Inspirational Quotes: 31-60

BEADS OF JOY 07-03-13
“Inspirational Quotes: 31-60”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

 
My Friends,

Let us continue to share all of these most inspiring exciting quotes. I pray that they are helpful and fruitful on your Spiritual Journey. Posting all of them all at once would make sense; but I thought small bite size bunches like this make for easier maneuvering through all of them.

31. “Merit consists in the virtue of love alone, flavored with the light of true discretion without which the soul is worth nothing.” ~St. Catherine of Siena

32. “There is no place for selfishness—and no place for fear! Do not be afraid, then, when love makes demands. Do not be afraid when love requires sacrifice.” ~Pope John Paul II

33. “We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become. If we love things, we become a thing. If we love nothing, we become nothing. Imitation is not a literal mimicking of Christ, rather it means becoming the image of the beloved, an image disclosed through transformation. This means we are to become vessels of God´s compassionate love for others.” ~St. Clare of Assisi

34. “We can cure physical diseases with medicine but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more who are dying for a little love. Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So spread love everywhere you go.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

35. “Love is the most necessary of all virtues. Love in the person who preaches the word of God is like fire in a musket. If a person were to throw a bullet with his hands, he would hardly make a dent in anything; but if the person takes the same bullet and ignites some gunpowder behind it, it can kill. It is much the same with the word of God. If it is spoken by someone who is filled with the fire of charity- the fire of love of God and neighbor- it will work wonders.” ~St. Anthony Mary Claret (from his autobiography).

36. “Intense love does not measure . . . it just gives.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

37. “The person who does not decide to love forever will find it very difficult to really love for even one day.” ~Pope John Paul II

38. “Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. This is why Christ the Redeemer 'fully reveals man to himself.” ~Pope John Paul II

39. “Real love is demanding. I would fail in my mission if I did not tell you so. Love demands a personal commitment to the will of God.” ~Pope John Paul II

40. “Since love grows within you, so beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul.” ~St. Augustine

41. “God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.” ~St Augustine

42. “It is not so essential to think much as to love much.” ~St Teresa of Jesus, OCD

43. “To be taken with love for a soul, God does not look on its greatness, but the greatness of its humility.” ~St. John of the Cross, OCD

44. “Always remember to love your neighbor; always prefer the one who tries your patience, who test your virtue, because with her you can always merit: suffering is Love; the Law is Love.” ~Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified "The Little Arab"

45. “A soul enkindled with love is a gentle, meek, humble, and patient soul.” ~St. John of the Cross, OCD

46. “You know that our Lord does not look at the greatness or difficulty of our action, but at the love with which you do it. What, then, have you to fear?” ~St Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, OCD

47. “So dearly does His Majesty love us that He will reward our love for our neighbor by increasing the love which we bear to Himself, and that in a thousand ways.” ~St Teresa of Jesus, OCD

48. “What we need most in order to make progress is to be silent before this great God with our appetite and with our tongue, for the language he best hears is silent love.” ~St John of the Cross, OCD

49. “Love takes up where knowledge leaves off.” ~St. Thomas Aquinas

50. “My Jesus, fill my heart with so much love that one day it will break just to be with you. My Jesus, you know I have placed you as a seal on my heart. Remain there always.” ~St. Bernadette Soubirous

51. “I challenge you, "Make God's Will -Your life's desire, no matter how difficult it gets, no matter what the challenges are, no matter how heavy and stressful it gets; always love Him and always THANK HIM for allowing you to be chosen to bear the weight of such a blessed Cross. You will bear much JOY, I promise you, I know this first hand. Praise You Jesus!!!” ~Jim Dacey Jr OFS

52. “He alone loves the Creator perfectly who manifests a pure love for his neighbor.” ~St. Bede the Venerable

53. “Nothing is sweeter than love, nothing stronger or higher or wider; nothing is more pleasant, nothing fuller, and nothing better in heaven or on earth, for love is born of God and cannot rest except in God, Who is above all created things.” ~Imitation of Christ

54. “Love is watchful. Sleeping, it does not slumber. Wearied, it is not tired. Pressed, it is not straitened. Alarmed, it is not confused, but like a living flame, a burning torch, it forces its way upward and passes unharmed through every obstacle.” ~Imitation of Christ

55. “You know well enough that Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, nor even at their difficulty, but at the love with which we do them.” ~St. Therese of Lisieux

56. “Lord, grant that I might not so much seek to be loved as to love.” ~St Francis of Assisi

57. “Accustom yourself continually to make many acts of love, for they enkindle and melt the soul.” ~St. Teresa

58. “We never give more honour to Jesus than when we honour his Mother, and we honour her simply and solely to honour him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek - Jesus, her Son.” ~St. Louis Marie de Montfort

59. “The greatest saints, those richest in grace and virtue will be the most assiduous in praying to the most Blessed Virgin, looking up to her as the perfect model to imitate and as a powerful helper to assist them.” ~St. Louis Marie de Montfort

60. “Mary having co-operated in our redemption with so much glory to God and so much love for us, Our Lord ordained that no one shall obtain salvation except through her intercession.” ~St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

 

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim

Inspirational Quotes: 1-30

BEADS OF JOY 07-02-13
“Inspirational Quotes: 1-30”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS


My Friends,

June has been a most exciting incredible month. Throughout the month I was able to share well over thirty-three pages of quotes. Over the next few days or however long it will take, maybe even scattered throughout July (summer); I will assemble every single one I posted on our ministry wall and even a few more that never got posted. That way all of you will have easier access to all of them whenever you wish to use them, share them, and even grow personally (spiritually) with them.

1.”In every time and place, the Church is called to grow in unity through constant conversion to Christ, whose saving work is proclaimed by the successors of the apostles and celebrated in the sacraments.” ~Pope Benedict XVI, on his visit to America in April 2008

2. “Christ has no body now but mine. He prays in me, works in me, looks through my eyes, speaks through my words, works through my hands, walks with my feet and loves with my heart.” ~St. Theresa of Avila

3. “The greatest mistake is in not being aware that others are Christ. There are very many people who will not discover it until their last day.” ~Archbishop Van Thuân

4. “Joy is a net of love by which we catch souls.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

5. “The fact remains that we are invited to forget ourselves on purpose, cast our awful solemnity to the wind, and join in the general Dance.” ~Thomas Merton OCSO

6. “There is still time for endurance, time for patience; time for healing, time for change. Have you slipped? Rise up. Have you sinned? Cease. Do not stand among sinners, but leap aside.” ~St. Basil

7. “Do everything calmly and peacefully. Do as much as you can as well as you can. Strive to see God in all things without exception, and consent to His will joyously. Do everything for God, uniting yourself to him in word and deed. Walk very simply with the Cross of the Lord and be at peace with yourself.” ~St. Francis de Sales

8. “If you are silent, be silent out of love. If you speak, speak out of love.” ~St. Augustine

9. “In the end one thing is true, either we were right and they were wrong or they were right and we are wrong; with that said which group would you rather be in? Or consider this; is it better to risk everything and end up in Heaven or being directed straight into hell? Before the end we are given the free-will to decide how we will live. Do you know where you are in these reflections?” ~Jim Dacey Jr OFS

10. “Pure love ... knows that only one thing is needed to please God: to do even the smallest things out of great love - love, and always love. (140) ~Divine Mercy in My Soul, St. Faustina

11. “Long before any liberal existed, it was GOD who created and defined MARRIAGE, neither Webster, nor state or even government can redefine what GOD has already DEFINED and CREATED: “Jesus replied. “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female. ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” ~Mark 10:5-9 ~Jim Dacey Jr. OFS

12. “Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor... Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

13. “The proof of love is in the works. Where love exists, it works great things. But when it ceases to act, it ceases to exist.” ~Pope St. Gregory the Great

14. “The things that we love tell us what we are.” ~St. Thomas Aquina

15. “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.” ~St. Augustine of Hippo

16. “If you know Jesus is in your heart, why don’t you share His love? If in private you speak of Jesus on your lips, why don’t you speak of Him? If Jesus shares Himself with you at communion; why don’t you share Him with others?” ~Jim Dacey Jr OFS

17. “My director, Jesus, does not teach me to count my acts, but to do everything for love, to refuse Him nothing, to be pleased when He gives me a chance to prove to Him that I love Him - but all this in peace - in abandonment.” ~St. Therese of Lisieux in a letter to Celine, July 6, 1893

18. “Lord, grant that I might not so much seek to be loved as to love.” ~St. Francis of Assisi

19. “Our Lord loves you and loves you tenderly; and if He does not let you feel the sweetness of His love, it is to make you more humble and abject in your own eyes.” ~St. Pio of Pietrelcino

20. “We must love our neighbor as being made in the image of God and as an object of His love.” ~St. Vincent de Paul

21. “Love to be real, it must cost—it must hurt—it must empty us of self.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

22. “What a weakness it is to love Jesus Christ only when He caresses us, and to be cold immediately once He afflicts us. This is not true love. Those who love thus, love themselves too much to love God with all their heart.” ~St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

23. “The Eucharist is the Sacrament of Love; It signifies Love, It produces love. The Eucharist is the consummation of the whole spiritual life.” ~St. Thomas Aquinas

24. “Charity is the sweet and holy bond which links the soul with its Creator: it binds God with man and man with God.” ~St. Catherine of Siena

25. “The person who loves God cannot help loving every man as himself, even though he is grieved by the passions of those who are not yet purified. But when they amend their lives, his delight is indescribable and knows no bounds. A soul filled with thoughts of sensual desire and hatred is unpurified. If we detect any trace of hatred in our hearts against any man whatsoever for committing any fault, we are utterly estranged from love for God, since love for God absolutely precludes us from hating any man.” ~St. Maximos the Confessor

26. “Everything comes from love, all is ordained for the salvation of man, God does nothing without this goal in mind.” ~St. Catherine of Siena

27. “What is the mark of love for your neighbor? Not to seek what is for your own benefit, but what is for the benefit of the one loved, both in body and in soul.” ~St. Basil the Great

28. “You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working, and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves.” ~St. Francis de Sales

29. “One must see God in everyone.” ~St. Catherine Laboure

30. “We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa

 
Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim

 

Marian Feast Days of July

BEADS OF JOY 07-01-13
“Marian Feast Days of July”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

Marian Feast Days of July

1. Dedication of the Church of Jumieges, Normandy, France (1067)

2. Feast of the Visitation of Our Lady, instituted in 1385 by Pope Urban IV

3. Our Lady of la Carolle, Paris (1418)

4. Our Lady of Miracles, Avignon, France, built by Pope John XXII (14th Century)

5. Dedication of Our Lady of Cambray, Arras, France (1472)

6. Our Lady D’Iron, Dunois, France (1631)

7. Our Lady of Arras, Netherlands (1380)

8. Our Lady of Kazan, Russia (1579)

9. Our Lady of Coutances, France (1056)

10. Our Lady of Boulogne, France (1469)

11. Our Lady of Clery, near Orleans, France (15th Century)

12. Our Lady of Lure, Avignon, France (1110)

13. Image of Our Lady of Chartes, France, carved in 100 B.C. with the inscription, “To a virgin who is to bring forth.”

14. Our Lady of the Bush, Portugal (1118)

15. Our Lady of Molanus, Jerusalem (1099)

16. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Feast of the Brown Scapular (1251)

17. Our Lady of Campitelli, Italy (524)

18. Our Lady of Victory, at Toledo, Spain (1202)

19. Our Lady of Moyen Point, near Peronne, France

20. Our Lady of Grace, at Picpus, Fauborg Saint Antoine, of Paris (1629)

21. Our Lady of Verdun, Lorraine (5th Century)

22. Our Lady of Safety or of Safe Hiding, Overloon, Holland

23. Institution of the Order of Our Lady of Premontre, Lancaster, England, by St. Norbert (1120)

24. Foundation of Our Lady of Cambron, France (1148)

25. Our Lady of Lac Bouchet, Quebec (1920)

26. Our Lady of Faith, Cauchy

27. Our Lady of Faith, Gravelines

28. Victory over the Turks by the Knights Hospitaller at Rhodes in 1480 through Our Lady’s intercession

29. Our Lady of Deliverance, Madrid, Spain

30. Our Lady de Gray, France (1602)

31. Our Lady of the Slain, Lorban, Portugal

 
LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!
Come PRAY THE ROSARY with us every evening Monday through Friday 9pm EST with our
"Our Lady's Rosary Text Vigil Group"…

Invitations posted daily… and throughout the evening…
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Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim

Who Do Others Say You Are?

BEADS OF JOY 06-23-13
“Luke 9:18-24”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS


Gospel: (Luke 9:18-24 / Peter’s Declaration about Jesus)

“Now it happened that as he was praying alone the disciples were with him; and he asked them, "Who do the people say that I am?" And they answered, "John the Baptist; but others say, Elijah; and others, that one of the old prophets has risen." And he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" And Peter answered, "The Christ of God." But he charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, "The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it.”


Reflection: My Friends,
This is a most remarkable reading for this most glorious Sunday, as are all Sundays. Today we are reading Luke 9:18-24 (Jesus Asks Peter "Who Am I?") I pray that we all can be as strong and as stern as Peter was with his answer, "The Christ of God." I have read his response in a variety of ways. "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." or "You are Jesus the Christ, God's Son" No matter how his response was in exact words, we can plainly see and read that it was immediate and bold. There was no hesitation from Peter with that question. Jesus also at this time told His disciples to tell no one who He was, and that He would be killed, and on the third day He will rise. I would say it would probably be fair to say the disciples most likely at this point didn't really understand all this, at least not with the hine sight view of all things that we have. That's probably why He told them to tell no one who He was; so our vision is 20/20 and we know who Jesus is. I would hope that with my personality and great love for our Lord; I would be screaming on the roof tops and telling everyone. Then I would run as fast as I could to visit with Jesus' mom, our dear precious beautiful Blessed Mother. I would remain by her side knowing what was to come, and be with her at the passion.

You know this gospel today is so jam packed with so much to share. Jesus also told the disciples, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it." Verse 23-24. This is one of my most favorite verses in all of the bible and truly one of the greatest most insightful, helpful words Jesus has told us. I know someone out there is saying, "most insightful, helpful words???, what is this guy talking about? these verses tell us to give up everything that distracts us from Jesus in this world." You see to me -my life in my eyes is sacrificed for my Lord. My worldly desires and worldly hopes and dreams I got rid of decades ago. Yes I just said that, for real. Of cause I desire to take care of my family, work hard every day, raise our children, meet all their needs and help them to experience life to the fullest, and help them to know Jesus like I do. Since I gave my heart and life in dedication to serving my Lord, I never intentionally ever went out there into the world seeking money, and wealth and an ego basically. Yea sure who wouldn't like to travel the world? Ok, I wouldn't. Yea sure who wouldn't want to live in a big mansion with all the toys? Ok, I wouldn't. Yea sure who wouldn't want cash to flash so my ego gets all puffed up, by saying look see what I have done? Ok, I wouldn't because most of the people in these categories, hoard these rewards to themselves while others around them suffer, I would rather suffer than be like them. Chrissy and I both agree, if money were to ever come our way for whatever reason; we’d use the vast majority of it to help others… No lie, just ask our kids.

It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we are filled with all the gifts and all the strength we need to live a life fully in service to our Lord. What is the point of this life without Jesus? Really think about it. Why would anyone be so excited about this life if all we had was this life? This life ends, sometimes tragically, sometimes when we are old and can barely even get around. There is no point in this life, unless we use this life as a platform, for serving our Lord to prepare for eternal life with Him. So let us use our time wisely and spend time with Jesus every day; let us also do all we can to help direct as many as we can to Him. For everyone who don't spend eternity in Heaven with Jesus, they will indeed spend all eternity in hell with satan. How sad is that? We must be like Jesus and keep planting seeds and keep trying never giving up when we pray for someone, or try to convince them to come to Mass with us. And on that day, the day we die, we will be judged by what we have done in this life; but I also believe we will be judged by the things we didn't do. What I mean by that is: Did we pray for the people, we said that we are praying for? Did we really spend time with Jesus each day in prayer?; Did we help that family we knew we could use our help? or did we just say we'll pray for you and watch them suffer? Fr. Larry Richards always talks about that sin. Successful, fully able people watch other people suffer, and they tell them, "I am praying for you." while they have their barns filled (do you understand that, he's talking about wealth), but refuse to step to the plate and be charitable and loving to offer help with another’s burden and cross. Instead they just watch them suffer and wither away. How so very sad.

Today let us consider all these things, in such a way that we to proclaim who Jesus is, the Christ, the Son of the living God. Let us also take up our own crosses. We all know what it is we must bear. Mine I not only shoulder and cheerfully carry, but I put mine out on my sleeve, for all to see. I give witness to Jesus' words and show you, that you too can bear the cross you have been given and be cheerful. Does my heart cry and suffer the pain my dear Chrissy is bearing? Yes it does. Do I wish I could heal her? Yes I do. Do I wish I could sacrifice my own life to save hers? Yes absolutely. See the crosses I bear, I can't do anything to save her. In my prayers I always pray, I trust in you Jesus. It is only through Jesus that we are healed or saved. He, and only He alone decides that. I don't claim to be any sort of a prophet, or any special kind of servant before my Lord. I am a worthless sinner. I beg Jesus for forgiveness every day I wake up, hoping and praying that I don't fall into temptation.

Pondering these thoughts today: Today I say, who do you say Jesus is? And what are the crosses you bear? These two answers work hand in hand in the life of the believer. If Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God in your life; then by carrying your cross you are following God's will in your life, sacrificing like He who gave of His life to save ours. Jesus didn't say, "Hey look what I did for you." instead, He said, "Follow me". If we follow Him, we to must also die (to self). I pray that all this makes sense, ask the Holy Spirit to help you in being closer to Jesus. Have a fantastic day everyone.

“Consider this my sisters and brothers; who do people say that YOU are? Are you living a life that is following after Him? Are you living a life that makes it obvious that you are living an unselfish life fully devoted to Jesus? Or are people saying, “Oh that’s so and so, a successful business person.” Or maybe this, “Oh that’s the person who showed me how to cheat and steal and get away with everything.” Or maybe worse, “Oh that person, they were so wealthy, but so selfish, they didn’t even help family members.” Who do people say that YOU are? What would your eulogy sound like?”

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim

You Cannot Serve Two Masters

BEADS OF JOY 06-22-13
“Matthew 6:24-34”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS


Gospel: (Matthew 6:24-34 / God and Possessions)

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon. "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day.”


Reflection: My Friends,
Another fantastic weekend has begun. Look at today’s gospel Jesus speaks of Mammon, what is Mammon? “Mammon” is referring to money, success, things of worldly value. You can as easily worship a fancy sports car as much as you can worship your financial self-worth that got you the sports car. The sports car becomes a representation of your success, creating pride and a sort of feel good feeling about it. It pretty much becomes your God and Master in so many ways. Because you will find yourself taking care of it, maintaining it, cleaning it, showing it off, sharing it with photos, boasting about it. You get the idea. This can be very dangerous for our soul and our eternal well-being. You do know that if you simply replaced the word “sports car” with anything or anyone, period (my bank account, my drug habit, a person I am in relationship with, my sailboat, my big impressive house, my pride of cause, etc., etc.); the thoughts are all the same on how that thing will become your Master. Jesus and Jesus alone must be the very first and only thought of focus when it comes to any kind of a Master in your life. Jesus said, "..understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father." John 10:38. So when we are thinking of Jesus we are automatically thinking of Almighty God. For they are one in the same.



So are you really serious about understanding and then living and then doing what is right before God? We all are, and that is fantastic, but know that we will fall and mess up and have to get back up. That's why we have to go to confession regularly, to keep our soul as clean and as ready for our Lord as it possibly can be. But if you are serious, then it is critical to begin immediately. You don't want to allow the strong-hold of satan to capture your heart, or allegiance towards anything that will draw you away from Jesus. What do you have an appetite for? No not necessarily food, though it could be. It is usually wealth, or possessions that you own, or maybe it's lust? So many things can easily capture our hearts and steal it away from our Lord. So now consider this series of questions, "Who died for your sin?, Who's death defeated the very darkness of death, so that you can spend life everlasting in Heaven with Him and His Father for all eternity?, Who gave you freedom from the bondage of this world, and its inevitable destruction? Who forgives you of all your wrong-doing, and sinfulness? Who is this one person that has done this for you?" There is only one word, one name, one Lord who is the only one who has done all these things, and His name is Jesus.

So I challenge you today, in a way that many of you just might not do; make your life, all things JESUS - 100%, 24/7/365. Become addicted (not in a bad way), but become addicted with the desire, the continual desire from within your soul to please Him and worship Him, love Him, and always put Him before anything else in your life. Every thought must lead to Jesus. The reason why we do something, must lead us to Jesus. The reason why NOT must also lead us to Jesus. Does that make sense? If we chose not to do something sinful or wrong or mean, it must be because of our love and our allegiance to Jesus, hence all things must lead to Jesus. This is actually much easier than it sounds. Keep Jesus in your life, on your mind, in your thoughts, at the end of the pen as you write at all times, you get the idea; without ever ceasing. This will and I mean it, this will create an inner Joy that will blow your mind. You will have so much peace inside, real peace, a very Godly peace. You won't see yourself as anxious or worried as much anymore, and you will find yourself trusting Jesus a whole bunch more. It is truly a wonderful feeling this kind of inner Godly, Trusting, Loving, Joy.

Yes I do heed my own words. I share all I share -on our journey through life, for many reasons. Mostly to share our testimony, showing exactly what we are going through, how we are dealing with it, and then how we made it through it. And while all that is being shared, I share the depths of my faith through it all. Sharing with all of you, that No Matter What, your faith can stay in tack throughout your life’s challenges; remaining loyal and thankful and cheerful before God.

Pondering these thoughts today: Do we have two masters? Do you? Do I? Interesting concept, but how easily true this can be for anyone. An even further thought to that might be; Is it possible to have my allegiance split between two or more things, people, whatever in my life? Unfortunately it can be. Our life's inevitably are controlled by the way we think, do we think of how successful in business or at work we will be; well then everything we do will help guide us and direct us to that goal. But rather if all we think about is Jesus, and pleasing and honoring and not offending Him; well then we live each day knowing that that is what we are striving for. Continuing that thought we know that loving and following Jesus will lead us to Heaven, which is truly our ultimate goal.

Never misunderstand -success is a good thing… when we respect the fact that our success is from God and in all reality it is all still God's. He has entrusted us with a huge responsibility to do the right thing with these gifts. Be a "Giver" not a "Taker" in this world. Many wealthy, successful, very blessed people unfortunately watch others (even family members) suffer and rot away, while they hoard, hold and embrace their stuff, their God. It’s very sad for them…


Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

Treasures In Heaven

BEADS OF JOY 06-21-13
“Matthew 6:19-23”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS


Gospel: (Matthew 6:19-23 / Treasures In Heaven)

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. "The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light; but if your eye is not sound, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!”


Reflection: My Friends,

Do you store up treasure in Heaven, where those treasures for eternally last? Think about this for a moment: What in this world can you keep in place that will never rust, never be stolen and will never lose its value? I guess that was a rhetorical question, the answer is Nothing!! Nothing on the planet has eternal value, literally nothing. Spiritually reflecting that is so exciting. So what this scripture is saying in a roundabout way is this: In order for us to have the freedom and ability to grow spiritually and closer to Jesus, we must not attach ourselves to anything here; because nothing here has the ability to continue to Heaven with us.

Now how realistic is it to attain Heavenly Treasures? And then how do you enjoy these treasures after you have died? Those thoughts confuse many worldly people, and they never seem to understand the Spiritual life. I’ll help you out with ways I store MY TREASURES in Heaven.. Yes MINE.. LOL. What do I store in Heaven and yet I have here on earth to enjoy?

My Eternal Treasures in My Heavenly Account:
My Account# allthingsjesus=eternity
~My Love for the Trinity (Father, Son & Holy Spirit)
~My Love for the Blessed Mother and the Rosary.
~My Prayer life (my communication w/God)
~My Bible Study (God’s Word is Eternal)
(This world has no power whatsoever to take any of these things from me, and in the end even death cannot take them away from, rather death only compliments these incredible treasures.)

Pondering these thoughts today: How do you see your life? Where are you storing your treasures? Do you know “Spiritual Wealth” will lead us to eternal freedom while “Material Wealth” is corrupt, misleading and will steal our eternal life away? What is your reality? Our sight is easily blinded and blurred by moral stupidity and a spirit that is blind. Other ways our vision gets distorted is most certainly by prejudice and selfishness.

My friends I end with this thought: Live your life for God’s truth alone, bury yourself in His Word; unite with His Mother –Praying The Rosary every single day and spend as much time as you can with Jesus on the brain, always!!!


Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

The Lord's Prayer -Matt. 6:7-15

BEADS OF JOY 06-20-13
“Matthew 6:7-15”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

Gospel: (Matthew 6:7-15 / The Lord's Prayer)

“And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”


Reflection: My Friends,

What a wonderfully perfect spectacular topic today is: The Lord's Prayer. From His heart to our ears, so that in our prayers it goes, from our heart to His ears. Jesus gave us this most precious prayer, as an example of what we should be praying about and to whom. Think about it: Jesus, is the author of this prayer, its value goes without say. "Saint Augustine says that whenever we say the Our Father devoutly our venial sins are forgiven. The just man falls seven times a day, but in the Lord's Prayer he will find seven petitions which will both help him to avoid downfalls and will protect him from his spiritual enemies. Our Lord, knowing how weak and helpless we are, and how many difficulties we get into, made His Prayer short and easy to say, so that if we say it devoutly and often we can be sure that Almighty God will quickly come to our aid." The Secrets of the Rosary.

So what are the seven petitions of the Lord's Prayer? They are really so simple to remember by their own design. Check this out. The first three take us right to the Father (hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, and thy will be done). These are all for God's glory, strengthening us in faith, hope and charity... Now check out the last four, they are all about our own expectations, it's pretty cool (Give us, Forgive us, Lead us, and Deliver us) wow, this prayer is so perfectly laid out. Those are our needs we are asking God the Father to accomplish for us.

How devoutly, and slowly and thoughtfully do we consider the words of the "Lord's Prayer" each time and each day we pray it. This prayer alongside of the Hail Mary, gives us so much Joy and blessing when praying the Rosary. Consider the Lord's Prayer, as a prayer that is so perfect, that when we pray it; our hearts are full of love; and covered with contentment and Joy, that we need nothing else to make our life so complete. This is yet another very special part of the Joy that inside my heart. It is so complete, so perfect, that we get to speak directly to God, our Father, our Lord, as if He were standing right here as we pray the Lord's Prayer. Don't we all want that kind of Joy? How about a Joy that keeps you smiling while the world frowns? How about a Joy that comforts you when you are feeling down? This Joy goes without say, how long it will last; for if "forever" was the measure, it goes way beyond eternity fast. Prayer is the key today, and the Lord's Prayer is our perfect prayer.

Here's a wonderful quote I found:

“Let us strive to make the Lord’s Prayer our model and pattern in all our approaches to God. Let it suggest to us the sort of things which we should pray for and pray against. Let it teach us the relative place and proportion which we should give to each subject in our prayers. The more we ponder and examine the Lord’s Prayer, the more instructive and suggestive shall we find it to be.” ~ J.C. Ryle

Catechism of The Catholic Church -
The Lord's Prayer Father Explained
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a3.htm

Pondering these thoughts today:
-Are you allowing God to transform your life?
-Have you ever really ever reflected on the Lord's Prayer?
-Do you speak with Jesus every single day?
-Is your love for others fair, and merciful?
-Do you tell God what you want, or do you ask for His will?
(Pray the Lord's Prayer slowly and directly to God.)

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS
Revised writing from 2011

Prayer - Fasting - Almsgiving

BEADS OF JOY 06-19-13
“Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

Today's Gospel:
(Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 / Prayer, Fasting & Almsgiving)

“Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give alms, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. "And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. "And when you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face -that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”


Reflection: My Friends,

Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving..
Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. Three very important elements to our faith, three traditionally very important parts of our Spiritual Journey. Let us look at what each of these mean to our faith:

Prayer
This is the most wonderful special act of love, so many of us share every single day. In prayer we lift up our soul to God in love and praise and thanksgiving. Prayer builds up and empowers our faith, and faith comes from our hope, and our hope and desire for Him leads us to hunger, a hunger for Him and His word and the grace that leads us to God, which leads us to prayer. I just tried to lay that out all by myself. Was anyone able to follow that? lol. Prayer is an essential part of who we are in God, and in our walk following after Jesus. We must be a praying people, our communication with God is vital to our eternal life and the transition that we will go through at our death. I encourage you to please pick a devotion that is of interest to you, and then try to pray and speak to God every single day. Our conversation doesn't necessarily have to be written prayers only, we can speak plainly to Him also. We are in relationship to a person, Jesus. And in that relationship we can freely talk and share and open our hearts to Him.

“Prayer is an aspiration of the heart, it is a simple glance directed to heaven, it is a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trail as well as joy; finally, it is something great, supernatural, which expands my soul and unites me to Jesus.” ~St. Therese of Lisieux

“Prayer is the place of refuge for every worry, a foundation for cheerfulness, a source of constant happiness, a protection against sadness.” ~St. John Chrysostom

“How often I failed in my duty to God, because I was not leaning on the strong pillar of prayer.” ~St. Teresa of Avila


Fasting
This isn't easy for everybody. But this has a lot of spiritual value added to the experience. Fasting is about curbing down our desires in our appetite that appetite could be for anything. This in turn creates a hunger for God, which is key to living our lives in Jesus. If many of our pleasures are fulfilled with food, we will have much less desire for God. I will share with you something I told Fr. Mullally a while ago (actually many many years ago), as to how and why I fast. To me fasting is a spiritual experience. I fast as an offering to all those who hunger and starve around the world. I do that so that I feel the hunger pangs. I want to feel their pain and suffering, so that I can offer the reality of the pain of starvation. No I don't starve myself, but I have done very long fasts for that sole purpose. I have found that when you are "starving - very very hungry" you tend to draw so much closer to Jesus spiritually, that it can't really do justice trying to explain it in words. Don't do these things if your health requires medication and food intake. First consult your doctor and make sure it is safe. Please...

“Penance without fasting is useless and vain; by fasting [we] satisfy God.” ~St Basil

“Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God’s ear to yourself.” ~St. Peter Chrysologus

“Fasting is a way of making room in your life for Jesus; replace your hunger pangs for food, with hunger pangs for Jesus, His Word and His Mother.” ~Jim Dacey Jr OFS


Almsgiving
This evolves from our prayers and our fasting. Charity in all forms, your time, your talents, your treasures, whatever you can do to help further the spreading of the word and love of God. Most all of us belong to church communities, we should invest in them to help support them in whatever way you can. I tell you the following for the sole purpose to share ideas that maybe you can use; back in the past when I was in business, we as a family gave both our treasures and unlimited volunteer time. When we lived in town (Milford, PA) in the past, we pretty much were involved with everything at our parish. I strongly encourage you to try this. If you are anything like me and my family, once you do that, you will always be very involved in whatever capacity you can help. Obviously now, with me working nights, Chrissy’s illness and we are down to one car; these dreams for us, for now, are impossible. But I encourage all of you who can, to do so.

”Let us also love our neighbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. Men lose all the material things they leave behind them in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. For these they will receive from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve.” ~St. Francis of Assisi

“If you are attached to the things of this earth, you should give alms sufficient to enable you to punish your avarice by depriving yourself of all that is not absolutely necessary for life.” ~St. Jean Marie Baptiste Vianney, the Cure of Ars

“In the matter of piety, poverty serves us better than wealth, and work better than idleness, especially since wealth becomes an obstacle even for those who do not devote themselves to it. >>Yet, when we must put aside our wrath, quench our envy, soften our anger, offer our prayers, and show a disposition which is reasonable, mild, kindly, and loving, how could poverty stand in our way? For we accomplish these things not by spending money but by making the correct choice. >>Almsgiving above all else requires money, but even this shines with a brighter luster when the alms are given from our poverty. The widow who paid in the two mites was poorer than any human, but she outdid them all.” ~St. John Chrysostom

Pondering these thoughts today: How attentive are you to the needs of others who are not in your immediate family? How attentive are you to your needs and your family’s needs (blood relatives)? How appropriate is the difference between these different levels of attentiveness? Do you watch fellow family members struggle and suffer? How sad if you do, I pity the soul so selfish that they are incapable of helping those closest to them. With that attitude of thought taken to the next level, would you also watch a close friend or family member go hunger (literally), when you yourself have plenty and in-fact you even throw food away every night after dinner? Insightful, but a hard teaching when it comes to what you would really do to give to another.

The True Test of Character

“Everything you have is God's gift to you. What you do with everything God has given you is your gift to Him. Is your life all about getting and taking and keeping and hoarding or rather is it all about giving?”


Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

Jesus Said -Love Your Enemies

BEADS OF JOY 06-18-13
“Matthew 5:43-48”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

Gospel: (Matthew 5:43-48 / Love Your Enemies)

“You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”


Reflection: My Friends,
We are different in so many ways, compared to the way the world is and I would say that probably the biggest reason why we are hated so much; is how we treat those who hate and despise us. We refuse to act like the “others” and simply fit in and be robots to whatever the world values and likes and cares about. And to top that off we treat others not like the world would, but instead –we treat them like they don’t deserve to be treated. “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” that is NOT an easy command straight from the mouth of Jesus. In fact Jesus did just that, and they beat Him, whipped Him, pressed a crown of thorns on His head and then they Crucified and killed Him; and yet even with all that He forgave them. My friend, are you serious about following after Jesus. Take a look at this scripture:

John 15:19-21 “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.” Powerful indeed. But it is a hard teaching; will you now continue to follow after Jesus. See what the world has perceived as weakness in our kindness and mercy; is actually strength beyond any worldly humans understanding. To be a Christian, a follower of the one true God, you must be strong. Stronger than this world can ever comprehend.

Pondering these thoughts today: Through Jesus, God the Father has given us all that we need in Jesus Christ; this is brilliant in its design, whereas we don’t need anything except for Jesus and in having Jesus in our hearts, on our minds and in our lives, all things are perfect. Jesus fulfills our desires, our understanding or not understanding; Jesus essentially fills that void within us, the void that makes us sometimes feel incomplete. This is the same void that many fill with “self” stuff, or addictions, or anything that we feels fills that emptiness inside; when in reality that emptiness (darkness) is so easily filled with Jesus (light). Our “enemies” are not within us and they are not of who we are in Jesus; rather the people that persecute us, are of this world and in this world. So to me, to forgive them and to pray for them becomes so much easier.

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim

Teachings About Revenge

BEADS OF JOY 06-17-13
“Matthew 5:38-42”
©2013 James Dacey, Jr. OFS

Gospel: (Matthew 5:38-42 / Teachings About Revenge)

“You have heard that it was said, `An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; and if anyone would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you.”

Reflection: My Friends,

How do you repay, respond or act when insults are hurled at you? What if someone took advantage of you? Are you kind? Do you have the courage to return evil with good? Do you stop the evil -right then and there or do you continue it with revenge and hurtful, hateful words or actions back at the other person? If we are to follow after Jesus and if we are to be like Jesus; then for many -this aspect of our faith might be very difficult and challenging. In all of Jesus’ teaching it is very clear that we must never show retaliation; rather we must respond with mercy, love and kindness. Evil cannot be defeated by fueling it with more evil, rather it must be distinguished with love and kindness. Just like darkness can easily be defeated with light, even the smallest amount of light can easily be seen in the darkest of places. So must we return evil with good.

Only at the Cross before Jesus will we be able to free ourselves from the selfishness and empty conceit of hatred and resentment. This takes great courage to be like Jesus, don’t misunderstand this and see this as weakness. Weakness gives in and caves in and we hurl back at others. It takes great courage and great love for someone to not respond in such a way.

Look at Jesus: How did He respond? Even on the Cross, He suffered insults, abuse and deep rooted hatred; yet He responded with love, by asking God to forgive them. It is through His blood, that we also will be able to merciful and loving; even to those who hate us and insult us. My friends we are not like those of this world in so many ways. We don’t attach ourselves to the things of this world; we don’t get all involved with the selfishness of pride that goes with titles and values based on worldly accomplishments and now added to that we learn by Jesus’ example to detach ourselves from the insults and hatred of the world that are directed towards us. This won’t be easy, Jesus never said it would be.

Pondering these thoughts today: Consider the Prayer of Anselm. “O merciful God, fill our hearts, we pray, with the graces of your Holy Spirit; with love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control. Teach us to love those who hate us; to pray for those who despitefully use us; that we may be the children of your love, our Father, who makes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. In adversity grant us grace to be patient; in prosperity keep us humble; may we guard the door of our lips; may we lightly esteem the pleasures of this world, and thirst after heavenly things; through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Our faith is distinct most significantly in how we treat others; even and most especially to those who treat us with hated.

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

I also invite you to follow me on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Rosarymanjim