Devotional Thought of the Day:

English: Resurrection of Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Philippians 4:6-7 (MSG) ⁶  Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. ⁷  Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

233         You spoke about the scenes in the life of Jesus which moved you most: when he met men suffering greatly… when he brought peace and health to those whose bodies and souls were racked with pain… You were inspired—you went on—seeing him cure leprosy, restore sight to the blind, heal the paralytic at the pool: the poor beggar forgotten by everybody. You are able to contemplate Him as He was, so profoundly human, so close at hand! Well… Jesus continues being the same as then.  (1)

A long day today, as we celebrated God’s faithfulness to my dad.

As I stood there, watching two friends officiate at my dad’s service, I missed saying “The Lord be with you” and hearing the people thunder back, “and also with you!”.  In retrospect, if I did it again, I’d steal those lines back.

Why?

Because when I heard them, when I hear these precious words, when I hear God is also with me, it is like every promise of God is poured out, all at once, upon me.  For every promise of God boils down to His presence, His loving, merciful, comforting presence being realized in this life, and the promise of it in the next.

Escriva knew this well – his writing are full of such comments as the one above – when in the midst of suffering – whether physical, or emotional and especially that taken on voluntarily to share in the gospel  – He is there! 

And He is here with me, now, as I grieve…

And with my mom, and with my wife and son, and He longs to be with all whom He died for….

So let Him, and when you know He is there – share that glorious thing… with everyone you know!

God Bless…

And thanks for praying for us!

(1)     Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1170-1174). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.

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