Jesus loves me, this I know...

Last Sunday I asked our pastor what would happen with the beautiful blue hydrangeas that adorned the church for Easter, once they had gone by. He said they either threw them out or gave them away. I told him I was very much interested in them, since we have a new yard that needs landscaping. (Actually, all we have is sand and gravel right now... no grass, but I expect we will have grass at some time in the near future....you know, since my husband is the guy who makes lawns...you know...hint, hint, honey:)Anyway, Father called yesterday to tell me that the flowers were ready for me to pick them up. The kids and I went to the church this morning to find the sacristy absolutely FULL of blue hydrangeas and white lilies! We did manage to fit all of the plants into the car by laying seats down and piling them around kids, but what a huge amount of flowers! After we loaded the flowers up into the car, we had to vacuum the church because the flowers dropped petals from the sacristy, to the altar, up the center aisle, to the vestibule.
While I wasn't expecting the huge amount of flowers, there was something else that happened that was unexpected. My three youngest children and I ended up spending a good hour in our church, all by ourselves, alone with Jesus. It felt to me as if Jesus "arranged" this time for us to be with Him. The children and I discussed what a privilege it was to actually be *alone* with Jesus in our church, and how much He loves us, to want to spend this time with us. We felt very blessed. Oh, how lovely it was to kneel before him in silent adoration, loving him, being blessed by him, especially before Sammy's First Holy Communion in a few weeks.It is interesting that my patron saint for the year, Benedict Joseph Labre, was very devoted to Eucharistic Adoration. I have asked him to bring me closer to Jesus. I love Adoration, but (shamefully) have found/made very little time for it in my life these busy days. My two older children and I went frequently to adoration when they were little, but not so with the younger ones. My children need to go to Adoration; I need to go to Adoration. Jesus made sure we got what we needed...as always.
Benedict Joseph Labre, pray for us and bring us more frequently to Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.

St. Benedict Joseph Labre

Today is the feast of my patron saint for 2010. Here is some information about him:
St. Benedict Joseph Labre, Pray for us!

St. Benedict Joseph Labre

(d. 1783)

Benedict Joseph Labre was truly eccentric, one of God's special little ones. Born in France and the eldest of 18 children, he studied under his uncle, a parish priest. Because of poor health and a lack of suitable academic preparation he was unsuccessful in his attempts to enter the religious life. Then, at 16 years of age, a profound change took place. Benedict lost his desire to study and gave up all thoughts of the priesthood, much to the consternation of his relatives.

He became a pilgrim, traveling from one great shrine to another, living off alms. He wore the rags of a beggar and shared his food with the poor. Filled with the love of God and neighbor, Benedict had special devotion to the Blessed Mother and to the Blessed Sacrament. In Rome, where he lived in the Colosseum for a time, he was called "the poor man of the Forty Hours Devotion" and "the beggar of Rome." The people accepted his ragged appearance better than he did. His excuse to himself was that "our comfort is not in this world."

On the last day of his life, April 16, 1783, Benedict Joseph dragged himself to a church in Rome and prayed there for two hours before he collapsed, dying peacefully in a nearby house. Immediately after his death the people proclaimed him a saint.

He was officially proclaimed a saint by Pope Leo XIII at canonization ceremonies in 1883.

Comment:

In a modern inner city, one local character kneels for hours on the sidewalk and prays. Swathed in his entire wardrobe winter and summer, he greets passersby with a blessing. Where he sleeps no one knows, but he is surely a direct spiritual descendant of Benedict, the ragged man who slept in the ruins of Rome’s Colosseum. These days we ascribe such behavior to mental illness; Benedict’s contemporaries called him holy. Holiness is always a bit mad by earthly standards.

Alleluia!

He is Risen!

Alleluia.
Salvation, glory, and power to our God:
his judgments are honest and true.
Alleluia.
Sing praise to our God, all you his servants,
all who worship him reverently, great and small.
Alleluia.
The Lord our all-powerful God is King;
let us rejoice, sing praise, and give him glory.
Alleluia.
The wedding feast of the Lamb has begun,
and his bride is prepared to welcome him.
Alleluia.

Revelation 19:1-7

Every Knee Must Bend

Though he was in the form of God,
Jesus did not deem equality with God
something to be grasped at.

Rather, he emptied himself
and took the form of a slave,
being born in the likeness of men.

He was known to be of human estate,
and it was thus that he humbled himself,
obediently accepting even death,
death on a cross!

Because of this
God highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
above every other name,

So that at Jesus' name
every knee must bend
in the heavens, on the earth,
and under the earth,
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of God the Father:
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!

Philippians 2:6-11