ABLAZE HOUSE OF PRAYER

Seminar Week 1 – God's Love The Old Testament sets the stage for the full expression of God's love in His Son Jesus. As we read and pray certain passages from the Old Testament, we can become more deeply aware of how much God does really love us. We need to know and experience God’s love if we are to develop into the people He wants us to be. This is especially important if we do not love ourselves as we should. Knowing our faults and failures and our sinfulness, we may question how God could really love us. By praying with Sacred Scriptures we will become more aware and convinced of God’s total and unconditional love. This conviction that God loves us with an infinite love and that nothing we do will change this fact should be the foundation of our relationship with Him. We must come to know Him as a loving, kind, forgiving Father who welcomes His errant children with open arms. He is a Father who loves us more than we could ever imagine being loved. God, the Creator of the universe, the person who made all things out of nothing, loves us. He wants to care for us, share His divine life with us, and bring us into perfect union with Him, for all of eternity. When we are convinced that we are loved, only then can we be open and honest. Then there is no need for pretense or sham. Then we will begin to live in freedom and in sincerity. An awareness of God's great love for us can lead us into a greater depth in our prayer lives. Deeply aware of His loving presence we want to whisper in the quiet of our hearts, "I love You too." This type of prayer of the heart is the beginning of contemplative prayer. As we experience His loving presence within us, we no longer require words or thoughts. We simply rest in His presence. We are aware of God; we are known and loved at the very core of our being. This becomes the basis for our whole spiritual growth. First, we know with our minds that God truly loves, but then we must become convinced in our hearts so that we can respond to His great love. This conviction will be ours when we hear God Himself telling us of His great love for us. Listen to His word in the Scripture readings each day.

Daily Reading Assignments Scripture Isaiah 43:1-3 Psalm 139:1-6 Ezekiel 34:11-16 Isaiah 49:1-6 Jeremiah 31:31-34 1 John 4:16-18 John 3:16-18

Catechism CCC 50 CCC 210 CCC 214 CCC 218 CCC 220 CCC 221 CCC 609

I did not get to preach this weekend, therefore, I just put together this reflection. This reflection is about 30 minutes long. I hope it gives you something to chew upon. We will meditate upon what Holiness of Life is and then reflection upon how this Holiness is lived out in a particular way as Male and Female, the two ways of being human, two ways of serving God. This is done in the light of good St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Love being Catholic!!!