The Power of Prayer

 Today (Sunday), the priest began his homily with a story. He told us that a man wrote a letter, I think to a priest, but it could have been to a newspaper. In it, he explained that he would no longer attend Mass because he had been going to Mass for 20 years and couldn't remember a single homily. He felt he was wasting his time. This started a discussion, and many people wrote letters for or against his position. Until one letter put an end to the discussion. In it, a man explained that he had been married for 20 years and that his wife had prepared thousands of meals for him, but he couldn't remember a single day's menu. However, he was certain that the food had nourished him and his body. The priest continued by telling us that every prayer has an answer, although it's often not the answer we expect. Furthermore, prayer brings us closer to God, which is why it's important to pray. And as Jesus told us: just as the unjust judge granted justice to the widow because of her persistence, even more so God, who is a good and loving Father, will hear our prayers. The Father also told us that impossible things become possible through prayer. And I remembered the ceasefire in the Holy Land. Something that seemed endless, and now the end of the war is a reality. Thank you to those who worked for peace, but also to the thousands of human beings who prayed for peace. Blessed be God.

Confession

How good God is to forgive us

Only going to the confessional

And he does it all to love us.

For it does not please him to condemn us.

And we must go to confession

Well this is very necessary

And so arm us with his grace

It is something very extraordinary.

Let us draw near, repentant.

To the fountain of mercy:

He offers it to us because we are his.

So we will have a new day

And forgiven, let us begin

To give thanks, honor and glory. 

We are all called to be saints

Revelation 14:12-13

Here is what sustains the holy ones who keep God's commandments and their faith in Jesus.  I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," said the Spirit, "let them find rest from their labors, for their works accompany them."

We are all called to be saints,

How much I would like to be and I am not,

Because I would also like to rest

In the lap of our Lord.

We are all called to be saints,

To obey the Father's commands

And faithfully follow my Jesus,

That following him gives us eternal life

And happiness already from today.

We are all called to be saints

To resist the evil temptation,

That without noticing it puts in the way

Because he does not want our salvation.

We are all called to be saints,

How far from that ideal I feel today

Step by step I keep getting up

If I don't know where I'm going, I follow the cross.

We are all called to be saints

For he loves us all and has created us all

To reach heaven and be happy

Here, there, even in purgatory

So that upon reaching salvation

We will rest in Him

And be His heaven

The house in which we will live

For centuries. 

Hallowed be Thy name

 Hallowed be Thy name

Through the green meadows, - along the banks

of the sea, over the waters, cerules and depths

through the bright spaces in the sky

burning desires

pass, they pass again, - God, what a poem

to Your name - holy and by trembling

in soft air

for you the great heartbeat of the universe.

Rest

 

I want to rest in You

Oh, Eternal and Uncreated Good

Yes then here on Earth

Even if at my earthly end

I want to rest in You

Even at the end of each day

And every week

You are my rest

My source of peace

I miss you if I go away

Of your sacred commandments

Don't you despise this crazy woman

Come to my heart,

Let me rest in Your goodness,

When the heart is already tired.

Because we do not rest

Until we rest in You,

Until I find you Lord

In every moment, in every human being

Princess

  August 23, 2019

Sometimes I feel guilty about a poem I wrote for another blog, where my name is God's princess when I proclaim His Word at Mass. Yesterday I felt that way. It's because it's my turn to proclaim at Mass. But God, who loves us so much, reminded me of something. Some time ago, I read on Facebook the true story of a girl who asked a priest if the Virgin Mary was actually our mother. The priest said yes. She asked again, "Is she a queen?" The priest replied, "Yes." At that moment, the girl smiled and said to her mother, "It's true, it's true, I am a princess!" Then God made me feel better; every woman is a princess of God!

A Memory

There are memories that often come to us with the help of images, sounds, words, or scents. Experiences that remain etched in our memory, waiting for something to awaken them. 

 Remembering God in the diary of our lives may seem difficult for those who don't initially believe in Him, but for those who do, it's enough to wake up, to open our eyes. God is the creator of all things, and everything we have is thanks to Him, beginning with life itself. Still, sometimes I feel the need to see God, something that reminds me of Him, that makes me feel His presence, and I wish I had some religious image nearby. And then I wonder, what is God the Father like? And I remember Jesus' words when he says that whoever has seen Him has seen the Father. And they are one true God, together with the Holy Spirit. And God in His simplicity is Love, pure, divine Love, as the priest told us this Sunday, Agape: Love of understanding. And then comes my other memory, an image that I have engraved in my memory with everything and the feeling it awakens in me, of feeling cherished and loved by God. It's an illustration from the catechism I studied for my First Communion. In this drawing, we see a large circle like a host, but in gold, yellow, and white. From this circle, a hand extends to a girl who stands in front of Him and who, to me, also seems to be leaning her hands toward this divine hand. Obviously, it represents the hand of God, who is always there to help us, who never leaves us, and to whom we say the now. 

As Saint John Paul II says, we must draw near not only in prayer of petition, but also in praise, in contemplation, in joy and in sorrow. Recalling this image reminds me, in turn, of the presence of Christ in the Consecrated Host, and how He, God, is always there, always.

This is the image:

It says: God is our Creator, knows everything, loves us, makes us his children and can do everything. God is our Father, good and loving, who has no end.