Any State of Life

Slow to speak

Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/] --- Slow to speak Too often, we simply don’t think about what we’re saying. If you’ve ever had to give up cursing, you’ve experienced this firsthand. Things just slip out...sometimes unnoticed. In regards to sin, we tend to be more aware of our thoughts and actions. We’re always with our own thoughts, and sinful ones, whether about lust, or pride, or anger, are the worst because they directly affect our mood and consequently our actions. But, our words can sometimes fly under our radar because it’s the person we’re talking to that is affected, not us. Thinking before we speak forces us to consider others’ feelings. When we do start consciously thinking about what we are saying — and how we are saying it — we communicate better. Take this as a challenge for the next few days. Be slow to speak. Ask yourself: Is this what I meant to say? Am I speaking truthfully, charitably? Let us pray. Heavenly Father, help us to grow in knowledge of ourselves and knowledge of You, and to see where we are falling short and where we can be better. In Jesus’ name, amen. Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us. Get full access to The Victor's Crown at www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Think well

Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/] --- Think Well “Think well. Speak well. Do well. These three things, through the mercy of God, will make a man go to Heaven.” —Saint Camillus de Lellis Think, speak, do. Our thoughts, our words, our actions. It’s basic and fundamental. But each day, do we make a conscious effort to control what we think, say, and do? Or, do we prefer to think about whatever ‘trash’ is thrown in front of us, speak without considering what our words mean, and act out of bodily impulse and desire? We are called to more. We have great power in our thoughts, words, and actions. What do we do with that power? What will you do with that power? Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us. Get full access to The Victor's Crown at www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Rejoice in the Goodness

Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/] --- Rejoice in the Goodness Have you ever struggled with celebrating? It sounds a little silly, but whenever something good happens, do you hesitate? There's almost a self-defense mechanism that kicks in — don't celebrate just yet, it could all be taken away. You might even worry about jinxing it. Very few things in this life last. Even good things go away eventually. But that doesn't mean God is punishing us when they do. They simply weren't meant to last. And we don't always know what fruit God wants to bear in our lives, or how He plans to do it. It just comes back to trust. God continues to bless all of us — in big ways and small. But we tend to focus on the blessings we aren't receiving, or the ones that seem to have been taken away, or how the ones we have could disappear. Rejoice in the goodness anyway. Let joy and thanksgiving rise up from what God has given us. It takes vulnerability. But if we don't rejoice in the goodness, when would we? Let us pray. Lord, open our eyes to Your goodness today. Give us the courage to rejoice in it — freely, without fear. In Jesus' name. Amen. Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us. Get full access to The Victor's Crown at www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The First Battle

Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/] --- The First Battle As followers of Christ, there are a lot of battles to fight. But for all of us, the first battle is within ourselves. We can't give what we don't have. We can't share a faith we don't practice. We can't lead others to holiness when we aren't striving for it ourselves. We can't bring others to truth if we aren't pursuing it. We can't bring others to God when we don't know Him. To positively impact the world around us, we have to start with ourselves. That's not selfish — it's just necessary. So what does that battle require? Time alone with God. Self-reflection. An honest look at our own weaknesses and tendencies. Silence. Solitude. Time to process everything we're constantly taking in. Solid ground to return to when the inner battles get hard.  That is daily prayer. Let us pray. Lord, give us the discipline to fight the first battle — the one within us. Draw us to prayer, to silence, to You. In Jesus' name. Amen. Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us. Get full access to The Victor's Crown at www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Abba

Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/] --- Abba The fallen human heart sees God as an adversary. Even as adults, we can act like teenagers — convinced our Father is out of touch, no fun, making rules for the sake of rules. We keep Him at arm's length. We resist Him. We go our own way. But at the core of that problem — and its solution — is how we see God as Father. Scripture is clear about the relationship we actually have: "You received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, 'Abba, Father!' The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God." (Romans 8:15-16) And St. John marvels at it: "See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God." (1 John 3:1) What a gift. Not a distant authority to be managed or avoided — but a Father who has claimed us as His own. That relationship should stir something in us. A desire to live close to Him. To please Him. And in our trials, to turn to His infinite goodness rather than away from it — to let Him shelter us in our littleness. The question is whether we actually live that way. Is your prayer the prayer of a child devoted to his Father? Let us pray. Heavenly Father, help us to see You as You truly are — not as an adversary, but as a loving Father who has claimed us as His own. Draw us close to You today. In Jesus' name. Amen. Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us. Get full access to The Victor's Crown at www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe [https://www.thevictorscrown.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]