At the Holiday Inn Alexandria - Carlyle
2460 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria, Virginia 22314, Phone: 703.960.2000
5 minute walk from Eisenhower Ave Metro station
For info/tickets, call Patti: 703.971.3633 or Kathleen: 703.451.5737
Cost: $16 - Includes Buffet Breakfast and all tax/gratuities, a great price for a Buffet Breakfast and guest speaker!
If you wish to stay at the hotel on Friday night, ask for the CWIA discounted rate (for the breakfast meeting). Bring a friend. Great speakers, fellowship, praise & worship. Men and women are invited. The Lord is waiting for you! There will be a healing service afterwards.
January 26th Guest Speaker: Virgilio (Virgil). Virgil was a lukewarm Catholic until he was introduced to the charismatic movement at a CWIA Life In The Spirit Seminar and received the gift of tongues. That experience turned Virgil’s life around, and he gave himself to the Lord. He volunteered with his church Eucharistic hospital ministry, and later with prison ministry in Fairfax County. Virgil remains an Extraordinary Minister, lector, plays guitar in the choir, is a 4th Degree of Knights of Columbus, and performs Sacristan duties with his wife of 43 years, Christina. After retiring from the World Bank, he realized the Lord wanted him to focus on serving him. He attends Mass daily and spends holy hours in front of the Blessed Sacrament at least five times a week. His daily life now evolves in prayer from morning until bedtime. His two grown children, Chrissy Castillo (6 kids) and Mark (dad-tobe in March) are both devout Catholics, another blessing from the Lord. Come hear this story of transformation, and bring a friend. Men are welcome!
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus, I greet you this New Year in His Wonderful Name! We have just left behind the great celebration of the Birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and we will soon find ourselves entering the Death of our Lord with the beginning of Lent in early March. Again we need to take time for reflection and preparation. But, what does the word “Lent” mean? And, why do we prepare for it? Think of Lent as a personal invitation from God, delivered by His Son, offering salvation to mankind. Our invitation came wrapped in swaddling clothes instead of colorful wrapping, and laid in a manger. This tiny baby, seemingly so small and helpless, was the only one who could rescue sinful human beings from eternal destruction through a process called Redemption. To redeem means to buy something back. For instance, suppose you saw an old family heirloom in a pawn shop and recognized it as having once belonged to your grandfather. You would immediately purchase it back to keep it in the family. In the same way, mankind was created by God in His image but when Adam and Eve rebelled against Him and fell into sin. Jesus said, “Everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34). What we need is a Redeemer who is able and willing to pay whatever price is required. But, who determines the price? Since Adam and Eve broke God’s law, it is God who must receive the payment for mankind’s redemption. He clearly warned Adam and Eve that the penalty for eating of the forbidden tree would be not only physical death, but spiritual death and eternal punishment. And God’s price for sin is sinless blood: “It is blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” (Lev. 17:11) The Redeemer had to be someone who could perfectly fulfill the law of God by living a sinless, obedient life. The Redeemer must be willing to pay the penalty by dying, receiving God’s wrath for the sin of fallen mankind, and shedding His perfect blood in payment for those sins. No mere human being could do this, because we are all sinful, and we are not capable of enduring the wrath of God for everyone else. “But the grace of God has appeared” in the Incarnation. (Titus 2:11) God the Son took on human flesh and came into the world as a baby. He was the only one who could redeem fallen mankind because He was fully God and fully human. He lived a perfect life and voluntarily went to the cross to pay the penalty for sin that we deserved. Now let’s consider what His Redemption did for us. (Titus 2:11-14) 1. First of all, it brought pardon. “The Grace of God has appeared to bring salvation to al men.” (v.11) Since Jesus lived the perfect life we never could, and paid the price of our Redemption with His death, God can now offer forgiveness of sin to all who believe in His Son and trust in His sacrifice on their behalf. 2. Christ’s Redemption purified us. Jesus “gave Himself for us to redeem us fom every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people.” (v.14) God not only made us pure legally but, He gave us His grace and His Spirit to “help us deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age.”(v.12) This is God’s intention for our lives. 3. Christ made us a “people for His own possession” (v.14) when He brought us out of slavery to sin with His precious blood. We were not set free to do as we please. We became His beloved possession, and our job and desire should be to obey and live for Him. Although we are now his slaves, we are also part of God’s family and heirs. An inheritance is waiting for us in heaven. 4. Jesus redeemed us to be “zealous for good deeds.” (v.14) We aren’t simply to sit back and take it easy. The Christian life is one of service. We are called to love and care for one another and to proclaim the Gospel to all who do not know Christ as Lord and Savior. When Jesus ascended into heaven, He left us here to carry on His work. When He returns, He will reward us. 5. Last, there is a future redemption - coming. Although our souls are redeemed, we still live in fallen fleshly bodies, and creation is still under a curse but, when Christ returns all that will change. Creation will be set free from its bondage, according to how we have lived our life. We have free will to choose where we desire to go for eternity. At the resurrection, our bodies will be redeemed - forever free from sin and death no more. (Rom.8:18-23) But for now, we are “looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus...The hope of glory.” (v.13) Like the heirloom in the pawnshop, we were separated from our heavenly Father by our sin, but Jesus bought us back and reunited us to the Father with the promise of a glorious future with God. That is why, my brothers and sisters, we must prepare for LENT!! My prayer is that we all will be very well prepared (forgive everyone, go to Confession, etc.) so when He comes for us, we will be ready to say, “Here I am Lord!”, and He will say to us, “Come in my faithful servant. When I was hungry you gave me to eat. When I was sick, you visited me,” etc. etc. In Christ and For Christ, your servant, Stella Davis
Our Prayer Breakfast in July was phonomenal and the Holy Spirit rested on us in a mighty way! Some have been calling me to provide the prayer of protection for our homes that I read. This prayer is as follows:
Dear Lord Jesus, please surround us, our families, friends and our homes with a perimeter of Your love and protection throughout this day and night and every day - 100 yards in all directions. Lord Jesus, render any demons that are here or should try to come deaf, dumb, and blind. Strip them of all weapons, illusions, armor, powers and authorities. Disable them from communicating or interacting in any way. Bind, sever, and separate them, binding them directly to the foot of the cross, without manifestation or harm to us, or to anyone else, to be dealt with by You, Jesus, as You see it fit. May Your precious blood cover us. May the Holy Spirit fill us, and Blessed Mother, place your mantle of love and protection around us in our homes, from any event of fire, theft, vandalism, flood, storms, elements, and accidents of any sort, distress, hardship, curses, and all unwanted things. I ask all this in Your name, Jesus Christ, and through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and in the power of the Holy Spirit. We call upon St. Michael, St. Joseph, St. Padre Pio, and St. John Paul II, and all the saints and angels, to pray for us. Amen.