Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

"Every moment given Me is precious in My sight and becomes fruitful for the whole Church. It is not a question of quantity, of spending long hours in My presence when the duties of one’s state in life require something else. What I ask instead is the moment of pure adoration and of love offered to Me from a simple, childlike heart. Just as a mot her takes as much delight in a single wildflower offered by her child as in a great bouquet of flowers, so too do I take delight in the moment offered Me out of love. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Begin, then, by offering Me what you can. You will see that I will move you to add moment to moment, until you are giving Me all the time of adoration and of love that I desire from you. Too many souls are discouraged when they attempt to pray. They think, wrongly, that unless they undertake much, they should undertake nothing. And so they abandon prayer and leave Me alone, leave Me waiting for their little moment of ...

Thank you once again, Allison Gingras at  Reconciled To You  and Elizabeth Riordan at  Theology Is A Verb   for hosting Worth Revisiting each week. It is a privilege to share our work with you and your followers . More from In Sinu Jesu : Put God First - Love and Console Our Lord! (Originally published June 7, 2012) The Eucharist must be the source and center of our lives. If we and our priests prefer Him over all others and all things, He will transform us and our world - one heart at a time. We can never share this Truth enough! Please spend time mining this spiritual treasure from  Father Mark at Vultus Christi  and then share it with all whom you love, especially your priests! Put Nothing Before My Love for You You have only to prefer My company to every other companionship, the love of My Heart to the love of every other heart, and the sound of My voice in the silence of your soul to every other voice. I have calle...

(Image Source: Vultus Christi ) From time to time, it is my privilege to share the powerful exhortations posted on Vultus Christ i by Dom Mark Daniel Kirby, O.S.B. -  intended to re-ignite a passionate love for the Eucharist in all of us, and most particularly in his brother priests. Father is the Prior of the Benedictine Monks of Perpetual Adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar at Silverstream Monastery , whose website describes their community as follows: "Under the patronage of Our Lady of the Cenacle, the monks of Silverstream Priory devote themselves to the worthy celebration of the Sacred Liturgy (which St Benedict called the Opus Dei , or "Work of God"), in its age-old classical forms and to perpetual adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar, the Eucharistic Face of Christ, in a spirit of reparation. Their life of praise and adoration is marked by a heartfelt solicitude for the sanctification of priests." [Conside...

Imagine the pain our Lord suffers every day because of those priests who ignore Him and flee from His company. No need to imagine.  Read, ponder and share the most recent post from Father Mark on Vultus Christi . These powerful words are taken from In Sinu Iesu , The Journal of a Priest, and are set forth below with his permission. Have the courage to share this reflection with your pastor and priests. Pray for and support your priests! [Please consider supporting the work of Father Mark's community, the Benediction Monks of Perpetual Adoration, whose charism is to pray for the sanctification of all priests. Just click the icon in the column to the right of this article to make a donation]. Waiting For the Company of Even One Priest You are always welcome in My presence. I long to receive you and to keep you close to Me. This is your vocation, priest-adorer. Respond to the call of My Heart. Adore Me for your brother priests who...

Monday Musings If God used Balaam’s donkey to get that prophet’s attention, I guess he can use me to get yours. May these periodic Monday Musings generate fruitful discussion and faithful change.   [Question: Why are you posting the first installment of “Monday Musings” on Saturday? Answer: I won’t have internet access on Monday as my wife and I are leaving for a trip tomorrow. This needs to be acted on now) YOU HAVE GOT TO DO SOMETHING VITALLY IMPORTANT! At the end of this post, I am going to ask you to help get the poignant reflection of Father Mark set forth below into the hands of every Bishop and priest in this country. We can do it! But first I want to share a few thoughts that have long been embedded in my heart. That which is most essential for our sanctification and salvation is that which we most frequently ignore   – The Eucharist.   The late Apostle of the Eucharist, Father John Hardon, S.J., realized “that everything, e...

FOR ONE WHO LOVES (From Father Mark)   When you come into My presence to adore Me, and prefer Me to the other things that solicit your attention and make claims upon your time, I am consoled and glorified.   The proof of friendship is the choice of one's friend over all else. I want you to prefer Me, to give Me time that could be given to other persons and things. In so doing, you will show Me your love and offer Me the consolation of a true friendship.   I would ask this preferential love of all My priests. Friendship, if it is to thrive, must be practiced. This is as true of friendship with Me as it is of human friendships. I wait for the companionship of My priests.   With them I hold My priesthood in common -- and My victimhood. This is what makes the friendship of My priests so precious to My Sacred Heart.   With them too I share the purest joy of living in the presence of My Immaculate Mother and of exper...

What follows in the link below is another gem from Father Mark - a priest who loves the Eucharist and his brother priests as all of us should. It is relatively brief and well worth the time to read.                                                 Priests at Every Moment

If you love your priests, you will forward Father Mark’s most recent post to them and pray for them daily. You will find his post in its entirety here . Let me share this excerpt:      There is no need for My priests to go through life isolated, lonely, and friendless. I want to be the Faithful Companion of their days and of their nights. I want to be their solace and their rest. I want to be their Friend, ever ready to listen to them, to welcome them, to heal them, and renew their hope. Oh, if only they would seek Me out in those tabernacles where I wait for them, in those tabernacles where no one joins Me in My ceaseless prayer to the Father. Never miss an opportunity to greet Me, to adore Me, to remain with Me, even if only for a moment, in the Sacrament of My Love. In eternity you will see the inestimable value of every moment spent in My Eucharistic presence. The Eucharist is, has been, and always will be the Answer. Why do we ...

Father Mark is once again doing what he does best - challenging his brother priests to be the holy men God chose them to be and in the process to lead their flock to holiness as well: Give Him your poverty, trust Him with your sins Our priests need our prayerful and daily support.

In case you have not recently read Vultus Christi, Father Mark’s blog , make sure you read what follows and then share it with everyone you know, especially with as many priests as you can.  Recommend  Vultus Christi to your priests.  We need to challenge our priests and they us. We must pray for their sanctification, as they pray for our holiness as well.  The Friendship of Christ for His Priests How it grieves My Heart when the unique love I offer a soul is spurned, or ignored, or regarded with indifference. I tell you this so that you may make reparation to My Heart by accepting the love I have for you and by living in My friendship. Receive My gifts, My kindnesses, My attention, My mercies for the sake of those who refuse what I so desire to give them. Do this especially for My priests, your brothers. I would fill each one of My priests with My merciful love, I would take each one into the shelter of My wounded Side, ...

The Eucharist must be the source and center of our lives. If we and our priests prefer Him over all others and all things, He will transform us and our world - one heart at a time. We can never share this Truth enough! Please spend time mining this spiritual treasure from  Father Mark at Vultus Christi  and then share it with all whom you love, especially your priests! Put Nothing Before My Love for You You have only to prefer My company to every other companionship, the love of My Heart to the love of every other heart, and the sound of My voice in the silence of your soul to every other voice. I have called you to be for Me another John and this vocation of yours remains My plan for you. You have only to abide close to Me, to seek Me before all else, and to put nothing whatsoever before My love for you and the love I have placed in your heart to love Me in return. Love Me in this way not only for yourself, but for all your brother priests whose hear...

God gives Himself and His Mother to His priests - gifts that never stop giving! How is this for a timely and priceless present for our beloved priests? Thank you Father Mark.  Pass it on!