Prayer does something to us internally.  It is a beautiful tapestry woven between you and God.  At first, you cannot see the progress, but in that moment and those thereafter, God is working miraculously through you and his greatest work is you!

 I love to pray.  I believe that prayer moves mountains.  Prayer converts the most hardened of hearts!  It is the answer to everything that is unknown to us and visible by the naked eye, it  can also be felt in our spirit, and experienced in our psyche.  

Prayer breaks the bonds and barriers that separate us from experiencing our greatest and best self.  I have been a prayer warrior for well over three decades and I have to tell you, in all truthfulness, once we begin this prayerful journey, there is no turning back to a life that is prayer less.

 We invoke upon the holy spirit when we pray.  Something happens to us when we call upon God and surrender our free will.  With our permission being given exclusively to God, he can much more easily accomplish in us everything we were once lacking.  

Prayer...You would be greatly surprised if you would take the time to keep a gratification journal.  And every day as my dear friend Catherine Lamb would say, write down five things that happened to you today that were good.  Well, I did that, and expounded upon it and was very surprised about what I had learned.  I had learned that miracles were happening all around me, and in my life and in the lives of those I love.  I was praying for all my family and friends, and suddenly it dawned on me that God was allowing me to see his power in my life through my prayers.

Granted he graced me with the opportunity.  And secondly I could not have ever seen the power of his hand hadn't I kept a gratification journal which made me magnify what was really happening in my life and in the life of those I love.  When something is written you can see it, reread it and not forget it.  I think that is why I love to write as much as I do.

My prayer life today has increased, and so has my ability to keep this life long journal now a podcast for Christ going strong!  None of it is me.  All of it is God.  I be nothing without Him!

A Saint so greatly loved and adored by many.  He was an amazing Shepherd guiding the flock properly and he was someone in my lifetime that I greatly looked up to.  He sparked the flame of truth for me as a Catholic.  I had the great honor and fortune of seeing him at Central Park in New York City 1980's, and during a papal public audience in Rome, Italy in 2003.

 To see him was a gift, to be in his presence twice was spiritually a very powerful experience.  My connection to him remains even to this very day as write about him.  He gave the church a strength, and anyone attending church were inspired by his presence, he was very authentic in his speech, genuine, gentle yet very strong as a leader, he had the perfect balance and he lovingly expressed his gratitude toward God and his faith in such a way that everyone understood.  He did not complicate the faith, nor did he confuse the flock, no, he always presented himself as one of us and that was the trait I believe that attracted so many followers.  

I am blessed to share his feast day with you, along with his every contribution.  He gave his entire life to the most important calling, a true and lowly servant of God.  He never wasted the time God gave him on this earth, he lived a life devoted to being the truest example he could at living out his life unselfishly and unreservedly for Christ and his church.  He spoke and wrote profound truths for us to follow even today.  Take them to heart and apply them to your life.  For all life, is truly sacred in the eyes of Christ.  Live deeply in the community of the Catholic Saints, for one day we will all be united as one forever with Jesus.  And what a day that will be!

Be Lover's Of Christ!   How do we enter into a meaningful relationship with Christ?  How do we get there?  The first tool in the toolbox is prayer.  Pray the rosary.  Get to know the Mother of Jesus by praying and understanding each decade of the rosary reflecting upon Jesus and his Mother's life.

Then pick up a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and learn your faith inside and out, page by page.  Understand the mass, know everything there is to know about the sacraments of the church.  Attend baptisms, confirmations, first holy communions, attend a catholic wedding, and lastly be present during a catholic funeral.  Know about the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.  It is in this environment you will see how good the church has been to the people connected to Christ.  

Their lives were blessed exponentially because they had always placed God at the helm of their lives.    God was, and is, and forever will be at the forefront, of their very lives.   God in return, reveals himself to them through the blessings he personally bestows upon the faithful families exhibiting that genuine desire of living a life of holiness.

We all were born for a purpose, to know God, love God, and serve God, in this life and well into the next.  But before we die, we live a life reflecting Gods goodness to us, today.  And we live by the great example of our ancestors who taught us by the way they chose to live.  They chose to live a life according to the laws of Christ.  Those laws kept them in line, those laws saved their souls from final damnation.  Those laws helped them get to heaven.  Heaven is not a place according to Father Patrick Francis O Doherty, heaven is a person.  That person is Jesus Christ!       

Indeed you are!!!  You are the greatest treasure that ever lived, you are a son and or  are a daughter of a King!  Never ever forget, you are of great worth!!!

 You are deserving of every happiness, and every joy known to God.  You belong to Him.  He has given you the gift of eternal life.  A gift so special, so worth knowing about and preparing for.  

Today, I welcome you into the realm of living truly in the almighty presence of God.  It is through God, we come to know the great and many truths that are His, and we are an important part of his perfect plan.  A plan that reflects the soul that he placed within each and everyone He has ever created.

Your soul's purpose is unique and different from any one He has ever created.  Have you taken the time to discover His true purpose for your life?  Now, could be that perfect time to rediscover God living inside of your soul.  Perhaps you have never taken the time in getting to know him, and maybe you were not ready then to do so.

Today make every moment count investing in a relationship that is true to Christ living in you.  He is an amazing lover.  He wants us all to himself, and once you get to know him, you are no longer intimidated but overjoyed by his presence, he wants what is best for you, when you lose sight of what is best for yourself.  He makes all things new again.  And for those of you who have carried decades of hurt, uncertainty, and loss, God is waiting for you to come to Him and place every burden at his feet.  Come to the altar again, where all life begins anew.  He will heal your heart, soul, mind, body. He will love you and create in you, a newness that will  go on to living inside of you better than you ever imagined.  Understanding the Lord and understanding yourself and the role each of us has in living and learning, and prospering in faith as one.

Do not delay in responding to this beautiful invitation,  it is given to you for a very special reason and purpose.  Gods greatest desire I believe is to connect your heart to his heart, so that your soul can live forever.  Do not disregarding what your eyes have just seen, but regard this message as something deep and personal coming to you from God himself.

The legacy of early Christians, has definitely inspired me to research further the rich history of our Catholic faith.  If only we (our brothers and sisters in Christ) would greatly desire to  expand our knowledge we would certainly have the ability to engage in healthy dialogue, when it comes to reading books that prepare the mind and soul for spiritual growth as we live out the life, we were given, by God.  

The more we learn together, the easier it becomes for us to carry on with great growth and deeply meaningful discussions about our faith with other like minded Christians who really desire to help each other prosper, while living out their faith. 

Today we have an edge through technology and the ability to research anything we want at and with our fingertips, something that the early Christian's did not have.  I believe technology can be used for the greater glory of God!  

This is God's podcast, and my fingers write, type, edit, and publish, because he wills it!  Pray for me, as I continue this journey toward him, pray that I too receive the grace needed to continue enriching the lives he has created that do not yet know of His existence.  Those are the souls I hope to inspire,  pray for, write for, and believe in!

They are "HIS" own.  They are not forgotten. Pray with me for them to understand their true existence. They are loved.  They are worth more than they realize!    

Saint Ignatius of Antioch gave his life to Christ.  He knew that there was no other way to live.  He knew he needed to follow Christ.  To die for Christ at the appropriate time of his death.  He could for see the truths of Christ happening in his own journey as he knew he was about to leave this earth and so he left this earth by leaving for us a wonderful legacy.  He was divinely inspired by Christ to write us 7 letters total.  And those same seven letters are written to help us before we exit this life to be with Christ for all eternity.  

I am not sure if our earlier Christians took advantage of this knowledge about him while they lived during the time of this amazing saint whose example exemplified the true grace of God. However, I am truly grateful that the words of this Saint himself were in fact preserved for future generations to learn from and live by.  

On the other hand, some one knew the importance of preserving these most important letters.  And although I have not read them yet, I am so looking forward to sharing those letters with you my beloved podcasters in my next episode.

 What ever Jesus himself is presenting to me, I am forwarding to you so that your journey is most enriching and most fulfilling to you and to Christ and to our brothers and sisters who are brought to us for the sole purpose of learning the importance of  truth, the importance of faith, and the importance of our sincerity towards our selves first and foremost and then towards one another. 

 It is the only way we can save this world from itself when it becomes destructive, we know those traits are not of God, but of the enemy of God.  We are worth so much more than we realize.  And we learn about our great worth when we follow Jesus Christ!

When I was 12 years old, my mother gave me a journal to write in.  It was there my thoughts, dreams, ambitions, were all written, hidden, locked away, with a key in a draw.  This gift my mother gave me was truly a wonderful idea, but it was one that continued silently in the dark.  

An idea that didn't grow beyond her gift or beyond my gift to write, if that makes sense.  Then, one day, several decades later, I shared with someone my ability to write and how I would love to share my writing with others.  And when I had spoken to this special person about my idea, she in turn was excited, she jumped to the opportunity in showing me how this can be done. For years my writing was left hidden inside the pages of a book, several for that matter, collecting dust on the shelf in my closet, never to experience the light of day , the light of Christ, until now!  

Over a period of time I had always dreamt of spending my later years devoted to writing but I wasn't sure who it was I was suppose to write for.  Until very recently it was revealed to me, that I was in fact supposed to write for God, for his church, for all the faithful following in his truth.  This was my duty that God had called me to and I was ready to serve God here.  Most of my life I never felt I was living out the exact life that God had wanted until now.  My true purpose had been discovered.  And my hope and prayer is that your purpose to serve God is discovered everyday and in everyway that you live on this earth for Him, expands throughout the universe, all  for his greater glory!    

We are so connected to the saints in heaven.  Today we rejoice, again I say rejoice, because we all get to participate with Saint Dominic and all of the Dominican Saints here at Queen of Peace.

At holy mass, we all beautifully received the holy word of God, and we celebrated together the holy Eucharist.   After this beautiful mass, Filomena received her perpetual promise, connecting her and everyone more closely to one another through Christ.

Christ,  is our best example to follow.  Christ is leading us to heaven.  We have great hope in Christ , it is He who is making this journey joyful beyond what we could ever imagine as his faithful follower's.

His love, his purpose, connects us all the the apostles, the saints, our ancestors, and they too celebrate with us the triumph of truth given to us at our holy Baptism.  We build upon this sacrament everyday as his followers.      
 

I am sharing this amazing discovery with you from a dear person in my life whom God brought to me, a gentleman who greatly has inspire me in my faith walk over the last four years .  

Thank you Allen, for the loan of this wonderfully written book by Father Benedict.  The Reform of the Renewal states openly and freely the truth about our faith, and what is expected of us.  This book opened up my eyes to the truth and I hope that the highlighted portions of this book that you have shared with me will definitely open the hearts and minds of everyone listening to this important podcast.

I believe that God is counting on each and everyone of us.  God is  expecting great things from you and from me.  We cannot rest until our duties in Christ are fulfilled.  It is up to us to figure out exactly what God is asking of us to do.  I believe we enter into the kingdom of God through the many works of charity we offer his children.  As a child in parochial school I recall being given an assignment from our mentors who were nuns and when we went home after school we were given an assignment to do at least one good deed every day to help our mother and father.  And on the following day and we would individually stand up in front of the entire class and share the good deed that we did that day.  Mine always had to do with washing or drying the dishes or sweeping the floor, but in the eyes of God because our God is a God of order, offering help of any kind was something great in the eyes of God.

Because I was taught to serve at a very young age, service became a very important part of my life.  I went from serving my parents, to serving my parishioners, to serving cancer patients in the hospital, to becoming a caregiver, to facilitating cancer programs, hoping to touch lives and change lives the best way I knew how -through life skills and basically caring truly caring about the well fare of others.

 Fast forwarding to today I am being asked to serve God in a more serious and important way when it comes to saving souls of everyone He has ever created.

If I can assist God in this capacity, and touch just one life through prayer and service and a loving example, if I can be the light of Christ illuminating one persons path, I have done for God the greatest service of all!   

The power of prayer, may we all come to desire it and place ourselves in the silence of our Lord.  We do receive the power of the most high Jesus Christ through every mass, holy communion, confession, adoration, because Christ is alive in us!                              

Let's do this more often!!!

This power is for the greater glory of God and his children.  Propelling us to live out our best life in Him.  That power was meant for the sole purpose of lifting each other up.  Looking after the best interest of every one we meet.  What can I do to be a better neighbor.  A better son or daughter.  A better person in my relationship with Christ.  

Only God can make us powerful in Him.  Only God can take away our cross.  Only God can correct the wrong we have taken into our lives.  Only God can forgive what we ourselves are not willing to let go of.  

So if every answer brings us back to God, it makes all the sense in the world that God will bring us back to ourselves.  We turn toward him.  And not away from him.  When we turn away, we face hardship.  And that road that appears free, turns out to be very costly placing our soul in grave danger.  

We don't pay enough attention to our soul, maybe it is because we cant see it.  But it exists, and it suffers greatly from the poorest of choices we make.  

So it pays to make great choices in life, because God only gives us "ONE"  life.  Wouldn't it be great if we deliberately chose not to louse it up?  Wouldn't it be great if from here on in we deliberately only made great choices?  Wouldn't it be great if every choice benefitted the great good of another?  We have this ability to choose correctly, and deliberately but we for some reason don't prioritize our choices.  We make the wrong ones, and suffer greatly from them.  

There has to be a better way to stop making deliberately poor choices in this lifetime.  Lets make it a point to recognize the choices we make each and every day that enrich the life we were given.