ASH WEDNESDAY 2011

"Most high glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my heart and give me, Lord, a correct faith, a certain hope, a perfect charity, sense and knowledge, so that I may carry out Your holy and true command."

~St. Francis, The Prayer Before the Crucifix at San Damiano

Mark Wills - Don't Laugh At Me

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

2010 was packed with joys and sorrows..health and illness...life and death...laughter and tears...dreams fulfilled and unfulfilled.

It had its ups...its downs...its ins...its outs...and...in a few hours it will be just a memory...gone forever.

My wish for 2011 is that we take the lessons learned from this past year...and...move forward with thankfulness...and...hope...into a new year filled with nothing but promise!

Happy 2011, Friends and Family!!

♥♥♥

A CUP OF CHRISTMAS TEA

Our beloved deacon, who has helped me stay sane through the crazy of the last few years, suggested this morning that I watch the following video. It has had the exact effect he told me it would.



What effect has watching it had on YOU?

Why?

What will YOU do about it?

STOP, BREATHE, PRAY!!

I love computers, the Internet, video games, and cell phones! I am not as technologically knowledgeable or advanced as my two boys, but that’s okay, because I have them around to help me when things get beyond my capabilities.

In April, I bought a Droid.

WoW!!

If you have an iPhone or Droid, you know about the “apps” (applications)…the things that these phones can do. I was a little shocked at some of the “apps” in the Droid Marketplace…. but was pleasantly surprised to find many versions of the Bible…and absolutely thrilled to find the daily Mass Readings and Liturgy of the Hours “app”…for FREE!

Now, I just set the alarm on my phone to remind me to STOP, BREATHE, and PRAY the hours…no more missed or “bundled” daily prayers for me!

God truly is everywhere…even on the iPhone and the Droid!

We set our calendars and alarms for meetings with clients, bosses, doctors, and our children’s teachers…why not set it to remind us to take the time to “meet” with God?

Just be careful in the marketplace on these phones though, because just like on earth…where there is God…there is also Satan.

Always, choose wisely!

Even in technology…choose…GOD!

I KNOW A CONFIRMATION CLASS THAT WILL BE VIEWING THIS IN OCTOBER!

VBS AND THE SEXUAL ABUSE CRISIS

This week we started Vacation Bible School!

I LOVE VBS!!

The carnival-like atmosphere keeps the kids engaged while they learn sooo much about God.

Yesterday, as the children began to come in, I was told by a custodial parent that the ex-spouse was worried that their child was attending VBS at a Catholic parish.

With all the wounds re-opened by the child sexual abuse crisis in Europe, I certainly understood…even, as I took a deep breath and thought…”Oh no, how is it we are at this place, again.”

Then, last evening, I was doing my monthly Virtus facilitator’s training, and came upon the following, written by a sexual abuse survivor named Kimberly. It speaks so clearly and honestly of the struggles of the abused, even while offering a way back to wholeness.

Nine Steps for Sexual Abuse Victims

Step 1: I recognize that I am powerless to heal the damaged emotions resulting from my sexual abuse, and I look to God for the power to make me whole.

Step 2: I acknowledge that God's plan for my life includes victory over the experience of sexual abuse.

Step 3: The person who abused me is responsible for the sexual acts committed against me. I will not accept the guilt and shame resulting from those sexual acts.

Step 4: I am looking to God and His Word to find my identity as a worthwhile and loved human being.

Step 5: I am honestly sharing my feelings with God and with at least one other person to help me identify those areas needing cleansing and healing.

Step 6: I am accepting responsibility for my responses to being sexually abused.

Step 7: I am willing to accept God's help in the decision and the process of forgiving myself and those who have offended me.

Step 8: I am willing to mature in my relationship with God and others.

Step 9: I am willing to be used by God as an instrument of healing and restoration in the lives of others. [1]

The abuse crisis is horrible to be sure, and a scar on the face of the Catholic Church, as well as many other denominations, organizations, and families.

Any time a disservice is done to a child of God, no matter the age, or by whom, the whole of humanity suffers.

The Good News is that God will ALWAYS help us pick up the pieces...we only need let Him!!

God Bless You!!

[1]http://oneway.jesusanswers.com/whats_new.htmlTaken from the Internet December 10, 2009. Help for the Abused. One Way! Which Way Are You Going? Articles to Help You.

EVERYDAY SAINTS

The family is the great catechism God has given the world. The work of our lifetime is to learn how to read it and then study it prayerfully. — from Love in the Little Things


I love to watch people!

Now before you get the idea that I am some creepy, old church lady who hides in the bushes and peers into other people’s windows in my spare time, let me say that I do 90% of my people watching at church.

And, sometimes the things that I see touch me profoundly.

Last week, was a difficult one for my family, my husband collapsed twice (once, winding up in the ER) because even with insulin, his sugar has been on a roller coaster ride since Easter; and, my seemingly healthy Snowball went to the vet last Saturday morning for her annual doggie shots, and died there that afternoon.

By the time I got to church Sunday morning for mass, I was shaky, deep inside the pit of my stomach. The air quality wasn’t great that day, and I stayed out in the foyer during mass just in case the annoying allergy cough I get should raise its ugly head.

And, that’s when I saw them, a family of four…mom, dad, older brother, and little sister. It was clear from the Shirley Temple curls, the gorgeous blue frothy tutu, and the sparkly shoes she wore, that the little girl would be dancing in a show sometime after mass. This family though, no matter how difficult it may have been to do, modeled for their children and for me just where God’s place is in their lives…and, where it should be in ours.

They are everyday saints!

Last month at one of the communions, I was out in the foyer again (and, again for allergy reasons), when another family walked in.

I took notice immediately because the father who was probably my age or a little older, walked in holding his son’s hand. The son was as tall as the father and probably in his early twenties. The young man kept asking his dad where someone was. I assumed he was looking for his nephew or maybe cousin who was receiving First Communion that day.

As the pastor was praying inside the church, the young man kept repeating certain words father was saying. At one point, father and son came over to the chairs and sat across from me.

When it came time for the Lord’s Prayer this young man put his head on his dad's shoulder and they prayed the Our Father in a more beautiful way than I have ever seen or heard it prayed before. Clearly, these two had a love, one for the other, and for their God, that some of us can only dream of!

They too, are everyday saints!

Do YOU people watch, too?

What are YOU seeing the everyday saints in YOUR midst doing that affects YOU profoundly?

What are YOU doing as an everyday saint that affects others?

Lady Snowball Kisses February 17, 1997 - June 12, 2010

Saturday morning began as any other. The dogs were going for their annual physical and vaccinations. My husband got up early to bathe them before their trip to the vet. As he was washing our Snowball, he let out a yell. She had sneezed and blood splattered all over the tub. He rinsed her quickly and raced the dogs to the vet.

Once there, they took Snowball right away to do some x-rays. In an odd coincidence, all my dogs have the same heart deformity as my sons and I. The doctor tested her heart, and sent the results to a cardiologist. The diagnosis was that she would need to be on medication for the rest of her life. It was decided she would stay at the vet for observation until Monday.

At one o'clock that afternoon the vet called. We were waiting for blood test results so I thought that's why he was calling. When I picked up the phone I asked how my Snowy was doing. The vet said that at 12:30 she was her regular self and doing well. But, that a few minutes earlier she took two deep breaths and just died. They tried to resuscitate her, but failed.

I don't know who was more in shock, the doctor or me. He asked if Snow had been coughing lately...No. He asked if she had been having difficulty breathing...No. He said he had checked her gums...they were a healthy pink. He said the only thing wrong was an elevation of her white blood cells. She had an infection, and his best guess was that she had a silent killer inside her...a tumor on her adrenal gland.

I asked him what I should have been looking for to have caught this sooner...he told me there was nothing. That he, too hadn't thought there was anything so wrong with Snow that, she was dying right before our eyes.

A friend from Facebook took the picture of my Snowball baby, in happier times, that I had posted, and made the beautiful memorial above. I share it today for everyone who has ever lost a beloved pet...


I'm sending you this message just to say,
I'm safe here in heaven to run and play.

The Angels watch over me all of the time.
The biggest one here is mine, All mine.

There's so much here to see and do,
My only wish is that you were here too.

Don't worry about me or think I'm alone,
Jesus has been with me, since I've been gone.

We sat by a river that is crystal clear,
He said no one here ever sheds a tear.

I told Him of you and all the fun we had,
He just smiled and said, "don't be sad.

For someday soon you'll see her again,
But until then I will be your friend."

So when you miss me, please don't be blue,
I'm just playing in heaven, waiting for you.
-Lady Snowball


Thank you, Kay for such a sweet memorial to my little girl!!

And, I encourage everyone with older pets to visit your vet more often, and to ask for a wellness blood panel at every visit...forewarned is forearmed.


Saint Francis of Assisi, protect our brother and sister pets!

GOD'S CAKE

So many times in our lives we ask: “WHY?”

“Why ME?”

“Why NOW?”

“Why THIS?”

“W-H-Y, God?”

God does not “do things” to us!

Circumstances, family members, friends, strangers, and sometimes even unknown or unseen forces, place us in situations that without the love, support, and mercy of the Triune God, could potentially break us.

I received the following in an e-mail, although the author is unknown, it is certainly a parable for anyone asking “WHY?”


A daughter is telling her mother how everything is going wrong.

She’s failing algebra, her boyfriend broke up with her, and her best friend is moving away. Meanwhile, her mother is baking a cake, and asks her daughter if she would like a snack.

The daughter says, “Absolutely, Mom, I love your cake.”

“Here, have some cooking oil,” her mother offers.

“Yuck,” says the daughter, “Gross, Mom!”

“Would you like some flour then? Or maybe some baking soda?”

“Mom, those are all yucky!”

To which the mother replies, “Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves; but, when they are put together in the right way, they make a wonderfully delicious cake!”

“God works the same way. Many times we wonder why He would let us go through such bad times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good! We just have to trust Him, and eventually, they will all make something wonderful!”

God is crazy about YOU!

He sends YOU flowers every spring, and a sunrise every morning.

Whenever YOU want to talk, He listens.

He can live anywhere in the universe, and He chose YOUR heart.

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance!


Although I may still ask “WHY?” now and again…I also choose to DANCE!!


How about YOU?