From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   - Isaiah 26:7-8 -   
      
   The path of the righteous is level;   
   O upright One, you make the way of the righteous smooth.   
   Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws,   
   we wait for you;   
   your name and renown   
   are the desire of our hearts.   
   __________________________   
      
   At times, the "path of the righteous" doesn't seem smooth and it isn't easy   
   to   
   do God's Will, but we are never alone when we face tough times. God is there   
   to   
   help us through difficulties, to comfort us, and to lead us. God does this   
   by   
   giving us a purpose (keeping our minds centered on him - Isaiah 26:3) and   
   giving   
   us provisions as we travel. God provides us with relationships of family,   
   fiends   
   and mentors. God gives us wisdom to make decisions and faith to trust him.   
   Don't   
   despair; stay on God's path.   
      
      
   <<>><<>><<>>   
   May 21st - Saint Hospitius, Seer, Recluse   
      
   (died 581)   
      
   Saint Hospitius shut himself up in the ruins of an old tower near   
   Villafranca,   
   one league from Nice in Provence. He girded himself with a heavy iron chain   
   and   
   lived only on bread and dates. During Lent he redoubled his austerities,   
   and, in   
   order to conform his life more closely to that of the anchorites of Egypt,   
   ate   
   nothing but root vegetables.   
      
   For his great virtues Heaven honored him with the gifts of prophecy and of   
   miracles. He foretold the ravages which the Lombards would make in 575 in   
   Gaul,   
   and advised the religious of a nearby monastery to flee at once. They said   
   they   
   could not resign themselves to abandon him, but he replied that although the   
   invaders would insult him, they would not kill him. The barbarians he had   
   foretold came to the tower in which Hospitius lived, and seeing the chain   
   with   
   which he was bound, mistook him for a criminal who was imprisoned there.   
   When   
   they questioned him, he acknowledged that he was indeed a great sinner and   
   unworthy to live, whereupon one of the soldiers lifted his sword to strike   
   him.   
   God, however, did not desert His faithful servant; the soldier's arm   
   stiffened   
   and became numb. It was not until Hospitius made the sign of the cross over   
   it   
   that he recovered the use of it. This soldier embraced Christianity,   
   renounced   
   the world and spent the rest of his days in serving God.   
      
   When Saint Hospitius felt that his last hour was nearing, he asked the monks   
   of   
   the nearby monastery to send word to the bishop Austadius that he was going   
   to   
   die, so that he might see to his burial. He took off his chain and knelt in   
   prayer for a long time. Then, stretching himself on a little bank of earth,   
   he   
   calmly gave up his soul to God on the 21st of May, 581.   
      
   Reflection. If we do not love penance for its own sake, let us love it on   
   account of our sins; for we must "work out our salvation in fear and   
   trembling."   
   (Phil. 2:12)   
      
   Source: Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on   
   Butler's   
   Lives of the Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger   
   Brothers:   
   New York, 1894).   
      
      
   Saint Quote:   
   Love does not consist in shedding tears, nor in tasting sweetness and that   
   tenderness in which one seeks consolation; it consists in serving God in   
   justice, in strength of soul, and in humility.   
   -St. Teresa of Avila   
      
   Bible Quote   
   For the spirit of the Lord hath filled the whole world: and that, which   
   containeth all things, hath knowledge of the voice.  (Wisdom 1:7)   
      
      
   <><><><>   
   I praise You and give You thanks   
   for all the good things You have done   
   for angels and men and for myself in particular.   
   You have always loved me.   
   You have created me according to Your own image and likeness.   
   Your Divine Son died on the cross for me.   
   You have been so kind as to save me from dangers   
   of both body and soul through the activity of my Guardian Angel,   
   who is watching over me right now.   
   Many, many times You have allowed me to share in the Holy Sacrifice of the   
   Mass,   
   to have my sins forgiven,   
   and to be fed in Holy Communion with the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ   
   Himself.   
   Thank You, also, for the priceless gifts of my baptism and confirmation,   
   and the graces You have given   
   and continue to give me through these sacraments.   
   (If you are married, include the sacrament of Holy Matrimony.)   
   Thank You also, good, generous God,   
   for my life and work so close to You in the open air,   
   where I can so readily watch You   
   and the marvels of Your world working together for the good of mankind.   
   Thank You for all the good  things of earth,   
   which You have given me,   
   so much more than to many other people, here, in my life on the land.   
   But besides this, You have made ready for me a place in heaven,   
   where, if I serve You as I should on earth,   
   I shall see You, love You, praise You forever   
   in the greatest joy along with all Your angels and saints.   
   How shall I thank You for countless good things,   
   so many of which, including my health, my family,   
   my possessions, my physical faculties,   
   I have not even mentioned?   
   I offer You with all my love,   
   all the praise of the Church on earth and in heaven,   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)