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September 14, 2015   Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Reading 1 Nm 21:4b-9 With their patience worn out by the journey,the people complained against God and Moses,“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,where there is no food or water?We are disgusted with this wretched food!” In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,which bit the people so that many of them died.Then the people came to Moses and said,“We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.Pray the LORD to take the serpents from us.”So Moses prayed...

Mon. Sep. 14 at 8:00 PM ETTue. Sep. 15 at 1:00 AM ETFri. Sep. 18 at 1:00 PM ETBIRGITTA AND ULF EKMANFormer Charismatic and Non-Denominational converts Birgitta and Ulf Ekman share their faith journey with Host Marcus Grodi. Duration: 01:00 FROM FIRST THINGS Ulf Ekman’s Charismatic Conversion by Dale M. Coulter 3 . 11 . 14 The founder of one of Sweden’s largest Protestant congregations is converting to Catholicism. This past Sunday Ulf Ekman announced to the Word of Life church he founded that he and his wife would swim the Tiber. Major news even in secular Sweden, the...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 5 King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them. 2 While Belshazzar was drinking his wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that Nebuchadnezzar his father[a] had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and his concubines might drink from them. 3 So they brought in the gold goblets that had been taken from the temple of God in Jerusalem, and the king and his nobles, his wives...

September 13, 2015 Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Is 50:5-9a The Lord GOD opens my ear that I may hear;and I have not rebelled,have not turned back.I gave my back to those who beat me,my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;my face I did not shieldfrom buffets and spitting. The Lord GOD is my help,therefore I am not disgraced;I have set my face like flint,knowing that I shall not be put to shame.He is near who upholds my right;if anyone wishes to oppose me,let us appear together.Who disputes my right?Let that man confront me.See, the Lord...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 28 All this happened to King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 32 You will be driven away from people and...

September 12, 2015   Saturday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 1 Tm 1:15-17 Beloved:This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance:Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.Of these I am the foremost.But for that reason I was mercifully treated,so that in me, as the foremost,Christ Jesus might display all his patience as an examplefor those who would come to believe in him for everlasting life. To the king of ages, incorruptible, invisible, the only God,honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. Responsorial Psalm PS 113:1b-2, 3-4, 5 and 6-7 R. (2) Blessed be...

O Lord our God, Who art Thyself, the Hope of the hopeless, the Help of the helpless, the Savior of the storm-tossed, the Haven of the voyager, the Physician of the sick; be all things to our land which fourteen years ago on this date was devastated by the cowardly and hateful acts of false martyrs; who imitated wicked Herod in his slaughter of the 14,000 innocents. To those who lost loved ones, grant the comfort thou didst impart to Mary and Martha before Thou didst raise their brother Lazarus from the dead, and care for them as Thou didst...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 4 19 Then Daniel (also called Belteshazzar) was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him. So the king said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its meaning alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered, “My lord, if only the dream applied to your enemies and its meaning to your adversaries! 20 The tree you saw, which grew large and strong, with its top touching the sky, visible to the whole earth, 21 with beautiful leaves and abundant fruit, providing food for all, giving shelter to the wild animals, and having...

September 11, 2015   Friday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 1 Tm 1:1-2, 12-14 Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our saviorand of Christ Jesus our hope,to Timothy, my true child in faith:grace, mercy, and peace from God the Fatherand Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord,because he considered me trustworthyin appointing me to the ministry.I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and an arrogant man,but I have been mercifully treatedbecause I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief.Indeed, the...

Pray For Our American Heroes and Our Nation 9/11 attacks Pass through, pass through the gates! Prepare the way for the people. Build up, build up the highway! Remove the stones. Raise a banner for the nations. Isaiah 62:10 (NIV) ----

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 4 [a]King Nebuchadnezzar, To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth: May you prosper greatly! 2 It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me. 3 How great are his signs,    how mighty his wonders! 
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;    his dominion endures from generation to generation. 4 I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in bed,...

Pray For Our American Heroes and Our Nation Stand Firm Psalms 33:20-22 Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

I would appreciate prayers for the safety of my daughter and her fellow students who are theology students at a school in Austria. The refugee/jihadi infiltrator situation is bad over there right now, considerably worse than we are seeing reported here in the States. From what I gather, the security situation in towns that are hosting refugee camps is deteriorating and there are any number of incidents where Muslim refugees continue the persecution against Christian refugees (stealing from them, attacks against them, etc.) The police are (intentionally?) oblivious to incidents. Who knows what else they are oblivious to. Your prayers...

September 10, 2015 Thursday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Col 3:12-17 Brothers and sisters:Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,bearing with one another and forgiving one another,if one has a grievance against another;as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.And over all these put on love,that is, the bond of perfection.And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,the peace into which you were also called in one Body.And be thankful.Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,as in all wisdom you teach...

....Yes, it's true that when one submits to God, we will be blessed, but the biblical Stephen was 'blessed' with a vision of heaven before the last killing stone crushed his head. Paul was 'blessed' with a thorn in his side which tormented him God called sufficient grace. Peter was 'blessed' with a long career preaching in a persecuting world that ended with martyrdom on a cross. Facing the Giants bought into and promoted every Western Christian cliche imaginable. I would like to have seen the coach get fired even if he had won the championships. Or what would have...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 3 King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide,and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. 3 So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood...

September 9, 2015   Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, Priest Reading 1 Col 3:1-11 Brothers and sisters:If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.When Christ your life appears,then you too will appear with him in glory. Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly:immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire,and the greed that is idolatry.Because of these the wrath of God is coming upon the...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem Character Studies From The Bible Daniel 24 Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.” 25 Arioch took Daniel to the king at once and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.” 26 The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me what I saw...

. . . . when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? Luke 18:8