Food for Thought for Lent

I am reading an amazing book during Lent, called "Meetings with Mary" by Janice T. Connell. It is filled with apparition stories, many of which I have heard countless times, but are still as compelling, convicting, and awe-inspiring each time I read them. How blessed we are to have a God who loves us so much that He not only sent His Son to redeem us, but He continues to invite us to that redemption by sending the Virgin Mary to appear to people all over the world with the purpose of pointing people to her Son.

The other night I read the story of the three Fatima children, a story that I thought I knew very well, but was shocked at how poorly I remembered the details or live out the messages given there. One little tidbit of the story that I had forgotten about is how God first sent an angel to appear to the children a number of times before He sent Mary to appear to them. For those of you unfamiliar with the story, the children's names were Lucia (age 8), Francisco (age 7), and Jacinta (age 5), and the apparitions they received took place in Fatima, Portugal in 1917. We are blessed to have detailed accounts of the apparitions through thousands of eye-witnesses, as well as Lucia's personal writings. Here is what Lucia wrote about the encounter with the angel:

As it drew closer, we were able to distinguish its features. It was a young man, about fourteen or fifteen years old, whiter than the snow, transparent as crystal when the sun shines through it, and of great beauty. On reaching us he said: "Do not be afraid! I am the Angel of Peace. Pray with me." Kneeling on the ground, he bowed down until his forehead touched the ground, and asked us to repeat these words three times: "My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love you! I ask pardon of You for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not trust, and do not love you." Then, rising, he said: "Pray thus. The hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive to the words of your prayers." Some time passed and summer came... We were playing by the garden and suddenly we saw beside us the same figure, the angel, who said: "What are you doing? Pray, pray, very much...Offer prayers and sacrifices constantly to the Most High." How are we to make sacrifices? I asked him. "Make every possible sacrifice. Offer it to God as an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended, and in supplication for the conversion of sinners."

I had totally forgotten about this encounter that the children had with the angel. I only remembered the miraculous encounters that the children had with Mary: the miracle of the spinning sun that seemed to fall from the sky and instantaneously dried the ground and the soaked clothes of the 70,000+ spectators that faithfully stood for hours in the rain, the frightful vision of Hell that the children were allowed to see, the faith and courage that these tiny children had when no one would believe them...

But this time, when I read the story I was struck with the importance of the angel's words---the importance of sacrificing out of love, and the truth that our sacrifices are noticed by God, pleasing to Him, and used by Him for good purposes. That message is so timely during Lent as many of us are trying to sacrifice little things to root out our selfish desires so that we can unite with Christ's passion and prepare our souls for Easter. I really needed to hear the angel's words again to remind me how self-indulgent I've become. I truly am immersed in instant gratification to the point that it doesn't even cross my mind to sacrifice my morning cup of coffee out of thanksgiving for Jesus’ sacrifice for me. We are so blessed to live in a country that is so wealthy that most of us can have anything we want when we want it; however, that has made us (myself included) subconsciously feel "entitled" to anything we want, and we now think that suffering of any form is a bad thing. Scripture and the lives of the saints tell us the opposite--that suffering can indeed produce good fruit!

I also became convicted that the majority of my thoughts are so focused on myself and those immediately surrounding me that I rarely think of "lost" souls, souls who do not know Jesus but whose hearts could be softened by my prayers and sacrifices for them. As I've been pondering this over the past few days, I'm overwhelmed with the countless opportunities I have to offer joyful sacrifices without anyone even noticing...choosing not to put salt on my food, offering to read an extra bedtime story when all I really want is some "me-time," refraining from snacking between meals, holding my tongue when I'd like to complain about some little thing...the list could go on forever. Reading this book has given me newfound purpose to take more opportunities throughout the day to make small, joyful sacrifices for the love of God, for the love of lost souls, and for the increase in virtue of my own selfish soul. Heck, if 5-year-old Jacinta can do it, 30-year-old Maria certainly should be able to! :)

For more info about the Apparitions at Fatima and other Marian apparitions, click here.

Speechless

Speechless is the perfect title for this posting for two reasons:

1. I literally am speechless today. Over the last few days my voice has gradually disappeared, and now all that's left is a sound that resembles a dying frog. Perhaps this is my Lenten penance... God decided that I talk too much and need to listen more, so He MADE me give up talking. Really. I don't doubt it. He did it to Zechariah, didn't He? Truly, though, this is quite a sacrifice for this talkative red-head. I'm too humiliated to even answer the phone, unless a true kindred spirit calls who I know won't mind my croaky voice :) I know that "this too shall pass," but please help me pray that it passes quickly...and if anyone has any natural remedies to speed up the process, I'm "all" ears :)
   
2. The second reason I'm speechless is because of my eldest son's most recent drawings. I've always known he was a gifted artist, and most of the time I take it for granted because I'm so used to him drawing great pictures all day long. But every once in awhile, he'll show me a drawing that truly renders me speechless. I only wish he drew religious masterpieces rather than detailed dog-fighting scenes. Hopefully in time :) I'm sure Michelangelo would've drawn jet fighters if his father was a pilot and if jets existed at the time, right?
   
   
   
   

You Know You Live in Montana When...

...your kids have "No School Ski Days!"


Back in South Dakota where I grew up we had plenty of school cancellations for "Snow Days," as in: dangerous-blizzard-like-conditions-12-inches-of-snow-5-foot-snow-drifts-45-degree-below-wind-chill-factor-stuck-at-home-shoveling-kind-of-fun. But here in Big Sky Country, school gets cancelled for "Ski Days," as in: an-awesome-discounted-rate-at-the-ski-hill-to-enjoy-the-great-outdoors-with-your-family-and-all-your-friends-from-school-kind-of-fun! Did I mention that WE LOVE LIVING HERE?!?! Here are a few photos of the boys during their Ski Days...

Glimmers of Hope

On this cold, Friday morning I stood and prayed at our local Planned Parenthood. It often is a very solemn, heavy experience as I picture all the pain abortion has caused in so many hearts in our nation, as I pray fervently that at least one abortion worker or abortion-minded-mother will have a change of heart today. Sometimes I feel completely hopeless as I stand there and pray. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother to let my fingers freeze as I fumble to follow along on my rosary beads. But today God graced me with a few glimmers of hope...

When I arrived, the woman that was there praying was smiling and sipping a cup of steaming coffee. She shared with me that one of the abortion workers inside Planned Parenthood had come out and offered her the coffee because it was so cold outside! She was able to chat with the abortion worker and perhaps plant life-giving seeds that God's grace will help blossom and grow in time! "Praise You Lord!" Then, as I was praying the rosary with the woman, a group of college students arrived to join us in prayer! Their faces were filled with joy and so much passion for the sanctity of life. They even sang a song of praise in between each decade of the rosary! It was beautiful and contagious. Again, my heart cried, "Praise You Lord!" And then I received a 40 Days for Life email that said 12 babies have already been saved nationally since the 40 Days for Life Spring campaign began only 3 days ago! "Praise You Lord," again and again, for giving me, for giving the world, countless glimmers of hope in a world that can often seem so dark.

Happy, Holy Lent!

Paul made it home a day early from his trip (YAY!)...just in time to head out the door with the family to attend Ash Wednesday Mass. The boys thought it was so "cool" to get ashes on their foreheads, SO cool that they kept touching their heads all throughout Mass until their ashes no longer resembled a cross. I had hoped to get a picture of the three of them with their cute "Hi-I'm-Catholic-marks" on their noggins when we got home, but I guess you get to look at me and my honey instead (sorry)! :}

I usually enter Lent with a bit of mourning for what I have to give up (it's a Catholic guilt thing, I guess), but this Lent I am actually eager to see what God will do with my heart over the next 40 days. He's got a lot of work to do, and I feel up to the challenge...not sure I'll be saying that a few days down the road! :) I have decided to give up an hour of my precious sleep in the mornings, and wake up at 5:15 to do some extra prayer time, work on my Bible study, and do a short devotional with my husband before he heads to work. I am hoping it will be even more precious than my sleep that I am sacrificing :) I hope all of you have a happy, holy Lent too!

Wishful Thinking

Tonight I am wishing that:

• my kids would stop their litany of coughing
• my husband would be home instead of traveling for work all week
• I would've been more patient and joyful with my kids and spent those extra few minutes reading to them, cuddling with them, talking with them about their day...instead of herding them off to bed as quickly as possible

Tomorrow (with the help of God's grace) I will be:

• thankful for my children's steadily improving health and this opportunity to serve them and give them extra TLC while they are sick
• thankful that my husband has a job---a great job---and that he provides so well for his family and is home more often than many other husbands are
• the patient and joy-filled mother that I know I can be if I ask the Lord to help me...I will spend those extra few minutes reading and cuddling and listening instead of harping and sighing and waiting for it to be bedtime
  

My Valentine

Well, this weekend was not quite as twitterpated as I had hoped it would be, but I have to say that my sweet Valentine was just what I needed him to be. All three of our boys had nasty colds all weekend, and I spent the evening of Valentine's Day at the Urgent Care Clinic with our youngest. Dominic's cold turned into croup, and he was having a hard time breathing and swallowing whenever he would have a coughing spell, which was very scary for him and his mommy! None of our kids have ever had croup, so this was a new experience for me. After 2 1/2 hours at Urgent Care, the doctor decided to give Dominic a steroid shot to reduce the swelling of his throat. Dominic was not impressed, but the shot quickly worked its magic (thank-goodness)! So, while I was in a tizzy all weekend, hovering over sick kids, dispensing cup after cup of cough meds and Tylenol, and basically being a grumpy-worry-wart, my sweet husband held us all together. He did the dishes, the laundry, and even the cooking---all without complaining and with a calmness that I truly needed. How frequently I fault him for not showing enough emotion! Apparently God knew that I had enough emotion for an entire household, which is why He gave me my perfectly-even-keeled husband and a houseful of boys! :) Anyway, I find myself more thankful for my Valentine this year than ever before---not for any amazing gift he surprised me with, but for the amazing gift of who he is, which keeps surprising me more year after year.