Lesson 4-Prepper Rosary Program

“And there came one of the scribes that had heard them reasoning together, and seeing that he had answered them well, asked him which was the first commandment of all. And Jesus answered him: The first commandment of all is, Hear, O Israel: the Lord thy God is one God. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind, and with thy whole strength. This is the first commandment.”

Mark 12:28

“Be not solicitous therefore, saying, What shall we eat: or what shall we drink, or wherewith shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the heathens seek. For your Father knoweth that you have need of all these things. Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you. Be not therefore solicitous for tomorrow; for the morrow will be solicitous for itself. Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof.”

Matthew 6:31

Improve Your Spiritual Life ~ The Presentation of Our Lord

It was the Mosaic Law that every firstborn son must be specially consecrated to God. Mary and Joseph brought Our Lord to the Temple to accomplish this, in what we call “The Presentation.” This was a most extraordinary Presentation, since it was the very Son of God, being presented to the Father. This took place in the very city in which He would secure our Redemption on the Cross and was a foreshadowing of this ultimate Presentation. Just as Our Lady and Saint Joseph gave their greatest Gift to the Father, we must also give our very best to Him.

Our Lord states above, “thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind, and with thy whole strength.” This is a profound statement-we are told to completely relinquish ourselves to Him. The key is to recognize when these moments occur and push through them, with the help of His grace. When we do this, we change in a substantial way. We grow. We ascend one step higher to the Kingdom of Heaven. We also become that much further from the world. What prepares us for these moments is a proper moral formation, a good examination of conscience and a good confession. Only then, can we have the ability to know when the spiritual challenge is taking place, pray for guidance and strength, and win our triumph over temptation. We must love Christ above all other loves.

Our Lord also intructs us to, “Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God.” We see the just consequence of sin coming upon the world. We can mitigate this and secure mercy for the world, only by making ourselves worthy. We will be given what we need on earth, only after seeking Heaven. The lower order always follows the higher. As Catholic preppers, we are not obsessed with the needs of this life, we simply accept that the natural business of life is survival, which our present culture has forgotten. We try within reason, and place our trust in God for what we cannot control. And of course we recognize that spiritual preparedness is always our priority.

Mary and Joseph went to the House of God with their precious Son and showed fidelity to His law. This is an example for the Catholic life: to attend Holy Mass and observe Catholic moral law, presenting to the Holy Trinity, our best selves, out of love. There are many other great riches of the Catholic Faith which we can draw upon to improve our spiritual lives. Pray and gravitate towards what resonates with you. To strive for spiritual perfection is the most exciting life and is the true purpose of life. To become a saint is not unreachable, it is what we were created for!

Please read EWTN’s The Presentation of Our Lord. This is beautifully written and very insightful.

“Lesson 4-Part 2” will deal further with Matthew 6:31…

+ + +

Pray 1 decade of the Rosary, meditating on the Mystery of The Presentation, for the intention of enlightenment on the issues discussed today…

Our Father + 10 Hail Marys + Glory Be

+ + +

Please fill out #4

“15 Points Preparedness Worksheet”

Thank you for participating ~ spread the word!

Image courtesy fggam.org/2014/07/kellys-word-day-72

Printable Version: Biblical Support for Preparedness

Here is a condensed, printable version of our last post. This is great to use as a Bible study or to distribute. Please contact us above if you use it with a group and let us know how it was helpful…

BIBLICAL SUPPORT FOR PREPAREDNESS PDF PRINTABLE

What to do RIGHT NOW-Part 2

Here is further biblical support for prepping. These are just my humble thoughts on how these verses may be interpreted:

BIBLICAL SUPPORT FOR PREPAREDNESS

“Now therefore let the king provide a wise and industrious man, and make him ruler over the land of Egypt: that he may appoint overseers over all the countries: and gather into barns the fifth part of the fruits, during the seven fruitful years, that shall now presently ensue: and let all the corn be laid up under Pharao's hands and be reserved in the cities. And let it be in readiness, against the famine of seven years to come, which shall oppress Egypt, and the land shall not be consumed with scarcity.”

Genesis 41:33

This refers to the responsibility to take a leadership role and to be “wise and industrious” in the care of the people who rely on you.

“Give not sleep to thy eyes, neither let thy eyelids slumber. Deliver thyself as a doe from the hand, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler. Go to the ant, O sluggard, and consider her ways, and learn wisdom: which, although she hath no guide, nor master, nor captain, provideth her meat for herself in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou rise out of thy sleep? Thou wilt sleep a little, thou wilt slumber a little, thou wilt fold thy hands a little to sleep: And want shall come upon thee, as a traveller, and poverty as a man armed. But if thou be diligent, thy harvest shall come as a fountain, and want shall flee far from thee.”

Proverbs 6:4

This is a strong admonition to take care of your own needs through discipline and hard work.

“There is a treasure to be desired, and oil in the dwelling of the just: and the foolish man shall spend it.”

Proverbs 21:20

The holy, who live a good life, performing their duties and exercising prudence, will be blessed with abundance.

“The prudent man saw the evil, and hid himself: the simple passed on, and suffered loss.”

Proverbs 22:3

When you see the threat looming, you must take action.

“Cast thy bread upon the running waters: for after a long time thou shalt find it again. Give a portion to seven, and also to eight: for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. If the clouds be full, they will pour out rain upon the earth.”

Ecclesiastes 11:1

Think ahead, plan ahead and watch the signs around you.

“In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening let not thy hand cease: for thou knowest not which may rather spring up, this or that: and if both together, it shall be the better.”

Ecclesiastes 11:6

Work harder than you think you need to, for some of your work may not bear fruit.

“For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of affliction, to give you an end and patience.”

Jeremias 29:11

Though calamity may come, God will preserve many of His children (so we must never give up and keep trying to survive).

“Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel, for the Lord shall enter into judgment with the inhabitants of the land: for there is no truth, and there is no mercy, and there is no knowledge of God in the land. Cursing, and lying, and killing, and theft, and adultery have overflowed, and blood hath touched blood. Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth in it shall languish with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of the air: yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be gathered together.”

Hosea 4:1

When immorality abounds, we may expect a great chastisement to come.

“And there came to him the Pharisees and Sadducees tempting: and they asked him to shew them a sign from heaven. But he answered and said to them: When it is evening, you say, it will be fair weather, for the sky is red. And in the morning: Today there will be a storm, for the sky is red and lowering. You know then how to discern the face of the sky: and can you not know the signs of the times?”

Matthew 16:1

We must be watchful and understand the implications of what is happening in the world.

“And from the fig tree learn a parable: When the branch thereof is now tender, and the leaves come forth, you know that summer is nigh.”

Matthew 24:32

Again, we are told to observe the signs around us and be prepared for what surely will come.

“Watch ye therefore, because ye know not what hour your Lord will come. But know this ye, that if the goodman of the house knew at what hour the thief would come, he would certainly watch, and would not suffer his house to be broken open. Wherefore be you also ready, because at what hour you know not the Son of man will come. Who, thinkest thou, is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath appointed over his family, to give them meat in season. Blessed is that servant, whom when his lord shall come he shall find so doing. Amen I say to you, he shall place him over all his goods.”

Matthew 24:42

This probably refers more to spiritual preparedness, always our primary concern, though there is a reference to the temporal.

“And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and he said to him: If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself from hence. For it is written, that He hath given his angels charge over thee, that they keep thee. And that in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest perhaps thou dash thy foot against a stone. And Jesus answering, said to him: It is said: Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Luke 4:9

When signs are clear that danger is looming, we must not remain complacent that God will take care of us, but do what we can to help ourselves and others (then trust in God for what we cannot control).

“But if any man have not care of his own, and especially of those of his house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”

1 Timothy 5:8

This is an admonition to provide well for those in our care, which includes having the foresight to see when we must prepare for difficult times.