psalm 119 33-40

 Psalm 119 33-40 - YouTube 

Matthew 17:20

"Amen, I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."   Matthew 17:20 

"The Parable of the Mustard Seed is one of the shorter parables of Jesus. It appears in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, it is immediately followed by the Parable of the Leaven, which shares this parable's theme of the Kingdom of Heaven growing from small beginnings." 

Parable of the Mustard Seed - Wikipedia 

City of God – St. Louis Jesuits [OFFICIAL LYRIC VIDEO] - YouTube 

City of God
John Michael Talbot

Awake from your slumber!
Arise from your sleep!
A new day is dawning
For all those who weep

The people in darkness
Have seen a great light
The Lord of our longing
Has conquered the night

Let us build the city of God
May our tears be turned into dancing!
For the lord, our light and our love
Has turned the night into day!

We are sons of the morning
We are daughters of day
The one who has loved us
Has brightened our way

Let us build the city of God
May our tears be turned into dancing!
For the lord, our light and our love
Has turned the night into day!

God is light

In him there is no darkness

Let us walk in his light

His children, one and all

O comfort my people

Make gentle your words

Proclaim to my City

The day of her birth

Let us build the city of God
May our tears be turned into dancing!
For the lord, our light and our love
Has turned the night into day!

Songwriter: Daniel L Schutte
For non-commercial use only.

God invites us to have faith in dark times. God's gifts are cost free. We accept them with our hearts--not with what's in our wallets. Faith, not religion, is our security blanket.

"Let us build the city of God

May our tears be turned into dancing!
For the lord, our light and our love
Has turned the night into day!"

does religion interfere with God's plan?

I'm a believer. I believe that God created the universe, and everything in it, from nothing. 

why am I here? God created me. some would say that I evolved. OK. but that doesn't explain what happened "in the beginning". the "stuff" of the universe (matter, energy) came from somewhere. that somewhere is God. with all that humans have "created", there has always been preexisting stuff (matter, energy) that humans "created" with and from. 

why did God create humans in God's image? to choose God. 

should religion (humans) interfere with our God-given right to choose? absolutely not. when religion tells other human beings what's good and what's evil (e.g. what's right, what's wrong, whose sins are absolved (see note), whose sins are retained (see note), who receives communion and who doesn't, who to vote for, etc.), then religion interferes with God's plan. 

NOTE: there are various translations and interpretations of Matthew chapter 16 verse 19. did Jesus really say "whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven. whose sins you shall retain, they are retained."? after all, only God can forgive and retain sins. there are instances where overzealous monks copying bible text may have inserted text, e.g. Luke 23:34.  If, in fact, Jesus didn't say "whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven. whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.", then this is arguably the greatest perpetrated scam in the history of mankind. 

Praise the Lord, my soul

Cantus Mundi: Praise the Lord, my soul (John Foley) 

cantus mundi = song of the world

WITH FAITH,

EVERY DAY IS A BRIGHT DAY. 

faith 

           hope 
                       love