"God is love."  (1 John 4: 8).

My friends, what does it mean to say that God is love? It is like saying "The sun is shining. There is light."  Of course there will be light if the sun is shining.  God's love suffuses everything. It penetrates all His creation. Genesis teaches us that after God created the world, He reviewed the work of His hand and sees that it is good and He loves it.

Original Sin damaged our ability to love and receive love.
We needed a re-education in other to understand love from God's perspective. This is how God loves you and me:

God is patient; God is kind. God is not jealous, nor is He pompous, or inflated.  He is never rude nor seeks His own interests. He is never quick-tempered nor broods over our sins.  He does not rejoice over our wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth and our success.  He is longsuffering and merciful to the extreme. (Adapted from 1 Corinthians 13 : 4 - 7).

"In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins." (1 John 4: 10).

Without the Spirit of Love living and working in us, we may never be able to overcome the effects of Original Sin working against love.

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"Beloved, We receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him."  (1 John 3: 22).

Friends, Scripture promises that when we keep God's commandments and do what pleases Him, we receive from Him what we need.  It is not the will of God to deprive us of the necessities of life.  Man does not live on bread alone.  Neither does he live on money alone. Man needs good health, family peace and prosperity. Man needs good job and tools and possessions. We need food all the time.  Who can live without peace of mind and soul? Finally, we are constantly preoccupied with thoughts of the future as we move from one lifecycle to another.

Today's message from 1 John should bring us great comfort.
"Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them, and the way we know that he remains in us is from the Spirit that he gave us."  (1 John 3: 24).
Friends, do you know for certain that the Holy Spirit remains in you?  Without the Holy Spirit, you cannot live effectively the Christian life and you cannot enjoy the privileges promised the children of God.

"You belong to God, children, and you have conquered them, [the world] for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world."  (1 John 4: 4).

We are engaged in a life and death struggle with the spirit of this world.  Are you gaining victory war zone by war zone: family, finances, job, health, etc. Are you winning sector by sector: workplace, home, church, etc.

"We belong to God, and anyone who knows God listens to us,
 while anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit."  (1 John 4: 6).

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"We [The Magi] saw the star at its rising and have come to do him homage."  (Matthew 2: 2).

Today is the Solemnity of the the Epiphany.  The star called forth the three Wise Men from the East to follow the star and they found and recognized the infant Jesus as Son of God and King of the Universe.  Every day, the star of freedom beckons men and women from everywhere to America, God's own country to their idea of paradise.

Where is your star pointing to?  Is it pointing to the Child Jesus born in poverty in a stable? Or is it pointing to “Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth.” (Revelation 17: 5).

"They [Magi] were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother." 
(Matthew 2: 10 - 11).

Consider this for a moment: These 3 kings and scientists were able to recognize the Infant Jesus in such an unlikely environment.  How could this be when 2000 years after His birth, not everyone on earth has bent the knee at the Name of Jesus?

You that acknowledge Jesus as Lord and King, follow the example of the Magi:
"They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (Matthew 2: 11).

"Lord, every nation on earth will adore you."  (Cf Psalm 72).

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"O Lord, my allotted portion and my cup, you it is who hold fast my lot.  For me the measuring lines have fallen on pleasant sites; fair to me indeed is my inheritance."  (Psalm 16 :5 - 6: Entrance Antiphon).

There are Scriptures that affirm who you are.  They bring you comfort and encouragement  when you need it most.  I delight to rest in Psalm 16 and savor the sweet sentiment that this Psalm exudes. If the Lord Himself is your allotted portion and cup, it means that you have the best part.  You may not feel that you have the privileged part, but your feelings do not matter at all.

Faith is complete confidence in the word of God, in His promises.  To live by faith is to live by the promises of God and not by the evidence of your senses or feelings.  I am trying to put this teaching into practice daily.  How do I do this? Not by reading books on faith and praxis. But rather, I include in my morning prayer: Lord, grant me the grace to live this day as I believe and as I pray.

I believe in prayer.
I believe in the word of God.
I believe in miracle.
I leave the rest to God.

It is said that prayer is the efficient cause of every comfort in life.  St Augustine puts it this way:
"If you pray well, you live well. If you live well, you die well. If you die well, then all is well."

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“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"  (John 1: 29).

It is impossible to understand Sin until you sit still and contemplate a life-size Crucifix.  A crucifix is a cross with a corpus (body).  I have often wondered why the Blessed Virgin Mary urges mystics and those who desire to advance in spiritual life to look at the crucifix often. The cross is the means and instrument of our redemption. The sacrifice of a human being who is equally God is how the price of our salvation is paid.

"The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the devil."  (1 John 3: 8).

What are the works of the devil?

"Now the works of the flesh [devil] are obvious: immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissensions, factions, occasions of envy, drinking bouts, orgies, and the like."  (Galatians 5: 19 - 21).

These are works/sins that keep us enslaved, depressed, miserable, unfulfilled.

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"  (John 1: 29).

"We have found the Messiah."
(John 1: 41).  Have you?

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January 4, 2019  -  First Friday in January.

The 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus:  Jesus promised 12 special favors to all those who will honor His Sacred Heart especially on the First Friday of every month.  In the 1st  month of the year 2019, we look at Promise #1.

#1.  "I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life."
 
What is your state of life?
A.  Married
B.  Single
C.  Divorced
D.   Adolescent

Each state has its strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats.  Jesus promises us here more than sufficient grace to cope with whatever happens.  There can be only one response to this magnanimous offer of Jesus:  Yes and Thank You Jesus!

Honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus this Friday by attending Holy Mass.

For the 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, click the link below:

http://sfjweb.com/?q=content/sacred-heart-12-promises

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