Benefits of Persecution

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Dear Blessed Star,

I rejoice with you in finding comfort in the many posts here, and it is quickly apparent to our spirits that the Lord is behind these encouraging words that found their way into this thread.

I read this daily reflection for today, January 27, in God Calling:
Be not afraid. Fear not. It is to the drowning man the Rescuer comes. To the brave swimmer who can fare well alone, He comes not. And no rush of joy can be like that of a man toards his Rescuer.
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It is a part of My method to wait till the storm is at its full violence. So did I with My disciples on the Lake. I could have bidden the first angry wave be calm, the first gust of wind be still, but what a lesson unlearned? What a sense of tender nearness of refuge and safety would have been lost.
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Remember this — My disciples thought that in sleep I had forgotten them. Remember how mistaken they were. Gain strength and confidence and joyful dependence and anticipation from that.
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Never fear. Joy is yours, and the radiant joy of the rescued shall be yours.
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Dear Fireman Frank,

What a striking coincidence that you posted these words yesterday. I was on the road listening to my radio, and heard the same teaching, although I’m not sure how nationally this station is aired. The speaker also mentioned the parable of the vineyard, how after sending many prophets to warn those who had charge of the vineyard, the owner finally sent his own son. Yes, they murdered him, also. Now what will the Owner of the vineyard do to those tenants?

It is as we have been implying all along, that if we trust our concerns to God, He is all omnicient and just, and will effectively deliver us from evil.

Thanks for sharing!
 
Joysong said:
Dear Fireman Frank,

What a striking coincidence that you posted these words yesterday …

Thanks for sharing!
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Wasn’t a coincidence.

My guardian angel inspired me to post that, because the angel knew that you would be listening to that radio station.

Gotta love those guardian angels!
 
Joysong said:
… And I view your post, then, as a “confirmation.” 😃
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It’s either a confirmation …

Or maybe a warning to steer clear of me because I’m just a little too eerie!

You discern. 😉

haha
 
Simply amazing! Remember the old saying, three times is a charm? When God speaks in threes as He did with St. Peter in Acts 10, it is truly “confirmation.” My third one came this morning at mass with the first reading from Jeremia, “They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” Such comfort! Such truth! So timely with this thread and the message the Lord is sending us.

Blessed be God, forever!
 
Joysong said:
Simply amazing! Remember the old saying, three times is a charm? When God speaks in threes as He did with St. Peter in Acts 10, it is truly “confirmation.” My third one came this morning at mass with the first reading from Jeremia, “They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” Such comfort! Such truth! So timely with this thread and the message the Lord is sending us.

Blessed be God, forever!
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Ok.

Now YOU’RE starting to scare ME!

(I, running for the hills …)
 
I love the movie, and I read the book, “The Song of Bernadette.” Not accurate, but truly inspiring and uplifting all the same.

One of my favorite anecdotes about St. Bernadette is that she once said she never suffered. She focused always on the suffering of Christ, and so she couldn’t consider anything she experienced as suffering. I don’t remember where I heard this (probably one of the nuns) but it is such a reminder of how we are to live our lives.

Thank you for starting this thread.

Gert.
 
Gertabelle said:
I love the movie, and I read the book, “The Song of Bernadette.” Not accurate, but truly inspiring and uplifting all the same.

One of my favorite anecdotes about St. Bernadette is that she once said she never suffered. She focused always on the suffering of Christ, and so she couldn’t consider anything she experienced as suffering. I don’t remember where I heard this (probably one of the nuns) but it is such a reminder of how we are to live our lives.
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I also wondered about this myself, to the point like I feel I have never suffered. However, what has become apparent to me is that those of us who are part of the kingdom of heaven now, really don’t feel like we’re suffering.

This words of Jesus have meaning when he said, " a rich man getting into heaven, is like passing a camel through the eye o a needle."

The rich man sees material wealth as happiness. Whereas, those who are poor in Christ, experience the true sources of happiness in our everyday life. The rich man is blind to real happiness, and yet, even a rich man will experience suffering, while here on earth.

I think it was St. Francis who said, suffering is sweetness for those who are poor.

Jim
 
Joysong said:
Simply amazing! Remember the old saying, three times is a charm? When God speaks in threes as He did with St. Peter in Acts 10, it is truly “confirmation.” My third one came this morning at mass with the first reading from Jeremia, “They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.” Such comfort! Such truth! So timely with this thread and the message the Lord is sending us.

Blessed be God, forever!
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AMEN, Joysong! I do think God speaks to all of us this way, through the readings at Mass, what we “happen to” catch on Catholic radio, etc. I feel it really is God’s Word keeping us in the light. 👍
 
I thought those who followed this thread might be interested…
tonight ( Saturday, Feb. 10th) at 8 PM on EWTN, eastern time, they will show the film of St. Berndadette.

Enjoy!
 
Joysong said:
I thought those who followed this thread might be interested…
tonight ( Saturday, Feb. 10th) at 8 PM on EWTN, eastern time, they will show the film of St. Berndadette.

Enjoy!
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Is there by any chance a posibility of my getting some money to you to get a dvd or cd or vidio of St Bernadette, please? I would love to see that and show it to our youth. I have never seen it in New zealand.

God bless anyway
littleone
 
I don’t know if this is any good.
At 11 years of age I was on my push bike and a drunk came from behind and knocked me from my bike landing approx 10 meters on the opposite side of the road. As God would have it, this happened at the consecration of the host, right outside of the Catholic Church.
I went into a comer and died and then while dad went to get the Drs, mum prayed and she said she saw me come back to life. I was still in the state of a comer for three weeks during which the Drs told my parents that they were crazy for praying for me to live. I would be a cabbage if I lived. The specialist said he had never seen a skull in so many pieces. 11 months latter I told mum I had a very bad head ach, I lay on the couch and woke up three days latter in hospital I had contracted meningitis.
Once again the Drs told my parents I would probably die. 6 mths latter It was found that I had a very large crack in my skull, and went forward to have an operation that the Drs told my parents would either cure or kill me since it was the first time in New Zealand probably the world such an operation had been done.
I was treated as an invalid not able to do as others did by some of my aunties who meant well and also by the children at school. I was different it seemed. But I had an amazing ability in art sketching. I realized then that because the Dr’s didn’t have time for me there must have been a God. A God who is love since it must have been because of Him I was alive. I refused to give up and was out to prove it to all. I began to be the best I could in all I was able to do. But the thing that I didn’t know was that my ability to spell was all my life, going to be detrimental to the work I wanted to do. I spell ok sometimes and other times I could spell ten different ways not knowing which is right.

I kept on offering myself to God and wanted to be what He desired there was no other way for me. I had built a confidence in relying on God it didn’t matte about others, I had God. I wanted to be what God wanted me to be. But at one time I told God that if He had a woman for me then this is what I wanted and I itemized it all. He gave all that I wanted and to the point of naming one of the children after a friend of His.

But the song turned sour in that my wife was a dry alcoholic and it came out in her in violent episodes. As I took the elder three children out to sport she would hurt the other two small ones in ways that I didn’t know. The children would tell me how she would take the children down town to buy clothing for the children and choose the clothing for our daughter (15 yrs) because our daughter would say they wouldn’t fit, and the clothing was mums style my wife would tell our daughter she was lousy and then buy it for herself. My wife had already told me she didn’t want her at birth, this shocked me.
Inever realised until I was told that when our daught turned 18 she was given enough money to get to her aunties home and told to leave.

Earlier my wife had become a Christian and we went to church regularly until one day after my descerning and telling her that she was being pushed to leave the Catholic Church to go to the apostolic way. She soon did this and told me she would never be under me and started telling me I was a useless husband father and the children hated me. She joined the radical woman’s lib group and did all to put me out of the home. I started having migraines some times lasting days.

I left home to get myself back together and in the first year I got a call to say that our eldest daughter was in hospital. I found that she was brain dead, she had been beaten and that she was to have a cesarean to have her baby. They took the hoses away after the birth and she died. My wife told me she wanted our daughter buried her children to go to who ever so that she could get on with her life. The police wanted her body kept for 7 days to prove murder by the boy friend.

At the funeral Jesus told me to calm the youth because they wanted to attack the boyfriend. It was found that the boy friend had guns there to blow us away and also I didn’t know that there were plain clothed police there. All through this I knew Jesus never gave me more than I could take and His peace was with me at all times. When we had the sharing to pay the accounts my wife refused to pay anything, but we got there…

This has to be in two parts, and is onlya little of all of what happened.
 
I found that the children who were at that time staying with the grand mother on his side had had 2 heart attacks. While I was studying at University I would travel the 200 mls to help with the children every second week. I found that my wife refused to allow me to have the children because that would make her look bad. I ran out of money and got a boarder in but he was from FIJI and he rang home one day to each Island and this cost me $650. I fought for my rights and three months latte won and he had to pay. I next got an account from telecom saying I had to pay $860 for my tolls. I proved the account not mine after some time though. All through this I had the most beautiful peace which is still with me.
Two months after the burial my daughters estranged boyfriend hung himself in front of the children saying he was going to be with mum. I was going to the funeral and my car blew up, latter by 6 months I was going to a family group conference for the rights to the children when the car blew up. I was still studying at the time and trying to get the children settled with the opposition from my wife who would not come to meetings but would send others.
I said to my wife that she could pay for the grave stone which would settle all accounts to give her some credence. Half way through the creation of the stone my children called me to say that mum had not been to see the stone but sent some other person and the names of our daughter and the children were all wrongly spelt. Through all this I still have peace. I have forgiven the boy friend I forgave my wife and all others concerned, and I am free to love. I have a relationship with my boys 33yrs, 27yrs and 24 that is where they openly tell me they love me.

Fifteen years latter I married 16th Dec last year and my sons all wanted to be up front with me. My wifes girls said theyall wanted to be up front with their mum. I have a woman who loves me for being me an we are strong Catholics serving in our church, doing music and I on the radio programm on sundays.
My other daughter asked me to be on “Bebo” web page and I am and through that my grand daughter in Australia writes me as do my other children and 15 youth who I have helped out over time since they don’t have a father. I am truly blessed.
Out of the fire comes a heart that belongs to God. May His Holy name blessed.

God bless
littleone
 
Dear Littleone,
Is there by any chance a posibility of my getting some money to you to get a dvd or cd or vidio of St Bernadette, please? I would love to see that and show it to our youth. I have never seen it in New zealand.
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There is a video on St. Berndette in the EWTN religious catalog. I’m not sure if this is the one they will air tonight, but it looks like something you might enjoy purchasing.

ewtnreligiouscatalogue.com/shop.axd/Search?keywords=dvd+st.+bernadette+
 
Joysong said:
Dear Littleone,

There is a video on St. Berndette in the EWTN religious catalog. I’m not sure if this is the one they will air tonight, but it looks like something you might enjoy purchasing.

ewtnreligiouscatalogue.com/shop.axd/Search?keywords=dvd+st.+bernadette+
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Thank you Joysong I will try that iy looks like it could be something like what I am interested in. I have the documentry from National Geo called the " Incorruptibles".which was predominently about St Bernadette.

God bless
littleone
 
I look at this and think that it does happen in many peoples lives.
Originally Posted by Gertabelle
I love the movie, and I read the book, “The Song of Bernadette.” Not accurate, but truly inspiring and uplifting all the same.

St. Bernadette is that she once said she never suffered. She focused always on the suffering of Christ, and so she couldn’t consider anything she experienced as suffering.

This is true as I mentioned in If I wish to love in another thread.
If I wish to love Jesus I will see His pain and see mine as nothing in camparison.
I say this because it is oner 15 years since my marrage broke up and my wife of the past is so angry blaming others for her past sadness, refusing to forgive her father who is dead. cursing me and doing all she can to stop me having access to see our grandchildren. This is a great pain for me since I love to see children happy.
As I mentioned through all this I realy on the love of God to get me through. Forgivenes is one of the greatest elements that gives freedome and peace, and in that God’s mercy tells me to give the same mercy I would wish for myself to others.
I remember Jesus saying there is more glory to forgive those who will not foregive than to forgive others who will always forgive.
St Therrese was in a cloister and therefore had to challenge herself to find those who would not forgive.
God bless
littleone.
 
Well, I watched the movie last night, and to my surprise, it pre-empted the regular programming, including the rosary at 9:30 p.m. What made an impression on me was that Bernadette remained very peaceful in the midst of persecution from all sides, family, peasants, government and clergy. Never did she give a reply that was sarcastic or demeaning in spite of the deplorable attitudes that were showered upon her. (Something I pray to remember and emulate … with the help of God’s grace!)

Today’s gospel reminded me, “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!” For her, it was on account of Mary, but yes, she is indeed BLESSED! Very consoling!

It would have been wonderful if they gave the background on her convent life, but the film did not go into this. She made a statement that was news to me, that the Virgin gave her secrets which were solely for Bernadette, and she said she could not reveal them.

Anyone else watch this movie?
 
(sigh) No, I did not watch the movie. I was home last night, but was engrossed in a good book, and forgot about it last night. I hope the replay the movie.😦
 
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