today's faves

Inspiration for this post goes to Meg at Held By His Pierced Hands.  Her blog should really be in my sidebar....I just haven't updated recently.  I love, love, love her writing and thoughts.  In a recent post, she shared some of her favorites after someone had asked what her favorite parable was.

And since I seem to lack for ideas of my own lately, here goes.....

Favorite Parable:  The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:  11-32)  I think it is the story of most of us.  I also remember reading it during our First Confession Ceremony/Celebration/Liturgy all those years ago in third grade.

Favorite Image of Jesus:  The Good Shepherd  The fact that He leaves the 99 and goes off in search of the one lost sheep.  So, not only does He welcome us back when we come to our senses, but He goes out, searches for us, and carries us back.  See Matthew 18:12-13.

Favorite Bible Verse:  I'm pretty sure that can't be narrowed down to just one.  Tops on the list:  Be still and know that I am God.  (Psalm 46:10)  Draw close to God and He will draw close to you. (James 4:8)  Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.  (Mark 9:24).

Favorite Bible Study: Anything by Jeff Cavins and the folks at the Great Adventure.  I have studied James, the Bible Timeline, Revelations, Acts, and Matthew (twice).  Again it is difficult to pick a favorite, but James was short and had a great deal of practical application.

Favorite Liturgy:  This is an easy one....Holy Thursday...the Mass of the Lord's Supper.  It is beautiful.   It begins with an open, empty Tabernacle.  Even without the customary washing of the feet - an option that our pastor chooses not to exercise - there is so much symbolism and richness.  It is a Mass that doesn't end...at least not right then.  It concludes with Adoration, at the end of which the priest removes the Blessed Sacrament from the Tabernacle, leaving it empty as it was at the beginning of Mass.   A bonus on Holy Thursday is the Chrism Mass, which is held early in the day at the Cathedral.  Simply beautiful.

Favorite Prayer:  This would have to be the Prayer of St. Francis...Lord make me an instrument of your peace.  Where there is hatred..... I don't know why it's my favorite.  I'm pretty sure I don't know it by heart in its entirety,  nor do I pray it regularly.  Maybe it's the structure, the poetic nature, or just the simplicity, and the image of what we should all be.

Favorite Sacrament:  Of course, the Eucharist is the hands down (or hands-out) winner.  What is not to love?  Our God making Himself present to us - condescending to us - to be consumed in order that He can consume us.  But a really close second would have to be Reconciliation/Confession/Penance.  It is that one-on-one with Jesus.  That combination of nervousness and anticipation.  The grace, the encouragement, the warmth, the fresh start.  It is so worth it.  Every single time.


Favorite Penance:  I have had many that are thought-provoking and/or helpful, and my current priest never assigns the "say 3 Hail Marys" variety.  My favorite, though, "Go and bask in the silence and let Jesus speak to you."

Favorite Catholic Musician:  That would be Matt Maher.  Love, love, love.  And my favorite of his songs, "Deliver Me."  Loosely based on the Litany of Humility.

Favorite Catholic Devotionals:  This awesome series.  There is something for each day of the year that  matches up with the Scripture readings for the day.  Things that make you think, but presented so that normal people can understand.  In Conversation With God.  I got most of my copies from eBay.

Favorite "Catholic" thing to do:  Adoration.  This is the best thing ever.  Whether the Blessed Sacrament is exposed in a monstrance or simply present in the Tabernacle of whatever random Catholic Church you find yourself at.  What do you do when you go?  You can just sit in the Presence.  You can kneel.  You can kneel then sit.  You can pray prayers you know.  You can just sit and gaze.  You can tell God everything that is on your mind.  You can sit and listen to God whisper in your ear.  You can read.  You can write (one of my favorite things to do).  You can ask for forgiveness.  You can ask for wisdom.  You can ask for help.  You can surrender. You can praise Him.  You can thank Him.  You can do all of the above.  It is amazing the answers that come.  The peace that comes.  Amazing.

Favorite Lenten Practice:  The best Lenten "penance" ever was daily Mass.  I started part way through Lent one year, and committed to 3 days a week (because our parish had Mass at 6:30 am 3 days a week and I could go and make it to work at the required 7:05).  This was absolutely the best thing ever.  I was hooked long before Lent was over and felt like someone had been keeping this little treasure a secret.  It's not a penance.  It's a gift.  And it's certainly not just for Lent.

And that, boys and girls, are my favorites for now.  I'm sure there are more that I could add....and maybe I will....

catching up....

Kind of a stream of consciousness...

Lots going on at this time of year.  For the first time ever, I have not been totally stressed at the end of the year.  I don't know why.  There's still a lot of stuff to get done.  Maybe I DID have some of it done ahead of time this year.  I "checked out" today with my special ed supervisor, so that is pretty much done.

We have five days left.  FIVE!  It's been an OK year.  I love my 8th graders, and I will miss them.  If they move on.  None of them passed both parts of the required test to move on.  They will go to Summer Remediation, and hopefully get the required numbers on a retake.  And then possibly an alternative 8th grade next year.  They have worked so hard this year; I was so disappointed for them.  But the test doesn't measure hard work.  Actually, I'm not sure what it does measure.  ....but let me not diverge with a rant on the educational system...

I will have a student teacher intern next semester.  That's a first for me.  Should be interesting.

Things with me and my dear hubby... Being married is the hardest thing I have ever tried to do.  We need counseling and the search continues.  He doesn't want anyone with a "religious bias", so I will probably make an appointment with my EAP.  When we talk, we just totally see things from different points of view.  He complains that I can't see his point.  He claims he can see mine, but he doesn't.  And when I try to pin down what his issues are (with me) it is like a giant game of "whack-a-mole".  Just when I think I understand what he is talking about, then, no...that's not quite it.  Things are fairly calm...the house is not a battle ground, but things could be so much better.

My good priest's mother is still in the hospital.  It is wearing on him.  You can tell he is tired.  He says they are taking it hour by hour.  One night waiting for "the phone to ring."  Other days, she looks a little better.  We had Bible Study on Wednesday night - it was the second-to-last of our study on Acts.  But he called it a wrap with that session.  Too much on his plate.  He thanked everyone for their prayers and told of the healing in his family that had taken place within the last week.  He says that when we pray for someone, not only do we pray for their needs and petitions, but we also pray FOR them - in their place - when they are too tired or not able to pray as they should.   When we pray for other people, they are the subject and the object of our prayers, he said.   

Boy Scout fundraiser this weekend, and then the last week of school!  HOORAY!

onward to Easter

Today was a holiday...the last day of our Mardi Gras break, and I slept late.

I had an much overdue hair appointment, and from there I stopped at the post office to mail a package and then drove to church.  I was there about a half hour before Mass started.  At some point, the lady behind me tapped me and pointed out that there appeared to be no Eucharistic Ministers, and asked if I would join her.  We were both dressed in jeans, but I suppose we were better than nothing.  We got instructions beforehand about distributing ashes.  I'm afraid some of my ash crosses were off-center, and quite possibly some got too much, some not enough.  Tricky business - the ashes.

Did you know that the purpose of Lent is not repentance?  In my mind, I heard a Scooby Doo "ehrr??" when the good Father said that.  He went on to explain that the purpose of Lent is to prepare to fruitfully recommit to our baptismal vows when Easter Sunday rolls around.  And part of that necessarily involves repentance. 

A trip to WalMart for a few necessities and then back home.

I accomplished most of the things on my "to do" list.

One thing that I wanted to do today was plant some Easter Lilies.  I had some in my garden at the old house.  They had been given to my by a priest friend after their usefulness as church decor had passed, and they were beautiful last year.

Last year, sometime in May, the lilies in our church made their way to the outside of the sacristy door.  I would pick up a couple every day on the way to the parking lot.  At that point, the new house was a thought, so I didn't plant them.  Last summer, they made the trip to the new house in their original pots, and for much of the last six months have been sitting in pots next to the garbage can.  In all fairness to my hubby who placed them there, they just looked like some pots with dead plants in them.  But recently they have started to resurrect.

I planted some in front of my Holy Family statue.  And lest you think that I should have weeded first, this is what it looked like yesterday.

I've still got some work to do, but it's way better than it was....  And I planted some along the front walk...

I probably should take a broom and sweep up my mess, yes?

We had Bible Study tonight, and sometimes our good Pastor gets started on a topic, and it's like a whole 'nother homily.  He is good, and hits the nail squarely on the head.  We are studying Acts, and with it, the persecution of the early church.  You would probably have to be under a rock someplace to think that the church today is not being persecuted.  He said, however, that the biggest concern is not what the government wants to do to us, but the persecution from within - from those who are not faithful to church teaching.  He compared them to a cancer - eating away at the Body (of Christ).  He said there are three remedies:  1) prayer (and prayer is not a last resort)  2) the Church and all of the spiritual treasures contained therein and 3) Fidelity to the truth.  The church is not just some rule-making body, he says, but holds the deposit of truth that Jesus left us. 

It was good to hear his take on the current state of things.

And so begins Lent....looking forward to Easter.  Planting lilies in place of the weeds...in our gardens and our lives.

bible study tidbits

Sunset from the parking lot at Winn Dixie.  Not at all relevant to anything else in this post, I'm sure.

When my pastor first arrived at our parish  nearly 4 years ago, one of the first things he did was to announce that he was facilitating a Great Adventure Bible Study on Revelations.  As soon as he announced that, I just knew that I was supposed to be there.  It left me hungry for more, and since then we have completed a 24 week Bible Timeline Journey and 24 week study on Matthew.  Right now we are finishing up a 10 week study on the Letter of James.  Ten weeks is a long time to study something that takes up only 5 pages!

The premise of this study is that James is full of "pearls for wise living".  It's a quick read...check it out.  And the Bible Study itself has been full of "pearls".

One week was about acquiring wisdom [not to be confused with information].  We spend a lot of time making sure that our children are educated and infused with information.  But wisdom....not so much.  There was mention of where we might acquire wisdom - Holy Scripture, the Catechism, papal encyclicals and church documents, the lives and writings of the Saints, elderly people who have lived a life on a good moral foundation, etc.  A suggestion was also made to keep a journal of practical wisdom that we might someday pass on to our children.  It could be a nice leather bound volume.  For the time being, I bought something that was light and small (and cheap) that I could slip into my purse.  I have bits from scripture, bits from Bible studies, things I've heard in homilies, [generic] advice I've gotten in confession.

Another week was about wisdom in speech.  Be quick to listen and slow to talk!  Just because it pops into your head, you do not have to say it.  And don't send emails after 11 pm.  Those are the ones you live to regret.  Control of the tongue.  A life-long project in some of our cases.  Enough said.

Wisdom in relationships....trouble begins in the heart...on the inside.  We want what we want.  We quarrel and fuss because we put created things ahead of the One who created them.  Pride keeps us from God's grace; it is a disordered view of yourself.  God gives grace to the humble.  Humility is a great gift from God.

A how-to of restoring lost relationships - with God and with others: 

• submit to God...spend time in prayer...close the mouth and open the ears...
• resist negative influences in the culture...resist the devil...we CAN stop fighting, we can control our own will
• draw near to God...prayer and meditation
• cleanse your hands and purify your hearts... clean up your act...you can't be away from God, but near him at the same time...that's why the Eucharist and Reconciliation go hand in hand.
• turn laughter into mourning...repentance and penance..turning towards God's will...whole-hearted contrition
• humble yourself before the Lord...the opposite of pride...repent...when we humble ourselves, God lifts us up

Bible studies have been a wonderful thing.  So much for the head, the intellect, but also so much for the soul. I have so much more that I could share, but it would be too long for one post.  Perhaps it is possible to OD on wisdome??  Our last class of this session is Wednesday...the wisdom of confession and prayer.  I'll be back with more!

weather or not

The weather.  That's been about the most exciting thing this week.

Yesterday it was in the 70's.  My older child went to school in shorts.  My younger had short sleeves and no sweat shirt.  It was about 800% humidity, and there was absolutely no hope for my hair.  Humidity AND wind.  There was a strong south wind, until about noon when a front passed through.  It rained heavily for about an hour, and then the wind started blowing from the north.  My offspring were a little chilly when they got home.

It was clear and COLD this morning.  25, with a "feels like" temperature of 14.  We don't get that weather often here.  I had a student in shorts today. (My own didn't argue about wearing pants today.)   I don't know if he owns uniform pants...he said he did when I asked..  The wind was strong, and it was bone-chilling cold all day.

The highlight of the day came when school was canceled for tomorrow.  Freezing rain is expected during the day tomorrow, and we just don't drive in that stuff here.  School on Friday is questionable.  Who is more thrilled - the teachers or the students?  Hard to say!

Bible Study was tonight.  It focused on the need to RESPOND to the Word of God, and mentioned that the Word of God is not found in Scripture alone.  Revelations from God require an action - a response - on our part.  Noah didn't just go on with his regular life after God revealed the plans for the Ark.

The disappointment of my day came when our pastor announced that daily Mass for tomorrow (and probably Friday) was canceled.  I love daily Mass.  I love daily Mass at my parish.  I love my pastor's homilies.  I miss it when it is not available.  It seems like more and more often, daily Mass is canceled.  Any civil holiday - no Mass.  But on the other hand, I know that our pastor has other duties in addition to being the sole shepherd of souls at our parish.  I know that he needs to do what he needs to do to take care of himself so that he CAN be available for us.  And I know that he goes above and beyond in so many things - like the Bible Studies he facilitates in the evenings.  There will be Mass elsewhere...I am fortunate in that respect.  And so I will be at my adopted parish tomorrow.

If I can tomorrow, before the evil freezing rain sets in, I want to find time to go to the Adoration Chapel.  I am overdue for a stay there.  A nice stretch of time where I can be and listen and soul search.  

And this is the ordinariness of my life.  Finding beauty there?  It is what it is.

no words

What a week it has been!  I'm glad it started off with a holiday.

On Tuesday, the daughter of one of the sweetest people ever to work at my sons' school passed away.  Pneumonia.  A was 28, but had some physical disabilities, still lived at home, and was her parents' only child.  She must have inherited her mom's sweet and gentle spirit.  The wake was Friday night, and I went to the funeral home for the Rosary.  I watched the video of pictures they had playing in the back.  So many pictures.  All with smiles.  The second-to-last picture was A making a snow angel.  And the last picture was the snow angel itself.  There were no words to say to her parents.  All I could do was offer a hug.  Or two.  Nothing can make it better.

I wish I could have gone to the funeral today.  I heard that the good Monsignor did find the right words.  He usually does.  Parents should not have to bury their children.  That is one of the most cruel things in this broken world that we live in.

On Wednesday, we started a Bible Study at church.  I am so psyched about this.  It is an 11 week study of the Book of James.  James takes up 5 pages in my Bible.  It is packed with "Pearls of Wisdom", it appears.  The first one, "Count it all as joy, my brethren, for the testing of our faith produces steadfastness."  Or something along those lines.   That has partly contributed to the lack of blog posts.  I've been busy with Bible Study homework.  I have done a few of these before and I know two things - (1) If you do the homework, you get SO much more out of the course and (2) You cannot wait until the last minute to do the homework.  Some of it takes prayer and reflection.

There was also a beautiful full moon on Wednesday.  I attempted to take pictures of it.  Varied results.

Thursday, I showed up at school to see an ambulance in the front.  Certainly not an every day occurrence, but sadly, not that uncommon, either.  I said a silent prayer, but did not feel the need to jump out of my car, run in, and see what was going on.  Turns out it was our principal.  He was out the previous week with "health issues" and apparently is still having "health issues".  He had laid (layed/lain?) down on the floor of his office and couldn't get back up.  He is my age - 40 something.  But stress can kill ya, and his job is full of stress.  So not worth it.  The people that are heaping the stress on, will have you replaced inside of a week, and probably won't even bother to show up to your funeral.  He is nice guy, a genuine good person.

Some of us had a chuckle over the note that was sent home to the students.  "Mr. X was  hospitalized today, but we don't feel that it is anything serious."  Really?  So why was he hospitalized?  Was he faking?  Or maybe I'm being nit-picky.  I hope that it  isn't serious.  I hope that he is back at work very soon, because he is the anchor of sanity, the only check on some who want things run their way.  But he needs to take care of himself first. 

And that concludes this week of ups and downs.  I hope that you didn't get too hopeful when you read the title and think that it meant that this post would have no words!

grace

I am enrolled in a short Bible Study at my parish.  The name is "Jesus in the New Testament" and it is a very brief look - almost an overview - of most of the New Testament.  This week was The Letters to the Romans and the Philippians. 

Much time was spent on "grace".  Grace is the Gift of God's relationship with us.  Relationship.  According to the Catholic Catechism (CCC 1997):  Grace is a participation in the life of God.  Grace is a gift.  The gift is relationship.  When God gives Himself to us, it is a total gift.  Put another way, He gave (gives) His all.  We do not receive "more grace" from God by doing certain things.  But grace involves a response from us, and we can GROW in grace by our ability, capacity, and willingness to respond to God's grace in us.

He used the example of the Blessed Mother.  God initiated the relationship.  He asked her to bear His son.  She cooperated with His will and grew in grace.  Responding to this almost necessarily leads to pain, because it is about relationship, and relationships can be difficult.  Ask someone who is married.  The dying to self and self-emptying love that it involves.  But God makes those relationships possible.

Things at school at this time are just very difficult.  The morale is low.  Teachers and students alike are demeaned by the "powers that be".  I have never seen anything like this.  It causes people to either pray, drink, cry, or "live better" through medication.

The message for me was that this "thorn" may not be removed, but that God's grace IS enough for me.  We are to conduct ourselves in a way worthy of the Gospel and live lives built on faith, hope, and love.  True peace - which we find ourselves constantly in search of - is the presence of the Holy Spirit within us.  It comes from promoting kindness, justice, balance, harmony, and right relations among people. 

The question for prayer this week:  What can "Rejoice in the Lord always" mean for you in your everyday life with all its circumstances?

jeremiah - not just a bullfrog

Last week, I had a post about how Jeremiah (the prophet, not the bullfrog) keeps popping up in my life.  So this week, I've been trying to take in some of his wisdom.

I started with Chapter 1 and there were a few gems there:

Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; before you were born I dedicated you.... Jer 1:5

Have no fear before them, because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.  Jer 1:8

They will fight you, but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.  Jer 1:19

It is a fairly lengthy book - 52 Chapters, so I've been trying to read a little each night - just enough to savor.  Last night I started flipping through, and I came across this passage. 

You have to know that I've done a few Bible Studies, but sadly, I am not a frequent reader unless I'm working on homework for a Bible Study, and my Bible is not all marked up and highlighted.  It doesn't have that comfort level yet.  But THIS passage in Chapter 29 was highlighted.  As we went through our Bible Study, I highlighted a few that I really liked.  Apparently, this made the Top 10. 

Can you read it?  What a powerful promise that is!  If we believed it, would we ever need to worry?

Thus says the Lord....

For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the LORD,

plans for your welfare, not for your woe!

plans to give you a future full of hope. 

When you call to me, when you go to pray to me, I will listen to you.

When you look for me, you will find me.

Yes, when you seek me with all your heart, you will find me with you, says the LORD,

and I will change your lot....

 

in the books

Tonight was our last Bible Study of our 24 week series!  We were studying the Gospel of Matthew.  You wouldn't think that you could spend 24 weeks on Matthew, but trust me - you can!  If you ever get the chance to participate in a Great Adventure Bible Study (especially one done by Jeff Cavins), by all means - DO! 

Someone once said "Ignorance of the Bible is Ignorance of Christ."  Unfortunately, studying the Bible doesn't seem to happen that often in the Catholic Church.  I have learned SO much (and have SO much more to learn).  There have been some teachings or some points that just jump up and hit me right between the eyes.  There have been some weeks that led to some soul searching. 

Tonight was a little special because we had "finger foods" while we watched the DVD.  It was a recap of the entire Gospel, and then a little more indepth on the last Chapter.  The final thing that Jesus left His apostles with was "Go and make disciples..."   That is His instruction to us.  And how reassuring that He is with us "until the end of the age." 

Our pastor always fields questions and answers at the end.  Sometimes (most times) there aren't questions, but tonight there were a couple.  One man commented about how the Apostles had THE best teacher, but they still didn't "get" it all.  He said he would have been pretty amazed if HE had seen Jesus working all these miracles.  And our pastor responded by saying that we see miracles all the time and are unfazed by them.  The primary example is Mass.  Every time the bread and wine is changed to the Body and Blood of Jesus, we witness a miracle.  He gave confession as another example - that one is a 2-part miracle.   He said that when you hear the prompting of the Spirit to go and have the good sense to respond, that is the first part of the miracle.  Don't give yourself too much credit for going, he said, because you can not approach God without God first drawing you to Himself. The second part of the miracle is God's amazing expression of Mercy, the forgiveness of sins,  to which we have no right, cannot earn, etc. 

People stayed around at the end to chat.  That is one of the best side effects of these gatherings - getting to know the other people you worship with. 

We started in August and here we are in April.  It HAS been a Great Adventure.  Next up (later in the summer) is a study of the Letters of James.  That one is only a 10-week series, though.  I'll be there!

son of the father

Faculty meeting this morning.  Bible Study this evening.  Bible study definitely being the better of the two.

Faculty meeting...let me not say too much since people I know can access this blog through my facebook page (not that they would want to).  But, OH MY!   There are 22 days of school left.  And now you're going to tell me to START doing my job.

And people wonder why I go to Mass in the morning.

I feel like I should go to confession.  Bless me Father, for I have sinned. I went to work. Everything I did there for the past 158 days was probably wrong.  I'm sorry and I will try to do better, but I have 22 days left, and  I don't know how I will avoid the near occasion of sin.

Amazing.,

And, no, I would not make a mockery out of the sacrament of reconciliation, and there probably are some legitimate work-related things that I could do better.  I just detest these kinds of meetings.  If I am not doing my job, please talk to me at the beginning of the year one-on-one.  Come help me.  Make suggestions.  Don't make some general statement with less than two dozen days left.

Bible Study.  Something I look forward to.  This week was the Passion of  Christ in Matthew.  The part about  Barabbas was worth sharing.  At the Passover, the Jews celebrated their release from slavery in Egypt, and so it was customary for a prisoner to be released during the Passover.  The name "Barabbas" means "son of the father". The only way that he can be released is if the real Son of the Father pays the price for him.  In a sense, we are all Barabbas - the sinful children of the Father set free by the other Son.

And how about this little tidbit - quoting from our pastor's handout, "In this context, Jesus makes the wood of the Cross the new Tree of Life.  And the fruit of this tree is his flesh and blood, the Eucharist.  And if we eat of the fruit, we'll live forever."  I never thought of it that way.  Makes a ton of sense, though.

I've gotten a few updates from friends from the church that had a fire last week.  Most of the damage appears to be water and smoke.  Daily Mass is being held in the parish library and Sunday Mass at the gym of a nearby school.  My friend today, said he hoped that they would be back in the church by the beginning of June.  That would be great!

Let spring break begin!!

who you are

A couple of one-liners from the last 24 hours are still with me.  From Bible Study last night...the topic was Matthew 6, and personal piety - about doing things because God sees them, not because the world sees them.  The point there was "Who you are when you are in private, is who you really are."  Not the personna that the world sees.

From the homily this morning...the Gospel was the one about the shepherd leaving 99 sheep to go after 1 lost sheep.  "Even if you were the ONLY person who ever sinned - the only sinner in the world - Jesus would have still suffered and died - for YOU!"  That kind of personalizes it a bit.