For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect-if that were possible. – Jesus (Mark 13:22, Matthew 24:24)

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My sister is quite a gardening nut. She loves more than anything to be out in her yard, digging in the dirt, trimming, weeding, planting, transplanting. Poison ivy gets her if she isn’t really careful, but several bouts haven’t stopped her from her favorite pastime.

In spring, when we were visiting, she couldn’t wait to walk me around outside. Excitedly, she pointed out this and that (names I can never remember). Some flowers caught my eye; I remarked, “Oh! Irises. I love irises! They are just beautiful!. She laughed and said, “Oh, only the top ones are real. I just stuck the other ones in there. They’re fake!”

They all looked real to me. So I got a little closer; they still all looked about the same. I went up really close to inspect, and touched the petals. Sure enough, the pinkish ones were artificial; the purple on top, genuine.

Real, fake. Sometimes it is hard to tell which is which. I have been fooled by plastic food displays, life-like statues, costume jewelry. The difference is just short of polar, but I couldn’t tell.

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In the Bible, there’s a warning: He (Jesus) replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. (Luke 21:8)

Real or fake? How can you tell which is which?

When it comes to spiritual things, we can rely on the Holy Spirit, who witnesses to the Truth, which always lines up with the Word of God.

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth – Jesus (John 16:13)

Ephesians 4:11-16 – It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to  be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

– written by Sally I Kennedy

Today, 19 days after Pentecost, we celebrate The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The Sacred Heart is a religious devotion to Jesus’s physical heart as the representation of divine love for humanity. It stresses the central Christian concept of loving and adoring Jesus.

The Sacred Heart is often depicted in Christian art as a flaming heart shining with divine light, pierced by the lance-wound, surrounded by a crown of thorns, surmounted by a cross and bleeding. Sometimes the image is over Jesus’ body with his wounded hands pointing at the heart. The wounds and crown of thorns allude to the manner of His death, while the fire represents the transformative power of love.

“I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of final perseverance; they shall not die in my disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments. My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment” – (Jesus to St. Margaret Mary).

Prayer:-

Father, we rejoice in the gifts of love we have received from the heart of Jesus your Son. Open our hearts to share his life and continue to bless us with his love. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Imagine you and the Lord Jesus are walking down the road together. For much of the way, the Lord’s footprints go along steadily, consistently, rarely varying the pace. But your footprints are a disorganized stream of zigzags, starts, stops, turnarounds, circles, departures and returns.

For much of the way, it seems to go like this, but gradually your footprints come more in line with the Lord’s, soon paralleling His consistently. You and Jesus are walking as true friends! This seems perfect, but then an interesting thing happens: Your footprints, that once etched the sand next to Jesus’, are now walking precisely in His steps.

Inside His larger footprints are your smaller ones, you and Jesus are becoming one. This goes on for many miles, but gradually you notice another change. The footprints inside the large footprints seem to grow larger.

Eventually they disappear altogether.

There is only one set of footprints: they have become one. This goes on for a long time, but suddenly the second set of footprints are back. This time it seems even worse! Zigzags all over the place. Stops. Starts. Deep gashes in the sand. A veritable mess of prints.

You are amazed and shocked. Your dream ends.

Now you pray: “Lord, I understand the first scene with zigzags and fits. I was a new Christian; I was just learning. But you walked on through the storm and helped me learn to walk with you.”

“That is correct.”

” … and when the smaller footprints were inside of Yours, I was actually learning to walk in Your steps; followed you very closely.”

“Very good. You have understood everything so far.”

“… when the smaller footprints grew and filled in Yours, I suppose that I was becoming like you in every way.”

“Precisely.”

“So, Lord, was there a regression or something? The footprints separated, and this time it was worse than at first.”

There is a pause as the Lord answers with a smile in his voice. “You don’t know? That was when we danced.”

“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under Heaven. A time to weep, a time to laugh; A time to mourn, and a time to dance.” Ecclesiastes 3:1,4

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Click to see – Original version of Footprints