Sunday, July 23, 2023

The Separation Underway--Praise God

 "According to our zeal for advancement, we take advantage of the good we see to practice it, and carry us to God.

To renounce ourselves in all things, and die to the insatiable desires of our heart.  It is certain that we can merit in the service of God only in proportion as we do violence to ourselves.  Wherefore, let us fight against and subdue the irregular inclinations which allure us to sin or to relaxations of our fervor: by this mean we shall secure our salvation.  

A vigorous, constant and generous effort to overcome ourselves forwards us more in the way of perfection and salvation than all those fruitless desires by which we would give ourselves to God, yet we do not what we ought.

The more we die to ourselves, the more do we live to God : and the more we refuse to gratify ourselves, so much the more do please Him.

How delightful must the life of that Christian be whose desires are so regulated that his chief happiness is in denying himself and pleasing God!

How sure a means of obtaining a happy eternity.

Prayer: Thou knowest, O Jesus, the extreme difficulty we experience in subduing and subjecting ourselves to Thee: suffer not this difficulty to hinder us from accomplishing it.  It is just we should prefer Thy glory and Thy holy will, to our own will and gratification, and hence we are resolved to do so.  Strengthen us in this resolution, and make us faithful: grant that all in us may yield to Thee, that, advancing daily in virtue, and leading a supernatural and, through Thy merits, an acceptable life, we may become worthy of Thy grace here, and of Thy eternal glory hereafter. Amen."  --"Imitation Of Christ" T. Kempis

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I asked again, what to relate. . . . This is what I got (the above inspired quote) and is, apparently, an important theme at this time!

The winnowing--the "separating of the wheat from the chaff" is well under way.  For those dedicated to THE LOVE OF GOD, TRUTH, THE WAY! . . . there is no getting around "dying to self" in a deep, profound, serious way.

The world is constantly drawing you away from this one, main thing.  LIFE IS SHORT--A VAPOR!  I have seen, I believe, that the heart's desires WILL all be fulfilled, one day, in perfection.  THIS world, as it is, fallen, is not the place to attempt to do it.  It all must be done under The Lord's tutelage and direction.  He made YOU specifically, uniquely, as a precious individual with certain unique talents, dreams, yearnings . . . yes He did!  AND HE LOVES WHO HE MADE for the purpose in His Divine plan--in His ETERNAL Divine plan!  

Here?  This fallen world . . . is not the place to realize selfish dreams.  YES, we find ourselves doing some things along the Way that comport with our innermost Created desires and callings, thank God!  But here . . . it's a lot of hit and miss.  

And, now, there is obviously (to my eye) an intense pressure to SELF-seek, and many opportunities to do so.  NOT taking the bait, and persevering in cleaving, adhering to THE TRUTH, THE WORD . . . FAITH in The Word, in CHRIST, is . . . and will be requiring EXTRA effort to pursue and maintain!

(Of course, I'm not talking about "works" being necessary for salvation.  HOWEVER, if you find yourself CHOSEN by GOD--you will find yourself, I dare say, Seeing, Hearing, Feeling, Knowing that the separation is well under way . . . and YOU find yourself going with GOD--choosing GOD . . . because HE CHOSE YOU!!!  

That knowledge is FALL DOWN ON FACE TIME!!! GRATEFUL beyond measure!  And, of course, NOT because you deserve(d) it!  IT IS HIS WILL!

So. . . . . . as the mess and propaganda and ubiquitous perversion and rampant wickedness, evil, violence, subversion, devil going gangbusters in his last days tormenting all and anyone who is subject to be following his wicked way . . . . . I'm just saying PRAISE GOD! that you find yourself loving The Lord, Savior, Truth, Righteousness, The Word!  God be praised!)

  


Friday, July 21, 2023

Dying To Self In Self-seeking Times

"Son, relinquish thyself, and thou shalt find Me.  Stand without choice or any self-seeking, and thou shalt always gain.  For greater grace shall be added to thee as soon as thou hast given up thyself, and dost not take thyself back.

Lord, how often shall I resign myself, and in what thing shall I relinquish myself?
Always and at all times; as in little, so also in great : I make no exception, but will have thee to be found in all things divested of self.

Otherwise, how canst thou be Mine and I thine, unless thou be both interiorly and exteriorly stripped of the own will?

The sooner thou effect this, the better will it be with thee; and the more fully and sincerely thou do it, the more will thou please Me, and the more shalt thou gain.

Some there are the resign themselves, but it is with some exception; for they do not wholly trust in God, and therefore are busy in providing for themselves.

Some also at first offer all; but afterwards, being assailed by temptation, they return again to what they had left, and therefore make no progress in virtue.

These shall neither attain to the true liberty of a pure heart, nor to the grace of a delightful familiarity with Me, unless they first entirely resign themselves up, and offer themselves a daily sacrifice to Me; without which, union of fruition neither is nor shall subsist. 

I have often said to thee, and i repeat it now again: Forsake thyself, resign thyself, and thou shalt enjoy a great inward peace.

Give all for all; seeking nothing; call for nothing back; stand purely and with a full confidence before Me, and thou shalt possess Me.

Thou shalt be free in heart, and the darkness shall not weigh thee down.

Aim at this, pray for this, desire this, that thou may be divested of all self-seeking; and thus naked, follow Jesus naked, that thou may die to thyself and eternally live to Me" --T a' K
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[There is so much going on, and I am well aware of it all.  I've long predicted, written, sung, spoke of pretty much everything that is going on now.  I've been reticent, waiting, to Hear what, in these times, might be of help to relate. . . . As I've said, I know there is a plethora of information available "out there" to delve into and relatively get a grip on what is going on world-wise. . . .  
So I've waited, praying, asking, what little thing, in my (deliberately) little (albeit, I believe precious) outreach . . . SHOULD I convey, seeking The Lord's counsel.

The above quote was, I dare say, divinely inspired to share . . . which considers the times, distractions, mis-directions, obfuscations, LIES, worldliness ubiquitous 2023.

I DID also get a quick "flash-vision" (as I've called it before) that 2033 . . . is an important date for the Spiritual.

Anyway, God blesses you . . . God bless you . . . and, as a Believer, YOU know that dealing with all of the evil, perverted lies and wickedness underway (as the devil's getting to the end of his rope) . . . THE ONLY WAY . . . is to die to self, be dead of self (HE graciously WILL and DOES preserve your special, unique self nevertheless!) . . . . . . HENCE, why, I suspect, He very deliberately and swiftly (once I asked what to convey) led me to the above inspired recitation.

Saturday, July 8, 2023

Something wicked This Way Comes

 Yes. . . .

And I don't think there will be a presidential election 2024--at least not in the so-far traditional sense....

(I don't believe there has been an actual one for a long time, but anyhow--)

Many signs are pointing, presaging . . . some major INSTIGATED upheavals converging on all fronts, which will be then used to install radical alterations throughout "the system".

"They" have no intention of steering away from the course long laid down, and now (according to their demonically-addled minds) at last coming to ultimate fruition.  Fools. Suckers. The lost. . . . 

HENCE, why I continue to focus on . . . THE SPIRITUAL.  For, come what may, God is always with us, where it counts, and indeed hearts will fail (as they are already). . . . 

But those who love and cherish and abide in The Lord God, and Him within them, will persevere to the end!  

And then, we will witness, justice will be served, praise God!  

Monday, July 3, 2023

God Stays The Wild Beasts (Persec. cont.)

 "Without referring to other individual martyrs in Phoenicia it will be sufficient to listen to the relation Eusebius gives of the massacre of Christians exposed to wild beasts in Tyre.  The majority of the Christians were Egyptians.

We assisted personally as such happenings . . . the devourers (wild beasts) of men did not dare for a long time either to touch or even to approach the bodies of the friends of God although they sprang accurately enough on the outsiders (pagans) who were urging them on with pointed sticks.  It was only the holy athletes who were untouched although they stood still and naked and beckoned to the beasts with their hands, as they had been told to do.  And if one of the animals sprang toward them, it seemed to be pushed back by divine power and at once went away from them.  

This went on for a long time and produced no little wonder among the spectators, for when the first beast had retired in this way, a second and third did the same.  All were dumbstruck by the fearless constancy of these saints and the unbreakable resolution of those young bodies.  You would see a young man of not yet twenty years of age who stood without movement although unbound with his hands outstretched in the form of the cross.  He prayed for long with untroubled and tranquil mind to the Divinity, neither moving nor going away from his place while bears and leopards, breathing rage and threats of horrible death, were almost touching him.  

But in some way, I know not how, by a divine and hidden force their mouths were closed and they finally ran away from him.  Such was one case.  Others you would have seen, there were five in all, exposed to an infuriated bull who tossed in the air the other outsiders (the pagans) who were urging him to the martyrs, and wounded them so seriously that they were picked up half dead.  When the bull rushed against the holy ones (the Christians) with all fury and menace he suddenly stopped and could approach no nearer but pawed the ground and tossed his horns here and there breathing anger and fear towards those who were goading him with hot irons.  

He had been stayed by Divine Providence and could inflict no harm on the martyrs.  Other beasts were set against them without success.  Finally after all these terrible and varied trials they were all slaughtered with the sword and instead of being buried in the earth or sepulchers they were all flung on the waves of the sea."   (Hist. Eccl, viii, 7, 2-6)

Brother Thomas ©2005

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