one year ago

A year ago at this time I was in the Holy Land.

It's hard to believe that a whole year has gone by since our excellent adventure in the land of Israel. Who can forget what we experienced? The old port of Joppa where Jonah took off from. The narrow streets of Cana and Nazareth. The synagogue next to Peter's house in Capernaum. The boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. Washing our feet in the Jordan River. The view from the top of Mt. Tabor. A salty float in the Dead Sea. The little town of Bethlehem. And of course, the center of the religious world, Jerusalem.

Our guide is over in Israel right now leading another group, and I can't get it out of my mind. I would go again in a heartbeat - there is just so much more to see and experience. I praise God for the opportunity to make the trip over with my dad right before he moved to Texas. It is a wonderful memory that we will always share. What a gift.

st michael and all angels

 

St. Michael was a warrior
Who smote the devil's ass,
No Precious Moments figure
With arms as frail as glass.
The foe was quickly vanquished
When he unsheathed his sword
For his weapon is the Word,
The tongue of Christ, our Lord.
Who is like this son of God
Against whom demons rant?
None but Christ, his God and ours,
To whom all creatures chant:

"Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts,
"The whole earth is full of His glory."

- Chad Bird

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super lunar blood moon apocaclipse

photo by mike mezeul

scale model of solar system

"He alone stretches out the heavens ..."  - Job 9

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pascal's coat

(this note was found sewn into the lining of Pascal's coat - and discovered only after his death)

The year of grace 1654
Monday, 23 November, feast of Saint Clememt, pope and martyr
From about half past ten in the evening until half past midnight.
FIRE
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - not of philosophers and scholars.
Certainty, heartfelt, joy, peace.
The God of Jesus Christ.
My God and your God.
Thy God shall be my God.
The world forgotten - everything except God.
He can only be found by the way taught in the Gospels.
O Righteous Father, the world has not known Thee, but I have known Thee.
Joy, joy, tears of joy.
i have cut myself off from him.
They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters.
My God, wilt thou forsake me?
Let me not be cut off from Him forever.
This is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.
Jesus Christ
I have cut myself off from Him, shunned Him, denied Him, crucified Him ... Let me never be cut off from Him!
He can only be kept by the way taught in the Gospels.
Sweet and total renunciation.
Total submission to Jesus Christ.
Everlasting joy in return for one day's effort on earth.
I will not forget Thy Word.
Amen

(ht - James Sire, Why Should Anyone Believe Anything At All?)

lord to whom shall we go

"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."    - John 6

moon transiting earth

A NASA camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite captured this view of the moon as it moved in front of the sunlit side of Earth last month. In it we see the fully illuminated “dark side” of the moon which is never able to be seen from the Earth. Stunning ...