Why Are You Terrified?

Posted byValerie Parisi July 3, 2023  EditWhy Are You Terrified?

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week of Ordinary Time

Why Are You Terrified

Jesus: “Tell Me, little sister, why do you consider yourself alone since I am the One leading you? Have no fear, I will not let go of you. Come, let us go together and let there be no other moment when you would feel alone.” (Jesus) (January 25, 1966)

Today’s Gospel: They came and woke him, saying,
“Lord, save us!  We are perishing!”
He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?”
Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea,
and there was great calm. (Matthew 8)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, we all know there is much to be anxious or even terrified about these days. To the question You asked the Apostles we may feel like saying are You kidding Lord- have You seen the news? But the truth is, You not have only seen the news, You hold the future and for You being outside of time, You already know what happens. No need for You to follow some 24/7 news cycle. So really why are we so terrified- why is our faith so small when You are so big! Bigger than anything that may be happening in our world today and You are still in control! So let us have no fear- You will never let us go even when the waves, the winds, and the sea threaten to drown us. Let us have faith and trust that You will rebuke the winds and the sea even if it just in our own souls and with You there will be great calm always if we keep our eyes fixed on You!

Blessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen

Posted byValerie Parisi July 2, 2023  EditBlessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle

Blessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen

“Even now, adorable Jesus, I cannot grasp this miracle.’ (Elizabeth) (April 9, 1966)

Today’s Readings: Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” (John 20)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, if we are honest, we will admit we; even we who call ourselves faithful, have had our moments of doubt when it is hard to believe. It could be moments of grief or it could just be the weariness of life or fear as we get older. Lord, You do not turn away from us in those moments. Just as with St. Thomas You come to us and You admonish us to not be unbelieving but to believe. Lord, help us to know that we know that we know that You are there whether we “see” You or not! There is much we will not grasp this side of Heaven but may we be those who have not seen and have believed even when it is dark and difficult.

Just A Cup Of Water

Posted byValerie Parisi July 1, 2023  EditJust A Cup Of Water

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Just A Cup Of Water

Accept with humility his words which are also from Me. Let your fervent desire to share in My work of Salvation continue to burn in your soul with great humility. You will not lose your reward, everlasting happiness. Just serve Me with all your strength.” (Jesus) (August 28, 1962)

Today’s Readings: And whoever gives only a cup of cold water
to one of these little ones to drink
because the little one is a disciple—
amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.” (Matthew 10)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, today the Gospel from Matthew  and the Epistle from Romans are about dying to ourselves so that we will rise with You. About our priorities- You first then family because we can only really love them perfectly with Your love. About carrying our crosses and following You. Lord we want to be all in but sometimes we lose our way about what that really means and what that looks like. We may well feel that we are failing in sharing in Your work of salvation in our everyday lives as the world seems to be moving further and further away from Your truth. But You tell us something interesting- that even if we give a cup of cold water to someone in need- in other words the little acts of kindness done with great love, we will not lose our reward. Because as much as we may want to do big things to turn the ship of our world around, it is You who are still on the throne and still in control! You want us to share with You our desire and love for souls- pure intentions not great works! And You tell us to serve You with all of our strength no matter how weak we may be because You turn every act of love into an ocean of Mercy for the whole world when united to Your Saving Cross!

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Saturday of the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Only Say The Word

I beg you, carve this

in your mind: the Word of God is always the same… Through it, I

seek the salvation of souls.(Jesus) (April 9,1964)

Today’s Readings: “Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof;
only say the word and my servant will be healed.
For I too am a man subject to authority, 
with soldiers subject to me.
And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes;
and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he comes;
and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him,
“Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. (Matthew 8)

Prayer Meditation- Lord ,we thank You and praise You and adore You for the beautiful healings in today’s Gospel because surely You have taken away our infirmities and borne our diseases. (Matthew 8). Today we see the faith of the Centurion who asks You to “only say the Word” and his servant would be healed. These are the words we say before we receive You in Holy Communion where You heal us and change us little by little every day if we are disposed to receive You. Let us carve this in our minds, Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8) because You seek our ultimate healing, the salvation of our souls and the souls of those who are close to us!

You Can Make Me Clean

Posted byValerie Parisi June 29, 2023  EditYou Can Make Me Clean

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Friday of the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

You Can Make Me Clean

Jesus: “You see, such is the soul that recollects before My altar but which, for years, has not kept itself clean. It does not look within, it comes into My presence out of habit. It also comes before Me with a layer of dust as thick as a finger on its soul.” (December 22, 1963)

Today’s Readings: When Jesus came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
And then a leper approached, did him homage, and said,
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”
He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“I will do it. Be made clean.”(Matthew 8)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, we praise You, we thank You and adore You for healing the leper of his disease and for his faith and humility in coming before You. Leprosy in the Gospels has often been equated by the spiritual writers with sin. We are all unclean and yet for many of us, it may not be so apparent because the dust has built up for years. The dust of unbelief and doubt, negativity, worry, gossip, selfishness, vanity and pride. We look in a mirror at ourselves but we fail to see the dust  that is as thick as a finger on our souls. Let us repent Lord, of coming to You out of habit but lets us come in all humility and repentance asking You to make us clean and whole again because You will that our hearts be pure before You!

Finishing The Race

Posted byValerie Parisi June 28, 2023  EditFinishing The Race

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul

Finishing the Race

“Don’t forget, your principal missionary work will always be your own family. I could not entrust you with that before, because I did not want you to stop halfway. Your family is the point of departure for your mission. This work is not yet finished. Be interested principally in priestly vocations.” (Jesus) (August 28, 1962)

Today’s Readings: I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance. (2 Timothy 4)

Prayer Meditation- Lord today as we celebrate the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, we are reminded that no matter how much time we may have, our work is not yet finished! You do not want us to stop halfway- You have placed us in families, in workplaces, in communities- many mission fields without leaving home! Lord help us at the end of our time on Earth to pray with St. Paul and state that we have competed well and let us pray with St. Peter that You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matthew 16) as You welcome us home!

Bearing Abundant Fruit

Posted byValerie Parisi June 27, 2023  EditBearing Abundant Fruit

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Memorial of Saint Irenaeus

Bearing Abundant Fruit

Jesus: “Remain silent, My little Carmelite. Do not be surprised if I say this often. Do you know who is truly wise? The one who says very little. True wisdom matures in the soil of silence, and only in silence can it take root. I am your Master and I instruct you. I prepared Myself for three years of activity by thirty years of silence. Being your Master, and united with Me, you will also find wisdom. Speak only when I give you the signal, expressing yourself only in the way you have learned from Me, or in the manner I would say it Myself. In a word, imitate Me. You will see that just a few words can produce good abundant fruits in souls (Jesus) (August 16, 1962)

Today’s Readings:

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
So by their fruits you will know them.” (August 16, 1962)

Prayer Meditation- O Lord, thank You for teaching us how to bear the abundant fruit of the Spirit. It is only in remaining in You that we can bear the good fruit- joy, peace, love, self control. Lord, let us not fall away from Your Tree of Life by opening our mouths too much- let our words be Your Words and not ours which so often get us into trouble! Help us to stay united to You so that we would find wisdom because the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, without inconstancy and insincerity. (James 3:17). Let our few words united to You produce abundant fruit in souls.

Pearls Before Swine

Posted byValerie Parisi June 26, 2023  EditPearls Before Swine

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Tuesday of the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Pearls Before Swine

Jesus: “For My Cause, you must undergo great sufferings and you must continually battle for souls. Outside of this, My little one, do not waste your strength on anything else.” (June 2, 1964)

Today’s Readings: Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces. (Matthew 7)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, we thank You for Your Word today in this Gospel, the same one that urges us to walk on the narrow road. One way we can give into that broad way of life is to throw our pearls before swine. We do this whenever we let the media manipulate us, let ourselves get pulled into arguments that get us nowhere with people we will never convince, and when we let fear, anxiety and anger take over, essentially throwing away what is holy in us, which is You, and giving it to the dogs. Lord, our battles are not against flesh and blood and really not even against the culture on our own. Our battles are against the rulers and principalities of the evil one (Ephesians 6). And for this battle of saving souls, we need to stay in continuous prayer (1 Thessalonians 5) and union with You even during our busy days offering it all for Your Glory! Anything else we find ourselves getting caught up in if not in union with You is just wasting our strength and spinning our wheels.

Blessed Are The People The Lord Has Chosen to Be His Own

Posted byValerie Parisi June 25, 2023  EditBlessed Are The People The Lord Has Chosen to Be His Own

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

Blessed Are The People The Lord Has Chosen to Be His Own

Jesus: “Do not worry, My dear little Carmelite. Do not think, ‘How will I make the Cause prevail?’ I work with chosen souls. Be satisfied with being good. Do you know how to be a good Carmelite? Live humbly. Live the hidden contemplative life in union with Me. Refrain your tongue and be on guard not to say unneeded words. (Jesus) (April 10, 1962)

Today’s Readings: “I will make of you a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
and curse those who curse you.
All the communities of the earth
shall find blessing in you.” (Genesis 12)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, we thank You and praise You and glorify You for your promises to Abraham to make of him a great nation, a people You have chosen to be Your own! It looked impossible to Abraham at the time that the promise would be fulfilled and it looked impossible to Elizabeth that Our Lady’s Cause would prevail through her who, like us was just a weak instrument. But You assure us that You have chosen us right here, right now to advance Your Kingdom, not because we are so great but because You are great and with You all things are possible! So, help us to live humbly and to walk with You living a hidden life in union with You because we are the poor instruments that You are using during these times to give You Glory and to save souls.

Every Hair Counted

Posted byValerie Parisi June 24, 2023  EditEvery Hair Counted

Today’s Consuming Fire Meditation- – A Daily Dose of the Flame of Love Diary Served Up with Today’s Scriptures

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Every Hair Counted

“Try to serve Me even better. Do not forget. There should not be even a hair between us. There is much to do and few laborers.” (Jesus) (October 4, 1962)

Today’s Readings: Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.(Matthew 10)

Prayer Meditation- Lord, You send us out and You tell us not to be afraid! That You notice even the smallest sparrow, that every hair of our heads is counted! You hold our future in the Palm of Your Hand! Lord help us to go out unafraid even if “going out” means being a living witness to our families, friends and workplaces. So let there not be a hair between us Lord- help our feet to journey together with You and help our hands to gather in unity as we go out into the world and proclaim You to the housetops with our lives today!