Welcome To My World!

NOTICE AT THE END, THE DATE THE CANDLE WAS STARTED.

GONNA GIVE YOU GOOSE BUMPS.

I am not going to be the one who lets it die. I found it believable --

Angels have walked beside me all my life--and they still do.
A young university student was home for the summer.

She had gone to visit some friends one evening and time passed quickly as each shared their various experiences of the past year.

She ended up staying longer than planned, and had to walk home alone.

She wasn't afraid because it was a small town and she lived only
a few blocks away.

As she walked along under the tall elm trees, Diane asked "God" to keep her safe from harm and danger.

When she reached the alley, which was a shortcut to her house,
she decided to take it.

However, halfway down the alley she noticed a man standing at
the end as though he were waiting for her.

She became uneasy and began to pray, asking for "God's" protection.

Instantly a comforting feeling of quietness and security wrapped around her, she felt as though someone was walking with her.

When she reached the end of the alley, she walked right past
the man and arrived home safely.

The following day, she read in the newspaper that a young girl
had been raped in the same alley just twenty minutes after she
had been there.

Feeling overwhelmed by this tragedy and the fact that it could have been her, she began to weep

Thanking the Lord for her safety and to help this young woman,
she decided to go to the police station.

She felt she could recognize the man, so she told them her story.

The police asked her if she would be willing to look at a lineup to
see if she could identify him.

She agreed and immediately pointed out the man she had seen in the alley the night before.

When the man was told he had been identified, he immediately
broke down and confessed.

The officer thanked Diane for her bravery and asked if there was
anything they could do for her.

She asked if they would ask the man one question?

Diane was curious as to why he had not attacked her.

When the policeman asked him, he answered,
Because she wasn't alone.

She had two tall men walking on either side of her."

Moral of the story:

Don't underestimate the power of Prayer!

Gives ya goose bumps, doesn't it!

This is to all of you who mean something to me,

I pray for your happiness.

The Candle Of Love, Hope & Friendship

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This candle was lit on the

15th of September, 1998.
Someone who loves you has helped

keep it alive by sending it to you.

Don't let The Candle of Love, Hope and Friendship die! Pass It On To All Of Your Friends and Everyone You Love!

May God richly bless you!

SEPTEMBER 22
ST. THOMAS OF VILLANOVA

Thomas was born in Spain in 1488. From his kind parents, he learned to be very charitable with the poor. He did well in school and became a teacher of philosophy when he finished his studies. Next he joined the Augustinian order. After he became a priest, he was given many important responsibilities. Finally, he was made archbishop of the city of Valencia.

His priests tried to convince him to change his old, mended habit for more dignified robes. However, St. Thomas told them his old clothes had nothing to do with his duty. He would take good care of the spiritual needs of his people. Every day he fed hundreds of poor people. When he received a large sum of money to buy furniture for his house, he gave it to a hospital, saying, "What does a poor monk like me want with furniture?" No wonder he was called the "father of the poor"!

St. Thomas was very gentle with sinners at a time when most people were not. Once when he tried to encourage one man to change his sinful ways, the man angrily insulted him and stormed out of the room. "It was my fault," said the humble archbishop. "I told him a little too roughly." Never would he permit anyone to criticize someone who wasn't there. "He may have had a good reason for doing what he did," the saint would say. "I, for one, believe he did."

Before he died, St. Thomas of Villanova gave to the poor everything he had. He even directed that his bed be sent to the jail for prisoners to use.

St. Thomas died in 1555. He was proclaimed a saint by Pope Alexander VII in 1658.

Daily Reading & Meditation

Friday (9/22): "The women provided for Jesus and his disciples out of their means"

Scripture: Luke 8:1-3

1 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, preaching and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Mag'dalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, 3 and Joan'na, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

Meditation: Are you willing and eager to serve the Lord and to support the work of the gospel with your personal resources? During his three years of public ministry Jesus traveled extensively. The gospel records that a band of women accompanied Jesus and the twelve apostles. This was a diverse group of women; some came from rich and prominent families; some had been prostitutes, and others had been afflicted with mental and physical infirmities. We know that Mary Magdalene had lived a very troubled life before Jesus freed her from seven demons. She was privileged to be the first to see Jesus as the risen Lord. As the wife of King Herod's chief financial officer, Joanna was a wealthy lady of the court. It's unlikely that these two would have ever met under other circumstances. What brought them together and united them in a bond of friendship, service, and loyalty to Jesus? Certainly Jesus and his message of the kingdom of God had transformed them. Unlike the apostles, who took great pride in being the chosen twelve, these women did not seek position or demand special privilege. Jesus had touched them so deeply that they were grateful to do anything for him, even menial service. They brought their gifts and resources to Jesus to use as he saw fit.

Are you more like the status-conscious apostles who were concerned for their position, or like the women who were content to serve Jesus quietly and generously with their resources? In our fallen state, our natural tendency is to want to be served and placed first and to avoid giving too much of ourselves to the service of others. And besides, who really prefers to take the lowly place of a servant who puts others needs before their own? Jesus is our best example who "came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom" for us (Matthew 20:28). The gospel honors these women who imitated Jesus in his selfless sacrificial love and humble service.

Our privilege as children of God and disciples of Jesus is to serve as Jesus served with humility, selfless love, generosity, joy, and a willingness to do whatever God asks of us. God, in his turn, gives us every good gift and grace we need to carry out our task and mission. God in his infinite power needs no one, but in his wisdom and love, he chooses to entrust his work through each one of us. His Holy Spirit equips us with all that we need to love and serve others. No one is unimportant or unnecessary in God's economy. The least in his kingdom find a home and a mission at Jesus' side.