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January 10,
2007
Frosty the Snowman
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Joy from the Monastery |
Thoughts from Sister Patricia
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Message taken from today's Peace Card
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Quote for the Day:
The proof of love is in the works.
Where love exists, it works great things.
But when it ceases to act,
it ceases to exist.
Pope St. Gregory the Great
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Sister Colleen and a friend of our community had a little extra snow duty this morning. Wayne (the first arrival for today's Mass) pitched in with Sr. Colleen to clear the walk for everyone else. We got about six to eight inches in one dumping. Been a while since we had a real winter like this.
A few days ago I talked about my new focus of getting off the computer by 8:00 every evening. Well, guess what? It hasn't happened yet! Sigh. This is going to take more work than I had hoped. Seems like one thing pops up and then another... I am making progress but it's 9:15 now and here we still are. BUT I haven't given up..... just have to scramble a little more and plan a little better!
One thing I have been doing every day (three in a row so far) that has worked out... is to take 30 minutes in the afternoon for quiet prayer in the chapel and 30 minutes for a rest (aka nap) that has worked wonderfully well! I call it my hour of power - rest in the Lord and rest on the bed.
My hope is that by slowing down I will be more attuned to what God wants me to do - sometimes I think I've just been too scrambling. I found this great idea in a book I am reading (okay I have about seven going at the same time.. but that's just the way I do) and this one is called, "Happiness is an Inside Job" by John Powell, S.J. I've talked about this book before - one of those I read in snatches when I feel the need.
Anyway he said instead of asking God if what you are doing is in his will... talk to God and say, "What have you got going today? I'd like to be a part of it!"
Isn't that kind of neat? Let God do the planning - and just join in on it. Cool. Takes a bit of work though to really let go though.... my inner drive says lets do 80 different things today (which of course is impossible but I always seem to attempt it) and God's drive which says ... breathe... look at the world.... talk and share and pray.....life goes on. I've got everything in control.
My drive then pops up impatiently and says, "Are you sure?"
God says, "Well, I've managed to do it for a couple of billion zillion years so far."
Sigh. Okay...
Blessings of Peace and Joy,
Sister Patricia and all the Sisters
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Reverend Fun
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Collecting Stories from
September 14 - January 15, 2007
101 Inspirational Stories
of the Power of Prayer
This project is placed under the patronage
of the Blessed Mother.
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Only Five more days to Submit your story for the Contest!
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Prayer of St. Fulgentius
Mary is the ladder of heaven;
for by Mary,
God descended from heaven into the world,
that by her,
men might ascend from Earth to heaven.
A selected prayer from Sister Patricia's book "101 Inspirational Stories of the Rosary"
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Our Books
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Rejoice in Me
by Msgr. David E. Rosage
Let Us Praise the Lord
Psalm 63:5 Hands Uplifted
Thus will I bless you while I live;
lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
In this prayer we call upon the name of the Lord with hands uplifted. Lifting up our hands is a gesture, which intensifies our desire and makes our prayer more fervent. Body language hleps us to enter more fervently into prayer.
We have all experienced the Lord's gracious response in the past. This makes us even more confident that he will continue to respond when we call upon his name.
This conviction impels us to bless the Lord while we live. St. Paul makes his wishes known to us: "It is my wish, then, that in every place the men shall offer prayers with blameless hands held aloft, and be free from anger and dissension." (1 Tim 2:8)
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Healthy Eating from Barbara George
Elder Care Diet Tips
Your resource for hints on nutrition and health;
a place to learn and a place to share!
Visit Barb's Blog to leave comments and find more great tips.
Shepherd's Pie Recipe
Need a recipe for a quick easy meal that basically takes only one dish? Shepherd's pie is a great way to use up some leftover mashed potatoes but you can quickly cook up fresh ones just the same. Our family always made a fairly low-fat recipe but you may find it with gravy as well.
Shepherd's Pie Recipe
In small skillet, saute 1/2 cup diced onion and 1 pound lean ground beef or ground turkey (drained). Season with salt and pepper (add Italian seasoning mix for a spicier version). Layer cooked meat combination in the bottom of a 2 quart casserole dish. Top with 1 can of corn (or creamed corn) or cooked frozen corn, cooked diced carrots, peas (about 2 cups total. Top this layer with softened mashed potatoes 2 cups. (If using leftover potato, you may add a little milk and whip them to loosen and improve spreadibility. Potatoes should cover entire casserole and be about 1/2-3/4 inch thick. You can dab small dollops of butter or margarine and sprinkle with paprika for a nice finish. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit salad and rolls or bread if desired. Serves 4.
Nutrition: 1/4 th of casserole provides 1 starch, 1 vegetable, 4 ounce protein, 2 fat servings is butter is included.
Creamed corn will be easier to chew for soft diets.
This is a good casserole to prepare ahead, maybe on Sunday while preparing a roast with mashed potatoes, take a few extra minutes to cook up the beef mixture and put the casserole together for Monday or Tuesday night when time is more limited.
This casserole is gluten free and can be lactose free if milk is omitted from potatoes. Vegetarian version can be done with meat substitute and navy beans seasoned with italian seasoning mix.
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A Smile from Home - Danielle Bean
Today's Thought
Visit Danielle's blog to see pictures and links to go with this text.
Proof
I want to see scientific studies that demonstrate the blessing of being born eighth in a family of closely spaced siblings. I want to see statistics that prove the social, psychological, and intellectual benefits of learning early on that you are loved much ... and by many.
I want to know exactly how a baby's brain develops a deep sense of security and confidence in his own unique self worth when he is cuddled by an older brother while he reads his history book.
I want to see studies proving the naturally generous, cooperative, I-am-not-the-ce nter-of-the-universe attitudes that are fostered among a gang of kids who must accommodate myriad mealtime preferences, compromise on story time choices, and share a single bathroom.
I want the stats on how a toddler's stress levels are lowered when he shares a bedroom with a roomful of older brothers who read him stories, sing to him, and answer his every blessed question about bears and bumblebees until at last his eyes grow heavy and he drops off to sleep while listening to the sound of his oldest brother's breathing in the bunk above.
I want scientific proof that mothers and fathers, when they face a not-specifically-planned-by-them pregnancy, are challenged to give up selfish inclinations and controlling notions of what their family size and spacing is supposed to look like. I want to see the studies that show how, when they ultimately embrace the unexpected, they grow in holiness, generosity, and faith. I want to quantify the value of their learning to trust in Divine Providence and to lean on God's graces to help them through tough times. I want to prove that in the end they are better people — humble people who have grown in real holiness — for having remained open to life and generously accepted God's plan for themselves and their families.
I want to quantify that kind of real growth, that kind of real work toward holiness, and that kind of blessing.
But of course you can't quantify it. You can only live it. And I do.
"Americans are known for generosity to your children," said John Paul II. "And what is the best gift you can give your children? I say to you: Give them brothers and sisters."
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Friendship
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Greetings from Rome with Sister Janet Fearns, FMDM
Pause for Prayer
Visit Janet's Blog to see pictures to go with this text.
On a personal note…
Husband of Mary
The girl whom he was to marry was pregnant and the baby was not his. He could have spoken to others. He could have dumped her. He didn’t.
He could have had his revenge. It would have been so easy to kill her or to arrange her death. He didn’t.
He married her and made a home for her child. When the child’s life was in danger, he and his wife escaped from their own land and walked many miles to safety, crossing national borders and becoming a refugee, returning to their own land only when the political environment was safe.
He taught the boy his own trade, gave him the possibility of caring for his mother and of leading an independent existence. Nobody in the town knew that the child wasn’t his and he wasn’t the one to divulge the secret of the youth’s paternity.
The bare facts of the life of St. Joseph are very few, so few that people have speculated about him for centuries. Was he old or young? When did he die? Was he around to see Jesus grow up? Who was Joseph of Nazareth, the carpenter?
In actual fact, the few things we know about Joseph are all the biography that we need, albeit not as much as we would like. There are, of course, conclusions that can be drawn. He must have been a thoroughly decent person and someone who was so dependable and reliable that God could entrust Mary and Jesus to his care, knowing that Joseph would not let him down.
It was only from about the 12th century that the Church began to formalise a devotion to Joseph, only creating a feast in his honour in the 15th century. Great saints such as Bernard (1123), Thomas Aquinas (1274), Gertrude (1310) and Teresa of Avila (1582) have long been associated with his name, but it was the Franciscans, followed by the Dominicans and Carmelites who, at the end of the 14th century, actually introduced a feast into their liturgical calendars. This was only then extended to the Universal Church in 1847. In 1870, Joseph was made the official patron of the Universal Church. After all, he had looked after Jesus and Mary, so he would be sure to take good care of the Church also.
Throughout the world, people depend on Joseph for their practical needs. He was a carpenter, a builder, a husband, a foster-father, a traveller, a refugee, persecuted and poor, someone who, according to tradition, died in the company of Mary and Jesus. He knew what it is like to face opposition and hardship. It’s not surprising, then, that many see him as a protector and a guardian.
If God can trust him, so can we!
God bless,
Sr. Janet
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Spiritual Blessings from Father Rory Pitstick
A Virtual Retreat
Reflections following the Daily Liturgical cycle
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Thursday
1 Jn 4: 19 – 5: 4
Ps 71(72): 1-2. 14 and 15bc. 17
Lk 4: 14-22
Daily Readings
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Jan 10 Thu: Christmas Weekday
From today's readings:
“Whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.... Lord, every nation on earth will adore You..... Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news of Him spread throughout the whole region....”
Delightful Logic of Love
God’s love is like the sun’s light - we can turn our backs on it and shut out its warmth, but it is impossible to altogether stymie its influence. God is good, and God is love, and so to intentionally not love God is like attempting to cast a shadow on the sun!
And yet, our experience of the sun’s light is almost always indirect - we see the sweeping landscapes or glowing sky, or whatever is in our line of sight - all this, imbued with light from the sun, but the source of the light, the sun itself, is impossible to directly view (except when muffled with atmosphere haze or tantalizingly hovering on the horizon at sunrise and sunset).
What would we say of a person who says, “I love the sunlight!” but assiduously avoids the daylight? Such a person must surely be suffering from a mental mixup! So it is, explains St. John, with the person who claims to love God (the source of love), but rejects the nearby manifestation of that love (his brother).
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