Tag: trust

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The Catechism in a Year – Day 348 – The Battle of Prayer

Prayer is “grace and grit,” as Fr. Mike phrases it. In this section, one of Fr. Mike’s favorites in the Catechism, we hear that “we pray as we live because we live as we pray.” This living and praying is a battle in which we must confront our failures and accept the Holy Spirit’s grace and aid. Prayer requires humility, trust, and perseverance on our part. In this struggle, we must battle against distraction, ourselves, dryness, and temptation. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2725-2731.

Click on link: https://youtu.be/r2ct47YdVvU?si=b_pWBW93wkDrkWAW

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Do You Really Trust God?

The question “Do you really trust God?” was right in Father Mark-Mary’s face when a full-grown rhinoceros was running toward him in South Africa. The rangers with him and his group on that walking safari told the group to stop, but then the rhino charged at them. Its big ugly horn came closer and closer, but then the rangers did the most unexpected thing. They ran at the beast, screaming as loud as they could. Then the rhinoceros ran off. The lie that we can’t trust God is like that rhinoceros. Father Mark-Mary challenges us to run straight toward that lie, remembering these words from Christ: “And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life” (Matthew 19:29)

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Struggling to Hear God?

If you’re struggling to hear God’s voice, take heart in Fr. Mark-Mary’s words of hope here. Complementing the advice given by Jackie and Bobby Angel in their new book, Fr. Mark-Mary encourages you to trust in God’s guidance. He recounts the time when he was working as a missionary in Honduras providing for the poorest families there. The decisions he had to make to ensure the most needy families received food from his mission weighed on him tremendously. Only by praying, deciding, and trusting in God’s providence was he able to proceed and provide the help the families needed. Especially in discerning his vocation as a Franciscan Friar of the Renewal, Fr. Mark-Mary put God’s will before all else. It seems to have paid off quite well, and that’s why he wants to embolden you to do the same.

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Unsure About What to Do?

Mother Clare and Fr. Mark-Mary discuss how to live with uncertainty. Being uncertain about something isn’t entirely problematic, because uncertainty requires that we trust something or someone. Often we put that trust in empirical research, the scientific method, tried and true procedures, and so on. How often do we put our trust in God when we are uncertain about something, though. Sometimes trusting God requires letting go of our trust in ourselves. When Peter was invited by Jesus to walk onto the water, Peter had to let go of his understanding of reality. His uncertainty got the best of him after just a few steps, but perhaps there is a lesson in that as well. We often want God to give us the grace and certainty needed for several steps ahead, but he only gives us certainty in our next step so we have to trust each step we take. God gives you sufficient grace for today, not tomorrow, next week or fifty years from now.

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The Bible in a Year – Day 59 – Obligations to God

The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)

Day 59: Obligations to God

As we read Numbers 8-9, Deuteronomy 8, and Psalm 93, Fr. Mike reflects on how the Israelites were expected to celebrate Passover in all circumstances, learned to trust that God would lead them to where they needed to go, and needed to remember God in times of abundance as well as darkness.

Click on link:

https://bibleinayear.fireside.fm/day-59

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The Bible in a Year – Day 62 – Spies Sent to Canaan

The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)

Day 62: Spies Sent to Canaan

As we read Numbers 12 and 13, Deuteronomy 11, and Psalm 94, Fr. Mike reflects on the conflict between Aaron, Miriam, and Moses and explains why Miriam appears to be the only one punished. He also mentions the lack of trust the people continue to have in God, as they discover that the land of Canaan is occupied by a seemingly stronger force.

Click on link:

https://bibleinayear.fireside.fm/day-62