Let us remember in a very special way the Police Officers who were gunned down by a coward in the early morning hours of today in the Tampa Bay area. These officers leave families of a nine-month pregnant wife and a family of a wife and four y0ung children ranging from 8 months to 9 years young. Both fallen officers were only 31 years young with outstanding records on the Tampa Police Force. These offices were killed in the line of duty by a individual who is yet to be apprehended by the massive search for his wereabouts. Let us pray that no more innocent people will suffer a loss of life from an individual who does not value human life. Let justice be served for those who put their lives on the line every day in providing a safe situation in many communities at the cost of their own lives. May God give their suffering families His healing and peace that the world does not know how to give. Thank you, Father God, for giving us so many men and women who are public servants who are heroes in every way for their bravery and their total dedication to the service of their communities. May the souls of the faithful departed, especially for the two young police officers in Tampa, through the Mercy of God, rest in peace. May their souls and all of the faithful departed through the Mercy of God continue to rest in peace. Amen.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY 2010
Congratulations to all of the Daddys on this Happy Fathers' Day 2010! What a tremendous responsibility that each man is expected to give and to share with his spouse each day of the year as a happily married couple. There are many married singles that carry on their own agenda at the expense of a sound marital relationship. Many men forget to live their manhood and their fatherhood by giving their spouses the total responsibility of raising the children of their marriage rather than give an equal share of love, care, and guidance to the beautiful persons in their lives. When Dads understand that they are co-partners with the Heavenly Father and their spouse to bring about new life, they are well on their way to realize the value and the dignity of human life at all stages of development. A Man of God will give total respect to his spouse and be a GENTLE MAN; and in addition, the Achievement Ladder Enthusiastic Dad will be there for his children and his spouse for "better or for worse," "for richer or for poorer," "in sickness and in health," and "until death do they part."
Let us remember to encourage the Dads in our lives to understand God's plan for their families as God intended. We read in Ephesians 1:3-6: "Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has bestowed on us in Christ every spiritual blessing in the heavens! God chose us in him before the world began, to be holy and blameless in his sight, to be FULL OF LOVE; he likewise predestined us through Christ Jesus to be his adopted sons and daughters--such was his will and pleasure---that all might praise the glorious favor he has bestowed on us in his beloved." "May God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, grant you a spirit of WISDOM and INSIGHT to know him clearly. May he enlighten your innermost vision of WISDOM that you may know the GREAT HOPE to which he has called you, the wealth of his glorious heritage to be distributed among the members of the church, and the immeasurable scope of his power in us who believe." (Ephesians 1:17-19)
For all Achievement Ladder Enthusiasts who are living examples of DADS, may we ask the following: "That is why I kneel before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name: and I pray that he will bestow on you gifts in keeping with the riches of his glory. May he strengthen you inwardly through the working of his Spirit. May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith, and may charity be the root and foundation of your life. Thus you will be able to grasp fully, with all the holy ones, the breadth and length and height and depth of Christ's love, and experience this love which surpasses all knowledge, so that you may attain to the fullness of God himself....live a life worthy of the calling you have received, with perfect humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another lovingly. Make every effort to preserve the unity which has the Spirit as its origin and peace as its binding force. There is but one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope given all of you by your call. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and works through all, and is in all." (Ephesians 3:14-4:6)
Happy DADS day for all Achievement Ladder Enthusiastic DADS who care!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2010 AMERICAN DREAM CONGRESS (TAD)
For the 9th year in a row with different locations to assemble, the TAD (The American Dream) Congress met at the Zephyrhills City Hall, Zephyrhills, Florida, on June 16, 2010, with a full agenda focusing on the ongoing concerns of "situational poverty" and "generational poverty" as impacted by the national, state, county, and city community relations and relationships. As one speaker indicated that "America is still the "land of opportunity," and "America is the envy of the world." In addition, the ideas of this same speaker indiciated that "our war on poverty has wasted trillions of dollars over the last 50 years on a maledy that has become a disastrous failure." Why not try something else? For many who have for decades faced "generational poverty" found there was "no way out." Most U.S poverty is "self-inflicted" with poor choices and "self-destructive behaviors." One recipe for breaking the cycle of extreme poverty is to encourage the y0uth to finish high school, get married before having children, and get involved with the job market and stay there. Who controls the poverty cycle.....YOU DO! The inspiring speaker concluded that each Achievement Ladder Enthusiast needs to "raise their expectations" and to be encouraged, to find hope, and to receive inspiration from those who have been successful in climbing out of the plague of "generational poverty" and "situational poverty." Hope can make a difference in our own lives and in the lives of those around us as we climb the Ladder of Achievement in saying, We Did it with a Hand Up rather than with a Hand Out.
Various not-for-profit and governmental agencies were represented including a local Rotary Chapter; a faith-based pastoral leaders with "Food for Tots," "The Samaritan Project," "Operation Unwrap A Smile," and the Salvation Army. Also, representatives from the Day-Star Hope Center of Pasco, the Boys Scouts of America, and Explorers Troup connected to the Zephyrhills Police Department, and the Farmworkers' Self-Help Program for Migrant Workers shared their ideas and programs to assist those in need in the East Pasco County area with a networking, partnering, and a collaborating effort by all the Achievement Ladder Enthusiastic Leaders. The Mayor of Zephyrhills and the City Manager of Zephyrhills welcomed the participants to the 9th TAD Congress and were the most gracious hosts. A Florida State Representative emphasized the working relationships of the public and private sectors especially in the area of improving the quality of education and of having a networking, partnership, and collaborating emphasis in order to focus on our future Achievement Ladder Enthusiastic leaders, the youth as they break the stigma of extreme poverty. If our freedoms are allowed to function as supported by the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution as originally intended, the Land of Opportunity for all persons, for all Achievement Ladder Enthusiastic American Citizens will encourage the "entrepreneurial capitalism" rather than the "stifling" agendas fostered by bureacratic, governmental hidden agendas.
Congratulations to the Toys for Tots Chairman and the TAD Congress Chairperson, Bob Loring, who was the Master of Ceremonies for all of the public and private sectors representatives represented at the 9th TAD Congress. Bob is often entitled, "The Achievement Ladder Networker for Pro-active and Positive philosophy in serving his Country with Pride. In addition, may the 10th TAD Congress in 2011 under Bob's most capable leadership be even more effective and proactive in bringing together leaders who really care about their communities and their influences in the community. People do not care how much you know but how much you care for your community and your service to the community. IN GOD WE TRUST! "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights and that among these are LIFE, LIBERTY, and THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS...THE AMERICAN DREAM..."
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Saturday, June 12, 2010
DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME....THANK YOU FATHER...
As the Worldwide Year of Prayer for Priests ends, let us all be reminded of the dignity and the sacredness of the Services that Priests throughout the world have given to their various dioceses, churches, and missionary outposts. Although some individuals want to focus on the "negative" aspects that some priests have been accused of in the past and currently through their inappropriate actions, nevertheness the overwhelming vast majority of dedicated priests have given their time, their talents, and their treasures to bring the salvation message to many persons worldwide by their words and by their exemplary examples. Yes, there is a shortage of priests throughout the United States and in many other parts of the world. The spiritual atmosphere that has usually been generated in the family traditionally has been attacked and assailed with the images of the allurements of the world, the flesh, and the secularistic, humanistic messages from the opponents of the divine appeals. We wish to see a conversion and a transformation that will eventually bring back the positive attitudes in the holisitic, spiritual tendencies of Achievement Ladder Enthusiasts who desire to serve and to give their lives to the most needy.
During the past 40 years or more, the attractiveness of the priesthood as a profession and as an opportunity to serve the "faithful flock" and to "shepherd" the lost and the lonely has been overlooked by the marketing of worldly ambitions and greedy accumulations. "If you want to be my disciple, you must denounce yourself, take up your CROSS, and FOLLOW ME." Jesus' way of the Cross means suffering, ignorance, apathy, hatred, loneliness, and death. Jesus showed the Way, the Truth, and the Life; but the people would not have any of that commitment. Yes, Jesus said "if they have hatred for Me, they will have hatred for you because you follow Me." We need to pray for all of our priests who have taken upon themselves a life of total service to their parishes and their missionary assignments. Yes, these priests have been ordained to bring the "Bread of Life" to us every day in the Eucharistic celebrations that happen in over 400,000 locations throughout the world. "Corpus Christi" ....the Body of Christ...is open to all who profess that "Jesus Christ is Lord." The power of prayer assists all of the priests throughout the world to be dedicated to their priestly commitments at all costs. Our prayers sent to God, the Father, on their behalf, will empower these priests to live a life that is totally dependent on the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Love, in their lives. Let us also remember all of those priests who have persevered to the end even to the point of martyrdom to give that we may all receive...His life in us...our spiritual existence. Thank you, Father, for giving us so many dedicated priests to serve your Kingdom...now and in eternity. "His Kingdom come, His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." Remember to do this in remembrance of Me!
HONOR YOUR FATHER
To many persons who are preparing to celebrate Fathers' Day next Sunday, let us all be reminded about the persons who have truly committed their lives to be the BEST POSSIBLE DAD that a son or daughter would be proud to call DAD. Yes, any adult, responsible man could be a father, but the attributes and the attitudes that best qualify a man to be a DAD means unconditional love to his children and most importantly, to his spouse. In today's definition of family, the challenges that the world, the flesh, and devil pose to a young family are extremely demanding. Finding a "true role model" for a Dad in the secularistic, humanistic society is limited at best. Things become more important than being a living, human being who has made a solid commitment and who persists in living the marriage vows in all of its holistic intelligent challenges.
Many Dads who have lived a good life with their family have earned an eternal reward for their giving of their time, their talents, and their treasures in a very unselfish manner that gives them a special title of being a JUST MAN. We remember in a very special way all of the Dads who have died and have been rewarded a heavenly reward for their persistence and their untiring energies to make a family, a true family worthy of that honor. Having self-respect as well as respect for their spouse and for their children creates an atmosphere of total learning in all aspects. Yes, we know that some fathers neglected their responsibilties and their committment to know, love, and serve their families. Many families have been "broken" apart by the apathy, the ignorance, the selfishness, and the greed of many men who have abdicated their duties as a father, a daddy, a provider, a lover, a role model by being a power-hungry individual and a disgrace to their very personhood. Many domestic violences could have been averted if the man had self-respect and respect for the dignity and the sacredness of other human beings who deserve and expect respect for all reasons and under all conditions. Culture can be a "blind-fold" for many men who escape the reality of being Achievement Ladder Enthusiasts who rise above the baseness of ideology and the traditions that are solidified in greed, in lust, and in ambition. Happy the man who really trusts in God, their Heavenly Father.
For all true Achievement Ladder Enthusiasts, let us encourage all men who seek the title of DAD to be sincere, to be positive, to be living examples of sound moral and ethical principles, and to be a Light shining in the darkness that the world, the flesh, and the devil destroys. Climbing up and down the Ladder of Achievement in a family setting requires a positive value system that considers all of the Holistic Intelligences that a human being is expected to develop. To grow into a positive influence in a world that is looking for a LEAVEN in their environments, DADS are expected to answer the following questions: Who am I? What am I doing here? and Where am I going? In addition, DADS serve in a capacity of SERVICE to their families and to their communities. When the DAD leaves the picture, the family is asked to fend for itself at a disadvantage that was not preordained by God, the Father and Creator of the Entire Universe. When human values are given a loftier position than divine values, the end results could be very devastating for all concerned. Creating the balance in the Universe in all holistic intelligences anticipates a sound relationship with the Uncaused Cause of all persons, places, and things. IN GOD WE TRUST needs to be the preamble for all DADS who seek the BEST for their families even in challenging times and events. Since we are all made in the image and likeness of God, true Achievement Ladder Enthusiasts focus on the blending and the uniqueness of each human being as being worthy of dignity and respect at all stages of development from conception to natural death. DADS need to step up to their responsibilities and to show what unconditional love is all about after the eternal example of a God who has unconditional love for each and every creature on the face of this Earth. What DADS accomplish does make a difference! What DADS are does make a difference! Who DADS love makes an eternal difference beyond mere human words. Actions speak louder than words!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
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