BEADS OF JOY 01-18-18
“A Great Multitude”
©2018 James Dacey, Jr. OFS
My Friends,
Today’s Gospel: Mark 3:7-12 (The Mercy of Jesus)
“Jesus withdrew with his
disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed; also from
Judea and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre
and Sidon a great multitude, hearing
all that he did, came to him. And he told his disciples to have a boat ready
for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him; for he had healed
many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. And whenever
the unclean spirits beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out,
"You are the Son of God." And he strictly ordered them not to make
him known.”
Reflection: Jesus drew many large crowds wherever He went. Honestly even today that is very true, or is it? If you do your own research the information you find along with some basic facts so many of us know; it will leave you without a definitive answer. The Vatican said, in a March 9, 2016 report, “over the course of nine years, the number of Catholics worldwide has increased by 17.8 percent, compared to the global population, which increased by 17.3 percent.” Yet overall in many local US cities and towns, church and communities are merging together because of two reasons; lack of attendance and a steady decrease of men entering into the Priesthood. Today’s blog is not about boring you with numbers, rather it is about what we can do. Including prayer, what can we do as Catholics to help unify our communities to help them flourish?
Yes, we’d love to see our numbers increase stronger, and most especially we do not want to see local churches closing or emerging. But, let us think for just a moment about our faith. Our faith is about our own individual experience and relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ. Yes, of cause, we have the Catholic Church to guide us and our communities to encourage us, so what can we do? I am a simple man, living a very simple life, so if you don’t think my answer is the pulse of it all, that don’t offend me. I am a cradle Catholic, but for the past 35 years, I have been a very activity ministry leader in our faith. So, this is what I see.
In our faith, I see 2 parts, public and private. The private part is prayer, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:6. The public part is evangelizing, “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.” Matthew 10:32-33. I hope my observation makes a little more sense now. I don’t see either of these flourishing right now. Yes, I don’t know all things and yes, I haven’t a clue about someone’s personal private prayer life. All I can go by is how the ministry of people I try to minister too has changed. That is a general statement, but, to me, now it seems more acceptable to be on the side lines, in all things. Meaning, praying in public before meals! Speaking freely and openly about your faith! Defending Jesus’ name in conversation! And just standing up for what we say we believe! Again, this is my own observation.
Here are some short videos that may inspire you.
Francis Chan - Balance Beam (insightful, inspiring) 3:53
Dr. Charles Stanley (In Touch Ministries)
Go into all the world (The Reason for Our Boldness) 0:22
Pondering these thoughts today: I hope I didn’t bore you this morning. But, sometimes we all need to know what’s going on and how we as individuals can help the very faith we believe so strongly in, grow. Let us be honest and open here, it all begins from the hearts and souls of who we are. We must live a life that is pleasing before the Lord. We must treat those around us the way Jesus has taught us, and we must do all we can, to pray every single day and in all things. And even further then that, we must not be afraid of openly sharing our faith with others. Be bold for Jesus!
LOVE YOU GUYS !!!!
Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS
Today is Thursday: We pray the Luminous Mysteries:
The Luminous Mysteries
1. The Baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:13-17)
2. Wedding Feast of Cana (John 2:1-12)
3. Proclamation of the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:15)
4. The Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-13)
5. Institution of the Holy Eucharist (Matt 26:17-30)
Glory and Honor and Praise -Lord Jesus Christ!!
Rosary Man Jim's Luminous Reflections: http://beads-of-joy-blog.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-luminous-mysteries.html
