Prayer For Emmanuel's Peace

Give us peace, dear Lord,
the calm understanding that you are Emmanuel.
That you are with us.
You sent your Son to be the Prince of Peace.

Be Emmanuel in the heart of each one of your children in this world.

Be Emmanuel in our families who may be separated by distance or disagreements.

Be Emmanuel in our nation and Emmanuel in all the nations of the world, so that all may grow and manifest your love.

Be Emmanuel in the hearts of those who mourn, that they may experience what you promise during this blessed season.

Give us your peace, Emmanuel and good will toward all.

Amen.

-- Source: My church's bulletin.

Bless Us, O Lord

Bless the mothers and fathers of this world, who like Mary and Joseph, care for their children with love and do all they can to keep their children safe.

Bless the children of the world who give us hope in the future we try to create.

Bless all who have no family to support, nurture and love them.

Bless those who reach out to create bonds to unite us with each other.

Bless those who feel alone and give them comfort and solace.

Bless those who see all humans as belonging to one human family.

Bless us, O Lord.

Amen

-- Source: My church bulletin

Epiphany of The Lord In Iraq

Bless our house, dear Lord.
Bless every person who lives here.
Bless every person who enters our door.

Help us to welcome each one as though we were welcoming you.

We recall how the Holy Family received the three kings that day so long ago.

You example shows us that all are welcome in your heart and all are to be welcomed to our households.

Help us to make our home a place of peace.
Remind us that it is to be a center of joy.

Show us how to make it a home where love of God and love of others is lived each day.

Help us to be like Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Amen.

-- Source: My local church's bulletin.


On Sunday, I attended the Epiphany of the Lord mass at my local church in Beaumont, Texas. After mass, the parishioners were invited to a pancake breakfast at the church hall. All went peaceful and quiet.

In Baghdad and Mosul on Sunday, the Iraqi Christians' Epiphany of the Lord had a different color. The insurgents, who want to tear Iraq apart, paid their respect to Jesus with coordinated bombings of churches in Baghdad and Mosul. Fortunately, there were only four injuries.

The next day, parishioners attended mass at St. Paul's church in Mosul, which was the target of the previous day's attacks. The parishioners prayed for their trespassers and for peace in Iraq. That's the spirit of the Epiphany of the Lord as Iraqi Christians know it.

Mother Teresa:In The Shadow of Our Lady

Mother Teresa never fails to inspire me. Every time I read a book dedicated to her, I learn something new about my favorite saint. Mother Teresa: In the Shadow of Our Lady is no exception.

I need to to make a confession. I got very busy with work. I had a limited time to read any books. I chose to read this book because it's short. It's less than 100 pages.

Things happen for a reason. This book is very different than the other books that focus on Mother Teresa's journey with Jesus. In this book, the author focuses on her journey with Mother Mary.

I never thought of the relationship between Mother Mary and Mother Teresa before reading this book. The book shows how the two saints lives intersected in many ways even though they lived in different times.

Now that I have read the book, I can draw parallels between the two saints. For that, I'm so glad I chose this book to read between my busy work and family commitments.

---

Mother Teresa:
In the Shadow of Our Lady

Count God's Blessings

The following words are from an email a friend sent me recently:

أراد رجل أن يبيع بيته لينتقل إلى بيت أفضل
فذهب إلي احد أصدقائه وهو رجل أعمال وخبير في أعمال التسويق...
وطلب منه أن يساعده في كتابه إعلان لبيع البيت وكان الخبير يعرف البيت جيداً فكتب وصفاً مفصلاً له أشاد فيه بالموقع الجميل
والمساحة الكبيرة ووصف التصميم الهندسي الرائع ثم تحدث عن الحديقة وحمام السباحة.....الخ....
وقرأ كلمات الإعلان علي صاحب المنزل الذي أصغى إليه في اهتمام شديد وقال..."أرجوك أعد قراءه الإعلان"....
وحين أعاد الكاتب القراءة صاح الرجل يا له من بيت رائع ..لقد ظللت طول عمري أحلم باقتناء مثل هذا البيت ولم أكن أعلم
إنني أعيش فيه إلي أن سمعتك تصفه ثم أبتسم قائلاً من فضلك
لا تنشر الإعلان فبيتي غير معروض للبيع!!!

هناك مقولة قديمه تقول..أحصي البركات التي أعطاها الله لك واكتبها واحدة واحدة وستجد نفسك أكثر سعادة مما قبل...
إننا ننسى أن نشكر الله لأننا لا نتأمل في البركات ولا نحسب ما لدينا...
ولأننا نرى المتاعب فنتذمر ولا نرى البركات. قال أحدهم: إننا نشكو لأن الله جعل تحت الورود أشواك...
وكان الأجدر بنا أن نشكره لأنه جعل فوق الشوك وردا...!!
ً ويقول آخر: تألمت كثيراً عندما وجدت نفسي حافي القدمين ...ولكنني شكرت الله أكثر حينما وجدت آخر ليس له قدمين...!!!