Home Sweet Heart

Pondering

    "There is great temptation, even for the follower of Christ, to look backward.  We hold on to old grudges and disappointments.  We may have long forgotten the argument, but the bitterness remains.  We remember a bad choice we made and delude ourselves thinking a new beginning is not possible.  So we continue to make the same out-of-focus decisions or hold on to a past that should have long ago been forgotten.  It is not flash bulbs that blind us, but our foolish thought that we cannot change.

    It is in those moments that Jesus comes walking toward us.  If we look up and look ahead, we see that he offers us a future where we are not the sum total of every bad choice.  He walks toward us with a grace that says a new beginning is possible for you.  Not next week or next year.  Jesus offers it to us now.  First we have to give him our heart."

by Monsignor Gregory E. S. Malovetz, Advent Magnificat, December 20, 2009

It was one of those days

First I overslept ... my fault for staying up way too late, trying to get ahead of the game, only to start off behind.  Dumb, I know.  Then I took my husband to the airport, realizing as I was driving home that the next six days on the calendar were jam packed with things and I was going to have to figure out how to bilocate.  Not possible.  Then those feelings of anxiety and panic that almost paralyze me, set in. 

By the time I got home, I was falling apart.  One thing after another went wrong.  Add this to the fact that I was functioning on little sleep.  Definite recipe for disaster.  By the time 3 pm hit, I was an emotional wreck inside. 

In the midst of all this, I decided to just drop everything and head to the church for our family holy hour (which we missed at our scheduled time of 2 pm).  Heading over there, I asked myself why I was doing this.  After all, I was a mess, the four kids who were with me were arguing, and my two year old was fussy.  But, I forged ahead and entered the church.  I told the kids to give me sometime alone.  I suggested that they make the stations of the cross around the church together.  Thankfully, they willingly complied.  There I sat, the tears started flowing.  I was tired physically, but also just tired of the same old routine.  I was physically and emotionally worn out. 

After a good cry, I looked up and there were my children, quietly walking from station to station explaining each image to their little sister.  When they got back to me, my two year old, Lucy, looked up at me and said, "Jesus' cross was very heavy!"  I held her close and thought, "Indeed it was.  And He was carrying that cross for me.  Here I am trying to carry this cross all by myself."

I was forgetting Jesus' words to his followers, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30. 

I was not uniting myself with Our Lord.  No wonder the weight was too heavy for me. 

Suddenly the hope started to flow through me again.  The days ahead of me did not seem impossible.  With Jesus beside me every step of the way, I could manage whatever he put before me.

Image here

The right decision

Notre Dame Bishop D'Arcy announced today that he will not attend Notre Dame's commencement.

My decision is not an attack on anyone, but is in defense of the truth about human life.

I have in mind also the statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops in 2004. “The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.” Indeed, the measure of any Catholic institution is not only what it stands for, but also what it will not stand for.

I have spoken with Professor Mary Ann Glendon, who is to receive the Laetare Medal. I have known her for many years and hold her in high esteem. We are both teachers, but in different ways. I have encouraged her to accept this award and take the opportunity such an award gives her to teach.

Even as I continue to ponder in prayer these events, which many have found shocking, so must Notre Dame. Indeed, as a Catholic University, Notre Dame must ask itself, if by this decision it has chosen prestige over truth.

Tomorrow, we celebrate as Catholics the moment when our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, became a child in the womb of his most holy mother. Let us ask Our Lady to intercede for the university named in her honor, that it may recommit itself to the primacy of truth over prestige.

Bravo for Bishop D'Arcy!  We need to continue to pray for our bishops that they will have the courage to stand up for life during these challenging times in our country. 

Staying Faithful

From I Take Joy today:

Today, the stock market also fell almost 800 points. We could all be tempted to panic. Yet, taking the risky roads less taken has taught me that God is trustworthy. He is in control, He will be faithful to us as we walk roads of faith. It is an important for us to teach our children to have the courage of their convictions to take the road less taken-the road of faith, the road of ideals. Life does not always turn out as we would expect it to, but God is always faithful. We all only have one life to live in which to live by faith in God, to trust in Him and rest in His peace when we are tempted to panic. We are given one life to live for His ideals and for His convictions. Then we will see Him face to face. Let us be bold before His throne in this challenging time.

Let us be of those who do not shrink back. Let us be of those whose hearts remain steadfast even in the midst of trials. God will be faithful to us. We will grow and be stretched and become less selfish and more mature and give our children a better model --if we stay faithful to his call upon our individual lives. He will call each of us to different ideals, but He will call us to step out in faith, in courage and in ministry. May His goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives and may we resist fear and live by faith until we see Him face to face. May God give each of you a special gift of His grace and peace in the midst of your trials. May He allow you to reflect on His beauty in creation as an example of His seasons and may each of you have a peaceful heart.

Thank you Sally for giving me comfort in the midst of a very tough week.  You never fail to encourage me in my walk with the Lord. 

 

Real love

“The most common yet most hidden temptation is our lack of faith.  It expresses itself less by declared incredulity than by our actual preferences.  When we begin to pray, a thousand labors or cares thought to be urgent vie for priority; once again, it is the moment of truth for the heart: what is its real love?” (CCC #2732)

A Prayer to Remember

"Help me to understand, but I trust you until I do."

~ Jeanette Reinecker, from a local conference "Why Does God Allow the Good to Die Young?"

Spiritual Legacy of Prayer

Please welcome Leona Choy, a dear friend of my mom's, to the world of blogging.  Her new blog, The Rest of the Way, is filled with the wisdom of a great lady who came into the Catholic Church at the age of eighty "something"!  She never ceases to inspire me.  A recent blog entry, Invisible Fences, reminded me of the gift of my mom and her unceasing prayers that continue to be the glue that holds my family and my extended family together.  

When my sons were young, my care was more hands on. After they were grown and left our family nest and established nests of their own, my role was more hands off and hands lifted in prayer. Then their fledglings grew up to do the same, now repeated into the third generation. How blessed I am to see my children's children and their children! I have even greater prayer responsibility and privilege for "the rest of the way." Both my husband's grandmother and my grandmother were known to have prayed forward through the generations that their progeny yet unborn would come to know God in future generations. They left a spiritual legacy of prayer that did not diminish with time. My family and I are heirs of their prayers. And I am a spiritual debtor to likewise pray forward for my family!

Sunday musings

Sunday morning we were late getting out the door for Mass.  My son, Billy, had to report for duty in Annapolis at 8 am, so that disrupted our normal Sunday morning routine.  Anyway, we made it to Mass, but had to split up to have a place to sit.  I sat with the two little ones and the other kids sat diagonally to me, one aisle over.  As I approached Communion, I glanced over at the line my other kids were in for Communion.  The kids were just approaching our priest to receive Our Lord.  Suddenly I was overwhelmed with emotion as I watched each of them receive Jesus.  What a gift!  How awesome Our Lord is to come to us and consume us completely.  How wonderful it was for me to know that at that moment my children were consumed with Our Lord.  It truly was a grace-filled moment for me. 

I'm in shock!

Over the last week I have heard about several friends who are supporting Mr. Obama.  These are faithful, good Catholic people.  What is going on here?  Am I missing something?  Someone please enlighten me because I am very disillusioned.   How can this be?  Granted, I am not crazy about the alternative on many issues, but I could never rationalize a vote for Mr. Obama.  He has publicly vowed to make total unrestricted abortion in the United States his number one priority as president.  The choice is clear.  Is it not?

Great Find

The Little Flowers Family Press and Apostolates is a great source of Catholic treasures for the entire family.  They have a wonderful variety of reprinted Catholic books on the sacraments, character formation, creating a Catholic home, modesty and purity, and Advent & Easter seasons.  One of my favorites is their huge selection of Catholic stickers - female saints, male saints, old masters, Our Lady, angels and 365 stickers - A Saint for Everyday!  I see the potential for some great stocking stuffers here and art projects for the summer. 

HTJenn