What God has joined together, let no man put asunder

What is God's intention for our state in life, whether married or single? 

Jesus deals with the issue of divorce by taking his hearers back to the beginning of creation and to God's plan for the human race. In Genesis 2:23-24 we see God's intention and ideal that two people who marry should become so indissolubly one that they are one flesh. That ideal is found in the unbreakable union of Adam and Eve. They were created for each other and for no one else. They are the pattern and symbol for all who were to come. Jesus explains that Moses permitted divorce as a concession in view of a lost ideal. 

Jesus sets the high ideal of the married state before those who are willing to accept his commands. Jesus, likewise sets the high ideal for those who freely renounce marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:11-12). Both marriage and celibacy are calls from God to live a consecrated life, that is to live as married couples or as singles who belong not to themselves but to God. Our lives are not our own, but they belong to God. He gives the grace and power to those who seek to follow his way of holiness in their state of life. Do you seek the Lord and his grace in your state of life? 

Do you seek to help others draw near to the Lord? The parents who brought their children to Jesus wanted Jesus to lay his hands upon them. They knew of the healing power, both physical and spiritual, which came from Jesus' touch. Jesus, in turn, rebuked his disciples for hindering the children from coming. No doubt the disciples wanted to shield Jesus from the nuisance of noisy children. But Jesus delighted in the children and demonstrated that God's love has ample room for everyone. 

No one is unimportant to God. He comes to each person individually that he might touch them with his healing love and power. May we never hinder our youth from coming to the Lord to receive his blessing and healing power. And as we grow with age, may we never lose that child-like simplicity and humility which draws us into Christ's loving presence. Do you show kindness to the youth you encounter in your neighborhood, home, and church and do you pray for them that they may grow in the knowledge and wisdom of Jesus Christ?

Lord Jesus Christ, your call to holiness extends to all in every state of life. Sanctify our lives - as married couples and as singles - that we may live as men and women who are consecrated to you. Make us leaven in a society that disdains life-long marriage fidelity, chastity, and living single for the Lord

source: From the desk of Don Schwager, 

hosted by Kairos Europe and the Middle East

Prayer & Pray

What is a prayer? 

Prayer is a way of faithful communication with God for expressing our intentions, thoughts, desires and needs. Prayer can be from a read pretext format form or said free form which is spontaneously said. Prayer can be expressed verbally or silently. 

Why pray? 

1. Keep us mindful of God, our creator who is the greatest power, infinite of mercy and love. 
2. Awareness on our dependency on God, without God we are nothing. 
3. Help us to seek and receive God’s working in our daily life. 
4. Makes us closer to God, and make us aware of our joyful destiny with Him. 

Types of prayer 

Adoration 

Praising, glorifying and worshipping God. 

Blessing and protection 

We ask God for by His power to grant us His bless and protection. 

Contrition 

When we confess, repent and seek forgiveness and reconciliation. 

Supplication and petition 

Lifting up our needs and asking God for help and favour. 

Intercession 

Praying to God on behalf of others. Catholic may seek Mother Mary or the holy saints to pray and intercede to God on behalf of them. We also can pray for our family, loved ones, friends, community, and for the world and environment. 

Thanksgiving 

Giving God thanks and showing our gratitude to Him. 

God is Good, All the time God is Good. 

Prayer to Divine Providence

O Sweet and Tender Providence of God, into Thy hands I commend my spirit, to Thee I abandon myself, my hopes, my fears, my desires, my repugnances, my temporal and eternal prospects. To Thee I commit the wants of my perishable body, to Thee I commit the far more precious interests of my immortal soul, for whose interests I have nothing to fear while I withdraw it not from Thy bosom. Though my faults are many, my misery great, my spiritual poverty extreme, my hope in Thee surpasses all. It is greater than my difficulties, stronger than death. Though temptations should assail me, I will hope in Thee, though I should sink beneath my weakness, I will hope in Thee still, though I should break my resolutions a thousand times, I will look to Thee confidently for grace to keep them at last; though Thou shouldst slay me, even then will I trust Thee, for Thou art my God, my Father and my Friend. Thou art my kind, my tender, my indulgent Parent, and I am Thy loving Child, who cast myself into Thy Arms and beg Thy blessing, who put my trust in Thee, and so trusting, shall never be confounded. 

Providence did provide. Providence can provide. Providence will provide. O loving Providence of God we commit this cause to Thee. 

source: Precious Blood and Mother Prayer book

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

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.

A generous person will prosper;

whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.

Proverbs 11:25

[Malaysia Only]

Hong Leong Bank

Stanley

Acct No: 15850090650

May the Lord bless you for your generosity,

and may the Mother of God intercede for your every need.

Thank you God for everything, and help me Lord in my current urgent need

Thank you God for everything, everything in my life is a blessing from you. I am now unable to handle things on my own as financial commitments and debts are have overwhelm me. At times I have no money to even meet my basic daily necessities like even fuel for my car,  the situation I am in is almost out of my control. You are my Lord, God and Savior only You can do the impossible, without You I am nothing. All I have is from You, all I am is because of my own faults and all I am going to be depends on You infinite mercy and goodness Lord. Please hear me Lord, as I call upon You in this desperate times and help me. Lord I know that I am a sinner and it is unworthy for You to enter under my roof, but I truly believe and trust that You only have to say the word and I will be healed from my misery. You have said your word does return to You void as in Isaiah 55:11, “so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth, it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Make a way Lord and provided for to overcome these debts so that my life will change, I will repent and as You have helped me, I too will be a help to others and the needy. Lord I make this pray through Your son JESUS CHRIST. Amen.

Saint Jude Thaddeus Feast ~ 2018 ~ Rawang, Selangor, Malaysia

St. Jude Thaddeus, pray for us,

who are desperate and in urgent need of the Lord's help.

Rosary month of October 2018 ~ Pope Francis

Pope Francis has asked all Catholics to pray the rosary daily during the month of October, asking Mother Mary and St. Michael the Archangel to intercede for the protection of the Church in a moment of "spiritual turbulence."

The Pope asked the world’s Catholics to conclude their praying of the rosary during October with two special prayers, the ancient “Sub Tuum Praesidium” (“Beneath thy protection”) and the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, written in 1886 by Pope Leo XIII.

The Vatican explained that in asking for the Mother of God’s intercession, he hoped that she would “place the Church beneath her protective mantle: to preserve her from the attacks by the devil, the great accuser.”

Sub Tuum Praesidium

(Beneath thy protection)

We fly to Thy protection, 

O Holy Mother of God. 

Do not despise our petitions in our necessities, 

but deliver us always from all dangers, 

O Glorious and Blessed Virgin. 

Amen. 

Prayer to St. Michael

Saint Michael Archangel, 

defend us in battle, 

be our protection against 

the wickedness and snares 

of the devil; 

may God rebuke him, 

we humbly pray; 

and do thou, 

O Prince of the heavenly host, 

by the power of God, 

cast into hell Satan 

and all the evil spirits 

who prowl through the world 

seeking the ruin of souls. 

Amen.

Always Say A Prayer

There's work to do, deadlines to meet.

You've got no time to spare.

but as you hurry and scurry....

(ASAP ~ Always Say A Prayer)

In the midst of family chaos,

quality time is rare.

Do your best, let God do the rest....

(ASAP ~ Always Say A Prayer)

It may seem lie your worries

are more than you can bear.

Slow down and take a breather....

(ASAP ~ Always Say A Prayer)

God knows how stressful life can be

and wants to ease our cares.

He'll respond to all your needs....

(ASAP ~ Always Say A Prayer)

Today I'm saying a little prayer

that God will send a smile to you

and send you special blessings

through everything you have to do.

Bone Relic of Sts. Jacques Chastan and Laurent Imbert (Martyrs)

Saint Jacques Chastan

Saint Laurent Imbert

First Class Bone Relics of 

Sts. Jacques Chastan and Laurent Imbert

Hear the word of God and do it

Who do you love and cherish the most?

God did not intend for us to be alone, but to be with others. He gives us many opportunities for developing relationships with family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. Why does Jesus seem to ignore his own relatives when they pressed to see him? His love and respect for his mother and his relatives is unquestionable. Jesus never lost an opportunity to teach his disciples a spiritual lesson and truth about the kingdom of God. On this occasion when many gathered to hear Jesus he pointed to another higher reality of relationships, namely our relationship with God and with those who belong to God.

What is the essence of being a Christian? It is certainly more than doctrine, precepts, and commandments. It is first and foremost a relationship - a relationship of trust, affection, commitment, loyalty, faithfulness, kindness, thoughtfulness, compassion, mercy, helpfulness, encouragement, support, strength, protection, and so many other qualities that bind people together in mutual love and unity. 

God seeks a personal intimate relationship with each one of us

God offers us the greatest of relationships - union of heart, mind, and spirit with himself, the very author and source of love (1 John 4:8,16). God's love never fails, never forgets, never compromises, never lies, never lets us down nor disappoints us. His love is consistent, unwavering, unconditional, unrelenting and unstoppable. There is no end to his love. Nothing in this world can make him leave us, ignore us, or withhold from us his merciful love and care (Romans 8:31-39). He will love us no matter what. It is his nature to love. That is why he created us - to be united with him and to share in his love (1 John 3:1). 

God is a trinity of divine persons - one in being with the eternal Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - and a community of undivided love. God made us in his image and likeness (Genesis 1:26,27) to be a people who are free to choose what is good, loving, and just and to reject whatever is false and contrary to his love and righteousness (moral goodness). That is why Jesus challenged his followers, and even his own earthly relatives, to recognize that God is the true source of all relationships. God wants all of our relationships to be rooted in his love and goodness.

The heavenly Father's offer of friendship and adoption

Jesus Christ is God's love incarnate - God's love made visible in human flesh (1 John 4:9-10). That is why Jesus describes himself as the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep and the shepherd who seeks out the sheep who have strayed and lost their way. God is like the father who yearns for his prodigal son to return home and then throws a great party for his son when he has a change of heart and comes back (Luke 15:11-32). 

Jesus offered up his life on the cross for our sake, so that we could be forgiven and restored to unity and friendship with God. It is through Jesus that we become the adopted children of God - his own sons and daughters. That is why Jesus told his disciples that they would have many new friends and family relationships in his kingdom. Whoever does the will of God is a friend of God and a member of his family - his sons and daughters who have been ransomed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ.

Through Jesus Christ we become brothers and sisters - members of God's family

Lucian of Antioch (240-312 AD), an early Christian martyr once said that "a Christian's only relatives are the saints"- namely those who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ and adopted as sons and daughters of God. Those who have been baptized into Jesus Christ and who live as his disciples enter into a new family, a family of "saints" here on earth and in heaven. Jesus changes the order of relationships and shows that true kinship is not just a matter of flesh and blood. 

Our adoption as sons and daughters of God transforms all of our relationships and requires a new order of loyalty to God first and to his kingdom of righteousness and peace. Do you want to grow in love and friendship? Allow the Holy Spirit to transform your heart, mind, and will to enable you to love freely and generously as God has loved you.

Heavenly Father, you are the source of all true friendship and love. In all my relationships, may your love be my constant guide for choosing what is good and for rejecting what is contrary to your will.

source: From the desk of Don Schwager, 

hosted by Kairos Europe and the Middle East

The cross of Jesus Christ

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:16) 

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21) 

You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. (1 Peter 1:18-19) 

For there is one God, there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself a ransom for all. (1 Timothy 2:5-6) 

They sing a new song, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slaughtered and by your blood you ransomed for God saints from every tribe and language and people and nation.” (Revelation 5:9) 

The death of Jesus Christ, the Son of God on the cross reveals to us the character of God, His love for lost sinners and His Mercy. An amazing act of unconditional love, the Son of God endured sin's ultimate penalty in the place of even the worst of his enemies. Jesus became the sacrificial Lamb of God, becoming a substitute in the place of us sinners, an essential ransom price so that God's justice could be satisfied and that sinners may be set free from the penalty of death. Jesus died on the cross in atonement for our sins and of the whole world in order as an appeasing sacrifice for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. By His death on the cross Christ not only brought redemption through his blood for us but also the forgiveness of sins. We are reconciled and made justified with God as Jesus death removed the barrier of sin between God and us. A justified sinner receives eternal life as we recall one the criminals crucified alongside who had faith in Jesus said “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42) and what Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:43) 

Jesus Christ used the cross as an instrument of our salvation. The cross of Jesus Christ is the place where all the wounds of sin are healed. In facing emotional problems such as guilt, anxiety, depression, anger, or whatever, there is healing in the cross of Jesus Christ. Also during tragedy or suffering, there is comfort in abundance as we contemplate the sufferings of our spotless Saviour hanging on the cross for us. As Saint Peter, the apostle of Christ wrote, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness and by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:24-25). And as foretold in the Old Testament by the prophet Isaiah, “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases, yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray, we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:4-6) 

Before we turned to Jesus Christ as our sin bearer, we were characterised by straying from the Good Shepherd, going our own way. We were lost even though we may not have known it. We were in danger of harm and even death, although perhaps we were oblivious to it. If we have turned to Him, it’s because He came looking for us. If you have not yet come to Him, you cannot save yourself. But the Shepherd is seeking you, even today. He wants to deliver you from the power of sin that causes you to stray from His loving care and protection. 

As Saint Paul wrote, “I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2:19-20) .We are to die cleanse of our sins and rise with Christ to a new life following Him as the Way, the Truth and the Life. 

The cross of Jesus Christ crushed the devil and his angels and destroyed their hold on men. “Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14) 

He did not sin, did not lie, did not revile, and did not threaten. He committed Himself to God. (1 Peter 2:18-23) 

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” (Hebrews 12:1-4) 

Jesus showed an example of humility and obedience for us to follow as He humbled himself to death for the sins of others, and we should be willing to do the same. (Philippians 2:5-11)

Prayer for God's protection during Hurricane (or Storms)

O Heavenly Father, 

all the elements of nature 

obey Your command. 

Calm the storms that threaten us 

and turn our fear 

into praise of Your goodness.

Protect us from hurricanes 

and disasters of nature. 

We ask this through 

Jesus Christ, Your Son, 

who lives and reigns 

with You through the power 

of the Holy Spirit, 

One God forever and ever. 

Amen.

Mama Mary, I Love You

Happy Birthday Mother Mary ~ 8 September

September 8, Our Lady's birthday, the Universal Church celebrates the first dawning of redemption with the appearance in the world of the Savior's mother, Mary. The Blessed Virgin occupies a unique place in the history of salvation, and she has the highest mission ever commended to any creature. We rejoice that the Mother of God is our Mother, too. Let us often call upon the Blessed Virgin as "Cause of our joy",

Happy Birthday Dearest Mother

Pray for us sinners and lead us 

to your Son and our Lord, Jesus.

We Love You, Mama Mary.

Thank you God

Thank you God for everything.

I Praise You Father

Thank You Jesus 

Heal me and guide me

O Holy Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NRSVCE)

give thanks in all circumstances; 

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

I have cried tears ....

I have cried tears of Joy

I Have cried tears of fear of losing it all

I have cried tears of learning the hardest way

I have cried tears of consolation

I have cried tears of knowing that in it all, God makes the way

I have cried tears of relief that good people are by my side

I have cried tears of knowing that in it all God was/is/will be there

 

Prayer at the End of Each Day

Jesus Christ my God, I adore Thee and I thank Thee for all the graces Thou have given me this day. I offer Thee my sleep and all the moments of this night, and I implore Thee to keep me safe from sin. To this end I place myself in Thy sacred side and under the mantle of our Lady, my Mother. Let Thy holy angels surround me and keep me in peace; and let Thy blessing be upon me. Amen.

By Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

Prayer to Our Mother of Sorrows

Our mother of sorrows, 

with strength from above 

you stood by the cross, 

sharing in the sufferings of Jesus, 

and with tender care 

you bore Him in your arms, 

mourning and weeping.

We praise you for your faith, 

which accepted the life 

God planned for you. 

We praise you for your hope, 

which trusted that God 

would do great things in you. 

We praise you for your love 

in bearing with Jesus 

the sorrows of His passion.

Holy Mary, 

may we follow your example, 

and stand by all your children 

who need comfort and love.

Mother of God, 

stand by us in our trials 

and care for us 

in our many needs 

especially for (mention request). 

Pray for us now 

and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Saint Padre Pio Feast Celebration at Church of Holy Family, Kajang ~ 23 September 2018

20 Sept 2018 - 100 years of the Stigmatisation of St. Padre Pio

 (1918 ~ 2018)

23 Sept 2018 - 50 years of St. Padre Pio Birth in Heaven 

(1968 ~ 2018)

Prayer for when you feel like giving up

I welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit,

let Him be my Comforter and Guide. 

I know that my present struggles

does not mean I am a failure,

because every great Success 

requires some kind of

struggles to get there.

Father, my illness, 

my relationships, my job

are all getting the better of me,

give me Strength, 

give me Hope.

As I cling to You,

please draw near.

source: christianstt.com