Today’s Reflection

John in his gospel today shows us the duality of Jesus and depth of his love for us, for prayer is important, but so is his unending care for us, because as he prayed, he must have kept an eye on his disciples as they struggled against the wind during the night. Therefore, in their need, Jesus came to his disciples to rescue them by the quickest means possible by walking on water. Yet, for salvation to occur when God offers it to us, we need to cooperate with God and his grace. For, if his disciples had not made an effort to help Jesus into the boat, salvation would not have occurred. Something to ponder as we go through life.

Today’s Spiritual Links for April 13, 2024

National Eucharistic Review Today’s Mas Readings Today’s Reflection Rosary Liturgy of the Hours New American Bible Non-Scriptural Reading Prime Matters

they do infact act like that

Psalm 34:1 I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

It's easy to praise God when things are looking good and going our way, but what about the times when we face trials in our lives and things aren't so good and we feel like giving up? In Psalm 34 David didn't say sometimes I will praise Him or only in the good times, he said, "I will praise Him at all times and His praises shall continually be in my mouth."

Life is hard, there is no doubt about that and our enemy satan would love nothing more than for us to give up, instead we need to get on our knees and lift our hands in praise. Praise God for being the unchangeable God He is and for being in control even when things seem so out of control. Praise Him because He is the Creator of heaven and earth.  Praise Him for being the God that heals, delivers, sustains, provides, and is our ever present help in times of trouble. Praise Him for being right there with you in the storm.

Psalm‬ ‭150:1‭-‬6‬ ‭(NIV‬‬). “Praise the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.”

“Everything That Has Breath Shall Praise”

“Make it your daily habit to look for the good things God gives and does.”

“The desire to give praise is hardwired in the human spirit—it’s an impulse we can’t ignore. And as Christians, we’re called to direct that tendency to the One who made us. The apostle Peter says it like this: “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).

It’s a beautiful truth that we are God’s own people—created, chosen, and called by Him to live a life of praise, both on our own and with other believers. In Psalm 34, David says, “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1). However, he’s not content to be a solo act. He exhorts other believers to join him: “Exalt the Lord with me, and let’s exalt His name together” (Psalm 34:3).

So let’s praise Him at church on Sunday morning and on our front porches at sunset—when we start the workday and each evening as we lie down to rest. Also, let’s remember to praise Him not only for what He has done but also for the excellency of His character. God truly is worthy of our adoration!”

actually now that i think about it it pisses me off SO much that nintendo was hyping TotK as "incredibly dark" story-wise, and then having an ending that erases all of that built up tension by (SPOILER) restoring zelda and giving link his own arm back (even tho rauru said he had to REPLACE IT LIKE???)

i think a better way to end it would've been having zelda unable to transform back, HOWEVER, they were able to restore her sense of self and ability to speak-- she could no longer live among mortals but at least everyone could find closure through it

if not that, then turn her back but not all the way, have her keep draconic traits that will never let her be identified as just hylian ever again, they could even give her minor amnesia and set up an implied post-game link-taking-care-of-her/restoring-her-memory thing

and link's arm should've at the very least been scarred to hell if it HAD to be "restored" i still think he should've kept rauru's arm tbh

anyway, back on topic, TotK NEVER gave me an emotional heartstring jerk the same way Midna's Lament, the credits scenes of MM, or Byrne's sacrifice all made me feel. and these moments are all in different games, spirit tracks arguably being the most lighthearted in the series

there were PLENTY of moments of AWE in TotK-- the leadup to the Wind Temple and Colgera, Rauru's sacrifice, Ganondorf's fight-- but not one single moment made me actively sad outside of dragon tear 13-- before i knew zelda would be fine

"but Cy, Midna was fine in TP so it's the same as zelda in TotK" yeah, but at the end of the game she still ends up sacrificing her connection to the light for the sake of protecting everyone she'd come to care about, plus the emotional weight of Midna's Lament was so much stronger because it was happening IN THE PRESENT. in my first playthrough, i assumed that segment was timed in some fashion which added to my stress and worry for midna, making the scene leagues more impactful

at the end of the day, there isn't one single thing that happened in TotK that was sad AND lasting. lurelin falls, but nobody's harmed and you can restore it. the four regions have mini calamities on their hands, but beating the temples reverses ALL their effects. you can argue that there is lasting effects on hyrule-- namely being chunks of sky rock plunged into the surface-- but that's not sad, it's just unfortunate

nothing in TotK REMAINS dark, and that's what bothers me the most about nintendo saying it's "the darkest in the series" because it's a bold-faced fucking lie

van Helsing: Tell your friend that when that time you suck from my wound so swiftly the poison of the gangrene from that knife that our other friend, too nervous, let slip, you did more for him when he wants my aids and you call for them than all his great fortune could do. Jack: ...I'm definitely not going to tell him that, it sounds super weird out of context. Instead, I'll keep things vague but positive. Jack's letter to Arthur: Van Helsing would, I know, do anything for me for a personal reason, [...] he knows what he is talking about better than any one else. [...] he has, I believe, an absolutely open mind. This, with an iron nerve, a temper of the ice-brook, an indomitable resolution, self-command, and toleration exalted from virtues to blessings, and the kindliest and truest heart that beats [...] his views are as wide as his all-embracing sympathy. Jack: There. That raises far fewer questions about our relationship.

Today’s Reflection

With our gospel today we are back where it all began in Galilee with his disciples, now striking out on their own, and in do so, they do it without Jesus forgetting their mission and subsequently caught nothing, not a single fish or anything else. It is only when they recognize Jesus that there mission is remembered in a miraculous catch of fish. With this encounter it allowed Jesus to remind his disciples that he came for the whole world, which the large amount of fish represents. This mission, which his disciples received, is the mission we have received through an intimate meal with each other and with Jesus through the Eucharist, which sustains us as we go about the mission of Jesus, which is to spread the good news to all we meet.

Today’s Spiritual Links for April 05, 2024

National Eucharistic Review Today’s Mas Readings Today’s Reflection Rosary Liturgy of the Hours New American Bible Non-Scriptural Reading Prime Matters

I get people not liking Toradora or even not wanting to finish it, but the way it’s become VERY popular online to openly bash it or call it the worst anime romcom is very…… weird

the thing is… Toradora is not a shoujo. the story isn’t meant to be fluffy and perfect. Taiga as a character is EXTREMELY flawed. And I think she’s a little too flawed for the average romcom anime watcher.

Firstly, no I am not defending how she likes to hit Ryuuji, and that behavior in a real life person obviously wouldn’t be ok, but Winry of Fullmetal Alchemist regularly throws a wrench at Ed’s head for comedic effect and I very rarely see that being held against her character. I don’t like it either, but it’s a fairly weak criticism of Taiga specifically since slapstick was pretty par for the course in early 2000s anime comedy.

But other than that, she’s basically just… annoying and mean. And pretty quickly you learn that this is because she’s a spoiled brat who simultaneously lacks both parental guidance and attention. And they address this head on, and she eventually acknowledges this and tries to change it. The way her story arc is handled is actually pretty interesting. Just because the female protagonist isn’t an uwu perfect shy nice girl doesn’t mean it’s a bad love story

I feel like I have way more to say on this but in conclusion if you really couldn’t stand Taiga then Toradora isn’t for you, and that’s ok, but that does not make it objectively bad. There are absolutely aspects of it worth criticizing, but there are also a lot of really interesting story elements with complex exploration of both romantic and familial relationships. It’s definitely worth a watch if you can handle a 16 year old girl being an asshole

day 48 - the @hatchetfield-yearbook-project ! it was such an honor working on this with everyone, go give it a look!

Being Friends With God (1)

Genius Korea: 2023 MAMA Nominations & Biggest Snubs — ONEW&KEY mentions

Every year the MAMA Awards kick off the end of year celebrations in the K-Pop world. With their nomination announcement, MAMA gets K-Pop fans buzzing and looking back at the year we had in Korean music. However, the nominations also point out the artists who go discredited. An annual tradition here at Genius Korea, our community would like to highlight songs, performances, and artists that while not getting MAMA award recognition left a lasting impression in our music year 2023.

1. Best Male Solo Performance

Once again a glaring omission in the category was KEY of SHINee for the third year in a row. A group famous for their dance performances, KEY released two eligible albums this year. His repackage album Killer and Good & Great. Both albums were praised for their dance-pop elements and KEY never gives us anything less than a spectacular performance.

[...]

2. Best Male Solo Vocal Performance

Another SHINee member who keeps failing to land a nomination is ONEW. His lead single “O (Circle)” from his first full-length album Circle was one of the most beautiful vocal performances of the year.

Hebrews 13:15 'Through Jesus, let us continually offer to the Lord a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His Name.'

We can choose to either complain about everything or praise the Lord in all things. From our mouths should flow a constant stream of praise.

Sometimes the praise 'costs' us, because things may be difficult...

But keep on confessing the Name of Jesus and praising Him, for He deserves our praise.

PRAYER: Lord, I choose, regardless of my circumstances, to praise You and lift Your Name up high. May my mouth and my lips always bring praise and honour to You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

I'd like to add to your absolutely beautiful response about Taylor's music and the conversation about it. Thank you for sharing.💚 I like to say that Taylor's music allows me to both better understand myself and to escape myself if I need to. I can listen to Better Man and think about going no contact with my father or think about Taylors experience with Jake if its too hurtful for me in that moment.

That duality is the IT factor for me in her music and I can't imagine it without it.

Friend what an equally beautiful and thoughtful and REAL thing to share. Yes x1000000000