Wk 3 - Day 4 - seeking to understand Jesus Christ better

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The First Reading for Today’s Mass is from Ephesians and I was so blessed by it, I want to share it here:

Reading 1 - EPH 3:14-21

Brothers and sisters:
I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

What a glorious calling is ours, by our Baptism! That is something I have been meaning to dwell more upon as we prepare for our Act of Total Consecration: Total Consecration is a perfect renewal of our Baptismal promises. Most of us were baptized as infants and our Godparents spoke for us. Now we can “speak for ourselves” and choose God. We can renounce satan, his pomps and his works and all his empty promises and we can choose instead to belong totally to God, as children of Mary, and members of the Body of Christ…He is “able to accomplish far more that all we ask or imagine…”

St. Louis wrote in “True Devotion”:

1. As all perfection consists in our being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus it naturally follows that the most perfect of all devotions is that which conforms, unites, and consecrates us most completely to Jesus. Now of all God’s creatures Mary is the most conformed to Jesus. It therefore follows that, of all devotions, devotion to her makes for the most effective consecration and conformity to him. The more one is consecrated to Mary, the more one is consecrated to Jesus.

That is why perfect consecration to Jesus is but a perfect and complete consecration of oneself to the Blessed Virgin, which is the devotion I teach; or in other words, it is the perfect renewal of the vows and promises of holy baptism.

Let us pray with great attention, devotion and thanksgiving: Litany to the Holy Spirit HERE, Ave Maris Stella HERE and Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus HERE