For you this week:
- Reflection for Saturday: Is the “Great Awakening” real?
- Inside the Ministry: Special gift of St. Joseph for donors
- This week’s WordBytes faith-builder: Miracles when a loved one passes
- Footsteps to Heaven podcast: What is Heaven really like?
Saturday November 6, 2021
Romans 16:3-9, 16, 22-27
Psalm 145:2-5, 10-11
Luke 16:9-15
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110621.cfm
Podcast:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/2021-11-06
Saints Calendar:
gnm.org/saints-find/saints-calendar
No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. (From Saturday’s Gospel reading)
Reflection for Saturday: Is the “Great Awakening” real?
Is the “Great Awakening” real?What even is this “Great Awakening?”
The Sacrament of Baptism fills us with the grace of God. In this miraculous moment, we’re transfigured from children of Adam (enslaved to Original Sin) into children of Father God (set free from the traps of sin thanks to what Jesus did for us on the Cross). And in this truth lies a reality that has been too often overlooked:
As baptized Christians, we are saints.
How well do we live out our sainthood? How well are we reaching our full potential as children of Father God? We are either saints who are losing grace by sinning or we are saints who are gaining grace by actively working to repent and to grow in holiness. We cannot be both.
For a long time, the norm for Christians in “advanced” cultures (such as my own) has been to trust the illusion that we can be on both sides of the fence at the same time — and that we can safely straddle the fence forever, with one foot in the kingdom of God and one foot in the ways of the world. It’s the philosophy of having the “best” of both worlds. It’s the idolatry of self in the church of moral relativism.
But Jesus said that we cannot serve two masters (Luke 16:14). And he said, “Whoever is not with me is against Me, and whoever does not gather [i.e., evangelize, take the Good News to others and bring them to the Faith] with Me scatters [i.e., drives people away from Christ]” (Matthew 12:30). It’s either-or. There’s no grey area.
Living the illusion for such a long time has weakened us as a Church. God has allowed demons to take advantage of this so that we can plainly see evil for what it is, and repent. We are now living through the pains of purification and a wonderful awakening (praise God!) as more and more people realize that it’s time to get off the fence.
Is the “Great Awakening” real? Well, I’ve studied the prophecies about the “Great Awakening” that some believe (and I hope) is coming soon. It’s a supernatural event. It is said that everyone in the world, at the same time, will see Jesus as he really is. And we will see ourselves (and our sins) in complete clarity. This truth-seeing will stop Satan’s lies and raise up a Church of saints who live out the realities of our baptisms.
Whether this turns out to be a many-month process like we’re in the middle of now, or a 5- to 15-minute event as interpreted in prophecies, it’s an arrival of Christ. He’s coming to our rescue!
Our lost loved ones who have been persecuting us will see and understand the truth and be saved. Revival is coming! In fact, it’s already begun in some non-Catholic Christian areas. Spirit-filled Protestant faith communities are experiencing bigger turnouts at revival meetings than they used to see. We too are beginning to see it happen — for example, when parishes hold outdoor Eucharistic processions. It happens in parishes where the invitation is bold, Spirit-filled, and undeterred by censorship and other persecutions. It happens where priests energetically inspire their parishioners in evangelization.
How well are you living out your baptismal calling to be a saint who brings others to Jesus? Do not think yourself a failure if you do not succeed in converting those who have been rejecting you and your beliefs? They are not open to learning the truth from you. Get on with the task of living a radical, dynamic, obedient, Spirit-filled life. God will send you to others — to people who are ready to hear the truth.
Inside the Ministry: Special gift of St. Joseph for donors
While the publisher, my team of proofreaders, and I are working hard to get my new book out in time for Christmas gift-giving, I’m offering to our donors a sneak peak into one of the chapters. Day 26 of The Father’s Heart is about Saint Joseph as healer of the image of God’s Fatherhood.
The Year of Saint Joseph will end soon, December 8th. This chapter needs to be read now, before the year ends.
So, we’re rewarding donors with the gift of Saint Joseph. Everyone championing the mission of Good News Ministries before December 8th will have the opportunity to receive Chapter 26 as a stand-alone ebook.
See an excerpt @ tothefathersheart.com/chapters/day-26-saint-joseph-as-the-image-of-gods-fatherhood.
Sorry, this is only available to those who give financial support (please go to gnm.org/donate). Everyone else: Please pray for the book The Father’s Heart.
And watch for the announcement about how to pledge (pre-order without payment) — coming soon! The first 200 pledged orders will get 20% off the $18.50 price. Who do you want to give this to for Christmas?
WordBytes is a library of Catholic faith-building articles by Good News Ministries. Come on in and explore! Visit WordBytes.org today.
This week’s recommended faith-builder:
Miracles when a loved one passes (experiences with the Communion of Saints)
This week’s WordBytes article is a compilation of true stories about the Communion of Saints. They are the testimonies of real people who have experienced miraculous touches of love after a dear one has gone home to be with Jesus.
For more on this, visit wordbytes.org/bereavement/communion-of-saints.
What is Heaven really like? (reposted podcast)
When my husband Ralph and I went to the funeral of a neighbor who was a Jehovah’s Witness, the description of Heaven that we heard from the leader of the congregation was not one that we want to believe in. Ralph joins me in this episode to explain why and to give a much better description of the afterlife based on the teachings of the Catholic Faith and the Bible.
Listen to this podcast @ gnm.org/footsteps34.
The transcript is available @ gnm-media.org/what-is-heaven-really-like.
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
Let’s connect in GNM’s community: See you there!
Keep your eyes on Jesus!
And when you have to look at others, see them through his eyes.
Please share this with others by inviting them to visit this page. You may also print this for your personal use and you may share the print-out with others.
A free PDF document of this is available for your own personal use.
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Knowing God’s Will and Doing it Well
Lessons from the Blessed Mother
Daily Prayers with the Saints