Last weekend through a link I came across Baby Cate's Blog.
Baby Cate is the daughter of Charlie and Ali Cantrell. As I was reading through the blog I kept getting this feeling like I "knew" them. I finally ended up googling them and found out that Charlie is a speaker to youth and I've heard him at least once at one of the Steubenville East Youth Conference.
Their daughter was born 7 months ago against all odds.....she wasn't expected to live past 5 months in the womb. When she was born it was found out that she had a heart defect. About two weeks ago she went in for heart surgery.
While everyone has been praying for a miracle, God answered our prayers different then we all hoped but it's the BEST way because it's His way. He brought Baby Cate Home to Him on Tuesday.
The story of this family is amazing. Full of faith, hope, and love. It's a REAL story. Charlie and Ali have felt despair and pain and anger and hurt. And they've blogged about that. But behind it all they have faith and trust in God. It's beautiful to read their words.
I recommed reading through the blog. From the beginning. Yes it will take awhile but it is so beautiful. You can see the hand of God working through Baby Cate from the very first post. That little baby has brought thousands of people closer to Him.
This morning as I read the post about Baby Cate's last day, tears were running down my face. And all I could think as I prayed for these parents is that if someday I find myself having to hand my baby back to God that I am able to do it with the trust that they are doing it with.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
State of my head
This goes to show how scatter-brained I've been lately.
I wrote out a list of things that I need to do this afternoon:
Go to bank
Pick up flowers
Clean out car
Switch purses
Prayers!!!
It's pretty bad when I need to put prayers on my list so I don't forget :-/ But I'm afraid if I don't write them down I WILL forget.
I don't want to reduce my prayers to a "to-do list" but my brain seems to be in la-la land lately. And I can see me crawling into bed tonight and getting all ticked off with myself that I forgot to pray the Office of Readings. So there. Now I won't be ticked off with myself and I'll spend time reading the Word of God too.
I wrote out a list of things that I need to do this afternoon:
Go to bank
Pick up flowers
Clean out car
Switch purses
Prayers!!!
It's pretty bad when I need to put prayers on my list so I don't forget :-/ But I'm afraid if I don't write them down I WILL forget.
I don't want to reduce my prayers to a "to-do list" but my brain seems to be in la-la land lately. And I can see me crawling into bed tonight and getting all ticked off with myself that I forgot to pray the Office of Readings. So there. Now I won't be ticked off with myself and I'll spend time reading the Word of God too.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Prayer
For days now I have been bringing a certain intention to prayer. This morning in Adoration I again prayed and asked Jesus to please show me what HE wanted me to do.
When I got back to my computer I came upon this post "The Struggle of Prayer" at Vultus Christi.
Thank God I had the grace to see that this was God putting this article at this moment in my path.
While I haven't been praying for control over someone I HAVE been praying for God to make a situation "different". And I suppose in a way over a person. Asking Him to open someone's eyes to a different perspective. But I've been going about it the wrong way.
Instead I need to pray for acceptance of the way He has chosen things to be. And I believe that He HAS choosen things to be this way.....I just don't like it so I think He needs to change it.
When I got back to my computer I came upon this post "The Struggle of Prayer" at Vultus Christi.
Thank God I had the grace to see that this was God putting this article at this moment in my path.
While I haven't been praying for control over someone I HAVE been praying for God to make a situation "different". And I suppose in a way over a person. Asking Him to open someone's eyes to a different perspective. But I've been going about it the wrong way.
Instead I need to pray for acceptance of the way He has chosen things to be. And I believe that He HAS choosen things to be this way.....I just don't like it so I think He needs to change it.
I tell God how best to resolve the problem. I advise Him on how best to change the person who is the object of my intercession. I bargain with Him in order to avoid the suffering that I fear: a suffering that may well be imaginary and that, more often than not, is merely the projection of an anguish lurking somewhere in my subconscious.
I could have written that paragraph....especially after my morning Adoration. The final paragraph from Fathers post is to pray the greatest prayer of letting go....the Rosary....in front of the icon of our Lady of Perpetual Help. I love the Rosary. I have a beautiful icon of our Lady of Perpetual Help.
Kind of like Jesus opened my eyes this morning and pointed me in which direction to go: to surrender myself as a little child into the arms of His Mother who will teach me how to surrender in prayer and trust to God.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
A Mother's Rule of Life
I finished A Mother's Rule of Life a few weeks ago. While it is geared towards mothers, you don't have to be a mother (nor a woman) to get a lot from it.
Holly Pierlot shows us how to put balance in our lives. She talks about how she came to decide that she needed a "Rule of Life" just like religious sister's in a convent follow a Rule of a particular saint. She stresses throughout the book that the Rule is not simply a schedule, but rather has God as the main focus. First she talks about how rather then sit down and simply write out a "schedule" for our days and weeks we need to pray about what direction God wants us to be following in our vocations.
She then guides the readers through setting up your own rule. While I'm still praying and haven't put anything to paper I have been pondering and will probably read the book a few more times over the years.
I'll be honest and say that one of the last chapters is what hit me between the eyes and has had me pondering ever since reading it. She talks about the sin of sloth. And I've been feeling very lazy for a while now. I just have no DESIRE to accomplish this task or that task. So what do I do? I don't do it. I let it slide. And she says that she too slipped into that. I feel like I don't have the energy to do things so I use that as an excuse. And let me tell you.....I was getting mighty angry at myself.
So Holly gave two suggestions that I have been trying to follow each time I start to feel like a little kid saying "I don't waaant to.....clean the bathroom; put clothes away; clean up the clutter; pay the bills; etc."
1) Recognize that we are weak and so turn to God with deeper prayer
2) Decide to simply DO something. Don't sit around and not do what we don't "feel like" doing.
I have taken number 1 to heart A LOT these past few weeks. I have recognized in prayer EVERY DAY that I am weak and little and of my own I cannot accomplish ANY of the tasks He has set before me. And great fruit has started to come from that prayer. A deeper appreciation for Him as the Mighty Creator; a deeper trust that He is in control of everything no matter how much we may think He isn't or would rather He NOT be because we don't agree with how He does things.
I do need to continue working on the prayer of course but number 2 has come with more difficulty. I am trying to bend my will to God's will more. To recognize that I am weak yes but to not use the weakness as an excuse to NOT do things.
Like I said a few paragraphs us....I think this is a book that I will return to again and again over the years.
Holly Pierlot shows us how to put balance in our lives. She talks about how she came to decide that she needed a "Rule of Life" just like religious sister's in a convent follow a Rule of a particular saint. She stresses throughout the book that the Rule is not simply a schedule, but rather has God as the main focus. First she talks about how rather then sit down and simply write out a "schedule" for our days and weeks we need to pray about what direction God wants us to be following in our vocations.
She then guides the readers through setting up your own rule. While I'm still praying and haven't put anything to paper I have been pondering and will probably read the book a few more times over the years.
I'll be honest and say that one of the last chapters is what hit me between the eyes and has had me pondering ever since reading it. She talks about the sin of sloth. And I've been feeling very lazy for a while now. I just have no DESIRE to accomplish this task or that task. So what do I do? I don't do it. I let it slide. And she says that she too slipped into that. I feel like I don't have the energy to do things so I use that as an excuse. And let me tell you.....I was getting mighty angry at myself.
So Holly gave two suggestions that I have been trying to follow each time I start to feel like a little kid saying "I don't waaant to.....clean the bathroom; put clothes away; clean up the clutter; pay the bills; etc."
1) Recognize that we are weak and so turn to God with deeper prayer
2) Decide to simply DO something. Don't sit around and not do what we don't "feel like" doing.
I have taken number 1 to heart A LOT these past few weeks. I have recognized in prayer EVERY DAY that I am weak and little and of my own I cannot accomplish ANY of the tasks He has set before me. And great fruit has started to come from that prayer. A deeper appreciation for Him as the Mighty Creator; a deeper trust that He is in control of everything no matter how much we may think He isn't or would rather He NOT be because we don't agree with how He does things.
I do need to continue working on the prayer of course but number 2 has come with more difficulty. I am trying to bend my will to God's will more. To recognize that I am weak yes but to not use the weakness as an excuse to NOT do things.
Like I said a few paragraphs us....I think this is a book that I will return to again and again over the years.
Where've I been?
Right here. I haven't consciously decided to take a "blog break" but that sure does seem what I'm doing doesn't it? And I've missed the past two Tuesday's to dedicate to Saint Therese. And I've been reading books that need to be "reviewed". And I've got things I COULD write about but haven't got the call to blog about.
I guess right now I'm spending time simply LIVING life rather then writing about it. I'm living my prayer life. Not writing about what sort of prayers I'm praying. I also guess that most of the things that are going on should be pondered in my heart right now and kept in the silence there for now.
Which is fine with me. I haven't felt any guilt about abandoning my poor little blog (both of them!) I know that when the time is right I will come back here on a regular basis again.
As a matter of fact....I will be back in just a little while as I've got at least one "book review" that I want to put up. And even that is selfish....I want a record at the end of 2008 of all the books I've finished.
I guess right now I'm spending time simply LIVING life rather then writing about it. I'm living my prayer life. Not writing about what sort of prayers I'm praying. I also guess that most of the things that are going on should be pondered in my heart right now and kept in the silence there for now.
Which is fine with me. I haven't felt any guilt about abandoning my poor little blog (both of them!) I know that when the time is right I will come back here on a regular basis again.
As a matter of fact....I will be back in just a little while as I've got at least one "book review" that I want to put up. And even that is selfish....I want a record at the end of 2008 of all the books I've finished.
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