Psalm 25:4 ("Master from Kanty")

Welcome God now with this LIFE Group Devotion (FB), provided by LIFE Runners (FB). Guest Authors schedule. LIFE Minute radio.

"Make known to me your ways, Lord; teach me your paths." ~ Psalm 25:4  (full readings)

Steve's Reflections: It is interesting that in today's secular Christmas, rife with excess and materialism, that the Church in her wisdom has chosen to venerate the life of St. John of Kanty.  The "Master from Kanty" was gifted with an intellect beyond compare during his time, but his most noble trait may have been his heroic charity for the poor.  Christmas for many can be a time filled with the stress of meeting expectations or worse a time that exasperates the separation between the rich and the poor (materialism/selfishness).  The story is told of how St. John was moved to take his full dinner plate and give it away to a passing beggar.  He returned to find his plate miraculously full!  God created us to empty ourselves and make our life a gift to others.  Like our Lord's humble beginnings in the manger, St. John strove to impoverish himself for the sake of others.  He lived an austere life of poverty taking on only what was needed to sustain himself, choosing to give away all that he could to the poor.  St. John sought so fervently to diminish himself that he made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem with the intent of being martyred for the faith by the Turks.  On the eve of Christmas, 1473, our Lord welcomed home His good and faithful servant with the pearl of great price in his hands, salvation.

Faith Challenge:  As you celebrate the birth of our Lord this CHRIST-mas, give the greatest gift of all...yourself.  Remember the least of our brothers and sisters; the poor and the humble among us.

Sr. Francelle's Devotion: Why Shepherd's

Counter-Culture News: LSN, LifeNews, Priests for Life, AFA, Vatican, Project Rachel.

Our Prayers: Prayer to end abortion, Spiritual Adoption, Alpha Center, Peters family (JP). Add Prayers on our website. Pray with meals, bedtime, wake up, LIFE Runners, etc. Consider mid-week Family Rosary (17 min). Let’s pray now. >

Saint of the Day: St. John of Kanty (d. 1473)

Faith Quote: "Christmas is the feast day of a Child, of a newborn Baby. So it is your feast day too! You wait patiently for it and get ready for it with joy, counting the days and even the hours to the holy night of Bethlehem." ~ Blessed Pope John Paul II (1994 Christmas message to children)

Through Christ Our Lord,
Steve
Rom 12:2 .

* Pray/Fast: Prayer connects us with God’s will & His miracles, changing us & helping others. Fast from things that take your eyes off Jesus. Those who pray together stay together, and close to God!
* Save Unborn (& family): Abortion reality (images)…#1 death cause (22% pregnancies). Prov 24:11 & Jer 1:5. “A great poverty that a child must die that you might live as you wish.” Mother Teresa.
* Evangelize: Make room for unbelievers & re-evangelization of self, by way of prayer (relationship) and following Christ’s example of love (service/sacrifice/mercy). Matt 28:19.

LUKE 9:57-58 (Are we up for the challenge?)

Let's welcome God this morning by reflecting on this short Living In Faith Exchange (LIFE) Group devotion (life-devotions.blogspot.com), which is based on Living Faith. All whatsoever you do in word or in work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Col. 3:17

As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head." Luke 9: 57-58 (full readings)

Living Faith snippets: "Jesus might as well said, "Are you ready to follow me even though I have no home? Are you ready to follow me even though I have nothing, least of all the kinds of security the world offers? Are you ready to be homeless and insecure in ways you can't begin to imagine right now?" Lord Jesus, help me to depend only on you, no matter what happens." by Mitch Finley

Steve's Thoughts: This verse hit the mark with me as I consider my own personal situation. My family is living in a rectory in Fergus Falls, MN while we await the sale of our home in Sioux Falls. Most of our creature comforts are still in Sioux Falls - we have no TV or computer to gnaw away at our family time and it has been a blessing. God has given my family the gift of time together! We have filled our time with prayer, games, homework and conversation. We have learned to depend on God for each day as we don't know when our home will sell or when we will find ourselves in our own space. God has placed us at the seat of mercy and provided for all our needs since moving to Fergus Falls. Dear Jesus, thank you for gently teaching my family to depend on you only this day.

Faith Challenges: Let's all invite one person each week (John 14:6) to join our LIFE Group (>235 ProLife Christians).

* NEW: Give up one creature comfort this day and put in it's place some time with Jesus i.e. prayer, spiritual reading, scripture reading, etc.

Pro-Life News: The LIFE Runners (Dave, Jason, Doug, Rich, John, Jim, Steve, Pat, Tammy, Brenda/Aaron/Trevor) will be running the Twin-Cities Marathon (26.2 miles) on Respect Life Sunday (October 4th) to raise money for an ultrasound for A Woman's Answer Medical Center in Gainesville, FL. Please consider sponsoring our team by donating $/mile. Please make checks payable to "Knights of Columbus" and mail them to PO Box 14044, Gainesville, FL 32604.

Our Prayers: Those who pray together stay together. Fasting ideas in footnote below.

* Prayer to end abortion, abused children, chastity, peace, our enemies, our troops, depression/despair, prisoners, ProLife politicians, illnesses/injuries, jobs, natural disasters, refugees, addictions, persecuted believers, Peters family (JP in hospital), Lynn Bishara (for son Alex), Pat Castle (for cousin Michael), Stephanie Spader (for peace/healthy pregnancy), Kay Castle (Nancy Wheeler, Sheri Daniels, Sr. Joan Luke), Maureen Rogers (her pain).

Feast Day: St. Jerome (420) - Jerome was a strong, outspoken man. He had the virtues and the unpleasant fruits of being a fearless critic and all the usual moral problems of a man. He was, as someone has said, no admirer of moderation whether in virtue or against evil. He was swift to anger, but also swift to feel remorse, even more severe on his own shortcomings than on those of others.

Faith Quote: A pope is said to have remarked, on seeing a picture of St. Jerome striking his breast with a stone, "You do well to carry that stone, for without it the Church would never have canonized you."

In Christ,
Steve
Romans 12:2

* Prayer: Prayer connects us with God's will & His miracles, changing us & helping others. 'If you pray that God will move a mountain and He doesn't, assume Christ wants you to climb it instead.'
* Fasting: Let's fast from things that take our eyes off Jesus (selfishness, bitterness, being so critical, impatience, gossip, excessive video games, etc) and take on things that fix our eyes on Jesus (selflessness, kindness, compassion, forgiveness, patience, understanding, caring, helping, listening).
* Defend the unborn: 'Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don't stand back and let them die' (Prov 24:11). 'Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you' (Jer 1:5). 'It is a great poverty that a child must die that you might live as you wish' (Blessed Mother Teresa).
* Evangelization: Let's make room for unbelievers (be a friend, make a friend, lead a friend to Christ) and perpetual re-evangelization of self and those near us, by way of daily prayer (relationship) and following Christ's example of selfless love, mercy, and service (Matt 28:19).