The power of the rosary!

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The past few days have been so hectic! Work has been crazy but my evenings have been beautiful- full of prayer with friends and family. Praying the rosary in our home with a group of our closest people has been a wonderful experience. My in laws, my godmother, a few friends, and even my priest have been joining us for dinner and prayer. It is beautiful praying in a group and sharing our home with them. Since we have been married I have enjoyed hosting dinner parties, but this makes it even better! Everyone sitting around my living room with a rosary in hand...I love it! We are actually having our youth group over this week to learn the story of Our Lady of Fatima and then pray the rosary. 30 teens in my living room praying the rosary-what a blessing!

On Sunday before my husband and I left for mass and to teach our religious education class we prayed the rosary...that day in my class I know Our Lady was present. I had prepared a lesson on the value of life. My confirmation class, comprised of teens, has been focusing on morality and how as Catholics they need to live by example and lead a virtuous life following the Faith. I had prepared to talk about respecting all life in the different stages of life...unborn, babies, adolescents, adults, seniors... I had planned to talk about abortions as well as respecting our bodies, however, that was not my main focus. However, Our Lady had different plans for me. We started the class with prayer and then we dove into the topic. When I started talking about abortion and respecting the body, I started talking about contraception, premarital sex and much more than I had planned to talk about! For some reason I just kept going deeper and my teens sat there listening to every word. After class I told my husband that I knew there was a reason why the Holy Spirit had inspired me to veer off my lesson plan.

Yesterday evening I got a text from one of my teens and she said that the lesson had really spoken to her...she has been struggling with respecting her body and our lesson gave her the wake up call that she needed to reevaluate how she has been living her life. That text not only confirmed what I love to do with the youth  but it confirmed how important prayer is, especially when you are working in ministry! I can't do it without Him guiding me and I know that if I had not been praying my rosary then I would not have been open to anything the Holy Spirit had  for me to share with the youth.

Clare

Our Lady of Fatima

Today I was blessed with the visiting Our Lady of Fatima. She travels from home to home, week after week. People gather in homes to pray the rosary and intentions are placed in an envelope that accompanies her to each house that she visits. I have been excitedly waiting to have her come visit this week.

It was very special praying the rosary with my family. My mother in law, grandmother, aunt, 2 sister in laws and my husband and I gathered around this morning to pray the rosary. It was beautiful. After the rosary we had breakfast and sat around talking.

My husband and I always enjoy great company, especially our family. I am excited that we get to have Our Lady of Fatima in our home for a week. Every evening, at 7, we plan to have friends and family over praying the rosary with us; each person with their own special intentions. We plan to have our priest over as well. It is a blessing to be able to host her in our home, and for people to gather in my living room to pray the rosary. I will be more than happy to offer a rosary for anyone with a special intention. Please let me know if you would like me to be praying for anything in particular...

God Bless,
Clare

Looking for a group...

In a past entry, I had mentioned how my my husband and I were looking for a formation group or a bible study to belong to. Well, we are still looking. :(

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Two nights ago, in mass, Father discussed in his homily the importance of belonging to a parish group. "In order to give, we have to be full..." Like I have mentioned before,  we have our youth group and we teach religious education on Sunday. So I am giving...but I feel like I am being drained. My husband and I have done various bible studies in the past, belonged to a few groups here and there but there has not been anything consistent or permanent. Groups in our parish don't last long because of lack of participation. It makes me sad when people just conform to a Sunday mass and do not seek to learn more of our Faith and our God.

I have been highly considering entering the Lay Ministry program that our diocese offers. It is a 4 year theological program that prepares you for ministry work. My husband might do it in preparation to become a Deacon and I would love to do youth ministry full time...However, all of that is in God's hands and it does not being until September 2013!

I need something NOW! Any suggestions?

St. Jude- Patron Saint of the Lost Causes

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, the novena to St. Jude started on Saturday. Today is the third day and I plan to attend the daily mass our church is doing for the Novena.

Holy Saint Jude,  Apostle and martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, close friend of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke your special patronage in time of need. To you I have recourse from the depths of my heart and humbly beg to whom God has given such great power to come to my assistance. Help me in my present situation. In return I promise to make your name known. Saint Jude, pray for me and all those who invoke your aid. Amen.        

Lord, have mercy on us. / Christ, have mercy on us. / Lord, have mercy on us. / Christ, hear us. / Christ, graciously hear us. / God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us! / God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us! / God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us! / Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us!

St. Jude, relative of Jesus and Mary, pray for us! / St. Jude, raised to the dignity of an apostle, pray for us! / St. Jude, who had the honor of beholding the Divine Master humble Himself to wash his feet, pray for us! / St. Jude, who at the Last Supper received the Holy Eucharist from the hands of Jesus, pray for us! / St. Jude, who after the profound grief which the death of your beloved Master cause you, had the consolation of beholding Him risen from the dead and of assisting at His glorious Ascension, pray for us!

St. Jude, who was filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of the Pentecost, pray for us! / St. Jude, who preached the Gospel in Persia, pray for us! St. Jude, who converted many people to the Faith, pray for us! / St. Jude, who performed wonderful miracles in the power of the Holy Spirit, pray for us! / St. Jude, who restored an idolatrous king to health, both of soul and body, pray for us! / St. Jude, who imposed silence on demons, and confounded their oracles, pray for us! / St. Jude, who foretold to a weak prince an honorable peace with his powerful enemy, pray for us! / St. Jude, who took from deadly serpents the power of injuring man, pray for us! / St. Jude, who, disregarding the threats of the impious, courageously preached the doctrine of Christ, pray for us! / St. Jude, who gloriously suffered martyrdom for the love of your Divine Master, pray for us!

Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you! / Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you! / Blessed Apostle, with confidence, we invoke you! / St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress! / St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress! /St. Jude, help of the hopeless, aid me in my distress!

Are you doing the novena to St. Jude? One of my intentions that I am praying for throughout the novena is for my mom. My mom cradle Catholic, who after a divorce 20 years ago strayed away from the church. Growing up we did not attend church often nor did we pray as a family or give much importance to a Faithful lifestyle. She did make sure that my brother and I complete all of our sacraments but other than that we did not really do much else when it came to the Catholic church. Fortunately, there was always someone in my life such as my grandmother, or my godmother, who insured that we learned how to pray the rosary or knew the importance of our Faith. These teachings only got so far before I went off to school and completely forgot about who God was. Since my "reversion" to the Church (about 5 years ago) I have not prayed much for the reversion of my mom. I so desperately want my mom to return and fall in love with Jesus the way I do everyday but I can't help but to feel helpless when it comes to praying for her. Does that make sense? My mom is one TOUGH woman who is VERY stubborn and stuck in her ways. I think it is even hard for me to believe that she will come back to the church (which is not good because I need to have faith; nothing is impossible for God!) I feel guilty that I have not consistently prayed for her and this is some thing that I am trying harder to do which is why I have decided to dedicate the novena to St. Jude, patron saint of the lost causes. 

Clare

Teens, Bullying, and Suicide

Well I guess my 40 day journey is not what I thought it was going to be... I am not following a specific 40 day plan. I set out to try for the next 40 days to do something extra or something different that would draw me closer to my husband and to God. Don't get me wrong, I am definitely doing those things but the more I am in prayer the more that those things are just happening naturally and I am not really thinking about it. I guess that was the point, huh? Although, there is something about setting a goal and trying to accomplish it. I am very good at making "to do list" and crossing off things and getting that sense of accomplishment once they are completed. However, I quickly realized that I was trying to do that with this project. I should not make being a good wife to my husband or a faithful follower of God a task on my list. These should be things that need to be in prayer so that they can become who I am without the reminder on the old "to do list." I will say this though, the more conscious I am of my actions the more aware I am of how my relationship with my hubby and God are doing.

Last night my husband and I had our youth group. We are youth leaders to 30+ teens who meet every week to learn more about their faith and to have a support group of believers. The lesson/activities that we planned for last night were centered on bullying and suicide. My husband and I are continually amazed at what these teens go through everyday in school. With us being in our 20s we don't feel that we are too far off from their generation  however  when they share the latest trends or happenings in their school we are constantly in awe with how different our teens are growing up today.

Recently, in the news and all over social media outlets, a story about a girl named Amanda Todd was shared and how she committed suicide last week. This teenager was stalked, bullied, and harassed to the point that led her to commit suicide. (The story is more elaborate and intense and if you google her name you can read it in full detail.) So last night we discussed this with the teens and asked how they felt about it or if bullying was a reality in their schools. We also focused on how as followers in Christ we could be the light for those who feel desperate and alone. The conversation we had was truly amazing, and I am very proud of my teens for their resiliency and faith. I asked them if they knew someone who is currently cutting themselves or is suicidal and majority of the group raised their hand. We then educated them on the steps they need to take to provide resources for their friends when needed and how important it is to pray for them.

Aside from my faith, I am a  Mental Health professional who has worked with teens and now with college students so this subject is very near and dear to my heart. We often discuss heavy issues like this in group because we find that it allows our teens to have an outlet and a safe place where this can be discussed. After our conversation we took them to the chapel in our church where my husband had placed various candles at the alter by the tabernacle. When they walked in it was completely dark and we had them say a prayer for those who are suffering from depression, suicide, bullying, etc. Then one by one they approached the alter and lit a candle for someone or for a cause. At the end the sight was just breathtaking. Every teen was in prayer, some were in tears, some were comforting each other and others were just praising God. All the candles were lit and we discussed the importance of being the light in a sometimes dark world.

I thank God for our ministries because I know that these are blessings. HUGE responsibilities but my husband and I have been working with youth since we were just boyfriend and girlfriend and I know that we would not have it any other way. These teens need our prayers. They are the Church...not the future of the Church.

Clare

Day 3/40: Seriously?

Just when I thought yesterday was going so well...BAM! Isn't is funny how when things are going well it seems that the enemy just tries to destroy that peace and harmony right out of you! Work has been crazy lately- appointment after appointment 8 hours a day. This week for some reason students have been rushing to our office to meet with us and we have had no breathing room! However, I managed to stay calm and relaxed yesterday and was still on a spiritual high from mass with my hubby that morning. It wasn't until I got home that I just got really frustrated and impatient. Why? Who knows! My poor husband, who had cooked dinner and cleaned the house got the grunt of it. Within 5 minutes of being home I complained about anything and everything and then I stopped myself and thought "Seriously?!" I took a deep breath and apologized and thanked him for dinner and the house looking great. Being the ever understanding saint that he is, he just smiled and said he knew I had a long day and that it was ok to vent. I am so in love with that man and am so blessed to have him as my partner in life.

It is those moments that really bring me down. The fact that I don't seem to have control over my emotions and words that are flying out of my mouth make me realize I need Him so much more. I need that peace and purity in my heart.

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' 

Matthew 15:18

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The bible talks a great deal about the condition of the heart and how it is important to cleanse and purify it. It is at those times when I am impatient and unkind that I wonder about the condition of my heart. And this my friends is why this is a journey that was never promised to be easy. But a journey worth living!

In other news, I am excited to start the Novena to St. Jude on Saturday to be able to finish on his feast day- October 28. For the first time, my church has decided to do a community novena where everyone who wants to participate can come together for the nine days at 6:30pm to participate in a mass and to finish off with the novena for the day. I have done various novenas in the past but never to St. Jude. I have several intentions in mind that I desperately need to pray for and I have faith that they will be answered in His time. Is anyone else thinking of doing the novena to St. Jude? 

Clare 

Day 2 of 40: Joy & Love

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Yesterday ended well. After work I decided to go to mass at a cute little Catholic chapel down the road from work. I love the intimate setting of the chapel and because it is a weekday mass at 5:30 there was only about 10 people there. The service is surprisingly very short- something I am not used to. Mass probably finished at 5:50. Even though it was short, I fully enjoyed being there in intimacy with my Jesus. Every time I receive the Eucharist I feel this warmth and fire burn within my heart. Even though I am not worthy I know that He is entering me and cleansing me as He passes though me. The more I get closer to Him the more joy and love I feel every time I am in His presence. I honestly believe that the Eucharist nourishes my soul! I teach the kids at youth group that we are a living tabernacle for the most Holy one! When we stop and think about what that means it is truly amazing! We have the chance to receive Him everyday and keep Him alive inside of us for as long as we are willing to be pure and clean. Is that not mind blowing to you? I may sound like a fanatic but I think sometimes the Eucharist and the mass turns into a routine and a habit that it is not really seen and appreciated for what it truly is!

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This morning I did not have to start work at 8:00, instead I started at 10 because I have to work a little later than usual tonight. (I work at a university and am salary so they don't pay overtime and instead flex our hours.) Usually when this happens I take advantage and sleep in a little later. However, this morning I decided to have an early start on my day 2/40 of being a better wife and a better follower of Christ. I awoke at my normal hour I would if I were getting up for work and I packed my husbands lunch. As he got ready for work I talked to him and made sure I told him how much I love him. When we left, I got dressed and surprised him by meeting him at mass before I went to work. He goes to 8:30 service every morning before work and I usually never can make it. He was so surprised and happy to see me there. It was very nice to be able to attend mass with my husband. I almost feel that it set the tone for the day. When I left he called me to make sure I had made it to work ok, and then he said, "I really enjoyed having you with me at mass this morning. I wish we could do that every morning!" :)

Clare

Day 1 of 40: Famished

The day is not over...it is actually only midway through. However, I have been doing good so far. This morning instead of rushing off and not enjoying my husband, I slowed down and spent some minutes with him before we walked out the door. It is hectic for us in the mornings- we both leave the house by 7:30 am to get to work on time. My husband usually prays in the morning and I know that he would love for me to pray with him but I have not done so since the first month of being married. This is something I struggle with. It is hard to get up and get ready and have time to pray together as a couple... I know I create a million excuses and I should make more of an effort. This morning I woke up, got ready, talked with him, gave him the sign of the cross and a kiss before he walked out the door and he did the same to me. Nevertheless, I should make more time in the morning to pray more with my husband.

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Even though I have not even finished my first day on this forty day journey of mine, I am very much aware of how FAMISHED I am for HIM. I thirst and hunger for His love and His word. I struggle to quench my thirst and satisfy my hunger because of x...y...and z. Excuses! Excuses! Excuses! For the longest time I have wanted to start a woman's bible study, a young married couple group, or anything that will allow me to be in a social environment with people who want to talk, enjoy, and adore Him. None of these dreams have come true in my life and I don't know exactly how to go about fulfilling them! I envy those that have such a good social network of Catholic friends who can sit around and discuss the Faith. Not to offend anybody but my friends and network of people at Church are all 60+. While I fully admire and learn from them I want people who are of similar age to my husband and me. We are 20 something, newlyweds who want to follow Christ and live for Him! We both teach religious education on the weekend and we run a successful youth group of teenagers who are also thirsty for Christ! While we LOVE and are so GRATEFUL and BLESSED to be able to be a part of these ministries, we have to find a way to nourish ourselves. We can't just keep giving without replenishing the tank. Does that make sense?

My husband attends mass every morning before work...there was a time when I did that as well. I plan to start again. However, I need and want more! Is that selfish? I just think that I we can benefit so much from having people of our age to share the faith with. Has anyone else found themselves in this predicament?

Clare

40 days

Why 40 days? In the bible there were some pretty amazing things that happened after a period of 40 days. For example: 

• Noah's life was transformed in 40 days
• Moses was transformed by 40 days on Mount Sinai
• Jesus fasted and was empowered by 40 days in the wilderness
• Even an entire city was transformed in 40 days! (Nineveh)

There are more special accounts throughout the bible that I can list but I am sure you get the point! Also, there are some people that claim that it takes 21 days to make something a habit, some say 26 days, and some say 20. Well, whatever days you believe it takes, I believe that there is truth and power behind the number 40 as we can see in the Bible. 

I have reached a plateau in my spiritual life. I am walking but not living, I am preaching but not practicing, I am seeing but not believing. I need to step up my game and devote my life to Him-My one and only savior. As a devout Catholic I am finding it hard to make my spiritual life a consistent one. I struggle with truly breaking bad habits and most of all with truly transforming my heart. I don't want my life to resemble the following scripture:

" These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. " Matthew 15:8 

For the next 40 days I am going to embark on two challenges... It might be a huge undertaking but I am excited and ready! I plan to go on two missions... spiritual missions. My fist mission is for the next 40 days I am going to try to be a better wife! I recently got married to an amazing God fearing man six months ago. In those six months we have been learning how to live together, how to manage finances, and how to combine two lives with God in the center! I am sure that most of you who are married know where I am going with this! It is very easy to let pride, selfishness, and the mundane routine of daily life interfere with my marriage. So for the next 40 days I am going to try to be a better God fearing wife!

This is where the next challenge comes in... in order for me to be a God fearing wife, I need to be a God fearing woman!! A God fearing woman exemplifies the faith in all her daily roles. As a daughter, sister, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, co-worker, teacher, youth group leader, and the list can go on and on- I need to learn how to let go and let God! Becoming the light in the darkness for those around me and living with a heart full of joy and peace. 

The next 40 days should be interesting. I pray that I can accomplish this as I always find it hard to accomplish anything! (This goes back to my issue of inconsistency!) 

But I am ready for a pure heart. I am ready to life a life of conviction. But most of all I am ready to become a faithful servant of His. I AM READY FOR A CHANGE? ARE YOU? 

Clare