't God love us more?

I came across this sweet, touching story and thought that I would share it. I hope it touches you as much as it did me.

Once upon a time there was a child ready to be born. So one day he asked God: “They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?”
God replied, “Among the many angels, I chose one for you. She will be waiting for you and will take care of you.”
“But tell me, here in Heaven, I don’t do anything else but sing and smile, that’s enough for me to be happy.”
“Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you every day. And you will feel your angel’s love and be happy.”
“And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me, if I don’t know the language that men talk?”
“Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.”
“And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?”
“Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray.”
“I’ve heard that on earth there are bad men. Who will protect me?”
“Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life.”
“But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.”
“Your angel will always talk to you about me and will teach you the way for you to come back to me, even though I will always be next to you.”
At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from earth could already be heard, and the child in a hurry asked softly:
“Oh God, if I am about to leave now, please tell me my angel’s name.”
“Your angel’s name is of no importance, you will call your angel: Mommy.”

Author Unknown

Blessings.

My Search for Peace

Sometimes I feel so weighted down with my problems that I get overwhelmed. I feel like I can't handle them anymore and I am right. I can not handle them on my own but God can. In John 14:27 God tells us, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give it to you as the world does." You do not have to depend on yourself anymore. Depend on God. Put your complete trust in Him and let Him handle your problems.

The topic of peace holds a dear place in my heart because it is how I came back to my relationship with God. I think about it and I get emotional. I searched for peace everywhere. I wanted to live my life the way I wanted to live it but I wasn't at peace. I finally got tired of not being at peace and I turned to God. One day in mass, I got down on my knees and I prayed, "God I want peace in my life. For so long I feel like you kept telling me that you wanted me to go back and reconcile my marriage with Ed, but I don't want to. I told you that my way was better than Your way and I was going to do it my way. Well, I can not find peace. I want peace in my life. I feel like you want me to reconcile my marriage, but I don't want to. I wasn't happy. I want to be happy. I don't know how it would be. I don't know if it will work." And that is the first of two times that God has literally spoken to me. He said, "Trust Me." I looked around and no one was speaking. I did not doubt for one moment that that was God actually speaking to me. Who am I that God would choose to speak to me? I felt and still feel profoundly unworthy. The only thing I can come up with is that God knew that He had to do something extreme to get my attention and yes, He got my attention. I said to Him, "Okay, God. We will do it your way. I tried it my way and I can't find peace. I want peace so let's do it your way." The message here is to trust God. Give your life to God that is when you will experience true inner peace. I put my trust and faith in God and am doing His will and I am at peace for the first time ever in my life. He wants you to experience that kind of peace as well. Give your troubles to Him. Let Him worry about them. You don't have to anymore. The only place we can find true, healing, lasting peace is through Jesus Christ. The world can not give you peace. You can not find peace in others because they are only human and people will eventually let you down. When I give control of my life over to God and put my trust and faith in Him that is when I feel true inner peace.

Perhaps you are weathering a storm in your life as well. I know the waiting is the hardest part. Every hurt can become a learning experience. Ask yourself, "What is it that God is trying to teach me? What is it that I am supposed to learn from all of this?" God is waiting for you. God wants you to turn to Him. He wants to wrap you in His loving arms and grant you peace. All you have to do is turn to Him and ask.

Psalm 91

¹ Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.^[a]
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

³ Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.

⁹ If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
¹⁰ no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ “Because he^[b] loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
¹⁵ He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

May you find Peace, Joy, Love and Happiness through Jesus Christ.
Blessings.

What is Love?

Love is a decision. Many people are under the misconception that love is a feeling, an emotion. It is not. We express it emotionally but we have to first make a decision to love. Sometimes we have to make a daily decision to love. I know I do. God wants us to love the unloveable. What that means is that sometimes we have to make a conscious decision to love someone even though we may not want to or even when they may not deserve it. In Matthew 5:44 we are told to love our enemies, so we as Christians should want the best for everyone, even the people we do not like. A priest at my parish told me something that really had a lot of meaning to me and it was that "We are our most loving when we choose to love even when we don't really feel like it." WOW! We can be our most loving when we make a choice to love when we are feeling unloving.

By dying on the cross, Jesus showed us the ultimate love. He showed us that sometimes love requires sacrifice. He loved us so much that He died for us and for our sins so that we may have eternal life. Jesus was sinless but He died for our sins! What an act of love! Maybe if we remembered that in our daily lives it would be so much easier to show acts of love to everyone, even the unloveable. 

True Christian love should inspire us all to do both the corporal and the spiritual works of mercy. The corporal works of mercy are as follows:

• Feed the hungry
• Give drink to the thirsty
• Clothe the naked
• Shelter the homeless
• Visit the sick
• Ransom the captive
• Bury the dead

The spiritual works of mercy are:

• Instruct the ignorant
• Counsel the doubtful
• Admonish sinners
• Bear wrongs patiently
• Forgive offenses willingly
• Comfort the afflicted
• Pray for the living and the dead

Jesus tells us that we must show our love for others or pay the consequences. In John 15:2,4,16 He says to us: "Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch can not bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide; so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, He may give it to you."

We should all try to show our love for others by doing acts of kindnesses, doing the spiritual or corporal acts of mercy, even just smiling at everyone. You never know when one small act of love can make a huge difference in someone else's life.

Here are some other scriptures on love:

Matthew 22: 37-40: And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets."
 

1 Corinthians 13: 1-8, 13: If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
 

Romans 13:8-10: Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," and any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
 

Galatians 5:22-23: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law.
 

1 John 3:13-19: Do not wonder, brethren, that the world hates you. We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. Any one who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But if any one has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth. By this we shall know that we are of the truth, and reassure our hearts before him.
 

1 John 4:7-21: Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God, and he who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God; for God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No man has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his own Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we know and believe the love God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. In this is love perfected with us, that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and he who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because he first loved us. If any one says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love his brother also.
 

May each and every one of you find Peace, Joy, Love and Blessings in your daily life.
Valerie