Believing Nothing Is Impossible

May 21, 2012 By 1 Comment

A Mary Moment Monday post

I take a lot of comfort from this insight from the pope:

Mary truly believed that ‘nothing is impossible to God’ and, strong in this confidence she let herself be guided by the Holy Spirit in daily obedience to his plan. How can we not desire that same trusting abandon in our lives? How can we not yearn for that beatitude that is born of a profound and intimate familiarity with Jesus? That is why, addressing the one who is ‘full of grace’, we can today ask that she intercede with Divine Providence for us too, so that we might each day proclaim our ‘yes’ to God’s plan with the same humble and sincere faith that the Virgin said her yes”.

Pope Benedict XVI, Rosary Procession, May 31, 2011

As we approach Pentecost, this link between Mary and the Holy Spirit, this way they have of working together, helps me glimpse how I can better lean back into the trust I need to have.

I haven’t thought much about how I need to “desire that same trusting abandon” in my life. In fact, I’ve come to realize, after reflecting on this, how very hard it is for me to trust.

On some levels, I trust way too easily and quickly. On many other levels, though, the ones that matter and are closer to my vest, I don’t trust.

Turning to Mary is not a remote effort. It’s not reaching out to a distant deity.

Mary is right next to me. She’s holding me, as a matter of fact, as I struggle with whatever challenges today presents.

And right next to her, without fail, is her Son, who’s never far from her.

image credit: MorgueFile

Filed Under: Inspired by the Virgin Mary, Mary Moment Mondays, Quotes Tagged With: , , ,

The Last Saturday of March Daybook

March 31, 2012 By 2 Comments

Outside my window: It’s looking like it’s going to be a gray day, but I’m okay with that.

Around the house: The girls are up and watching some early morning TV curled under blankets. My boys are sleeping. The washer’s at work across the room and I’m thinking of what I need to do this morning.

In other places:

In my kitchen: The floor is clean. And now the formerly quiet kids are demanding I make them breakfast. (They know about the stash of new flavors of Pop Tarts.)

In my thoughts: I’m thinking about a fun weekend visit, all I need to do in the coming week, and a host of things I’m grateful for.

In thanksgiving: For the support and encouragement of my family, for the weekly renewal of things horsey, for the weekend ahead.

In my prayers: A very special intention for someone I love dearly and a friend who’s mourning.

Nose inserted: Oh, these are goooood; it was all I could do to go to bed last night!

Recent reads: I’ll be reviewing a number of these very soon in various places.

  • The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins (fiction, YA) – I read this because my sister-in-law asked me to, and I was rather surprised that I enjoyed it and even wanted to read the next book in the trilogy. My nieces have started reading it, and one of them told me that the movie is the BEST MOVIE EVER (she’s seen it twice and offered to go with me). I haven’t put my thoughts together coherently, but my early thoughts are that it’s almost like Lord of the Flies meets 1984.
  • Style, Sex, and Substance: 10 Catholic Women Consider the Things that Really Matter, Edited by Hallie Lord – Fun and informative, lovely and hilarious, this is sure to warrant the hype it’s gotten and earn it’s spot as a best-selling Catholic book. I’m reviewing it in length at CatholicMom.com next Friday AND giving a copy away. Stay tuned!
  • The Catholic Girl’s Survival Guide for the Single Years: The Nuts and Bolts of Staying Sane and Happy While Waiting for Mr. Right, by Emily Stimpson – I met the author at the Behold Conference, and I’ve enjoyed her writing online in various places, so I thought that, although the book didn’t appear to be anything relevant to me, I’d give it a shot. I couldn’t have been more wrong! Not only was it speaking to ME in many ways, but I marked passages and will be sharing more thoughts about it at length. One of the best books I’ve read in a long time, and I don’t say that lightly! I couldn’t put it down!
  • The Work of Mercy: Being the Hands and Heart of Christ, by Mark Shea – I thought this book would be a drag, but I love Mark Shea’s writing and I thought I’d make it through it. What a delight to find that this book is the sort of thing I encourage our pastor to use for his Bible study, that I pass on to a good friend, and that I plan to reference and reread many times. Shea made the works of mercy so clear and so relevant that I found myself moved in ways I just never have been. It was touching, even as it was informative. In other words, I loved it.
  • Fatherless, by Brian Gail – I picked this up reading all the acclaim and rave reviews about it and was really looking forward to it. After all, it’s Catholic fiction. However, I gave it three stars and found myself a bit disappointed. The story does keep moving and there are many parts that are compelling and thought-provoking. I had the sensation of being a bit preached to throughout, and I felt like it could have been about half as long and twice as effective. Nevertheless, I’ll be reading the other two books in the series (Motherless and Childless), so don’t think I didn’t enjoy reading it enough to continue. Three stars doesn’t make it a must-read in my categorizing, but it is worthwhile and better than drivel.
  • Faith at Work: Finding Purpose Beyond the Paycheck, by Kevin Lowry – This is a great book, hands down. Kevin Lowry is approachable and I found that, though he wrote what is undoubtedly a business book, it’s applicable to all of us who work, whether we work at home or in an office or on the road. Lowry taps into his experience and his wisdom, shares his faith and his insight, and tops it all off with a bit of humor and perspective. I really enjoyed reading it and I will be encouraging others to read it as well.

Plea for advice: Anyone have suggestions for sharing links that isn’t FriendFeed? I thought it was going to be a great way to share in my sidebar, but I’ve caught that it’s been dropping the ball. If you have suggestions, I’m all ears!

A favorite thing: My seven-year-old’s penchant for coloring and the many beautiful drawings she is always making.

Food for thought: “Fasting, which can have various motivations, takes on a profoundly religious significance for the Christian: by rendering our table poorer, we learn to overcome selfishness in order to live in the logic of gift and love; by bearing some form of deprivation – and not just what is in excess – we learn to look away from our “ego”, to discover Someone close to us and to recognize God in the face of so many brothers and sisters. For Christians, fasting, far from being depressing, opens us ever more to God and to the needs of others, thus allowing love of God to become also love of our neighbor (cf. Mk 12: 31).” – Pope Benedict XVI, from his 2011 Lenten message

Worth a thousand words: My boy, who spent at least a half-hour a few mornings ago on the front porch, watching the traffic and pointing to all the trucks

Filed Under: Books, daybook, podcasts, Quotes, writing Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday Quick Takes: More of Me, Lent Goodness, and a Picture

February 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

— 1 (Be Proud of Me) —

Yeah, I know. It’s not Friday. The temptation was strong to do two posts yesterday, but aren’t you proud of me? I resisted!

So here I am on Saturday with some Quickish Takes…

— 2 (Book Giveaway Winners) —

If you entered my book giveaway this month, I announced winners the other day and also sent emails (though I have a good hearty appreciation for spam filters, indeed I do).

Be sure you contact me if you won!

— 3 (Papa Rocks!) —

Have you read the pope’s message for Lent 2012 yet? How’d I not find it until now? Here’s a sampling:

The Lenten season offers us once again an opportunity to reflect upon the very heart of Christian life: charity. This is a favourable time to renew our journey of faith, both as individuals and as a community, with the help of the word of God and the sacraments. This journey is one marked by prayer and sharing, silence and fasting, in anticipation of the joy of Easter.

This year I would like to propose a few thoughts in the light of a brief biblical passage drawn from the Letter to the Hebrews:“ Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works”. These words are part of a passage in which the sacred author exhorts us to trust in Jesus Christ as the High Priest who has won us forgiveness and opened up a pathway to God. Embracing Christ bears fruit in a life structured by the three theological virtues: it means approaching the Lord “sincere in heart and filled with faith” (v. 22), keeping firm “in the hope we profess” (v. 23) and ever mindful of living a life of “love and good works” (v. 24) together with our brothers and sisters.

Go read the whole thing.

— 4 (Hearts to Celeste) —

Here’s a great Lenten resource, courtesy of Celeste Behe: 40 for 12.

Throughout the 40 days of Lent, the 40 for 12 Menu Plan will offer a weekly shopping list and menu of meatless meals, along with easy recipes and fun commentary. Each of the recipes is designed to serve 12, in order to suit big happy families with many mouths to feed, small happy families with voracious teens, and prudent wives who know the value of a good leftover.

Here’s the bottom line of this 40 for 12 Menu Plan brilliance:

  • Living out the Lenten discipline of abstinence as a family
  • Free Mom from undue stress
  • Keep kids from being sullen
  • Recipes serve big families OR have plenty of leftovers
  • Plans can be modified easily
  • There aren’t expensive convenience foods
  • Shopping lists included!
  • Do I really need to go on? Aren’t you SOLD? :)

Something to help me spend less time in the kitchen? Well, Celeste, let me hug you!

— 5 (My Other Blatherings) —

Total excitement: my interview made the podcast version of The Catholics Next Door. So if, like me, you don’t listen to Sirius/XM (but you long to, if only to hear the awesomeness that is Greg and Jennifer Willits), then you can hear my recent interview.

More excitement: I’m now a contributor over at the Integrated Catholic Life. My first column, “My Reckless Experiment with Fridays” went live yesterday.

Lenten failures: I’m on iPadre this week with a Mary Moment about my Lenten failures.

I love pizza, need I say more? On Catholic Foodie, Mary in the Kitchen is pizza-oriented (after a fun-filled parade-induced show).

Did you know there’s a great new app for Total Consecration? It gets my rave review over in my Tech Talk column this week at CatholicMom.com.

Lent’s on my mind: I’m talking Lent and blogging at the Catholic Writers Guild this week.

— 6 (Share Your Story) —

Do you have a Lenten story about how you’ve grown? Is there a faith story you’d be willing to share with others?

Karina Fabian is collecting them at the Why God Matters website. Here’s the scoop:

In 1996, Karina Fabian, mother of toddlers, made a Lenten vow that launched her career as a writer.  Years later, it led her to share that joy of writing with her father, as they collaborated on an award-winning devotional, Why God Matters: How to Recognize Him in Daily Life.  This year, she hopes to share the joy of Lent through her book and the Why God Matters website.

This year, Fabian and Tribute Books are opening the Why God Matters website to faith stories by others, especially Lenten faith stories.  “I believe that Lent, and Lenten vows, can change lives,” Fabian said.  “I’d like to share that hope with others, and the best way is through sharing our stories.”

“God continues to bless me through that Lenten vow,” Fabian said.  “Not only will I cherish having worked with my father, but the book itself has touched so many lives.  People have written to us that it’s helped them understand their faith better , brought them closer to God, or touched them when they really needed it.  I hope this Lent, through the website, we can do this some more.”

— 7 (Picture, As Promised) —

When she got her hair cut earlier this week, my seven-year-old asked the beautician to do her hair up. This is my glimpse at how quickly time passes…

Conversion Diary has more Quick Takes…though most people do them on Fridays… :)

Filed Under: blogging, podcasts, Quick Takes, writing Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Snowy Saturday Daybook

February 11, 2012 By 2 Comments

Outside my window: Snow! On the ground!

Around the house: There’s a pile of people–Daddy and girls–on my couch, watching a movie. The boy is dragging a stool around the kitchen counters, seeing what fun he can find.

What I’ve been writing: I’ve been treading water and keeping up with my weekly commitments. I have plans for a book proposal, though, and need to work on that soon. The idea is THERE, even sort of fleshed out, so it’s time to ACT.

In my thoughts: The HHS Mandate and the “compromise” that’s really a bait-and-switch. And Rick Santorum. And changing my blogging frequency.

In my plans: I have to get my PSR lesson done for next week. We have a few weeks off soon, and I’m hoping to get ahead, but no guarantees. There’s also rumor of a date sometime soon, and hey! Ministry scheduling next week should take some major time off my purgatory… :)

In thanksgiving: For the cuddles of children. For laughs with friends. For nieces who text me. For online games with extended family.

In my prayers: For a woman who’s expecting to deliver her encephalitic baby soon. For a woman whose five-month-old baby recently died. For some special intentions.

Nose inserted: I’m finishing Unbridled Grace: A True Story about the Power of Choice, by Michael Norman, this weekend. I’m debating which book is next. I’m trying valiantly to also read The End and the Beginning: Pope John Paul II–The Struggle for Freedom, the Last Years, the Legacy, by George Weigel, but I’m not doing so well. I’m still in the first chapter. I need to set a goal of one chapter every couple of days, I think.

Links I like: (You can find more in the sidebar or on my FriendFeed)

  • Canterbury Tales has a post that I used for an upcoming parish bulletin explaining the rules of fasting and abstinence. Now’s the time to brush up and get ready!
  • Suscipio is doing a “Moments of Grace” link-up every Friday, and I’m so inspired by it! I’m hoping to join in next week.
  • Karina Fabian shares five things writers shouldn’t do. Great advice and good reminders.
  • Melissa Wiley cracks me up…and so does her husband.
  • Brandon Vogt shares a video and considers what the most powerful tool for evangelization really is.
  • Darwin looks at the fallacy food stamps as living poor.

Pick of the week: Pat Gohn’s “A God with Toes” at Patheos this week.

Food for thought: In my inbox this morning, courtesy of BenedictEveryday.com:

It is certainly not by chance that people are nowadays turning again to Mary, in whom Christianity becomes loveable again and close to us, and we really do find the door again through the Mother.

–Pope Benedict XVI

Worth a thousand words: From Jon Fitz

Courtesy of Jon Fitz

Filed Under: Books, daybook, links, Quotes Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Fourth Sunday of Advent Daybook

December 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Outside my window: Sunshine and a wisp of leftover snow from yesterday’s flurries

Around the house: Girls, pounding and playing and happy in the other room; boy, pounding and playing and happy across the room; husband, showering and feeling better (he was sick yesterday).

In my kitchen: We’re ready for Christmas feasting, I tell ya. I might even make a pie. From scratch. But we’ll see.

In my thoughts: Boy, do I some rambling thoughts today, most centering on my bad attitude and struggle through Advent.

In thanksgiving: For prayers and novenas and blessings.

Nose inserted: Women, Sex, and the Church: A Case for Catholic Teaching, edited by Erika Bachiochi and two–TWO!–manuscripts (one by Meredith Gould).

Links I like:

  • If the Infant Christ was God, Why Couldn’t He Speak? – I am never disappointed by Marc Barnes’s writing. Though the whole thing is well worth reading (a must-read, I daresay), here’s my favorite part: “So in the last few weeks of Advent, embrace your weakness. Kneel before the manger and worship the Christ-child by imitation of the Christ-child. And never forget that if Christ’s humility is incomprehensible in his humanity, how much more must it be in his body and blood in the form of bread and wine. There, there is the ultimate helplessness. There the Christ deigns not only to be silent, but to be food. Sacrificed for our sake, his ultimate act of weakness is our ultimate source of strength.”
  • The Pope’s 3 Wishes for Christmas – I find myself, once again, just in awe–and in love–with our dear Papa. What great wishes! And…well, it makes me rethink what I should be aiming for at Christmas.
  • Tired Benedict Needs Our Prayers – I’m glad I caught this. I do pray for the pope, but this just strikes me heart in a special way.
  • Gene and Alice and the Luminous Mysteries – A lovely piece by Deacon Tom Fox that captures so much of what’s important about marriage…and about prayer.

A favorite thing: Mass.

Food for thought: “Every time we say the Our Father our voices mingle with the voice of the Church; for those who pray are never alone.” – Benedict XVI, Angelus Address, July 25, 2010 (via BenedictEverday.com)

Worth a thousand words: With thanks to my photo-happy sister-in-law:

Filed Under: daybook, family Tagged With: , , , ,

The “I won’t complain” daybook

November 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Outside my window: Blue skies, bright sun, cold air.

Around the house: Girls and husband, snuggled on couch. Boy, asleep in crib. Me, perched at bar-counter with laptop. Let’s not talk about the state of the house beyond that, okay?

What I’ve been writing: Great book apps for kids for Tech Tuesday and reasons for using the Youcat at CatholicMom.com and the start of a new series on blogging at the Catholic Writers Guild blog

In my thoughts: Advent, of course. :) And remember how I prattled on about my office? Well, I’ve been thinking and trying to involve other smart people in a possible reutilization of that space. I’m also thinking of Christmas shopping (and, to that end, I just made a spreadsheet this morning and shared it with my husband). And also rattling around in my sleep-deprived mind is budgeting and the shared calendar we’ve been using and whether I truly understand how Mint works (why am I still confused? and frustrated?).

In my plans: Sleep. And reading, followed by a steamy time in the shower to clear my sinuses, with a nap on top, a snuggle with a kid or two, maybe Mass (or maybe not), and meatloaf. Because nothing says “take THAT ye nasty sinus virus” like a good ole batch of meatloaf.

In thanksgiving: For Saturday sick bay hours and an unplanned weekend (we’d be breaking plans if we had ‘em).

In my prayers: Friends and family who have asked for my special prayers, a project that’s been rattling around in my brain, and the ability to keep smiling through the trials of everyday life.

Nose inserted: Between Heaven and Mirth: Why Joy, Humor, and Laughter Are at the Heart of the Spiritual Life, by James Martin, SJ

Recent reads:

Links I like:

If you want more links from me: I’ve been trying to use FriendFeed to keep track of links I like…we’ll see how long I keep it up. So far, it’s fairly easy to post when I’m reading and surfing around. I’m also experimenting with Diigo, but I haven’t hit the learning curve that makes it worth sharing a link to that here. :)

A favorite thing: Hot coffee with a splash of cream, though with these cold days and sinus-infected season on me, my favorite peppermint tea is a close second.

Food for thought: “The closer a person is to God, the closer he is to people. We see this in Mary. The fact that she is totally with God is the reason why she is so close to human beings. For this reason she can be the Mother of every consolation and every help, a Mother whom anyone can dare to address in any kind of need in weakness and in sin, for she has understanding for everything and is for everyone the open power of creative goodness.” – Benedict XVI in his homily for the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, 2005, via BenedictEverday.com

Worth a thousand words: In my inbox this morning:

Filed Under: Books, daybook, writing Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Benedict on Mama

June 8, 2011 By 3 Comments

We all need Mary’s help and comfort to face the trials and challenges of daily life; we need to feel that she is our mother and sister in the concrete situations of our lives. And so, that we too may one day be able to share in her same destiny, let us imitate her now in her meek following of Christ and her generous service to the brethren. This is the only way to have a foretaste, already on our earthy pilgrimage, of the joy and peace which those who reach the immortal destination of Paradise life to the full.

Pope Benedict XVI
Angelus Address
Castel Gandolfo
August 15, 2007
Via BenedictEveryday.com

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