Don't get fooled by looks was basically the word for this weeks group. Although we can fool our brothers and sister we can't fool God. This is something I've come to realize during my walk with the Lord. Just keep it real with God. Why fake it? He already knows what kind of lifestyle you living. Soon or later if we keep on with this "front" of being a saint its going to catch up to us believe me I had to learn that the wrong way. We can't live our lives appearing what we're not. When your real with God its liberating. Men look at apperances but the Lord looks at our spirit. Just be yourself and you'll be used as an instrument to glorify God. Stop tring to impress other humans and start to impress God. In my own experience I would put up a front of living this ultra super holy life but in my heart I knew I wasn't right with God. Thank you God for setting me straight and allowing me to be real with you Lord. I pray that you guys can keep it real with the Lord. Peace

Andy Cruz

My prayer is to be humble...to not have the need to show off, to not let the spirit of pride overpower me, to be totally submitted to God whether it causes humiliation, persecution, disagreements, hatred against me. No matter what Lord I submit myself to Your infinite will, I pray for those who deal with the spirit of anger. I am the first to admit that is my issue... how easily I am overpowered with anger...it's one thing to be angry, but it's another to be angry AND sin. The Word of God says "be angry but do not sin. Don't let the sun go down on your anger, and DON'T GIVE THE DEVIL AN OPPORTUNITY!" ....DO NOT LET THE FIRE OF ANGER CONSUME YOU!!! DO NOOOTT give the devil an opportunity to do ANYTHING! He will do anything in his power to destroy you, to destroy your relationships..to plant seeds of hatred and bring forth poisonous fruit...WAKE UP! ...God tells us to "Be Alert!!" [Mark 13: 33 & 36], to hold your temper and bear the mistakes of others with love and a forgiving heart. He calls us to be like Him....that humbleness, that love, and compassion...He humbled Himself in becoming like us...even while He was being crucified he prayed for those crucifying Him! During His physical, emotional, spiritual..yes even spiritual [Mk 14: 34] suffering....during that PAIINN He prayed for US. That every time we hurt him, every time we scar His back, every time we spit in His face, every time we mock him, every time we CRUCIFY HIM...He prays in HUMBLENESS, COMPASSION, AND LOVE. No matter His sufferings...no matter what He has to endure...no matter the pain, He loves us deeply and prays for us even though we don't deserve this..even though we have hated Him by sinning. That should be our prayer...To be like Christ...to know that we cannot do this ourselves because the Word says "for a man does not prevail by his own strength." [1 Sam 2:9]. Trust in God for in that same verse God reveals that ""He guards the steps of His faithful ones, but the wicked are silenced in darkness"... if there is anyone or anything impeding you from reaching this authentic love, if there is anything that's holding you back from letting go, from completely surrendering to His will...Trust in God and put all your pride, all your anger, all your hate at the foot of the cross. Why are we so attached to our pride?! Why are we so concerned of what other people say?? Why are we concerned about what others say and not what God says?! I just want us to completely surrender to Him..to just allow His Spirit move in us. I pray that as you read this God, with the intercession of our blessed Mother, plants in you a deep hatred toward sin. That God may rebuild His temple in you...that you completely let go and let God...and remember that "God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble" [ James 3:18; Proverbs 3:34]. Ask God for the grace of letting go...you cannot do it yourself...ASK HIIMM!! "You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and don't receive because you ask wrongly...!! [James 4: 2-3]. Take this moment..and just ask Him.... Lord, I thank you for your Word, I thank you for those I have come across in my life...especially those who have caused me hardships because I know they are part of Your plan and you will glorify Your Holy name through my endurance in those hardships...Allow me to persevere in your knowledge for my soul hungers for things that are deeper! Glory and Praise to You LORD! Without You..we ARE NOTHING....

Julissa Espinal

Jesus Christ through our blessed brother, Gilbert, spoke perversion of truth out of my life and spoke faithfulness, and a desire to defend the Truth (a.k.a. The Word, a.k.a. Jesus) in! I was not asked to face the question about whether or not I believe in God. I was forced to answer the question about my faith in the God-given gifts within me. You see, Gilbert said that the Church is currently filled with a spirit of irrational fear, not fear of the Lord, but fear of the Truth - however, fear does not come from God (and if it doesn’t come from God than it comes from somewhere else). And the result is that too many people are leaving behind the gifts that God’s grace has given them.

How many gifts have I left in the hands of God? How many gifts have I picked up but never used? How many gifts have I used poorly? Do I even know how to recognize the gifts that I have from God? How many of the recognizable gifts am I taking the credit for?

Better yet I am forced to ask myself: AM I A PERVERT??? If perversion means to twist - have I perverted the Truth of Christ?! Have I not defended the Truth because I chose to defend my own values instead? The times that I have compromised with my “friends” inside and outside of church regarding drinking, holding grudges and not forgiving, gossiping with and about others, having relations, lying, and not doing things (like not going to mass, not giving back, etc) - Am I a soldier of Christ or like Judas, have I betrayed the very army I was born to help fight with? Have my words made me a pervert or have my actions… (does it matter)? Have I perverted the Truth because others have spoken into me a perversion of the Truth …(again I have to ask, does it matter)? Have I perverted the Truth because I didn’t know it or because I chose to ignore it? Well, it doesn’t matter why; what matters is that I allow God to help me repair the consequences of perversion and that I seek to live in conviction of the Truth (always holding on to He who lives in me rather than looking for he who lives outside of me, in the world).

Praise be to God who is The Way, The Truth and The Light - and praise be to God for our brother Gilbert who made a promise to defend the Truth. It is because of Gods grace that I made the decision last night to stop being friends with fear (of the Truth) and to start being friends with Truth. You see, I can’t be fighting with something I am trying keeping alive. And so last night I ended my friendship with fear and I declared that:

I will know the Truth; I will live the Truth; and I will defend the Truth.
WHO IS WITH ME??????


Jocelyn Rodriguez