January 14, 2023
For you this week:
- Reflection for Saturday: Jesus is handing you a mighty sword
- Inside the Ministry: Influencing for Christ on LinkedIn
- This week’s WordBytes faith-builder: What to say to your unbelieving loved ones
- Footsteps to Heaven podcast: Wielding the Sword of the Spirit
This week’s Trivia Challenge: How did King Saul, who was King David’s predecessor, die? (Check your answer at the end of this newsletter.)
Saturday January 14, 2023
Hebrews 4:12-16
Psalm 19:8-10.15
Mark 2:13-17
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011423.cfm
Podcast:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2023-01-14-usccb-daily-mass-readings
Saints Calendar:
gnm.org/saints-find/saints-calendar
The word of God is living and effective,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
penetrating even between soul and spirit,
joints and marrow,
and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.
(From Saturday’s first reading)
Reflection for Saturday:
Jesus is handing you a mighty sword
Jesus is handing you a mighty sword. It’s the Word of God, which is more effective than even the best of man-made swords. Effective in what? Cutting out Satan’s deceptions so we can grow in holiness and live with God forever in the Kingdom of Heaven.
This sword cuts right into the heart of the matter. Of course this hurts if we are in sin, especially if we don’t want to face our sin. But if we truly desire to follow Jesus, we don’t run away from the source of this pain; we run to the Sacrament of Confession because we are glad for the spiritual growth.
What’s your favorite part of the Mass? Most people would immediately answer: “Receiving the Eucharist.” And yet, we cannot truly benefit from uniting ourselves to Jesus in the Eucharist if we are divided from him because we have not utilized the Penitential Rite (at the beginning of Mass).
Perhaps if that part of Mass didn’t happen so quickly, we’d pay more attention to its power to sanctify us. So, we really need to recall our sins before Mass, invite the Sword of the Spirit to prick our consciences, and intentionally offer it during the Penitential Rite.
Then our union with Christ will take us to new levels!
Inside the Ministry:
Influencing for Christ on LinkedIn
I’m pretty pumped to announce that Good News Ministries has a “company” page on LinkedIn and we’re soon starting a newsletter.
If you have a LinkedIn profile, you’ll want to know about this.
The name of the newsletter will be “Breakthrough Faith Clicks“. The purpose: Get weekly support in your Catholic spiritual growth and take your faith to the next level!
Although it’s similar to this Insider’s View newsletter, there’s one big and very important difference: We are reaching out especially to professionals who are Catholic.
Our LinkedIn newsletter will publish a few recommended links each week to bring subscribers to WordBytes, podcasts and prayers that will support them in their daily work lives. This is for professionals in the secular world as well as those who work in church ministries.
If you have a LinkedIn profile, please join us by (1) following our page @ linkedin.com/company/catholic-good-news-ministries, (2) subscribing to the Breakthrough Faith Clicks newsletter when it’s published, and (3) inviting your LinkedIn friends and coworkers to do the same.
P.S. LinkedIn requires us to have 150 followers before they will authorize us to publish a newsletter. Please help us reach that goal!
This week’s recommended faith-builder:
What to say to your unbelieving loved ones
“A Letter from a Mother to Her Family” was written by Anne, a now-deceased member of Good News Ministries. When she shared it with me, I immediately recognized the value it could have to any parent of adult children (and other loved ones) who are rejecting the Church and faith in Christ. We pray for our unbelieving loved ones daily but we wonder if there is something we can say that would inspire conversion.
So I gained Anne’s permission to share it with you. We trust that the Holy Spirit will generate in you ideas for own family.
To read it, go now to wordbytes.org/evangelization-ministry/what-to-say-to-unbelieving-loved-ones.
WordBytes is a library of Catholic faith-building articles by Good News Ministries. Come on in and explore! Visit WordBytes.org today.
Wielding the Sword of the Spirit (new podcast)
We’ve got yet another new one! That’s makes two weeks in a row. Woooohooot! (Pardon me while I publicly celebrate the victory of accomplishing this after a year’s forced hiatus.) Pray with me that I can continue to the goal of publishing a new one at least every other week.
In this new podcast episode I explain how we can be sure that God the Father never gives up trying to turn unbelievers to Jesus their Savior. He never abandons anyone until the point of death when they make their final choice. We can see this in Hebrews 4:12-16 (which tells us about the sword of the Spirit), in Job 36:5,8-12 (which reassures us, “He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil,”) and from Saint Alphonsus de Liguori (who tells us about the “veil” of deception getting lifted).
Listen to this podcast @ gnm.org/footsteps97.
Or watch the video @ gnm-media.org/wielding-the-sword-of-the-spirit. 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:
How did King Saul, who was King David’s predecessor, die? He committed suicide by falling on his own sword. (See 1 Samuel 31:4.)
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.
Let’s connect in GNM’s own SmartCatholics community, called Good News Faith Builders. I’m available to interact with you there.
Thank you for reading this newsletter.
Your servant in Christ,
Terry Modica, Executive Director
Good News Ministries
gnm.org
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