For you this week:
- Reflection for Saturday: If God thinks you can do it, then of course you can
- Inside the Ministry: Novena to St. Joseph begins April 23
- Sit with Mary: Marian Summit May 16-18
- Terry’s Corner: April 19 Workshop on the Father’s Heart
- This week’s WordBytes faith-builder: What Does It Mean to Be an Apostle Today?
- Footsteps to Heaven podcast: Strengthen Your Spirit for the Journey
This week’s Trivia Challenge: What’s the difference between an apostle and a disciple of Jesus? (Check your answer at the end of this newsletter.)
Saturday April 15, 2023
Acts 4:13-21
Psalm 118:1, 14-21
Mark 16:9-15
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/041523.cfm
Podcast:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/daily-mass-reading-podcast-april-15-2023
Saints Calendar:
gnm.org/saints-find/saints-calendar
They ordered Peter and John not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. They replied, “It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” (From Saturday’s first reading)
Reflection for Saturday:
If God thinks you can do it, then of course you can
God designed each of us to be important, but too many of us act like useless nobodies by doing too little in the mission of Christ. It’s not that we don’t care. We simply don’t believe we are that important nor that capable.
Think of a time when you were asked to do something and you turned it down because you thought you weren’t qualified. Let’s imagine that a request went out for someone to organize a Bible study for children. You ignored it because you were afraid that you might get in over your head. Your fears were stronger than your love for the children, and that made you useless.
This happens because we measure our value by the world’s standards, which never satisfies. Apart from God, we are nothing. We are inadequate. But in him and through him, we are special! We are apostles! He created you with a special purpose in mind, no less than he did with me.
The greatest joy that we can ever receive comes from knowing that to God we are somebody. We never did anything to become important. It’s a free gift, given to us in Baptism and Confirmation.
When we respond to apostolic opportunities with fear, we’re useless because we underestimate the God who offered us the opportunity to work for him. We’ve forgotten that he’s powerful enough to help us accomplish the task. If God thinks we can do it, then of course we can do it, as long as we keep in touch with him and allow him to function through us.
When we were baptized and confirmed into the Holy Spirit, we became a storehouse of God’s riches. We became a distribution point for God’s grace. The essence of our apostolic activity is to give to others what we have received from God.
Inside the Ministry:
Novena to St. Joseph begins April 23
Did busyness during Lent make you miss out on the Church’s annual Consecration to St. Joseph that ended on March 20th? Good News Ministries has an easy 9-day Consecration to Saint Joseph that will begin April 23 to end on May 1st, the Feast Day of St. Joseph the Worker.
Our Good News Novena includes nine little stories about apparitions of Joseph and a prayer for each meditation. With this novena, you can seal yourself as Saint Joseph’s child. You will place into his fatherly protection yourself, your families, your jobs and ministries, and the Church. We also consecrate to his fatherhood those who are not following Christ, especially our own family members, because Joseph’s desire in heaven is that all of his children love his son, Jesus, and follow him to everlasting life.
Subscribe free @ elists.gogoodnews.net/dada/mail.cgi/list/stjoseph.
The Feast of St. Joseph the Worker is often overlooked. But today’s world needs it, right? How would you feel if more people knew St. Joseph as a model for fatherhood, spousal responsibilities, and dedication to God? Evangelize your friends and family by inviting them to join this elist.
Sit with Mary:
Mark your calendar for the 2023 Marian Summit
Sign up for the FREE online Marian Summit: Hope for Families. Yours truly is one of the featured speakers. My presentation is called “Sit with Mary.”
WHEN: May 16, 17, and 18 at 6 p.m. eastern US time each day.
The summit will feature talks from more than 20 Catholic authors and speakers on topics related to Mary, Our Mother. This summit is for families in crisis; it offers hope and healing to those who have faced traumas and adversities.
The event is provided by the St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation, Patchwork Heart Ministry, and Fiat Ministry Network.
“Sit With Mary” is the title of my 15-minute presentation. You’ll love it — It includes a meditation.
Register @ nonnatus.org/marian-summit.html.
The Workshop on the Father’s Heart begins April 19
Sign up now before you miss it!
This is super-exciting! The Workshop on the Father’s Heart is getting a lot of interest, and a time for the meetings has been finalized.
Beginning April 19, I’m making myself available for live discussions on my book The Father’s Heart. This workshop is a great way to benefit from the book whether you have purchased it or not. I want you to have the best possible relationship with Father God.
The door to Terry’s Corner will open at both 2:00pm and 5:00pm EDT {translate to your time zone} to accommodate the most people.
If you want to attend the 2:00pm EDT Zoom meeting, register @ visit us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrc-6rrzkjE9QuR3NVacxOsz0iUltjDZdi.
To register for the 5:00pm EDT Zoom meeting, visit us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIkf-ytrTgrH9bh45RVR8nhp_zIR3zhKTOt.
This week’s recommended faith-builder:
What Does It Mean to Be an Apostle Today?
Did you know that you’re an important apostle for today’s world? All of our lives, we’ve struggled to become somebody special. We’ve spent much time and money and effort striving to become successful. But when we get there, we find out that we still don’t feel important enough.
That’s because we’re measuring our value by the world’s standards, which never satisfies. Apart from God, we are nothing. But in Him and through Him, we are special! We are apostles! He created us with a special purpose in mind.
The greatest joy that we can ever receive comes from knowing that to God we are somebody. We never did anything to become important. It’s a free gift, given to us in Baptism and Confirmation. Knowing this will keep us excited every day of our lives. We don’t need to impress anyone. Who could we impress anyway? We never really impress each other. We can’t impress God. Realizing this frees us to be ourselves, because we are already magnificent! We are each a unique, one-of-a-kind, original masterpiece of God.
For more on this, see our WordByte, What Does It Mean to Be an Apostle Today? Visit wordbytes.org/evangelization-ministry/apostle-today.
WordBytes is a library of Catholic faith-building articles by Good News Ministries. Come on in and explore! Visit WordBytes.org today.
Strengthen Your Spirit for the Journey (recast)
On our journey to heaven, you can strengthen your spirit so you can do your very best to receive the very best that God wants to give to you. This means choosing to be fully on the side of Jesus, not being lukewarm Christians who mix the ways of the world with the ways of Christ. In this episode, I use scriptures to explain the big difference that happens when we are hot for the Lord, living in the fire of the Holy Spirit, working hard to become the saints that God the Father created us to be.
Listen to this podcast @ gnm.org/footsteps60.
Or watch the video @ gnm-media.org/strengthen-your-spirit-for-the-journey. Or if you prefer to read it, download the transcript at this link.
Sign up for early access to podcasts. New episodes of the podcast show Footsteps to Heaven are published before this newsletter goes out. You can be notified as soon as new ones are published! Subscribe at gnm-media.org for the podcast videos or at footstepstoheaven.com for the audio-only version.
Answer to this week’s Trivia Challenge:
What’s the difference between an apostle and a disciple of Jesus? The word “apostle” means “one who is sent out.” A “disciple” is a student. Disciples of Jesus are called to become apostles and disciple others. There are two types of apostles. One refers to the Apostles who became the first priests of the Christian Church. The other refers to everyone else who is sent out to be ambassadors of the Good News.
God bless you!
Every morning, I lift up in prayer everyone who helps Good News Ministries in any way (donors, volunteers, prayer supporters, etc.) and all the prayer requests posted on our site. What can I cover in prayer for you? Post your prayer request.
How else can the team and I serve you today? Visit our homepage.
Thank you for reading this newsletter.
Your servant in Christ,
Terry Modica, Executive Director
Good News Ministries
gnm.org
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