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?

FINANCIAL vs SPIRITUAL RUIN

It is always amazing to me how two people from the same family can be SO completely different. Even the children I meet who are identical twins: "they laugh alike, they walk alike, at times they even talk alike..." and yet, there is ALWAYS something that distinguishes them one from the other...completely!

As I was praying the rosary yesterday morning, I flashed upon something that was written in an e-mail I received last year. Among other more hurtful things said in a series of e-mails, was this: "Grow up, you're an idiot!"

Of all things to come to mind, while I was praying the Glorious Mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary; but, there it was: my heart and soul kept flashing on that one word: "IDIOT!"

At 48 years old, I no longer fit the world's description of a child. However, in Christ's eyes and the eyes of our Heavenly Father, I am just that: their CHILD.

Just like YOU:

I Am A Child of God!

Apparently, according to some, I am the "Idiot" Child of God!

That puts me in good company. The prophets of the Old Testament are considered the predecessors of the "fools for Christ." The actual term: "fools for Christ" is attributed to Saint Paul. Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Anthony, and Saint Benedict Joseph Labre were all famous "fools for Christ!"

The term "fools for Christ" refers to behavior including giving up worldly possessions, and employing shocking, unconventional means to challenge accepted social norms.

To be incredibly honest with you, I am probably teetering on the brink of financial ruin because of the added burden of the debts of my aunt, that I have been and must continue to pay, while the probate process runs it's course.

I guess I really am an "idiot," as my relative so boldly wrote; because, I believe myself to be a wealthy woman SPIRITUALLY; and, that means more to me than ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS WORLD!

Money, jewelry, houses, cars, jobs...THINGS...they come and go, in and out of our lives.

But, OUR SOUL IS ALWAYS THERE, OUR SOUL IS US, AND WILL BE US FOR ALL ETERNITY!

Being the "idiot" that I am, I would rather be financially ruined on earth in service to others...than spiritually ruined in Hell, because I lived my life in service to myself!


How about YOU?


Do YOU have more saved up in the "Bank" of Materialism?


OR,


Are all YOUR important assets in the "BANK" OF GOD?


Here is our reflection for today:


As long as YOU are still breathing, YOU can change the course of YOUR eternity!


But, when YOU die, it's simply too late to make a transfer of funds!


Only You can answer this question:


Do YOU need to transfer YOUR assets to the "BANK" OF GOD?


May God Bless You And Those You Love...And, Even Those You Don't!!

"WHO CARES ABOUT THE SAINTS?"

Today, I received a flyer in the mail about a new DVD based on Father James Martin's bestselling book: "My Life With the Saints."

The DVD is called: "Who Cares About The Saints?" It consists of 12 episodes on the lives of: The Blessed Mother, Joseph, Peter, Francis of Assisi, Joan of Arc, Ignatius Loyola, Bernadette Soubirous, Therese of Liseux, Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, Mother Teresa, and Pope John XXIII.

I went to the website and found Father James Martin, SJ.

Affable, humorous, warm and inviting, Father Martin and Loyola Productions have made a DVD that will be a wonderful addition to any parish, school, or home video collection.

I ordered my copy this afternoon.







If you enjoyed these snippets from the DVD visit WHO CARES ABOUT THE SAINTS?

INTERCESSORY PRAYER...Or, Why I Think The Communion Of Saints Will Meet Me At The Pearly Gates With A Roll Of Duct Tape!

Yes, it's true. I believe totally and completely that when I die, the saints I know and love, will greet me at Heaven's Door with enough duct tape to gag me for at least a decade or two.

They need the rest, poor dears!

Each day, many times, and on a difficult day sometimes moment by moment, I am praying about something or someone. Now, the prayers of praise and gratitude, they are the easiest, and I bring them to the Lord constantly and usually by myself. However, when it comes to prayers of petition, I usually seek a little backup.

When I explain why we go to Mass to the children in the program, I tell them certainly, we can pray anywhere: at home, at school (yes, Virginia, we can still pray at school...silently or even soto voce: for no one has legislated our thoughts and heart songs, yet), on the sports field, and even in the shower (a good place to pray those prayers that make us cry!)

God is EVERYWHERE, hears us ANYWHERE, and does so, at ANYTIME.

But, we come together in a special way at Mass to praise and glorify and petition God in community. We pray with, and for each other, even as we bring our own personal prayers to the altar. There, too, we are nourished with the source and summit of our lives: the Eucharist which strengthens the convictions of our soul. How could He not listen when we come to Him for ourselves and others all at the same time?

"Love thy neighbor as thyself," after all.

Now, this is not to say that God will always answer our prayers in the way we think they should be answered. That's not how it works. And, that is why it is so important to add that same phrase that Jesus prayed even as He was asking in the Garden of Gethsemane for "this cup to pass."

The simple phrase I add to every prayer is this: "Thy will, not my will, be done!"

It is my acknowledgment, as it was Christ's, that all good comes from the Father in Heaven, and if I truly believe that, then I must give control of situations up to Him; not only because that is where control rightfully belongs, but, because it is the only way to find peace of mind, heart, and soul.

So, at Mass when the earthly communion of saints joins our prayer to the heavenly communion of saints, how could God ignore our pleas for assistance?

The short answer is: He will not!

Now, with that simple philosophy as my guide, when I am praying during the day, or moment by moment if it is one of those days, or late in the evening, or even as I prayed over my aunt as she lay dying in the hospital, (and Mass is not an option), I reach out to the communion of saints.

I don't just pray for the assistance of one or two, either, I ask them all to join in.

My prayer is usually this: "Please, _____________ intercede on my behalf with our Heavenly Father."

Of course, I first approach Christ.

Then, The Blessed Mother because, Jesus gave her to us as our true and eternal mother at the foot of his cross.

Saint Joseph, the patron saint of so many things: safe travel, peaceful death, fatherhood, family, those who work with their hands, etc.

Mother Cabrini, because she has been the patroness of my family since before I was born.

Saint Therese, the Little Flower, whose name I took at Confirmation.

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Saint Claire, Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis Xavier, Saint John (Don) Bosco (patron saint of catechists), Saint Francis de Sales, and the list goes on and on.

With the officially recognized saints of the Catholic Church, I also reach out to my own father, brother, uncles, aunts, grandparents, even the great grandparents I never had a chance to meet, and a very special Deacon friend who passed way too soon.

I take very seriously Saint Therese's declaration that she would "spend...[her]... Heaven doing good on earth."

And, I have made a prayer habit of expecting ALL the saints, officially recognized or not, to do the same.

Therefore, I am certain, that on the day I die, they will welcome me with open arms, and then take measures to get a little peace and quiet.