~~~ St. Jude 17, 20b-25 ~~~Psalm 63 ~~~ Mark 11: 27-33 ~~~
"Build yourselves up in your most holy faith;
pray in the Holy Spirit.
Keep yourselves in the love of God and wait
for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life."
Here we have it...the 'yellow brick road' to heaven.
It is all very simple build in faith, prayer in the Spirit,
remain in God's love, and wait for his mercy.
Well of course I am joking about it being simple.
Our faith is constantly under construction. Every time we hear a story of another believer our faith is fortified. Every time we ourselves experience an answered prayer; our faith is anchored to the foundation of who we are.
If you are a person inclined at all toward praying then you most assuredly
know how to pray in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit places prayers upon your heart. The desires to speak words of praise and adoration come through the Holy Spirit.
The gifts and the Fruit of the Holy Spirit are some of the many avenues we can be praying in the Spirit.
The next part of this verse is becomes a little more difficult to practice...
in order to remain in the love of God requires a certain degree of personal holiness.
To remain in the love of God you must guard the intentions of your heart.
To remain in the love of God means refraining from committing sins.
We all stumble and fall occasionally; we are not perfect try as we will. How many times I have been able to agree with St. Paul...the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
Even with the best of intentions we find ourselves slipping into our old sins of comfort.
But what is important is to remember the next phrase...wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Waiting requires patience and trust. We can wait in hope for the Lord is always true to his promise of Divine mercy. For he is a merciful and forgiving God.
Believe in God's mercy...he died for you and me...
he wants us to join him in heaven someday.
His love and mercy endure forever.
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