Normandt' Catholic Meditations

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

244. Fishers of men

With the audacity and effort of a continuous conversion, every moment, Jesus will tell us:
"Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew, chapter 4, verse 19

Let's walk with Jesus, follow him ... on his way. Let's continue walking behind Jesus and just because we dare to, others will want to follow him. The important thing is that we are developing a way of walking with Jesus.



United around Jesus, united in the Spirit, let's say with faith this beautiful prayer to the Father:
Our father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our bread today.
Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from Evil. Amen.

Let's slip under his grace, come under his roof and give thanks to Jesus for sending us on the roads in search of exhausted sheep that fight alone.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

245. Thanks to God

This is not written in all books:
"There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written." John, chapter 21, verse 25

We don't see everything we do from day to day. We don't see everything that others do with their daily mission. But as the field is full of oats, together, we are, by the presence of God, a presence of Love in and for the world.

Any story of faith is a sacred story with God and could be added to the Bible. That would not change the nature of God and it would be to give him glory.

The field lives its transformations. What is produced there is usually of quality. It's a moment for us to give thanks to God for all that we receive.



It's also time to appreciate each other's work, especially the decision to walk with Jesus and to offer others what we receive from him.

Let's give thanks to God for the trust he gives us and all that he offers us to share with others. Let's thank God for allowing us to participate and then produce, with his grace, grain and fruit a hundredfold. Let's continue with Jesus. We are following in his mission.

What Jesus asks of us is to welcome him into our vineyard and our field, to invite him with us wherever we go. May we let him convert us and convert the hearts of people. Instead of asking Jesus to help us, since he already does it without even asking, let's help Jesus in his mission:
"The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve." Matthew, chapter 20, verse 28

Note that in this last passage, Jesus doesn't ask us to serve him. He came to serve people. He invites us to serve others. Let's receive what is necessary from God and serve others as Jesus wants, as he serves.
With Therese of Lisieux, we ask:
"Oh divine Blood of Jesus, water our mission; make it bring forth chosen souls!"

- Saint Therese of the Child Jesus. Website: The Story of a Family: The Home of St. Therese of Lisieux, Rev. Fr. Stephane-Joseph Piat, O.F.M.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand thomas

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

246. Near Jesus

Paul is rejoicing in Thanksgiving. He's cheerful and overwhelmed by the Presence of Jesus made visible in the people who are with him. He received this news from a good companion, Epaphras. He says:

"Epaphras our beloved fellow slave, who is a trustworthy minister of Christ on your behalf and who also told us of your love in the Spirit." Colossians, chapter 1, verses 7 to 8



We see this Love of the Holy Spirit in every person who devotes himself to the salvation of his neighbour. The Pope, cardinals, priests, spouses, children, religious, sisters, brothers, deacons, pastoral workers, committed laity, people who have at heart the believers of a community, the leaders of faith groups, mature faith in hearts of children in Jesus Christ, the children who live it fully, people awakening God in hearts, let's name them all, as soon as we carry Christ internally, we become faithful to the mission of Jesus for our contemporaries. Let's receive the anointing of graces that feeds our spiritual life.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

247. No reason to wait

Every day, there's no reason to wait, let's go and find Jesus. This is what is lived here. Jesus is so well known that he has trouble keeping up the pace:

"At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them. But he said to them, 'To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent.'" Luke, chapter 4, verses 42 to 43



There are some who have evangelized, in addition to Jesus, that's why there are so many people around him. His fame spreads.

May we seek to prevent Jesus from leaving us, may we retain his presence in us, so that the world may observe and believe that Jesus is Lord of our lives. In reality, we do not need to hold him back, but to welcome him into us, since he is already here.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

248. Keep Jesus

Paul considers himself the last, since he's aware of his smallness before the greatness of Christ, of the Spirit and of the Father. He says:
"To me, the very least of all the holy ones." Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 8

Then he confirms that he receives everything from Christ as we must also expect everything from him:
"To me, the very least of all the holy ones, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the inscrutable riches of Christ." Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 8



By the light that he receives from Christ, he can say:
"What is the plan of the mystery hidden from ages past in God who created all things." Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 9

It's impressive, striking, how God gives Paul his knowledge for the people. Paul is touched by the grace of God. It is the Lord's wish for all. If he transmits the content of the mystery of God, it is because there is no more mystery. It's unveiled!

Like Paul, we are never too small. We accept to be small though, since God is so infinite in every respect. Nothing outclasses him.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

249. How precious

Let's continue to let ourselves be invaded by God, so that we become christians for others. May active holiness be:
"So that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church." Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 10

How confusing this passage of Paul. It is "through the Church", founded by Jesus Christ, that visible and invisible forces, "that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known".

It is to "fall off our horse" or "fall off our chair" for the more discreet. The Church is the unity between the world and the Kingdom of God, because the Word and the Eucharist lead us into the Kingdom. In reality, it is Christ, who is the Eucharist and the Word, who unites the living of the Kingdom of God and the living of the universe (the earth included), in his Church.



We receive faith from the Trinity. So:
"Our faith in Christ, in whom we have boldness of speech and confidence of access through faith," Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 12

through Jesus, celebrating Mass. How precious it is to graft ourselves on Jesus. We become little by little like Jesus, by our confidence and our acceptance to let him transform us.

Jesus invites us to watch, to watch constantly, to the light of his grace, which is transmitted to us in the Church, so that we may become vibrant and visible witnesses of his wisdom.

May Jesus come and set us on fire with his Spirit so that we may become true followers of his Love.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

[Normandt]

250. Possess what we hope for

Faith in Jesus Christ is necessary for every person to believe, to become free and to be saved. To fill the churches is salutary. The more people have faith, baptized, therefore priests, prophets and kings, in Jesus Christ, the better the mission will glide with well-oiled ball bearings.

Our Father, "your will be done". We are not alone in living the faith, it is lived worldwide. It is the faith of all the Baptized who help this world to live in a blessing of peace and hope.

Take away faith in Jesus Christ and the world is faced with massive humanitarian, scientific, social, planetary and universal crises. Because God is the only one who will always lead us to common sense, to truth.

All that is good and true in the highest understanding of these terms is from God:
"Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen." Hebrews, Chapter 11, verse 1



Let's possess what one hopes for, the Love of God. To believe is to receive forgiveness and the joy of God. And the manifestation of joy is to announce that Jesus is alive, that our life has meaning and that the world is invited to enter the eternal dance. An "'evidence' of things not seen" is still knowing them!

Faith develops when we are at Jesus's school and we enter into the joy of following Him. To believe is to offer our services to Jesus so that we can combine and bear fruit in abundance. To believe is to trust and be faithful to the one who guarantees life.

Let's ask Jesus to tell us what he wants us to do in faith and we will be ready to receive his Holy Spirit. This will lead us ever closer to the Heart of Jesus.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]

251. Driving to the Kingdom

God's purpose is to take us all back to his Kingdom, to his resting place. But there are still people who do not realize that they are straying from this rest by all kinds of remoteness from the Presence of God.

Paul then sends us on a mission. He brings us closer to the Lord:
"Let us strive to enter into that rest, so that no one may fall after the same example of disobedience." Hebrews, Chapter 4, verse 11



We want to heal of our lack of impetus. We want our heart to regain its boundless spirit on the way to God, here and now. We want sin to be eliminated from our lives, that ball and chain that we drag day after day. And we hope that our heart will resume its enthusiasm of youth, free and fulfilled in the joy and peace of God. Jesus says:
"'So that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth' - he said to the paralytic, 'I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.'" Mark, chapter 2, verses 10 to 11

May Jesus be the Light of our life. Christ frees the one who places his trust in him.

May we become free by a life fulfilled in God and responsible with the neighbour. Let's also teach others to become responsible for their faith. As the paralyzed man is newly freed from his stretcher, we are released from evil, and then we sail toward salvation. Let's go back to our house, to our heart and to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, of I Am.

Book: The Shepherd's Mission
Normand Thomas

[Normandt]