THE FUTURE IS CERTAIN!=with the LORD

 

THE FUTURE IS CERTAIN!

(With the LORD)

 

As we COME into 2023=

We face an ENCERTAIN FUTURE=and the future

Of the world=

Is so TENUOUS

 

But for us INDIVIDUALS

WHO ARE BELIEVERS=our future

Could not be MORE BRIGHT

 

The FUTURE IS CERTAIN

We will live in LOVE

And for ETERNITY=with

Our Lord and Savior=Jesus Christ!

 

“CALL to me

And I will answer you=

 

And show you

GREAT and mighty things

Which you do not know”                                                                                             Jeremiah 33:3

 

We all face UNCERTAINTY

In our health=and

IN our finances=and

IN OUR RELATIONSHIPS

 

We are all TEMPTED to

SPECULATE on our uncertain future

In the year 2023

 

But know that our

FUTURE IS SECURE=

OUR FUTURE IS CERTAIN=

If we are TRUE BELIEVERS

In God

THE FUTURE IS CERTAIN!

With the Lord

 

“I too=decided to write

An orderly account

For you=most excellent Theophilus

 

So that you may know

THE CERTAINTY=of the things

You have been taught”                                                                                                          Luke 1:3-4

 

“For I gave them=

The words you gave me

And they accepted them

 

They know=WITH CERTAINTY

That I came from you

And they believed=that you sent me

I prayed for them”                                                                                                                John 17:8

 

The future=lies OUTSIDE

Of the control=of us all

But we know=WITH CERTAINTY

That it is UNDER CONTROL

With the Lord=

Our Holy Father God

THE FUTURE IS CERTAIN!

(With the Lord)=TRUST in the Lord

 

God ENCOURAGES US

To call on him=for the ANSWERS

To our uncertain future

 

“The Lord is near=to all

WHO CALL on him

To all

Who call on him=in truth”                                                                                                           Psalm 145:18

 

“Seek the Lord=

While he may be found=

CALL ON HIM

While he is near”                                                                                                                     Isaiah 55:6

 

In these

UNCERTAIN TIMES of 2023

 

KNOW that our God

Has promised us=to be FAITHFUL

To us collectively

And to EACH of us=INDIVIDUALLY

BE ENCOURAGED=

Our Lord is as CLOSE

To us=as OUR OWN HEARTS

 

THE FUTURE IS CERTAIN!

(With the LORD)

 

In Jesus’ name=and in the name=of OUR FOREVER FAITHFUL=Holy Father God!

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-31-2022

 

 

Ps        INSPIRED=by an article form the book=WALKING WITH GOD=by David Jeremiah

 

 

 

 

 

 

ONLY OUR FAITH CAN PROTECT US

 

ONLY OUR FAITH CAN PROTECT US

I used to LOVE

The leaves up NORTH=

The crisp air=the blue sky

And all the colored leaves=

But you had to rake them

After they had fallen

OUR LIVES can be a lot

Like the fall leaves=

In the good times=we just go

Through the motions

WITH OUR FAITH

But when a WINDSTORM of

Illness-death-job loss-

Or other crises comes=

Then we FIND OUR FAITH

Once again

“Whoever is not with me=

Is against me=and whoever

Does not GATHER with me=SCATTERS”                                                                   Luke 11:23

Only our FATHER

Can PROTECT US=

In good times and bad

It won't totally SHIELD US

From loss=sorrow=

And life's happenings=

But it does mean-

We won't scatter far

From the LORD UP ABOVE

The Lord our God really

And truly DOES PROTECT US

“You are my hiding place-

Who will PROTECT ME

From trouble

And surround me

With songs of deliverance”                                                                                      Psalm 32:7

“Discretion will PROTECT YOU

And understanding 

Will guard you”                                                                                                         Proverbs 32:11

“I will remain

In the world

No longer

But they are

Still in the world

And I am coming to you

Holy Father PROTECT THEM

By the power

Of your name=

The name you gave me

So that they may be one

As we are one”                                                                                                              John 17:11

Like the autumn leaves-

LIFE SOMETIMES

Seems to come at us

From all directions

And when that happens=

ALL that can protect us

Is GOD AND LOVE=

All that can protect us

Is Jesus

All that can PROTECT US

IS OUR FAITH

“IT ALWAYS PROTECTS=

Always trusts-

Always hopes-

Always perseveres=

LOVE NEVER FAILS”                                                                                              1 Corinthians 13:7-8

Let God THE FATHER-

PROTECT YOU=

Let Jesus protect you

Let your FAITH IN THEM

PROTECT YOU

It is THE ONLY THING

That Can

In the name of Jesus and OUR ALWAYS PROTECTING FATHER!

Robert P. Wallman

10-8-20 and 12-31-2022

Ps         INSPIRED by an article in LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE by Melanie Rigney

THE MIRACLE CONTINUES=HOPE and GRATITUDE

 

December 30^th

 

 

The Miracle continues—HOPE and GRATITUDE

 

In “My 22^nd Birthday Miracle” story, I told the story of how God saved

My life when I was given 0% chance to live.  And I told the story of the

Promise I made to God, “to live for my family, friends, and for all people

Everywhere” if God continued to sustain me with life.

 

I consider my promise to God my personal promise, my personal covenant

With God.  I can honestly tell you that not a day has gone by without me at

Least thinking of that promise at least once.

 

I can tell you that God has answered my promise with affirmation, because

Here I sit some 33+ years later.   And while my life has not been the greatest

Of lives by human standards, or even the life I would have chosen for myself,

I have done my very best to keep up my end of the promise.

 

Because of the extended blessing of life that God gave to me, I got to spend

Many happy occasions with my family, both immediate and extended.  I got

To sit with my Mother, holding my Father’s hand as he died.   Earlier this year,

I got to take care of my Mom, and sit with my Sister holding her hand as she died.

I still have the pleasure of talking to each of my Sisters every day.  My Sister,

Mary, has 4 beautiful daughters, and I have received the gift of spending much

Time with them and seeing them grow. 

 

For my part, I have tried to extend my witnessing of God to as many people

As possible.  I have been baptized 4 times, in various churches, and 4 different

Denominations, all Christian, over the years.  I have shared my story, both

Verbally, and through my poetry, to as many people as possible.

 

I have always wanted my own family and children, but it never did really happen

For me.  But about 4 years ago, I met a woman to share my life with as a friend.

I call her ”Maggie.”   She told me that she always wanted to meet someone that

Could teach her about God.  And there is nothing I like doing more than talking about

God.  So we attend Church together on Sunday, and several times a week, we study

The Bible together.  She has been baptized in the Church we both currently attend.

 

And so some 33+ years later, I am still alive, and I believe that there is a universal

Message that I am meant to share through my life:

 

HOPE

 

        It used to be that we had to die for our Christianity.  Today we must live for it.

        The ultimate message of our life is one of hope, if we unite our lives with Jesus,

        And share our successes and sufferings.

 

        Our responsibility as Christians is to live lives based on mercy, justice, forgiveness,

        Self-sacrifice, and self-denial.  The Christian message is one of hope—not just for

        One of us—but for all of us.

 

Gratitude

        One of my favorite passages in the Bible is the story where Jesus heals 10 lepers.

        But only one comes back to say thank you.   Jesus says:  “Were not all 10 cleansed?

        Where are the other nine?   Was no one found to return and give praise to God

        Except this foreigner?”   Luke 17:17

 

And so I say, “Thank you Lord.”   I thank you for the Divine insight to make my promise

To you all those years ago.  I thank you for your graciousness in your answer to my

Promise.  I thank you for this gift of life.  I thank you for the gift of time with my Father

And my Mother, my Sisters, my nieces, my entire family—both immediate and extended

--my friends, and my Churches.

 

And finally Dear Lord, we ask you to help us/help me to always come back and say thank

You.  And help us/ help me, to let you shine so thoroughly through us and in us, that

People see no longer us, but only YOU.

 

In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

 

Robert P. Wallman

10/30/10

       

 

 

 

NEW BEGINNINGS IN 2023!=CHOSE THE LIGHT!

 

NEW BEGINNINGS!=

(Choosing LIGHT in 2023)

 

The last FEW YEARS

Have thrown a lot

At us=in OUR WORLD

And each of us INDIVIDUALLY

 

Let us look for

NEW BEGINNINGS=IN 2023!

Let us put the PAST

Behind us=and find

NEW LIGHT AND LIFE in 2023

NEW BEGINNINGS!

 

“THE LIGHT=

Shines in the darkness=

And the darkness=had NOT overcome it”                                                                           John 1:5

 

SOMETIMES the darkness

Of life=CAN OVERWHELM US

 

But we have

To KEEP on fighting

We have to KEEP ON

Looking for the light

AND LOVE=of God

LOOKING FOR NEW BEGINNINGS

And the HOPE in 2023!

 

“IN THE BEGINNING

You laid the foundations

Of the earth

 

And the heavens are the work

Of your hands”                                                                                                                          Psalm 102:25

 

“The fear of the Lord

IS THE BEGINNING

Of knowledge=but fools

Despise wisdom=and instruction”                                                                                         Proverbs 1:7

 

Sometimes=life can feel

LIKE THE DARKNESS

Is overcoming us

 

The darkness of sin=

Of loss=of death

Can keep us

From seeing=THE HOPE OF GOD

 

But we just HAD CHRISTMAS

And the HOPE of God’s light

 

Look for

THE LIGHT=look for the love

Look for NEW BEGINNINGS!=with God

In the year of 2023

Choose light=choose CHRIST!

 

And we can=FIND A WAY

THAT ILLUMINATES

Even in our darkest days

CHOOSING HIM

CHOOSING NEW BEGINNING!=in the year 2023!

 

The Lord=IS MY LIGHT

And my salvation--------

Whom shall I fear?

 

The Lord is=

The stronghold=of my life”                                                                                                  Psalm 27:1

 

“For God who said=

‘LET LIGHT=shine out of darkness’

 

Made his LIGHT

Shine in our hearts=to give us

The light of knowledge

Of God’s glory

 

Displayed in

THE FACE OF CHRIST”                                                                                                  2 Corinthians 4:6

 

And so=

IN the year of 2023=CHOOSE

Light and love=and HOPE

For those in the LIGHT

Will have NEW BEGINNINGS!

 

Finding God and CHRIST

FINDING NEW BEGINNINGS!

In the year 2023!

 

In Jesus’ name=and in the name=of our FOREVER LIVING=FOREVER HOPING=Holy Father God!

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-29-2022

 

 

Ps       INSPIRED by an article=IN LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE=by Seve Givens

 

GOD AND JESUS SATISFY

 

ONLY GOD AND JESUS FULLY SATISFY!

Our lives are FULL OF CHOICES=

Our culture presents us with

INFINITE CHOICES=no matter what

Area of life we are in

CHOICES of food=cars=etc., etc.,=

We CAN choose how we

SPEND our time=spend our money=

WHO we spend our time with

But I CAUTION YOU=at a TIME

In our history=when NO ONE

Has time for God

It is ONLY God and Jesus

That FULLY SATISFY=it IS

Only God and Jesus

That bring FULFILLMENT

“They ate and were SATISFIED”                                                                                    Mark 8:8

We can find TEMPORARY SATISFACTION=

But life has so MANY CHOICES

That it can leave us

Feeling like we are spinning

In different directions

Spinning OUT OF CONTROL

It is ONLY GOD and Jesus

That FULLY SATISFY US=that

Leave us fulfilled=that 

Leave us

With the WORD of God

LIVING in our hearts

“SATISFY us

In the morning

With your UNFAILING LOVE

That we may sing

For JOY

And be glad ALL day long”                                                                                    Psalm 90:14

“And if you spend yourselves

In behalf of the hungry

And SATISFY the needs

Of the oppressed

Then your light

Will RISE in the darkness

And your night will become

LIKE the noonday”                                                                                                  Isaiah 58:10

“They all ate

And were SATISFIED

And the disciples-

Picked up the 12 baskets

Of broken pieces

That were left over”                                                                                          Matthew 14:20

SATISFY your lives=

Satisfy your cravings=FIND yourselves

In the WORD OF GOD

Find yourselves=on the love of God

And of Jesus

ONLY GOD & JESUS FULLY SATISFY

The good news is that

No matter how DISTRACTED we become-

God and Jesus NEVER forget us

They are EAGER to receive us

When we are ready

WHEN we are eager to SERVE

When we are eager to care

When we are eager to PRAY

And to WORSHIP

CLEAR OUT spaces in your life

For God=so that God

CAN transform you/TRANSFORM us

Into people of contentment=

And people of LOVE and GRATITUDE

“And we all-

Who with unveiled faces

CONTEMPLATE the Lord's glory

Are being TRANSFORMED

Into his IMAGE=

With ever-increasing GLORY

Which comes from the Lord

Who is the SPIRIT”                                                                                                     2 Corinthians 3:18

Dear Lord=in a world that

Presents a MULITUDE of CHOICES

We pray that we CHOOSE YOU=as number 1

In our lives=for it is IN YOU=that life leads us to

SATISFACTION=happiness=and love

In Jesus' name

Robert P. Wallman

2-9-18 and 1-28-2022 and 12-30-2022

Ps         INSPIRED by an article in LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE by Sr. Julia Walsh, F.S.P.A.

THROUGH IT ALL!

 

December 29^th

 

“Through It All”        (  there was love  )

 

 

Through it all

There was love

There was always love

 

Through every untenable situation

There was love

There was always love

 

Through every nasty word

About me or my family

There was love

There was always love

 

Through every unkind thought, rumor, or gossip

There was love

There was always love

 

There was always love

 

 

8/30/06        Robert  P.  Wallman

 

PEACE=THE HOLY FAMILY!

 

PEACE=THE HOLY FAMILY!

 

ONLY ONCE

In all of HISTORY

Did we experience

A HOLY FAMILY

 

And the PEACE of God

No matter what this WORLD

Threw at them

JEASUS=MARY=and JOSEPH

Found PEACE=through it all

 

Wouldn’t it be GREAT

IF you and me

And OUR FANILIES could find

That PEACE OF GOD

In 2023?

 

“And let the PEACE OF CHRIST

Control your hearts

 

The PEACE into which

You were also called=in one body”                                                                                        Colossians 3:15

 

FAMILIES GO

Through so very much

BIRTHS=deaths=illness=

Infidelity=financial issues

And addictions and divorce

And LORD KNOWS=what else

 

Dear Lord=we pray

That you can HELP

OUR FAMILIES=

Hold on to the PEACE OF CHRIST

 

No matter what=the world

THROWS AT US

 

FINDING the peace of Christ

MAKING 2023

A YEAR FOR THE FAMILY

A year=in which we EMULATE

THE HOLY FAMILY!

 

“She gets up

While it is still night

 

She provides food

FOR HER FAMILY=and portions

For her female servants”                                                                                                  Proverbs 31:15

 

“But if a widow

Has children or grandchildren

These should learn=first of all

 

To put their religion=into practice

 

By caring=for their OWN FAMILY

And so repaying

Their parents and grandparents”                                                                                              1 Timothy 5:4

 

THE HOLY FAMILY=

Overcame it all=

And all this world=THROWS at it

By focusing on OTHERS

And let that LOVE

Lead the way

 

Dear Lord=we pray

THAT OUR VERY FAMILY

Can emulate=the Holy Family

And let our hearts and LOVE

For each other

LEAD THE WAY

 

The YEAR OF THE FAMILY

In 2023==finding GOD’S LOVE

Above all else

 

“I would have told you

These things=so

That in me

YOU MAY HAVE PEACE=

 

In this world

You will have trouble=BUT TAKE HEART!

I have overcome the world”                                                                                                      John 16:33

 

On the FEAST=of THE HOLY FAMILY

We pray=that you

MAKE OUR FAMILY=and us

A SIGN FOR PEACE AND LOVE

In today’s world

 

In Jesus’ name=and in the name=of our HOLY FAMILY=led by our Holy Father God!

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-29-2022

 

 

Ps      INSPIRED=by an ARTICLE in LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE=by Deborah A. Meister

 

SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WITNESS

 

 

9-8-13

 

 

SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME

 

 

“SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME”
Is one of my favorite movies

 

It is a 1987 film

Where a cop

Acting as a bodyguard

For a murder witness

Falls in love

With the woman

He is protecting

 

To make matters worse

The cop has a wife and a child

 

Wouldn’t that be great

If we had someone watching over us

Someone protecting us

Every minute of every day

 

But we do

OUR GOD AND OUR FATHER

 

So as we journey through life

When we run into trouble

Our God and Father protects us

 

“You are my hiding place

You will protect me from trouble

And surround me

With songs of deliverance”                                                                 Psalm 32:7

 

Isn’t that GREAT

We travel through life daily

And we have someone watching over us

Someone ready

To DELIVER US from our troubles

 

All we have to do is ask

And turn out hearts back to him

 

“Hear the word of the Lord

Oh nations

Proclaim it in distant coastlands

 

He who scattered Israel

Will gather them

And WATCH OVER his flock

Like a shepherd”                                                                      Jeremiah 31:10

 

“For the Lord WATCHES OVER

The way of the righteous

But the wicked will perish”                                                    Psalm 1:6

 

So we know

THE LORD WATCHES OVER US

 

And we know

That he not only watches over us

But he will come get us

When we become lost

On the highway of life

 

And he will DELIVER us

 

“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep

And loses one of them

Does he not leave the ninety-nine

In the open country

And go after the lost sheep

Until he finds it”                                                                         Luke 15:4

 

And then he DELIVERS US safely home

 

“The righteous cry out

And the Lord hears them

He DELIVERS them

From all their troubles”                                                               Psalm 34:17

 

In the movie-the cop ( Tom Berenger )

Protects the beautiful woman ( Mimi Rogers )

And SAVES the day

When his own wife ( Lorraine Bracca )

And child are captured and held hostage

 

In the movie 

Of our OWN life

Our own God

WATCHES over us, PROTECTS us

And in time of trouble

Saves us and DELIVERS us home

 

Our God-WHO IS LOVE

“Always protects-always trusts

-Always hopes-Always perseveres”                                              1 Corinthians 13:7-8

 

OUR GOD NEVER FAILS

 

Robert P. Wallman

7-25-12

 

 

Ps        WITNESS        9-8-13 and 12-29-2022

 

 

 

FAMILY OF GOD!

 

December 29^th

 

 

“Family of God”

 

 

Families helping families

That’s the way it should be

After all

We all belong

To the same family

The human family

 

The family of God

We should all be one

The family of God

Reel in the darkness

Bring out the sun

 

People helping people

What a world

That would be

A world

Where no one was excluded

We would

All be set free

 

The family of God

We should all be one

The family of God

Reeling in the darkness

Bringing out the sun

 

The family of God

We can still be one

In the family of God

 

GOD PLEASE SET US FREE

 

 

5/04/06        Robert  P.  Wallman

 

 

Today is the feast of the Holy Family.   May all families aspire to live

Like the family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph=UNITED IN LOVE

 

NO MATTER WHAT!=OPENING OUR HEARTS!

 

NO MATTER WHAT!

(OPENING OUR HEARTS)

 

WE LIVE in a tough-

Cruel world=in

The year of 2022=but

It wasn’t much different

WHEN Jesus was alive

 

But=NO MATTER WHAT!

Jesus kept his heart

ALWAYS OPEN=

Willing to HELP anyone

Along the path=the road of HIS LIFE

 

We should be LIVING

That way too=

With our hearts OPEN

NO MATTER WHAT!

 

“……..(And you yourself=

A sword will pierce)

 

So that=the thoughts

Of MANY HEARTS=will be revealed”                                                                                        Luke 2:35

 

I WONDER if Mary

Was reminded of this PROPHECY

When Jesus was=BEING CRUCIFIED

 

WITH LOVE=

Comes the pain

And the suffering=

But Jesus and Mary=LIVED

Through it all

 

With their hearts WIDE OPEN

NO MATTER WHAT!

 

“Or someone may be

Chastened=on a bed OF PAIN

 

With constant distress

In their bones”                                                                                                             Job 33:19

 

“A woman giving birth

To a child=HAS PAIN

Because her time has come

 

But when her baby

Is born

She forgets the anguish

 

Because of her joy

That a child=is born into

The world”                                                                                                                              John 16:21

 

SO MANY of my friends

Are living through PAIN

In their lives=right now

 

We all have PAIN=or see someone

LIVING THROUGH PAIN

Addictions=divorce=financial struggles

PAIN comes in all forms

 

But the CHALLENGE

For us=is to keep on

Living and loving=WITH OPEN HEARTS

NO MATTER WHAT!

 

The TRIUMPH in this life

Is keeping your heart OPEN

To love=NO MATTER WHAT!

 

“Create in me=

A pure HEART=O God

And renew=a steadfast spirit

Within me”                                                                                                                             Psalm 51:10

 

“Trust in the Lord

WITH ALL YOUR HEART=and lean not

On your own understanding”                                                                                       Proverbs 3:5

 

So this year

This year of 2023

NO MATTER WHAT!=our pain

 

Let us find a WAY

To keep on=OPENING OUR HEARTS=

NO MATTER WHAT!

 

In Jesus’ name=and in the name=of our FOREVER LOVING=Holy Father God!

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-28-2022

 

 

Ps       INSPIRED=by an article=IN LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE=by Kristin Armstrong

 

 

THEY HAD=AND WE HAVE EACH OTHER

 

THEY HAD=AND=

WE HAVE EACH OTHER

The sequence of the events=

For the apostles=

MUST have been mind-boggling

The crucifixion=death and

RESURRECTION of Jesus=must have

Beyond imagination-

For Mary Magdalene-

And the other apostles

THEN he walked the mountains-

The terrain and the hills with them

For 40 days

What I FIND HEARTENING

Is that-

THEY HAD EACH OTHER

TOGETHER=in the upper room

-As we have each other=

OUR family and our friends

In the hallways and rooms

Of our lives

“Then they RETURNED

To Jerusalem

From the mount

Called Olivet.........

When they

Entered the city

THEY went to the UPPER ROOM

Where they were staying

…......

ALL these devoted themselves

With one accord

To PRAYER.........”                                                                                               Acts 12:14

THEY HAD=and=

WE HAVE EACH OTHER

TOGETHER=unified and LOVING=

Having each other

IS what makes life work

In this world

“How GOOD and pleasant

It is

When God's people

LIVE TOGETHER in unity”                                                                             Psalm 133:1

“I-in them-

And you in me-

So that they may be

BROUGHT to complete unity

THEN the world know

That you sent me

And have loved them

EVEN as you have loved me”                                                                                John 17:23

“.........UNTIL we all

Reach UNITY in the faith

And in the knowledge

Of the SON OF GOD

And become mature

ATTAINING to the whole measure

Of the FULLNESS of Christ”                                                                                  Ephesians 4:13

To be TOGETHER=ALL OF US=

Under the LOVE of God=

And ONE FAITH

They had each other=

WE have EACH OTHER TOO

They were=the apostles were

PRAYING together=

In the vast unknown

Of their lives

After Jesus died

WE have each other

As we MOVE FORWARD

With out lives

The vast UNKNOWN

Of our lives

The apostles were

SHOCKED some 2000 years ago

As they went through

The UNKNOWN

We-ALL-go through

Major transitions and reversals

In out lives

WHEN we go though transitions

LORD=Help us=to know=

You are always with us

In our INNER ROOM

“BUT when you PRAY

Go into your room

CLOSE the door

And pray to your Father

Who is unseen

Then your Father

Who SEES what is done

In SECRET-will reward you”                                                                                 Matthew 6:6

Dear Lord=THEY HAD EACH OTHER=

And you=all those years ago

As we do today=

WE HAVE EACH OTHER=

And YOU

In Jesus' name

Robert P. Wallman

5-28-17 and  12-28-2022

Ps        INSPIRED by an article in LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE by Patricia Livingston

ONLY GOD KNOWS

 

December 28^th

 

 

“Only God Knows”

 

 

I built my life

On love

I built my life

On trust

I built my life

On honesty

 

Will it stand

The test of time

Only God knows

 

I built my life

On kindness

I built my life

On forgiveness

I built my life

On trying to help others

 

Will it stand

The test of time

Only God knows

 

I built my life

On the teachings of Jesus

I built my life

On the beatitudes

 

Will it stand

The test of time

Only God knows

 

Only God knows

If I am right

Only God knows

If I am wrong

Only God knows

If I am singing

A true true song

 

Only God knows

 

 

5/19/06        Robert  P.  Wallman

 

 

 

Today is the feast of the Holy Innocents, when Herod had all the children

Killed 2000 years ago.

THE ESSENCE=OF OUR CHRISTIAN FAITH!

 

THE ESSENCE=

Of our CHRISTIAN FAITH!

 

It is a GREAT THING

To belong to

AN organized Christian religion/

And or the Catholic religion=AND I DO

 

But what is EVEN BETTER

Is to have=A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

With Jesus=it is

THE ESSENCE-OF OUR FAITH!

 

“What we have seen

And heard=WE PROCLAIM

Now to you……..”                                                                                                         1 John 1:3

 

Today we HONOR

The great Saint John=THE EVANGELIST

 

He is an EYEWITNESS

To the Resurrection=

And he KNEW Jesus personally

 

John tells us=He is TESTIFYING

To what he himself

HAS SEEN

 

With his own eyes

And TOUCHED=with his own hands

 

We may never know Jesus

As a person=but we CAN come close

By reading=THE WORD OF GOD

 

By developing=A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

With Jesus=it is

THE ESSENCE=OF OUR CHRISTIAN FAITH!

 

“Then he touched=their eyes

And said’=

‘According to your FAITH=let it

Be done to you’

And their sight=was restored”                                                                                              Matthew 9:29

 

“Have FAITH in God’=

Jesus answered”                                                                                                                        Mark 11:22

 

It is OUR DUTY

To God=and to others=to develop

A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

With Jesus

 

And to INSPIRE OTHERS

With our faith=

As we ourselves=ARE INSPIRED

By the faith of others

 

Through their

PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH Christ

 

And to WITNESS=to everyone

That you can=UNTIL

The end of TIME

Just as John the EVANGELIST and apostle did

 

“ONE WITNESS=is not enough

To convict anyone accused

Of any crime=or offense=

They may have committed

 

A matter=must be=established

By the testimony=of

Two or three WITNESSES”                                                                                                  Deuteronomy 19:15

 

“But you will=receive power

When the Holy Spirit

Comes on you

 

And you will be=MY WITNESSES

In Jerusalem=and in

ALL Judea and Samaria=and

To the ends of the earth”                                                                                                       Acts 1:8

 

BE AWARE of

The PRESENCE of God=and Jesus

In your life

DEVELOP your PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

Just like John=and WITNESS=to everyone

And anyone=that you can

That is

 

THE ESSENCE=OF OUR CHRISTIAN FAITH!

In Jesus’ name=and in the name=of our FOREVER FAITHFUL=Holy Father God

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-27-2022

 

 

Ps        INSPIRED by an article=IN LIVING FAITH MAGAZINE=by Sr. Melannie Svoboda, S.N.D. 

 

JOHN THE BELOVED DISCIPLE

 

 

 

JOHN---THE BELOVED DISCIPLE     ( from thunder to love )

 

 

After Jesus

Called Peter and Andrew

He continued

To walk beside the Sea of Galilee 

 

He saw another set of brothers

James and John---the sons of Zebedee

They were with their Father

When Jesus called them

And they immediately left their boat

And their Father

And followed Jesus

 

John is one of the 3 Apostles

Considered to be the closest to Jesus

He is the author

Of the 4^th Gospel

Three letters

And though disputed

The final book of Revelation

 

John was present---along with Peter and James

At the Transfiguration

And again---in the Agony of the Garden

 

We must remember

That John---along with the other Apostles

Had that same selfish sinful spirit

That we ALL have

 

John and his brother James

Once went to Jesus and asked,

“Teacher, we want you to do for us

Whatever we ask”                                                              Mark 10:35

 

“What do you want me to do for you,”

Jesus asks                                                                           Mark 10:36

 

They said,

“Let one of us

Sit at your right hand

And the other at your left

In your glory”                                                                    Mark 10:37

 

I can just picture Jesus

Rolling his eyes---looking up at the sky

And saying---“Father

This is what you give me to work with”

 

I know

That is what I would have done

 

They just didn’t get it

Until after the Resurrection

As we often

Still don’t get it today

 

But John did eventually---GET IT

As I am sure you and I will get it---someday

 

As Jesus hung there dying on the cross

He looked down

To see his precious Mother---standing beside John

 

“Dear woman,” he said, “here is your son”

And to John he said,

“Here is your Mother”                                                          John 19:26 & 27

 

From that point on

John took care of Jesus’ Mother, Mary

As if she was his very own

 

HOW GREAT IS THAT

 

In his Gospel

John teaches us

That Jesus IS the Son of God

 

He teaches us

That we are not only to love God

But to love one another as our neighbor

 

And in the letters of John

He teaches us

That God is LIFE

That God is LIGHT

And that God is LOVE

 

He teaches us

That true love

Will manifest itself in actions---NOT just words

 

He teaches us

That PERFECT LOVE drives out fear

And that the love that God has for us

Is CERTAIN and UNCONDITIONAL

 

And in Revelation

On the island of Patmos

John teaches us

About the ULTIMATE TRIUMPH

Of GOOD over evil

 

John once said,

“It is the Word of the Lord

And if you KEEP it

You do enough”

 

So we know

That if we TOTALLY love God

And if we TOTALLY love one another

 

We are like John---the Beloved Disciple

And we too---are Disciples

 

THE DISCIPLES WHOM JESUS LOVES

 

Robert P. Wallman

12-18=11

 

Ps        John’s feast day is today---December 27^th

           And there are many many other great Saints named John---including

           ---but NOT limited to       

 

                                                    John the Baptist

                                                    John of God---patron of hospitals and the sick

                                                    John of the Cross---poet and mystic---Doctor of the

                                                           Church---and co-founder of the Discalced Carmelite

                                                           Order

 

rpw

 

12-27-14and 12-27-19 and 12-27-20

THIS ONE'S FOR THE ROAD!

 

December 27^th

 

“This one’s for the Road”

 

This one is for the road

For none of us know

How far

Or in what direction

The road goes

 

This one is for the road

The roads we’ve taken

And the roads we let go

 

This one is for the road

The roads

We will take

And the roads

We will let go

 

This one is for the road

Hoping I’ve met God and you

Along the way

 

This one is for the road

Hoping we touched each other

With a little love and kindness

Along the way

 

This one is for the road

 

Robert P. Wallman        6/16/06