The Envy of History – Because He Showed Up
"In prayer you shall perceive ... the way out of every situation that has no exit." |
____________________________________________________________________________ During October, the Month of the Rosary, it seems fitting that we underscore again the importance of this thousand year old prayer. On the one hand, it is a complex prayer which passes through five events of the Life of Christ, events which change according to the day of the week. There is so much spiritual benefit to pondering these various events: all the characters in them, what came before, what came after, who might have said what, etc. At the same time the mind is considering the event, the lips are praying the ten repetitions (a decade) of the Hail Mary. In addition, one could dedicate that decade for something in particular. At times, our thoughts might drift to a person or event in our life, and we recognize that the next mystery should be prayed for that person or event. Often, when praying the rosary, we may feel that we have done a lousy job of focusing well, but as always, we just give it to the Lord saying we wish we could have prayed this better. Recently though, when praying the Sorrowful mysteries, our thoughts turned to Mary on Good Friday and the possibility that she wasn't very focused in her prayer on that day as she watched her perfect Son tortured to death. But Mary was there for Him. And what of the apostles that day? Only one dared show up, Saint John. And it is SO ENCOURAGING to reflect on the graces that John received for his faithfulness to Jesus. He probably didn't have an intelligent word to emotionally support Mary, but he tried his best, and Heaven more than noticed. That day, Saint John was given two unique gifts among the apostles because he alone was there. First, he would become the only apostle who would be spared of martyrdom. Second, he alone was entrusted by Jesus with caring for Mary for the rest of her life. And anyone who has caught a glimpse of Mary for even one second would surely express holy envy of John’s special relationship with Mary. All because John was faithful. And so tomorrow, when most of Christendom will deny its responsibility to fast, you will be faithful. Just like your prayers that are distracted despite your best efforts, or your sins that are omnipresent despite your strongest resolve, your fast may not be perfect. It certainly won't be difficult-100% whole grain bread with butter or olive oil and all of the water you want. But we give it to the Lord and ask Him to see righteousness in our effort because of the blood of Jesus. And like Saint John, because you'll show up, you have rewards that those who don't make the effort will be envious of - for all of eternity. Thank you for fasting with us. |
Why We Fast – Our Core Fasting Intentions 1) For the Holy Spirit to reign down upon America renewing our land as the Christian, capitalist meritocracy we were founded to be. 2) For the protection of our police, firefighters, military and their families from harm and that the Lord bless their courageous generosity on our behalf one hundredfold. 3) For the protection of the families who fast with us, and for God’s blessings of abundance upon them and that true to His word, we will be able to witness that He prospered us in famine. 4) For Mike Lindell who is putting himself on the front lines suing over the election fraud that has taken place and for all of the warriors who are stepping up around the nation to fight for the gospel – May The Father cover them in the blood of our savior, protect them and their families from evil and bring victory to their endeavors. St. Joseph Partners is a for-profit business that has funded Fast for America for over ten years. To the extent you support our work to renew America and if you understand why gold and silver protect believers' wealth in this world, please consider us or recommend us when you or someone you know buys or sells gold and silver. From our website www.StJosephPartners.com you can buy and sell dozens of types of precious metals. We close on Sundays to honor the Sabbath. Click here for a link where you can view a brief video about our firm and a brief video about why all investors and families should have some gold and silver in their portfolios. |