Happy Birthday, Keegan!!

cute little Keegan!

Here he is with his big brother Liam!!

Happy Birthday, Keegan!!

'Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity': The Miracle and Gift of the Most Holy Eucharist - June 6, 2010

'Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity': The Miracle and Gift of the Most Holy Eucharist - Living Faith - Home & Family - Catholic Online

Today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. St. Thomas Aquinas says the following about the Eucharist:

[The] spiritual food [of the Eucharist] is likened unto bodily nourishment in this respect that without it spiritual life in the soul cannot exist; just as without food for the body, bodily life will not exist. But it means more than bodily food, for the Sacrament of the Eucharist causes everlasting life in the person receiving it worthily, which is not caused through corporal food; since he who eats bodily food lives not forever....

But this Sacrament is also great, for it gives eternal life likewise to the body, and therefore, Christ says, "I will raise you up on the last day." For whosoever eats and drinks of this food spiritually, becomes a sharer in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, through whom we are united to Christ, in a union of faith and charity, and through whom we are made members of his Church.

(Taken from the June Magnificat, pgs 92-93)

Go to confession, receive Jesus in the most holy sacrament of the Eucharist (the source and summit of our faith), and return to full communion in the Catholic Church. God is love and He always waits for the return of his children - to be fully present to him.

God bless!!

St. Boniface of Mainz - Saturday, June 5, 2010

St. Boniface, pray for us!!

St. Boniface of Mainz - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

Romans 12:13-21

Look on the needs of the saints as your own; be generous in offering hospitality. Bless your persecutors; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Have the same attitude toward all. Put away ambitious thoughts and associate with those who are lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never repay injury with injury. See that your conduct is honorable in the eyes of all. If possible, live peaceably with everyone. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves; leave that to God's wrath, for it is written: "'Vengeance is mine; I will repay,' says the Lord." But "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; by doing this you will heap burning coals upon his head." Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good.

It is so hard to move our egos out of the way especially in today's culture which talks about self-esteem as if there is no life without the world's definition of self-esteem. We can feel truly good about ourselves when we recognize the truth that is present within us and when we know the love that God has for us and we desire to journey on the road that he has set before us. We only tend to get into great trouble when we desire our will be done rather than his. Read your Bible today!!

God bless!!

Friday, June 4, 2010

Life seems like a spring fed pool and I am trying to empty it with a spoon. Do you think I'll get it all done before I die??

Last week I cleaned one corner of my living room. That's right - one corner - and it took me two days. Of course, I did take some time off to watch a good movie and play the par-3. And it did feel good to have that corner cleaned of accumulated files, pictures and bills. But they are now beginning to accumulate again so it seems like a never ending battle.

And the cleaning continues at work as well. I am in the process of moving from one cubicle to another and from one job to another. Little by little I am going through files and shredding and discarding what I don't need any more, but also dealing with the many interruptions that fill my day as my job is first and foremost to serve the students. I have less than four weeks to complete this and I really could use more than that - maybe a year!?

Life is like that thought and I deal well with all that it hands me because God is first in my life. He has the bigger picture and he gives me the grace I need to plow ahead and know that whatever gets done in this one day is all that needs to get done and there will always be a tomorrow of one kind or another.

God bless!!

St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs of Uganda - Thursday, June 3, 2010

St. Charles Lwanga and CompanionsMartyrs of Uganda - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

Romans 14: 12-13, 17-19

Every one of us will have to give an account of himself before God. Therefore we must no longer pass judgment on one another. Instead you should resolve to put no stumbling block or hindrance in your brother's way. The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating or drinking, but of justice, peace, and the joy that is given by the Holy Spirit. Whoever serves Christ in this way pleases God and wins the esteem of men. Let us, then, make it our aim to work for peace and to strengthen one another.

It is no small task to love one another each and every day. There are probably many moments in the day where someone somewhere is the object of our resentment or irritation. We are then the stumbling block or hindrance. It should not matter what other's say or do, but rather what we say or do for that is what we should have control over - always remembering that what is impossible for us is possible for God. Turn to him in humble prayer, seeking his will first.

God bless!!

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

God is awesome!! God is good!! How can anyone spend a day without knowing his presence in their lives and thanking him for all that he has done for us. I look out my window and see the sun touching the tips of the trees and splashing across the grass. I hear the bird song in the distance and not so distant. I see the birds fly through the trees and gather at the feeder. I touch life and know just how very good it is. All is God given. Without his presence in our lives, we would not exist. Thank him today for all that you have and all that you are!!
God bless!!

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Editorial: Dedicating the Month of June: Sacred Heart of Jesus or the 'LGBT' Agenda? - U.S. News - Catholic Online

We can live each day as the world desires us to live or we can live each day as God desires us to live. Serve God, not the world.

What is Heaven? We can find Heaven here on earth and many do. Heaven is not a place but rather a thought, an experience. It is where we allow God to guide our steps, to protect us from falls, and to carry us when the pain is too much for us to bear. It is letting go of our pride and our will and allowing God in with trust, and hope, and faith, and love. When we do this we experience a peace beyond our understanding.

What is Hell? We can find Hell on earth and many do. Hell is also not a place but rather a thought, an experience. It is where we do not allow God to guide our steps, to protect us from falls, or to carry us when the pain is too much for us to bear. It is not letting go of our pride or our will and as a result we block the presence of God from our lives and live in darkness, despair, and hopelessness.

God calls each of us into relationship because God is first and foremost relationship. The Trinitarian relationship between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. All that God created is in relationship. Our spirit will go home in relationship with God for all eternity and live for all eternity or our spirit will deny and close itself off from this relationship and die for all eternity. Either choice we will know with a knowing far deeper than what we now know on this earth. And that knowing will be with us forever. We will make that choice of life or death. Please choose life. All the right answers and wisdom of all the ages is within each one of us. Pray for the knowledge that you might know the truth for the truth will set you free.

We think too often that truth will bind us and imprison us. But it's the lie that does that. Many today are imprisoned by addictions, by power, by possessions, by fears and anxieties. Turn to Jesus and you will be free - free to live the life he has planned for you. Always remember that he has the bigger picture. He is like the man standing on the mountain guiding and directing us while we are the men standing in the valley not seeing what lies ahead. Trust him - always!!

God bless!!