It is the work of a life-time and requires our determined effort and cooperation with God’s Sanctifying Grace through the Sacraments. If we are to have robust Spiritual health, we must develop these SEVEN DAILY HABITS. Morning Offering, Spiritual Reading, the Rosary, Holy Communion, Mental Prayer, the Angelus daily examination of Conscience These seven habits must take priority in our lives for they are more important than meals, sleep, work or recreation.
I have wanted to tell you all something that has been happening to me since I became a member of this community and believe me I am not making this up. Ok here it goes, occasionally I smell roses. It is not the sort of thing that fills the room as I have read others experience but it has happened several times and I can not figure out when or why it is going to happen. I believe that the scent is in my nose cavity and I will smell it for a few minutes or so and then it is gone. I may be praying or doing something else at the time. The last time it occurred was a week ago Saturday. My daughter (early 20's) told me that she was going out with another girl from her office and then she planned on staying over her house that night. I don't know this girl so I asked her name and where she lived and then my daughter left. Well, I got this weird feeling that I should have let her know that if she didn't feel comfortable staying there that she should come home, so I texted her - this is when the rose scent occurred. Sure enough 3am I could hear her coming in and sure enough the rose scent again. Later that day my daughter told me about her evening and I am certain that she won't be going out with this person again. Has anyone else experienced this?
Once when I was a child, my grandmother was speaking about the Blessed Mother to the whole family. All of a sudden I was enveloped in a whirl of rose scent that only she and I smelled. I t was amazing. Since then, it never happened again until 2 days ago. I was at work and talking with coworkers. I smelled them again but it was a softer smell. The only other coworker to smell them was the girl I gave a scapular. She has been wearing it daily and often has it hanging outside her clothes which I find endearing for some reason.
I must be the only one on this forum who's never heard of this. I've just googled it and found this elaboration on Catholic Online: http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=8
or just "Talk" to God whenever Ya get a spare moment ... thank Him for your blessings..... the nice day, moment or meal. Your needs, worries, family, job and friends ... whatever! I'm guessing He just likes to hear from us.... a great, though, not very talkative friend GOD SAVE ALL HERE!!
I think the biggest habit of all is Massand the Eucharist. More and more I see the Eucahrist as the Sun arounds which my day revolves. I would never if I could possibly miss it. When I do I feel this huge emptiness and hunger. At the moment the hosipital chapelain is off as is the Universtiy Chaplain and I missed mass tow or three days later. But this was not my fault and i think in these cases God comes anyway answering the desires of our hearts , for He wishes to enter us a million times more than we do. I think anyone who goes to mass everyday wil lrun in the SPiritual Life whereas those who do not can only crawl. I always remember that St Padre Pio would not any lady join his first Parish Prayer group unless they had developed the habit of Daily Mass first . He felt that we could not take anyone seriously unless they went to mass every day. John 6:53-57 So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. "For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink View attachment 5122
I think alongside the mass comes breaking the bread of scipture. I was talking to a young priest years ago about progres in the Spriitual Life and signs that we are going forward and not backward. But the sign he gave me and concentrated on was that the scriptures come alive in our hearts. So if say if we have a problem it is say, at once answered by recalling a scripture verse. if we are thinking about something a scripture comes commenting on it. Some of our Protestant and sistes take delight in learning of scripture perfectly. This is fine , but it can miss the point. It is not when the seeds of the Word of God are planted in the head but in the heart that is important , so bring forth a harvest of goodness from what is planted there. St Therese of Liseaux mentions that, towards the end of her life it was Scripture and Scripture alone that she read. I think we should be at least heading in that direction, that scripture should be a big, big draw. Matthew 13 The Parable of the Sower 13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
A third big foundation is wekkly attendance at the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I talked to a very holy lady one time who was dying of cancer and was encouraging her to go to confession every week in the period before her death in an effort to avoid Purgatory. But she said to me that she could not think of any sins to confess. In a snese I could well believe her, for she was a very good Cahtolic wife and mother of a large family. I doubt if she had ever committed mortal sin in her entire life, which is quite something to say. Even a lot of the venial sins such as lying , stealing and impurity were quite foreign to her character. But as the Book of Proverbs tells us that the just man falls several times a day. Job 4:17 Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker? The Cure of Ars , St John Vianney tells us a story one time that he asked God to show him his sins. God started to do so but at once the saint cried out and fell over because it was unbearable and asked God to stop or he would have died. This was one of the holies tmen who ever lived , how could we bear to see our own sins? Samuel 2:2 "There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. But as well as this, we wah every day, we should at least wash in reocniliation once a week. We reek of our sins. This is a source of the greatest graces. Like little children we permit the Good God to carry us across His shouldrs as we walk into the week ahead.
I meant to add that I am more prayerful than I was before I became a MOG member and therefore, I assume that is why I am making a connection. I believe that Saint Therese's parents are both saints also, correct? PS- 2am here, can't sleep and just found out about Dallas shootings.
And this is what is to happen at the warning which was prophesised at Garabandal! We will be shown our sins and the good we have neglected! I think Conchita said it will only last a few minutes as most people would be unable to bear it if it lasted longer!
Occasionally I experience this, especially when I am in despair, but in Medjugorje it is a daily event. One time I was on Apparition hill with a friend and we were smelling the roses. She asked me if I could smell the roses, and I said yes I could. There was no one close to us, the closest person was 50 feet away. She then asked me if I thought it was coming from the people coming from 50' away, and I was said... "nah, no chance, they are 50 feet away". We laughed pretty hard after in joy, knowing Our Lady was present. Do any of you experience an exquisite sensation on your head during prayer?
I had a dream last night that toucjes on this. I dreamt I was driving a car on the high mountains on ice and the car went off the road. I dreamt I wad dead and had gone to judgemnt with several otehr people. I was in a dark place and I was asked, 'You are about to be judged, are you ready?' Then the voice said, 'The first thing'. I was shown that I cutmyself too much off from other people and do not do enough apsotolic action to help people basically that I am not charitable and generous enough (which is quite true) But as I was told this I saw it, I really did and I cried so hard I actually doubled over and shook as the voice said, 'Look at the chances to help others you let pass'. then I was in another dark room were a group of other people sat round a table getting ready to be judged and I thought to myself, 'Wow you're in for a shock when they start to show you!!'
Thanks for sharing this Padraig, I think it shows that no matter how good we think we are, there are always blind sides to us. We all fail in almost everything at some time. Thank God for His mercy, because that is the only thing that will save us poor miserable sinners.
I think we have these connections for a reason, in my opinion, I need some guidance right now and you probably do not. You may be more of a shepherd than one of the lost sheep like myself.
