Prayer-Soldier Newbie
Joined: Apr 18, 2009 Posts: 1001
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Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2010 11:26 am Post subject: The Fourteenth Day of Advent |
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“In those days, like a fire there appeared the prophet whose words were as a flaming furnace.” (Sirach 48:1) The Lord has spoken to us through the prophets. Some listened, but many others pursued their own designs. Great fortune may be built by the one whose ways are bereft of love, one who amasses wealth through the misfortunes of others, one who becomes powerful at the hand of evil; absent of the true power of love. Others may pursue passions which placate for the moment; but with little passing, soon they are left wanting and empty.
Every material thing awaits us, the pleasures of the world beguile us, but all came from dust and in time to dust they shall return. What then will be our legacy, what then will be the purpose of our wealth if we are left simply to nothingness? Some may climb to the top of social power; celebrities, tycoons, politicians, dictators, or monarchy they become; but in the end, they are still empty, left without that which is truly satisfying and filling of the soul; in their wake, they leave paths of strife and misery to which they themselves will soon succumb.
The powerful are not all evil, nor are they evil because of their power; it is what they do with what God has allowed them which determines their fate. Evil will taint the soul, darken it and sour it until we revile even having it; eternal anguish is what will eventually consume it. God seeks to save us from such fate, but He has still left it to our choice.
The evil feel invincible in the power of this world. They fail to see the hand above them which waits with patience for such souls to repent and become redeemed. They fail to see the hand above them which will hold them to account should they fail to turn away from evil and all of its empty promises; the hand which will hold them to account for the suffering and harm left in their wake.
“Despite all this the people did not repent, nor did they give up their sins, until they were rooted out of their land and scattered all over the earth. But Judah remained, a tiny people, with its rulers from the house of David.” (Sirach 48:15) Despite what we see in the media, the message promoted by the seekers of this world, though we struggle in our days and face challenges of persecution; for those who turn and seek the hand of God will find the truth of eternal light, the wondrous rewards of never ending love.
As they were coming down from the mountain, the disciples asked Jesus, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” He said in reply, “Elijah will indeed come and restore all things; but I tell you that Elijah has already come,and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased. So also will the Son of Man suffer at their hands.”
As God has sent angels with messages, prophets and signs so all will understand His love and the love to which He calls His children; so has the evil one sent deceivers, false prophets and temptations to beguile us, divide us and confuse us. In our confusion, we have not recognized the messengers of the Lord, so he sent His only begotten Son, knowing what we would do, so that in that moment we might finally come to understand the wages of our sins, but also so that we may be saved from our sins.
Still, the evil one seeks to divide us with all means of deceit. In our weakness, we stand confused, blind, following that which is false; but if we truly understood what Jesus taught us, we would see through the false prophets, we would turn out the deceivers; we would find love, caring and peace in our day. If we lack strength, then let us ask God in prayer to help us in our ways, let us ask God for wisdom to know which paths to walk and let us remember to thank Him for His grace and mercy and the sacrifice made for our sins. Let us praise God for the good news over which we reflect these days as we prepare to celebrate with our family, friends and community.
May the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier
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