Welcome To My World!

2. Most people will be about as happy, as they decide to be.

3. Others can stop you temporarily, but only you can do it permanently.

4. Whatever you are willing to put up with, is exactly what you will have.

5. Success stops when you do.

6. When your ship comes in.... Make sure you are willing to unload it.

7. You will never have it all together.

8. Life is a journey...not a destination. Enjoy the trip!

9. The biggest lie on the planet When I get what I want I will be happy.

10. The best way to escape your problem is to solve it.

11. I've learned that ultimately , 'takers' lose and 'givers' win.

12. Life's precious moments don't have value, unless they are shared.

13. If you don't start, it's certain you won't arrive.

14. We often fear the thing we want the most.

15. He or she who laughs...... lasts.

16. Yesterday was the deadline for all complaints.

17. Look for opportunities. ..not guarantees.

18. Life is what's coming....not what was.

19. Success is getting up one more time.

20. Now is the most interesting time of all.

21. When things go wrong.....don't go with them.

Saint Peter quickly responded, "Oh, that's a simple question. It is that man right over there," as he pointed nearby.

The man said, "You must be mistaken, Saint Peter. I knew that man on earth. He was just a common laborer."

"That's right, my friend," replied Saint Peter. "But he would have been the greatest general of all time -- if he had been a general."

You were created with natural abilities and an internal compass that guides you toward a particular focus for your life. That's only the starting point; the next step is yours. You have an obligation to expand that potential to its ultimate destiny.

Michelangelo said, "It is only well with me when I have a chisel in my hand."

Discover what you are supposed to do and do it!

One must be poor to know the luxury of giving.

George Eliot (1819 - 1880)

I Will Love You Forever

I love you so deeply,
I love you so much,
I love the sound of your voice
And the way that we touch.
I love your warm smile
And your kind, thoughtful way,
The joy that you bring
To my life every day.
I love you today
As I have from the start,
And I'll love you forever
With all of my heart.

- Amanda Nicole Martinez -

SEPTEMBER 20
ST. ANDREW KIM TAEGON AND ST. PAUL CHONG HASANG

St. Andrew Kim Taegon was a priest and St. Paul Chong Hasang was a lay person. These two martyrs represent 113 Catholics who died for their faith in Korea. They were proclaimed saints by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Korea in 1984.

Christianity reached Korea in the seventeenth century. It was brought there by lay people. The believers nourished their faith on the Word of God. They quietly grew and flourished. Missionary priests came from France. The Korean people were introduced to the sacramental life of the Church. Government persecutions took place, off and on, throughout the nineteenth century. A total of 103 Koreans were killed between 1839 and 1867. Ten members of the Foreign Mission Society of Paris were martyred, too, three bishops and seven priests. This brought the total to 113.

St. Andrew Kim Taegon and St. Paul Chong Hasang represent the glorious and courageous Korean Catholics who paid the price for their love for Christ. St. Andrew Kim Taegon was the first Korean priest. He was martyred on September 16, 1846, just a year after his ordination. Andrew's father had been martyred in 1821. St. Paul Chong Hasang was a heroic lay catechist. He was martyred on September 22, 1846.

Today the Church is growing rapidly in Korea. The gift of faith is being received because of the sacrifice of the martyrs who paved the way.

Daily Reading & Meditation

Wednesday (9/20): "To what then shall I compare this generation?"

Scripture: Luke 7: 31-35

31 "To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the market place and calling to one another, `We piped to you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.' 33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine; and you say, `He has a demon.' 34 The Son of man has come eating and drinking; and you say, `Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' 35 Yet wisdom is justified by all her children."

Meditation: What do childrens' games have to do with the kingdom of God? The children in Jesus' parable react with disappoint because they cannot convince anyone to join in their musical medley. They complain that when they play their music at weddings, no one dances or sings; and when they play at funerals, it is the same dead response. This refrain echoes the words of Ecclesiastes 3:4 -- there is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance. Jesus' message of the kingdom of God is a proclamation of good news and of great joy for those who will listen; but it is also a warning for those who refuse. Why did the message of John the Baptist and the message of Jesus meet with resistance and deaf ears? It was out of jealously and spiritual blindness that the scribes and Pharisees attributed John the Baptist's austerities to the devil and they attributed Jesus' table fellowship as evidence for messianic pretense. They succeeded in frustrating God's plan for their lives because they had closed their hearts to the message of John the Baptist and now to Jesus. What can make us spiritually dull and slow to hear God's voice? Like the generation of Jesus' time, our age is marked by indifference and contempt, especially in regards to the things of God's kingdom. Indifference dulls our ears to God's voice and to the good news of the gospel. Only the humble of heart can find joy in God's grace and favor.