Hands On Love

 

 I have been blessed to welcome another grandchild into the world this week! My daughter told me, "I just can't stop staring at this baby. He's beautiful!"

 I responded, "He is beautiful! You are right! All of God's miracles should captivate us!"  There is something so special about holding a newborn in your arms. You can feel the miracle of life.  Every inch of them is incredible, from their tiny little hands, ears, nose, to their toes. What a wonderful blessing!

 Later that night, I continued to think about his little hands. I wondered what amazing things his hands would do. I thought about my daughter's hand and all the amazing things her hands have done since I held her in my arms as a newborn and all the amazing things her hand will do to take care of her son. Then, I looked down at my own hands. They are aged and worn, but they have changed thousands of diapers, cooked meals, cared for the sick, and wiped away tears, to name a few.

 This week reflect on how your hands have shown the world God's love. Perhaps no one is cooing over how cute they are anymore. Maybe not here on earth anyway, but I wonder if God still holds us while we are sleeping and marvels at our hands, and thinks, "Keep sharing all the love I put into these hands. I have such plans for you, my child."  

-Susan

Faith 2022

  I have given each of you the potential to move mountains.  Go, become the child I created you to be.

Love, God

@dwellingwiththespirit Faith 2022 #fyp #catholic #inspiration #faith #christian ♬ Revolutionary - Josh Wilson

 

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“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere-in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

-Susan and Theresa

Growing in Faith

 

  Our house has a designated wall with coveted marks running up and down. It is the wall used to measure my children's height as they grow. I always enjoyed the look on my kids' faces when I would say, "You grew!" Quickly they would turn around, their eyes eager to see the answer. Then at some point, it would happen. Their height would plateau, and I would have to announce, "Nope, still the same." Eventually, we would accept they had reached adult height.

  I worry that people may also have this same approach to their faith. My kids and I have noticed their classmates were brought to church and religious education classes until Confirmation. I'm not really sure what happens, but it almost appears that either the parent or teen determines they have reached that adult height of faith. I wonder if it's alright to allow one's faith to plateau nearly the same time as their height?

 Fortunately, God has a different plan in mind. He never puts a cap on our faith life. He provides grace upon grace, nurturing our faith to grow deeper and more encompassing. Although God is incredibly generous, He does expect us to do our part. Faith is a gift, but it is also a mystery. It's beyond our understanding yet within our reach. We can't numerically measure our faith because we can't measure love. Our faith is our response to God's love. Our faith grows as we become better at loving God and loving one another.

 I wonder if it may be possible to measure our faith indirectly. Perhaps it is the measurable distance between you and God. The more our faith grows, the closer we come to God. If we are genuinely working on increasing our faith, we will not need God to yell, "You grew!". Ideally, you would be so close that you could feel His breath as He whispers, "You grew!" 

 -Susan

Forecast of Son and Peace

 

 I walked out of Mass with the melody of the closing song still playing in my head. As I approached my car, my pace became slower. I felt so much at peace, and I didn’t want it to end. I thanked the Lord for the beautiful gift of the Mass and prayed that I would not lose this peacefulness in my soul. 

 Unfortunately, only a few minutes passed before one of my children managed to annoy one of their siblings. “Do you know why I walked slower to the car today,” I asked my kids? “I didn’t want to lose that sense of peace that I feel during Mass.”

 My son looked at me and said, “Well, the church is just the place you feel peace amidst all the storms.”

 “But why must the storm always rage?” I asked. “Wouldn’t it be great if there were more moments when the storm was quiet? Is it possible for you to quiet the storm within you?”

 “Ya, I don’t know,” my son replied. 

 This got me thinking. How much do I contribute to the storms around me? Do I allow the clouds to darken my thoughts and words? Do I treat others/family differently once I’m outside the Mass? What changes in me, or is it because I haven’t changed enough? How different would the world be if each of us tried to quiet the storms we stir up?

 I realize changing the seasonal forecasts of life is not in my control. Still, maybe I could try to influence a partly cloudy day to become partly sunny as well. I truly desire to carry the peace of Christ past the church doors, and I want His peace to influence my thoughts and everyday moments. I often think it would be great to be sheltered from life’s storms. But learning to sing God’s melody of peace through the unexpected downpours of rain may ultimately be the best change to my future forecast.

  

-Susan 

Keep Your Ears Open

 

 Last week, my brother stopped by with a gift for my son. It was a beautiful carving of the Last Supper. My 3-year-old granddaughter watched my son open his present. As she looked at the carving, I explained that this was Jesus and the apostles sharing the Last Supper together. She looked at the carving and said, "Where's Mary?"

 I smiled at her question. My granddaughter's faith had already discovered how much Jesus loves His mother, Mary. "It's possible Mary was celebrating this meal in another room," I tried to explain. "Do you remember when we were at Mass, and you asked me why they were ringing those bells? Do you remember I whispered that it was to let everyone know something very special is about to happen. Jesus asked us to bless the bread so that we remember how much He loves us. So when they ring the bell, we are remembering the Last Supper."

 My granddaughter was quiet for a minute and then said, "Ok, who is the lamb then?"

 I was stunned as I realized she was really paying attention to the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Fortunately, my brother was able to quickly answer her question, "Jesus is the Lamb." My granddaughter was happy with that answer as she put a piece of candy in her mouth and then went off to play.

 The Holy Spirit is speaking to each of us during the Mass. Neither our age nor comprehension is as important as our willingness to listen. The Mass is a mystery wrapped in love that none of us can fully comprehend. Throughout our lifetime, God calls us to come closer to grow in our understanding and love.

 I have a couple of suggestions for the new year. First, if you find you aren't getting anything out of Mass, ask yourself, "Have I stopped listening?" If this is the case, my next suggestion is for you to cry out, "Where's Mary?" Mary will eagerly come to your side and teach you how to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit again.

-Susan

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

 

"The world being unworthy to receive the Son of God
directly from the hands of the Father,
He gave His Son to Mary
for the world to receive Him from her."
St.Augustine

  Being a mom is an incredible and often times overwhelming experience.  Most days, my children call me “Mom.”  When they need a special favor, I suddenly become “Mommy” again.  When annoyed with me, they refer to me as “Mother.”  When my kids were still in school, I was known as Theresa’s Mom or Maria’s Mom, etc.   All these variations mean the same thing—I  am forever bonded with my children in a way no one else will ever be.  

  I wonder how incredible it must have been for Mary the first time Jesus said, “Ma-Ma.”  Imagine the joy she may have felt when someone would point to her and say, “That’s Jesus’ Mom!”  I imagine it would make Mary smile. 

  Over the centuries, the Church has given Mary many titles.  Today we celebrate Mary, Mother of God.  It is a title unique to Mary for all Eternity.  I believe it is a very loving gesture to begin each year honoring the special bond between Mary and Jesus.  Today let us join our many voices as we collectively point towards Mary and say, “Look, that’s Jesus’ Mom!”  I imagine that Jesus’ smile will be as big as Mary’s!

-Susan