If you are not making a difference in life, what are you doing? God has called me to write this Blog, He did not tell me that it would be of any great success, or that it would go viral, He gives me ideas and I obediently write away. Perhaps by reaching several people to tug at their hearts, to motivate them to seek what God has intended for your life, Am I making a difference? I pray so.

We were all born for a certain time, you were chosen by God to witness life as it is now. And the direction you choose will make all the difference; you will either serve God or yourself.

Becoming a Lover of Self

When a individual reaches this level of self-love it comes with a hefty price. There is little room in your delusional, compart-mentalized heaven for others. Humility is a quality that will not fit your narrative. The Bible clearly states that men will become lovers of themselves. Once you reach this pentacle, and anyone or anything that gets in your way must bow down to you or be destroyed. Lover of themselves need be to fed a lot of affirmation to continue to rule their tiny mind kingdoms. Are these people gifted? Sometimes yes, but they are using their gifts perversely. I cannot stress enough that God has given special gifts for us all. The misguided believe that the gifts were created by their own means, because they have become their own deity. They have been persuaded that their gifts were earned through their own intellect. Their narcissistic beliefs can carry them to new levels of godship.  By using words like blessings and becoming involved with philanthropy, they hide their real character. They only have one thing in mind: to gain more recognition and to continue to climb up that unattainable mountains. They have no God, and they will never experience the joy of  purpose.

The Real Mountain

We as Christians have our own peaks and valleys as we carry our proverbial crosses in life. Unlike the lovers of self, our mountain is always visible; we can and eventually attain our goals. Do you remember the story of Moses when he met God on Mt. Sinai? What were the Israelites doing at the bottom of the hill? Were they praying and waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain? No, they grew impatient and did the unthinkable, they built a false idol! We reach the mountain through meditation in prayer, we draw closer and closer the more we give up the things of the world. Our goal is not to reach the top of the mountain and beat our chest saying “I’m the king of the hill!” No! we are spiritually satisfied because we’ve broken through in perseverance and patience, in knowing that God was always at our side.

God did not put you on earth to protest, destroy private property or to block freeways. The way I see it, we have on our hands a generation of lost souls searching for their purpose in life. These people are filled with passion, that is mixed with pent up anger.

Unresolved anger festers in the spirit, it churns up old hurts from the past. It could be a bad relationship with your mother or father, or a trauma that continues to trigger an emotion. When you add unforgiveness to anger, you created a potion of hatred. This type of hatred will surface in a playback of your mind. You visualize the trauma, hearing every word of pain as if it were being done in person. These reminders are in your subconscious left in your memory bank to control your emotions. God created our subconscious but being delivered of our past hurts will free us from these strongholds. You can seek the advice of a godly therapist and/or pray that the Lord heal you. God wants us whole, and He has allowed us to experience pain so that we can help others get past their distress. If someone who has been in prison comes to me for help, I will do my best, but an ex-prisoner can better understand the person’s situation because they’ve experienced it and have the compassion to guide much better than I can. We have all witness the anger that surrounds us, we’ve become a divided nation, leaving the door wide open for the Devil to come and stake his claim. Satan is the master manipulator, distorting facts in order to cause mass confusion and polarization.

⁴ who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God.

 

Confusion

I really don’t  know who or what to believe in this COVID-19 situation. So many mixed messages has put me in the state of doubt. When I attend daily Mass, I sit outdoors, about 20 steps from the door of the church, why can’t I go and serve God inside the church? I obediently wear a mask whenever I’m in public, but when this all started no specialist were sure if it made a difference. I watched the news last night reporting on the unrest and protest in different parts of our country. Clearly there were hundreds of people, but the report casually mention that they were protesting. The news immediately switched to a beach scene, showing hundreds of beachgoers but this time it was about them spreading COVID-19.

This type of bias reporting is confusing because in both cases you are susceptible to catching COVID-19. God gave me a free will and a clear, reasoning mind to think independently; therefore I do not fall for every wind of doctrine and I certainly do not believe the lies that we are all being trained to follow. I’m not a rebel but I recognize a political con and the motives behind it.

 

54 Day Novena

On August 15th I joined a novena. The Latin meaning of novena is derived from the word “novem” or nine. A novena is typically a nine day prayer. This prayer comes from the Book of Acts, (Acts 1:12-13) before Jesus ascended into heaven He asked his Apostles to pray. For nine days they prayed in the Upper Room preparing for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The 54 day novena is not uncommon, I, along with millions of other Catholics are praying the same prayer. Lately I have been praying in my back yard early evening. My cat Prudie and I will walk around the back yard praying the Rosary. Durning this petition I am asking our Blessed Mother’s intersession on behalf our our nation. We are praying for peace in the up coming elections. We pray the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious mysteries of the Rosary.

My Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, just as the Apostles waited for the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit, we anxiously wait for You to answer all of our petitions. Lord, keep us safe and healthy during these calamitous times. Grant us peace in knowing that You are ever present. Amen.

“Keep people from their history, and they are easily controlled” –  Karl Marx

 

What is going on today with Black Lives Matter is a disgrace. My heart aches for the black people who are truly looking for a positive change. God hears your cries and He will see you through this. What a sad sight we’ve become to the world. Once the leader of all nations, our country is now being torn apart by paid thugs, not the hurting Black people. We all need to distinguish between the two. One side wants change for the betterment of mankind while the other wants to destroy the fabric of our society by forcing their socialist ideologies. It’s happening right before our eyes. A large population of zombies have infiltrated our society. Some peaceful citizens of Washington, D.C., who were out having a casual meal were approached by these bully zombies who demanded that they raise their fists in solidarity with BLM. One problem here: do all these people look black? No! Because they are the puppets spawned by the liberal colleges who gave birth to bastard children of hatred. It is hatred that is systemic in our society.

 

 

Ann Dorn

I watched  part of both the Democratic and Republican conventions and came away with much-needed hope, but two speeches stood out for me: the ones by Ann Dorn and Sister Debe Bryne. Ann Dorn, widow of David Dorn spoke of her husband’s execution eloquently. Her husband was a retired Chief of Police, who knew about being a police officer, and all that came with that responsibility. Her husband, David Dorn, was brutally murdered during the rioting in St. Louis in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd. She knows the pain of a black man being murdered in cold blood too. This family will be forever changed because of the senseless actions of an angry mob. David Dorn’s execution was live-streamed on Facebook for the world to witness the callousness of these diabolical zombies. Mr. Dorn’s grandson watched it all go down without realizing it was his beloved grandfather who was murdered. SAY HIS NAME! DAVID DORN! His life mattered.

Sister Debe Byrne

This beautiful sister served in the Army for 29 years  as a doctor/surgeon. She became a nun with the order of Little Workers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary in 2002. Her powerful voice broke barriers when she spoke at the Republican National Convention. In her words, “As followers of Christ we are called to stand up for life, against the politically correct or fashionable of today. We must fight against the legislative agenda that supports and even celebrates destroying life in the womb. Keep in mind the laws we create define how we see our humanity.” Sister Debe ended her speech by holding up her Rosary and referring to is as a weapon of war. This powerful woman of God knows how to fight the Enemy, and we should all follow her lead.

The Children in Cages

Since the topic of “children in cages ” came up during the Democratic National Convention, it’s important that once and for all we get the facts straight. In 2014 President Obama approved and built temporary holding enclosures (that are now referred to as “cages”) so he is responsible for this project. This was done for the children’s safety, since many of these innocent children have been victims of human trafficking. These enclosures were meant to house the children for 72 hours, but due to the surge of many thousands of unaccompanied minors (70,000 in 2019) it complicated  the workload and added to the bureaucracy for three government agencies. The first is the Department of Homeland Security, followed by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is under the Department of Health and Human Services. These organizations are still working to protect and find placement for these unaccompanied children. The majority of these children are from Honduras and Guatemala. By the time they set foot on these hollowed grounds, the journey had added both physical and mental trauma. As humanitarians our country is doing its best to help with a problem brought on by the failures of past government policies and their failure to securing our borders. Pray for the parents of these children, as they sacrificed so much for their children to have a better life. I cannot imagine the heartache they suffer each day.

The Professional Ball Players

You are overpaid and should keep your politics to yourselves. What you are witnessing now, as you play your little games to empty stadiums and stands, may very well be the foreshadowing of what  you will experience in real life. People are tired of your Nike promotions and the millions you have made from us. Remember, your careers are short-lived; an injury, a younger player and it’s all over. Make good use of your time and become the role models you were called to be. The youth look up to you, so give them a positive reason. And if you are supporting Black Lives Matter, you have the responsibility, power and money to make this organization work for the betterment of our communities. So clean up BLM!

 To Parents 

Do right by your children, as it is your God-given duty. Pray for them to become great, productive citizens. Teach them the real meaning of life, love, humility and respect. Be the example of standing up for what is right in the eyes of God. Do not set a cushion for them to fall on; rather you should prepare them for any stones of hatred that may be thrown their way. Train them to fight spiritually through prayer.

The only thing left  for us is prayer. We must put on our spiritual military armor. We must, as parents, grandparents, and others, go into battle for our loved ones. The Devil may be winning a battle here and there, but the victory belongs to the Lord! We need to stop making excuses for mob-mentality violence. It’s alright to be angry, but to take matters into your own hands in violent, terrorist temper tantrums is unacceptable.

Not all minorities vote for the Democratic Party. I will  always take a knee for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is from Him that I have learned to stand up for what is right in His eyes. Nothing will change that! I am proud of my Mexican heritage, but I also belong to the family of God. My heritage and bloodline is that of Jesus Christ.

My Prayer: Lord, you are the Creator of us all. Father God,  I implore You to continue to give us strength during these trying times. Lord we lift up Jacob Blake, heal him and allow justice to prevail in his case.  Give us holy discernment on what to say and when to say it. Let us not operate in fear. Give us boldness to follow the path You have set before us. Amen.

This picturesque city was named after the beautiful Saint Barbara, a virgin martyr. This saint became a Christian and refused to marry, so her father, Dioscorus, had her beheaded. The wrath of God did not take long; her father was struck dead by lightning.  St. Barbara is venerated as one of the 14 Auxiliary Saints (Holy Helpers). She can be invoked against lightning and fires, and  she is the patron saint of artillerymen and miners.

 

The Ocean

For the first time since the lockdown, Mike and I took a short trip to Santa Barbara. We stayed at our usual hotel across the street from East Beach. According to my fitbit, I walked over 20 miles in the short stay of two-and-a-half days. This was a working trip for Mike, so he was preoccupied with zoom calls and tending to the grand opening of Bristol Farms. I love almost every thing about the ocean: the way it calms you by speaking through the crashing of the waves, how it causes the squawking seagulls to encircle  along the shore, and it smells of fresh-laundered air. Nothing is more glorious than the work of God’s hand and the sea. I love the voices of all creation, but they are amplified by the sea. The birds of prey all joyfully singing, catching a phrase or two from  passing joggers, and the dogs with their masters out for a walk. The Pacific Ocean does pacify the soul.

Jaws

When we lived in Santa Barbara, we always had guests from out of town; my sister Norma and her family were regular visitors. We had recently seen the movie Jaws, so we decided to take our toddler sons to the beach. We spread our blankets not far from Stearns Wharf and settled in for a pleasant day at the beach. Remember the theme song from the movie Jaws? As the killer shark got closer and closer, the music became louder and more intense. When a vehicle drove over the thick, wooden planks on the pier, it sounded exactly like the killer shark music; the only thing missing was the sound of the loud trumpets. My sister and I looked at each other and packed up our kids and left. I still do not like the sand in my feet, nor do I like being at the beach. The last time I went to the beach was two years ago when my daughter-in-law Jenny invited me. I thought for sure it would be relaxing, but two of my grandsons, Will and Lucas, turned it into a living nightmare. This was the summer of shark sightings, they were both boogie boarding, and I was a nervous wreck. The more I yelled for them to come in from the water, the farther they went out. Maddie and Jacob stayed safely near the shore. During COVID-19, Jenny has taken the kids to the beach at least three times a week; our daughter Sonja does the same. They have invited me, but just like when invited to Disneyland my answer is always an emphatic NO! If I want sand in my food,  I’ll get it from Ezekiel Bread.

Santa Barbara Roots

The first home we purchased was in Santa Barbara. We are so uncouth when we visit our former homes, I always ask Mike to drive slowly so that I can get a good shot. It makes my heart glad to see that the houses are so well maintained. We still own a home on La Marina Drive, that has served as a great investment for us. Once in a while we’ll make an appointment to visit our tenants, to make sure all is well. We have been blessed to have the most responsible family taking great care of our property. One problem for me, is the smiling Buddha sitting on the front lawn. Buddhas are nesting, in the bathroom, and the back yard; there are so many that I’ve lost count. But I guess if they came to our home, they would be uncomfortable with all my Jesus and Mary decor. Oh well, to each his own!

The 14 Holy Helpers

During the Black Death that ravaged Europe (1346-1349) the faithful followers of Christ invoked special saints against the plague and sudden death. Later these saints would be known as Holy Helpers. All but two of these saints were martyred. They suffered greatly for their beliefs and never gave in to the torture they endured.

St. George –  Can be invoked against diseases of the skin and palsy.

St. Blaise – Once a year on the feast day of St. Blaise, all Catholics can have their throats blessed. He can be invoked against any diseases of the throat.

St. Aegidius – Also know as St. Giles the Hermit, can be invoked against crippling diseases.

St. Denis – The most famous of the Holy Helpers, he was converted by St. Paul. St. Denis traveled from Athens to Jerusalem, where he met St. Luke and Our Lady herself. He was beheaded in Paris, France. A church was built on the exact spot where his head landed. He can be invoked against demonic assaults.

St. Eustace – Can be invoked against fires because he and his wife were thrown into a furnace but their bodies remained intact.

St. Erasmus – Also referred to as St. Elmo, he was fed by angels while still in prison. He was tortured by having his intestines partially cut out, but healed by an angel. You can invoke him against stomach disorders and fires. He is the patron saint of sailors and fishermen.

St. Vitus – Can be invoked against paralysis, nervous diseases and epilepsy.

St. Pantaleon – Can be invoked against lung diseases.

St. Achatius – Can be invoked against headaches.

St. Catherine of Alexandria – The patron saint of philosophers, she is invoked in lawsuits.

St. Margret – Can be invoked for kidney diseases.

Lastly, St. Barbara. Her cruel father watched as she was being tortured. When he saw that none of the tortures harmed her, he took a sword and cut off her head. St. Barbara can be invoked against lightning and fires.

I am a prayer warrior. Whenever I am asked to pray for someone, many times I ask certain saints to come alongside me to petition for help. Catholics do not pray to saints,  but they implore their help.

My prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, we invoke St. Barbara, St. Eustace, and St. Elmo against all the wildfires in California. Lord, send rain to quench the burning flames that threaten lives and property. Protect all firefighters and equip them to swiftly put out all fires. We invoke St. Denis against all the demonic activity that has taken over our country. Lord, hear our cry and receive our prayers as a sweet smelling incense unto you, answer our petitions. Amen.