know and fix in your heart

1 peter 1:18-25; Psalm 147 Praise the Lord, Jerusalem; Mk 10:32-45

Today we celebrate the feast of St, Philip Neri, a priest who spent most of his ministry in parishes in Rome. He is considered the Apostle of Rome. He lived during the later part of the 16th century.

Just a few bits of wisdom from St. Philip of Neri:

"My Jesus, my love, all the world is vanity. HE who wishes for anything other than Christ does not know what he wishes. HE who asks for anything other than Christ does not know what he is asking. He who works and not for Christ does not know what he is doing."

"A man without prayer is an animal without reason."

St. Philip' s prayer each day before he went out into the word was the following, "Lord, watch out for Philip, he betray you today."

In the words of St. Peter today in the first reading: "Beloved: realize that you were ransomed from your futile conduct...with the precious blood of Christ as of a spotless unblemished Lamb."

Peter asks us to "realize" this.

Spend sometime today letting this verse roll around in your head and in your heart. Meditate on the precious Blood that has ransomed us. How beautiful! How AMazing! How thoughtful of God!

Memorize this passage and let it become a source of contemplation. See how it penetrates and changes your heart empowering to "love one another intensely from the heart."

In the words of Moses in Deuteronomy: "know and fix in your heart..."

Know and fix in your heart.