Love, Joy, and Peace all at once
Picture by Richard Sawyer
Our Blog is inspired by The Holy Spirit.
Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Extraordinary Time
The queen of Sheba, having heard of Solomon’s fame,
came to test him with subtle questions.
She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue,
and with camels bearing spices,
a large amount of gold, and precious stones.
She came to Solomon and questioned him on every subject in which she was interested.
King Solomon explained everything she asked about,
and there remained nothing hidden from him
that he could not explain to her.
When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom,
the palace he had built, the food at his table,
the seating of his ministers, the attendance and garb of his waiters, his banquet service,
and the burnt offerings he offered in the temple of the LORD, she was breathless.
“The report I heard in my country
about your deeds and your wisdom is true,” she told the king.
“Though I did not believe the report until I came and saw with my own eyes,
I have discovered that they were not telling me the half.
Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report I heard.
Blessed are your men, blessed these servants of yours,
who stand before you always and listen to your wisdom.
Blessed be the LORD, your God,
whom it has pleased to place you on the throne of Israel.
In his enduring love for Israel,
the LORD has made you king to carry out judgment and
justice.”
Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty gold talents, a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did anyone bring such an abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
Emphasis mine 1 Kings 10:1-10
What a fascinating week this is. Three readings and I had a hard time trying to figure out what The Holy Spirit wanted to talk about until I reread the first reading and then “Though I did not believe the report” leaped out at me.
The thought that I was presented with was this reading is a precursor of Heaven.
When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom, the palace he had built, the food at his table,
the seating of his ministers, the attendance and garb of his waiters, his banquet service, and the burnt offerings he offered in the temple of the LORD, she was breathless.
We reported a few weeks ago that when St. Thomas Aquinas at Mass had a vision of Heaven, he left Mass and said “I can write no more. I have seen things that make my writings like straw. “ He subsequently ceased work on his monumental Summa Theologlae, which remained unfinished. (google)
We also reported that in the book True Stories of the Miracles of AZUSA STREET and beyond by Tommy Welch, a man was raised from the dead, and his comment was, “Why did you do that?”
The bottom line is what awaits us is far greater than we can even imagine.
In The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis, C.S. Lewis claimed we are so easily pleased that we would rather make mud pies in the slums than be on Holiday (Vacation) at the ocean, and he is sadly right.
But,
And this is an important But, there is a way to change, and that is to learn and pray the “Nine,” which we are guessing a lot of you are thinking, “Not that again!”
And,
As you grow in Love, Joy and Peace you will see your life change, and, with this change, you will not want to go back to the slum.
Prayer:
If you want to grow in Love, Joy and Peace, this is a result of growth in Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control.
Sidebar:
At Mass today our Priest, who was a substitute, whose name I have forgotten, made a comment that I knew we would write about.
“When you were Baptized, you were Baptized into the BODY OF JESUS” (All caps are ours).
Those who are trying to imitate Jesus, by doing our Father’s will, for His Glory, by listening to the whisper of the Holy Spirit, experience Love, Joy and Peace.
They may not know this is happening because they are Unconscious Competents. However, by learning the “Nine” you will become a Conscious Competent. And, when you fully realize that, you will receive an increase of Love, Joy and Peace, by growing in Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control.
We aren’t saying the Conscious Competents are not sinners, we are saying they are trying to change their life by imitating Jesus, and that sin reduces or takes away from Love, Joy and Peace ( we have reported in prior blogs where I said “No” to our Father, and I lost my Love, Joy, and Peace. I hope to never go there again. God, I found, plays rough.
And
Jesus is the great healer. NO OTHER RELIGION outside of Christianity claims this.
It doesn’t get any better.
Picture:
This horse, along with others, was recently transported from a farm in Vermont where it had been neglected for a number of years, to the Maine State Society for the Protection of Animals (MSSPA) in North Windham. I was there the day the horse was able, for the first time in over five years, to enjoy walking around in an open corral. Fortunately for me, I was able to capture the moment he literally “jumped for joy,” for he was in a place of love and peace! Picture by Richard Sawyer
Please keep Snapping!
And if you want the ten calling cards shown above, email me and I will send you my address, send me a STAMPED self-addressed envelope and I will send you ten cards.
The offer for the cards is for American readers only. The Post office won’t accept foreign stamps.
If you want a copy of the prayers we discussed.
Send an email to: fprince101@gmail.com
Remember, if you want to submit a picture, please do not include people. We have to get permission from that person to use their photograph.
