Thursday, May 23, 2024 @ 10:08 PM
i survived
Monday, May 20, 2024 @ 12:39 AM
14 days later.
There is a rainbow after a storm.
I dont know how to feel.
Monday, May 6, 2024 @ 10:18 PM
I'm just so tired.
My heart is so painful.
I type a message, then I delete it cause is it right to burden others with this?
tolerance
Thursday, May 2, 2024 @ 9:18 AM
postbywomenbythewell
@ 8:13 AM
ministry recollection (post dump so i can read in future)
@ 7:37 AM
Look at the way we serve God. Is it to our convenience?
Your service to the Lord does it reflect?
What standards do we hold up to?
Is our service to God really service to God or service to ourselves?
Centrality of Word of God must be in our lives.
What are the changes in your ministry 5 years ago and now?
[Mark 1:15]
[15]“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
Repent, time of conversion, walking cloder to God.
Change is a constant no matter what change will take place.
Physical change often easier than spiritual change and psychological change.
Must embrace change. Some change good , some change bad.
If we dont accept change will happen, we will be miserable.
We must accept that everyone can change. If you dont accept that you dont accept Jesus Christ.
Ressurection: hope
Life in abudance is offered to us.
To want to assist in change is up to us.
[Ecclesiastes 1:9]
[9]What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
If we move down this road we will live a very grumpy life.
What is point of celebrating if we do the same?
Are we celebrating growth or stagnation?
What are you celebrating?
If there is no growth or no change what are u living life for?
If we do not embrace change we will stiffle the people who are coming after us. If we do not want change we will be stuck in our sinfulness. If we are not going to move are we going to be perfect?
Will you become holy? Are you holier today
Ephesians 4:22-24
[22]You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
[23]to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
[24]and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
We are creature of habit.
Does it give us the force or power to grow?
Look at my habit. Look at my sense of wanting comfort and living in comfort.
Give an indication of how strong your resistance to change or growth.
You cant say you are serving the kingdom of God and not growing spiritually. If you dont grow towarda holiness or perfection will your ministry grow towards holiness?
We are then restricted by these to be ambassadors of Christ.
Will people look at our ministry and say wah they love God, they love each other?
If no, why would they join such a group?
As long as there is no conversion, deeper wanting to show a love of God, we are lacking.
Task keeps us safe, but keeps us where we are. As long as we dont want to change and focus on the work, our gifts will not open. We will not manefest the gifts of wisdom, piety, fortitude.
Did God just call me to be a calefare worker in the kingdom? Why are we taking ministry as that?
I need to change. Grow
[Romans 12:1-2]
[1]Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. [2]Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Ministry work should be free service to God. When we expect things, it become tiresome.
We are busy doing that we are not busy changing, not busy converting.
Spirit filled hall, can only happen if we change from task orientated to kingdom orientated. We are doing it for the glory of God.
Whatever we eat whatever we drink do it for the glory of God.
There are things we have done well and things we can move towards, we are not done, work in progress, we must still want to move and get better, heart must be in the right place. Things will change within me.
Cause when I do it for the good of others, we don't count the cost.
When I dont do I dont feel right. The goodness of the heart. The goodness of the heart drives me to do what I need to do.
Change our focus.
Change in thinking.
If you dont expect change, you are not open. GOD will find it hard to talk to you cause you are close.
But if you are open to change, you are open to him speaking to you.
What is the new thing that is going to happen today as we meet?
If our ministries are not open to change or corrections it will die.
If we are not open no new people will come in.
Spend some quiet time and ask the Lord what do you want me to change? What area of my life needa changing?
Not just sin, bigger area, relationship with God.
- escaping reality: mindless netflix or fantasy book.
- serving not as a task or responsibility
- integrate God into every moment, offering up every part, every word, not compartmentalise things
- grow in humility
- take care of myself
- dance in the rain
Share the experience of your baptism.
If we seek Him and want him the Lord will reveal what Baptism is all about.
Im living my baptismal life. Unless u do that, it wouldnt feel like its added on.
This is who I am and where I want to be.
If lose sense of baptism and lose call to holiness. Then everything is like a chore, a task.
Holiness, not just being sinless. But Holiness is walking with the Lord, just because you are walking with the Lord doesnt mean you are perfect or sinless.
Matthew 25:40
[40]“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I am baptised so I am priest prophet and king.
If we dont fulfill prophetic role, go up to someone and tell them what you are doing is wrong you are not fulfilling the prophetic role.
Do we fulfil our prophetic role?
If we dont fulfil the roles the gifts that God wants to give to us is stuck somewhere.
What role is it to be in a ministry: King- to serve.
Servant king. Jesus came to serve.
By virtue of your baptism you are called to imitate Jesus who serves. If we have forgotten baptism. Everything will be taken in light of the secular world.
What happens in heaven when all the saints and angels to gether.
Great praising going on.
St paul says we are saints.
When we go into bethel what happens?
Is there much praising and glorifying God in heaven?
Priestly role, offering prayer and supplications.
I am doing this for the kingdom. I am doing this cause I am baptised. The more we forget about our baptism we going to forget about our lives.
7 gifts that have been given to you. Have they been open? If open your work in ministry will not be so tiring. Will flow from the charism you have. What we leave behind will be lost. What we use will be stronger.
[Ephesians 4:4-6]
[4]There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; [5]one Lord, one faith, one baptism; [6]one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
We are one body, one spirit
[Romans 6:1-4]
[1]What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? [2]By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
[3]Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
[4]We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life..
Will we grow in that relationship with Christ Jesus? How aware are you of Jesus Christ?
Calling to mind the presence of the Lord. Walking with the Lord.
Where is Christ?
"Wait a while"
When Christ is not present the graces of baptism is put in the freezer.
Must keep in mind. As long as graces of baptism is not touched, people get tired.
"If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me." Jeremiah
Are you remaining in your baptism?
Are you complaning?
Role of priest- prays
That aspect of your baptism is lost.
You will have your gifts open to you.
Another indication, do you have Joy?
Supposed to be joyful when you meet one another.
Is there joy? All of these is inside job, is for you. Will I leave it myself.
Dont worry about the other person. Yourself first. If you have no joy in you how can you give joy?
They are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.
Pray and ask the Lord to open these gifts.
The light of Christ is within us through baptism.
Fear is normal but a fear that overcomes you is normal.
Ministry meeting who is present?
The ministry trains its members for evangelisation. When your members say When are we going out next? Then we are doing it correctly.
We been so focussed on the work, task orientated. Choir- Bulk of time is practise.
Focus on Maintenance, focus on doing job well. But as we focus on these are we focussing on what the church wants us to do?
If we are not doing that we are not focussed on purpose of Church. Go make disciples of all nation.
How many people who walk by the church are attracted to come in.
Are we training our ministry members to evangelise?
Evangelisation and new evangelisation.
(New evangelisation- evangelise catholics who are baptised but not catechised. Not growing in faith.)
If we just focus on task we will never be able to start on new evangelisation.
If our ministry doesnt help us in this way. Doesnt provide an environment it is doing a great disservice. When we pray together is the time we pray together significant?
Is our ministry helping me to grow in holiness? Is my ministry helping me be an evangeliser? Evangelisation is not an option. It is a must.
Is my ministry helping us to grow in holiness.
Is my ministry helping me become an evangeliser?
If Christ not before you, who is before you?
Sins failure disappointments? Are these leading you?
There is no joy. No peace, sin- filled with guilt.
They look towards christ despite the persecution and horrible things that happened to them.
Can I have that kinda faith or conviction?
When human nature comes, does the faith kick in?
Grow in baptismal faith.
Engage laspe catholic, comfortable to be annoynomous.
We need inspiring members of the ministry.
When choir sing people cry.
Choir cannot inspire people if they practise and just focus on technicalities.
Plan to convince one another, convicted we need to grow in holiness.
Evangelisation be on agenda of meetings.
Call to holiness needs to be on agenda.
We need to be accountable to one another.
Full time catholic or part time catholic?
Full time means this one comes first.
Matthew 6:33
[33]But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
2 Corinthians 5:17
[17]Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
What is old within me. In order to change must know what we need to change. If we dont. We still must be guessing.
What is it that I need to realise. What is the old in me that should be changed?
-Seeing church work as a chore.
What am I going to do about it?
-Improve my relationship with God. Renew my love
Whats the new?
-When I love what I do it is no longer a chore.
How are you going to do it?
-Go to church earlier in the morning, Read daily mass scripture and reflection. Attend daily mass.
-Read at least 1 chapter of the bible daily. (When I return home either before training or after dinner.)
-Dwell in what I have read or heard through the day.
Who am I going to be accountable to?
-Mar
What is the timeframe? How long to make this change?
-1 month to form a new habit.
3.45pm
To be a true ministry:
1.Must enable people to participate/get involved in liturgy(prayer, the people, prayer of the community, prayer of the eucharist)
2. Teaching, does your ministry have members capable of teaching?
Are all members capable of teaching?
Is your ministry training people to teach?
3. Communion.
Is your ministry a community?
Every ministry should have communion.
Should know each other strength, joy..
4. Service, how does your ministry serve? Who do they serve?
5. Evangelisation.
Ministry exist to serve. Service for others.
[John 14:31]
[31]but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me. “Come now; let us leave."
Jesus went to ppl, not being comfortable and stuck in one place. He went to where the need was, service to people everywhere.
Why am I serving in the ministry.
Hopefully:
-Heard call of God to serve.
-the medium in which God call you is very different.
-You nvr know how God calls
- you cannot approach the Lord if he doesnt call you.
- whatever service you are doing is for the kingdom of God. You are not serving the church. Where the people of God is , there is the kingdom of God.
-dont think so much abt what the other people are doing. They are answerable go God.
- the desire to serve comes from the heart. If the heart is in the wrong place, we will be in trouble.
- if you keep seeing mistakes... you will not see God our Father. It is our heart that needs to be in the right place.
-If heart is not in right place Service will not lead you to a higher place.
- if its a service out of love you will keep doing it.
-if its a duty, it will be a chore.
-duty is task orientated.
- does church belong to you?
- do you say " can i be of service to you?"
- introvert, come out of yourself, come out of comfort zone. U cant keep to yourself all the time.
[Mark 1:38]
[38]Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”
Does our ministry bring people to Jesus?
Laspe catholic, these are the people we need to bring to Jesus.
Luke 5:17-26
[17]One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick.
[18]Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus.
[19]When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
[20]When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
[21]The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
[22]Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts?
[23]Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?
[24]But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”
[25]Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God.
[26]Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”
Ministry is not abt ourself. Prepare us to evangelise, for new evangelisation
We need to be innovative. What can we do to bring them to Jesus? We are talking to ppl we alrdy know...
What abt the ppl that we dont know?
Svc to everybody, to others.
We are coming home to the family, our fr has many children.
- what kinda fruits have we produced?
- can we do better? Am i closer to the Lord? Am i walking in holiness?
- u cannot outdo the Lord in anything.
- our Father knows what u need. Healing, joy peace, set you free.
- am i seeking the Lord with all my heart?
-shld you not expect to give the best of what u can give to the Lord? When you give dont you think u wld discover more.
- we are not seeking excellence in sg, but excellence in kingdom of God.
- God died for us what are we giving go Him? Spare time?
- what you sow you reap.
-no perfect person, no perfect member, no perfect priest, but we work towards God.
i have grown
Wednesday, May 1, 2024 @ 11:08 PM
I am growing and I have grown.
