瑩瑩花語 京燕花園
京城燕子的小花園
Yesterday marked the first day of Lenten season 2012, the forty days (not counting Sundays) leading to Easter. You have probably heard about "Fat Tuesday", also called "Mardi Gras", when, traditionally, people use up all the fat in the household and have a carnival celebration. The day after "Fat Tuesday" is "Ash Wednesday", that is when people go to church to receive a black cross marked on the forehead. The ashes came from burning last year's Palm Sunday branches, mixed with Holy oil.
While I was in a Catholic hospital, two ladies approached people and asked if anyone would like to receive Ash Wednesday blessings, my heart leapt for joy. They were like angels to me. I rose and one lady gently crossed my forehead and said, "Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return."(Genesis 3:19)
When I went home, my husband was watching TV, and he pointed to a newscast lady with a cross on her forehead. I threw a kiss to her in the air, it was nice to share faith with a fellow believer. When we went to the evening mass at church, we saw people were all very solemn with black marks on their foreheads, even little babies may receive a blessing, we felt so humble. The priest talked about “if you are fasting, do not pout about it", I elbowed my son, he blushed and felt sorry for telling me that his lunch had no meat and 'tasted like paper'.
At dinner, we discussed about what we were going to give up this lenten season, my daughter suggested giving up fast food, I was so happy to hear it coming out of her mouth. Years before I had suggested that, and my husband and the kids were reluctant, when Lent ended and Easter came, they had a "backlash" and went out and bought so much! Some people give up sweets, some give up coffee and send the money saved to charity, some give up drinking alcohol, some give up anger, I give up pleasure reading for spiritual reading.
Lent is a season for renewal, we use this time to bring forth positive changes in our lives. Listen to the stirrings of your heart, what are you longing for? A more peaceful home, heart or relationship?
《I thirst for you》～ I call this "a love letter from our Lord"
I Thirst for You
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock… (Rev. 3, 20)
It is true. I stand at the door of your heart, day and night. Even when you are not listening, even when you doubt it could be Me, I am there. I await even the smallest sign of your response, even the least whispered invitation that will allow Me to enter.
And I want you to know that whenever you invite Me, I do come – always, without fail. Silent and unseen I come, but with infinite power and love, and bringing the many gifts of My Spirit. I come with My mercy, with My desire to forgive and heal you, and with a love for you beyond your comprehension – a love every bit as great as the love I have received from the Father ("As much as the Father has loved me, I have loved you…" (Jn. 15:10) I come - longing to console you and give you strength, to lift you up and bind all your wounds. I bring you My light, to dispel your darkness and all your doubts. I come with My power, that I might carry you and all your burdens; with My grace, to touch your heart and transform your life; and My peace I give to still your soul.
I know you through and through. I know everything about you. The very hairs of your head I have numbered. Nothing in your life is unimportant to Me. I have followed you through the years, and I have always loved you – even in your wanderings. I know every one of your problems. I know your needs and your worries. And yes, I know all your sins. But I tell you again that I love you – not for what you have or haven’t done – I love you for you, for the beauty and dignity My Father gave you by creating you in His own image. It is a dignity you have often forgotten, a beauty you have tarnished by sin. But I love you as you are, and I have shed My Blood to win you back. If you only ask Me with faith, My grace will touch all that needs changing in your life, and I will give you the strength to free yourself from sin and all its destructive power.
I know what is in your heart – I know your loneliness and all your hurts – the rejections, the judgments, the humiliations, I carried it all before you. And I carried it all for you, so you might share My strength and victory. I know especially your need for love – how you are thirsting to be loved and cherished. But how often have you thirsted in vain, by seeking that love selfishly, striving to fill the emptiness inside you with passing pleasures – with the even greater emptiness of sin. Do you thirst for love? "Come to Me all you who thirst…" (Jn. 7: 37). I will satisfy you and fill you. Do you thirst to be cherished? I cherish you more than you can imagine – to the point of dying on a cross for you.
I Thirst for You. Yes, that is the only way to even begin to describe My love for you. I THIRST FOR YOU. I thirst to love you and to be loved by you – that is how precious you are to Me. I THIRST FOR YOU. Come to Me, and I will fill your heart and heal your wounds. I will make you a new creation, and give you peace, even in all your trials I THIRST FOR YOU. You must never doubt My mercy, My acceptance of you, My desire to forgive, My longing to bless you and live My life in you. I THIRST FOR YOU. If you feel unimportant in the eyes of the world, that matters not at all. For Me, there is no one any more important in the entire world than you. I THIRST FOR YOU. Open to Me, come to Me, thirst for Me, give me your life – and I will prove to you how important you are to My Heart.
Don’t you realize that My Father already has a perfect plan to transform your life, beginning from this moment? Trust in Me. Ask Me every day to enter and take charge of your life. – and I will. I promise you before My Father in heaven that I will work miracles in your life. Why would I do this? Because I THIRST FOR YOU. All I ask of you is that you entrust yourself to Me completely. I will do all the rest.
Even now I behold the place My Father has prepared for you in My Kingdom. Remember that you are a pilgrim in this life, on a journey home. Sin can never satisfy you, or bring the peace you seek. All that you have sought outside of Me has only left you more empty, so do not cling to the things of this life. Above all, do not run from Me when you fall. Come to Me without delay. When you give Me your sins, you gave Me the joy of being your Savior. There is nothing I cannot forgive and heal; so come now, and unburden your soul.
No matter how far you may wander, no matter how often you forget Me, no matter how many crosses you may bear in this life; there is one thing I want you to always remember, one thing that will never change. I THIRST FOR YOU – just as you are. You don’t need to change to believe in My love, for it will be your belief in My love that will change you. You forget Me, and yet I am seeking you every moment of the day – standing at the door of your heart and knocking. Do you find this hard to believe? Then look at the cross, look at My Heart that was pierced for you. Have you not understood My cross? Then listen again to the words I spoke there – for they tell you clearly why I endured all this for you: "I THIRST…"(Jn 19: 28). Yes, I thirst for you – as the rest of the psalm – verse I was praying says of Me: "I looked for love, and I found none…" (Ps. 69: 20). All your life I have been looking for your love – I have never stopped seeking to love you and be loved by you. You have tried many other things in your search for happiness; why not try opening your heart to Me, right now, more than you ever have before.
Whenever you do open the door of your heart, whenever you come close enough, you will hear Me say to you again and again, not in mere human words but in spirit. "No matter what you have done, I love you for your own sake Come to Me with your misery and your sins, with your troubles and needs, and with all your longing to be loved. I stand at the door of your heart and knock. Open to Me, for I THIRST FOR YOU…"
"Jesus is God, therefore His love, His Thirst, is infinite. He the creator of the universe,
asked for the love of His creatures.
He thirst for our love… These words:
‘I Thirst’ –
Do they echo in our souls?”
Mother Teresa
～Have a Peaceful Lenten and Joyful Easter Season!～
謝謝葉子姐姐，給雪兒念了大姨寫給她的話，她的臉上樂開了花。
As we prepare ourselves for the celebration of Easter, we find peace through letting go.
Blessing to sister Leaf and your family （＾Ｏ＾☆♪
Lent is a season for renewal, we use this time to bring forth positive changes in our lives.
I am happy for your daughter who decides to give up fast food. Proud of her~
謝謝花甲大哥的共鳴。我是隨著先生和孩子們入了天主教，他們都是“搖籃裏的天主教徒”。我很喜歡教會的傳統和包容性。以前聽到教派之間的爭論我會好緊張，後來聽神父說大家都是一棵大樹上的分支，我心靈平靜了許多。不論我們去哪間教會，那顆愛主愛人的心是一樣的。
也祝福花甲大哥和大家！主佑平安（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
飄姐姐過獎了，您是我們可愛的大姐姐，真誠，熱情，勤勞，幽默。。。欣喜看到姐姐，一定要開心多關愛自己哦。
我們這兒也暖和了，很多樹都開了花，我們自己也休整一下身心，再開出最美的女人花吧！祝福嫩姐（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
各位 , 複活節快樂 .
寶貝兒，我們這兒天氣轉暖了~
問好樓下姐妹們~祝好。
抱抱親愛的晴晴妹妹，真巧在茫茫網絡和你相遇，今天你是我的小天使。好開心聽到你最近的生活，我們雖然遠隔重洋，一起在齋月祈禱中感受心靈的碰撞。
我們舍棄一些享樂，更探究人生最重要的事情，讓我們一起努力吧。欣喜你和小寶安娜要成行羅馬了，我也想把去年的羅馬和梵蒂岡遊記繼續寫。這個時候去羅馬，比冬假更暖和，白天也長。我想你們會有心見教宗，他每周三公開接見信眾。
為你們祈禱，主愛永駐心間（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
謝謝點綴兄的共鳴，我們很幸運，有主愛在心中，擔不起的重擔卸給主。
很感恩，也祝福你，主佑平安（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
張開雙臂歡迎藤玉姐姐來美國，到加州前告訴我啊！姐姐每半年就到一個新的國度啊，真是像你網名一樣“海闊天空”的生活。
你要當大姐姐嗎？我和寶寶是妹妹。桐兒姐姐呢？等你到紐約見了她悄悄查查戶口，哈哈。
祝福玉姐姐一帆風順，主佑平安（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
我們信仰天主的兒女，這7個星期是齋月， 我會反省，舍去一些心愛的東西。今年第一次禁食，我們叫 heil Fasten，我是第三天了。希望能做到5天就滿意了。希望隨著禁食，清理身體和內心，迎接複活節。還有， 我也訂了旅行，和安娜寶貝複活節去羅馬朝聖。
祝福姐姐全家齋月平安吉祥。
謝謝親愛的月兒，主佑平安！你的女兒好讓我感動，記得你寫過她上了很好的私立高中，讓孩子在智慧和心靈上都得到滋潤。
你說了lent rice bowl我才去看到，真好，所以四旬期不隻是舍棄什麽甜品，咖啡。。。還有更重要的給予，在給予中我們獲得寶貴的東西。
祝福你的全家平安喜樂（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
杜姐姐你家那裏還在下雪真美啊。我們這裏四五年才下一場，現在玉蘭，海棠，梨花，梅花都開了。
今年複活節在四月八號，從聖灰星期三開始四旬期這段時間，我們可以做好心理調整，準備迎接萬物複蘇的春天和複活節。
祝福杜姐姐周末愉快（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
信仰很重要，讚有信仰的人和事。。。
燕兒靠近你們的時間近啦~~我在紐約要呆上半年，期盼能去加州。。。
燕兒到底誰大誰小你排排順序好嗎？有可能我最大O(∩_∩)O哈哈~
我從女兒那裏聽到了關於四旬期齋月，fasting, rice bowl的介紹，孩子很有感觸，讓我也為此很高興。
祝福平安喜樂和燕兒一家相伴相隨！
問京燕mm好！
謝謝阿鬆，也祝福你！
Have a peaceful Lenten and joyful Easter season. Blessings (＾Ｏ＾☆♪
Have a Peaceful Lenten and Joyful Easter Season!
是嗎林楓妹妹，想必你對鞋情有獨鍾。想到那首歌～敢問路在何方？路在腳下。我們可以選擇開心，積極地生活，每天為自己做點兒小事犒勞一下，一直在為工作為家庭為孩子付出，我們也值得把自己的需求放首位。
祝福妹妹，新春新氣象，快樂幸福（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
從這周三到複活節前這四十天是四旬期齋月，所以心理上也做好準備迎接Easter。今年複活節是四月八號，每年都變化，象中國春節一樣，是Moveable Feast, 也按陰曆算，每年春分滿月後第一主日就是複活節。你這明月要告訴我們陰晴圓缺哦，希望你每天都晴空萬裏，朗照人間。
今年雪兒主動說不吃快餐我真欣慰覺得孩子懂事了，如果不能常年堅持至少四旬期先努力一下。祝福（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
生活需要積極的態度，去推動‘positive changes “。
你女兒那句：“giving up fast food” 可是真理啊， 這快餐真要少吃，
周末快樂！
Thanks sis, big hugs! My mother used to say time flies when life is good. She talked about how they used to look forward to payday in the olden days. Yet we know money could not buy us everything!
It is the inner peace that we all search for, wanting to be loved, wanting to be accepted, wanting to be appreciated... I am so lucky to have met you and other sisters, we love & appreciate each other deeply.
Sending you a big heart for the day, another Valentine's（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
是呀飄飄妹妹，春天萬物複蘇，姹紫嫣紅。
We may also grow spiritually at this time, be more at peace with ourselves and others, count those grace-filled moments in our lives.
Blessings for a peaceful Lent and joyful Easter（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
抱抱藤玉姐姐，送一個大沙發給姐姐靜靜坐一坐，我們每天都在忙碌，春天到了，複活節腳步漸近，可以放慢腳步，聽聽心靈的渴求。
在桐兒姐姐家看到玉姐姐要來美國半年，真是驚喜！祝福姐姐平安（＾Ｏ＾☆♪
Time flies--a peaceful Lent and joyful Easter again??? If sis did not mention it, I would have not realized it.
True, let's bring forth positive changes in our lives at this moment, and listen to our heart...
Have a lovely weekend , sis!
we use this time to bring forth positive changes in our lives.