The Back Side of a Tornado: The Third Picture by Mark Rusch
The Holy Spirit inspired our blog.
Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Extraordinary Time
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.”
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
They multiply their sorrows
who court other gods.
Blood libations to them I will not pour out,
nor will I take their names upon my lips.
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
O LORD, my allotted portion and cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge says it all.
I have not looked at my life as taking refuge in God, turning my life over to God, and letting God take me where God wants me to go.
We have discussed this extensively over the past two years, and we feel that it is one feature of our religion that hasn’t been stressed enough.
Jesus came down to establish a NEW WORLD, and when Jesus established this new world, one might think that all would want to live in it.
Not true!
We are still committing the same sins as our forefathers, the Jewish People, in wanting to do our will and not God the Father’s will.
The first reading is about Elijah challenging the Jewish People to choose between worshiping The Lord or baal, and Elijah asks them, “How long will you straddle the issue?
Briefly: Elijah challenges the baal priests by having them prepare a bull, dousing it with water, and challenging them to have fire come down and consume it. They dance, pray, and slash themselves, and the result is NOTHING.
Elijah prepares his bull, douses it three times with water, and prays to The Lord. Fire comes down and CONSUMES the bull.
Isn’t this also true today?
We have reported over the past two years of Prayers answered, lives changed through the power of Prayer, and relationships enriched through Prayer,
And yet,
Many are still refusing to take refuge in God.
Join Team Jesus:
We suggest starting every day, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.”
Sidebar:
Three quick notes:
The First quick note:
In one of his talks, Tim Gray of The Formed said that Lent, Advent, Christmas, and Easter are Extraordinary Times.
We looked it up and found that the Church calls the time outside Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter “Ordinary” because its weeks are numbered in an ordered series, the Latin word for which is ordinalis. Next to the very existence of the world itself, a most spectacular fact about this world is that it is orderly. www.catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/the-extraordinary-ordinary.html
I didn’t know this, so we wanted to ensure you knew that we have Extraordinary Times in our Church calendar.
But,
We are two thousand years since the Death of Jesus, and I believe we have lost much of the Joy of living in the “Spirit World.”
And,
To give The Holy Spirit recognition that The Holy Spirit was infused in our souls at Baptism makes today and every day extraordinary.
Second quick note:
I returned from three days with the men in the family known as Guys Golf. This event has taken place over the past twenty-three years, and each year gets better. The ages range from twenty-three to eighty-three – sixty years.
I usually come out disappointed with my (?) play and look forward to the following year.
This year was very different. As we reported, we are now playing in silence, not repeating what we are supposed to do—just hit the ball.
As we reported earlier, I use this time to stay in the “Spirit World” through prayer, singing chants or songs.
Some of you might be thinking, “What a jerk.”
Well
This was the best year weeeeeeeeee ever had; in fact, this was the best three days weeeeeeeee have ever had playing golf.
Eighty-Three and weeeeeeee are playing our best golf.
I am taking refuge in God and love our life, and I will no longer straddle the fence.
Third quick note:
The Holy Spirit encouraged me to read God Thoughts 2022 and 2023, which may sound odd, but remember that we write next week’s blog the week before, and I don’t remember what we wrote.
I have enjoyed reading our blogs, on my cell phone, which I realize sounds self-serving, but it’s not meant to be.
I am enjoying your pictures again; the colors and content are spectacular.
I clearly remember satan telling me I couldn’t write fifty-two blogs. Well, satan was right,
But,
Weeeeeeeeeeee could and did write over one hundred and twenty blogs to date, and we want to thank all of you for your continued support and encouragement through your pictures and comments. It means a lot.
Picture:
Fred,
We’ve been under a tornado watch and severe weather advisory for the last few hours. The cold front pushed through, which is what the clouds in the backside of the front looked like. The Third Picture by Mark Rusch
Please keep Snapping!
If you want a copy of the prayers we discussed, email me.
fprince101@gmail.com
Remember, if you want to submit a picture, no people, please, because we have to get permission from that person to use their photograph.
By submitting a picture, you agree to let us include it in our next God Thoughts 2024 book.
