Divine Attributes

I would like to share some text from Mother Angelica’s book “The Father’s Splendor”. When you purchase items from ETWN’s catalog they send you freebies. I have several booklets from Mother Angelica that are full of incredible insight into who God is, his “splendor”. Mother Angelica has a way of taking what is supernatural and mysterious and presenting these mysteries in very understandable language through her stories (EWTN) and her writings. The first few pages of this book filled me with awe as I read these attributes of God. These are but a few that touched me most deeply.

His Power created me

His Wisdom knit me in my mother’s womb

His Providence sustained me

His Omnipotence breathed a soul into my body

His Goodness brought me forth in a world of beauty and in a family filled with love

His Wisdom sees every detail of my life

His Providence protects me

His Mercy forgives me

His Goodness bring good out of my mistakes

His Joy fills my life with many oases to rest and take courage

As I work and labor of for my bread. His Light gives me ideas

His Omnipotence makes me creative

His Omnipresence keeps me company in lonely hours

His Love is always there when I feel unloving and unloved

His Peace is ever ready to fill my soul when I am disturbed

His Justice will take care of the persecutions I have suffered

His Compassion assures me of His Love

His Wisdom designed all creation

His Power brought it into being

His Providence disposes and orders all things in their proper place

His Goodness gives it all to me

Mother Angelica, 1977, The Fathers Splendor, EWTN Catholic Publisher, 5817 Old Leeds Road, Irondale, AL, USA, 35210

Tobit

Tobit 7:17 Be brave, my daughter. May the Lord grant you joy in place of your grief!

Last week the Catholic mass readings included the book of Tobit. We have been reading the book of Tobit all week and on Thursday the sad story of Sarah and Tobit was finally over and Sarah, Tobit’s daughter is married to Tobiah. Sarah had a demon on her and 7 of her husbands died before consummating the marriage. Obviously she was depressed and it was a sad story for several chapters. Much prayer from Tobit and Sarah and Tobiah and the hand of God turned this story into a love story. I was reading the meditations on the readings in The Word among Us publication and they presented several questions that reminded me of my love story. I remembered that God answered my prayers and how I had to step out in faith to meet my husband. It was a lot less dramatic then losing 7 husbands but there was definitely some similar experiences which included lots of prayerful questions and blind faith throughout our courtship. From the Word among us:

• What is your “how we met” story?
• How did God hear and answer your prayers?
• How did you find the courage to follow the Spirit’s promptings?
• What risks did you face?

In God We Trust

Greetings on this beautiful day June. If I had to pick a perfect season this would be it. It’s in the 70’s, sunny, breezy, and the garden is blooming.

Seven months have gone by since God put it on my heart to blog for him. The Lord slipped his question into my head when I was thinking about how I needed to find  time to blog more for my teaching blog. There I was all goal oriented trying to do more for my career and for myself. That’s when I heard him ask me, “Why don’t you blog for Me?”. I felt convicted for not having considered a Christian centered blog. I also felt convicted for all the time I spend doing what I want to do instead of being in relationship with God. Next I was concerned about what I would write. Then I remembered that if God wants me to do this he will provide a way.

Proverbs 6:3
Commit to the Lord whatever you do,
and he will establish your plans.

Isaiah 30:21
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

Jeremiah 42:3
Pray that the LORD your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do."

Psalm 32:8
The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I will advise you and watch over you.

Over the winter I have been trying to get my notes and stories into blogs. Spring arrives and I am still hesitant to post online. I feel this is a private area of my life and I am anxious to publish my thoughts to the world. Oh, but we are called to share the Good News!

Philippians 4:6-7
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Last Sunday during mass the tug, the nudge of God was too much to ignore. My reaction to the nudge was “what shall I name the blog” and bingo "In God We Trust” popped into my head and stayed there, repeating itself throughout the day. There would be no forgetting the title. It seemed very Americana with the wording that is on our money. I really liked the trust God part and that reminded me of  Divine Mercy “Jesus I trust in You.”

God Bless

Corinthians 8:13-14

My Lectio Divina

Corinthians 8:13-14

13 Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. 14 At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, 15 as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”[b]

This scripture is so simple yet so difficult to attain in our complicated world. I pray for the relief of the people who are suffering in the world, with no homes, not enough food and who being are persecuted. I wish everyone that is able, would give more to the needy. If each one of us could give to those who are in need now instead of stockpiling our resources we could wipe out hunger in the world. We just need to trust that God will take care of us if we take care of each other. At church we have a basket to put food and household items in for the local food pantry. It pains me to see so few items in that basket each week. If each person who is able would put one item in the basket each week it would be overflowing and it would make a big difference. I pray for people’s hearts to open to the needs in their communities and in the world, and give more. God is not asking us to give beyond our means (our basic needs), but to give to our neighbors from our excess.

Also consider giving to international relief efforts like:

Samaritans Purse
Catholic Relieve Services

Lectio Divina

Week one of the MOOC “Jesus in Scripture and Tradition” begins with a lesson in Lectio Divina. It is defined in the course as “the combined practice of scriptural reading, reflection or meditation, then prayer and further thought”. The practice dates back to the 3^rd century. Fr. Daley of Notre Dame University explains the practice as follows. Begin by reading selected bible text a couple of times, slowly. Use your imagination and try to put yourself in the scene of the text. Visualize the setting down to the small details. Get involved and become part of the scene. End with a prayer and journal your thoughts.

I searched online to learn more about Lectio Divina and found some interesting background on Lectio Divina from the IgnatianSpirituality website, a service of the Loyola Press. They write, “This method of prayer goes back to the early monastic tradition. There were not bibles for everyone and not everyone knew how to read. So the monks gathered in chapel to hear a member of the community reading from the scripture. In this exercise they were taught and encouraged to listen with their hearts because it was the Word of God that they were hearing.”

I am familiar with this type of spiritual reading and now have a name for it. Mother Angelica, foundress of EWTN talks about scripture in this manner all of the time. She brings the gospel to life through her stories that I listen to on Mother Angelica Live (EWTN show). 

"Jesus in Scripture and Tradition" Edx MOOC

I am very excited to be starting a new MOOC from Edx, “Jesus in Scripture and Tradition”. It’s taught by faculty from Notre Dame University. I was a little hesitant going into this MOOC because I just reviewed another Edx course “The Letters of the Apostle Paul” from Harvardx. That course was mostly academic in tone. It lacked something I was looking for, a real faith community. I think this course is going to be different, a real theology course. Thanks to the wonderful free MOOCS, here I am, in an online theology course. There is still time to get in the course. It just opened on Tuesday. It runs for 8 weeks and I believe you have until June 15^th before registration closes. Go to: https://www.edx.org/ look for the course and register. 

MOOC=Massive Open Online Course.

Sunday March 22nd

Sunday March 22, 2015. During mass I felt the Lord tell me “It’s time tell your story”.  I have had a hard time starting because I wasn’t sure where to begin. I tried to begin chronologically but that didn't work. I feel like my faith is a very private part of my life and blogging about it is way out of my comfort zone. God often wants us out of our comfort zones so we can grow in faith. Here I am trying to make sense of my path.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer. 29:11 

Mother's Day

This year on Mother's Day I asked my husband Paul  to take me to the Our Lady of Ephesus House of Pray in Jamaica, VT. The house is a replica of the Virgin Mary’s house in Ephesus Turkey. History says that Saint John took Mary to Turkey when living in Jerusalem when the Roman’s began persecuting the Christians. In order to leave early Sunday morning for this day trip, I went to mass Sat. afternoon. Sat. night I was so fortunate to watch on ETWN a movie on Jesus’s life with a focus on the Blessed Mother Mary.  Sunday was a beautiful day and we arrived in Jamaica VT around 10am. The house was so beautiful. It was built with hand crafted brick and stone work. It was open for us to come in and pray. I was able to have the whole place to myself and pray the rosary in peace and silence. There were  vases of flowers with lots of roses that filled the house with a light scent of rose. Light came down from a skylight to fill the altar area of the prayer house. This house is holy ground and I could feel the supernatural sense of being that comes when you are walking on holy ground. The peacefulness was intoxicating. It was so quiet you could only hear the birds in the area. Behind the house was a walkway to an outdoor altar. There was a screened in gazebo where we ate our lunch. It was heaven on earth. Down the road is a retreat house that overlooks the beautiful green mountains. We meandered home enjoying the picturesque backroads of VT and NH. Although this house is tucked away in rural VT. it's not hard to find. 
http://ourladyofephesushouseofprayer.org/