Dear God, open a door for my message, so that I may proclaim the mystery of Christ. I pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Colossians 4:3-4

R4C

R4C
Reconciliation and Forgiveness ~ I am Sorry * Please Forgive Me * Thank You * I Love You. ~ Reconciliation and Forgiveness ~ I am Sorry * Please Forgive Me * Thank You * I Love You. ~ Reconciliation and Forgiveness ~ I am Sorry * Please Forgive Me * Thank You * I Love You.

Generosity from the Heart

Generosity from the Heart


Matt 6:3, "do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing"


If this blog is informative and helpful in your pursuit to follow Jesus, and deepening your Christian faith;

Please support my work. Thank you and God Bless.


Proverbs 11:25, "A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed."


How to make contibution (click on this link)


May the Lord bless you for your generosity, and may the Mother of God intercede for your every need.


Your act of generosity will be rewarded, and your blessing will be “pressed down, shaken together, and RUNNING OVER.

Psalm 19:14, May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Wednesday 29 May 2013

As The Deer


As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after thee
You alone are my hearts desire
And I long to worship thee

Chorus
You alone are my strength my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my hearts desire
And I long to worship thee

You're my friend and You are my brother,
Even though you are a king.
I love you more thank any other,
So much more than anything.

I want You more than gold or silver,
Only You can satisfy.
You alone are the real joy Giver,
And the apple of my eye.


As The Deer
by crcworship

Monday 27 May 2013

Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Feast)




The feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated on 31 May. Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth shortly after the Annunciation, whom God had blessed with a son in her old age. She greeted her cousin Elizabeth, and at the sound of her voice, John the Baptist quickened in his mother's womb and leapt for joy. In virtue of Mary's salutation, Saint John received the grace of the Divine Spirit which sanctified him: 'When the Blessed Virgin saluted Elizabeth, the voice of the salutation, entering her ears, descended to the child, and by its virtue he received the Holy Spirit.' Saint John the Baptist was cleansed from sin in his mother's womb. It reminds us of the joy of the Blessed Virgin in bearing our Saviour, Jesus. Mary's charity is not less in the present than at the time of her Visitation. She ever eager now to promote the happiness and console the sorrows of those who come to her for help. Mary’s service for Elizabeth by her visit remains a model for the Christian who wishes to meet Christ in daily life. God speaks to us through others. We come to know God and his saving plan through people in the Christian community. Mary’s faith, which is praised by Elizabeth, draws her to the dignity of being the Mother of Jesus and still greater to being a true disciple of the Lord. Faith was not easier for her than for us.


Mary is the Treasurer of all Divine Graces; 
therefore, 
whoever desires Graces must have recourse to Mary; 
and he who has recourse to Mary 
may be certain of obtaining the Graces he desires.


Almighty ever-living God, who, while the Blessed Virgin Mary was carrying your Son in her womb, inspired her to visit Elizabeth, grant us, we pray, that, faithful to the promptings of the Spirit, we may magnify your greatness with the Virgin Mary at all times. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Prayer

Vouchsafe, O Lord, we beseech Thee, unto us Thy servants the gift of Thy heavenly grace, that, as in the childbirth of the Blessed Virgin our salvation began, so from the votive solemnity of her visitation we may obtain an increase of peace. Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.


Luke 1:39-56

Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favoured, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”



Mary’s Song

46 And Mary said:

“My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.”

56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

“This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to his death; first when Mary, arising in haste to go to visit Elizabeth, is greeted by her as blessed because of her belief in the promise of salvation and the precursor leaped with joy in the womb of his mother.” as stated in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium) , #57, of the Second Vatican Council.

Friday, May 31, 2013
The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Feast)


Reading 1
Zephaniah 3: 14 - 18

14Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
15The LORD has taken away the judgments against you, he has cast out your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall fear evil no more.
16On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: "Do not fear, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.
17The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing
18as on a day of festival. "I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it.
or
Romans 12: 9 - 16

9Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good;
10love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
11Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord.
12Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.
13Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.
14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
15Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
16Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; never be conceited.

Psalm
Isaiah 12: 2 - 6

2"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation."
3With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
4And you will say in that day: "Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name; make known his deeds among the nations, proclaim that his name is exalted.
5"Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth.
6Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel."
Gospel
Luke 1: 39 - 56 (view above)

Sunday 26 May 2013

Novena to the Immaculate Heart of Mary



Immaculate Heart of Mary, full of love for God and mankind, and of compassion for sinners, I consecrate myself entirely to you. I entrust to you the salvation of my soul. May my heart be ever united with yours, so that I may hate sin, love God and my neighbour, and reach eternal life together with those whom I love.


Mediatrix of All Graces and Mother of Mercy, remember the infinite treasure which your Divine Son has merited by His suffering and which he has confided to you for us, your children. Filled with confidence in your motherly heart, and for the sake of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, obtain for me the favour I ask  <<Mention your petition here>>.


Dearest Mother, if what I ask for should not be according to God's will, pray that I may receive that which will be of greater benefit to my soul. May I experience the kindness of your intercession with Jesus during life and at the hour of my death. 

Amen.

The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Memorial)





Hail Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.







The Immaculate Heart of Mary is also known as The Sacred Heart of Mary. This memorial or feast always fall on the Saturday the next day after the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus or 20 days after Pentecost Sunday. The title Immaculate Heart of Mary symbolises the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God the Father, her maternal love for her son Jesus, and her compassionate love for all persons.

It has always been the role of Mary, as Mother of the faithful, to draw her spiritual children into the same docility to the Holy Spirit as she herself so perfectly manifested. Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary opens the way for us, just as her womb opened the way of salvation for humankind. What she could not do on earth as a mother of mankind who's love surpasses time and space, by the grace of the Heavenly Father, she has been granted the joy of doing it from Heaven. In all her apparations around the world to chosen blessed ones, her motherly message of love has been to renounce Satan, to pray continuously, to do penance, and to go to Church. By following all her request, she promised to intercede before her beloved Son Jesus  for the grace of God to shine upon the world. 

"My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God."
~ Our Lady's promised to Lucia during her second apparition at Fatima, 13 June, 1917 ~

On this day Our Lady, holding Her Immaculate Heart in Her Hand, appeared to Lucia, and by Her side stood the Child Jesus on a luminous cloud. The Child Jesus said: "Have compassion on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother, covered with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to make an act of reparation to remove them."
Then the Blessed Virgin Mary said to Lucia: "Look, my daughter, at My Heart, surrounded with thorns with which ungrateful men pierce Me at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You at least try to console Me and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to Me."
On another occasion the Child Jesus reappeared to Lucia and asked that those who practice this devotion, receive Him in Holy Communion when in the state of grace.
~ Our Lady's apparation to Lucia on 10 December, 1925 ~


"Let us honor her for the purity of her body, the holiness of her life. Let us marvel at her fruitful virginity, and venerate her divine Son. Let us extol her freedom from concupiscence . . . Let us proclaim her to be reverenced by the Angels, desired by the nations, foretold by the patriarchs and prophets, chosen out of all and preferred before all"
~ St. Bernard ~

Let us be thankful to God for the priceless gift of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to the world, to the Catholic Church and to each and everyone of us. To many, the Immaculate Heart of Mary is the only comfort in these needy days of the Church and in times of personal needs.


Indulgenced Aspirations to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

"Blessed be the Holy and Immaculute Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary"
(300 days each time. )

" Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us "
(100 days each time.)

" Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, pray for us"
(100 days each time.)

"Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation"
(300 days each time, Plenary once a month.)



But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19
And thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that, out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed.
Luke 2:35
And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was subject to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart. 
Luke 2:51

Saturday, 08 June, 2013
The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Memorial)


1st Reading
Tobit 12: 1, 5 - 15, 20

1Tobit then called his son Tobias and said to him, "My son, see to the wages of the man who went with you; and he must also be given more."
5So he called the angel and said to him, "Take half of all that you two have brought back."
6Then the angel called the two of them privately and said to them: "Praise God and give thanks to him; exalt him and give thanks to him in the presence of all the living for what he has done for you. It is good to praise God and to exalt his name, worthily declaring the works of God. Do not be slow to give him thanks.
7It is good to guard the secret of a king, but gloriously to reveal the works of God. Do good, and evil will not overtake you.
8Prayer is good when accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. A little with righteousness is better than much with wrongdoing. It is better to give alms than to treasure up gold.
9For almsgiving delivers from death, and it will purge away every sin. Those who perform deeds of charity and of righteousness will have fulness of life;
10but those who commit sin are the enemies of their own lives.
11"I will not conceal anything from you. I have said, `It is good to guard the secret of a king, but gloriously to reveal the works of God.'
12And so, when you and your daughter-in-law Sarah prayed, I brought a reminder of your prayer before the Holy One; and when you buried the dead, I was likewise present with you.
13When you did not hesitate to rise and leave your dinner in order to go and lay out the dead, your good deed was not hidden from me, but I was with you.
14So now God sent me to heal you and your daughter-in-law Sarah.
15I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels who present the prayers of the saints and enter into the presence of the glory of the Holy One."
20And now give thanks to God, for I am ascending to him who sent me. Write in a book everything that has happened."

Psalm

Tobit 13: 2, 6 - 8

2For he afflicts, and he shows mercy; he leads down to Hades, and brings up again, and there is no one who can escape his hand.
6If you turn to him with all your heart and with all your soul, to do what is true before him, then he will turn to you and will not hide his face from you. But see what he will do with you; give thanks to him with your full voice. Praise the Lord of righteousness, and exalt the King of the ages. I give him thanks in the land of my captivity, and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners. Turn back, you sinners, and do right before him; who knows if he will accept you and have mercy on you?
7I exalt my God; my soul exalts the King of heaven, and will rejoice in his majesty.
8Let all men speak, and give him thanks in Jerusalem.

Gospel

Luke 2: 41 - 51

41Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover.
42And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom;
43and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it,
44but supposing him to be in the company they went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances;
45and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him.
46After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions;
47and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.
48And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously."
49And he said to them, "How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"
50And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them.
51And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart.

The Blessed Virgin Mary revealed to three shepherd children,Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia to whom she appeared at Fatima, Portugal, in 1917, requesting that the devotion on the first Saturday in honour of the Immaculate Heart of Mary which is intended for the reparation of the sins of mankind.
Our Lady repeated this in the July 13th apparition when, after the vision of Hell that was granted to the three children, she said: "You have seen Hell, where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace." Our Lady asks for reparation. "There are so many souls whom the Justice of God condemns for sins committed against me, that I have come to ask reparation;" reparation to this Heart for the sins of mankind, in particular the five kinds of offenses and blasephemies against theImmaculate Heart of Mary:



1. Blasphemies against the Immaculate Conception
2. Blasphemies against her perpetual virginity
3. Blasphemeies against the divine and spiritual maternity of Mary
4. Blasphemies involving the rejection and dishonoring of her images
5. The neglect of implanting in the hearts of children a knowledge and love of this Immaculate Mother


Sacrifice Prayer
O my Jesus, 
I offer this for love of Thee, 
for the conversion of sinners, 
and in reparation for the sins committed 
against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.


Prayer of Reparation 

O Most Holy Trinity, 
Father, Son and Holy Spirit, 
I adore thee profoundly. 
I offer thee the most precious 
Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, 
present in all the tabernacles of the world, 
in reparation for the outrages, 
sacrileges and indifferences 
by which He is offended. 
By the infinite merits of the 
Sacred Heart of Jesus, 
and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, 
I beg of thee the conversion of poor sinners.
Amen.

The following first Saturday devotions are efficacious in honouring the Immaculate Heart of Mary: 

1. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
2. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. 
3. Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. 
4. Act of Reparation. 
5. The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 
6. The Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, 
and tender Mother of all people,
I consecrate myself to you 
and to your Immaculate Heart, 
and recommend to you my family, 
my country, and the whole human race. 
Please accept my consecration, 
dearest Mother, 
and use me as you wish, 
to accomplish your designs 
upon the world. 
O Immaculate Heart of Mary, 
Queen of Heaven and Earth, 
rule over me, and teach me 
how to allow the Heart of Jesus to rule 
and triumph in me and around me, 
as it has ruled and triumphed in you. 
Amen.

Act of Reparation 
Most Holy Virgin 
and our beloved Mother, 
we listen with grief 
to the complaints 
of the Immaculate Heart, 
surrounded with the thorns 
which ungrateful men 
place therein at every moment 
by their blasphemies and ingratitude. 
Moved by the ardent desire 
of loving thee as our Mother 
and of promoting a true devotion 
to thy Immaculate Heart, 
we prostrate ourselves at thy feet 
to prove the sorrow we feel 
for the grief that men cause thee 
and to atone by means 
of our prayers and sacrifices 
for the offenses 
with which men return 
thy tender love.
Obtain for them 
and for us the pardon 
of so many sins. 
A word from thee 
will obtain grace 
and forgiveness for all.
Hasten, O Lady, 
the conversion of sinners 
that they may love Jesus 
and cease to offend God, 
already so much offended, 
and thus avoid eternal punishment. 
Turn thine eyes of mercy 
towards us so that henceforth 
we may love God 
with all our heart 
while on earth 
and enjoy Him 
forever in Heaven. 
Amen.

I promise to help at the hour of death, with the graces needed for salvation, whoever on the First Saturday of five consecutive months shall:
1. Confess and Receive Holy Communion.
2. Recite five decades of the Holy Rosary.
3. Keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me.



Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus



The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is always celebrated 19 days after Pentecost Sunday. The Sacred Heart of Jesus is usually seen as a human heart surrounded by flames and surmounted by a cross.The heart is bleeding as a result of the lance wound and it is surrounded by a crown of thorns. The Sacred Heart of Jesus represents not only shows us His humanity but His infinite love for all mankind and the world.



In 1672, Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque had a vision of Jesus in which He said, "Behold the wound in my side, wherein you are to make your abode, now and forever." The Lord continued to appear to her in visions  and on  27 December, 1673, on feast of Saint John the Evangelist, as she knelt at the grill before the exposed Blessed Sacrament, she experienced a vision in which the Lord told her to take the place that Saint John had occupied at the Last Supper, and that she would act as His instrument. Jesus by revealing His Sacred Heart as a symbol of His love for mankind, saying, "My divine Heart is so inflamed with love for mankind ... that it can no longer contain within itself the flames of its burning charity and must spread them abroad by your means." She described that His Heart was on fire and surrounded by a crown of thorns. Our Lord told her that the flames represented His love for humanity, and the thorns represented man's sinfulness and ingratitude. Jesus informed her that her mission was to establish the devotion to His Most Sacred Heart, and He gave her these twelve promises which are for those who are devoted to His Sacred Heart.

~ I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.
~ I will establish peace in their families.
~ I will console them in all their troubles.
~ They shall find in My Heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of their death.
~ I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.
~ Sinners shall find in My Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
~ Tepid souls shall become fervent.
~ Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.
~ I will bless the homes where an image of My Heart shall be exposed and honored.
~ I will give to priests the power of touching the most hardened hearts.
~ Those who propagate this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be effaced.
~ The all-powerful love of My Heart will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under my displeasure, nor without receiving their Sacraments; My heart shall be their assured refuge at that last hour.

"Look at this Heart which has loved men so much, and yet men do not want to love Me in return. Through you My divine Heart wishes to spread its love everywhere on earth."

The Solemnity of the Sacred Heart acts as reminder to us of Jesus’ love and to encourage the faithful to make reparation for the many sins committed against Him.

Act of Love to the Sacred Heart
This prayer was written by Merry Cardinal Del Val, 
secretary of state under Pope Saint Pius X.

Reveal Thy Sacred Heart to me, 
O Jesus, 
and show me Its attractions. 
Unite me to It for ever. 
Grant that all my aspirations 
and all the beats of my heart, 
which cease not even while I sleep, 
may be a testimonial to Thee 
of my love for Thee 
and may say to Thee: 
Yes, Lord, I am all Thine; 
the pledge of my allegiance 
to Thee rests ever in my heart 
and will never cease to be there. 
Do Thou accept 
the slight amount 
of good that I do 
and be graciously pleased 
to repair all my wrongdoing; 
so that I may be able 
to bless Thee 
in time and in eternity. 
Amen.


Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart
I, [state your name]
give myself and consecrate 
to the Sacred Heart 
of our Lord Jesus Christ 
my person and my life, 
my actions, pains, and sufferings, 
so that I may be unwilling 
to make use of any part 
of my being save 
to honour, love, and glorify 
the Sacred Heart.

This is my unchanging purpose, 
namely, to be all His, 
and to do all things 
for the love of Him, 
at the same time 
renouncing with all my heart 
whatever is displeasing to Him.

I therefore take Thee, 
O Sacred Heart, 
to be the only object 
of my love, 
the guardian of my life, 
my assurance of salvation, 
the remedy of my weakness 
and inconstancy, 
the atonement for all 
the faults of my life, 
and my sure refuge 
at the hour of death.

Be then, O Heart of goodness, 
my justification before 
God Thy Father, 
and turn away from me 
the strokes of His righteous anger. 
O Heart of love, 
I put all my confidence 
in Thee for I fear everything 
from my own wickedness and frailty, 
but I hope for all things 
from Thy goodness and bounty.

Do Thou consume in me 
all that can displease Thee 
or resist Thy holy will; 
let Thy pure love 
imprint Thee so deeply 
upon my heart, 
that I shall nevermore 
be able to forget Thee 
or to be separated from Thee; 
may I obtain from 
all Thy loving kindness 
the grace of having my name 
written in Thee, 
for in Thee I desire 
to place all my happiness 
and all my glory, 
living and dying 
in very bondage 
to Thee. 
Amen.



Friday, 07 June, 2013
The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus


1st Reading
Ezekiel 34: 11 - 16

11"For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.
12As a shepherd seeks out his flock when some of his sheep have been scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep; and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.
13And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the fountains, and in all the inhabited places of the country.
14I will feed them with good pasture, and upon the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on fat pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel.
15I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD.
16I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the crippled, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will watch over; I will feed them in justice.

Psalm

Psalms 23: 1 - 6

1The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want;
2he makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters;
3he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
5Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows.
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

2nd Reading

Romans 5: 5 - 11

5and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.
6While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
7Why, one will hardly die for a righteous man -- though perhaps for a good man one will dare even to die.
8But God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.
9Since, therefore, we are now justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.
10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
11Not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received our reconciliation.

Gospel

Luke 15: 3 - 7

3So he told them this parable:
4"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it?
5And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
6And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, `Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.'
7Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.