1 Corinthians 15 kJV ✝️🩸 1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 1 Peter 1 kJV 🩸 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Ephesians 1 kJV 🩸 7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Thank you, Fr Mark. I've been praying for the same thing for 12 years now, and while I do see little changes, I have got to that point of thinking that maybe this is just how it is and perhaps how it will always be. But I still want the BIG turn around.
@@buddybrown4691 it's statements like that, that cause people to turn and walk away from the Church. I've heard those statements many many times. It sows seeds of doubt in people's minds and causes them to give up in despair. You don't know what a person might be praying for. It could be a parent praying for their child, and you just told them that God may not want to answer their prayer. Please stop telling people these things. It's unhelpful and does nothing to encourage faith and hope. It only promotes resentment and discouragement. Also, how do you know how God works? God deals with every situation on its own merit. One minute he may answer immediately, other times, he answers slowly. So you have no clue, but you immediately go for the "God doesnt work like that" answer. How do you know? You dont. Fortunately, for me I've run into enough of the nay sayers in my time so I'll not bother to give your statement too much attention, but, in future, don't try to put words in God's mouth. Encourage faith...encourage hope.
@buddybrown4691 God doesn't just say " maybe" to a prayer. Even if God says "no" it's because it's against the will for our life,will lead us to sin or simply is not the time.
@@buddybrown4691 Another thing to consider. St Monica prayed for St Augustine for some ridiculous amount of years before he finally had his conversion. Do you think God didn't want to answer a mother's prayer for her son?
Its in our nature to want instant changes but its not often how it works. Nature and God work imperceptibly. You cant see the tree growing if you watch a day but cone back in a year and you will see a difference.
My grandmother prayed for 25 years for my father to confess. I prayed for 15 years with the same intention. Sometimes it's really too hard to wait for prayers to be answered and stay in hope... You almost don't rejoice when they are answered, because you spent yourself waiting for them to be answered. I am thankful, but so exhausted... 
I thought I had a lot of hope because in the darkest times I usually believe the lord knows best and he will take care of me and provide whatever is needed. But turns out I don't have as much as I thought, I usually go to mass and feel numb, and although I don't feel like it is my duty as a Christian (I am happy to go), sometimes I don't appreciate it as much as I should. The lord is dying for my sins and coming back to life every time I go to mass, right under my nose and I am thinking about what will I make for dinner. So thank you Father for your wise words, hope they make a long-lasting change in my faith!
Thank you Father Mark-Mary for this message! I have been diagnosed with cancer, underwent surgery and now getting chemo, never did i ask God why, I just prayed for each phase of this chapter, and I realized that although I will not know the why, I know that this storm has brought me closer to our Lord. I find the homely and every biblical verse to make a stronger connection between me and God, even bringing out my falls which before I would have not acknowledged. So even during the storms, don’t loose hope, God is great and his plan for us even greater!
This hits home for me on so many levels, Fr. Mark. The Holy Spirit, the Blessed Mother, and my patron Saint Joseph always keep me picking myself up and not giving up. Thank you for this refreshing perspective.
Honestly I still have hope in spite of my mother being in hospice care due to cancer for God to heal her. I pray for God to grant her a new lease on life. Its a promise I made to the Lord and my mother the promise I will never stop praying.
I have no doubt that God is listening to my prayers - the return of my children, grandchildren and their families, including all my siblings and their families, back to the Catholic Faith. Who do I have so much hope? I believe it must be from God - along with Faith. I have no idea why God has given me these virtues. But He has - and I am grateful. God is at work even though nothing much is happening. I don’t care if it even happens while I am on this earth. I am 70 - so maybe after I die. But I have absolute hope that all those I pray for all people will happen. Because it is God’s will - He loves all mankind!! So pray, pray, pray with great Hope. 🙏✝️😊
Father: Two Dr. Phil thumbs up from me. Each time I watch your videos you nail it for me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart father in explaining hope. Give yourself credit. Keep up the good work.
Thanks Father Mark-Mary. It can be so hard and frustrating to repeatedly fail. But you're right in that we have to continue and realize God is at work. I appreciate your insight.
I struggle with hope because I have seen so much long term trauma and pain as a child. Numbness is a self defense mechanism. There is truth to your words. Still I am weak and struggle, and I see the weakness as it weakness my faith to cling and believe in what feels safe. I need prayer for this.
I definitely needed this. When several bad things happen from across the world to our personal lives, it can be so overwhelmingly pessimistic. Not enough people remember hope. Hope has inherent joy to it. Hope keeps us alive when everything should crush us. Hope saves us. More of us should spread hope, especially during this time of year. Reminding someone to hope is contagious. And I’m happy I got the motivation to do so today. Hopefully you did too!
I understand. I'm going through the same thing, aggravated by disability and terrible disappointment. I'll pray for you when I'm through typing this. Hang on. Christ is risen.
Thank you, Father, for this wonderful homily! It was really a confirmation of an intuition I had last time I received Jesus: “Hope. Pray for hope”. And after this homily I have no doubts that Hope is what I most need right now. Thank you, Father, again. May the Holy Spirit always guide you, through Mary!🌹
Thank you for this inspiring message. I really needed to hear it. It spoke to me. I will pray more that God give me hope for answers to my prayers and an increase in my trust in Him.
Father Mark thank you! Exactly what this newly arrived soul to the Catholic faith needed today ( I am walking through my beginnings into being a full Catholic next September!
Thank you so much for motivating us and still being realistic! We must accept the reality but trust that there's more good to come! We must give God a chance. Highly appreciate it, Fr. Mark-Mary and Team Ascension!
I really appreciate you making this video. However, hope has disappointed. Nothing had changed that I need to change (at least the things that I have no power over). I guess I just don't have enough faith (anymore). But like Peter said, where else will I go?
Some souls pass through long periods of darkness and despair here on earth as a refinement. I pray the lord keeps your souls and sends a pray of light for you
I have been praying for something since I was 15, I am 44 now, I don't know what I did wrong, what if I am praying wrong and I won't ever get anything.
Ask God if you should continue praying for the thing. Consider if it is Gods will. Somethings are Gods will but take a very long time. Some struggles are long lasting tasks which build character and endurance. Try shorter arrow prayers for thing you desire. Recruit a friend to help you pray. Trust in Gods ultimate Goodness and Mercy thats a key thing isnt it.
I have been living the dark night of the soul for the past 15 years. (spiritual despair and loneliness) Its been very consistent. Is there a secret prayer to break it?
Maybe a decision is the answer? A decision to have hope, to pray for hope and then to act as if all will be well. We have to act in a way that demonstrates we do indeed believe. This has helped me a lot. I too had a couple of decades of dark night of the soul. Only when I finally said ‘Ok God, I give up- my will/desires have only brought me misery- from now on Your will be done,’ & then started to act as if His will was the best thing that ever happened/will happen to me (which it is!), did things start to look up. Things are infinitely better (not that all problems have disappeared- some have, others I can see God working with), though I still have a temptation every now & then to despair- at which time I just decide to decide again. The irony too is that the more I give up wanting things the way I want them & when I want them, the more I look back & see God has filled/is filling the desires of my heart in a way better way, at the perfect time. I do think it’s about making a decision- using our will & our intellect. I’ll put you in prayer that you can surrender yourself to God, & start to see Him working in your life.
I had a similar experience, again for many years, and I would consider it broken. Here's my view. God doesn't want us to be hungry, but He allows it so that we will be hungry for the right things. You are extremely hungry for connection with God, and He is keeping His distance. Maybe God wants you to allow other human beings to be the ones to feed you, and be Christ to you. It hurts when human beings fail us or hurt us, and that is important because that means their choices mean something. Your heartbreak might be happening because God is keeping an invitation open to somebody who is meant to fill the hole in your heart. Maybe you're meant to endure the loneliness right alongside Jesus in order to keep the door open to that person. Maybe God wants you to open your heart to others in a way that is scary because you might get hurt, and that will teach you something more intimate about the heart of God. Loneliness is just like being hungry. We receive perfect food in the eucharist, but we still become physically hungry, and will die if we don't eat. When we get the nutrition we need after a long fast, sometimes our senses are more aware of the mercy of God in those moments than we are when we are receiving the literal bread of life. We are very small limited beings, and that's how God created us to glorify Him. The way I see it, when it comes to food, you need to trust God enough to know that if you eat the healthy food that's in front of you, that won't mean God feeds you in the eucharist less, it just means God's feeding you in the eucharist HIS way, which sometimes involves physically giving you delicious food. In the same way, you need to trust God enough to know that if you fill your loneliness by connecting with other people, that won't mean that God won't fill your loneliness with His own sacred heart, it just means He will do it His way, which sometimes involves other people imitating Him, and getting to love you in a way that matters. Trust God and be brave.
I have been feeling hopeless because I lost my job after moving out of state away from my family. Now I'm moving back because I can't find another job here, but couldn't find a job there before either.
I know how that feels. I've often been in that situation. Joblessness wont last forever. You may have to take something less than ideal to tide over but you ALWAYS will be at where your lowest expectation allow you to be at. So keep HOPE up, it will seek you back. The battle is the Lord's.
We can always do good though we might struggle to be paid for it. The are always children to care for, widows to be supported, the sick and the dying to be prayed for. We can give ourselves purpose by going good in as far as we can.
@@jeneuweenlaf948 I would love to find something to tide me over, but can't even get interviews and I have physical limitations that keep from from just taking any job available.
Should I be expecting something to happen? I find it hard to feel hope while living with the feeling that I’m being ignored. It bothers me that you seem to think God ignoring me is my fault. I haven’t done anything to deserve to be ignored. It doesn’t make any sense to pray for God’s help when I always get ignored.
It’s impossible to be ignored by God! He loves you in a way you can’t even imagine! He’s crazy about you! He loves you as if you were the only person on earth! Talk to Him as you were talking to a friend (actually He is your Best Friend) and tell Him exactly how you feel: “Jesus, show me your love, show me that you care”. He doesn’t resist a sincere heart. God bless you! May the Virgin Mary always protect you and guide you to Her Beloved Son!
@@AnaClaudia-zr7zk if only I could believe that. It’s hard to talk to Him as if He were a friend since I don’t expect Him to respond to anything I would have to say
@@AnaClaudia-zr7zk I’ve done that. I gave Him a chance. Yet I was still ignored. Why should I continue to seek God when God hasn’t given me any indication that He hears me when I call out to Him? What sense does that make?
It's like nothing is exciting anymore, you can no longer enjoy the things you once did. You feel there's nothing to look forward to...are these your feelings and maybe no one around understands you?
Fr. Mark Mary - one of those guys (in particular Catholic guys (or gals for that matter)) who make what is otherwise an Internet dumpster fire worth while.
Last confession I was told that God does not change people. Only I can change myself I was told. This was in response to me despairing of committing the same sin even though I was praying and doing all the sacraments. So is this priest theologically wrong because he sure shocked me and made me despair even more or am I wrong??
Some people are instantly freed from sin others not so. Many or most people are not instantly freed its a long process like climbing a mountain with many lessons on the way. The key is prayer and immediately turning to God for aid when tempted or when you fall even if you dont want to turn, even if you half want not to be kept on straight and narrow. Just constantly give that little flicker of will to God. The lord strengthen your spirit and inner man. May the Holy Spirit continually nudge you in the right direction.
You may have misunderstood him, I think. God can indeed change you but he requires your permission and cooperation to help you. So it is you and God working as a team.
You feel despair, somewhat hopeless... Fear not! God, has provided all that you need to win. I see you're willing to do the hard work. You just need to have the right processes and you will be fine.
1 Corinthians 15 kJV ✝️🩸 1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: Romans 3 kJV 🩸 23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Titus 2 kJV 🎺🌥️ 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 1 Thessalonians 14 KJV 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
You're feeling so broken and confused. So many questions in your head, asking what you missed, where you went wrong, feeling so broken hearted like you felt you weren't there enough... Is this how you feel?
I just asked God for a miracle. I never wanted to be a mother. I didn't want what my parents had. I didn't want my (hypothetical) children to go through what I went through. I've given up hope that I could ever be a mother because it seems so impossible --the standard I would want for my children vs the example I was shown in how I was raised. I think God calls me to marriage and there is someone He has in mind for me. It's all too much. How could my family and I all get our needs met and be happy? How could I give them what I never got (and still need, myself)? My heart already hurts from the lack of love received. I can't face more lack. No one seems to understand this struggle. The elderly dismiss the burdens of motherhood and make the struggle sound insignificant. The young parents make it sound like slavery and drudgery. How can I hope-- that it's possible, that I can do it, that I won't be committing a form of self-suicide by killing my own spirit (the way my parents tried to kill my spirit for so many years). It would be so much easier to be alone, just me to think about. But I think (I fear) God wants more for me. How can I hope? How can I trust? How can I desire what God desires? Giving up would be so much easier.
There are many people without children . That is not the only path. Don't have children so you will be loved. Work out your own issues first. Don't have children so they will be burdened by your doubts then they will grow up to pass on to their children what you feel. If you want children do it for the right reason. If not be at peace knowing there are many other ways to fulfilling your purpose in life ❤
You do it day by day little by little. Dont concentrate on the big task and be overwhelmed. Just concentrate on the little task for today. What are you being called to do today? What do you need to do to keep your life on the rails today. Be merciful to yourself and kind. Perhaps you cannot do as much as others.
You fear you won't be enough... You fear you don't have what it takes for the journey of parenthood and no one around seems to understand your concerns, they don't understand what you have been through and how overwhelming it can be. You deeply really care about your vocation and you want to do things right, you don't want your children to go through the pain you did. Is this how you feel?
I have like six sins, three of them are deadly sins that I have confessed to my confessor ( 1997, 1999, 2003, the one from 2003 I did not even know that it is a sin until recently which is sterilization). My personal advice to anyone is DO NOT STOP PRAYING. GOD IS ALWAYS FAITHFUL AND MERCIFUL. Now, I know the raw unfiltered TRUTH. I couldn't be dead like seven or nine times by now and God has always protected me, He did save me for a reason why you may asked... it was to reveal to me the TRUTH of my wrong doings. God sometimes reveals things little by little ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Bunch of people in these comments apologising for the Pope's fallibility. For 2 people actively engaging in homosexual acts to come together and receive a blessing from priests is unacceptable. Why has he made this rule for couples and not throuples? If a man has 3 girlfriends, can they also be blessed together on the alter? What if it's 3 men? He has done this to sell out Jesus for the majority vote. It's a disgrace. Orthodoxy is clearly more aligned with the disciples than Catholicism. James and Peter would've spat on the floor at this.
@@56Tyskie So you think Jesus wants 2 men unashamedly sodomizing each other to get blessed in God's church and go off sodomizing each other again? Next you'll be saying we should bless 4 men at the alter who are openly in a 4-way homosexual relationship. Or what about a man and 2 women?
Seek and you shall find - keep looking. Find people to help you. Get yourself a Bible pray to have your spiritual eyes and ears opened. Pick a gospel from New Testament. Read it slowly and thoughtfully. Pray the lords prayer on a regular basis. Start practising acts of charity. Slowly turn the ship of your life around. Turn to goid. Turn away from evil.
Some good stuff here, as with any sermon, which brings me to a story that may bring some additional light. Although I will never claim allegiance to the Catholic Church, your routines I think play a substantial role in providing stability to a community. But, as with me personally, one should not enter a relationship with "you" the church with set expectations as "you" will only disappoint. I am human and Jesus set me free, Gal. 5:1-6, and as these verses say, "I will fight to stay free." No one likes what seems to be a restless and argumentative wife and it is why now I warn people: "Still waters run deep." The Catholic Church to me is very much like this, and it is why I will not ally with you knowing we have a distinct different angle on the LGBTQ lifestyle. This is not to say I do not appreciate reading in the news what the Catholic Church is doing and insinuating in the fight between good and evil, but I will not bring myself to the firing inferno I believe you've allowed yourselves to be cast into; which is the point. Did you? When I was a child, my mother took me to a few different churches; and then when I became the ruler of my own house, I went to a lot more. When I was a child, I would go and then fall asleep during services. The droning on killed me, and that was a Baptist church or Presbyterian, which is why I've mentioned coat tails to Bishop Barron in the past. The Beatitudes were an annual event, and after the first and second year, garnered an eye roll from me. I say these things because I agree with your question mark, is this how a congregation of free people in Christ should respond? What I will say that was good, is that seeds were planted and not necessarily the one the pastors intended, but as Paul preached, it does not matter for it is God who makes them grow. I pray your people learn to be freer in what God has promised us with the leadership of Jesus Christ. One more point, that might get the ball rolling. Another reason I am uncomfortable with the Catholic Church is that you have priests and nuns, and that your commitment is to deny the very love and life that Jesus came to save, the love between a man and a woman so that the human race would never go extinct; it is polarizing, and the support of the LGBTQ is the exclamation point. Priests in Judaism marry, it might even be herasy to deny themselves in such a way. (I do not know, I am not Jewish and I'm not going for a DNA test to fight the fight.) The denial of those aspects of your natural organism is perhaps leading many children to question the very simplest of their nature that takes training to overcome the nerves, if they want to be respected for their ideas and not what their body will reveal, 2 Peter 1:5-8.
“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
1 Corinthians 15 kJV ✝️🩸
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
1 Peter 1 kJV 🩸
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
Ephesians 1 kJV 🩸
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Thank you, Fr Mark. I've been praying for the same thing for 12 years now, and while I do see little changes, I have got to that point of thinking that maybe this is just how it is and perhaps how it will always be. But I still want the BIG turn around.
There won't be a big turnaround, God works in his own time which is a lot slower than us or maybe he doesn't want to Grant with your praying for
@@buddybrown4691 it's statements like that, that cause people to turn and walk away from the Church. I've heard those statements many many times. It sows seeds of doubt in people's minds and causes them to give up in despair. You don't know what a person might be praying for. It could be a parent praying for their child, and you just told them that God may not want to answer their prayer. Please stop telling people these things. It's unhelpful and does nothing to encourage faith and hope. It only promotes resentment and discouragement. Also, how do you know how God works? God deals with every situation on its own merit. One minute he may answer immediately, other times, he answers slowly. So you have no clue, but you immediately go for the "God doesnt work like that" answer. How do you know? You dont. Fortunately, for me I've run into enough of the nay sayers in my time so I'll not bother to give your statement too much attention, but, in future, don't try to put words in God's mouth. Encourage faith...encourage hope.
@buddybrown4691 God doesn't just say " maybe" to a prayer. Even if God says "no" it's because it's against the will for our life,will lead us to sin or simply is not the time.
@@buddybrown4691 Another thing to consider. St Monica prayed for St Augustine for some ridiculous amount of years before he finally had his conversion. Do you think God didn't want to answer a mother's prayer for her son?
Its in our nature to want instant changes but its not often how it works. Nature and God work imperceptibly. You cant see the tree growing if you watch a day but cone back in a year and you will see a difference.
My grandmother prayed for 25 years for my father to confess. I prayed for 15 years with the same intention. Sometimes it's really too hard to wait for prayers to be answered and stay in hope... You almost don't rejoice when they are answered, because you spent yourself waiting for them to be answered. I am thankful, but so exhausted...

I didn't know you can pray for people do to things.
I thought I had a lot of hope because in the darkest times I usually believe the lord knows best and he will take care of me and provide whatever is needed. But turns out I don't have as much as I thought, I usually go to mass and feel numb, and although I don't feel like it is my duty as a Christian (I am happy to go), sometimes I don't appreciate it as much as I should. The lord is dying for my sins and coming back to life every time I go to mass, right under my nose and I am thinking about what will I make for dinner. So thank you Father for your wise words, hope they make a long-lasting change in my faith!
Thank you Father Mark-Mary for this message! I have been diagnosed with cancer, underwent surgery and now getting chemo, never did i ask God why, I just prayed for each phase of this chapter, and I realized that although I will not know the why, I know that this storm has brought me closer to our Lord. I find the homely and every biblical verse to make a stronger connection between me and God, even bringing out my falls which before I would have not acknowledged. So even during the storms, don’t loose hope, God is great and his plan for us even greater!
This hits home for me on so many levels, Fr. Mark. The Holy Spirit, the Blessed Mother, and my patron Saint Joseph always keep me picking myself up and not giving up. Thank you for this refreshing perspective.
Honestly I still have hope in spite of my mother being in hospice care due to cancer for God to heal her. I pray for God to grant her a new lease on life. Its a promise I made to the Lord and my mother the promise I will never stop praying.
The lord be with your mothers spirit and close to your heart.
May our dear Lord heal your mother and fill your heart with hope.Amen.
I have no doubt that God is listening to my prayers - the return of my children, grandchildren and their families, including all my siblings and their families, back to the Catholic Faith.
Who do I have so much hope? I believe it must be from God - along with Faith.
I have no idea why God has given me these virtues. But He has - and I am grateful.
God is at work even though nothing much is happening. I don’t care if it even happens while I am on this earth. I am 70 - so maybe after I die.
But I have absolute hope that all those I pray for all people will happen. Because it is God’s will - He loves all mankind!!
So pray, pray, pray with great Hope. 🙏✝️😊
Fr Mark, greatly appreciate your encouragement to keep hoping. I’ve recently had some dryness in prayer but will keep the faith and keep at it!
The Lord bless you and help you keep on keeping on.
Father: Two Dr. Phil thumbs up from me. Each time I watch your videos you nail it for me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart father in explaining hope. Give yourself credit. Keep up the good work.
Definitely feel like this was a sign for me, thank you.
God bless you Fr. Mark! -Thank you very much
Amen I pray that I can keep my hope and faith in the Lord
What we want vs what our Lord wants for us can be very different. Thank you Fr
Thanks Father Mark-Mary. It can be so hard and frustrating to repeatedly fail. But you're right in that we have to continue and realize God is at work. I appreciate your insight.
Thank you for this! Your last few videos have been so relevant to what's been going on personally. God bless you Fr. Mark Mary, and thank you.
Brilliant Thank you Helping me to think outside the box 🙏
I needed to hear that. Thank you so much
I struggle with hope because I have seen so much long term trauma and pain as a child. Numbness is a self defense mechanism. There is truth to your words.
Still I am weak and struggle, and I see the weakness as it weakness my faith to cling and believe in what feels safe. I need prayer for this.
Yes, yes, yes.
I definitely needed this. When several bad things happen from across the world to our personal lives, it can be so overwhelmingly pessimistic. Not enough people remember hope. Hope has inherent joy to it. Hope keeps us alive when everything should crush us. Hope saves us.
More of us should spread hope, especially during this time of year. Reminding someone to hope is contagious. And I’m happy I got the motivation to do so today. Hopefully you did too!
Thank you. God is at work leading us to this video. Thank you Jesus.
Please pray for me. These past few weeks I am ashamed to say that I have been feeling hopeless
I understand. I'm going through the same thing, aggravated by disability and terrible disappointment. I'll pray for you when I'm through typing this. Hang on. Christ is risen.
Please don't feel shame I feel the same way but we must not give up God Bless
Thank you, Father, for this wonderful homily! It was really a confirmation of an intuition I had last time I received Jesus: “Hope. Pray for hope”. And after this homily I have no doubts that Hope is what I most need right now. Thank you, Father, again. May the Holy Spirit always guide you, through Mary!🌹
Thank you for this inspiring message. I really needed to hear it. It spoke to me. I will pray more that God give me hope for answers to my prayers and an increase in my trust in Him.
Father Mark thank you! Exactly what this newly arrived soul to the Catholic faith needed today ( I am walking through my beginnings into being a full Catholic next September!
Hallelujah
Thank you so much. Helped me out a lot! We can be sure that God never changes even though our feelings do.
Amen, Amen
Hope must be supplemented with action.
Oftentimes the only "action" is pray, wait, and hope, because nothing else can be done.
@@BitsyBee Fine line between acknowledging actual limitations and just being too comfortable.
YES IT HAS SOMETHING SHOCKING!!!!!!!
Hope is def a tough thing to hold on to.
Word.
Thank you. Super Hope
Right on the head of the nail.
Happy Advent father Mike ! Que Dieu vous bénisse ! ❤
Thank you so much for motivating us and still being realistic! We must accept the reality but trust that there's more good to come! We must give God a chance. Highly appreciate it, Fr. Mark-Mary and Team Ascension!
Thank you and God bless you, Fr. Mark-Mary.
Come, Lord Jesus. Maranatha :))) We are pilgrims. Poco a poco vamos a llegar!!! Gracias :)))) Dios les bendiga infinitamente :)))
Amen. May God bless you and yours mightly this Christmas season.
Amén
thank you for this Fr Mark Mary
Thank you Fr. I found Habits for Holiness edifying.
Excellent video!! ❤ Let us come to Him like children.
Thank you Father, I needed this today.
Thank you so much! We are like children, in need of encouregement, you are awsome, super pastoral, God bless you, happy Christmas
Thank you Father Mark-Mary.
Im giving up. Im just disappointed with myself. Losing patience, my worfs came from my mouth like i never pray, or be close to God.
🙏🙏🙏.Thank you
"God is at work and I'm gonna keep showin' up." That should be a poster at every church entrance.
thank you, Fr Mark Mary!
Amen
God Bless
Exceptional.
I experienced a 6.5 magnitude earthquake last night while I was staying up late, and I'm just glad I ran out with a box of instant noodles.
Amen
Merry Christmas!
I needed this, thank you!
Only the clergy & their actions are letting us faithful down.Its they who are in need of hope please preach to them.
This was like dropping a bomb on the devil.... Thanks again Fr and thank God 😅
I really appreciate you making this video. However, hope has disappointed. Nothing had changed that I need to change (at least the things that I have no power over). I guess I just don't have enough faith (anymore). But like Peter said, where else will I go?
Some souls pass through long periods of darkness and despair here on earth as a refinement. I pray the lord keeps your souls and sends a pray of light for you
@@user-id5tm1dp9idon't. Christ is risen.
Jesus loves you
I have been praying for something since I was 15, I am 44 now, I don't know what I did wrong, what if I am praying wrong and I won't ever get anything.
Ask God if you should continue praying for the thing. Consider if it is Gods will. Somethings are Gods will but take a very long time. Some struggles are long lasting tasks which build character and endurance. Try shorter arrow prayers for thing you desire. Recruit a friend to help you pray. Trust in Gods ultimate Goodness and Mercy thats a key thing isnt it.
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🥹 oh my! This is just what I needed to hear!
I have been living the dark night of the soul for the past 15 years. (spiritual despair and loneliness) Its been very consistent. Is there a secret prayer to break it?
Maybe a decision is the answer? A decision to have hope, to pray for hope and then to act as if all will be well. We have to act in a way that demonstrates we do indeed believe. This has helped me a lot. I too had a couple of decades of dark night of the soul. Only when I finally said ‘Ok God, I give up- my will/desires have only brought me misery- from now on Your will be done,’ & then started to act as if His will was the best thing that ever happened/will happen to me (which it is!), did things start to look up. Things are infinitely better (not that all problems have disappeared- some have, others I can see God working with), though I still have a temptation every now & then to despair- at which time I just decide to decide again. The irony too is that the more I give up wanting things the way I want them & when I want them, the more I look back & see God has filled/is filling the desires of my heart in a way better way, at the perfect time. I do think it’s about making a decision- using our will & our intellect. I’ll put you in prayer that you can surrender yourself to God, & start to see Him working in your life.
I had a similar experience, again for many years, and I would consider it broken. Here's my view. God doesn't want us to be hungry, but He allows it so that we will be hungry for the right things. You are extremely hungry for connection with God, and He is keeping His distance. Maybe God wants you to allow other human beings to be the ones to feed you, and be Christ to you. It hurts when human beings fail us or hurt us, and that is important because that means their choices mean something. Your heartbreak might be happening because God is keeping an invitation open to somebody who is meant to fill the hole in your heart. Maybe you're meant to endure the loneliness right alongside Jesus in order to keep the door open to that person. Maybe God wants you to open your heart to others in a way that is scary because you might get hurt, and that will teach you something more intimate about the heart of God. Loneliness is just like being hungry. We receive perfect food in the eucharist, but we still become physically hungry, and will die if we don't eat. When we get the nutrition we need after a long fast, sometimes our senses are more aware of the mercy of God in those moments than we are when we are receiving the literal bread of life. We are very small limited beings, and that's how God created us to glorify Him. The way I see it, when it comes to food, you need to trust God enough to know that if you eat the healthy food that's in front of you, that won't mean God feeds you in the eucharist less, it just means God's feeding you in the eucharist HIS way, which sometimes involves physically giving you delicious food. In the same way, you need to trust God enough to know that if you fill your loneliness by connecting with other people, that won't mean that God won't fill your loneliness with His own sacred heart, it just means He will do it His way, which sometimes involves other people imitating Him, and getting to love you in a way that matters. Trust God and be brave.
I have been feeling hopeless because I lost my job after moving out of state away from my family. Now I'm moving back because I can't find another job here, but couldn't find a job there before either.
I know how that feels. I've often been in that situation. Joblessness wont last forever. You may have to take something less than ideal to tide over but you ALWAYS will be at where your lowest expectation allow you to be at. So keep HOPE up, it will seek you back. The battle is the Lord's.
We can always do good though we might struggle to be paid for it. The are always children to care for, widows to be supported, the sick and the dying to be prayed for. We can give ourselves purpose by going good in as far as we can.
@@jeneuweenlaf948 I would love to find something to tide me over, but can't even get interviews and I have physical limitations that keep from from just taking any job available.
Father Mark, could you advise me can I save souls if I can what do I do thank you
Should I be expecting something to happen? I find it hard to feel hope while living with the feeling that I’m being ignored. It bothers me that you seem to think God ignoring me is my fault. I haven’t done anything to deserve to be ignored. It doesn’t make any sense to pray for God’s help when I always get ignored.
It’s impossible to be ignored by God! He loves you in a way you can’t even imagine! He’s crazy about you! He loves you as if you were the only person on earth! Talk to Him as you were talking to a friend (actually He is your Best Friend) and tell Him exactly how you feel: “Jesus, show me your love, show me that you care”. He doesn’t resist a sincere heart.
God bless you! May the Virgin Mary always protect you and guide you to Her Beloved Son!
@@AnaClaudia-zr7zk if only I could believe that. It’s hard to talk to Him as if He were a friend since I don’t expect Him to respond to anything I would have to say
@@markantonelli53 So it seems to me that you are the one who is ignoring God. Why don’t you give Him a chance to come into your life?
@@AnaClaudia-zr7zk I’ve done that. I gave Him a chance. Yet I was still ignored. Why should I continue to seek God when God hasn’t given me any indication that He hears me when I call out to Him? What sense does that make?
@@AnaClaudia-zr7zk like I said, I haven’t done anything to merit God rejecting me. I don’t understand why you’re telling me it’s my fault that He did
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I don't even know what to hope for anymore, the holidays don't really mean anything anymore. I'm just numb,
Lord have mercy and illumen your darkness.
It's like nothing is exciting anymore, you can no longer enjoy the things you once did. You feel there's nothing to look forward to...are these your feelings and maybe no one around understands you?
good
Fr. Mark Mary - one of those guys (in particular Catholic guys (or gals for that matter)) who make what is otherwise an Internet dumpster fire worth while.
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Last confession I was told that God does not change people. Only I can change myself I was told. This was in response to me despairing of committing the same sin even though I was praying and doing all the sacraments. So is this priest theologically wrong because he sure shocked me and made me despair even more or am I wrong??
Some people are instantly freed from sin others not so. Many or most people are not instantly freed its a long process like climbing a mountain with many lessons on the way. The key is prayer and immediately turning to God for aid when tempted or when you fall even if you dont want to turn, even if you half want not to be kept on straight and narrow. Just constantly give that little flicker of will to God. The lord strengthen your spirit and inner man. May the Holy Spirit continually nudge you in the right direction.
You may have misunderstood him, I think. God can indeed change you but he requires your permission and cooperation to help you. So it is you and God working as a team.
You feel despair, somewhat hopeless...
Fear not! God, has provided all that you need to win.
I see you're willing to do the hard work. You just need to have the right processes and you will be fine.
My son passed away by suicide 2 weeks ago. I can’t imagine hope. I’m so shattered and confused.
1 Corinthians 15 kJV ✝️🩸
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
Romans 3 kJV 🩸
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Titus 2 kJV 🎺🌥️
13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
1 Thessalonians 14 KJV
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
You're feeling so broken and confused. So many questions in your head, asking what you missed, where you went wrong, feeling so broken hearted like you felt you weren't there enough...
Is this how you feel?
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I just asked God for a miracle. I never wanted to be a mother. I didn't want what my parents had. I didn't want my (hypothetical) children to go through what I went through.
I've given up hope that I could ever be a mother because it seems so impossible --the standard I would want for my children vs the example I was shown in how I was raised. I think God calls me to marriage and there is someone He has in mind for me. It's all too much. How could my family and I all get our needs met and be happy? How could I give them what I never got (and still need, myself)?
My heart already hurts from the lack of love received. I can't face more lack.
No one seems to understand this struggle. The elderly dismiss the burdens of motherhood and make the struggle sound insignificant. The young parents make it sound like slavery and drudgery.
How can I hope-- that it's possible, that I can do it, that I won't be committing a form of self-suicide by killing my own spirit (the way my parents tried to kill my spirit for so many years). It would be so much easier to be alone, just me to think about. But I think (I fear) God wants more for me. How can I hope? How can I trust? How can I desire what God desires?
Giving up would be so much easier.
There are many people without children . That is not the only path. Don't have children so you will be loved. Work out your own issues first. Don't have children so they will be burdened by your doubts then they will grow up to pass on to their children what you feel. If you want children do it for the right reason. If not be at peace knowing there are many other ways to fulfilling your purpose in life ❤
You do it day by day little by little. Dont concentrate on the big task and be overwhelmed. Just concentrate on the little task for today. What are you being called to do today? What do you need to do to keep your life on the rails today. Be merciful to yourself and kind. Perhaps you cannot do as much as others.
You fear you won't be enough... You fear you don't have what it takes for the journey of parenthood and no one around seems to understand your concerns, they don't understand what you have been through and how overwhelming it can be.
You deeply really care about your vocation and you want to do things right, you don't want your children to go through the pain you did.
Is this how you feel?
@@Nuez234 Yes, that sums it up!
@@taradonelson9242 I think I can understand, will you be open to me learning more? I could teach you about what I have learnt on my own journey.
I have like six sins, three of them are deadly sins that I have confessed to my confessor ( 1997, 1999, 2003, the one from 2003 I did not even know that it is a sin until recently which is sterilization).
My personal advice to anyone is DO NOT STOP PRAYING. GOD IS ALWAYS FAITHFUL AND MERCIFUL. Now, I know the raw unfiltered TRUTH. I couldn't be dead like seven or nine times by now and God has always protected me, He did save me for a reason why you may asked... it was to reveal to me the TRUTH of my wrong doings. God sometimes reveals things little by little ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Ty For your wonderful encouragement
Are you feeling aware of what you are feeling? :)
I will hope again when the Lord gives us a new pope.
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The pope went woke
Sad day for the community 😔
What is your view on todays news about the church now allowing same sex blessings? I am perplexed!
Read the full context. Sin cannot be blessed.
Sin can not be blessed.
Try reading beyond headlines for once
Bunch of people in these comments apologising for the Pope's fallibility. For 2 people actively engaging in homosexual acts to come together and receive a blessing from priests is unacceptable. Why has he made this rule for couples and not throuples? If a man has 3 girlfriends, can they also be blessed together on the alter? What if it's 3 men? He has done this to sell out Jesus for the majority vote. It's a disgrace. Orthodoxy is clearly more aligned with the disciples than Catholicism. James and Peter would've spat on the floor at this.
@@56Tyskie So you think Jesus wants 2 men unashamedly sodomizing each other to get blessed in God's church and go off sodomizing each other again? Next you'll be saying we should bless 4 men at the alter who are openly in a 4-way homosexual relationship. Or what about a man and 2 women?
what does an outsider do.... have SHOUTED for a request for a knock....response is nothing more than an echo back of infinite empty darkness....?
Seek and you shall find - keep looking. Find people to help you. Get yourself a Bible pray to have your spiritual eyes and ears opened. Pick a gospel from New Testament. Read it slowly and thoughtfully. Pray the lords prayer on a regular basis. Start practising acts of charity. Slowly turn the ship of your life around. Turn to goid. Turn away from evil.
Some good stuff here, as with any sermon, which brings me to a story that may bring some additional light. Although I will never claim allegiance to the Catholic Church, your routines I think play a substantial role in providing stability to a community. But, as with me personally, one should not enter a relationship with "you" the church with set expectations as "you" will only disappoint. I am human and Jesus set me free, Gal. 5:1-6, and as these verses say, "I will fight to stay free." No one likes what seems to be a restless and argumentative wife and it is why now I warn people: "Still waters run deep." The Catholic Church to me is very much like this, and it is why I will not ally with you knowing we have a distinct different angle on the LGBTQ lifestyle. This is not to say I do not appreciate reading in the news what the Catholic Church is doing and insinuating in the fight between good and evil, but I will not bring myself to the firing inferno I believe you've allowed yourselves to be cast into; which is the point. Did you?
When I was a child, my mother took me to a few different churches; and then when I became the ruler of my own house, I went to a lot more. When I was a child, I would go and then fall asleep during services. The droning on killed me, and that was a Baptist church or Presbyterian, which is why I've mentioned coat tails to Bishop Barron in the past. The Beatitudes were an annual event, and after the first and second year, garnered an eye roll from me. I say these things because I agree with your question mark, is this how a congregation of free people in Christ should respond? What I will say that was good, is that seeds were planted and not necessarily the one the pastors intended, but as Paul preached, it does not matter for it is God who makes them grow. I pray your people learn to be freer in what God has promised us with the leadership of Jesus Christ.
One more point, that might get the ball rolling. Another reason I am uncomfortable with the Catholic Church is that you have priests and nuns, and that your commitment is to deny the very love and life that Jesus came to save, the love between a man and a woman so that the human race would never go extinct; it is polarizing, and the support of the LGBTQ is the exclamation point. Priests in Judaism marry, it might even be herasy to deny themselves in such a way. (I do not know, I am not Jewish and I'm not going for a DNA test to fight the fight.) The denial of those aspects of your natural organism is perhaps leading many children to question the very simplest of their nature that takes training to overcome the nerves, if they want to be respected for their ideas and not what their body will reveal, 2 Peter 1:5-8.
It must be very difficult to face your audience 😏