Praying
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Athens, Wildfires & Praying from the Heart
We live in a culture in which a lot of really good and decent people remain silent about their deepest held beliefs — while overly outspoken (often narcissistic) men and women make a living off of filling the world with inflammatory and offensive content, instilling fear and division wherever they go. Perhaps those people who make a living off of riling people up have turned us off to the really important truth that we have a duty to share the Gospel with the world around us. Perhaps we’ve accepted the fact that we can’t do much to stem the tide and to share the good news with a world that…
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The Sacred Heart of Jesus and Consoling the Heart of Jesus
“Behold this Heart which has so loved men that It spared nothing, even going so far as to exhaust and consume Itself, to prove to them Its love. And in return I receive from the greater part of men nothing but ingratitude, by the contempt, irreverence, sacrileges and coldness with which they treat Me in this Sacrament of Love. But what is still more painful to Me is that even souls consecrated to Me are acting in this way.” ~Revelations of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque~ The revelations of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque contained beautiful truths about His Sacred Heart and the unfathomable Love contained within it.…
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Hope and Healing After an Abortion
Did you know that no matter what you’ve done in this life, that Jesus still loves you and wants to forgive you? But here is the thing. You have to acknowledge your sins and then ask for forgiveness. Today is a day we remember the men, women and children who have been hurt by a CHOICE. We pray for them and acknowledge they have been wounded deeply — so deeply that they can’t be healed by any doctor here on earth. The only One who can heal these wounds of profound sadness, regret, self-loathing and despair is Jesus. Only Jesus! So go to Him. Seek his forgiveness and begin to…
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The Busy Mom’s (and Dad’s) Guide to Prayer.
Happy New Year, everybody! I just wanted to share a podcast I was on recently with Christine of Catholic Mama Podcast, talking about learning to pray as a Mom (or a Dad!). Believe it or not, it’s way different than praying as a single person in so many ways — at least, it’s different because you need to learn to be flexible and to go with the punches. Seriously, couldn’t resist this picture below when I was thinking of praying as a mom. We came upon it in Florence, and at the time I was breastfeeding a 6 month old across Italy. I took one look at this picture and…
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Saying Buh-bye to 2020. Happy New Year!
I know we all know that just because today begins a new year, that all the troubles of this year will not be behind us — but still, there is always something so hopeful about entering into a new year. It’s kind of like the beginning of every school year, where hope is alive and I’m just sure that this will be the year that I “nail it” as a teacher and a mom and all the other titles I hold — but a few months in and I’m like “maybe next year”. Ha! And yet, we hope — well, at least, I do — and I believe that hope…
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Being Great in the Little Things
This week we celebrated the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, a Saint our family has always felt close to over the years. Once upon a time, we even took a pilgrimage to Melaka, Malaysia, so we could visit his original burial site and walk the streets he walked on his way to the East. Not easy to get to, but let me tell you that in a predominantly Muslim country, the influence of St. Francis Xavier filled Melaka with a Catholic Spirit that is still alive and well today. Honestly, when you walk those streets, you know one thing: men and women who say “yes” to God leave a lasting…
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#FastandPray2020
You are invited! Please join in prayer and fasting for the upcoming election, our country, our leaders, and for each other! Lord knows we need it! When a friend from real-life (Shout out Tori!) reached out to me on Instagram and asked me to join in this Holy Spirit initiative, of course, I said, “yes!”. I know the power of prayer and fasting. I’ve witnessed the beautiful effect of praying and fasting for specific intentions in my own life. Honestly, how could I say “no” — knowing that there is so much at stake with this election? I’m not just talking about political ramifications — I’m talking about the right…
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#1 Mom Hack For When You Are Weary
For the first time in about 10 months I am going to finally see my parents and some other family this weekend. Hooray! But let me tell you, I am weary! There is so much to do before I can actually see these people I can’t wait to see — which is my long way of saying this post is going to be short. Ha, ha. So I thought I would share my #1 mom-hack for when you are weary. Here it is: if you are scared or weary or your prayer life is dry or you are worried about somebody you love and don’t quite know how to help…
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The Sacred Heart of Jesus
“Beloved, let us love one another; God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him; if anyone says, “I love God” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.” I John 4:7, 16, 20 Enough said! Let’s go out and share the love of Christ with a world that is desperate for it. Don’t know where to begin, begin at home. Don’t think you have the strength, spend time with Jesus. He will give you the strength. Don’t think it’s possible to love certain…
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The Purpose of Anger
Let’s just be honest, there are many reasons for all of us to be angry right now. So much injustice going on in the world, so many innocent people suffering at the hands of others, violence in the streets and homes and places of work. Not to mention the policies of corrupt (or at the very least completely inept!) politicians that have led to the death of innocent men, women and children around the world. It can be absolutely heartbreaking! Correction: it should be absolutely heartbreaking. We should be angry in the face of oppression and discrimination and injustice — and if we don’t find ourselves angry at these things,…
