Pray for Peace

 

Praying for peace with all my heart.

-Susan

Thank You For Your Yes!

 

 Lent is quickly approaching! An overwhelming thought came to mind as I considered how I would try to grow closer to God through the Mass and the sacraments. "Thank you, Lord, for the gift of the priesthood! How truly blessed are we to have men dedicating their lives for our sake. St. John Vianney said, "A priest is not a priest for himself; he is for you." So please join me this week, giving special thanks to priests throughout the world. They work tirelessly for the Lord and for each of us! How dismal life would be without the graces of the sacraments.

-Susan

@dwellingwiththespirit Thank you for your yes! #catholic #fyp #priest #inspiration #inspirational #lent ♬ Thank You Lord - Chris Tomlin, Thomas Rhett, Florida Georgia Line

The video includes inspired words from St. John Vianny. 

Making My Dreams Come True

 

  I woke up this morning to my usual routine. Half-awake, half asleep, I follow my dog to the backyard door. As I slid the door open to let him out,  the entrance to one of last night’s dreams opened as well. Today, my yard is filled with snow and ice, but my dream showed me a beautiful summer day.  

  Last night I found myself standing in the middle of my yard when a friendly face from my past walked towards me. “I think you should move the garden to the middle of the yard,” my friend said.

  “Why would I do that? I like it over there on the side. This way, I have all this open space to do what I want.”

  “Because it doesn’t work that way. The garden has to be in the middle if you want it to grow.”

  The idea seemed ridiculous to me as I looked across my yard. I was about to argue when I noticed my friend was gone. I saw the packs of seeds he left behind. Seeds of hope, love, kindness, peace, and faith. I suddenly understood my friend’s suggestion. The garden of my dreams needs to take center stage in my life. It’s not something that should grow neatly in the corner. I smiled as I realized how wise my friend had become.  

  My dog brushed by me as I stood in the doorway, eager to get back inside the warm house. As we headed towards his bag of treats, I looked at him and said, “I think today is a good day to do some digging!”

-Susan

Trust Me

 

 I watched my daughter and granddaughter play the "trust game" earlier this week. "Go ahead and just fall back," my daughter said. "I'll catch you." My granddaughter didn't even hesitate as she just fell backward. My daughter caught her as promised, and they laughed before doing it again. 

 Later that evening, while praying, I suddenly remembered their trust game. Trust suddenly became a focus of my prayers. Trust definitely isn't a game; it is the key to changing your life. St. Faustina was instructed to have the sentence "Jesus, I trust in you" underneath the Divine Mercy Image of Jesus. Two of the central themes of Divine Mercy are to act mercifully to others and to trust in God's merciful love. Jesus told St. Faustina, "The graces of My mercy are drawn by means of one vessel only, and that is--trust. The more a soul trusts, the more it will receive." (Diary of Divine Mercy).

 I've decided to devote the next week to honestly reflecting on how much I trust God. I would like to invite you to do the same. This week ask yourself, "What problem or fear am I praying about? Do I really trust God with this situation? Do I really trust His Plan, or am I expecting Him to consult me for suggestions?" Perhaps the reason Jesus said we need to become like children to enter the kingdom is because children don't have as many trust issues. So often, adults tend to worry, analyze, and try to control. Do yourself a favor and allow yourself to fall into God's arms. As adults, we tend to concentrate on falling instead of focusing on the hands that will save us. This week listen for God's voice as you pray. Listen as He says, "Go ahead and let go, I'm going to catch you."

-Susan

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

 

Please help us share this video message.  You never know who may need to see it. The video is just an invitation. It will lay unopened unless it's shared. Others will be inspired not by the video itself, but by your efforts to share your faith.

“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