JE writes: “I am seeking advice on acupuncture to help with back pain and depression. I have researched a little on valid health websites and have found some information that acupuncture might work. From a spiritual perspective is it as dangerous as practices reiki, or is there some gray area? Also what about seeking out a herbalist who I know is into New Age. I would be seeking the medicinal route, but even the thought of him touching me, makes me nervous. I think his herbs would not have anything put on them.”
Monthly Archives: January 2020
New saints are needed
January 13
“We need heralds of the Gospel who are experts in humanity, who know the depths of the heart of many today, who share in his hopes and joys, his worries and his sadness, and at the same time are contemplatives, in love with God. For this, new saints are needed.”
-St. John Paul II
Today’s Reflection:
God has given us life at this time to be the “new saints” and the “new evangelizers” who will proclaim His love to the world.
How is God calling you to fulfill this very mission in your own life?
Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life
January 12
“Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit…and the door that gives access to the other sacraments.”
-Catechism of the Catholic Church 1213
Today’s Reflection:
In what specific ways can you lie the grace of your Baptism?
Hand on the Gospel
January 11
“In the long run, is there any other way of handing on the Gospel than by transmitting to another person one’s personal experience of faith?”
-Evangelii Nuntiandi 46
Today’s Reflection:
Personal testimony remains the most effective means of evangelization. Through it we inform, instruct, and insure others with the truths of Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Catholic Church.
What does your personal testimony say? Are you ready to share it this week?
In gratitude
As I write this, we are just coming to the close of the Octave of the Christmas season. We are still basking in the gift of Jesus Christ, Our Lord, who came to us again in a humble manger to enter our hearts anew.
With hearts full of praise and thanksgiving, we seek to acknowledge the great gift of our salvation; and yet, because God cannot be outdone in generosity, our gratitude itself becomes a conduit through which He dispenses an abundance of ongoing grace.
Expressing this very reality, St. Therese of Lisieux said:
It is the spirit of gratitude which draws down upon us the overflow of God’s grace…for no sooner have we thanked Him for one blessing than He hastens to send us ten additional favors in return. Then, when we show our gratitude for these new gifts, He multiplies His benedictions to such a degree that there seems to be a constant stream of divine grace ever coming our way…This has been my own personal experience; try it for yourself and see.
How was it that St. Therese could be grateful to God for all things – even the most painful and difficult? Perhaps it came from a sure and certain knowledge that God is about every good thing in our lives (Eph. 1:3), and that He is always giving us spiritual blessings because it is of His nature to do so. He is perfect love, and perfect love gives all. Therefore, we can be certain that every bit of every day is infused with precisely the graces we need to meet every joy and every challenge.
This knowledge led St. Therese, as it has all of the great saints, to acquire a supernatural outlook, a way of seeing all things from God’s perspective. Supernatural outlook helps us discover the blessings in the midst of sorrows, the joys in the midst of contradictions, the consolations in the midst of desolations. And in so doing, we discover the rich treasure that God indeed “works all things to the good for those who have been called according to His purposes” (Rom. 8:28). With the scales removed from our eyes, we can see the blessings and beatitudes God is giving us, and this leads to an ever-deepening realization of His beneficence — grace upon grace tumbling down upon us wrapped in the packaging of our life’s events.
Gratitude, praise, thanksgiving open the heart to the reality of God’s love for us and His interaction with us. As we enter this New Year and decade, let us take St. Therese’s advice to “try it” for ourselves that we might “see.” Let us ask her to intercede for us, that we might act with faith and trust and supernatural outlook. Let us ask her to help us see the blessings God is bestowing, even when they are shrouded in the garment of suffering. Let us ask her to help us praise God for these blessings so that our eyes can open to all of the grace He is giving us. In this way, we will enter that “constant stream of divine grace ever coming our way” and experience a greater depth of the abundant life that Our Savior comes to bring us (John 10:10).
Please pray for our mission as we enter this New Year together. I look forward to keeping you updated on our projects and plans as the year unfolds. May the abundant life of Jesus Christ be yours and may God bless you!
With gratitude and love in the Two Hearts,
Sin makes men accomplices
January 10
“Sin makes men accomplices of one another and causes concupiscence, violence, and injustice to reign among them.”
-Catechism of the Catholic Church 1869
Today’s Reflection:
Each person who sins cooperates in bringing suffering to the world. To what extent do you give in to temptation and sin?
Is an Angel and a Spirit Guide the Same Thing?
SMB asks: “I don’t understand the difference between an angel and a spirit guide. Aren’t they the same thing?”
For the time is coming
January 9
“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching,
but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own liking, and will turn away from listening
to the truth and wander into myths.”
-2 Timothy 4:3-4
Today’s Reflection:
In light of this passage, how should we evaluate what is presented to us from the vantage point of our Catholic Faith. Are you currently influenced negatively by things in your life that are contrary to our Faith? What are those things?
Resist the devil
January 8
“Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
-James 4:7
Today’s Reflection:
Anytime we are serious about our relationship with God, we can be certain that Satan will try to dissuade us in every way possible. He will taunt us, tempt us, and try us in an effort to make us give up and give in. What are your biggest distractions? How is God calling you to remain faithful to your time of prayer?
Why We Should Never Try to Perfect Ourselves Without God
This is the time of year when we’re all trying to perfect ourselves by tackling those pesky weaknesses of mind and body; however, attempting to do so through New Age and scientifically bogus means can not only lead to discouragement and failure, it can also be detrimental to our soul.
