Blessings, grace and gratitude

[benedictus2]

The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!

Protestant101 started a thread called “Sharing Our Blessings” which I thought was a wonderful thread. Unfortunately this was deleted.

Craig Kennedy also started a thread called “To Live by Faith’ which ended up becoming more apologetic in nature.

This thread is a cross of the above two; more like what it means to live by faith in this time of crisis (economic, spiritual, etc).

In this time of growing concern over our world (economy, flu, global warming, etc) we could tend to forget that God is good, loves us all unconditionally and is in control.

So I am starting this thread to get us all thinking of the many blessings (great and small) that in the hurried pace of the day and the troubles and the worries we could overlook. Grace is being poured abundantly and when we put the magnifying glass to it, then maybe we will realize that there is much to be thankful for and so water the seeds of gratitude in our souls.

There are no rules (except please be nice, sheath the sword of apologetic combat and leave the verbal fencing for other threads. The thread could meander every which way and it does not matter. This is about our lives as children of God in its ups and downs, deaths and resurrections.

Let us rejoice in our and others blessings and suffer with those who will post their pain. Let us tell our stories of the day and know that Christ’s walks with us as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

 

[terrysa]

Well, to me, living by faith in times of crisis means raising my family the best way I can. When I look into the faces of my four children, their trust and love, I am given a great lesson of God’s love and mercy firsthand. I see His love reflected in those little faces. When my heart is hurting, thinking of horrible things happening in the world, I look at their little hearts full of trust and everything is wonderful. I see through their eyes a beautiful place, full of wonder and joy. I am reminded of the goal, Heaven, where we will be together forever in a place without pain and sadness and so I have the strength to face the problems here in this life.

Someone once said that each new baby born is proof that God still believes in the human race. I guess if He still believes in us, then there is hope that we can turn things around.

 

[jeanne71350]

The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!

Protestant101 started a thread called “Sharing Our Blessings” which I thought was a wonderful thread. Unfortunately this was deleted.

Craig Kennedy also started a thread called “To Live by Faith’ which ended up becoming more apologetic in nature.

This thread is a cross of the above two; more like what it means to live by faith in this time of crisis (economic, spiritual, etc).

In this time of growing concern over our world (economy, flu, global warming, etc) we could tend to forget that God is good, loves us all unconditionally and is in control.

So I am starting this thread to get us all thinking of the many blessings (great and small) that in the hurried pace of the day and the troubles and the worries we could overlook. Grace is being poured abundantly and when we put the magnifying glass to it, then maybe we will realize that there is much to be thankful for and so water the seeds of gratitude in our souls.

There are no rules (except please be nice, sheath the sword of apologetic combat and leave the verbal fencing for other threads. The thread could meander every which way and it does not matter. This is about our lives as children of God in its ups and downs, deaths and resurrections.

Let us rejoice in our and others blessings and suffer with those who will post their pain. Let us tell our stories of the day and know that Christ’s walks with us as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

Through the devotion to the St. Benedict Medal, I was able to overcome a very hard time in my life. I was in an abusive relationship, and prayer and devotion was able to get me through it with strenghth and peace. So, that’s how the Lord has blessed me.

-Jeanne

 

[benedictus2]

Hi Terrysa and Jeanne,

Thanks for posting. Yes, isn’t true. Despite al the horrible things that happen each day ( the news seems to be full of it!) blessings abound.

Today I am thankful for the peaceful ride on the train to work. It was such a glorious day. The smell of coffee from the cafes as you get off the train, the slight mist and the general hubbed in the city as it awakes ready for a new day.

 

[embraced]

What a wonderful thread! Something that the Lord has dropped into my mind lately has had a large impact on how I view every day. This is what it is. “You must look for the positive in the negative.” When things happen there is always a nugget in there that brings hope, comfort, or even laughter. I have been so blessed by this, I hope you all will be too.

 

[Craig_Kennedy]

The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!

Protestant101 started a thread called “Sharing Our Blessings” which I thought was a wonderful thread. Unfortunately this was deleted.

Craig Kennedy also started a thread called “To Live by Faith’ which ended up becoming more apologetic in nature.

This thread is a cross of the above two; more like what it means to live by faith in this time of crisis (economic, spiritual, etc).

In this time of growing concern over our world (economy, flu, global warming, etc) we could tend to forget that God is good, loves us all unconditionally and is in control.

So I am starting this thread to get us all thinking of the many blessings (great and small) that in the hurried pace of the day and the troubles and the worries we could overlook. Grace is being poured abundantly and when we put the magnifying glass to it, then maybe we will realize that there is much to be thankful for and so water the seeds of gratitude in our souls.

There are no rules (except please be nice, sheath the sword of apologetic combat and leave the verbal fencing for other threads. The thread could meander every which way and it does not matter. This is about our lives as children of God in its ups and downs, deaths and resurrections.

Let us rejoice in our and others blessings and suffer with those who will post their pain. Let us tell our stories of the day and know that Christ’s walks with us as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

Hi Benedictus2,

A great thread! I want to commend you highly for starting this thread. I can see this being a real blessing.

God has richly blessed me lately by giving me the best Lent I have ever had. I was overweight at 132kg and by His Grace and Goodness I am now down to 114kg, with the goal of reaching 100kg. O boy, I’ll be fighting fit when I reach this weight! No more of my wife’s great baking - chocolate cakes and so on. LOL!

God has blessed me, too, with a richly meaningful Easter where the Passion and Sufferings of our Lord took on a new significance. On Good Friday our Blessed Lord bled and died for a lost and sinful world of humanity. I have a heightened sense of this tremendous love of God for all human beings.

Out of this love that God has poured into my soul, I can see that although correct doctrine is vitally important, the most important thing is a true Christian love. This is why I love both Catholics and Protestants. You see, without love we are nothing. God has shown me that true Catholics and true Protestants belong to the same great Christian family. We worship the same Deity. I am a Protestant but I respect the authenticity and credibility of good Catholics. I respect good Catholic marriages and families. I respect Catholic piety where I see it consistently practised.

This is what God has been doing in and through me. I live as much in my heart as in my head. In these days of crisis and pressure, let us Catholic and Protestant say together in the words of the old Seekers song:

“We’re on our way to heaven, we shall not be moved
like a tree standing by the water side, we shall not be moved…”

God loves us! Let us never doubt His purposes for us. Let us love God in a world where He is so little known and served.

Cheers, God bless you Craig

 

[Cinette]

The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!

Protestant101 started a thread called “Sharing Our Blessings” which I thought was a wonderful thread. Unfortunately this was deleted.

Craig Kennedy also started a thread called “To Live by Faith’ which ended up becoming more apologetic in nature.

This thread is a cross of the above two; more like what it means to live by faith in this time of crisis (economic, spiritual, etc).

In this time of growing concern over our world (economy, flu, global warming, etc) we could tend to forget that God is good, loves us all unconditionally and is in control.

So I am starting this thread to get us all thinking of the many blessings (great and small) that in the hurried pace of the day and the troubles and the worries we could overlook. Grace is being poured abundantly and when we put the magnifying glass to it, then maybe we will realize that there is much to be thankful for and so water the seeds of gratitude in our souls.

There are no rules (except please be nice, sheath the sword of apologetic combat and leave the verbal fencing for other threads. The thread could meander every which way and it does not matter. This is about our lives as children of God in its ups and downs, deaths and resurrections.

Let us rejoice in our and others blessings and suffer with those who will post their pain. Let us tell our stories of the day and know that Christ’s walks with us as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

Ireland has experienced a period of economic boom and now with the global economic (banking) collapse many people have lost their jobs. Ireland is also going through trials and tribulations and I read in an article that people have started to go back to Church again. There has been an increase of Mass attendance - 30% they say.

Isn’t it sad that it takes something like this to get people to turn to God? I think we should make our children aware from very small how important it is to say thank you every day to our Almighty God.

I believe in America many families have several television sets with children having their own in their rooms!! That is dangerous. What has happened to family meals? Do families sit around the table each night and say grace and share their lives and their thoughts with one another?

This is terribly important.

Blessings
Cinette

 

[benedictus2]

Hi Benedictus2,

A great thread! I want to commend you highly for starting this thread. I can see this being a real blessing.

God has richly blessed me lately by giving me the best Lent I have ever had. I was overweight at 132kg and by His Grace and Goodness I am now down to 114kg, with the goal of reaching 100kg. O boy, I’ll be fighting fit when I reach this weight! No more of my wife’s great baking - chocolate cakes and so on. LOL!
v
v
v
God loves us! Let us never doubt His purposes for us. Let us love God in a world where He is so little known and served.

Cheers, God bless you Craig

Hi Craig,

What a beautiful post!

I am actually quite struck by how you deeply you immersed yourself in Lent. I invited a friend (protestant) to our Good Friday service and he said he couldn’t come because he was playing tennis! I was quite taken aback because I always thought that Christians kept Good Friday as a day for reflection. So I was really pleased by your how blessed your Lent and Easter was.

Yes, He is so little known and served so it really is up to all of us to remedy that a little bit.

Thank you for sharing that with us.

 

[benedictus2]

Ireland has experienced a period of economic boom and now with the global economic (banking) collapse many people have lost their jobs. Ireland is also going through trials and tribulations and I read in an article that people have started to go back to Church again. There has been an increase of Mass attendance - 30% they say.

A timely reminder, Cinnette.

When the first signs of this global recession came on the news my first thought was “about time”. I think we have become so materialistic and secular something drastic had to happen before we turn to God.

I think of this as something necessary so that we will learn to get our priorities right. Perhaps we will learn to value people over things and greed will be exposed for the evil that it is. Perhaps the realization that we need God will dawn on those who refuse to acknowledge His sovereinty.

Perhaps this is happening so that we will learn that we are very much in danger of gaining the whole world and suffering the loss of our souls.

 

[benedictus2]

What am I thankful for today? The mornings and evenings. The in-betweens get to be a blur (must make time for a 5 minute recollection at lunch time) but the dawn and dusk has a certain reflective quality about it.

Today I am especially grateful for music and this song in particular (which I can’t get out of my head).

I think this has been around for some time (written by Bob Dylan) but I only heard it recently (yes, you can ask: Which cave did you crawl out of, Cory ?)

Thank God for music. Eight little notes responsible for a million harmonies. How wonderful is our God indeed!

I often think that the most beautiful love songs really apply to God (remember Sister Act and the songs “I will follow Him” and “My Guy”?).

Most of you will probably have heard this song and if human love is truly capable of this then how happy are those who have found that in their lives.

But those who will bother to click on the link, imagine God singing this song to you.:heaven::harp:

 

[benedictus2]

What a wonderful thread! Something that the Lord has dropped into my mind lately has had a large impact on how I view every day. This is what it is. “You must look for the positive in the negative.” When things happen there is always a nugget in there that brings hope, comfort, or even laughter. I have been so blessed by this, I hope you all will be too.

Hi Embraced,

Amen to what you have written. Someone once said that God writes straight with crooked lines and I think that jells with what you have written. Hope persists because of the cross.

 

[Cinette]

A - l - l - e - l - u - i - a! Alleluia! A l l e l u i a! again and again and again. You know the great Alleluia at the end of Mass at the Easter Vigil! Have you ever counted how many? I asked someone in the choir and she said she would look into it. They sang it again at the end of Mass on Easter Sunday. I can still hear it ringing in my ears! Alleluia - the Lord has Risen!

 

[embraced]

benedictus2
Thank you so much for bleesing us with the spark to join you in this thread.
I too I’m so grateful to the Lord for music. I always say music is like breath to me. The Lord has graciously blessed me with a wonderful daughter who plays the piano. I see it as a double measure, my own daugther by the grace of God breathes music into my spirit and nourishes my soul.

 

[embraced]

What am I thankful for today? The mornings and evenings. The in-betweens get to be a blur (must make time for a 5 minute recollection at lunch time) but the dawn and dusk has a certain reflective quality about it.

Today I am especially grateful for music and this song in particular (which I can’t get out of my head).

I think this has been around for some time (written by Bob Dylan) but I only heard it recently (yes, you can ask: Which cave did you crawl out of, Cory ?)

Thank God for music. Eight little notes responsible for a million harmonies. How wonderful is our God indeed!

I often think that the most beautiful love songs really apply to God (remember Sister Act and the songs “I will follow Him” and “My Guy”?).

Most of you will probably have heard this song and if human love is truly capable of this then how happy are those who have found that in their lives.

But those who will bother to click on the link, imagine God singing this song to you.:heaven::harp:

Thanks for sharing this. What a beautiful song:heaven:

 

[benedictus2]

A - l - l - e - l - u - i - a! Alleluia! A l l e l u i a! again and again and again. You know the great Alleluia at the end of Mass at the Easter Vigil! Have you ever counted how many? I asked someone in the choir and she said she would look into it. They sang it again at the end of Mass on Easter Sunday. I can still hear it ringing in my ears! Alleluia - the Lord has Risen!

Oh yes! Especially the gregorian one (yes there are many gregorian ones) I should humm it to you so you know which one I mean. The Cistercian monastery here sing that one every Easter and I sing it on the trip home.

 

[Cinette]

Oh yes! Especially the gregorian one (yes there are many gregorian ones) I should humm it to you so you know which one I mean. The Cistercian monastery here sing that one every Easter and I sing it on the trip home.

I shall find out which version it is and maybe we could source it on the Internet. There might be a video on youtube! I somehow don’t think it is the Gregorian - I would imagine the Gregorian to be more subdued. The one I am talking about is enough to bring down the roof and is sung with such joy and enthusiasm!! Gosh I am ignorant!

Will do some homework.

Cheers
Cinette

 

[Craig_Kennedy]

Hi Craig,

What a beautiful post!

I am actually quite struck by how you deeply you immersed yourself in Lent. I invited a friend (protestant) to our Good Friday service and he said he couldn’t come because he was playing tennis! I was quite taken aback because I always thought that Christians kept Good Friday as a day for reflection. So I was really pleased by your how blessed your Lent and Easter was.

Yes, He is so little known and served so it really is up to all of us to remedy that a little bit.

Thank you for sharing that with us.

Thanks Benedictus2,

I am so pleased you raised the importance of a proper observance of Good Friday.

You, so astutely, point out:

“I always thought that Christians kept Good Friday as a day for reflection…”

I am delighted you have stated this. I share this conviction with you. I believe that Good Friday is an awesome day - solemn, deep in meaning and crucial to a proper view of a healthy life. This is the day that our Blessed Lord shed His precious blood that we may be redeemed!

I’m pretty much a traditionalist at heart, as I think you realise. I believe that shops and places of entertainment should not be open on Good Friday. I also believe that people should not mow their lawns on Good Friday, such is the importance of this day.

On Good Friday, I meditate upon the scriptures and pray. I reflect upon the Passion and sufferings of our Lord. I believe that God richly blesses all people - both Catholic and Protestant - who honour the Son of God in this way.

Let us live, in these turbulent times, in such a way that God’s great love is poured out to a sinful and lost world. Let us honour God in all we do and think and say.

God bless you, In Christ Craig

 

[Craig_Kennedy]

Hi benedictus2,

In post number 1 of this thread, your opening words were:

“The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!”

What a terrific benediction and blessing to bestow on people! I have sensed the wonderful Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ already permeating this thread.

May God use this thread to bless, enrich, comfort and guide people who seek His face.

God bless you, In Christ Craig

 

[wlychan64]

Through the devotion to the St. Benedict Medal, I was able to overcome a very hard time in my life. I was in an abusive relationship, and prayer and devotion was able to get me through it with strenghth and peace. So, that’s how the Lord has blessed me.

-Jeanne

What is St Benedict Media? Can you enlightening me pls?

wlychan64

 

[wlychan64]

The Peace and Joy of the Risen Christ to all who visit this thread!

Protestant101 started a thread called “Sharing Our Blessings” which I thought was a wonderful thread. Unfortunately this was deleted.

Craig Kennedy also started a thread called “To Live by Faith’ which ended up becoming more apologetic in nature.

This thread is a cross of the above two; more like what it means to live by faith in this time of crisis (economic, spiritual, etc).

In this time of growing concern over our world (economy, flu, global warming, etc) we could tend to forget that God is good, loves us all unconditionally and is in control.

So I am starting this thread to get us all thinking of the many blessings (great and small) that in the hurried pace of the day and the troubles and the worries we could overlook. Grace is being poured abundantly and when we put the magnifying glass to it, then maybe we will realize that there is much to be thankful for and so water the seeds of gratitude in our souls.

There are no rules (except please be nice, sheath the sword of apologetic combat and leave the verbal fencing for other threads. The thread could meander every which way and it does not matter. This is about our lives as children of God in its ups and downs, deaths and resurrections.

Let us rejoice in our and others blessings and suffer with those who will post their pain. Let us tell our stories of the day and know that Christ’s walks with us as He did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

Dear Ben,

Thanks for the posting this title of sharing which is meaningful and usefu to all of us. I need time to work out what I can share with all others but certainly, I would admit that I am very lucky for the love of GOD and HIS grace that is abundant even though I am in difficulites now. I can and I have to move on with HIS grace.

Thanks again

wlychan64