How the Communion of Saints is like My Office

The following is what I wrote in response to a remark against the Communion of Saints in the Catholic Answers Forums:


A person who believes they cannot pray to the saints simply doesn't understand the Body of Christ.

Christ is the One Mediator; we are all members of the Body of Christ. When we ask others to pray for us, they are acting within the Body of Christ. In one sense, you could say they are mediators (small "m"), in as much as they ask on our behalf, but they can only ask because of their membership in the Body of Christ. They can only work through Christ, the One Mediator. Without Christ, it doesn't work. (Paul asks others to pray for him--Col 4:3, 1 Tim 2:1, which is just before he speaks of the One Mediator...)

Let me give you a metaphor. In my work place, we have a VP that is seemingly "unapproachable". While he cares about us, the employees who do the production work, we cannot go to him to ask him of anything. Only our Director can mediate for us. Now, say there is a rule that we must keep the blinds closed in our office all day. If I don't like it, I can go straight to my Director and ask her to ask the VP to allow me to open my window and let in some light. She will do that. But if I ask my neighbor in the cube next to me to go with me to the Director, and make the same request, it has much more of an impact. Now, if no one else in the office cared about opening the blinds, or even wanted it dark, then, even if my request was granted, only my window would be allowed to let in light, instead of all the blinds being raised, and the whole office being filled with light. It would not have nearly the same impact if we all had gone to the Director and asked her to go to the VP.

Now, if I really wanted to let in the light and fill my space, I would also go to my Supervisor and have him ask the Director to mediate for us as well. He would be even more persuasive than I am because he better understands both the Director's will and the VP's will (which are one in the same since they want what is best for the company). He has already served in my position and been promoted to a position much closer to the Director (in the same way the saints who have passed on to Heaven are closer to Christ). The Director has promoted him, and put him in his position as Supervisor (as Christ has made the saints able to get to Heaven), and expects him to help serve us workers. **Note: saints are not supervisors; that's just the name used at my workplace.

The Director (Jesus) is the head of our body of workers, and we, working through her, are able to come to the VP (God).

You say that we can not and should not speak to those who have passed from this earth. What about Christ at the Transfiguration, speaking to Moses and Elijah (Matt 17:3). Jesus is a model for us, why would he converse with the "dead" while he was still on Earth if we should not do so?

Mary also conversed with the Angel Gabriel who is in Heaven (Lk 1:26-38). In Psalm 103, verse 20, David directly addresses the angels: "Bless the Lord, all you angels..." If Mary and David could do this, then surely God could allow us to speak to the saints in Heaven.

Some Protestants might say praying is always considered worship--I would ask them this: does asking God for something mean worshiping Him? Or is there much more to worship--Praise, Adoration, Thanksgiving? When my husband asks me for a snack, he is not worshiping me at all. It is simply a request.

The fourth definition of "prayer" at Dictionary.com is "to make earnest petition to (a person)"

Certainly you can have prayers that are worship. But without praise and adoration, it falls short of worship. When we pray to the saints, we mean prayer in the sense that we are asking them to intercede on our behalf. They have no power to do it on their own; they can only do it through Christ as members of His Body.

The Communion of Saints is a wonderful gift Christ has given us, and it improves our relationship with Christ, never hinders it. Through the saints, we can "let in more light".

Mary, Mother of Christians

I joined the Catholic Answers Forums, and I think I got myself into more than I can handle.  Well, normally it wouldn't be crazy on those forums, but I managed to start writing on the one that compares different beliefs.  Naturally, there are many Protestants who want to debate about various Church doctrines.  So I decided to join in.  Little did I know what I was getting myself into.

For a few nights now, I have been typing away like mad trying to respond to queries and debates on the faith.  Let me tell you, it is hard.  The latest was about Mary and her spiritual motherhood of all Christians.  It all started when I claimed that John 19:26-27 when Christ gives the Beloved Disciple Mary as his mother, the Beloved Disciple was representing all Christians.

Someone wondered where my basis for that interpretation came from, and the conversation went as follows:

Me:

I apologize if I have assumed that most Christians believe “the beloved disciple” of John’s Gospel represents all those who see to follow Christ and have a relationship with Him.

If we think about it logically, though, we should look at the context of this scene at the Cross. These words are some of the last Jesus spoke as he was dying. On the surface, yes, they show his incredible love and care for his mother in His last moments of life. But don't you think it logical that, as these were only one of seven "last words" of Christ on the cross, there would be more significance that only what is on the surface?

All the words of Christ on the cross have serious implications for all Christians. They are:

Luke 23:33-34 "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."

Luke 23:39-43 "Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

John 19:25-27 "Woman, behold your son." "Behold, your mother."

Mark 15:33-34 "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

John 19:28 "I thirst."

John 19:29-30 "It is finished."

Luke 23:46 "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."

These words of Christ to Mary and the Beloved Disciple are only one of the three found in John's Gospel. As you know, the other two, "I thirst", and "It is finished", have very strong symbolism (much more than the fact that Jesus was literally thirsty and that he was about to die), as does much of John's Gospel. It seems unlikely, then, that these words to Mary and the Beloved Disciple were meant only as care for his mother. Instead, the Beloved Disciple, who is never named in the Gospel, has been seen as representative of all who seek to have an intimate relationship with Christ. He is the "disciple whom Jesus loved", as we all are.

This article covers this in much more detail than I have space for here: http://www.holyspiritinteractive.net...ingmary/06.asp

The truth is, we as Christians, are all sons and daughters of God, brothers and sisters of Christ. If God is our Father, who, then, is our Mother? Mary. She is the Mother of Christ, and we are all members of the Body of Christ. This does not mean she is in any way equal to God; she is merely an instrument of God's will.

The Catechism puts it this way: "She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ... since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church, who are members of its head." (CCC 963)

We could never honor Mary as much as God did when He made her the Mother of His Son.

Think about that for a minute. She bore Christ in her womb. Christ as an unborn child lived on her blood--how intimately connected can you get? God honored her; so can we.

So, tell me, how does your church call Mary blessed? 

Him:

Sorry if I snipped your post a bit.. I just wanted to narrow it down after reading through your documentation.

This is just an example of speculating without any evidence. Mary is entrusted to John, not the other way around. As John explains in verse 27, he took care of Mary after Jesus' death. If either figure is portrayed as being protective in this passage, it's John, not Mary. Even if that wasn't the case, why should we assume that John is representative of the Christian church, whereas Mary is just Mary? The Catholic choice to see John as symbolic, while not seeing Mary as symbolic, is arbitrary. It's unprovable. The most plausible explanation of this passage is the one that John himself gives us in verse 27. To read some spiritual motherhood of Mary into the passage, an interpretation that nobody advocated during the earliest generations of Christianity, is going beyond the evidence.

We most certainly consider Mary to have been blessed. We also consider every one that has been used by God throughout redemptive history to have been blessed. This doesn't mean we venerate them.

Me:

Okay, one by one: You say “Mary is entrusted to John...” Well, yes, that is true. (I do want to point out that the Beloved Disciple is never named in this Gospel, and many scholars disagree on exactly who wrote it; there is some significance in the generic term of Beloved Disciple). The Beloved Disciple, John, takes care of her. Assuming the Catholic interpretation the Beloved Disciple represents all members of the Church, Mary has certainly been entrusted to the care of the Church in as much as we honor her and protect her memory as Jesus, her Son, would want us to. “…not the other way around.” You forget that Jesus said to Mary, “Woman, behold, your son.” Mary takes the Beloved Disciple as her son as well; naturally this means she will care for him as she would her own natural-born son. (Note the strong language of Christ in these passages. He did not say “Mom, let John take care of you.” Or “John, take care of my mother." He used “Behold, your mother.”)

“As John explains in verse 27, he took care of Mary after Jesus’ death.” Yes, he took care of her, but there’s more than that. If we look at the Greek text “the disciple took her eis ta idia” While most translations, including the NAB that I use, interpret this as “into his home” or, as others, “into his care”, these translations are more specific than the Greek allows for. The Greek word for house is oikon, not used here.

To quote from a Catholic Answers tract:

“Eis is a preposition with five general meanings, expressing place, time, measure, relationship, and end, purpose, or goal. (The last two meanings--relationship and end, purpose, or goal--frequently converge in a given sentence.)

Ta idia is the neuter plural substantive use of the adjective idios: "private, one's own." John has used the plural, although the singular to idion is often found with no difference of meaning. According to context, the meaning may be "one's own, my own, your own, his own, her own, our own, their own."

One’s own what?

“Eis in John 19:27 is used to express end, purpose, or goal, a frequent usage in John's Gospel (1:7, 4:14, 4:36, 6:9, 9:39, 12:7, 13:29, 18:37). In this usage eis translates into English as "for" or "as." That the disciple took Mary eis ta idia means only that he took her as his own.” http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1992/9210fea2.asp

So, yes, Mary is entrusted to John’s care, but as he takes her “as his own”. There is a sense of belonging.

“Why should we assume that John is representative of the Christian church, whereas Mary is just Mary?” We don’t. Mary is not just Mary is this passage; she is also an archetype of the Church (both she and the Beloved Disciple are). She is the first Christian, a model of faith and charity for the whole Church and her motherhood here symbolizes also the role of the Church as mother of Christians. She is also seen as the New Eve (Eve, the mother of all, disobeyed God; Mary, the mother of all Christians, followed His will, etc.) Christ’s reference to her as “Woman” the two times she is mentioned in John’s Gospel—which is a very usual term for a son to use for his mother—points to this, as it points to Revelation. (This interpretation sheds light on Rev. 12:17)
http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1998/9812frs.asp

I realize I haven’t explained each of these in detail, but I just want you to know that the Church sees it as having more significance than you allow for.

“an interpretation that nobody advocated during the earliest generations of Christianity”
St. Augustine, On Holy Virginity, paragraph 7, circa 399: “the fruitfulness of Mary in the flesh should be more excellent, that she gave birth to the Head Himself of these members… through this, that in a spiritual manner she is the mother of the members of Christ, of Whom also after a spiritual manner she is the virgin.”

Even if you still say no one specifically labeled her as the Mother of Christians during the earliest generations, you cannot prove that anyone denied it. There are plenty of doctrines that have developed over the years as we came to better understanding, such as the Trinity. In fact, many Protestant doctrines were developed later on that were not advocated during early years (Sola Scriptura, Sola Fide, etc.)

Not only that, but Catholics are not the only ones who believe in the spiritual motherhood of Mary. Martin Luther, Christmas Day 1523, “I believe that there is no one among us who would not leave his own mother to become a son of Mary. And that you can do, all the more because that has been offered as a choice to you, and it is an even greater joy than if you embraced your mother with real embraces."

The Anglican de Satge agrees, as do the Eastern Orthodox Christians. See http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1992/9210fea2.asp

Well, I probably opened up more cans of worms… 

Our Lady of Fatima

Today is the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima:

Secret No More:
http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2000/0010fea1.asp

The Secret of Fatima:
http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2000/0010fea1sb.asp

Abortion Survivor.

Check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPF1FhCMPuQ

Mary, the Mother of Everything

On Sunday, something pretty special happened to me.


At my church, every Mother's Day our priest does something nice for the mothers after Mass.  Yesterday he had a fresh flower for each mom, as well as a paper flower colored and personalized by students at St. James school.  Father Dennis asked the ushers and some of the husbands and sons to come up to the altar to help distribute the flowers.  Each mom in the congregation was asked to stand so she could be honored.

Not many people know that last summer my husband and I had a miscarriage.  We lost our baby at seven weeks gestation.  It was sudden and had a big impact on me.  I think about my baby often.

Bryan, my husband, leaned over to me at Mass and asked if he should go up and help distribute.  I just shook my head and whispered, "No, I'm kind of a mother, but not really."  After I said it, I thought, No, I really am a mother.  But I didn't want to stand and make myself known because my lost baby was not public knowledge.

So I sat there thinking about how, if the baby had lived, I would have her now in my arms.  I would be watching her little eyes, caressing her cheek, letting her tiny fingers grip my own.  Sadness spilled over me and tears came to my eyes.

One of the ushers, a young man who is very slightly mentally challenged, was helping to pass out the flowers.  His name is Danny.  He's incredibly friendly, works at our H-E-B (the town grocery store), and knows me by name.  He always says hello and puts a smile on my face.  As he was walking down the main aisle, he was focused on his task of distributing flowers, and he purposefully brought a flower to me.  I was not standing; I in no way was trying to make it known that I was a mother, but he brought a flower to me.  It was a vibrant pink carnation, a rich, happy color.  I smiled and took it, feeling very honored, as if it was God's way of saying he loved me, and he knew my sorrow.  It only made my tears spill over.

Then, a few moments later, Danny came back and brought me a paper flower.  I smiled again through my tears and took it.  The note written in the center of the crayon colored sunflower read, "Mary is the mother of everything".  I heaved a sigh.  How true that was.  Mary, my mother, is also the mother of my precious child; she will not let her be lost.  My child in heaven is now being watched over by the Mother of God.

I knew it was not a coincidence.  It was a special moment in a world full of suffering, a message that God is near. 

God is taking care of my little child, keeping her safe in his arms, as he has always and will always take care of me.

Thank you Danny, for allowing God to work through you to lift me.

Dear Abby Angers Reader

Did anyone read the Dear Abby column on April 30th?  The one about abortion?  Check it out here:

http://www.uexpress.com/dearabby/?uc_full_date=20100430

Baby in the womb, seven weeks gestation; from priestsforlife.org

Basically, a man and his fiance, Cheryl, decided to abort their child at six weeks gestation.  The fiance's sister, Nicki, opposed to abortion, was very upset by this decision and now refuses to talk to the man (her future brother-in-law).  This upsets the brother-in-law, so he keeps apologizing, trying to win her back.

Abby responds, saying, "So how did Nicki get inserted in the middle of something that was none of her business in the first place?"

The problem is:  it should be EVERYBODY'S business!  We ALL should be a part of this fight to end abortion because it is THE KILLING OF HUMAN LIFE!  We should not--we CANNOT--sit idly by and pretend like it's not happening, or worse, just say it's none of our business what other people choose to do!  Every time a human life is taken, we ALL are hurt, because it devalues EVERY HUMAN LIFE, to reduce a baby to mere choice!

Okay, okay, I'll calm down.  The point I'm trying to make here is, people like the Dear Abbys and the CNN Newses, and Editors in Chief are the ones who seem to have the largest audience, yet they are spreading lies about abortion and the taking of life.  They push this relativistic idea that everyone is entitled to their own beliefs, and we have no right to intervene, unless, of course, it interferes with the rights of others.  Well, what about the rights of the baby?

I'm proud of Nicki.  I'm proud that she stood up for that child.  I don't belief she should ignore her sister and brother-in-law; she instead should try to reach out to them, help them heal, and pray for their conversion, but at least she made her view known.  It's obviously having an impact on her future brother-in-law; if he didn't think he had done anything wrong, what would he be apologizing for?

I will pray for Cheryl, her fiance, their baby, and Nicki.  There is some serious healing that needs to happen with that family.  Perhaps some good can come out of this tragedy--God alone can achieve it.


Here is how I responded to Abby:

Dear Abby,

I was very upset by your April 30th response to Cheryl's Fiance on the subject of their abortion decision. Cheryl's sister, Nicki, had more than a right to make their decision to have an abortion her business. Obviously Nicki's view was that what they were dealing with was not just a pregnancy, but a human life. Nicki felt it was morally wrong for Cheryl and her fiance to kill their child (not to mention harmful to the couple), so she of course had strong convictions to intervene.

While I do not think that Nicki should ignore her sister or future brother-in-law (they will need healing, love, and forgiveness after choosing to abort their child), I do believe she was very right in making her feelings known. If you thought one of your family was putting his or her child's life in danger, wouldn't you intervene?

I understand that many people feel differently than Nicki and myself and do not see a child but instead a so-called "choice"; however, I do not feel that Nicki deserves to be chastised for her willingness to stand up for what she believes is beautiful, precious life.

Purple

the day dawns purple
this dreary day
when the clouds mask the sun
     like a black veil drawn over a beautiful face

purple presses, heavy on the clouds
     a messenger of the commencing storm
compressing
depressing
closing in like a cage upon the earth
purple is my prison

 purple mocks me
with its message of royalty
a crown and a robe
     fluttering lightly, softly swishing as I fall
     whispering taunts
that keep in time with the flickering purple shadow
     smirking as it trails along behind

purple is my suffering
     a man betrayed
beaten, crushed
for no fault of my own
offenses bear heavy upon my shoulder
affliction constricts my chest
bruises stain my body
purple paints my knees
     my pain; my marks of love,
of passion,
     of strength,
          of victory
purple is my sacrifice
for you, a sinner
     whom I love

twilight breaks purple
this still night
when the moon rests large and gold on the horizon
     a nightlight amid the blanket of darkness
     that lays me gently to rest

the day dawns purple
this glorious day
when the new sun beckons me awake
I rise, unbroken

purple lifts me

Live in the Light

I am surrounded by ignorance.

People choose to remain ignorant of the Truth because they don't want to admit they are wrong.

They know they won't be reprimanded by society; they will be accepted, even praised, for their wrongdoing.

No one holds anyone accountable anymore.

Everyday I see people abandoning their values.  Men and women live together without being married; people have sex before they are married; couples use birth control; people lie and cheat because they know they won't get caught; men and women gossip about others as if their lives were nothing more than entertainment; teens yell at their parents and show no respect; adults go to strip clubs and adult video stores.

Yet no one tells them they are wrong.  It is all accepted.

If we looked deep down, we would know we were wrong.  We all have bits of the Truth somewhere hidden in our hearts.

Don't hide from the Truth.  Don't remain in darkness.  Don't purposefully stay ignorant to avoid responsibility.

Live in the Light.

Why are we silent?

My husband asked me the other day why more people didn't care about the babies in the womb.  Children are dying and yet people, even priest and ministers are silent on the issue.  Men and women say that they are pro-life or that they would never choose to have an abortion themselves, yet they are apathetic or afraid and don't speak out.

Instead, we choose problems like animal cruelty or saving the environment to focus on, instead of putting the lives of human beings first.

We are afraid to admit the sadness and horror of what happens when 3,700 lives are lost each day in America.  We are scared to believe that such barbarianism can happen in our home country.  We let the "law" tell us that it is okay, and choose to stay silent because we don't want to "cause problems".

But it was the people who were not silent who ended slavery.  It was people who would not stand by that ended the world war and the terror on the Jews.  It was the people who spoke out that spread Christianity and brought God's Truth to the ends of the earth, despite grave persecution.

This problem is real.  This problem is big.  This problem brings death.  But we know that we are on the side of Truth, and we have no need to be afraid.  Why are we silent?

(Picture depicts baby at five months, pre-born.  From priestsforlife.org)

If You Died Tonight...

So, now that I have brought up the question of salvation, I might as well explain why we Catholics think of it differently than Protestants.

I know you’ve heard the question: "If you died tonight, do you know with absolute certainty that you will go to Heaven?" Or, perhaps a more common one, "Are you saved?"

As Catholics, we do believe in an assurance of salvation, but not to the same infallible certitude that Protestants claim. We can, of course, look at our lives and, if we have not committed mortal sin, be confident in our salvation, as Christ promised us in the famous John 3:16 verse: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life." Our hearts and our well-formed consciences give us confidence. "Now this is how we shall know that we belong to the truth and reassure our hearts before him in whatever our hearts condemn, for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence in God" (1 John 3:19-21). (I emphasize a well-formed conscience; we have a duty to search for Truth and follow it; we cannot purposefully remain ignorant of it.) We do know, however, that we must obey Christ, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him." (John 3:36), and must endure until the end, "Many false prophets will arise and deceive many; and because of the increase of evildoing, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved." (Matt 24:11-13).

So we can, of course, have hope in our salvation if we merely look at our lives and see how we have loved God. St. Paul, at the end of his life declared: "I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance." It is important to note, however, that earlier in his life he did admit the possibility of falling away. "I am not conscious of anything against me, but I do not thereby stand acquitted; the one who judges me is the Lord." (1 Cor 4:4)

So the point here is: we need to closely examine our lives to have confidence in our salvation. De we have love for our neighbor? Are we spreading the Good News? (And I mean really spreading the Good News, doing our best to share it with all we meet.) Do we love Jesus and follow him? After all, he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we know Jesus, then we know the Way to heaven.

As I said in my earlier post, really take a close look at your life and how you love God. We should examine our consciences each and every day. It’s a hard thing to do; I know I am guilty of trying to make excuses for the things I have done wrong, claim injustice, or blame others for why I have acted a certain way. I am always quick to judge others without first judging myself. Let’s judge ourselves often, form our consciences, and follow them so that one day at the end of our lives we can say “I have competed well; I have finished the race”.

So, when someone asks you if you are saved, the response you can give him is, “As the Bible says, I am already saved (Rom. 8:24, Eph. 2:5–8), but I’m also being saved (1 Cor. 1:18, 2 Cor. 2:15, Phil. 2:12), and I have the hope that I will be saved (Rom. 5:9–10, 1 Cor. 3:12–15). Like the apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12), with hopeful confidence in the promises of Christ (Rom. 5:2, 2 Tim. 2:11–13).” (from “Assurance of Salvation?” from the Catholic Answers website http://www.catholic.com/library/Assurance_of_Salvation.asp)

Do you know the Way to Heaven?

This question of salvation came up in Mass last Friday, when the Gospel (John 14:1-6) was about knowing the way to heaven. Jesus said, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be. Where I am going you know the way." Thomas is concerned saying, "Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?" Jesus then responds, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." He tells us that He is the Way. If we know Jesus, then we know the Way to Heaven.

So what does it mean to know Jesus, the Way? How can we get to know Him? We come to know our friends by spending time with them. We learn things about them and pick up their habits and ways, sometimes even adopting their way of thinking. The more we spend time with someone, the more we show our love for them, and the more we are in tune with their ideals and values.

Jesus wants us to spend time with Him. He loves us; after all he said: “I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.” What a beautiful poetic way to say I love you. Isn’t that how it works in our relationships? When we fall in love with our future spouse, all we want to do is be with him. Sometimes, when we are struggling in our relationships we become upset, saying things like, “You never want to spend time with me any more!” It hurts, doesn’t it, when someone doesn’t want to be near you. If feels like she doesn’t love you any more.

Spending time with Jesus is the only way to get to know him. It is the only way to begin to understand the Way. We spend time with Him in Scripture, understanding his daily life, studying His teachings, and learning to mimic how He loved others. We are with Him in prayer, offering up our struggles, thanking Him and learning a way of gratitude, expressing sorrow for our failings, and listening for His voice so that we can spread His Good News to others. We go to him in Mass, worshiping Him and partaking of the Eucharist that bonds us to Him so that we may have the grace to be like Him. We spend time with him in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, being still in his presence and asking Him to fill us with His Spirit and grace. (Imagine an old married couple sitting on a porch, two lovers, whose only wish is to be with each other in silence, having perfect joy to be in the presence of one another.) Jesus gives so freely of Himself; we need to accept Him and give of ourselves in return.

This takes time, of course, and patience, and sacrifice. After all, what loving relationship doesn’t take sacrifice? Sometimes, even when we don’t want to spend time with Jesus, we must anyway. It won’t always feel wonderful. (I can certainly name a few times when I was in a grumpy mood and didn’t want to spend time watching a war movie with my husband, but I did it anyway out of love for him; it made our relationship only stronger.) But the more time we spend with Jesus, the more we will crave being with him, and the more we will begin to understand the Way.

Do we know the way to Heaven? Take a serious, close look at your life. If you know Jesus, love Him, love your neighbor, and spread the Good News, then you can have confidence in your salvation. But if you are unsure, or you cannot remember when you last spent time with Jesus trying to get to know Him, then you may have lost the Way. Fear not, though, you can always go back to Him and He will always put you on the right path.

Thoughts on Paper 2

Sometimes I feel targeted
As if people are afraid of me
Like I am an enemy
They must destroy me

Are my words harsh?
Are they bullets that pierce the flesh?
The soul?
Are people afraid that what I have to say will hurt them?

Do they not see that I am trying to help them?
I bring hope, love

Truth

They see me as a soldier for the other side
But I am a warrior for them
For their hearts
Laboring to bring them to the good side

Yet they fight me
They target me with their speech
Firing back their weapons in defense against me

One day they will see
These words are not my own
They are The Word, The Truth

The pain of these words is a pain of healing

The battle I fight is a war for them
A struggle against that which wages war on the heart
Targets the soul
A crusade against Deception

I am a target
These words are winning.