Your word tells me that I will be known by my fruits. I pray that the fruit of the Holy Spirit will grow and be evident in my life, that I will be a loving and Christlike example to others, that I will have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Thank you for your Holy Spirit that makes this possible, for I know when these fruits are nurtured and grown that I will be happy and content and able to reach the potential you have for me; that I will be able to minister to others through the power of the Holy Spirit; that I will be pleasing to you. Help me please to live in the Spirit, not in the flesh.
The Love That Healed Me || A month after the first @ReclaimYourVoice event in 2012, I had a craving for spoken word poetry. My only experience of it had been at a show several years prior so I found it strange that I had this random desire to hear some. And then, just a few short days later, I met a poet named Paul. Our connection was ethereal. I locked eyes with him the moment we met and for years did not break eye contact. But I didn’t realize that I still had many unhealed wounds and a lot I needed to work through. Despite his calm and peaceful ways, I still found myself terrified to trust and often reacted with emotional outbursts. In my previous relationship, I had blamed David for all the negative feelings I was experiencing. But when the same thoughts and behaviours started to resurface in me even with this loving, gentle soul I was almost destroyed by the realization of how toxic I was and how much I had been affected by what LO had done to me. Dismayed and ashamed, I tried to break up with Paul. I told him I didn’t want him to have to clean up another man’s mess. His response? “Sweep, sweep.” And he didn’t leave my side. He held me through some of my worst storms, the rock that calmed my tumultuous waters. Paul loved me so deeply and completely that for the first time ever, I learned how to love myself. My mind was so at peace in his arms that I began to heal automatically. Paul was the only person to love and accept me unconditionally, and my first experience of being in love. I owe so much of who I am today to Paul’s gentle love. He was the personification of all that is the opposite of abuse. I hear so many people say that abuse changed them irrevocably and I can both understand and relate. But just remember that there are also people who come along and change us irrevocably in all of the best ways as well. I know I say this every time I see you, usually with tears in my eyes, but since we haven’t seen each other in a while, thank you for everything, Paul ✨
Saint John Bosco, a progressive thinker, abhorred all punishment, believing that by removing youth from temptation, treating them with dignity and kindness, and enriching them with skills, they could be led to more productive lives. His simple rule was: “Not with blows, but with charity and gentleness must you draw these friends to the path of virtue.”
Art: Detail of a painting, held at Savio College Dingli painted by Austin Camilleri.
How [do] we have access to grace through our Lord Jesus Christ? The Savior Himself tells us: “I am the Door,” and “No one comes to the Father except by Me.” …This Door is the truth, and liars cannot enter in by the door of truth. Again, this Door is righteousness, and the unrighteous cannot enter in by it. The Door Himself says: “Learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart.” So neither the irascible nor the proud can enter in by the door of humility and gentleness. Therefore, if anyone wants to have access to the grace of God– which, according to the word of the apostle, comes through our Lord Jesus Christ, and in which Paul and those like him claim to stand– it is essential that he be cleansed of all [vices, for all are opposed to Christ]. Otherwise, those who do what is contrary to Christ will not be allowed to go in by that Door, which will remain closed [against such corruption,] and [so justly] keep out those who are incompatible with Him.
“We cannot be too gentle, too kind. Shun even to appear harsh in your treatment of each other. Joy, radiant joy, streams from the face of one who gives and kindles joy in the heart of one who receives. All condemnation is from the devil. Never condemn each other, not even those whom you catch committing an evil deed. We condemn others only because we shun knowing ourselves. When we gaze at our own failings, we see such a morass of filth that nothing in another can equal it. That is why we turn away, and make much of the faults of others. Keep away from the spilling of speech. Instead of condemning others, strive to reach inner peace. Keep silent, refrain from judgement. This will raise you above the deadly arrows of slander, insult, outrage, and will shield your glowing hearts against the evil that creeps around.” – Seraphim of Sarov [Christ and the Disciples, Georges Rouault]
• Now only the birds and the wild beasts visited him, and he dwelt with them as Adam did in Paradise. They came at midnight and waited for him to complete his Rule of prayer. Then he would feed bears, lynxes, foxes, rabbits, and even wolves with bread from his hand. Saint Seraphim also had a bear which would obey him and run errands for him. More: https://www.oca.org/saints/lives/2021/01/02/100008-repose-of-venerable-seraphim-wonderworker-of-sarov
• Georges Rouault was a French artist whose work melded Fauvism and Expressionism with its jewel-like tones and bold graphic lines. Alongside Henri Matisse,André Derain, Rouault culled from his spiritual fervor and knowledge of medieval stained glass to produce resonating portraits, landscapes, religious scenes, and still lifes. More: http://www.artnet.com/artists/georges-rouault/
God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So you should always clothe yourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other, and forgive each other. If someone does wrong to you, forgive that person because the Lord forgave you. Even more than all this, clothe yourself in love. Love is what holds you all together in perfect unity. Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking because you were all called together in one body to have peace. Always be thankful. Colossians 3:12-15
I know I’m probably late for the game, like, REALLY late. But I start to watch dream smp, and it’s much funnier than I expected, everyone is adorable, but this one is especially for Spin! Looking forward to the bee farm!!
I believe that human nature is fundamentally gentle and compassionate, but it is not enough that this is our underlying nature; we must also develop an appreciation and awareness of that fact, which can have a very real impact on how we conduct our daily lives. — Dalaï-Lama #compassion #gentleness #kindness #awareness #dalaiLama https://www.instagram.com/p/CdDq7zOOPt-/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
February was all about #LifeGivingRelationships: become a “Life-Giving Person”, what is a “Life-Giving Relationship”, & “What Kills Good Relationships”. Last @jpcc’s @datekg36 sharing about this theme is “How to Handle Aggression That Potentially Kills Good Relationships” by @diandraepifania. To the very least, you want to protect yourself & protect your relationship with the person who hurt you. But to your very best, you want to carry out the Great Commandment & Commission. The Basic Tips are: #1 Don’t let the aggression get to you. You need to guard your heart (Proverbs 4:23), because that’s what makes your choices, & your choices determine how you want to live your life. Once we have the right heart, the strong heart, we can.. #2 Think. Be careful before acting is important; only when we do it we can.. #3 Act accordingly, which is compassion. When you face aggression you need to have your #shield & the (unseathed) #sword. Somebody can strike you down with sword, but because you always keep your shields up, they cannot harm you. And while you need to carry your sword all the time, you must not use it (Luke 22: 36-38, Luke 22:49-51, Matthew 26:52), because only by this you can show the people who hurt you: “Hey, look. You hurt me. And as you can see, I can hurt you back with my sword, but I won’t do it!” As Paul made it clear in Rome 12: “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. Do not take revenge, leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”says the Lord. In doing this, you’ll heap burning coals on his head.”
As we act out these 3 tips, it is our #soul that makes all the decisions. In order to do them automatically, exercising our #Spirit is crucial. Galatians 5:22-23 describes all the #FruitsOfTheSpirit which can help us strengthen our shields & use our unsheathened swords more comfortably. #Love,#joy, #peace, #patience, #kindness, #goodness, #faithfulness,#gentleness, #selfcontrol; they’re internally driven,not situation-based & can be part of our character. Once it becomes our character, we can effortlessly express them in our actions, inc. when we face aggression. (at Kondominium Menara Kelapa Gading)
But the fruit of the Spirit is #love, #joy, #peace, #forbearance, #kindness, #goodness, #faithfulness, #gentleness, and #selfcontrol. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23). Exercise these fruits and nobody shall be against you. #spiritled #jpcc #jpccdate #datekelapagading36 #datekg36 #instaquote #vd2017 #alive
