Salt of the Earth – Vincentians Follow the Beatitudes – Helping Others as Jesus Would – Jesus was Merciful

Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast

Salt of the Earth

Answering Christ’s call to be “the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13) requires being in the world. But we have to avoid being of the world; when socializing starts causing our salt to lose its taste, we are doing no one any favors.  Receiving the Sacraments – Considered valid complements to the Church’s liturgical worship, the sacraments carry the faithful to the threshold of the sacred and help to mediate the process of conversion of mind and heart that is central to the Catholic faith and its ongoing call to discipleship.  We as Vincentians know we are called to truly be present to those we serve.  Do you seek to find Jesus in the faces of the poor?  Is your goal to lift them from poverty?  We have many teachings on famvin.org.  Follow them in your service.  We must learn systemic change, Justice with poverty, and collaboration.  We hold true to our hearts that Charity cannot work alone to end poverty.  Make it a goal to go to the website in your area and see the teachings and practices of Vincentians who are the Salt of the Earth.  We are called to spread our salt.  End poverty one visit at a time.

Vincentians Follow the Beatitudes

“Remember, all the answers you need are inside of you; you only have to become quiet enough to hear them.”  Scripture is a powerful weapon for all of us.  But more so we can see Christ in the Scriptures.  We take time to pray with God in a familiar way.  Just by taking the time to talk to Him your heart will swell.  All the answers to your concerns are in prayer and Scripture.  As Vincentians, we need to be close to God. Some qualified Vincentians think they won’t know what to do or how to handle the position of President or any other leadership position for that matter. The Society, however, has many resources.  You can go to the website or Famvin’s website which has a great education program.  Also don’t forget the Rule Book which we all need and can answer many of our questions. Presidents need the Conference President Handbook or the Manual of the Society.  Look for things on web sites to help you follow the Beatitudes.

Helping Others as Jesus Would

We Serve Jesus who is in the poor.  Seeing Jesus in each person we visit.  Jesus is embedded in our hearts.  Our actions should reflect His love for all.  We must always reflect on Jesus and His love for us. We call on God often because His Plan is good. Sometimes we pray when there is a challenging task before us and we then may not feel God’s presence and we shout out to God, “Why have you abandoned me?”  God then says a message to you. He says “I have not abandoned you!”  Actually when you think God moved, remember He is not the one who moved.  God is so in love with the work we have done.  Helping others and praying for members is the best road to travel.  We know we are so loved and helped with the Trinity.  Feel the cloak of love and support and give thanks to God for all the time helping us. God has called us to serve those in need.  Trust in Him.  He called us as servants, we are His disciples.  He will never leave us.  His call asks us to be present and serve the poor.  He calls us and helps us in our service.  Pray and ask Him to give us more courage and advice. We have been called to serve and see Jesus in the poor.  Our goal is to give hope to all we serve.  Be a friend to lift them from their current situation.  Do not fear as God has a plan for you and it is good.  Call on Him; you are a servant and disciple.  Feel God’s blessing and look at each person to treat them as Jesus would.  Each person when called should see our Lord in all those we serve and know you are not alone.

Jesus was Merciful

Jesus was merciful to those who walked with the women who wiped the sweat off His face and gave Him to drink.  He was merciful to all and is certainly merciful to us. Jesus did not condemn those who joined the crowd and mocked Him. He showed love and mercy to the people who laughed and cheered at His suffering.  Jesus throughout His journey to the cross showed mercy. I love to read this story.  He loved the person who came to help Him carry the cross.  He did not falter when He was on the Cross when He gave blessings to them. Do you know the song “Remember Me?”  It is a great song to teach us how much He is with us when we serve our friends in need. When we provide food and goods we are giving them Jesus and all His mercies. He never hesitated to forgive and gave mercy to one of the men on the cross with Him.  When we ask and truly believe we will feel Jesus’ trust and Hope and mercy.  We need to bring that hope to each other in our Vincentian family.  We forgive others always. He leads us to serve well.  We bring out smiles and give them hope and getting to special groups to lift them up and help them in their progress.

Blessings to all my Vincentian Family.  May you always feel the gentle arm of Mercy from Our Lord.

Prayers are with you always.

Blessings,

Lynn