Lead me not into Temptation

Imitation of Christ: Book 1, Chapter 13 Of Resisting Temptations

As long as we live in this world, we cannot be without temptations and tribulations. Hence it is written in Job "Man's life on earth is a temptation." Everyone therefore should be solicitous about his temptations and watch in prayer lest the devil find an opportunity to catch him: who never sleeps, but goes about, seeking whom he can devour. No one is so perfect and holy as sometimes not to have temptations and we can never be wholly free from them. Nevertheless, temptations are very profitable to man, troublesome and grievous though they may be, for in them, a man is humbled, purified and instructed. All the Saints passed through many tribulations and temptations and were purified by them. And they that could not support temptations, became reprobate, and fell away.

Many seek to flee temptations, and fall worse into them. We cannot conquer by flight alone, but by patience and true humility we become stronger than all our enemies. He who only declines them outwardly, and does not pluck out their root, will profit little; nay, temptations will sooner return and he will find himself in a worse condition. By degrees and by patience you will, by God's grace, better overcome them than by harshness and your own importunity. Take council the oftener in temptation, and do not deal harshly with one who is tempted; but pour in consolation, as thou wouldst wish to be done unto yourself. Inconstancy of mind and little confidence in God, is the beginning of all temptations. For as a ship without a helm is driven to and fro by the waves, so the man who neglects and gives up his resolutions is tempted in many ways.

Fish and Roses

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday. What that means is that we are now in Lent. We are now in the wilderness. But today is also Valentine's Day. When I went to the grocery store this afternoon the display case had fish literally next to chocolate covered strawberries. How ironic. Today the secular media bombards us with "love images": lips, Cupid, hearts, roses and anything imaginable that's pink or red. However if you want to see an image of real love, true love, look a a crucifix. Love is sacrifice. And that is what Lent is all about: loving more through sacrifice. We have to change ourselves if we wish to change the world around us. The Church in Her infinite wisdom gives us three weapons for this battle: prayer, fasting, and alms giving. This Lenten sacrifice for me is about giving your time to God (prayer); giving your addiction to God (fasting); giving to others as you would to God (charity/alms giving).

At the beginning of every Mass we confess our sins. Before we move on to the glorious sacrifice of the Mass- we acknowledge that we are sinners. To move forward in the spiritual life we first have to realize our own bankruptness. That's how we should start Lent as well. As I was looking through my notes of previous thoughts from previous Lents, I came across this note. It's a note that I had wrote about 2 years ago when I had fallen in the sin of pornography. This note helps me realize that I am a broken man. It is from there my Lenten journey must truly begin:

Today I fell. It wasn't abrupt or out of no where; in hindsight, it was a progression of events that should have screamed to me. Triggers. At the beginning of the week- I got relaxed. Almost bragging, I thought, "I got this in the bag". Gods grace only comes to the humble. We cannot receive it when we are puffed up. We receive his divine life only when we stoop down in humility to receive it. I feel discouraged, beat, ashamed. But that's not what the Lord wants for me- he wants me to be humble. And so therefore, I will pick myself up and conitnue the race. Like a river I will never stop. I'll keep flowing to my goal. Sometimes slow and sometimes fast but never stoping. Always flowing, never bothered by what's trying to dam me up. I've got a goal and a end and I must progress on. The first step is to make a heartfelt act of contrition:

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended You, and I detest all my sins because of Your just punishments, but most of all because they offend You, my God, Who are all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to sin no more and to avoid the unnecessary occasions of sin. Amen.

The next thing I know I must do is go to confession. One, confessing ones sins, is a sign of humility. Second, the sacrament of confession is a personal encounter with our Lord Jesus Christ and a fountain of healing and grace. I need grace.

The Color Run 5k: Houston 2012

Physical training and 'foodie' self control seen though the eyes of faith and mixed with prayer and pure companionship are a powerful pleasant combination for a healthy clean lifestyle. My wife would like to update y'all (yup I'm from Texas) on our latest pursuits:

Sorry my dearest followers! I have taken a blogging break due to the busy holiday season and a mild case of the "ehhhs" BUT I have once again returned and have much to catch you up on: my 5k, weight and paleo, Thanksgiving and Christmas, 2013 goals and dreams, and fertility (sounds like I will be writing multiple posts until I catch you up with me)!

Read more via her blog ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Three 'Best Bets' For The Year Of Faith

Each Sunday we meet in the sanctuary. We proceed and line up like lemmings one by one receiving something that we pay no mind to. And upon receiving this significant gift we forget about it as quick as it was placed in our hands. Would anyone like to give a suggestion of what I’m talking about?

My dreadful guess is that you are thinking:

The Eucharist/The Body of Christ /Holy Communion

The Eucharist?! No, not at all – We as faithful Catholics know that the Eucharist is the Source and Summit of our faith! I was talking about the church bulletin!

Now read that again in context:

Each Sunday we meet in the sanctuary. We proceed and line up like lemmings one by one receiving something that we pay no mind to. And upon receiving this significant gift we forget about it as quick as it was placed in our hands (the preferred way to receive Holy Communion is on the tongue BTW).

The only way you could have mistakenly thought I was talking about the Eucharist is if really deep down you knew that the majority of Catholics did not believe in the real presence. And I believe your assumption is right(specifically after seeing the results of 'catholic' voting) . Polls show consecutively that only 30% of Catholics in the United States go to mass regularly. This is a tragedy. This is a disease. The majority among that 30% has little grasp of what the Church teaches. This is also a tragedy. This is also a disease. But the key to recovering from the fist disease is to heal the second disease. I would like to purpose that the cure for this disease is to be found on the front of my church bulletin:

 Know Your Faith, Live Your Faith, Share Your Faith.  This is the medicine we can offer as lay people:

Know Your Faith

St. Jerome said, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” Jeremiah 29:13 says,“You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart”. Jesus puts it this way in Luke 11:9-10 “And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” In our modern time of instant knowledge we have no excuse for not knowing out faith. We do not have to go to any drastic measure to ask, seek, or knock - no it’s just a click away. We have every resource and every imaged type of media at the tip of our fingers and yet we are ignorant of our faith. Those scriptures told us God is pleased when we seek truth- not become experts. No one likes a know it all. God is pleased when we are seeking to learn our faith. C.S. Lewis says, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” If that is true, ask yourselves, “Why do I have sports statics memorized but I can’t explain the Church’s teaching on the sacrament of reconciliation? Why am I an expert on hunting and fishing but cannot understand what the church teaches about contraception. Why am I an expert about American Idol but can't hold a conversation about the church’s teaching on Marian dogma?” St. Jerome said, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” I would also submit that ignorance of Church teaching is also ignorance of Christ because the Church is the Body of Christ, therefore when the church speaks, it’s with Christ’ voice.

Live Your Faith

Fulton Sheen once said, “It is easy to find truth; it is hard to face it, and harder still to follow it.” I would like to focus living our faith when no one is watching, when no one can “watch us walk” but God. Matthew 6:6 says, “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” We see clearly that what we do in secret matters to God. What are some things that we do negatively in secret? What do we lose sleep over? What haven’t we been able to come to grips with? Is it alcohol? Medication? Pornography? Anger? Overly worrying about worldly things? Yelling at your children? Gambling? Purchasing things without telling your wife? Over eating? What is your secret vice? What are you ashamed of? What is it for the life of you that you cant you stop doing? I know you’re probably starting to get defensively right about now. Don’t worry its natural. You’re thinking, “What business is it of yours what I struggle with? I go to mass, I tithe, I volunteer, I pray. I’m not hurting anyone. Butt out.” This analogy might help. As law abounding drivers, we have to follow certain laws that apply to driving. If we break these laws, we could injury other drivers. If we choose to run a red light, we could crash into another vehicle. But in addition to following laws we also have to get our cars inspected once a year. We can follow the law all day long but it is to no avail if our own personal cars are not worthy of the highway. This is why we have to examining our own conscience and get it inspected at least once a year in the confessional. Personally, I struggle with lust and looking at things which I’m not supposed to. Hey I’m not here talking about it because it’s an enjoyable subject- in fact it’s a quite touchy subject- no pun intended. I’m here as your brother telling you its OK to admit your vices. It’s the only way we are going to beat them. We will either accuse ourselves or excuse ourselves. God knows our situation; He will not judge us as if we had no difficulties to overcome. What matters is the sincerity and perseverance of our will to overcome them. Before we can be cured we must want to be cured. Those who really wish for help will get it. C.S. Lewis says, “I find a good many people have been bothered by Our Lord's words, "Be ye perfect." Some people seem to think this means "Unless you are perfect, I will not help you"; and as we cannot be perfect, then, if He meant that, our position is hopeless. But I do not think He did mean that. I think He meant "The only help I will give is help to become perfect. You may want something less: but I will give you nothing less."


Share Your Faith

Time after time I have stressed the importance of sharing the Gospel with our actions. In football terms: this is offensive. Evangelization is offensive. Apologetics is defensive. We are really familiar with the word Evangelization but sometimes the word apologetics slips under our radar. The standard scripture for apologetics is 1 Peter 3:15 “Always be prepared to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence.” Are you prepared to make a defense of your faith? We  have a great opportunity to do just that in our everyday lives: at work, at home, on social media, at the store, at the bus stop. But remember it says do it with “gentleness.” We are Christ ambassadors, not his debate champions. It’s the Holy Spirit who converts souls.

I would like to leave you with a reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Paul was writing a community who were seeking to learn their faith, live their faith, and share their faith. We to are a community who are seeking to learn our faith, live our faith, and share our faith. Let’s for a second pretend like Paul is writing to only us in this community.

In Colossians 3:1-17 Paul tells us:

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming.* In these you once walked, when you lived in them. But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old nature with its practices and have put on the new nature, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free man, but Christ is all, and in all. Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as you teach and admonish one another in all wisdom, and as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

As we enter this "Year of Faith" make every effort to do these three things: Know Your Faith, Live Your Faith, Share Your Faith

All Saints are Pure Saints

We, you and I, were created to be saints. It is our destiny. It is the fulfillment of our happiness. It's being the best version of ourselves. It's not about halos and serious stone faces. It's about being real- the realist version of yourself. Being a saint isn't boring, no it's actually the definition of "living life"- a JOY filled life. Saints are people FULL of joy because a saint is simply a friend of God. Meaning they are constantly in God's friendship (in this life and in the next) and would rather die than to hurt and or end their friendship with God (by sinning) . And God being a perfect friend makes them whole (in this life and in the next). Today is All Saint's Day or All Hallows Day and I have to ask myself, "What's hurting my friendship with God?" And then I must act on the answer. Sin hurts our friendships and our true selves. There is only one way to be a failure in this life and that is not to become a saint. Be a saint- what else is there?

My Anniversary

The Holy Father has declared today, October 11, 2012, the first day of the "Year of Faith" but for me it's much more special than that- today is the 9th anniversary of me being fully Catholic. I'm thankful for my abnormal confirmation date (most people come into communion with the Church at Easter but I'm a rare exception) because it's in the month of the Rosary (October) and was in the year of the Rosary(which ended at the close of October 2003). Just recently I consecrated myself to Jesus through Mary on the feast of Our Lady of the most holy Rosary(October 7th). I was made to be a mamma's boy! That is why I feel called to spread devotion to the Rosary and why I feel called to the P.O.R.N. Militia.

 

 

I have grown and seen a lot over these last nine (Catholic) years:

 

• I've witnessed the death of a charismatic pope and the election of a scholarly pope

• I've gotten to experience the Sacrament of matrimony

• I've sponsored 4 people as they became fully Catholic

• I started teaching R.C.I.A.

• I started receiving the Eucharist on the tongue

• I've been blessed to battle infertility with my wife- and as a result have learned true sexuality and  NFP (Natural Family Planning)

• I've fallen many times, but have gotten TOTAL forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation

• I've seen the translation of the liturgy change

• I've become a God-Father to 3 wonderful baptized babies.

• I've attended several A.C.T.S. retreats

• I've started receiving the Eucharist while kneeling

• I've lost a job

• I've gotten to experience the Mass in Latin
 
• I found out that my Bible was missing books
 
• I've met wonderful patron saints: Fulton Sheen, Francis De Sales, Josemaria Escriva
 
• I've found a new more God friendly job

• I've lost friends because of my faith

• I've started a blog

• I've fallen more in love with C.S. Lewis as a Catholic than when I was a Protestant 

• I've gained brothers and sisters because of my faith

• I prayed a the abortion clinic and worked at the soup kitchen
 
• I helped lead Life Teen 

• I lost my mother

• I accepted Mary as my personal spiritual mother

 

May this Year of Faith be a blessing to you all!

 

WITH PETER...TO JESUS...THROUGH MARY! PAX!

 

Total Consecration

O ETERNAL and incarnate Wisdom! O sweetest and most adorable Jesus! True God and true man, only Son of the Eternal Father, and of Mary, always virgin! I adore Thee profoundly in the bosom and splendors of Thy Father during eternity; and I adore Thee also in the virginal bosom of Mary, Thy most worthy Mother, in the time of Thine incarnation. I give Thee thanks for that Thou hast annihilated Thyself, taking the form of a slave in order to rescue me from the cruel slavery of the devil. I praise and glorify Thee for that Thou hast been pleased to submit Thyself to Mary, Thy holy Mother, in all things, in order to make me Thy faithful slave through her. But, alas! Ungrateful and faithless as I have been, I have not kept the promises which I made so solemnly to Thee in my Baptism; I have not fulfilled my obligations; I do not deserve to be called Thy child, nor yet Thy slave; and as there is nothing in me which does not merit Thine anger and Thy repulse, I dare not come by myself before Thy most holy and august Majesty. It is on this account that I have recourse to the intercession of Thy most holy Mother, whom Thou hast given me for a mediatrix with Thee. It is through her that I hope to obtain of Thee contrition, the pardon of my sins, and the acquisition and preservation of wisdom. Hail, then, O immaculate Mary, living tabernacle of the Divinity, where the Eternal Wisdom willed to be hidden and to be adored by angels and by men! Hail, O Queen of Heaven and earth, to whose empire everything is subject which is under God. Hail, O sure refuge of sinners, whose mercy fails no one. Hear the desires which I have of the Divine Wisdom; and for that end receive the vows and offerings which in my lowliness I present to thee.

I, ________________, a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God in time and in eternity.Receive, O benignant Virgin, this little offering of my slavery, in honor of, and in union with, that subjection which the Eternal Wisdom deigned to have to thy maternity; in homage to the power which both of you have over this poor sinner, and in thanksgiving for the privileges with which the Holy Trinity has favored thee. I declare that I wish henceforth, as thy true slave, to seek thy honor and to obey thee in all things.O admirable Mother, present me to thy dear Son as His eternal slave, so that as He has redeemed me by thee, by thee He may receive me! O Mother of mercy, grant me the grace to obtain the true Wisdom of God; and for that end receive me among those whom thou lovest and teachest, whom thou leadest, nourishest and protectest as thy children and thy slaves.

O faithful Virgin, make me in all things so perfect a disciple, imitator and slave of the Incarnate Wisdom, Jesus Christ thy Son, that I may attain, by thine intercession and by thine example, to the fullness of His age on earth and of His glory in Heaven. Amen.