PHRASES  and  QUOTES

Does prayer change your regrets from the past? No, not always, but it will change your hopes for the future!

Does prayer change the people around you? No, not always, but it will change you - the problem isn't always in others.

Does prayer change your life in ways you can't explain? Oh, yes, always! And it will change you from the inside out!

So does prayer REALLY change ANYTHING? Yes! It REALLY does change EVERYTHING!

"We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers - you can blame anyone but never blame yourself. It's never your fault. But it's always your fault, because if you wanted to change, you're the one who has got to change. It's as simple as that, isn't it?"

"Refuse to make excuses or blame others. The leader always says, 'If it's to be, it's up to me.'"

To be six again...

A man asked his wife what she'd like for her birthday. "I'd love to be six again," she replied.

On the morning of her birthday, he got her up bright and early and off they went to a local theme park. What a day! He put her on every ride in the park: the Death Slide, the Screaming Loop, the Wall of Fear -everything there was! Wow! Five hours later she staggered out of the theme park, her head reeling and her stomach upside down.

Right to a McDonald's they went, where her husband ordered her a Big Mac along with extra fries and a refreshing chocolate shake. Then it was off to a Movie - the latest Star Wars epic, and hot dogs, popcorn, Pepsi Cola and M&Ms. What a fabulous adventure!

Finally she wobbled home with her husband and collapsed into bed. He leaned over and lovingly asked, "Well, dear, what was it like being six again?"

One eye opened. "You idiot, I meant my dress size."

The moral of this story: If a woman speaks and a man is actually listening, he will still get it wrong

"Before I got married, I had six theories about bringing up children. Now I have six children and no theories."

"Your children will see what you're all about by what you live rather than what you say."

If you are always shouting at your children, when it's really serious, they won't h-e-a-r you. A whisper beats a shout."

"The only time you can't afford to fail is the last time you try."

"Failure is a prerequisite for great success. If you want to succeed faster, double your rate of failure."

Count On God
Count your blessings instead of your crosses,
Count your gains instead of your losses,
Count your joys instead of your woes,
Count your friends instead of your foes.

Count your courage instead of your fears,
Count your laughs instead of your tears.
Count your full years instead of your lean,
Count your kind deeds instead of your mean.

Count your health instead of your wealth,
Count on God instead of yourself.

The tragedy of life and of the world is not that men do not know God; the tragedy is that, knowing Him, they insist on going their own way.

There is always time enough in a day to do God's will.

"Gentlemen, why don't you laugh? With the fearful strain that is upon me night and day, if I did not laugh, I should die."

"The amount you laugh in your relationships with others is the true measure of the health of your personality."

"The kindest thing you can do for the people you care about is to become a happy, joyous person."

Let It Go....

If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to part hurts and pain.....LET IT GO!!!

If someone can't treat you right, love you back, see your worth.....LET IT GO!!! (PLEASE!!!!!)

If someone has angered you.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents.....LET IT GO!!!

If you have a bad attitude......LET IT GO!!!

If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better.....LET IT GO!!!

If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship.....LET IT GO!!!

If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves.....LET IT GO!!!

If you are feeling stressed and depressed.....LET IT GO!!!

If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling and God is saying, "take your hands off of it," then you need to.....LET IT GO!!!

Let the past be the past. Forget the former things. GOD is doing a new thing.

LET IT GO!!!

Let no word pass your lips in vain, no meaningless word be uttered.

The value of consistent prayer is not that He will hear us, but that we will hear Him.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight.

"The rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christ-centered prayer."

Stress comes from having too many hats but only one head. Feeling stressed out? Do these four things:

1. Find God's purpose in it. Paul experienced levels of stress that would push most of us over the edge, yet he wrote, "For our....affliction....is working for us...." (2 Corinthians 4:17). Instead of letting it drive you crazy, let it drive you closer to God. Need to work on your patience? Or your character? Listen: "....troubles produce patience. And patience produces character...." (Romans 5:3-4).
2. Guard your mind. Listen: "...capture every thought....make it...obey Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5). Don't let your negative surroundings infect your spirit. Listen again; "Though the fig trees may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines....Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord..." (Habakkuk 3:17-18). Instead of reacting, rise above it and focus on God - your Solution!
3. Don't major in minors. Don't reach the end of your life only to discover you spent it on things that don't matter. Life's about choice. Be "intentional" about where you direct your energy. David prayed, "Teach us to number our days, that we may gain...wisdom" (Psalm 90:12).
4. Count your blessings. Have you been complaining a lot lately? Resenting what others have? How much would you take for your health? Or your family? Or the home that's waiting for you in heaven? "Count your blessings, name them two by two; count your blessings name them four by four. Count your blessings, name them by the score, and it will surprise you there are millions more."

Faith is realizing that I am useful to God not in spite of my scars, but because of them.

Most of my life I've been a closet slob....Then I got married.

Then I enrolled in a twelve-step program for slobs. ("My name in Max, I hate to vacuum.") A physical therapist helped me rediscover the muscles used for hanging shirts.....My nose was reintroduced to the fragrance of Pine Sol.....

Then cane the moment od truth. Denalyn went out of town for a week. Initially I reverted to the old man, I figured I'd be a slob for six days and clean on the seventh. But something strange happened, a curious discomfort. I couldn't relax with dirty dishes in the sink.

What had happened to me? Simple, I'd been exposed to a higher standard.

Isn't that what has happened with us? ....Before Christ, our lives were out of control, sloppy, indulgent. We didn't even know we were slobs until we met him....Suddenly we find ourselves wanting to do good. Go back to the old mess? Are you kidding?

Be a lifelong student. The more you learn, the more you earn and the more self-confidence you have."

"A great teacher never strives to explain his vision -- he simply invites you to stand beside him and see for yourself."

"The human body has two ears and one mouth. To be good at persuading or selling, you must learn to use those natural devices in proportion. Listen twice as much as you talk and you'll succeed in persuading others nearly every time."

"Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain cool and unruffled under all circumstances."

God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them.

"The only way to live is to accept each minute as an unrepeatable miracle, which is exactly what it is - a miracle and unrepeatable."

There is no situation so chaotic that God cannot from that situation, create something that is surpassingly good. He did it at creation. He did it at the cross. He is doing it today.

Even when we cannot see the why and wherefore of God's dealings, we know that there is love in and behind them, and so we can rejoice always.

Be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

The knowledge of Christ's love for us should cause us to love Him in such a way that it is demonstrated in our attitude, conduct, and commitment to serve God. Spiritual maturity is marked by spiritual knowledge being put into action.

Honesty pays great dividends - God's approval and a clear conscience.

We should THANK GOD for what we have and TRUST GOD for what we need.

The knowledge of Christ's love for us should cause us to love Him in such a way that it is demonstrated in our attitude, conduct, and commitment to serve God. Spiritual maturity is marked by spiritual knowledge being put into action.

Preach the gospel at all times and, if necessary, use words.

"It is better to sell a large number of cars at a reasonably small margin than to sell fewer at a large margin of profit...It enables a large number of people to buy and enjoy (the car) and gives a large number to men employment at good wages. Those are two aims I have in life."

Boy, there are some tough times in life! They're inescapable. That's when our confidence in the Lord's salvation and our relationship with him get tested! It is one thing to sing "it is well with my soul" at the end of a peel-the-paint worship service, but it is quite anther to be able to sing it when they auction your house off at the courthouse steps or you've lost a child to death. That's when the commitment to be who we want to be overrides the weakness of what we feel. Faith can't take a holiday when we travel through the suburbs of hell or we'll never find our way out. Do don't throw it away. Be like Job or Jeremiah who both argued and complained to God. Just don't quit.

The Strength of a Man

The strength of a man isn't seen in the width of his shoulders. --- It's seen in the width of the arms that circle you.
The strength of a man isn't in the deep tone of his voice. --- It's in the gentle words he whispers.
The strength of a man isn't how many buddies he has. --- It's how good a buddy he is to his kids.
The strength of a man isn't in how respected he is at work. --- It's how respected he is at home.
The strength of a man isn't in how hard he hits. --- It's in how tender he touches.
The strength of a man isn't in the hair on his chest. --- It's in his Heart...that lies within his chest.
The strength of a man isn't how many women he's loved. --- It's in how he can be true to one woman.
The strength of a man isn't in the weight he can lift. --- It's in the burdens he can carry.

I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess.

If you are in trouble and can't see a way out, it is only because you feel the solution depends on you. As long as you turn to God for help, you cannot despair. God will always handle that which is overwhelming. Trust in Him.

"Prefer a loss to a dishonest gain; the one brings pain at the moment, the other for all time."

"What we demand from our children, we must demand of ourselves. There must be a standard by which we live - and, as parents, we must set it and live it."

When difficult times come - and they will - we can decide to become bitter, angry, and brittle. Or, we can choose to open our lives to the presence of God, whose nature it is to enlarge us and deepen us and make us better because of what we have endured.

Be angry, but do not sin; don't let the sun go down on your anger. Do not give the devil a foothold.

"A stupid man gives free reign to his anger. A wise man waits and lets it cool."

"May God who gives patience...help you to live in complete harmony with each other - each with the attitude of Christ toward the other."

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

"A man can get discouraged many times but he is not a failure until he begins to blame somebody else and stops trying."

Integrity is not something that you should have to think about...nor consider doing....but something in the heart that is already done...then you will see long term success.

Life without purpose is barren indeed-
There can't be a harvest unless you plant a seed,
There can't be attainment unless there's a goal,
And man's but a robot unless there's a soul....

If we send no ships out, no ships will come in,
And unless there's a contest, nobody can win....
For games can't be won unless they are played
And prayers can't be answered unless they are prayed....

So whatever is wrong with your life today,
You'll find a solution if you kneel down and pray
Not just for pleasure, enjoyment and health,
Not just for honors and prestige and wealth....

But pray for a purpose to make life worth living,
And pray for the joy of unselfish giving,
For great is your gladness and rich your reward,
When you make your life's purpose the choice of the Lord.

The most destructive habitWorry
The greatest JoyGiving
The greatest lossLoss of self-respect
The most satisfying workHelping others
The ugliest personality traitSelfishness
The most endangered speciesDedicated leaders
Our greatest natural resourceOur youth
The greatest "shot in the arm"Encouragement
The greatest problem to overcomeFear
The most effective sleeping pillPeace of mind
The most crippling fatal diseaseExcuses
The most powerful force in lifeLove
The most dangerous pariahA gossiper
The world's most incredible computerHope
The deadliest weaponThe tongue
The most power filled words"I can"
The greatest assetFaith
The most worthless emotionSelf pity
The most beautiful attireA "SMILE"
The most prized possessionIntegrity
The most powerful channel of communicationPrayer
The most contagious spiritEnthusiasm

On the street I saw a small girl cold and shivering in a thin dress, with little hope of a decent meal. I became angry and said to God: "Why did you permit this? Why don't you do something about it?" For a while God said nothing. That night he replied quite suddenly: "I certainly did something about it - I made you."

"It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life, that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself."

"Happiness is an attitude of mind, born of the simple determination to be happy under all outward circumstances."

"Learn how to be happy with what you have while you pursue all that you want."

"Always give without remembering and always receive without forgetting."

"I believe the time we really look big in a child's eyes is when we go to them and apologize for our mistakes and we say, 'I was wrong. Will you forgive me?'"

"One of the secrets of a long and fruitful life is to forgive everybody everything every night before you go to bed."

"Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness."

God bestows more consideration on the purity of the intention with which our actions are performed than on the actions themselves.

Holy Communion is the shortest and safest way to Heaven.

Temperance is one of the four cardinal virtues. This virtue is synonymous with moderation and finding the mean between extremes. Temperance keeps us from excesses and extremes.

Fortitude is the fourth cardinal virtue. This is the courage to face dangers or hardships for the sake of what is good. Fortitude is also one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.

We can discover meaning in life in three different ways:

by doing a deed
by experiencing a value
by suffering

Do not neglect the gift that is in you.

Every Christian needs a half an hour of prayer each day, except when he is busy, then he needs an hour.

It should be our principal business to conquer ourselves and, from day to day, to go on increasing in strength and perfection. Above all, however, it is necessary for us to strive to conquer our little temptations, such as fits of anger, suspicions, jealousies, envy, deceitfulness, vanity, attachments, and evil thoughts. For in this way we shall acquire strength to subdue greater ones.

If the greatest sinner on earth should repent at the moment of death, and draw his last breath in an act of love; neither the many graces he had abused, nor the many sins he had committed would stand in his way. Our Lord would receive him into His mercy.

The first end I propose in our daily work is to do the will of God; secondly, to do it in the manner he wills it; and thirdly to do it because it is his will.

Jesus, Son of God Eternal
Everlasting Lord is He,
Savior of a world of sinners,
Universal King to be,
Sought us, brought us victory.

Christ is due all adoration,
Humbly born to save our race,
Ruler of the whole creation
Intercedes and gives us grace,
Saves us from sin's condemnation,
Truly worthy of all praise!

God's Blessings

The man whispered "God, speak to me"
And a meadowlark sang.
But the man did not hear.

So the man yelled "God speak to me!"
And the thunder rolled across the sky.
But the man did not listen.

The man looked around and said "God let me see you"
And a star shone brightly.
But the man did not notice.

And the man shouted "God show me a miracle"
And a life was born.
But the man did not know.

So, the man cried out in despair. "Touch me God and let me know that you are here!"
Whereupon God reached down and touched the man.
But the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.

Moral: Don't miss out on a blessing because it isn't packaged the way you expect.

What does Holy Week mean to Catholics?

Answer: Holy Week is the heart of the church year. The word "holy" in the descriptive title "Holy Week" highlights this week as unique and most holy in the annual cycle of time for Catholics. Official Church rituals and other traditions observed during this week remember and make present the passing of Jesus from life to death to new life and all of creation along with him.

LENT: MORE OR LESS?

Less noise, more quiet,
Less self, more prayer,
Less food, more fasting,
Less ignorance, more reading,
Less talking, more listening,
Less television, more family,
Less coldness, more warnth,
Less anger, more patience,
Less gossip, more reverence,
Less selfishness, more generosity,
Less blindness, more awareness,
Less envy, more complimenting,
Less jealousy, more acceptance,
Less sitting, more exercise,
Less fear, more trust,
Less hesitation, more courage,
Less me, more them, O Lord,
Less me, more You, O Lord. Amen

You say: "It's impossible"
God says: "All thing are possible" (Luke 18:27)

You say: "I'm too tired"
God says: "I will give you rest" ( Matt 11:28-20)

You say: "Nobody really loves me"
God says: "I love you" (John 3:16 & John 13:34)

You say: "I can't go on"
God says: "My grace is sufficient" (IICor.12:9 & Psalm 91:15)

You say: "I can't figure things out"
God says: "I will direct your steps" (Proverbs 3:5-6)

You say: "I can't do it"
God says: "You can do all things" (Phil 4:13)

You say: "I'm not able"
God says: "I am able" (IICor.9:8)

You say: "It's not worth it"
God says: "It will be worth it" (Romans 8:28)

You say: "I can't forgive myself"
God says: "I forive you" ( I John 1:9 & Romans 8:1)

You say: "I can't manage"
God says: "I will supply all your needs" (Phil 4:19)

You say: "I'm afraid"
God says: "I have not given you a spirit of fear" ( II Tim. 1:7)

You say: "I'm always worried and frustrated"
God says: "Cast all your cares on ME" ( I Peter 5:7)

You say: "I don't have enough faith"
God says: "I've given everyone a measure of faith" (Romans 12:3)

You say: "I'm not smart enough"
God says: "I give you wisdom" (I Cor 1:30)

You say: "I feel all alone"
God says: "I will never leave you or forsake you" (Heb. 13:5)