A Thought for Today 31-12-2010

Isaiah 4:2-3

That day, the branch of the Lord shall be beauty and glory, and the fruit of the earth shall be the pride and adornment of Israel’s survivors. Those who are left of Zion and remain of Jerusalem shall be called holy and those left in Jerusalem, noted down for survival.

It is very easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements in comparison with what we owe others.
(Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8fSjtPLuBQ

A Thought for Today 30-12-2010

Luke 2:36-40

There was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well on in years. Her days of girlhood over, she had been married for seven years before becoming a widow. She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer. She came by just at that moment and began to praise God; and she spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.

When they had done everything the Law of the Lord required, they went back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. Meanwhile the child grew to maturity, and he was filled with wisdom; and God’s favour was with him.

If a man loses his reverence for any part of life, he will lose his reverence for all of life.
(Albert Schweitzer)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GqEZJUpBYE

A Thought for Today 29-12-2010

Hebrews 1:1-2

At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets; but in our own time, the last days, he has spoken to us through his Son, the Son that he has appointed to inherit everything and through whom he made everything there is.

Only he who believes is obedient and only he who is obedient believes.
(Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qG1ThtgguE

A Thought for Today 24-12-2010

Isaiah 11:1-3

A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts from his roots: on him the spirit of the Lord rests, a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is his delight.

The Church's note must be a supernatural note which distinguishes incarnation from immanence, redemption from evolution, the Kingdom of God from mere spiritual process.
(Arthur Middleton)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VynBiI9M30

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 23-12-2010

Jeremiah 30:21,22

The Lord says this: Their prince will come from Jacob, their ruler come from their own people. I will let him come freely into my presence and he can come close to me. And you shall be my people and I will be your God.

The Christian response is contained in these two fundamental dogmas: that of the Trinity and that of the Incarnation. In the trinitarian dogma God is one, good, true, and beautiful because he is essentially Love, and Love supposes the one, the other, and their unity.
(Hans Urs von Balthasar)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nD5mxkOxMk

A Thought for Today 22-12-2010

Isaiah 45:8

Send victory like a dew, you heavens, and let the clouds rain it down. Let the earth open for salvation to spring up. Let deliverance, too, bud forth which I, the Lord, shall create

The first attempt at a response: there must have been a fall, a decline, and the road to salvation can only be the return of the sensible finite into the intelligible infinite.
(Hans Urs von Balthasar)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAH0qm6OWKk

A Thought for Today 21-12-2010

Isaiah 7:14-15

The maiden is with child and will soon give birth to a son whom she will call Immanuel. On curds and honey will he feed until he knows how to refuse evil and choose good.

If God wishes to reveal the love that he harbors for the world, this love has to be something that the world can recognize, in spite of, or in fact in, its being wholly other.
(Hans Urs von Balthasar)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NC-b4mYFT1A

A Thought for Today 20-12-2010

Genesis 49:10

The sceptre shall not pass from Judah, nor the mace from between his feet, until the one comes to whom it belongs, to whom the peoples shall render obedience.

Our Christian conviction is that Christ is also the messiah of Israel. Certainly it is in the hands of God how and when the unification of Jews and Christians into the people of God will take place.
(Pope Benedict XVI)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2D1VEZLM44

A Thought for Today 17-12-2010

Isaiah 11:1-3

A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts from his roots: on him the spirit of the Lord rests, a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is his delight.

Jesus Christ is the beginning, the middle, and the end of all. In the Gospels he walks in human form upon the earth, and accomplishes the work of redemption.
(Philip Schaff)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWS7CpFHJ8E

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 15-12-2010

Isaiah 45:8

Send victory like a dew, you heavens, and let the clouds rain it down. Let the earth open for salvation to spring up. Let deliverance, too, bud forth which I, the Lord, shall create.

Hope is patience with the lamp lit.
(Tertullian)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j0UpSl54Z8&feature=related

A Thought for Today 15-12-2010

Luke 7:19-23

John, summoning two of his disciples, sent them to the Lord to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or must we wait for someone else?’ When the men reached Jesus they said, ‘John the Baptist has sent us to you, to ask, “Are you the one who is to come or have we to wait for someone else?”’ It was just then that he cured many people of diseases and afflictions and of evil spirits, and gave the gift of sight to many who were blind. Then he gave the messengers their answer, ‘Go back and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind see again, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, the Good News is proclaimed to the poor and happy is the man who does not lose faith in me.’

Patience is the art of hoping.
(Luc de Clapier)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxuOdqJwcak

A Thought for Today 14-12-2010

Matthew 21:28-32

Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people, ‘What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He went and said to the first, “My boy, you go and work in the vineyard today.” He answered, “I will not go,” but afterwards thought better of it and went. The man then went and said the same thing to the second who answered, “Certainly, sir,” but did not go. Which of the two did the father’s will?’ ‘The first’ they said. Jesus said to them, ‘I tell you solemnly, tax collectors and prostitutes are making their way into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you, a pattern of true righteousness, but you did not believe him, and yet the tax collectors and prostitutes did. Even after seeing that, you refused to think better of it and believe in him.’

Obedience is an act of faith; disobedience is the result of unbelief.
(Edwin Louis Cole)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbrRGr_q-z0

A Thought for Today 13-10-2010

Philippians 3:20-21

We are waiting for our saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body. He will do that by the same power with which he can subdue the whole universe.

The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
(Arnold H. Glasow)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rqhG2yT-58&feature=related

A Thought for Today 10-12-2010

2 Peter 3:8-9

With the Lord, ’a day’ can mean a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow to carry out his promises, as anybody else might be called slow; but he is being patient with you all, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to change his ways.

The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it.
(Arnold H. Glasow)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4ZSiDul54M&feature=related

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 09-12-2010

James 5:7-8,9

Be patient, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. Think of a farmer: how patiently he waits for the precious fruit of the ground until it has had the autumn rains and the spring rains! You too have to be patient; do not lose heart, because the Lord’s coming will be soon. The Judge is already to be seen waiting at the gates.

There is no road too long to the man who advances deliberately and without undue haste; there are no honors too distant to the man who prepares himself for them with patience.
(Jean de la Bruyere)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDmsInSvgPA

A Thought for Today 08-12-2010

Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.

Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPbV_HTpyx0

A Thought for Today 06-12-2010

Philippians 3:20-21

We are waiting for our saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body. He will do that by the same power with which he can subdue the whole universe.

Many people die at twenty five and aren't buried until they are seventy five.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a63Lga6aEL0&feature=related

A Thought for Today 03-12-2010

2 Peter 3:8-9

With the Lord, ’a day’ can mean a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow to carry out his promises, as anybody else might be called slow; but he is being patient with you all, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to change his ways.

It is only possible to become a member of God’s family by second birth. We either believe or we do not. We choose to belong either to the old temporal order or to the new eternal order. God has no elite. His purposes are not exclusive but inclusive. He paid the price. After that there is no other doorbell to ring except that of “Our Father in heaven” (Mat 6:9). We can opt out or opt in.
(REINHARD BONNKE)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TXxlKLCCMY&feature=related

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 02-12-2010

Matthew 7:21,24-27

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘It is not those who say to me, “Lord, Lord,” who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven. ‘Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and hurled themselves against that house, and it did not fall: it was founded on rock. But everyone who listens to these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a stupid man who built his house on sand. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and struck that house, and it fell; and what a fall it had!’

The doorstep to the temple of wisdom is a knowledge of our own ignorance.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZIGjfCA5YQ

A Thought for Today 01-12-2010

1 Corinthians 4:5

There must be no passing of premature judgement. Leave that until the Lord comes; he will light up all that is hidden in the dark and reveal the secret intentions of men’s hearts. Then will be the time for each one to have whatever praise he deserves, from God.

I didn't fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfsIlsXnPfw

A Thought for Today 30-11-2010

Matthew 4:18-22

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew; they were making a cast in the lake with their net, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.’ And they left their nets at once and followed him. Going on from there he saw another pair of brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they were in their boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. At once, leaving the boat and their father, they followed him.

All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzqwG-ZQDUE

A Thought for Today 29-11-2010

Matthew 8:5-11

When Jesus went into Capernaum a centurion came up and pleaded with him. ‘Sir,’ he said ‘my servant is lying at home paralysed, and in great pain.’ ‘I will come myself and cure him’ said Jesus. The centurion replied, ‘Sir, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; just give the word and my servant will be cured. For I am under authority myself, and have soldiers under me; and I say to one man: Go, and he goes; to another: Come here, and he comes; to my servant: Do this, and he does it.’ When Jesus heard this he was astonished and said to those following him, ‘I tell you solemnly, nowhere in Israel have I found faith like this. And I tell you that many will come from east and west to take their places with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob at the feast in the kingdom of heaven.’

Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-vTQqbofuM&feature=related

A Thought for Today 26-11-2010

Luke 21:29-33

Jesus told his disciples a parable: ‘Think of the fig tree and indeed every tree. As soon as you see them bud, you know that summer is now near. So with you when you see these things happening: know that the kingdom of God is near. I tell you solemnly, before this generation has passed away all will have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.’

You see, in life, lots of people know what to do, but few people actually do what they know. Knowing is not enough! You must take action.
(Tony Robbins)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqUo4-RtWkw

A Thought for Today 24-11-2010

Luke 21:12-19

Jesus said: Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name – and that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your endurance will win you your lives.’

The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.
(Mark Twain)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxZPQPOj5g8&feature=related

A Thought for Today 23-11-2010

Romans 3:23-25

All have sinned and forfeited God’s glory, and all are justified through the free gift of his grace by being redeemed in Christ Jesus who was appointed by God to sacrifice his life so as to win reconciliation through faith.

No one can confidently say that he will still be living tomorrow.
(Euripides)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0cuOawD_I8

A Thought for Today 22-11-2010

Luke 21:1-4

As Jesus looked up, he saw rich people putting their offerings into the treasury; then he happened to notice a poverty-stricken widow putting in two small coins, and he said, ‘I tell you truly, this poor widow has put in more than any of them; for these have all contributed money they had over, but she from the little she had has put in all she had to live on.’

Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.
(Mother Teresa)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5x6khRQFlOc

A Thought for Today 19-11-2010

Luke 19:45 - 48

Jesus went into the Temple and began driving out those who were selling. ‘According to scripture,’ he said ‘my house will be a house of prayer. But you have turned it into a robbers’ den.’

He taught in the Temple every day. The chief priests and the scribes, with the support of the leading citizens, tried to do away with him, but they did not see how they could carry this out because the people as a whole hung on his words.

Money has never made man happy, nor will it, there is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more of it one has the more one wants.
(Benjamin Franklin)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpP74vfLRco

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 18-11-2010

Luke 19:41-44

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!’

As a result of the historic catastrophe in which Titus of Rome destroyed Jerusalem and Israel was exiled from its land, I was born in one of the cities of the Exile.
(Shmuel Y. Agnon)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTxPu4gB7Vs&feature=related

A Thought for Today 17-11-2010

James 1:22,25

You must do what the word tells you, and not just listen to it and deceive yourselves. But the man who looks steadily at the perfect law of freedom and makes that his habit – not listening and then forgetting, but actively putting it into practice – will be happy in all that he does.

You see, in life, lots of people know what to do, but few people actually do what they know. Knowing is not enough! You must take action.
(Tony Robbins)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdZ4ctFeYmM

A Thought for Today 16-11-2010

Luke 19:1-10

Jesus entered Jericho and was going through the town when a man whose name was Zacchaeus made his appearance: he was one of the senior tax collectors and a wealthy man. He was anxious to see what kind of man Jesus was, but he was too short and could not see him for the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus who was to pass that way. When Jesus reached the spot he looked up and spoke to him: ‘Zacchaeus, come down. Hurry, because I must stay at your house today.’ And he hurried down and welcomed him joyfully. They all complained when they saw what was happening. ‘He has gone to stay at a sinner’s house’ they said. But Zacchaeus stood his ground and said to the Lord, ‘Look, sir, I am going to give half my property to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody I will pay him back four times the amount.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man too is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek out and save what was lost.’

A church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints.
(Abigail Van Buren)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hj4w2tJ6XYM&feature=channel

A Thought for Today 15-11-2010

Luke 18:35-43

As Jesus drew near to Jericho there was a blind man sitting at the side of the road begging. When he heard the crowd going past he asked what it was all about, and they told him that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by. So he called out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me.’ The people in front scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he shouted all the louder, ‘Son of David, have pity on me.’ Jesus stopped and ordered them to bring the man to him, and when he came up, asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Sir,’ he replied ‘let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight. Your faith has saved you.’ And instantly his sight returned and he followed him praising God, and all the people who saw it gave praise to God for what had happened.

Jesus Christ is the beginning, the middle, and the end of all. In the Gospels he walks in human form upon the earth, and accomplishes the work of redemption.
(Philip Schaff)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nYtIiKQFeo&feature=channel

A Thought for Today 12-11-2010

Luke 17:26-37

Jesus said to the disciples:

‘As it was in Noah’s day, so will it also be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating and drinking, marrying wives and husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. It will be the same as it was in Lot’s day: people were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but the day Lot left Sodom, God rained fire and brimstone from heaven and it destroyed them all. It will be the same when the day comes for the Son of Man to be revealed.

‘When that day comes, anyone on the housetop, with his possessions in the house, must not come down to collect them, nor must anyone in the fields turn back either. Remember Lot’s wife. Anyone who tries to preserve his life will lose it; and anyone who loses it will keep it safe. I tell you, on that night two will be in one bed: one will be taken, the other left; two women will be grinding corn together: one will be taken, the other left.’ The disciples interrupted. ‘Where, Lord?’ they asked. He said, ‘Where the body is, there too will the vultures gather.’


As I read, my suspicion that Jesus might really be the Messiah was confirmed.
(Jay Alan Sekulow)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIQZObOqwpE&feature=related

A Thought for Today 11-11-2010

Luke 17:20-25

Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was to come, Jesus gave them this answer, ‘The coming of the kingdom of God does not admit of observation and there will be no one to say, “Look here! Look there!” For, you must know, the kingdom of God is among you.’

He said to the disciples, ‘A time will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man and will not see it. They will say to you, “Look there!” or, “Look here!” Make no move; do not set off in pursuit; for as the lightning flashing from one part of heaven lights up the other, so will be the Son of Man when his day comes. But first he must suffer grievously and be rejected by this generation.’

All men commend patience, although few are willing to practice it.
(Thomas Kempis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cShZwbz42mY

A Thought for Today 10-11-2010

1 John 2:3-6

We can be sure that we know God only by keeping his commandments. Anyone who says, ’I know him’, and does not keep his commandments, is a liar, refusing to admit the truth. But when anyone does obey what he has said, God’s love comes to perfection in him. We can be sure that we are in God only when the one who claims to be living in him is living the same kind of life as Christ lived.

There are in truth three states of the converted: the beginning, the middle, and the perfection. In the beginning, they experience the charms of sweetness; in the middle, the contests of temptation; and in the end, the fullness of perfection.

(Pope St. Gregory the Great)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4l6UVxYOqg&feature=channel

A Thought for Today 08-11-2010

Luke 17:1-6

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Obstacles are sure to come, but alas for the one who provides them! It would be better for him to be thrown into the Sea with a millstone put round his neck than that he should lead astray a single one of these little ones. Watch yourselves!

If your brother does something wrong, reprove him and, if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times a day and seven times comes back to you and says, “I am sorry,” you must forgive him.’

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith.’ The Lord replied, ‘Were your faith the size of a mustard seed you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea,” and it would obey you.’

You must ask God to give you power to fight against the sin of pride which is your greatest enemy – the root of all that is evil, and the failure of all that is good. For God resists the proud.

(St. Vincent de Paul)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epbJuIYuWfA&feature=related

A Thought for Today 05-11-2010

James 1:2-4

My brothers, you will always have your trials but, when they come, try to treat them as a happy privilege; you understand that your faith is only put to the test to make you patient, but patience too is to have its practical results so that you will become fully-developed, complete, with nothing missing.

All men commend patience, although few are willing to practice it. (Thomas Kempis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_VJi2mGdOw

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 04-11-2010

Luke 15:1-10

The tax collectors and the sinners were all seeking the company of Jesus to hear what he had to say, and the Pharisees and the scribes complained. ‘This man’ they said ‘welcomes sinners and eats with them.’ So he spoke this parable to them:

‘What man among you with a hundred sheep, losing one, would not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the missing one till he found it? And when he found it, would he not joyfully take it on his shoulders and then, when he got home, call together his friends and neighbours? “Rejoice with me,” he would say “I have found my sheep that was lost.” In the same way, I tell you, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine virtuous men who have no need of repentance.

‘Or again, what woman with ten drachmas would not, if she lost one, light a lamp and sweep out the house and search thoroughly till she found it? And then, when she had found it, call together her friends and neighbours? “Rejoice with me,” she would say “I have found the drachma I lost.” In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing among the angels of God over one repentant sinner.’

I would rather discover one true cause than gain the kingdom of Persia.
(Democritus)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=et1vriu29Qk

A Thought for Today 03-11-2010

Luke 14:25-33

Great crowds accompanied Jesus on his way and he turned and spoke to them. If any man comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, he cannot be my disciple. Anyone who does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

‘And indeed, which of you here, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and work out the cost to see if he had enough to complete it? Otherwise, if he laid the foundation and then found himself unable to finish the work, the onlookers would all start making fun of him and saying, “‘ Here is a man who started to build and was unable to finish.” Or again, what king marching to war against another king would not first sit down and consider whether with ten thousand men he could stand up to the other who advanced against him with twenty thousand? If not, then while the other king was still a long way off, he would send envoys to sue for peace. So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.’

A man who won't die for something is not fit to live.
(Martin Luther King, Jr.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df9mFYO02f4

A Thought for Today 02-11-2010

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and sin gets its power from the Law. So let us thank God for giving us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in children is increased by tales, so is the other.
(Francis Bacon)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7WyCK-HmVs&feature=related

A Thought for Today 01-11-2010

Matthew 5:1-12

Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up the hill. There he sat down and was joined by his disciples. Then he began to speak. This is what he taught them:

‘How happy are the poor in spirit;

theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Happy the gentle:

they shall have the earth for their heritage.

Happy those who mourn:

they shall be comforted.

Happy those who hunger and thirst for what is right:

they shall be satisfied.

Happy the merciful:

they shall have mercy shown them.

Happy the pure in heart:

they shall see God.

Happy the peacemakers:

they shall be called sons of God.

Happy those who are persecuted in the cause of right:

theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Happy are you when people abuse you and persecute you

and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account.

Rejoice and be glad,

for your reward will be great in heaven.’

In the kingdom of heaven it is His work that will be crowned, not yours. Anything in you that He has not wrought Himself will count for nothing.
(Johannes Tauler )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06AgY5Xoavw

A Thought for Today 29-10-2010

Luke 14:1-6

On a sabbath day Jesus had gone for a meal to the house of one of the leading Pharisees; and they watched him closely. ‘There in front of him was a man with dropsy, and Jesus addressed the lawyers and Pharisees. ‘Is it against the law’ he asked ‘to cure a man on the sabbath, or not?’ But they remained silent, so he took the man and cured him and sent him away. Then he said to them, ‘Which of you here, if his son falls into a well, or his ox, will not pull him out on a sabbath day without hesitation?’ And to this they could find no answer.

A hypocrite is the kind of politician who would cut down a redwood tree, then mount the stump and make a speech for conservation.
(Adlai E. Stevenson)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXw2wzyu0rs&ob=av2n

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 28-10-2010

Ephesians 4:11-13

To some, his gift was that they should be apostles; to some, prophets; to some, evangelists; to some, pastors and teachers; so that the saints together make a unity in the work of service, building up the body of Christ. In this way we are all to come to unity in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God, until we become the perfect Man, fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself.

If God is in a life, it doesn't have to be big to be happy and to be important in His kingdom.
(Keith Miller)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gxft8N_Jeis&feature=related

A Thought for Today 27-10-2010

1 Peter 5:5-7

Wrap yourselves in humility to be servants of each other, because God refuses the proud and will always favour the humble. Bow down, then, before the power of God now, and he will raise you up on the appointed day; unload all your worries on to him, since he is looking after you.

I will place no value on anything I have or may possess except in relation to the kingdom of Christ.
(David Livingstone)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22jwZsgH_sY

A Thought for Today 26-10-2010

Luke 13:18-21

Jesus said, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and threw into his garden: it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air sheltered in its branches.’

Another thing he said, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God with? It is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’

If you have not chosen the Kingdom of God first, it will in the end make no difference what you have chosen instead.
(William Law)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2tA_oJkR6M

A Thought for Today 22-10-2010

Luke 12:54-59

Jesus said to the crowds, ‘When you see a cloud looming up in the west you say at once that rain is coming, and so it does. And when the wind is from the south you say it will be hot, and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the face of the earth and the sky. How is it you do not know how to interpret these times?

‘Why not judge for yourselves what is right? For example: when you go to court with your opponent, try to settle with him on the way, or he may drag you before the judge and the judge hand you over to the bailiff and the bailiff have you thrown into prison. I tell you, you will not get out till you have paid the very last penny.’

These are the times that try men's souls.
(Thomas Paine)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8k1ZjVXZTQ

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 21-10-2010

Luke 12:49-53

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I have come to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were blazing already! There is a baptism I must still receive, and how great is my distress till it is over!

‘Do you suppose that I am here to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on a household of five will be divided: three against two and two against three; the father divided against the son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’

You have within you many strong and cruel enemies to overcome. You must know that there are still a thousand ties which you must break. No one can tell you what they are; only you can tell by looking at yourself and into your heart.
(Johannes Tauler)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtjmnxhi2R8

A Thought for Today 20-10-2010

James 1:22,25

You must do what the word tells you, and not just listen to it and deceive yourselves. But the man who looks steadily at the perfect law of freedom and makes that his habit – not listening and then forgetting, but actively putting it into practice – will be happy in all that he does.

The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works.
(Saint Augustine)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsEgU1Ph_jk&feature=related

A Thought for Today 19-10-2010

Luke 12:36-38

Jesus said to his disciples:

‘See that you are dressed for action and have your lamps lit. Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. I tell you solemnly, he will put on an apron, sit them down at table and wait on them. It may be in the second watch he comes, or in the third, but happy those servants if he finds them ready.’

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.
(C. S. Lewis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCxZvD_wZ6I

A Thought for Today 18-10-2010

1 Corinthians 15:1-2,3-4

Brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, the gospel that you received and in which you are firmly established, the gospel that brings you salvation. In the first place, I taught you what I had been taught myself, namely that Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the scriptures; that he was buried; and that he was raised to life on the third day, in accordance with the scriptures.

Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.
(Corrie Ten Boom)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBC6T71XtGg&feature=related

A Thought for Today 15-10-2010

Luke 12:1-7

The people had gathered in their thousands so that they were treading on one another. And Jesus began to speak, first of all to his disciples. ‘Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees – that is, their hypocrisy. Everything that is now covered will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. For this reason, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in hidden places will be proclaimed on the housetops.

‘To you my friends I say: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. I will tell you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has the power to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Can you not buy five sparrows for two pennies? And yet not one is forgotten in God’s sight. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. There is no need to be afraid: you are worth more than hundreds of sparrows.’

Truth is what works.
(William James)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kq_dr1LWvEA

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 14-10-2010

Luke 11:47-54

Jesus said:

‘Alas for you who build the tombs of the prophets, the men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what your ancestors did and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building.

‘And that is why the Wisdom of God said, “I will send them prophets and apostles; some they will slaughter and persecute, so that this generation will have to answer for every prophet’s blood that has been shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was murdered between the altar and the sanctuary.” Yes, I tell you, this generation will have to answer for it all.

‘Alas for you lawyers who have taken away the key of knowledge! You have not gone in yourselves, and have prevented others going in who wanted to.’

When he left the house, the scribes and the Pharisees began a furious attack on him and tried to force answers from him on innumerable questions, setting traps to catch him out in something he might say.

Sincerity makes the very least person to be of more value than the most talented hypocrite.
(Charles Spurgeon)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OW6f2PLPkg

A Thought for Today 13-10-2010

Luke 11:42-46

The Lord said to the Pharisees:

‘Alas for you Pharisees! You who pay your tithe of mint and rue and all sorts of garden herbs and overlook justice and the love of God! These you should have practised, without leaving the others undone. Alas for you Pharisees who like taking the seats of honour in the synagogues and being greeted obsequiously in the market squares! Alas for you, because you are like the unmarked tombs that men walk on without knowing it!

A lawyer then spoke up. ‘Master,’ he said ‘when you speak like this you insult us too.’

‘Alas for you lawyers also,’ he replied ‘because you load on men burdens that are unendurable, burdens that you yourselves do not move a finger to lift.’

A hypocrite is a person who - but who isn't?
(Don Marquis)

http://www.youtube.com/user/tfkofficial?blend=1&ob=4#p/f/6/y9tNxsJf7N0

A Thought for Today 12-10-2010

Luke 11:37-41

Jesus had just finished speaking when a Pharisee invited him to dine at his house. He went in and sat down at the table. The Pharisee saw this and was surprised that he had not first washed before the meal. But the Lord said to him, ‘Oh, you Pharisees! You clean the outside of cup and plate, while inside yourselves you are filled with extortion and wickedness. Fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside too? Instead, give alms from what you have and then indeed everything will be clean for you.’

Hypocrite reader my fellow my brother!
(Charles Baudelaire)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB4VrIFsU5U&feature=related

A Thought for Today 11-10-2010

Judith 8:25-26,27

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God who, as he tested our ancestors, is now testing us. Remember how he treated Abraham, all the ordeals of Isaac and all that happened to Jacob. For as these ordeals were intended by him to search their hearts, so now this is not vengeance that God exacts against us, but a warning inflicted by the Lord on those who are near his heart.

If, then, you are looking for the way by which you should go, take Christ, because He Himself is the way.
(Saint Thomas Aquinas)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8PGeLX_6iE&feature=channel

A Thought for Today 08-10-2010

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

I shall be very happy to make my weaknesses my special boast so that the power of Christ may stay over me, and that is why I am quite content with my weaknesses, and with insults, hardships, persecutions, and the agonies I go through for Christ’s sake. For it is when I am weak that I am strong.

When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don't throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.
(Corrie Ten Boom)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ya-r674mxbw&feature=related

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 07-10-2010

Galatians 3:1-5

Are you people in Galatia mad? Has someone put a spell on you, in spite of the plain explanation you have had of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ? Let me ask you one question: was it because you practised the Law that you received the Spirit, or because you believed what was preached to you? Are you foolish enough to end in outward observances what you began in the Spirit? Have all the favours you received been wasted? And if this were so, they would most certainly have been wasted. Does God give you the Spirit so freely and work miracles among you because you practise Law, or because you believed what was preached to you?

Human salvation demands the divine disclosure of truths surpassing reason.
(Saint Thomas Aquinas)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzyGrcCv-fk&feature=related

A Thought for Today 06-10-2010

Luke 11:1-4

Once Jesus was in a certain place praying, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.’ He said to them, ‘Say this when you pray:

“Father, may your name be held holy,

your kingdom come;

give us each day our daily bread,

and forgive us our sins,

for we ourselves forgive each one who is in debt to us.

And do not put us to the test.”’

Any concern too small to be turned into a prayer is too small to be made into a burden.
(Corrie Ten Boom)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNjH8QDpBFY

A Thought for Today 05-10-2010

Luke 10:38-42

Jesus came to a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. She had a sister called Mary, who sat down at the Lord’s feet and listened to him speaking. Now Martha who was distracted with all the serving said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister is leaving me to do the serving all by myself? Please tell her to help me.’ But the Lord answered: ‘Martha, Martha,’ he said ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.’

It makes no sense to worry about things you have no control over because there's nothing you can do about them, and why worry about things you do control? The activity of worrying keeps you immobilized.
(Wayne Dyer)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemZQKKJbRU

A Thought for Today

Galatians 1:6-10

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

"These are the days when the Christian is expected to praise every creed except his own." (G. K. Chesterton)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4fEQGbObvc&feature=related

A Thought for Today 01-10-2010

Luke 10:13-16

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Alas for you, Chorazin! Alas for you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. And still, it will not go as hard with Tyre and Sidon at the Judgement as with you. And as for you, Capernaum, did you want to be exalted high as heaven? You shall be thrown down to hell.

‘Anyone who listens to you listens to me; anyone who rejects you rejects me, and those who reject me reject the one who sent me.’

We are not merely propagating theological doctrine; we are representatives of Christ. God confronts everyone by the gospel. It brings men and women to the judgment bar of God, calling them to account for their sins, and giving them the opportunity to repent. Like it or not, the gospel itself has that imperious note. (Reinhard Bonnke)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SymhGhOxwpk

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 30-09-2010

Romans 14:17-19

The kingdom of God does not mean eating or drinking this or that, it means righteousness and peace and joy brought by the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ in this way you will please God and be respected by men. So let us adopt any custom that leads to peace and our mutual improvement.

If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.
(C. S. Lewis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhOJW4Uwy3c

A Thought for Today

Genesis 28:12-13

Jacob had a dream: a ladder was there, standing on the, ground with its top reaching to heaven; and there were angels of God going up it and coming down. And the Lord was there, standing over him, saying, ‘I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac.’

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
(C. S. Lewis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtAmlO4cdhc

A Thought for Today 28-09-2010

Luke 9:51-56

As the time drew near for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely took the road for Jerusalem and sent messengers ahead of him. These set out, and they went into a Samaritan village to make preparations for him, but the people would not receive him because he was making for Jerusalem. Seeing this, the disciples James and John said, ‘Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to burn them up?’ But he turned and rebuked them, and they went off to another village.

It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.
(Saint Augustine)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4Fou0-q00g&feature=related

A Thought for Today 27-09-2010

Luke 9:46-50

An argument started between the disciples about which of them was the greatest. Jesus knew what thoughts were going through their minds, and he took a little child and set him by his side and then said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For the least among you all, that is the one who is great.’

John spoke up. ‘Master,’ he said ‘we saw a man casting out devils in your name, and because he is not with us we tried to stop him.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘You must not stop him: anyone who is not against you is for you.’

May not the complaint, that common people are above their station, often take its rise in the fact of uncommon people being below theirs?
(Charles Dickens)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpYFygz7aqQ

A Thought for Today 24-09-2010

Luke 9:18-22

One day when Jesus was praying alone in the presence of his disciples he put this question to them, ‘Who do the crowds say I am?’ And they answered, ‘John the Baptist; others Elijah; and others say one of the ancient prophets come back to life.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ It was Peter who spoke up. ‘The Christ of God’ he said. But he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone anything about this.

‘The Son of Man’ he said ‘is destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and to be put to death, and to be raised up on the third day.’

I gave in, and admitted that God was God.
(C. S. Lewis)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTVwaVYXamM

A Thought for Today 23-09-2010

Luke 9:7-9

Herod the tetrarch had heard about all that was being done by Jesus; and he was puzzled, because some people were saying that John had risen from the dead, others that Elijah had reappeared, still others that one of the ancient prophets had come back to life. But Herod said, ‘John? I beheaded him. So who is this I hear such reports about?’ And he was anxious to see Jesus.

A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other.
(Charles Dickens)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=othmFqaw0Yk&feature=related

A Thought for Today 22-09-2010

Tobit 4:14-15,16,19

Be careful, my child, in all you do, well-disciplined in all your behaviour. Do to no one what you would not want done to you. Give your bread to those who are hungry, and your clothes to those who are naked. Whatever you own in plenty, devote a proportion to almsgiving. Bless the Lord God in everything; beg him to guide your ways and bring your paths and purposes to their end.

Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts.
(Charles Dickens)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPWT-byaogg

A Thought for Today 21-09-2010

Ephesians 2:19-22

You are no longer aliens or foreign visitors: you are citizens like all the saints, and part of God’s household. You are part of a building that has the apostles and prophets for its foundations, and Christ Jesus himself for its main cornerstone. As every structure is aligned on him, all grow into one holy temple in the Lord; and you too, in him, are being built into a house where God lives, in the Spirit.

Before I was humiliated I was like a stone that lies in deep mud, and he who is mighty came and in his compassion raised me up and exalted me very high and placed me on the top of the wall.
(Saint Patrick)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQO5ZCViswY

A Thought for Today 20-09-2010

Luke 8:16-18

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘No one lights a lamp to cover it with a bowl or to put it under a bed. No, he puts it on a lamp-stand so that people may see the light when they come in. For nothing is hidden but it will be made clear, nothing secret but it will be known and brought to light. So take care how you hear; for anyone who has will be given more; from anyone who has not, even what he thinks he has will be taken away.’

If I have any worth, it is to live my life for God so as to teach these peoples; even though some of them still look down on me.
(Saint Patrick)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hXCFdWStLg

A Thought for Today 17-09-2010

Galatians 2:19-20

I have been crucified with Christ, and I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in this body I live in faith: faith in the Son of God who loved me and who sacrificed himself for my sake.

I have been all things unholy. If God can work through me, he can work through anyone.
(Francis of Assisi)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzqTFNfeDnE&feature=related

Weekly Blessing:

http://www.francescoproductions.com/weeklyblessing.asp

A Thought for Today 16-09-2010

Romans 8:18-21

What we suffer in this life can never be compared to the glory, as yet unrevealed, which is waiting for us. The whole creation is eagerly waiting for God to reveal his sons. It was not for any fault on the part of creation that it was made unable to attain its purpose, it was made so by God; but creation still retains the hope of being freed, like us, from its slavery to decadence, to enjoy the same freedom and glory as the children of God.

If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.
(Francis of Assisi)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkdniYsUrM8

A Thought for Today 15-09-2010

John 19:25-27

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son. Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that moment the disciple made a place for her in his home.

From Mary we learn to surrender to God's Will in all things. From Mary we learn to trust even when all hope seems gone. From Mary we learn to love Christ her Son and the Son of God!
(Pope John Paul II)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzIEqmoCbIg&feature=related

A Thought for Today 14-09-2010

John 3:13-17

Jesus said to Nicodemus:

‘No one has gone up to heaven

except the one who came down from heaven,

the Son of Man who is in heaven;

and the Son of Man must be lifted up

as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,

so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.

Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,

so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost

but may have eternal life.

For God sent his Son into the world

not to condemn the world,

but so that through him the world might be saved.’

A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom.
(Bob Dylan)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbCfyZHSQbE&ob=av2e