The Prayer of Silence

A Production of the Ultimate Christian Podcast Network.

What is prayer?

Prayer is time with God. A conversation. A lifting of our mind and heart to him.

There are different types of prayer

We can pray with others or by ourselves. There are vocal prayers, often those we have memorized. We can pray those aloud or inside our mind, but there are words involved either way.

Contemplative prayer is quiet. There are not many words.

How to pray in silence?

Put yourself in a quiet place, free of distractions.

Close your eyes and ask the Lord to be present with you.

Breathe. In your mind, picture God looking at you or open your eyes and look at an image that focuses you.

Tell God briefly what is on your mind.

And then sit quietly, if thoughts come to mind, let them go.

When you are done, thank God for his presence.

You may come away with answers or a sense of peace. Answers may come at another time. Try not to worry if you are doing it right, know that any time we give to God like this helps us become the person he created.

Try contemplative prayer this week. Start with 10 minutes a day and see what happens.

 

Peter denies, Jesus forgives

A Production of the Ultimate Christian Podcast Network.

What is sin?

Simply put, it is missing the mark. In the Gospels, the story of Peter denying Jesus and then being able to be forgiven by Jesus after the resurrection is such a clear example of how much love Jesus has for each one of us.

Scripture

John 18: 17, 25-27 is where you can find Peter being asked three times if he knows Jesus and three times he denies knowing Our Lord. And then the cock crows and Peter remembers Jesus’ words from the Last Supper.

What a weight that must have been for Peter to carry as he watched Jesus die on the cross, bury him and then wait for his return. Jesus does rise and Peter interacts with him. And then, Jesus asks Peter three times, “Do you love me?” in John 21:15-17.

Sin is gone

Peter is no longer burdened by his denial of Jesus. He can move forward, leading the apostles to spread the Good News. That is what forgiveness does; it gives us the freedom to live the life we are called to live in Christ.

Write a letter to Jesus about your sins. List them, ask for forgiveness, pour out your heart to him and invite him in to take your sin away.

(As always, if you are Catholic, consider confession.)

Get a sample of my Bible study book when you sign up for my emails.

Faith, a gift from God

A Production of the Ultimate Christian Podcast Network.

Hans von Balthasar says that “Faith is the fundamental response to the love that has offered itself up for me.”  That love is God giving up his Son so that we might have eternal life. That love is Christ crucified.  I believe that God offered up his love for me, just as he did for you.   In thinking about that love intellectually, it is beyond our grasp.  Most of us have experienced love in our lives, both given and received, but even those who profess to love us unconditionally and want nothing but our happiness let us down.  God never lets us down.  He never takes away the visible and real reminder of his love, which is Jesus, broken and poured out in the Eucharist for us.  Matthew 8:26

God does not demand we have faith, he offers it to us as a gift, we choose to accept it or not. People who profess no faith usually fall into two categories:  they do not need faith or they are afraid to accept it. Others want faith; seeing in people of faith something that they do not have in their own lives.  But they know that by accepting the gift, there are responsibilities that come with the gift of faith.  Changes would have to be made and possibly difficult choices, so instead of accepting faith they are adrift, constantly trying to fill the emptiness.  As St. Augustine says, “Our hearts are restless, Lord until they rest in thee.”

In Hebrews 11:1 we read that “Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.” None of us can see the future, but we can trust and rely on God to guide us in our lives, no matter what happens.  Too often, we use our faith to get us through the bad times, not remembering that God wants to be with us in the good times as well.  Jesus died for us, that is TRUTH.  But he also rose for us.  It is in that rising from the dead that faith of the Apostles grew and changed, eventually, the Holy Spirit came down and gave them the power to move in that faith.  His resurrection is what we have faith in because in that action he gives us new life.  The cross tells us that we must die to self, but once we do we are raised to a new life of faith far greater than the one we gave up on our cross.

Faith gives us strength and the ability to grow into the persons God meant for us to be.  Each of us has a purpose, we are told, that “No one lights a candle and hides it under a bushel basket.” Faith is not meant only for your good, but for the good of others. To thank him for that gift I accept I do what I can to not only grow my faith but to share it with others.

Faith is the ability to see God at work in this world; to believe in a power much bigger than you.  With faith the impossible becomes possible.  It is faith that gives us the courage to bring children into this world. The desire to walk with another on their life’s journey is part of faith.  It is the strength in our soul to say yes when every other part of us is screaming no.  Sometimes faith means trusting just enough to get out of bed believing that God will clear a path, knowing that when I fall, he will lift me up.  Faith also gives us the ability to question the nuts and bolts of our religious beliefs and practices, knowing that God is there in those details and wants us to come to him using our intellect as much as our soul.

Scripture Verses quoted:

“If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?” Matthew 6:30

‘He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm.” Matthew 8:26

 

the not lukewarm challengeOur challenge this week is to write down each day, one thing to give to God for Him to take care of instead of worrying about it.

God’s Love For His People

A Production of the Ultimate Christian Podcast Network.

Be sure to subscribe to this podcast or listen to this here – online. You can download this talk on your computer or you can listen on your phone. Share this podcast with a friend.

rsspodcast itunespodcast

God's Love For His PeopleGod’s Love for His People

Episode 1

God’s love for His people will astound and bless you — in the scriptures, He says, “Beloved let us love one another because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In this way the love of God is revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love. Not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Beloved if God so loved us, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet if we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is brought to perfection in us.” (1 Jn. 4: 7-12)

“… who remains in love remains in God and God in him.” (v. 16)

We are called into a  love relationship with God in Jesus Christ through the power and life of the Holy Spirit. We live a covenant relationship in Jesus Christ in the New Creation. Those committed to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ live in a relationship with him in the Father and the Holy Spirit.

We have been created for God

We have been created to naturally live this life of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and come to completion or perfection as a human being in the dynamic of this triune relationship of love. In the book of Revelation Jesus says “Behold I make all things new”! Jesus is the source of the New Creation

By love, we become a new creation, a new man or woman in Christ. Jesus invites us into the New Covenant of Love through our Baptism in water

(The story of Dianne) — listen to the podcast for more.

God’s love for His people is unending!

The only way we can grow in love is by the power of God’s love Therefore we are called into a relationship where we are willing to embrace a process and journey of changing. Sometimes change is easy sometimes it is hard, “unless a seed falls to the ground and dies it remains just a seed, but if it dies it bears much fruit.” (Jn. 12) The story of Jimmy Cohen – a little book entitled Love of God by Charles Colson,  in a chapter entitled “Whatever Happened to Son.”

If God is love and lives in us, we need to love others. The basic call of our vocation is love. A successful and meaningful life is a life of love: giving our life away, giving our love away, and giving our death away! Our transformation and growth in divine love and human love brings spiritual happiness and also human maturity.  (The story of Alex Bombara)

Love is a gift from God, both divine and human love, a fruitful life. A fruitful life lived in the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit brings forth in our transformation generosity and gratitude. In humility we need to be patient, learn to appreciate and accept ourselves as we are, and trust in God’s merciful love to achieve all He has planned for us.