😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  “…God is love.”, so we are told in 1 John 4:8.  I imagine you’ve heard “God is love.” multiple times before, but do you believe it?  Do you believe God is love?  What about those folks that say they don’t believe in or know God?  Do they know and feel love?  I imagine that sounds like a silly question.  Yes, of course, they can know and feel love.  But how is that so, if they don’t believe in or know God?

God is not chosen.  God’s presence in our lives and His love are all gifts.  We can’t hide from His love.  We can’t run from His love either.  God is in the very fiber of our beings. 

With that being said, we all should probably check our thoughts, speech, and actions towards others.  1 John 4:8 “Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.”  So then, whoever is with love knows God, for God is love. 

With this in mind, I would suggest we all pause a moment before acting toward anyone or opening our mouth, allowing our tongue to become double-edged swords, and simply ask yourself, “Does this person know love?”  If you answer yes, then know that whatever you are about to do or are about to say, will be done/said to God Himself.  Make wise choices.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Last weekend we had the opportunity to travel to Michigan to visit our youngest daughter Lori and her husband, Cody.  It was a record-breaking weekend.  Brian is not crazy about playing games, but he was a good sport.  We learned six new games, shared some laughs, enjoyed listening to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, enjoyed some home cooking and new restaurants, and watched the 4^th of July fireworks.  We also had the opportunity to watch some of the wildlife around their home and pray the Mass at Church of the Transfiguration.  Church of the Transfiguration is a simple, yet beautiful church, and it feels like home. 

As we were leaving Mass, walking toward the doors, an older gentleman held the door, waiting for us to walk through.  We spoke with him briefly outside the church.  As we were getting ready to part ways, Brian told this gentleman, “Have a good week.”  His response kind of caught us off guard.

“Don’t have a good week.  Make it a good week and share it.  Don’t leave your week up to someone else to determine.”

That was a great piece of advice.  I do enjoy those unexpected momentary encounters that leave an impression on you.

Below are some pictures from the Church of the Transfiguration.  I really like the area behind the alter, how it’s kind of set off and welcomes you into a separate experience.  It has a feel of calm and peace.  I also want to draw your attention to the statue of Mary.  What caught my attention is how tired her eyes appear to be, as if she was weighted down by a heavy burden.  It made me think, this image of Mary depicts Luke 2:19, “And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” 

By her willing consent and with the strength of angels and the Holy Spirit, Mary accepted the weight and burden of being the Mother of Christ, so that salvation from our evil doings could be freely given to us, thanks to the price of Christ’s broken and abused body.

It is only by His hard-fought salvation, that we will ever have true peace in our lives.  “Make it a good week and share it.  Don’t leave your week up to someone else to determine.”

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  When my girls were young, I told them to make good choices.  When they were in high school, I told them to make wise choices.  Actually, every morning I still send them a text message that says, “Make wise choices and have a blessed day.”  Do they actually think about the depth of what I’m telling them each morning?  I imagine not, but I pray that at least some days they do.  Wise choices go beyond what is good for yourself.

I started reading Matthew Kelly’s book “The Forgotten Way The Saint James Master Plan”.  I made it all the way to page 2, before I started underlining. 

“We make ourselves sick in every way imaginable when we ignore the wisdom God reveals to us.  A life rooted in wisdom is peaceful and orderly.  When we reject wisdom, we invited chaos, calamity, and confusion to reign in our lives.

Our culture is gluttonous from knowledge, but it only takes one great spiritual truth to forge a lasting union with God.  The Scribes and Pharisees knew everything there was to know about the coming Christ, yet when Jesus stood before them, they failed to recognize Him. 

The Magi possessed one great spiritual truth: Follow the star and it will lead you to the Christ.

There is a vast difference between possessing knowledge and being wise.  Wisdom is truth lived.  That’s why we call the Magi the “Three Wise Men.”  They were in possession of only one piece of knowledge about the coming Christ, but they wholeheartedly applied that one truth to their lives.”

Applying the wisdom you gain, to your daily decisions, will draw you closer to God and His desires for your life.  Your decisions lead to moments and it’s those moments that shape your life.  There are multiple moments I can think of off the top of my head, that have dramatically changed the direction and outcome of my life.  Do you every really think of decisions in that way?  Not every decision will be life changing, but you never truly know which ones will be.  Make wise choices and have a blessed day.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#MatthewKelly – The Forgotten Way The Saint James Master Plan

#MattMaher – Lord, I Need You

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  At this point in my life, something that I haven’t done and honestly have no real desire to do, is run or even walk a marathon.  I realize people do marathons for different reasons and they can even be therapeutic, but it seems like a whole lot of hours, very early mornings, pain, and a good possibly of injury, for an event that is really just a blink compared to all the time you spend training.  I can only imagine someone crossing the FINISH line of their first marathon, in pain and tired, yet invigorated and on an adrenaline high, with their arms in the air victoriously…”It is finished!”  Can you feel the relief?

This past week, I read a booklet titled The Mockery & Majesty of the Cross, which is excerpted from Bill Crowder’s book, For This He Came.  I would highly suggest that you read this booklet also.  Here are a couple points that really struck me. 

‘Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!”  And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit (John 19:30).

“IT IS FINISHED!”  In the Greek, it is “tetelestai”: “It is completed”; “I have done it!”  Matthew 27:50 says that Jesus’ last words were cried with a loud voice – it’s a victory shout!’

I have never thought of those words, “IT IS FINISHED!”, as a victory shout coming from Christ’s broken body, hanging at the point of lifelessness on the cross.

‘Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.”  Having said this, He breathed His last (Luke 23:46).

Christ retains regal composure here.  He had become the ransom for suffering and death – all “for the joy set before Him” (HEB. 12:2).  All that remained was for Him to finalize it all by dying.  Yet even here, He was in control.

At the outset of the crucifixion, Jesus turned to His Father in seeking pardon for sinful people.  At the instant the sins of the world were placed on Him, he cried, “My God!” with the derelict cry of abandonment.  Once the deed was done, He again cried, “Father!”  Mission accomplished.  Relationship restored!’

Like preparing for a marathon, Jesus put in a whole lot of hours, suffering pain and injuries, to cross our threshold between a sinful life and eternal salvation.  Your salvation journey is a marathon.  Oh, look at that…I am running/walking a marathon after all.  But sometime I feel I’m crawling or not even moving at all.  I’m so thankful and blessed that God is patient with me and never stops working on me.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#BillCrower – The Mockery & Majesty of the Cross

#Crowder – Still

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Are you choosing to live a life of silence?  Our entire day is a living prayer to God.  Are you choosing to pray well and consistently?  Are you choosing to pray out loud or silently?  Other than during Mass, the majority of my years have been ruled by fear of what others would think of me, if I prayed or spoke of the Lord or my faith in public.  That fear can be very crippling.  What I have learned is that the more belief and confidence I have in the Lord and my faith, the more it’s at the forefront of my mind and the more I’m willing to vocalize it.  “I believed, therefore I spoke.”  Your deep-seated faith conviction is a catalyst to spoken prayer and praise for our Lord, which radiates the Lord in reflective ways. 

2 Corinthians 4:13-18

‘Since, then, we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed, therefore I spoke,” we too believe and therefore speak, knowing that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and place us with you in His presence.  Everything indeed is for you, so that the grace bestowed in abundance on more and more people may cause the thanksgiving to overflow for the glory of God.

Therefore, we are not discouraged; rather, although our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  For this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.’

Fight!  Fight!  Fight Satan’s lies.  Through Christ, there is no fear. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#JonReddick&WeTheKingdom – No Fear

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Two of the many things that I appreciate about the Catholic faith are stated in the Nicene Creed, “I believe in one holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” 

1) Apostolic.  Through the succession of each Pope, the Catholic faith and catholic church has a direct apostolic line through Peter to Christ.  Which brings me to my second point.

2) Catholic.  Lower case “c”, catholic means universal.  Yes, I believe in a catholic/universal church. 

So, what does that mean to me?  That means whether I’m in my hometown,  at work, visiting family in North Carolina or Michigan, or on vacation in Australia, any given day of the week, I can walk into a Catholic Church for Mass and I will experience the same Old and New Testament readings, the same Psalm, the same Gospel reading, and the same true Christ (Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity) available for me to adore and receive.  Mass is prayed 364 days of the year (365 during a leap year) within the Catholic Church.  The one day a year that Mass is not prayed, is Good Friday. 

So, why is this important to me?  It’s important to me that no matter where I am, I can physically be in Christ’s presence and I can physically receive Christ’s presence in me.  When we receive Christ in the Holy Eucharist, you and I become Christ’s living tabernacles.  When I go on vacation, I don’t have to be on vacation from the true presence of Christ. 

When you head out for vacation this summer, don’t be on vacation from Christ.  Make sure to visit masstimes.org to find a church and Mass times.    

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#Terrian – He Sees You

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Prayer is not a task to be done.  It’s a relationship to be had.  Consistency in prayer and growing your relationship with the Lord in good times is just as important as reaching out to Him in challenging times.  If you only seek the Lord in challenging times or maybe only reach out to Him in the good times, because you don’t want Him to see you in your mess, then you are only experiencing one part of a relationship with the Lord.  It’s through a consistent relationship with the Lord, that we can experience all aspects of Him.  You just might be surprised at what you will experience with Him, when you invite Him into your whole life. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#TobyMac – Nothin’ Sweeter

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  On January 1^st, I sent messages to select individuals asking them what one thing or prayer I could pray for them during 2025.  Can you believe we are almost half way into 2025 already? 

One day last week, while praying these prayers, one by one, I started to realize that I could see pieces of me in every one of those prayers I’ve been praying for others.  It made me realize that I need a lot of prayer and help, so I started adding myself into each of those prayers.  What makes this interesting to me is that the people these prayers are for, are from different aspects of my life, and just like those prayers, each of these people help form me, to become who I am. 

Circling back around to what I spoke with you about last week, I went to my first work Mass last Thursday.  Turned out that I was the only person, in person for that Mass.  When I walked into the chapel, Father pointed me to the missalettes and told me to grab one, then he began Mass.  Things were moving right along until we came to the first reading and Father told me to read.  “Oh crap!”, I thought to myself.  I don’t read well and try to avoid reading aloud at all costs.  Being that I was the only one there, I really didn’t have much choice, but to read.  Needless to say, I survived.  That was the first time I attended a Mass without anyone else in the congregation.  It was interesting to have my own personal Mass.  Maybe one of these days, you will also have the privilege to experience that.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#TaurenWells – Let The Church Sing

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Yes, my first week and a half in the office have been a challenge health wise, with the mold and crud from the A/C system, but God can and will work any situation for His good.  I noticed that throughout the facility, a morning announcement is made that a Catholic Service aka Mass will be held at noon and for those that can’t go in person, it can be viewed on our intranet system.  One of the items I’ve been struggling with since going to the office for work, is that the hour before work used to be part of my prayer time, but that has shifted to driving and walking on the work campus.  I haven’t worked my way into a new comfortable prayer routine yet, but God is like…”Here Shell, the best prayer routine is one spent with Me and receiving Me.  Come be with me at Mass.”  🎤 drop!

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#BenFuller – If I Got Jesus

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  After 3 years and 7 months of working from my quiet, peaceful home, Monday I returned to working in an office space of which I am at workstation 37 of 42.  There are no walls, cubicles, or even dividers between the desks, just one big open area.  I can’t recall ever working in an environment quiet like this.  To say the least, it’s going to take some getting use to.  That plus some other work stuff that happened Monday made me pretty grumpy.  I got home after work, ate some pizza real quick, then a couple friends and I headed to a memorial Mass for Pope Francis, which was being presided by our new Archbishop.

I keep pretty quiet during the 35 minute car ride, still grumpy and pondering the events of the day.  We settled into a crowded pew, squeezed one more friend into our crowded pew, and prepared ourself for Mass.  Then the choir and congregation started singing the prelude.

‘I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto me and rest;

Lay down O weary one.  Lay down your head up-on my breast.”

I came to Jesus as I was, So weary, worn and sad.

I found in Him a resting place, And He has made me glad.’

We then went into the processional hymn.

“O God beyond all praising, we worship you today

And sing the love amazing that songs cannot repay;

For we can only wonder at every gift you send,

At blessings without number and mercies without end;

We lift our hearts before You and wait upon Your word,

We honor and adore You, our great and mighty Lord.”

Then we sang Psalm 23.

“The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want…”

After the Gospel, Matthew 25:31-46, during his homily, Archbishop Casey shared with us some of his experiences from his life changing Camino pilgrimage.  This really caught my attention and lifted my spirits, being that we will be making our Camino pilgrimage this year.

After his homily, I told myself, “I know this evening and Mass was planned as a memorial to Pope Francis, but I know it was planned for me.”  I know that sounds pretty selfish, but God was really talking to me throughout the entire Mass.  He knew I needed to be there to hear what He had to say to me.  He calmed my spirit, but I still had trouble sleeping, which was all my fault.  He kept telling me to let go, but I continued to replay some events of the work day in my head.

We can be our own worse enemy.  Peace comes from and through God and its peace that He desires for us. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.