Mark 12:9 (fruits of our labor, feeding the poor)

* Welcome God every morning before work by taking ~5 min to read this Living In Faith Exchange (LIFE) Group devotion (life-devotions.blogspot.com), which has snippets from Living Faith (livingfaith.com).

What [then] will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come…and give the vineyard to others. Mark 12:9

Living Faith snippets: “My pride tells me that I have to do something in order to receive. But such is not the way of God. He loves all of creation, even sinners like me. If I am unwilling to surrender them [fruits of our labor] in gratitude, the owner will relieve me of my duties. After all, who else but God is deserving of the fruit?” by Julia Schloss

Pat nuggets: “Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed you?” (Matt 25:37b). When called upon, are we surrendering the fruits of our labor to God through the poor who can’t feed themselves and their families? At Mass yesterday, a visiting priest said that he came as a “beggar” for an organization that feeds thousands of people in the Caribbean and Latin America, called “Food for the Poor” (http://www.foodforthepoor.org/). He showed us his pictures of horrific poverty, people going through trash dumps looking for recyclables to sell for food. From the brochure, “Imagine the heartache of telling your starving children you have nothing to feed them. Poverty should not be a death sentence.” Food for the Poor received an apostolic blessing from Pope Benedict and received a 97% fundraising efficiency rating by Forbes magazine. In that part of the world, just $21 provides 560 children a meal, $36 feeds four families for a month, and $2,600 builds a home. See video on website.

* Since 1992, we have sponsored needy children through Compassion International (reputable C. Springs organization). Please consider sharing your ministry experiences with feeding the poor.

ProLife news: lifesitenews.com

Future Saint?: “Charting a Path to John Paul II’s sainthood” http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24926130 (posted today).

Our Prayers: Abortion, our enemies, our troops, China earthquake, Myanmar cyclone, depression/despair, prisoners (metanoia), Vicki Miller (her cancer treatment)
* New: Kay Castle (Gary and Cindy Hogman. Gary is serving in Iraq while his wife is fighting cancer.)

Through Christ for ProLife,

Pat

Phil 4:13

* Outreach: Let’s gladly invite those near us to join our LIFE Devotions group (Mark 16:15), providing routine spiritual connection and strength (simply forward a devotion with an invitation).

* Today’s Bible readings at www.usccb.org/nab/today.shtml.

* Prayer: Prayer connects us with God’s will & His miracles, thereby changing us & helping others. Wayne Watson lyrics, “When God’s people pray, there is hope reborn, there is sin forgiven, and miracles you can’t explain await!” “If you pray that God will move a mountain and He doesn’t, assume Christ wants you to climb it instead & see Him.”

* Defend the unborn: Websites at life-devotions.blogspot.com. ‘Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don’t stand back and let them die’ (Prov 24:11). ‘Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you’ (Jer 1:5). ‘It is a great poverty that a child must die that you might live as you wish’ Blessed Mother Teresa. Click for Prayer to End Abortion.

* Evangelization: Let’s make room for non-believers (be a friend, make a friend, lead friend to Christ) and perpetual re-evangelization of self and those near us, by way of daily prayer (relationship) and following Christ’s example of selfless love, mercy, and service.