Monday, April 24, 2000

Quilt Holes

In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so may you be pleased to find here a variety of helps to the life of faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.

----------------------------------------------------------------

"Quilt Holes"

As I faced my Maker at the last judgment, I knelt before the Lord along with all the other souls. Before each of us laid our lives like the squares of a quilt in many piles; an angel sat before each of us sewing our quilt squares together into a tapestry that was our life.

But as my angel took each piece of cloth off the pile, I noticed how ragged and empty each of my squares was. They were filled with giant holes. Each square was labeled with a part of my life that had been difficult, the challenges and temptations I was faced with in everyday life. I saw hardships that I endured, which were the largest holes of all.

I glanced around me. Nobody else had such squares. Other than a tiny hole here and there, the other tapestries were filled with rich color and the bright hues of worldly fortune. I gazed upon my own life and was disheartened.

My angel was sewing the ragged pieces of cloth together, threadbare and empty, like binding air.

Finally the time came when each life was to be displayed, held up to the light, the scrutiny of truth. The others rose, each in turn, holding up their tapestries. So filled their lives had been. My angel looked upon me and nodded for me to rise.

My gaze dropped to the ground in shame. I hadn't had all the earthly fortunes. I had love in my life and laughter. But there had also been trials of illness and wealth, and false accusations that took from me my world, as I knew it. I had to start over many times. I often struggled with the temptation to quit, only to somehow muster the strength to pick up and begin again. I spent many nights on my knees in prayer, asking for help and guidance in my life. I had often been held up to ridicule, which I endured painfully, each time offering it up to the Father in hopes that I would not melt within my skin beneath the judgmental gaze of those who unfairly judged me.

And now, I had to face the truth: My life was what it was, and I had to accept it for what it was.

I rose and slowly lifted the combined squares of my life to the light. An awe-filled gasp filled the air. I gazed around at the others who stared at me with wide eyes.

Then, I looked upon the tapestry before me. Light flooded the many holes, creating an image: the face of Christ. Then our Lord stood before me, with warmth and love in His eyes. He said, 'Every time you gave over your life to Me, it became My life, My hardships, and My struggles.

'Each point of light in your life is when you stepped aside and let Me shine through, until there was more of Me than there was of you.'

May all our quilts be threadbare and worn, allowing Christ to shine through!

God determines who walks into your life... it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay and who you refuse to let go.

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

PUZZLING IMAGE OF JESUS

----------------------------------------------------------------

PUZZLING IMAGE OF JESUS

Totally Awesome?

The "longer" you look at this picture, the "more" you see.

Look at the lines the artist used to draw this picture of Christ.. It is of scenes from Christ's life. I have not seen anything like this

Please share this with others.

In the Circle of God's love, God's waiting to use your full potential.

May God Always Bless You and Yours!

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

P.U.S.H.

----------------------------------------------------------------

P.U.S.H.

A man was sleeping at night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light, and God appeared. The Lord told the man he had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might. So, this the man did, day after day.

For many years he toiled from sunup to sundown, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all of his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.

Since the man was showing discouragement, the Adversary (Satan) decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into the weary mind: "You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn't moved." Thus, he gave the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man. Satan said, "Why kill yourself over this? Just put in your time, giving just the minimum effort; and that will be good enough." That's what the weary man planned to do, but decided to make it a matter of prayer and to take his troubled thoughts to the Lord.

"Lord," he said, "I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?

The Lord responded compassionately, "My friend, when I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to Me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewy and brown; your hands are callused from constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. True, you haven't moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. That you have done. Now I, my friend, will move the rock."

At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what He wants, when actually what God wants is just a simple obedience and faith in Him. By all means, exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know that it is still God who moves mountains.

When everything seems to go wrong ... just P.U.S.H.

When the job gets you down ... just P.U.S.H.

When people don't react the way you think they should just P.U.S.H

When your money is "gone" and the bills are due...just P.U.S.H

When people just don't understand you ... just P.U.S.H.

P= Pray U= Until S= Something H= Happens

Pass this on to any and all who may need it; they may get it just in time.

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Be Proud of Being Catholic

----------------------------------------------------------------

Be Proud of Being Catholic

(Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller, prominent Cleveland Jewish businessman - NOT Catholic) Submitted by Dee Lynd

Some corrections of erroneous facts have been made. GS 150805

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church?

Do you know - the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to the Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. ?

Your graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%, all at a cost to you. To the rest of the Americans, it's free.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an enrolment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people - not just Catholics - in the United States today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8 % of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behaviour; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed.

Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. Protestant denominations and churches number in the tens of thousands, so it is not so easy to establish a percentage of Protestant ministers who have been found guilty of pedophilia. One thing seems clear, however, and that is that this is not a Catholic Problem. A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.

The Catholic Church is bleeding in part from self-inflicted wounds, given that some Catholics – both clergy and lay – have been guilty of abuse and that their victims have suffered. Actions are being taken at varied speeds in different places to protect the innocent and arrest the guilty. It can be said that the Church has been hurt by a small number of wayward priests and that there is hope to bring abuse to an end.

Walk with your shoulders high and you head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States. Then remember what Jeremiah said: "Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls". Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions. Be proud that you're a Catholic.

Reprinted excerpts with permission of the Buckeye Bulletin - courtesy of Brookside Council #3297, Cleveland Diocese

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Priest Rescued by Friends

----------------------------------------------------------------

Priest Rescued by Friends

MARVELLOUS TRUE STORY as told by Dr. Scott Hahn

This is what Scott Hahn (a converted Protestant - now a professor at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio) told us at a recent conference in Denver on Confession:

A priest was in Rome and had a scheduled audience with Pope John Paul II. The meeting was scheduled for late afternoon and having some time on his hands, he went to a nearby church to pray. There were some steep steps leading up to the church and as he climbed the steps he noticed a number of beggars sitting on the steps. This isn't unusual because there are a lot of beggars in Rome. As he passed, a man looked familiar, but he continued on into the church and prayed. While praying it dawned on him who the beggar he saw was it was a former classmate from the seminary who had been ordained a priest with him.

Shocked by this knowledge, he returned to the steps and found the fellow and said, ¨Are you Father Jim. "Yes", replied the beggar. "What has happened that you are in this condition now?" "None of your business so bug off and leave me alone." It was almost time, so he left and went to Vatican. As the audience progressed, the Pope's secretary gave each participant a rosary and each person was allowed to approach the Holy Father for his blessing. Most people were just blessed without speaking to the Holy Father.

When it came his turn, he said to Pope John Paul, "Holy Father, I just had a shock. I encountered a former classmate who was ordained with me, now sitting as a beggar on the steps of St. Mary's here in Rome. Will you please pray for him?" The Holy Father nodded and the priest moved on. Before he left the audience, he was approached by the Pope's secretary who gave him two tickets to have dinner with the Holy Father that night at Vatican. He told the priest to bring his friend with him.

The priest hurried back to St. Mary's and found his friend was still there. He approached him and said, "Jim, we've been invited to dine with the Pope tonight." Jim answered angrily, "Are you crazy? I'm a beggar look at me I am dirty and haven't a decent garment to wear bug off!" "Listen", said the priest. "You've got to go with me. You are my ticket to this dinner! My hotel room is across the street. I'll take you there and you can shower and shave and some of my clothes will fit you you'll be fine." He almost dragged the poor beggar to the hotel room. He got him all cleaned up and they returned to Vatican for dinner. They were ushered into a room with a long table.

The Holy Father was at the head of the table. After three courses of delicious food, the Pope's secretary approached Father Jim and asked him to step into the hall. He then left with the Secretary. Some time later, people asked, "When will they return for the dinner?" "This Pope, we never know with him," replied Pope's secretary.

After dinner, the priest asked Father Jim, "What went on there and what happened?" With tears in his eyes, Father Jim said, "Well, the secretary took me into the hall with the Pope. Holy Father said to me, 'Father Jim, will you hear my confession?' I exclaimed, 'Holy Father, I'm just a beggar!' 'So am I, replied the Holy Father.' 'But,' I replied, 'I'm not a priest in good standing.' The Holy Father answered, 'Once a priest, always a priest.'

Then Pope John Paul II knelt down and I heard his confession. When he had received absolution, I knelt before him and asked him to hear my confession too, which he did. Then the Pope had reinstated my priestly faculties and assigned me to St. Mary's parish where my ministry will be to the beggars there," Father Jim said.

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Prescribed by the Great Physician

----------------------------------------------------------------

Prescribed by the Great Physician
****** ********* ******* ************* ********* ******

The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember....
Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
Peter denied Christ (3 times!)
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
Mary Magdalene was promiscuous before meeting Jesus
the Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once....
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was a religious fanatic
Timothy had an ulcer.....
AND
Lazarus was dead!

Now! No more excuses!
God can use you to your full potential.
Besides, you aren't the message, you are just the messenger.
And one more thing... Share this with a friend or two...
In the Circle of God's love, God is waiting to use your
full potential.

1. God wants spiritual fruits, not religious nuts.

2. "Dear God : I have a problem. It's me.
" My Dear Child: I have the solution. It's Me! !"

3. Growing old is inevitable ... growing UP is optional.

4. There is no key to happiness. The door is always open.

5. Silence is often misinterpreted but never misquoted.

6. Do the math... Count your blessings.

7. Faith is the ability to not panic.

8. Laugh every day. It's like internal jogging.

9. If you worry, you didn't pray. If you pray, don't worry.

10. As a child of God, prayer is like calling home every day.

11. Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.

12. The most important things in your house are the people!

13. When we get tangled up in our problems, be still.

God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.

14. A grudge is a heavy thing to carry.

15. He who dies with the most toys is still dead.

Have a great day!!! The SON is shining and He can certainly use you!

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Baking A Cake or Picking a Pumpkin

----------------------------------------------------------------

Baking A Cake or Picking a Pumpkin

A young man is telling his Grandma how everything is going wrong. School problems, friend problems, family problems, financial problems, severe health problems, etc. Meanwhile, Grandma is baking a cake. She asks her grandson if he would like a snack, which, of course, he does. "Here, have some cooking oil." "Yuck" says the young man. "How about a couple raw eggs?” "Gross, Grandma!" "Would you like some flour then? Or maybe baking soda?" "Grandma, those are all yucky!"

To which Grandma replies: "Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves. But when they are put together in the right way, they make a wonderfully delicious cake! God works the same way.

Many times we wonder why he would let us go through such bad and difficult times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good. We just have to trust Him and, eventually, they will all make something wonderful!"

God is crazy about you. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, He'll listen. He can live anywhere in the world, and He chose your heart.

Share this with the people you care about. Hope your day is a "piece of cake!"

Pumpkin Season

Whenever Fall rolls around, this anecdote seems very appropriate.

A woman was asked by a co-worker,

"What is it like to be a Christian?"

The co-worker replied, "It is like being a pumpkin.

God picks you from the patch, brings you in,

and washes all the dirt off of you.

Then he cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff.

He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc.,

and then

He carves you a new smiling face, and puts His light

inside of you to shine for all the world to see."

Link to MORE INSPIRATIONAL TEXTS

----------------------------------------------------------------

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Father Gilles' Archive Pages

Monday, April 24, 2000

Quilt Holes

PUZZLING IMAGE OF JESUS

P.U.S.H.

P= Pray U= Until S= Something H= Happens

Be Proud of Being Catholic

Priest Rescued by Friends

Prescribed by the Great Physician

Baking A Cake or Picking a Pumpkin

Seminar / Workshop on God - "Introduction to Prayer" - Marriage Preparation Course "From This Day Forward" - Saturday, April 13th, 2024 at St. Thomas à Becket Parish - Marriage is a great adventure for LIFE! Workshop Seminar 07.6

Report Abuse