Proverbs 27:17

Proverbs 27:17

Wednesday, April 2, 2025

Giving What You’ve Been Given

Giving What You’ve Been Given


Christians should be the most loving people on the planet. We have accepted the ultimate gift from God. We have not only received salvation and eternal life, but we’ve received the gift of God Himself—love.


But that doesn't mean everyone is easy to love! Most of us have relationships in our lives that are difficult or painful to engage in. However, Scripture encourages us to make every opportunity possible to love those around us.


God the Father gave us the breath that we breathe. Jesus brought us to Himself so that we might be saved by His power. The Spirit of God lives within us and empowers us for every good deed. All of these things have been freely given to us with no strings attached. 


Having received this amazing love and mercy from God, we ought to love others in the same way. When we love others in the same manner that God has loved us, we exhibit the greatest evidence that we are children of God.


If we fail to love those around us, we also fail to show them the love of God. We should not deny others what we’ve been freely given. Loving others doesn’t mean we need to willingly be mistreated, or agree with someone else’s lifestyle or worldview. It does mean that we need to use every opportunity to love them the way God loves them. 


Take some time today to reflect first on the love of God that you have received through Christ, and write down some simple steps you can take to show that love to the people He's put in your life.

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬


https://bible.com/bible/111/1jn.4.11.NIV

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Your Night Prayer

A Night Prayer

Jesus Christ, my God, I adore You and thank You for all the graces You have given me this day. I offer You my sleep and all the moments of this night. I place myself and all my loved ones, wherever they may be, in Your sacred side and under the mantle of Our Blessed Mother. Let Your holy angels stand watch and keep us in peace. Amen.
Night Prayer Video Podcast

Quote of the Night

So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’— John 12:13

Tonight’s Meditation

"The second sin, taking the Lord's name in vain, is also directly against God and is for that reason more serious than sin committed against one's neighbor. It is true, however, that if a man does this through carelessness or without due consideration, he may be excused from mortal sin, for where there is no deliberation or full consent of the will, there is no serious sin. Yet if we find an abuse of the Lord's name routinely escapes our lips because it has become a habit, we must strive to do all we can to break that habit."—The Quest for Happiness, Venerable Louis of Granada, pg. 42
An excerpt from 
The Forty Parables of Jesus

Examination of Conscience

The daily examination of conscience is an ancient Catholic practice. It's very simple, and it's designed to help us identify our sins and weaknesses so that we can improve and grow stronger in the spiritual life. Basically, it consists in taking a few minutes at the end of the day to prayerfully review our actions in the light of God's commandments. The Act of Contrition is often said afterwards. The daily examination also serves as an excellent ongoing preparation for regular Confession.

Reflect on the victories and losses

Actively reflecting on the high and low points of the day can help you live more intentionally and bring a renewed sense of resolve into the following day.

  • Review your actions, words, and thoughts today. Did you actively guard yourself against temptation? Where did sin creep in?
  • In what moments did you practice virtue and moral courage?
  • Were you attuned to the Holy Spirit's promptings today? Where did you feel His inspiration?
  • Ask Him for the graces necessary to follow His Will more purposefully tomorrow.

Act of Contrition

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

Practice gratitude

It is God's love that has brought you into existence and to this exact moment. Practice looking for His hand in your day. 

  • Where did you feel His loving gaze upon you today?
  • What people or moments helped you see God in your life?
  • Thank God for all these moments!
  • Ask Him to help you recognize His blessings and providence tomorrow.

Renew your commitment to Christ

Remember our Faith is founded upon a Person—Christ! Renew your personal love and devotion to Him.

  • Thank God for the gift of His Son Jesus and our call to be His disciples.
  • Tell the Lord of your desire to know Christ more personally.
  • If possible, set an intention for your day tomorrow. Ask Our Lord to guide you in this act.
  • Pray a Hail Mary, Our Father, or another beloved prayer.

Rest with God

In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for Thou alone, O Lord, makest me dwell in safety.— Psalm 4:8
Good Catholic presents A Year of Devotions with Father Kirby.

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Ecclesiastes 4:13 (Daily Verse and Comment)

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The Berean

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Ecclesiastes 4:13

(13) Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and foolish king, who will no more be admonished. 

Ecclesiastes 12:1

(1) Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; 
King James Version   Change email Bible version



Unfortunately, too many young people think of God and His way as something for old folks. In fact, they think of God as old—He has existed forever—and that He does not really identify with the young. When they read the Bible, which is itself two thousand years old, they sense that the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles are old and not very hip.

The parents of these youth frequently came into the church in middle age, which is ancient to a youngster. And, it is true, a quick glance shows that the church has a disproportionate number of senior citizens to young people. To top it off, most of the ministry in the scattered churches of God is aging too. The church, then, as a whole, tends to appear old all over. It is no wonder some young people think that God's way is for when a person's hair turns gray, and no sooner!

With this perspective, it is easy to imagine that young people fail to see the relevance of God's way for them today. How does it affect them in high school or college? What does it have to do with iPhones, texting, dating, their first job, video games, Algebra II, a dismal economy, pop music, or the twelve-year-old rattletrap in the driveway?

However, this is a mistaken view. God's way—righteousness—is for young people too!

For starters, a young person might be surprised to learn just how many people that appear in the Bible did some of their greatest deeds for God when they were mere youths. One could even make a good case that God prefers to call people when they are young. Youth has many advantages that God can employ to His glory. Energy, strength, zeal, idealism, resilience, courage, and a boldness to go where angels fear to tread—these are things God can use!

Perhaps the only advantage an older person has over a youth is experience since the aged have been over the rocky road of life and know where the potholes are. One might think that, unlike the young, older people have wisdom too. They should, but a young person can have it too. Anyone who follows God's Word has wisdom, regardless of age! A kid can read the Bible with ten-year-old eyes, and if he does what it says, he is wise. Wisdom can direct the actions of anyone who performs what God wants him to do.

So, with whom did God work in the Bible? Consider this list: Joseph was seventeen or so when God began working with him, and he refused Potiphar's wife just a few years later. He was only thirty when the Pharaoh made him Prime Minister of Egypt! Samson was a young man when he became a judge in Israel, and God used him mightily to throw off the Philistine yoke.

We should not forget Samuel! He was just a little child when Hannah dedicated him to God, and after a short time, God prophesied through him. Not long thereafter, when no one else in Israel would stand up to the giant Goliath, a faithful seventeen-year-old named David volunteered and said, "I'll do it because he is blaspheming the Lord."

Many others did wonderful things for God as young people: Ruth, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel (and his three friends), and Esther. As far as we know, all of Christ's disciples were fairly young men when they were called, as was Paul. Mark and Timothy were youths too. Many scholars believe Mary was in her mid-teens when the angel appeared to her and told her that she would bear the Son of God. And let us not forget that John the Baptist and our Savior Jesus Christ completed their ministries while still in their prime. God likes to work with young people!

Even today, God wants to work with the young, just as He worked with these heroes of faith. They answered His call without thought of what their peers thought of them. Do you have the courage to do that?

— Richard T. Ritenbaugh

To learn more, see:
Wisdom for the Young (Part Four)



  

Topics:

Growing in Righteousness

Righteousness

Wisdom for the Young



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