This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad. Psalm 118:24. Love and Responsibility.
You now know how the Tempter tries to deceive you, what the dangers of temptation and the terrible consequences of sin are. You now know when the Evil One is present and how to protect yourself, your darling spouse and your blessed children from his wiles. You now see how the spirit of the world denies God and glorifies the Evil One.
How do you feel knowing that Jesus personally resurrected you from the dead and that you now have life through Him, with Him and in Him?
How special are you? How great is Heaven's Love for you? The Holy Spirit is your personal Advisor. That's how special you are! He is continually sharing His wonderful gifts with you.
How special are you? Mary, mother of God and Queen of heaven and earth, is also your mother, the person who can make all of your petitions for God's greater glory come true. She has power over all of God's creation. She is in Jesus' name, in your heart, now, at this moment, to counsel you and to help you to grow in God's favor.
How special are you? Each day, Jesus invites you to be His guest at His table, where He will nourish you with His own Body and His Blood.
How special are you? Through His loving sacrament of reconciliation, Jesus is there to reconfirm His Love and His trust in you.
How special are you? If you get ill, Jesus' healing Love will embrace you.
How special are you? You have the power to bring His Love and Forgiveness to persons in the Kingdom. You have a mighty sword, your will, to help you to reign as Monarch in the Kingdom. Your heart, your mind and your body are great gifts given to you by Heaven to help make your dreams and visions in the Kingdom of God come true.
Jesus is giving you everything you need to carry out your royal duties in the Kingdom of God. With these gifts, He invites you to reign with Him over the vast kingdom that you see from within. This then, your Highness, is you, your life, your home and your heritage. This then is how much you are loved and how special you are. All this love and all these gifts have been given to you to carry out your royal duties.
28.2 Your royal duties.
What are your royal duties? With the Life and the power of Christ in you, your Highness, you are to console the suffering, to heal the sick, to improve the quality of life for God's children, to eradicate injustice, to dream dreams and receive visions to restore creation for the greater glory of your heavenly Father. Remember that Jesus tells us, "It is not those who say to me, 'Lord, Lord,' who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven." (2)
28.3 The bottom-line.
To help you further in knowing how to reign in the Kingdom of God and what you should watch for, we will now travel through three different kingdoms.
In reality, there are only two Kingdoms, The Kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness. In the journey we are about to make, these are identified as the Kingdom of God (Kingdom number 1) and the Kingdom of Satan (Kingdom number 3). The Kingdom of Man (Kingdom number 2) which I have added, is the bridge (symbolizing time) man crosses when he leaves the Kingdom of God and places his priorities above God's priorities. Every step taken to cross this bridge (Kingdom of Man) leads one further and further away from the Light (Kingdom of God) and deeper and deeper into the Darkness (Kingdom of Satan).
You will see who wears the crown in your kingdom and who wears the crown in these other kingdoms. Seeing these things, you will know beforehand with which person, institution, organization, enterprise or government you should have allegiance and with which person, institution, organization, enterprise or government you should be at war. (4) You will learn how to protect your spouse and your children from those who would destroy life and creativity in your home, this sacred “Church,” this blessed community in the Kingdom of God.
We will do this by looking at what comes forth from the mouths of these persons, institutions, organizations, enterprises or governments. We will look at what comes from their thrones, their laws and their statutes, their priorities and by looking at the effects these have on their kingdoms. As fruit identifies the tree it comes from, words from one's mouth identify the heart that speaks. Our King tells us, "There is no sound tree that produces rotten fruit, nor again a rotten tree that produces sound fruit. For every tree can be told by its own fruit: people do not pick figs from thorns, nor gather grapes from brambles. A good man draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart; a bad man draws what is bad from his store of badness. For a man's own words flow out of what fills his heart." (5)
In these kingdoms, we will see the visible signs that identify those persons who reign there. So enlightened, you will be better able to govern your Kingdom, to protect yourself and those you love from God’s enemies. There is only one kingdom that gives life, peace and happiness. The other two are comparable to living as a slave in a concentration camp or in hell itself, neither of which is your lot or the lot of your spouse, your children or your brothers and sisters.
Your Highness, St. Paul tells us, "We have been given possession of an unshakable kingdom. Let us therefore hold on to the grace we have been given and use it to worship God in the way that he finds acceptable, in reverence and fear. For our God is a consuming fire." (6)
The three kingdoms that we will visit are:
When this journey is over, your Highness, you should know a great deal more about who you are and about the world around you. Indeed, this may be the first time in your life where you actually visit your kingdom, meet your fellow countrymen and the persons in power. Be prepared for surprises, but do not panic. You always have the last word and no one can throw you out of your Kingdom or imprison you in their Kingdom unless you let him or her do it.
And now, your Highness, the Three Kingdoms. Which one do you live in? Into which kingdom have you brought your loving spouse? Your children? In which Kingdom are you raising God's family?
1 Galatians 2:20.
Footnotes.