Friends of Saint Gaspar Bertoni

04/11/2015

29/10/2015

"I Am Not Alone"

We all experience pain and sadness, times when we feel alone. Some of the songs that minister to me the most are the one’s that remind me God is still there, He see’s me, knows the number of hairs on my head and has caught every tear I’ve cried (Luke 12:37, Psalm 56:8). I love what Isaiah 43:1-2 (NKJV) says,

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.”

What a sweet reminder. We are His and no matter what we may go through on this side of Heaven, we are never alone. Our God goes before us and is forever Immanuel, God with us (Isaiah 7:14).

27/10/2015

"When You Walk In The Room"

I’m so thankful for God’s presence. It heals, restores, and brings peace in the darkest of circumstances. We read in 2 Chronicles how when King Solomon invited the presence of God into the temple, the presence (glory) of the Lord filled the temple as with a cloud so great that not even the priests could stay in it. It was all too overwhelming for them (2 Chronicles 5:14). But that’s how awesome God’s presence is!

When God walks into a room, the atmosphere shifts. So whatever you may be in need of today, seek His presence. There’s truly nothing like it.

26/10/2015

"How Majestic"

It was a dream come true to be able to sing this song at the Majestic theatre. It was given to me by some of the other writers and I was just in awe of God’s goodness that not only had He opened the door for the recording to take place at the Majestic theatre, but also that He allowed me to be a part of this song, “How Majestic.” The lyrics stir up my heart in worship…

“The Heavens tell how great You are
How majestic is Your name
Jesus, wonderful, powerful”

I just love this song’s message. God is amazing, beautiful, wonderful and powerful. All of creation and the Heavens sing His praises and we have the incredible opportunity to join in that song. What a gift!

With one voice, let’s join with Heaven and sing His praises today. He is worthy. He is holy. He is majestic!

25/10/2015

"Always Enough"

A lot of times in the middle of something very trying and difficult, we come to the end of our own strength. And though these kinds of moments can seem like too much to bear, they can be a beautiful place of surrender. God loves to step in during those seasons of life and reveal Himself in a deeper way. Why? Because He loves you and calls you His own, His child.

We have to remember and realize that we do not serve a distant God but a Heavenly Father. He never fails and in Him, we find all that we could ever need. So don’t try to take matters into your own hands and do things on your own strength. We may fail, but our God never does.

Let Psalm 16:2 (NIV) be your heart’s prayer, “I say to the Lord, You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.”

Truly, if we have Him, we have everything. So draw closer to Him for as you do, He will draw closer to you (James 4:8).

23/10/2015

"Keeper Of My Heart"

It’s easy to become fearful and scared in the times we are living in today. But know this, the news might be saying our world is falling apart but here’s the truth, the God Who formed the heavens and the earth holds your heart. He is guarding you, knows your coming and going and is never far or out of reach.

That’s really the message of this song. The Message Version of Psalm 121:7-8 puts it this way, “God guards you from every evil, He guards your very life. He guards you when you leave and when you return, He guards you now, He guards you always.”

You are guarded by God Himself. He will always be by your side and you can live without fear because He loves you and His perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).

So lift your eyes up to the Maker of the Heavens. He has overcome. He will never fail you. He is guarding you and is the keeper of your heart forever.

22/10/2015

"Only Your Love"

The love of our God is amazing. It’s higher than we can imagine and deeper than we could ever know. I love what the Apostle Paul says about it in Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV) …

“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

What a beautiful promise! No matter where you might be in life today, or the circumstances that might be surrounding you, you can rest in the truth that God loves you. Nothing you could ever do will change that. And His love is so powerful, so beautiful, so amazing, that nothing and no one could ever change it.

Just thinking about that leaves me in awe that a God so great and amazing would know my name, call me His child, and give me His love. And in this moment, He is saying the same to you.

Dwell on this Scripture today about His love…

“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NKJV)

21/10/2015

"Breathe On Us"

This song is a cry for God to move and stir up revival. It’s about asking for Him to come and seeking Him in a land that is dry. In Psalm 63:1 (NKJV) we read,

“O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.”

I love inviting God to renew me and fill me with His Spirit. We can all find ourselves in situations where we might feel dry, longing for our heart’s thirst to be quenched by the living water of Jesus. And that’s what this song is birthed out of. It’s a heart cry song.

But here’s the beautiful thing, God is ready to do so much more than we could ever ask or think. He loves us more than we could ever know and His desire is to breathe on us. So seek Him always, because He will always respond.

20/10/2015

"Hands To The Heavens"

This is a song that helps to set the atmosphere in a room and build expectancy for God to move. When we call on the name of Jesus, He comes, draws closer to us and surrounds us with His presence. It’s a powerful thing, whether personal or corporate.

At work, at home, at the store, in church, in every area of our lives, our prayer should always be to invite God in and fill us with everything that He is.

Like the lyrics in the bridge say, let our hearts continually cry…

“Come like a rushing wind
Come light the fire again
Come like a burning flame
Have Your way
Have Your way”

That’s really what it’s all about. It’s in our surrender, that God can have his way. He can come and move in every area of our lives.

Isaiah 25:9 (NKJV) says this, “Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”

This God we serve, He desires to be with us every moment of every day. But before He can move, we have to surrender. There has to be an exchange in our worship where we give God our brokenness, hurts and pain and He replaces it with His peace, love and joy.

So draw closer to God today, lift up your hands to the Heavens and surrender your heart to Him. He is all that you will ever need and in His presence there is fullness of joy and life forevermore (Psalm 16:11).

19/10/2015

"Majestic (Revisited)"

It is important to look back at times and remember the miracles and prayers God has answered on our behalf. Some of those experiences have been healing of diseases, breakthroughs in our families or working something difficult out with a friend. This God who walked with us through those seasons, is the same God who is with us in our season today and will move mountains again. I have noticed in my own life that I forget to revisit major breakthroughs that God has caused—when we DO revisit and thank Him for these breakthroughs, it does something to stir up our faith and cause us to believe for more. God loves to pour out His goodness and faithfulness.

Last year I was walking through a hard relational struggle with a dear friend. We needed God’s help to know how to resolve an issue. I had seen God bring wisdom and resolve things in the past, so I knew in my heart that I needed to pray. As I was praying one morning, I realized it was more like whining to the Lord. I felt in my Spirit that I wasn’t praying and believing for it to change, I was really just complaining to the Lord. I quickly realized I needed to change my perspective to have faith instead of fear. I began to press in and ask for breakthrough and declare the Word of God over the situation. It completely broke that day, and we had clarity and wisdom on how to move forward. God moved. He loves to do miracles and answer prayers. So keep pressing in and asking with faith, instead of complaints.

I pray that as you listen through the different songs of this new album, Majestic Revisited, God’s presence is strong and you are not only reminded of incredible moments when you’ve seen God move, but you experience new depths of His presence. I pray that prayers would be answered and you would see tangible evidence of God’s faithfulness. No matter where you are today or what is going on in your life, nothing is too big for God. He is near, He loves you, and He is for you. Seek Him, pray with faith and watch for His goodness.

29/09/2015

IT JUST MAY NOT BE TIME

After months of attempting to become pregnant, the young mother finally conceives and is now excited about carrying and bringing new life into the world. She begins to imagine all the things she will experience in the years to come as this child grows and develops.

In the fifth month she begins to experience pains and contractions to the point she is almost convinced it is time to begin pushing the infant inside of her, out. Doctors warn her against pushing because the infant has not sufficiently shaped into what he or she will be, since the normal term for a pregnancy is nine months.

If the baby were born now, not only would it be underdeveloped but there would also be the potential that he or she could suffer serious health risks and future side effects. The young mother heeds the advice of the doctors, endures weeks of uncomfortable bed rest, and then delivers a healthy baby at the appointed time.

There are many believers in the body of Christ who are filled with purpose and destiny, who know there is a calling of God on their life, and are pregnant with God’s anointing that is ready to just burst forth; however, no matter how painful it may be to experience the labor pains without actually bringing anything forth, we must each learn how to hold on and patiently wait for the right time.

It may not be the appropriate time to deliver that which is on the inside yet; therefore, we must learn to wait on God’s timing and allow Him to develop us so that we can bring forth that which will be a blessing to others, and not a stumbling block.

Jesus Christ is a perfect example of someone who patiently awaited the promise. Jesus lived in the earth for thirty years before He was anointed and released for public ministry (MAT.3.16-17). Imagine knowing that you are God in the flesh (JHN. 1.1,14), having all power and authority in your hand, but not being able to use this power because the timing was not right or had yet to be approved by God.

As believers we must learn to not get ahead of God, because the anointing upon us and in us is for the appointed time—-the time appointed by God, not us (JER.29.11)

24/09/2015

In memory of Fr Angelo Dusi, CSS