STEWARDSHIP OF TIME
The new year will often inspire us to do our try new things, renew our commitments to bettering ourselves and improve existing relationships.
We are told the best way to develop a relationship with someone is by communicating with them and to spend time with them. This also applies to God. But many of us find it difficult since God is Spirit, and we cannot see Him physically with our eyes. It can be hard to relate to Him as we do with our fellow humans. You may ask yourself specifically, how can we accomplish this task.
God has given us many ways to communicate with Him and learn from Him. We spend time with him in Mass, in the sacraments, in His Word, personal and communal prayer and adoration. These should be the basis on which our faith is built. Without them, we cannot develop deeper relationships with our Heavenly Father.
In order to accomplish these goals, we need to intentionally set aside TIME for them. We all have 24 hours in a day, and it is up to us as to how we spend our time.
HOW ABOUT SPENDING MORE TIME WITH GOD!
Father Leon preached at all Masses in February about Stewardship of Time and how we need to increase time with our Lord. We are blessed that his appeal to our hearts, came just at the beginning of Lent . . .
Now that we have completed our Lenten journey and are in the glorious Season of Easter, be sure to keep your commitment to spending more time with God. The weather is beginning to warm up - this may be a perfect time to check out Our Lady of Fatima Shrine in Lewiston or Our Lady of Victory Basilica, Lackawanna to visit with our Lord in absolutely beautiful surroundings! Happy Easter!
We invite you to make that commitment today. Below, is a list of activities that you can click on to find ideas for you and your family to participate in that will improve your relationship with God.
- Good Shepherd Church, Pendleton is open Monday through Friday from 9AM through 3PM, except for holidays
- Visit Our Lady of Fatima Shrine, Lewiston, NY - www.FatimaShrine.com
- Visit Our Lady of Victory Basilica, Lackawanna, NY - www.olvbasilica.org
- Pray the Liturgy of the Hours - https://divineoffice.org
- Listen to Your Morning Offering podcast with Father Kirby - Morning Offering podcast
- Listen to the Bible in a Year podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz - Bible in a Year
- Listen to the Catechism in a Year podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz - Catechism in a Year
Jesus, give me the grace to fall in greater love with you. Amen.
Prayer of Abandonment
Father, I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will.
Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me, and in all your creatures -
I wish no more than this O Lord.
Into your hands, I commend my soul: I offer it to you with all my heart,
for I love you, Lord, and so need to give myself, to surrender myself into your hands without reserve,
and with boundless confidence, for you are my Father.
Charles de Foucald
PAUSING TO PRAY
START OFF EACH DAY RIGHT! If you enjoyed Pausing to Pray during Lent, I encourage you to sign up for Divine Mercy Daily, daily reflections from the Diary of St. Faustina delivered to your inbox each morning.
The month of April is traditionally dedicated to devotion to Jesus in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. The Catholic Church teaches that the Blessed Sacrament is the real and living presence of Christ - His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity - received into our souls with every reception of Holy Communion. Our Eucharistic Lord is the source and summit of our Christian life, the ultimate proof of His infinite love for us.
Lent is the perfect time to discover the beauty of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy
The Chaplet of Divine Mercy is a prayer of intercession asking our Lord to send His mercy upon you and on everyone living in the world. It is prayed on ordinary Rosary beads and takes about ten minutes to recite. According to the Diary of St. Faustina, Jesus promised that all who recite this chaplet at the hour of death or in the presence of the dying will receive great mercy. The Chaplet of Divine Mercy is an intercessory prayer that extends the offering of the Eucharist, so it is especially appropriate to recite after having received Holy Communion at Holy Mass.
The Chaplet of Divine Mercy
In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Opening Prayer: (Diary of Faustina Kowalska, 1319)
You expired Jesus, but the source of life gushed out for souls and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty yourself out on me.
Repeat 3 times: (Diary 84)
O Blood and Water, which gushed out of the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of Mercy, I trust in you!
Recite: The Our Father, The Hail Mary and The Apostles Creed
For each of the five decades:
On the "Our Father" beads:
V. Eternal Father, I offer you the Blood and Body of your dearly Beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
R. in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.
On each of the "Hail Mary" beads:
V. For the sake of His sorrowful passion,
R. Have mercy on us and on the whole world.
Conclusion: repeat three times
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One; have Mercy on us and on the whole world.
Closing Prayer: (Diary 950)
Eternal God, in whom Mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase your Mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your Holy Will, which is Love and Mercy itself. Amen.
Jesus, I Trust in You. Jesus, I Trust in You. Jesus, I Trust in You.
Good Shepherd Roman Catholic Church
good.shepherd5442@gmail.com 716-625-8594