Virgin of Vladimir (+ image by the hand of Stephen Allison 2008)

Sunday 28 August 2016

My whole being hopes in the Lord

Notes of meeting on 23 August 2016

Picture of this group and in the middle was a large throne that although ornate also looked comfortable. Jesus took his place and sat down in our midst.
Our Lady looked at us all and smiled. Jesus looked so pleased to see us all together keeping Him company.
Our Lady made a sign towards us with her hand and said:
"You see my Son these children of ours will help us I myself have tutored them in your ways and they are now ready to open their hearts and enthrone you."
Jesus immediately entered each persons heart.
Some of us felt very comfortable, some of us felt overawed and anxious that we were not good enough but this did not matter as just willing was all that was required. All felt such love, joy and hope.
Our Lady said:
"Let my Son Jesus reign in your hearts and very soon others will be drawn to the light of my Son Jesus. You will evangelise, some with words but mostly because others will see Jesus residing in you through your thoughts and actions. Don't be anxious lay your hearts on the Heart of my Son Jesus and you will experience real Love, real Joy, real Hope.
Be as an oasis in a parched land, fruitful and peaceful. Do not be afraid.
I bless you with my maternal blessing.
Mary".


Psalm 130
1 [Song of Ascents] From the depths I call to you, Yahweh:
2 Lord, hear my cry. Listen attentively to the sound of my pleading!
3 If you kept a record of our sins, Lord, who could stand their ground?
4 But with you is forgiveness, that you may be revered.
5 I rely, my whole being relies, Yahweh, on your promise.
6 My whole being hopes in the Lord, more than watchmen for daybreak; more than watchmen for daybreak
7 let Israel hope in Yahweh. For with Yahweh is faithful love, with him generous ransom;
8 and he will ransom Israel from all its sins.

1 Peter 4 v 12-16
12 My dear friends, do not be taken aback at the testing by fire which is taking place among you, as though something strange were happening to you;
13 but in so far as you share in the sufferings of Christ, be glad, so that you may enjoy a much greater gladness when his glory is revealed.
14 If you are insulted for bearing Christ's name, blessed are you, for on you rests the Spirit of God, the Spirit of glory.
15 None of you should ever deserve to suffer for being a murderer, a thief, a criminal or an informer;
16 but if any one of you should suffer for being a Christian, then there must be no shame but thanksgiving to God for bearing this name.


Pope Francis on the Holy Spirit.

Pope Francis delivered his 14  August  2016 address to the crowds who had gathered in St. Peter's Square for the weekly Angelus.

In his address before reciting the Marian prayer, the pontiff reflected on the themes of the day's Gospel reading, specifically on Jesus' words: "I have come to set the earth on fire." He explained how the fire about which Jesus speaks is that of the "Holy Spirit, the living and working presence in us from the day of our Baptism."

This fire is a "creative force which purifies and renews," as it burns away every human misery, egoism, and sin, he said. "It transforms us from within, regenerates us, and makes us capable of love."

"Jesus wants the Holy Spirit to burn like fire in our hearts, because it is only from the heart that the fire of Divine love can strengthen and advance the Kingdom of God," he said.

By opening ourselves completely to the Holy Spirit, we will be given the the "courage and zeal to proclaim to everyone Jesus, and his consoling message of mercy and salvation."

The Holy Spirit keeps the Church from being "held back by fear and calculations" or becoming accustomed to staying within secure confines, Pope Francis said.
"The Apostolic courage which the Holy Spirit ignites in us as a fire helps us overcome walls and barriers, makes us creative," and spurs us along "unexplored or uncomfortable paths, offering hope to those we meet."

"We are called to become ever more a community of persons who are guided and transformed by the Holy Spirit," the pontiff said.

Speaking off the cuff, Pope Francis said the fire of the Holy Spirit brings us to those who suffer from various miseries and problems, including migrants and refugees.

Now more than ever there is a need for priests, consecrated men and women, and lay faithful, the Pope said, "who, throughout the world, are dedicated to the proclamation of the Gospel with great love and loyalty, often even at the cost of their lives."

"Their exemplary witness reminds us that the Church does not need bureaucrats or meticulous officials,"  Pope Francis said. Rather, it needs "passionate missionaries, consumed by zeal to bring the consoling Word of Jesus and his grace to everyone." 

"This is the fire of the Holy Spirit," the pontiff said, again going off script. "If the Church does not receive this fire, or allow it to enter, it becomes a cold or only  Church, incapable of giving life, since it is made of cold or lukewarm Christians."

The Pope encouraged those present to take five minutes to ask themselves whether their own hearts are cold or lukewarm, and if they are capable of receiving this fire of the Holy Spirit.

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