Beautiful Reasons for Praying the Rosary Even More Often

Chas gave me this paper we were given at Catholic Student Fellowship this year and I just read through it. I don’t know who the author is but if these things are true this is something everyone needs to know. Please read it and feel free to research further into the statements.

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Father Gabriel Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Vatican writes:

One day a colleague of mine heard the devil say during an exorcism, “Every Hail Mary is like a blow on my head. If Christians knew how powerful the Rosary was, it would be my end.” The secret that makes this prayer so effective is that the Rosary is both prayer and meditation. It is addressed to the Father, to the Blessed Virgin, and to the Holy Trinity, and is a meditation centered on Christ.

I write in addition to the above: Please enunciate each word of the Rosary clearly and distinctly. Do not trample on the heels of the words of anyone with your words. Do not speak over the leader if you are following or the respondent if you are leading the Rosary. Remember that they also are having a conversation with Mary Our Mother and it is not polite to speak when someone else is speaking.

In the case of the public Rosary there are only two people speaking: the Leader and the Respondents. Each is speaking to the Blessed Mother and listening carefully to her response within their hearts as they meditate on the scene before them in their consideration of the mystery being spoken of and interpreted and translated into their lives.

Spread this powerful prayer of exorcism, the Rosary, which contains the Our Father, the Perfect Prayer, prayed five times in the recitation of each set of the Rosary’s Mysteries, basked up by the powerful prayers of Our Mother who prays with us as we pray 53 Hail Mary’s. The Eternal Father described to a group of us, through a Visionary Friend of mine, what happens when we pray the Rosary saying:

“When you pray Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now…., the Blessed Mother comes instantly to your side to pray with you. And she does not come alone. She brings angels with her. And not just one or two for she is the Queen of Angels, so choirs of angels come with her. And she and Jesus are joined at the heart and cannot be separated so she brings Jesus with her. And Jesus cannot be separated from the Trinity so He brings the Father and the Holy Spirit with Him. And where the Holy Trinity is, all of creation is, and you are surrounded by such beauty and light as you cannot imagine in this life. Your Mother comes as Our Lady of Grace with her hands outstretched. Rays of light emit from her hands piercing your body, healing you and filling you with graces. This is your inheritance which was poured out from the heart of Jesus on the Cross, when the centurion pierced His Heart with the spear, into the only pure vessel ready to receive such graces at that time, Your Mother.

Now as you pray the Rosary, or even just recite one Hail Mary, you receive your portion of these graces. He also said at this time, “Anyone who goes to Mary and prays the Rosary cannot be touched by Satan.” Is it any wonder that anyone who prays the Rosary from the heart is so blessed and protected and powerful in their prayers for others?

God Bless

hardlyperfect

Vocation Awareness Weekend at St. John Vianney Seminary

Last night I spent some time with Christ in adoration and I reflected on my recent trip to St. John Vianney Seminary in Miami.  Here are my notes:

I went into this retreat confident that I was on track.  That I was destined for married life, meant to be a teacher, a husband, a father… I left with the message “Maybe, but be open to where I will lead you.”

The recurring message to me this weekend was not “Be a Priest!” or “You’re meant for Priesthood” but rather something more clear.  God wants me to be a man.

How can I be perfect in any vocation if I don’t strive for a perfect Christlike manhood first?

During my visit at the seminary I did not desire to preside masses, give confessions, or live a priestly life.  My desire during my stay, and upon leaving, was to be on a path of formation like the guys there; the guys who are also forming themselves into men, before Priests.  I desired a devotion to daily mass, a consistent prayer life, and a strong fellowship of men.  A perfect friendship with Jesus.  All of these things are doable where I am now, some with more effort than others.

Before I stepped foot on the seminary grounds God had all the pieces in place.  Imagine a 500 piece puzzle.  All the pieces in rows and columns exactly correlating to their position as a whole.  All I had to do was open my eyes and with a small amount of brain power; put them together.

1.  God wants me to be completely open.  It’s okay to be afraid.  Frankly, I’m terrified of a possible call to the priesthood.  But I tell him that, and always remind myself who this is all for.

2.  No reason to be terrified.  God simply wants me to be a man right now.  A man who strives for the heart of Christ.

3.  Be best friends with Jesus; the only friend who has ever died for me, even before I came into existence.

God may not have told me where I’ll end up; but he gave me the next step.  If I follow his lead, he will continue to shine his light on the next step, then the next… and one day, by the grace of God, I will follow the stairway to heaven and hear my savior say “well done my good and faithful servant.”

Praise God through the rain.

In Christ’s Love,

hardlyperfect

“There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.  A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.  A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to tear down, and a time to build.  A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.  A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces. A time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.  A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to be silent, and a time to speak.  A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

- Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Being There For Those Who Need It Most

I want to keep this brief, even though there’s so much good that came out of an experience I had today…

Today, me and 5 friends went into downtown Gainesville by the courthouse and basically “chilled” with the homeless.  Sure we brought them food and water but the best part was keeping them company…  When we arrived it was really quiet and not much was going on but by the time we left everyone was conversing and smiling.  What a difference it makes just taking an hour out of your day to spend time with those who so much time but so little fellowship.

I realized today; just because you don’t have a home doesn’t mean you don’t have a life, dreams, hopes, loves… These people Love God! They may be a little blinded and mislead by some things and people that have led them astray but they do want to do what is right.  They still enjoy life… respect life… and desire an eternal life.

I hope to be visiting them consistently.  Not to convert them or save them.  Not just to give them food and drink.  To build relationships with these intelligent, friendly people that we set aside because of outside appearances and worldly biases.

Praise God always and forever,

hardlyperfect

Spirit of our being

Hello Friends!  Not too long ago I was doing some Bible Study with a very close friend of mine and I began thinking (not sure what verse sparked the thought) how can I explain God?  I want proof! As some people say.  What is my proof?  Well since then I’ve come across many things that have convinced, at least me, how here MUST be a God… For instance… Every single person on this Earth is unique… even identical twins have different fingerprints… explain that Science.

Anyways… This close friend of mine brought up an amazing point… We were discussing the physical nature of our being vs the spirit we have been given.  How our bodies are just vessels on this planet; the true importance of our beings comes from our soul.  She said something similar to the following quote:

“I know that my heart beats because there is blood flowing; in turn, my blood is flowing because my heart beats.  What sparks all that?  I believe that it’s our Spirit that provides that spark.”

Let it soak in… Reflect…

I then later made a connection to cars and how they work.  The cars cylinders are moving because the car is on and fluids are flowing and electricity and gasoline are being provided where needed; in turn the car works because the cylinders are moving.  This all can’t and won’t work unless the spark plug is working and can start the car into this constant state of ON.

God has provided us a spirit to turn us on and a soul to keep us going.  Our bodies are just our car… they only get us from place to place.  Which obviously is important.  We want to take good care of our car, keep them running in good condition… we want them to last as long as they can and respect them as gifts from God!  But they shouldn’t be looked to much on when it comes to a person’s likeness.

The most beautiful women or most handsome man in the world is nothing compared to a person who has given their life for the Lord.  That person radiates an aura 10 times more beautiful than them.

As always… my blog consists of things that have come to my mind… things I have reflected on and simply want to share.  They are strictly opinion (while sometimes supported by scripture or quotes.)  You can never have too many reasons to believe.  This is why I share mine.

When in doubt, pray.

“Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.  By faith we understand that the universe was ordered by the word of God, so that what is visible came into being through the invisible.”

-Hebrews 11:1,3

Not Listening to a song right now… Lately though been learning to play and really loving an old school Relient K track “For the moments I feel faint”

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

I LOVE Scripture!

Just finished reading the book of Hebrews with my significant other a couple days ago… Amazing! And I know that after reading it a couple more times I’ll get even more and more… I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to dive into the base of my faith… I highly recommend scripture at least a few times a week… It’s like jumping in a cold pool… You may feel a little like you want to cop out, but once you’re in… it’s  so refreshing.

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

Evangelization??

Was listening to some radio on my drive home the other night and stumbled upon some Christian talk so I let it run to see what they had to say.  Sparked some thoughts in my head as most things do.  I personally feel like there’s two types of Catholics; in a certain sense.

Type 1:  Passive.  More concerned with living out Christ’s example than being a verbal source of evangelization.  They try their best to do the right things and they may still be their to talk when someone inquires about the faith but it is not their nature to spark conversation about the faith or try and call people out.

Type 2:  Talkative Evangelizers.  Whenever the opportunity arises they want to spread the good word.  Try and ease people into the faith, get them headed in the right direction.  Calling people out is what they do best (though sometimes it may not be the right way.)

OKAY.  So there’s not just those 2 types… those are like the 2 extremes with lots of space in between….

Let’s see… If I saw myself on this scale where would I fall??

Passive——————————–Me———————————Talkative Evangelizer

Kind of in the middle.  On one hand… I want to spread the good word, it’s my job to make sure I’m leading people to God right?  But on the other hand… I don’t want to scare people off… maybe I should just set a good example and let God do his work.  It’s hard to find that balance sometimes.

The radio talk I was listening to pronounced that we should be more of a talkative evangelizer because were called to be so… but should we really?  I really don’t know.  This post is more of an open forum of reflection and maybe some discussion in the comment area… What’s the best way to spread the word?  Focus more on our personal relationships with Christ and let that radiate into the community… or spread the Gospel on a street corner (or in Turlington.)  Somewhere in between?  Maybe leaning more towards one side than the other?  What do you think?

When in doubt, pray.

Song I’m listening to right now: “What You Thought You Need” by Jack Johnson

Happy Birthday to my brother Sean who turned 15 today!

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

“Answers to Questions Catholics Are Asking”

I bought this book today and the title is a bit misleading… This is actually an anti-Catholic book that discusses how all the things we believe aren’t backed up in scripture… I’m hanging out with J-Dawg, H-Love, and C-Money and we’re having fun defending our faith…to ourselves… We NEED to be prepared to defend our faith!!

If someone came up to you and asked you… “Why do you believe in God?”, “Why are you Catholic?”, what do you say?  Are you prepared?  Protestants are known for being well educated in their scripture so when one of our protestant friends inquires into our beliefs (purgatory, confession, Mary) it’s pertinent that were ready to back ourselves up… WE know personally why we believe what we do but being able to explain it and defend it is super important.  The point is to show them WHY we believe not to convince them that what we believe is right… so don’t get frustrated when they don’t suddenly decide to convert… THAT’S NOT THE POINT! But we DO want to try and leave them wondering…

:::How do we do this:::

We need a plan! My suggestion… and something I will be doing myself soon…

*First*

Answer the questions “Why do I believe in God?”, and “Why am I Catholic?”  Take some time to really think about it and write whatever you can come up with… no need to organize it just yet.

*Second*

Make a list of important and unique things that Catholic’s believe.  Easily found by using a search engine and searching something like “Why do Catholics believe what they believe?” or something similar.

*Third*

One by one come up with a defense.  A reason for your beliefs to each question…  Use scriptural backup as well as common sense… powerful statements are key.  Consider what the person you may debate with will say back to you and prepare to defend yourself.

*Fourth*

After you’ve done all this redefine “Why you are a Catholic believer in God.”  This should be your basis to any religious debate/conversation you have with people… when in doubt, come back to it… for instance:  Someone asks you a question about your faith and you just don’t have the answer… your response… “look… I don’t know everything yet, I’m learning every day and I’m trying to find the answers but God’s plan and his creation is so intricate I will NEVER know everything by the day I die… but I do know that I believe because [insert powerful believer statement here] and based on that and the experiences I’ve had… I have nothing to doubt, nothing to fear, nothing but faith to guide me and lead me on my path to heaven” WHAM BAM THANK YOU CATHOLIC!

This is all just a guideline and was just me streaming my quick thoughts into something to share so there’s no need to feel the obligation to follow these steps… but just think about the possiblities of being prepared… the difference we could make if were pro-active instead of reactive.  God has given us each individual gifts… what are yours? Harness them and create your powerful believer statement cause one day God will bring an unbeliever to you and if you’re ready you will greatly please the Almighty One.

“I command you: be firm and steadfast! Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God, is with you wherever you go.” -Joshua 1:9

^^C-Money throws a shout out to all her peeps in da hood yo

^^^J-Dawg does not have any shout outs

^^^^H-Love also is shoutoutless

^^^^^hardlyperfect throws a shout out to his faithful reader TQ (you know who you are)

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

Long Tiring Summer

Summer has been rough.  Hard to find time to get everything done and focus on my relationship with Christ; hence why not very many (if any) blog posts.  I have had many things I’ve wanted to comment on but not the time to sit down and transpose them; will soon.  Despite the long tiring summer, I was reading Finance today while listening to Mercy Me and then I smiled… looked up, looked around me; the weather, the trees, the intricacies of my hands and feet; the things we are capable of… God does exist, and he wants me to be filled with Joy every minute but even more over he longs for the day when I can be with him in heaven… I am going to do everything I can to make sure I am worthy of heaven.

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

10% is nothing

In my recent endeavors to follow God’s plan for me more closely I began to realize that I had not been giving any money to the church or charity.  I decided to wait till summer and then try and give 10% as I had been directed too ever since my High School years.  I didn’t think too much in to it, just decided I’m supposed to do it, so I will.  Until I was in Church the other day…

***Quick Break from the main topic***

Sometimes it is really important to know why you do something, especially when it comes to Catholicism, for a few reasons.

1.  It’s easier for you too abide by something if there’s a reason behind it.  For instance, if your Dad says you have to mow the lawn because he’s your boss your less likely to want to obey than if he asks you “Son, can you please mow the lawn; I’ve got a lot to do today and it’ll only take you a half hour.”  Same with our faith, God provides reasoning behind most of his calls so that we can truly understand our faith.

2.  When people ask you why you do something for the Church, you can explain it to them so that you don’t just seem like a robot doing everything the Bible says without thinking about it.

3.  By finding reasons, we learn more about our faith and grow closer to Jesus.

*** End Break ***

So back to Tithing. I started to realize why we should Tithe (even though it had been right in front of my face for quite a while.)  EVERYTHING we have is given to us by God… my shelter, my family, my talents, my knowledge, my job, my money…. So if I make $300 dollars this week at my job and spend it all on my wants and needs without giving any to Church or Charity I’m ignoring the fact that, the truth is, I’d never have that money if God hadn’t given me the ability to earn it.

Wow.  Looking at it in that aspect… 10% is nothing.  God has given us EVERYTHING and he just asks for 10% to be given back to Him, His Church, and His faithful who are less fortunate.  On top of that, He says if we give back to Him and His Church that he’ll give us back tenfold what we have offered up… easy choice.  I think for starters I should be able to at least give that 10%.

When in doubt, pray.

“This “Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of God Most High,” “met Abraham as he returned from his defeat of the kings” and “blessed him.” And Abraham apportioned to him “a tenth of everything.”" -Hebrews 7:1-2

Song I’m listening to right now: “Irene” -TobyMac

God Bless,

hardlyperfect

Why do I question my faith? Is it good or bad?

Why does the Catholic church require me to confess my sins to a Priest?  Where in The Bible does it say I have to do that?  What’s my meaning in life?  If God created us for heaven and our earthly being doesn’t even matter to Him… why am I here?  Why do I have to prove my life to Him when he knows exactly what I’m going to decide to do anyways?  Why did God give me this crazy sex drive and then tell me I have to wait until marriage?  Is their life outside of our galaxy and if so… did God create that life too?

There are so many things I come up with every day that question my faith.  I recently realized, through friendly discussion, that there are a couple ways of dealing with these questions.  We can think they are from Satan and just try and forget them and reject them, or we can realize that, more commonly, they are a way for us to grow more in Christ.  God wants us to question our faith, through questioning we find answers.  It’s like in early education when your teacher constantly reminds you “There’s no such thing as a stupid question.”  There really isn’t.  Okay, I take that back… If someone my age (20) asked me where babies came from as a serious questions, I probably wouldn’t be able to hold in the laughter or give them a look of amazement.  But anyways, how are we supposed to learn if we don’t strive to find the truth?  Sure, all along the while we need to have faith, but it doesn’t mean we can’t question that faith in a positive way; in a way that leads to truth.

On that note, there’s a difference between questioning and actually searching to find the answers to those questions.  I’ve realized lately that so many times I come up with these things I’m having trouble figuring out and I just let them slide.  I’ve decided to start making a list each night before I go to bed… spending a few minutes during my Night prayer to reflect on my day and record any questions that may have come to me.  That’s only the first step, obviously I’ll need to find a way to find those answers but the first step is remembering my questions.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions.  Pray to God that He will show you the Truth and he ALWAYS does and you will understand.

When in doubt, pray.

“Tell nothing to friend or foe; if you have a fault, reveal it not, for he who hears it will hold it against you, and in time become your enemy.  Let anything you hear die within you; be assured it will not make you burst.” -Sirach 19:7-9

Song I’m listening to right now: “Enough” -Chris Tomlin

God Bless,

hardlyperfect