Author: stmmmenofprayer

Some days my thoughts are much more simple than others. I’m not sure that applies today, but I can say my thoughts will be rather brief. Do you remember one of the first prayers you were taught? Do you still recite that prayer? To be honest, I had abandoned this particular prayer to the back of my mind for decades until one morning about four years ago I was on my way to a job site to check on a job that was causing me much grief. I was listening to EWTN on the radio and they had guest discussing the reality that each of us has a guardian angel assigned to assist in life. It was a very interesting program that brought to life the reality that Jesus spoke to His apostles so long ago…and we read in Today’s Gospel.

The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”
He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,
“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.

“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”

So not to make what should be a short story long, since that day four years ago, I have taken up the practice of reciting that simple prayer each morning at the end of my Rosary…

Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here. Ever this day be at my side – to light, to guard, to rule and to guide. Amen.

Do something great for our Lord today – turn and become like a child again…call on your guardian angel to light, to guard, to rule and to guide because the path to heaven is narrow and treacherous – call on your Guardian Angel to assist you down that path.

Bless the LORD, all you angels,
you ministers, who do his will.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

Put on Love.

I should probably start and end this post with one simple word – AMEN.

Good morning all – I hope you had a nice vacation…I know I did. I believe my last post was right before I went on my first two week vacation in my adult life. It was very nice and relaxing. One problem was that I got out of the habit of doing this every morning and before I knew it…July, August (and now 11 days into September) has passed. As they say, time flies when you’re having fun…or working long hours.

One quick prayer for 9/11 – May the Souls of the Just, through the Mercy of God, Rest in Peace. It is hard to believe that this tragedy occurred 20 years ago.

The readings this week have been both beautiful and challenging. We read the “judge not lest you be judges”, the “pull the beam out of your own eye before pulling the splinter our of your neighbors” and today Jesus warns us to dig deeply and lay our foundations on rock so when the floods waters come (and they will come), it will hit your house but not but not shake it. But I want to focus on Thursday’s readings.

St. Paul basically sums up the whole of Christian life in three simple words – Put On Love. Struggling with your children? Put on Love. Struggling with your job, your boss, your employees? Put on Love. In everything we do – IN EVERYTHING WE DO, we should always show LOVE; just as our Father, our Brother, our Holy Spirit have shown each of us. All that our Triune God has done since the beginning of time is show us LOVE. Struggling with a political enemy? Put on Love. This simple statement cannot be stated enough…

And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one Body.
And be thankful.

If we love one another,
God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.

In the Gospel, Jesus offers the basis of what it means to Put On Love…

Jesus said to his disciples:
“To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount. 
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

As many of you who know me know that I am not a fan of our current President. Having said that, there hasn’t been a day since he was sworn into office that I have not prayed for him in my morning prayers. But in a recent speech given after the suicide bombing at the airport, he made a statement that I feel compelled to speak out against. His exact words…”We will not Forgive and We will not Forget.” I am as disgusted about the deaths of those 13 men and women who were killed in this horrible attack. I was moved the other day watching thousands of St. Louisans gather along Interstate 70 to welcome home Lance Corporal Jared Schmitz – who lost his life during that attack. Thousands – many of those who didn’t know LC Schmitz at all – gathered to welcome home this young man and to offer support to his family. That is something we will not forget. That bombing, the memorials we will all see today of that tragic day 20 years ago — we will never forget those tragedies. We may never forget – BUT WE MUST ALWAYS FORGIVE. We have to. If we don’t, how can we ever have the peace that Jesus taught us to bring to everyone. Did Christ only save those He loved? Did Christ only heal those who were part of His inner circle? Did Christ eat with the sinners? Let’s go back to the line from Thursday’s Gospel…

But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.

Do something great for our Lord today – Forgive and you will be forgiven. And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Jesus, I trust in You.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

Put On Love.

If I’ve not stated this before in this blog, it’s soul purpose is to share my faith with you and help you understand the Truth of the Gospel – the Good News. I am here to tell you that the words and works of Christ are still alive, still hold true, still have meaning and purpose and Christ is still ALIVE and in our midst today. Let me share another example of this Truth.

Two weeks ago this coming Monday, my wife came down with what she thought might be a summer cold. By the following morning, she had a fever. By Tuesday night, she had a raspy cough. It got progressively worse throughout last week and she was not able to attend any of the weekend Masses. When I came home from Mass on Sunday afternoon, I went down to check on her and wasn’t very excited about what I was seeing. I asked if I should take into St. Luke’s and she replied that if she still felt this way in the morning ( a full week after this illness started), she would just call 911. I didn’t want to wait until then, so I called 911. They took her to St. Luke’s who immediately put her on an IV, which was desperately needed, and then tested her for Covid-19. Two hours later, after a positive test result, I had her in my truck and was heading back home. They asked that we monitor her oxygen levels in her blood and that I should bring her back should they fall below 90. We went through the day Monday with her oxygen levels hovering around 93 and at one point, reaching back up to 95. We were hopeful that we had gotten through this relatively unscathed.

And then came Monday night/Tuesday morning. My wife was up constantly with a horrible cough that remained constant throughout the night. I took her oxygen level again at 4:30 AM and it was at 89, so we loaded up the truck and head back to the ER at St. Luke’s. This time, they didn’t come out to tell me that they were just giving her an IV, but that they were giving her oxygen and would be admitting her. They asked that I go home. About a mile into the drive home, I had the horrible thought that my pushing her into the ER in a wheelchair might be the last time that I saw my wife and it scared me badly. I immediately turned around and headed back to the hospital. I knew they weren’t going to let me in, but I wasn’t leaving there until I knew what they’re plans for my wife were; until I had a chance to talk to her primary care provided; until a priest came and anointed her and lastly, until I heard from my wife.

So I started making phone calls. I was able to contact her Doctor and he immediately came to the Hospital and started looking into things for me. I contacted 3 different priests and with her nephew, Fr. Stephen Schumacher, being so close, he graciously came and negotiated his way to her room and anointed her. After about 4 hours of sitting outside and waiting, the phone rang and it was Sarah. She sounded very tired, very scared but just being able to hear her voice and get to tell her that I loved her was good enough – for now. So I left to head back home. I needed to let my office know what was going on; I needed to let my children know what was going on.

So, while sitting in the parking lot, I reached out to Sarah’s siblings, my siblings, my children and my friends and started asking for their prayers. They reached out to their friends and before long, a lot – A LOT – of people were offering intercessory prayers for my wife. All this to bring me to my point this morning.

Jesus tells us “Ask and you shall receive.” “Be not afraid; just have faith.” “God’s will be done.” All of His words – spoken to each one of us, are still alive and still true for each of us today. I am witness to God’s miraculous love through all that has happened these past few weeks. Within hours of my first phone call, the wonderful staff at St. Luke’s had devised a plan of antivirals, antibiotics, vitamins that were designed to combat the virus and heal my wife. They have done just that. Within minutes, my nephew came to his Aunt’s side and brought her the healing power of God’s mercy by anointing her. Within in a few days, Msgr. Cronin was able to physically bring Christ to Sarah in the blessed sacrament of Holy Communion. Prayers, faith, medicine and love all contributed to my wife’s recovery from this heartless, relentless virus. People who know my wife, people who never heard of my wife, people from St. Louis, people from around the world all united together and I am here to witness to you the healing power of God’s love through their prayers and their vocations to make my wife better.

I’ve only shared one of the last things my wife said to me on Tuesday morning with one other person, but I am here to tell you her Christ light had dimmed. She was scared, she was weak and she was in a dark place. I was able to FaceTime with her on Wednesday evening and I have tell you she never looked more beautiful in all of the time I’ve known and been with her. Through all of the prayers, through all of the hard work of the Staff at St. Luke’s, God has shown me how powerful He is. My wife’s God Light has been rekindled. My God Light has been rekindled. I was able to witness first hand how wonderful our unity can be when our focus is not on “us” but on God. United in God’s love we can be all, we can conquer all.

Please continue to offer prayers for my wife’s continued recovery. God willing, we hope to have home as early as tonight. As I conclude this post, please read and contemplate the credo’s I list at the end of each post. They are truly words to live by.

Do something great for our Lord today – know that He is all loving and merciful. Seek Him out in all that you do today.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and kindness. Compete well for the faith.

Well, I’m back from vacation. My wife and I had a great two weeks with my brother from another mother in Florida. It was a very good two weeks to say the least. One of our extended family members had their first baby (congrats Nick and Bridget); one of them got engaged (congrats Kyle and Eden); one of them celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary (congrats John P and Anissa).

The quote this morning came from our first reading yesterday and I wanted to write about that – briefly – this morning before heading back into the office after being gone for so long. I heard three separate homilies on this yesterday – Bishop Barren’s, Msgr. Cronin’s and Msgr. Ramacciotti’s. They were three very different homilies but I found it rather interesting that they all mentioned this one point in each of their homilies. That point was when we are baptized, we are made Priest, Prophet and King. Put simply (by my understanding), as a Priest we are called to actively participate in our Faith; as Prophet we are called to witness our faith to others; as a King we are called to take ownership of our faith.

This morning, I want to act as Prophet and share with you a story as to how our Risen Lord still to this day remains active and answers (rather quickly) my (our) prayers. Coming home from Florida Saturday, the drive went rather smoothly until we hit traffic in Atlanta and then again in Chattanooga. Having stopped for our last tank of gas just outside of Nashville, we hit the road for the last stretch home. It was about 9:30 PM (having been in the car since 5:30 AM) when we hit Paducah and the skies opened up on us and it rained HARD. We kept forging ahead and about 11:30 PM, Sarah and I were both exhausted and tired of fighting the elements. We literally had no business driving in this weather. So we decided to pull off in Vienna, IL and get a room at a hotel just off the highway. As I sat in the parking lot, Sarah went in to get the room. 20 minutes later she came out after having had the person in front of her get the last room. Back out onto the road again. This time she called ahead to another hotel to try and book a room, but they were full also so we made the decision to keep driving. Not much further down the road, still raining very hard, the Holy Spirit inspired a thought in my head. I was reminded of the Gospel passage where the Apostles were out on the water and caught in a violent storm. Jesus came to them and settled the waters. That simple thought inspired me to pray that Jesus hop in the cab of the truck with us (it would have to be the back seat because Sarah is the official navigator who always rides shotgun). After saying that simple prayer, quietly and unannounced, Jesus did come to us and the rain slowed to a drizzle and within a few miles stopped completely. For the next two hours until we arrived safely at our home, we had no issues with the weather.

So in my prophet role this morning, I am here to tell you God is true to His promises. Ask and you shall receive; knock and the door will be opened. A simple thought; a simple prayer was all that was necessary for my fears – and my wife’s – to be alleviated and calmness restored. Praise be to the Holy Trinity – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit – thank you for coming to me and providing our safe travel home.

Do something great for our Lord today – know that you as a baptized man or woman – are called to be Priest, Prophet and King. Take an active role in that ministry.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

Those with ears ought to hear…

Today, more specifically this afternoon at 4:30PM Mass, is going to be a Mass filled with mixed emotions. My boss, the pastor of our flock at St. Mary Magdalen, will be saying his last Mass this afternoon at St. Mary Magdalen as he is being transferred to St. Ambrose (on the Hill). I say mixed emotions because I excited for him to be heading back to the parish of his mother’s youth. I am excited for St. Mary Magdalen because in his place we are getting a very humble and holy man in Msgr. Timothy Cronin. But in the midst of that joy for both of us, it is hard to let go of a man who in my estimation is probably one of the most holy priests I’ve met in my lifetime. He is true Shepherd of his flock and in my 11 years of working with him, I’ve come to believe beyond a shadow of doubt, he was put on this earth to guide the flock and give them a living example of what it is to truly follow Christ and His Church.

Fr. Siefert gives of himself wholly and without reservation to teach the flock he has been blessed to shepherd. St. Mary Magdalen has been blessed with many great men to lead our congregation. From the day he set foot on our parish grounds, Fr. Siefert was dedicated to making St. Mary Magdalen a better place. Here is just a short list of what he has accomplished in his 11 years…

Renovations to the entire property to include updating the Rectory, a full renovation of the Church, numerous improvements to the school building and his latest accomplishment was completing the Dominican Garden.

He changed the Mass schedule on Sunday’s to better accommodate the parish.

He added a daily Noon Mass for the business people in the area to have a place to go and celebrate the Holy Sacrifice on their lunch hour.

He added a daily 5:30 PM daily Mass for people to have a chance to offer praise to God and celebrate the Holy Sacrifice at the end of their work day.

He offered the Sacrament of confession before and after each of these Masses so people could receive that Sacrament on a daily basis.

He honored Holy Week by telling the parishes all activities during the Triduum will cease so everyone had the opportunity to participate in Holy Week.

He began a Tenebrae Service during Holy Week. It was a real “bang” with the congregation 🙂

He renovated the St. Joseph Chapel and made it a place where people could go to at any time of the day or night and spend time in prayer with the Blessed Sacrament.

This man, Fr. Jack Siefert, was a blessing for St. Mary Magdalen. He will be a blessing for St. Ambrose. So this afternoon, I am reminded of the bittersweet line from Job…”The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the Lord!” I will end the blog today with Bishop Barren’s reflection because I believe it sums up who the man Jack Siefert is and I will also end by saying a simple thanks to both God for blessing our parish with this holy man and to Fr. Siefert for not only answering the call from God to be a priest, but for being that “window” for me in which I was able to see Christ in all of His glory.

From Bishop Barren:

Friends, today’s Gospel passage acclaims a centurion’s trust in the Lord Jesus. To trust is to have hope, to turn one’s heart to God. It means to root one’s life, to ground and center one’s concerns, in God. And oppositely, to trust and to turn one’s heart to human beings means to root the whole of one’s life, to ground and center one’s concerns, in the things of this world: in wealth, fame, power, honor, or pleasure.

What is the center of gravity of your life? What is your “ultimate concern”? The Bible consistently lays this out as an either/or. Think of the passage in the book of Joshua, when Joshua lays it on the line for the people of Israel: “Do you serve the Lord or some other gods?”

Jesus tells his followers, “Either you are with me or you are against me.” Today’s Gospel reminds us that we each have to answer this question with great honesty and clarity.

Do something great for our Lord today – follow the example of Fr. Siefert and say YES to His Holy Will for you. Be that man of God the Church so desperately needs today.

I firmly resolve, with the Help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

God Bless you Fr. Siefert…you may not be physically in our presence but you will always remain in our thoughts and prayers.

This reading brings a smile to my face everytime I hear it proclaimed. NO, not because my wife is named Sarah and I tease her about this all the time…and I do. I smile because a very close friend of ours from Decatur – Dr. William Hoffman (God rest his soul) – had lost his first wife of many years, found another love and married again in what we will refer to as his senior years. Sarah and I were at the wedding and I pointed out to her during the vows that they omitted the line that they would lovingly accept children from God. It just so happened that I was ask to give a toast at the wedding reception, so I opened up my Bible to this exact passage from today’s readings and merely substituted the name William where Abraham was mentioned and the name Patty where Sarah was mentioned. The things I’ll do to get a laugh…

Today’s readings actually have another thought that comes to mind. I am thinking of how our great Nation came to be, the sacrifices made by many, many people so long ago that founded our Country. A group of individuals who were willing to sacrifice all that they had in order to be able to be free to sing their praises to God unfettered by the rules of a King. When I think of all they had to sacrifice in coming across the waters to a strange land, the hardships they had to endure, starting over in a completely unknown land another thought comes to mind. Those who fail to understand history are doomed to repeat it.

Their trust in God was so absolute that they were willing to give up all they had – many of them gave the ultimate sacrifice in giving up their life for this cause (and many still do) – in order to be free to practice their faith. You don’t have to look far to see how much they believed in God – pull out any piece of American currency and you’ll find the words “In God We Trust” emboldened on each one. Recite the Pledge and you’ll hear the words “One Nation Under God, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for ALL.”

So take a few minutes to reflect on the beauty of our Responsorial Psalm today…

Responsorial Psalm

128:1-2, 3, 4-5

R. (4) See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD,
who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants
around your table.
R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
R. See how the Lord blesses those who fear him.

These words still ring true today – if we let them. Blessed are WE who fear the Lord, Blessed are WE who walk in His ways. We shall eat the fruit of His handiwork, blessed shall WE be, and favored. See how the Lord blesses those who fear Him. This is not a “question”; this is a statement. SEE HOW THE LORD BLESSES THOSE WHO FEAR HIM. I see this great nation of ours turning away from a fear of God and taking on an arrogance that MAN’s way is the path we must follow. I pray that I am wrong and I pray daily for this great land we call the United States of America. I also take great comfort in the fact that as long as this Country is still alive and breathing, it will never be too late to amend our ways and learn to place the future of America in God’s hands again. We should be like the leper in today’s Gospel and cry out to Jesus at the top of our proverbial lungs…”Lord, if You wish, You can make us clean!!”.

Do something great for our Lord today – keep our Nation great by pledging your allegiance to the Holy Will of God. You do that and you will see how the Lord blesses those who fear Him.

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease. (from yesterday’s Gospel)

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean. (from Today’s Gospel)

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

So who is it that inspires you? Who is your window, your portal to see God in all His Glory? St. Paul, for a number of days now, has asked us not to boast in ourselves, but to look to our weaknesses…

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.

Therefore, that I might not become too elated, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan,
to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.

Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
for power is made perfect in weakness.”

I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.

Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ;
for when I am weak, then I am strong.

So today I think of all those who I know that inspire me daily with their courage to trust in the Lord completely because of the “thorns” they bear for Christ on a daily basis…Sarah, Judy, Jackie, Ellen, Sandy, Larry, Jack.

I pray for the women who carry life in their bodies and sacrifice so much for the child in their womb…Lydia, Maddie, Jennifer.

I pray for the men that I know who are great fathers and a living example of God’s love for His children…John, Jeff, Jim, Joe, Jay, Big J, Pete, Joel, Paul, Tom, Chris M, Chris C, Mark, Damien, Jim C (x2). Neal.

It is through all of these people – and many more not mentioned here – who bear witness to what is taught in our readings today.

Fear the LORD, you his holy ones,
    for nought is lacking to those who fear him.
The great grow poor and hungry;
    but those who seek the LORD want for no good thing.

They also show me the meaning of today’s Gospel…trust in the Lord completely…

So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’
or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’
All these things the pagans seek.
Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

Do something great for our Lord today…seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness,
and all these things will be given you besides.

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid, just have faith.

Jesus, I trust In You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

Life is full of its ups and downs and at times I have to keep reminding myself of this. I am in one of those “down” times right now. I am managing a project right now that has me stressed. Very tight schedule, long hours for the men in the field, hiring people who aren’t familiar with the Plant we are working in, material is expensive and not easy to obtain. There is a lot to worry about. I pray every morning for the safety of the manpower, the wisdom of my foreman to stay on top of the work we are completing. Did I mention this has me stressed?

I then I turn to our readings for the day reflecting on the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and I’m reminded of what true stress is, true sacrifice for the good of others – true selfless love. It is in reflecting on these readings that I come to understand that sometimes life will be stressful and because of my love for my fellow workers, I will deal with that stress and do my best to manage this project to the best of my God given abilities. I must learn to let the Holy Spirit guide me in all that I do because I know that only through His gifts of knowledge & wisdom will I find the necessary solutions to help me manage this project.

I live in a world of acronyms so maybe STRESS could just be an acronym for Sure True Rest follows Extreme Self Sacrifice. Again, look to our Gospel today to truly understand this…

But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, 
they did not break his legs, 
but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, 
and immediately blood and water flowed out.
An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true; 
he knows that he is speaking the truth, 
so that you also may come to believe.

This Gospel reminds to say pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy today…

You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls, and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.

(Repeat three times)
O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us, I trust in You!

Do something great for our Lord today – TRUST IN HIM; give yourself over to His holy will specifically designed for you. As we should always say…God’s will, not mine, be done.

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.

God’ will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my beautiful wife Sarah…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my mother Judy and my mother-in-law Bernice…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my Uncle Jerry, who passed away on Monday. A true gentleman, a lover of all things John Wayne, a civil war enthusiast, a man God, a loving husband and father. May the angels come and take you to paradise. Rest in peace Uncle Jerry.

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my crew at the GM Plant who will give up their summer in order to help the Plant in their upgrades. Bless them and keep them safe from harm in these upcoming weeks…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For the families of my electricians who have to give up the summertime while their husband/wife/father/mother work at the Plant.

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For all of my children, their spouses and children who bless my life in so many ways.

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my Aunt Jackie and Uncle Jim; for my Uncle Bob.

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my siblings and their beautiful spouses; for my wife’s siblings and their beautiful spouses

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For Bill and Sandy; David and Sally; Kelly and Karen; Patrick and Leanne; Tony and Jill…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For John and Margaret; Chris and Liz; Mark and Judy; Damien; Gerry; Marianne and Shawn; Chris and Amy; Neal and Lydia; Dave and Debbie…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For Fr. Seifert; Msgr. Ramacciotti; Msgr. Witt; Msgr. Cronin; Msgr. Morris; Fr. Wilkins; Fr. Kollross; Fr. Schumacher; Deacons Preiss and Weiss and all the clergy who inspire us with the work for the Lord and His kingdom…

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

For my parish family at St. Mary Magdalen and my work family at Bell Electrical…

Bless the Lord, all you his chosen ones,
    and may all of you praise his majesty.
Celebrate days of gladness, and give him praise.

Do something great for our Lord today…think about all He blesses you with each and every day of your life. The good, the challenging, the funny, the sad. It is the Lord who gives; it is the Lord who takes away. Blessed be the Lord.

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.

Some days it is not my obligation to write – it is my obligation to share. As I read our readings for the Daily Mass this morning, I was moved by the the second option offered for our first reading. In our political climate today, nothing more needs to be said than what is written in our Holy Scripture shared with us this morning. I share with you now…

Brothers and sisters:
Let love be sincere;
hate what is evil,
hold on to what is good;
love one another with mutual affection;
anticipate one another in showing honor.
Do not grow slack in zeal,
be fervent in spirit,
serve the Lord.
Rejoice in hope,
endure in affliction,
persevere in prayer.
Contribute to the needs of the holy ones,
exercise hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you,
bless and do not curse them.
Rejoice with those who rejoice,
weep with those who weep.
Have the same regard for one another;
do not be haughty but associate with the lowly;
do not be wise in your own estimation.

Do something great for our Lord today – take a moment to think about all who have sacrificed their lives for our freedoms. Spend a moment in prayer this Memorial Day. Spend that moment thanking them for their sacrifice and thanking our Almighty God for the blessings He bestows on us each and every day.

I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

God’s will, not mine, be done.

Be not afraid; just have faith.

Jesus, I trust in You.

He must increase; I must decrease.

Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.

But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.