Slide 1

Grace or Sin

Opening Prayer: Psalm 139Leader:Even my bones are not hidden fromyou, O Lord.Females:Lord, you have probed me and you know me,you know when I sit and when I stand,you understand my thoughts from afar.My travels and my rest you mark;with all my ways you are familiar.Behind me and before me you encircle meand rest your hand upon me.

Opening Prayer: Psalm 139Males:Where can I hide from your spirit?From your presence, where can I flee?If I fly with the wings of dawnand alight beyond the sea,even there your hand will guard me,your right hand hold me fast.

Opening Prayer: Psalm 139Females:You formed my inmost being;you knit me in my mothers womb.I praise you, so wonderfully you made me;wonderful are your works!My very self you knew;when I was being made in secret,fashioned as in the depths of the earth.Opening Prayer: Psalm 139Males:Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

Females:As it was in the beginning, is now,and will be for ever. Amen.

All: Even my bones are not hiddenfrom you, O Lord.

Two Truths and a Lie GameEveryone sit in a circle. Each person prepares three statements, two of which are true and one of which is a lie. In any order, the person shares the three statements to the entire group. The object of the game is to figure out which statement is a lie. After all three statements have been shared they are quickly repeated with the rest of the group voting on the statement they think is a lie. The person then reveals which one is the lie. If a majority of the group voted on the statement that is a lie, then the person caught in the lie goes to the middle of the circle and dies like a cockroach; lying on the back kicking and screaming until dead.

Two Truths and a Lie GameThe lesson to be learned is that lying has consequences and even if you are not caught you still suffer the agony and stress of maybe being caught. So why even put yourself in this situation by lying in the first place?

Why Do We Do These Things To Ourselves????? Some people . . . have pierced themselves with many pains. (1 Timothy 6:10)

What can I do to stop this stupidity?

Come to me all you who are burdened.Youre never going to succeed so dont bother.

No, they wont.Yes they will!!!Jesus Is Willing to Help us STOP the Stupidity!With the FREE gift of Grace: The free and undeserved help that God gives us to help us grow in faith and live holy lives. (CCC 1996)What was Jesus mission? Jesus redeemed us from slavery to sin and the devil by his death and Resurrection. (By dying he destroyed our death; by rising he restored our life.)Jesus won the gift of grace for us and is, therefore, the source of all grace. Without Jesus we would not be able to receive and grow in grace. Jesus mission, then, is to redeem us, to teach us how to live the life of gracethe moral life.

No, listen to me.Listen to Me!!!

But Grace is a free gift we have to cooperate with. We cant earn it, but we must embrace it.Grace is Gods work in us, but at the same time we have to work with that Grace if we want it to have an effect on us.Grace & SinOur own efforts will help us fight against the reign of sin to a point. But when all is said and done, our enemy is just too strong. If we want to see real and lasting victory, we need the Lord and His mighty power. We need His Grace.

Jesus Will Help Us to Avoid and Resist the Near Occasion of Sin.Grace is a powerful weapon in our battle against sin!Jesus has won . . . And He can help us to win, also!Grace is necessary for salvation!

We Are Surrounded by GraceSacramental Grace: The Grace that makes each sacrament powerful and effective in our lives. We are just going to focus on only two of the Sacraments; Baptism and Reconciliation.In Baptism we received Sanctifying Grace: A permanent gift that God gave us which transformed us into a new creation.But we can lose the impact of grace through mortal sin which kills the life of grace in our souls.

We Are Surrounded by GraceIf we lose grace through sin, it is restored through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.Reconciliation gives us the Grace to go and sin no more. To say no to sin and temptation.It is Gods Grace and power poured out in specific situations to help strengthen us right then and there.

We Are Surrounded by GraceGods Grace is all around us.Gods Grace is also personal.God gives individual gifts and blessings to each of us individually in the course of our lives.And Jesus Christ, the source of all grace, chose to dispense this grace through His Church.So that we can grow in the life of grace through prayer, the sacraments, and good works.

Youre worthless crap!You are wonderful!!!Satan wants us to fail.Jesus wants us to succeed.Jesus pours Grace into our hearts to give us a new identity as children of God.This is the Grace of dignity that helps us to see ourselves as God sees us.How Will You Take Advantage of this Grace In Your Life?

I amthe fatherof lies!Satanyou Lie!!!So our goal in life is to obtain grace, keep grace, and die in grace (so that we can be with God forever in heaven.

Closing PrayerEternal God,in Whom mercy is endlessand the treasury of compassioninexhaustible, look kindly upon usand increase Your mercy in us,that in difficult momentswe might not despairor become despondent,but with great confidencesubmit ourselves to Your Holy Will, which is Love and Mercy itself. Amen.