A Seminarian on Fire...

for the Lord, that is.  Yesterday we went to Mass at a parish that just received the blessing of a Seminarian who is on fire like I haven't seen in awhile.  He has reached the level of Deacon and he will be at this parish for a few months.  He is a young man from the south, though without an accent :) and a convert to Catholicism from Evangelical Protestantism.  Man could you tell by his preaching!

His homily was about the current state of our country and the world; appropriate for the Gospel about not worrying!  He didn't hold much back and at one point got so into it that he stopped himself, took a deep breath and said, "I could use an AMEN right about now!"  Of course, being the tight-lipped people that we Catholics are, no one said anything, but boy was I tempted!

It was an absolutely amazing homily for someone so young and un-ordained.  It brought such hope to my heart to realize that this young man will one day soon be a priest.  The lives that he will change!

I will leave you with something he told us.  I'm not sure that the people took it to heart, but I'm hoping that they will do what he said, and that was to read, memorize and recall the following bible verse: 

Galatians 6:10:  "So then, while we have the opportunity, let us do good to all, but especially to those who belong to the family of the faith."

He was exhorting us to remember this verse; that when times get really bad, which they are likely to do in the not-too-distant future (and it's not just me saying that, btw), we are to remember that we must band together as people of faith and help one another - whether it be with food, or health issues, or housing or whatever.  Help everyone, but especially those belonging to our family of faith.  Tuck this verse away, and when the time comes, I hope that it will pop back into your mind and be put to good use :)

How to overcome satan

My morning meditations of late have been focusing on death and sin, Heaven and Hell.  Today's was on "How to Overcome satan".  I really thought these were good points to remember, so here is a synopsis on the ways to combat the devil:

If satan is a deceitful spirit, you must walk in truthfulness.

If he is the father of arrogance, you must walk in humility.

If he is the assassin of your neighbor, you must be charitable with all.

If he goes around furious and desperate, you must strive to serve God in peace, confidence and filial love.

If he cannot know or love God, you must strive to know and love God with all your being.

The remedy of remedies to overcome satan:

To love God with all your heart!

Wordless Wednesday

Family Fun

I was in the car the other day with one of my daughters and we heard this song again



and I couldn't help thinking how much fun it will be when the first young man comes over for that "introduction".  HMMM, which gun should we be cleaning then????

The Empty Pew Syndrome

Today before Mass began I was thinking back to when we would be at church and wonder why we were there:  the pew would be full of fussing, moving, sometimes downright obnoxious little ones and I would leave trying to remember if I had even heard any of it.

Well, all those little ones are growing up now.  Today we had the empty pew syndrome.  Ms 18 yo is at school, Ms 15 yo was singing with the choir, Mr 10 yo was serving and somehow my husband became a last minute usher.  That left me and four of the children. It feels kind of weird when the number in your pew starts to shrink.  It's also kind of funny, too, because a lot of times no one will sit with us because they are expecting the rest of the pew to be filled up.


So I was thinking that maybe the empty pew syndrome is a preparation for the empty nest syndrome. God gives us these little moments so that when the big ones happen, we are a bit more prepared to deal with them!

Wordless Wednesday

And He departed to the other side...

Before leaving for Mass yesterday, my heart was feeling rather heavy and I said to my husband, "I would love to just jump on a plane (the "by myself" was implied) and go to Arizona (to visit my parents who are there right now), but I know that is just trying to escape."

Then we went to Mass and heard the following Gospel reading:

Mark 8: 11 – 13
11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven, to test him. 12 And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.” 13 And he left them, and getting into the boat again he departed to the other side.

Ha!  Jesus got in a boat and went away from all that was causing Him to sigh heavily.  Was he escaping His problems or just trying to put a little bit of distance between Himself and the things that were lying heavy upon His heart? Maybe there is something to be said for hopping on a plane for a little time away?

So I reread the Gospel and made it my own (of course, no disrespect intended :)

"The children and others came and began to argue with me, seeking many things from me, to test me.  And I sighed deeply in my spirit for I was weary from the lack of sunshine and long winter and said, "Why do you ask so many things of me? Truly I cannot give you what you seek right now for I am weary." And I left them, and getting on a plane, departed for Arizona."

Addendum to the above..."But first I had to find the necessary funds to afford the  plane ticket!" 

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

Being Ourselves

Our pastor came over for dinner last night.  He is a very nice man with a good sense of humor.  Which is good.  Let's just say we didn't put on airs with him during dinner.  He pretty much got to see us as we are:

~ We discussed why women pluck their eyebrows and we even tried to answer the age-old question "What purpose do eyebrows serve, anyhow?" 

~ One of my sons repeatedly threatened to shoot a candle in half, to which the pastor kept asking, "What did that candle do to you?"

~ When asked to pass a roll to her father, one daughter, without thinking, launched it from her end of the table to his (and we have a long table, too).

So you see, it is good to let your parish priest see your family the way they really are!  He got a kick out of it, and I told him we were all good as long as none of it ended up in a homily one Sunday!

7 Quick Takes Friday - Feb 11th

1.

I'd like to introduce you to a new blog I started yesterday.  The idea is that it  will consist of quick posts and information for people who are interested in an excellent nutritional supplement called Reliv.  Blogging is relaxing for me, so I thought, why not?  A few minutes here and there to keep people up to date about the awesome things we are seeing from these great products.  Come follow along!

2.

Ms 7 yo makes her first confession tomorrow morning.  Please say a prayer for her that all goes well.  I know she is a bit nervous!

3.

Ms 18 yo comes home this weekend and we are all so excited.  I'm amazed that she hasn't been home in well over a month!  We have a busy weekend ahead of us, lots of entertaining, so it will be good to have her here!

4.

For anyone in the area, tonight is the Miles Christi Evening of Recollection.  We've missed the last three months (sickness and other events) and we are looking forward to 3 hours of peace and tranquility.  Mass, confession, adoration and wonderful, uplifting spiritual talks.

5.

The Little Flower's Dance and Theatre Troupe begins practice today for their upcoming performance (in June :) of an adaptation of "The King of the Golden City".  I love that book.  It is a great book to read when one is preparing for their First Holy Communion.  Unfortunately, it can also be hard to find.   If you know someone with a copy, I'd recommend borrowing it and reading it out loud with the family!

6.

I am so ready for sunshine and warmth.  My parents are RVing in the southwest and I would love to jump on a plane and soak up the sun but for two problems:  1.  The airfare is outrageous and 2. The weather isn't that great out there anyhow.  They've been there two weeks and it has been cold and windy.  My dad said that one night it got down into the 20s. So instead I bought myself some fresh flowers for the entryway, some bright colored wash clothes and a nice yellow rug for one of the bathrooms.  Much cheaper but not as fun!

7.

Our Valentine's Day celebration will consist of some yummy grilled ribeye steaks and a nice flourless chocolate cake to be eaten with our wonderful parish priest.  Hope you have a blessed St. Valentine's Day, too!

God Bless!

It's A Miracle

Do you believe in miracles?  I do, and here is why:

It might not look like much to you, but to me it represents a miracle.  The fact that on all but four days in January I exercised for at least 30 minutes is truly a miracle.  Many of these days I was even able to get up around 5:30 am and head down to the Wii Fit.

I credit this to three things:

1.  The grace of God.  Without this, nothing in my life would happen.

2.  The Reliv products I'm taking.  Without them I would be comatose at 5:30 am.

3.  My Wii Fit.  I know it has taken entertainment to get me to exercise, but I say, "Who cares!!!"  

As you can see by my overweight Mii, I haven't lost much weight yet, but I definitely can feel a difference.  I feel stronger and I have much more stamina.  

Besides that, it is tons of fun to try and beat your kids at some of the activities that they have on there!  Take that darn obstacle course, for example.  I can't seem to get to the end of level four on the advanced course, but I've still gotten farther than any of my kids! (no, I'm not competitive :) 
Note:  As of this afternoon (2/10) I successfully completed the advanced obstacle course.  Yahoo!


I just had to Praise God for this accomplishment.  I've been trying to begin an exercise program, any program, for years now, but it took the coming together of these three things to make it happen!

Wordless Wednesday - The Sad Egg-eater

7 Quick Takes Friday - Blizzard Edition

1.

Well, we survived Blizzard 2011.  It wasn't as bad by us, as far as total inches go, as it was farther north of here.  I think we were somewhere around the 11 - 12 inch mark, although we had some drifts that were 3 ft. high.  It was an interesting two days, to be sure.

2.

Tuesday was spent in preparations.  We ran around town Tuesday morning doing our final errands - you know, important things that one should do before a blizzard hits, like...go to the chiropractor!  Okay, so we did go to the grocery store, too, which was very crowded.  I found it interesting that the pop section was more empty than the water section!

3.

Once we got home we hunkered down.   Water and food...check, firewood...check, books to read...check, internet connection still working...check (to keep up with the radar screen and storm totals, of course :)  We all just sat there looking out the window, waiting.  It seemed kind of silly, but you just couldn't help yourself.  Finally, right on schedule, it started to blow.  Within an hour, it started to snow.  The blizzard had arrived and boy we were not disappointed.

4.

An observation...50 mile an hour winds during the day are completely different than 50 mile an hour winds in the dark of night.  There is something much more ominous about them when it is night time.  Can't describe it, but I'm sure some of you, at least, know what I mean.

5.

We live on a well-traveled road.  It was very eerie not to have any traffic, not one car or one truck, travel past our house for about 16 hours.  Were it not for the howling wind, the lack of road noise would have been very peaceful.

6.

I had this urge to keep the outside light on all night; just in case some wandering, disoriented person should be looking for a refuge in the midst of the storm.  My kids kept pointing out that you couldn't even tell the light was on because the wind was blowing the snow so hard.  Never mind, if God wanted someone to see that light, He would have worked it out; we just needed to keep it on.  Well, either He didn't need anyone to see it or it really was impossible to see from the road :)

7.

By mid-morning of the next day the sun was shining and we were all out enjoying the snow.  It was really nice to just be together and enjoy God's beautiful creation knowing you couldn't GO anywhere even if you wanted to.  It made the day so very relaxing.  From what I heard from others, a lot of people were enjoying the "forced" day off.  Hopefully you were home safe with your family, too!

Going Retro

I finally did it...it took me awhile to get the courage to do it, but I finally took the plunge and got rid of all my cordless phones and went back to the corded ones!  We've gone retro and I'm not sure yet how I feel about it.

I remember when I got my first cordless phone.  Boy did I feel liberated.  With a toddler crawling around the house at the time I was thrilled that I could talk on the phone and chase her around.

After that, well you know how it is; you could go anywhere and do anything and still carry on a phone conversation.  Cordless phones improved my multi-tasking abilities by leaps and bounds.  I could carry on a conversation, cook dinner and run throughout the house to referee a fighting match without skipping a beat.

But then it started...all of the emails and articles that warned about how bad cell phones and cordless phones are for your brain cells - especially the brain cells of your children because their skulls are so much thinner than ours.  After a few years of reading about it and experiencing pain in my ears whenever I would talk for more than 5 minutes on my cell phone, my husband and I decided to get rid of the cordless phones and go back to those lovely corded ones.  I think one reason why it was easier now to make that decision is because I no longer have toddlers to chase after.

So that I wouldn't go into too much shock, I bought the really long cords that plug into the wall and the extra-long, curly phone cords so that from one phone I can reach my desk and computer in one direction and all the way to the kitchen sink in the opposite direction.  I can feel good about not frying our brain cells, too.  The only thing we're worried about is someone hurting themselves when they come running through a room and trip over that really long cord :)

As for those nasty cell phones, I have a love-hate relationship with them.  They sure come in handy when you're away from home, don't they?   Fortunately, I've never been a big cell phone user, basically because they make my ears hurt and also because we get horrible reception on them in our house.  My husband, on the other hand, has had a cell phone attached to his ear because of work since they first came out.  I often imagine this big tumor growing in his head just above his right ear.

So we'll try these phones out for awhile and see how it goes.  On the upside, when the electricity goes out, we'll still have the use of our phones!  And, as my daughter just pointed out, we can use the cords to practice our limbo abilities!  Try that with a cordless phone :)

Wordless Wednesday - The Aftermath