From the mouth of babes: this week's chuckle.

I got this through email, and it's cute enough to share!

1. She was in the bathroom putting on her makeup under the watchful eyes of her young granddaughter, as she'd done many times before. After she applied her lipstick and started to leave, the little one said, "But Gramma, you forgot to kiss the toilet paper good-bye!" I will probably never put lipstick on again without thinking about kissing the toilet paper good-bye.

2. My young grandson called the other day to wish me Happy Birthday. He asked me how old I was and I told him, 62. My grandson was quiet for a moment, and then he asked, "Did you start at 1?"

3. After putting her grandchildren to bed, a grandmother changed into old slacks and a droopy blouse and proceeded to wash her hair. As she heard the children getting more and more rambunctious, her patience grew thin. Finally, she threw a towel around her head and stormed into their room, putting them back to bed with stern warnings. As she left the room, she heard the three-year-old say with a trembling voice, "Who was THAT?"

4. A grandmother was telling her little granddaughter what her own childhood was like: "We used to skate outside on a pond. I had a swing made from a tire; it hung from a tree in our front yard. We rode our pony. We picked wild raspberries in the woods." The little girl was wide-eyed, taking this all in. At last she said, "I sure wish I'd gotten to know you sooner!"

5. My grandson was visiting one day when he asked, "Grandma, do you know how you and God are alike?" I mentally polished my halo and I said, "No, how are we alike?'' "You're both old," he replied..

6.. A little girl was diligently pounding away on her grandfather's word processor. She told him she was writing a story. "What's it about?" he asked. "I don't know," she replied. "I can't read."

7. I didn't know if my granddaughter had learned her colors yet, so I decided to test her. I would point out something and ask what color it was. She would tell me and was always correct. It was fun for me, so I continued. At last, she headed for the door, saying, "Grandma, I think you should try to figure out some of these yourself!"

8. When my grandson Billy and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the lights off until we were inside to keep from attracting pesky insects. Still, a few fireflies followed us in. Noticing them before I did, Billy whispered, "It's no use Grandpa. Now the mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights."

9. When my grandson asked me how old I was, I teasingly replied, "I'm not sure." "Look in your underwear, Grandpa," he advised. "Mine says I'm 4 to 6."

10. A second grader came home from school and said to her grandmother, "Grandma, guess what? We learned how to make babies today." The grandmother, more than a little surprised, tried to keep her cool. "That's interesting," she said, "how do you make babies?" "It's simple," replied the girl. "You just change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es'."  

11. Children's Logic: "Give me a sentence about a public servant," said a teacher. The small boy wrote: "The fireman came down the ladder pregnant." The teacher took the lad aside to correct him. "Don't you know what pregnant means?" she asked. "Sure," said the young boy confidently. 'It means carrying a child."

12. A grandfather was delivering his grandchildren to their home one day when a fire truck zoomed past. Sitting in the front seat of the fire truck was a Dalmatian dog.. The children started discussing the dog's duties. "They use him to keep crowds back," said one child. "No," said another. "He's just for good luck." A third child brought the argument to a close. "They use the dogs," she said firmly, "to find the fire hydrants."

13. A 6-year-old was asked where his grandma lived "Oh," he said, "she lives at the airport, and when we want her, we just go get her. Then, when we're done having her visit, we take her back to the airport."

14. Grandpa is the smartest man on earth! He teaches me good things, but I don't get to see him enough to get as smart as him!

15. My Grandparents are funny: when they bend over, you hear gas leaks and they blame their dog.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

Three spiritual maxims

In late December 1619, the Sisters of the Visitation asked Francis de Sales to provide them with some additional guidelines for pursuing a life of devotion during the coming year. Francis offered three ‘laws’ that he hoped would “be both useful and agreeable.” These three spiritual maxims have been adapted from those originally outlined in St. Francis de Sales’ Spiritual Conferences.

Maxim One: Do all for God and nothing for yourself

St. Francis de Sales reminds us that we are made by God, from God and for God. Our glory comes from our God-given dignity. Our glory will be perfectly expressed in our God-given destiny: life on high with Jesus Christ.

On any given day it is easy to lose sight of this profound truth and to find our glory in our own personal projects and endeavors. To be sure, there is much work that God wants us to do in the state and stage of life in which we find ourselves, to work at being sources of Christ’s power and promise in the lives of others…but in the end it is ultimately God’s work to share, and not something to which to cling for ourselves or an activity through which to draw attention to ourselves.

Doing what is right is its own reward. As for the glory, leave that for and give it to the One to Whom it belongs.

Maxim Two: Make great use of the little you have

Loosening – letting go – is a part of life. Some of what we need to let go of are things that we choose to give away. Some of what we need to let go of are things that have already been taken away from us.

There is a great paradox here. Sometimes it is only in losing something that we more deeply appreciate – and use – that which we still possess. Throughout the life-long process of letting go, we have a fundamental choice: we can complain about that which is no more, or – while acknowledging our losses – we can continue to dream about and work for that which still might be.

Growth in devotion is not measured by how much we have or possess. In the eyes of God, the quality of our lives is measured by how diligently, readily and frequently we take hold – and let go – of all that God gives us, be it great, or especially, when it is little.

Maxim Three: Be the same in sadness and joy

Life is a mix of setback and success. Life has its measure of both agony and ecstasy. Life has its share of defeat and victory.

A sure sign that we are growing in devotion is our ability to embrace both sadness and joy to the same degree, to experience the ups and downs of life in a reasonable, balanced and even-tempered way. While we cannot choose most of what happens to us, we most certainly can choose how to respond to what happens to us.

Some folks are great losers but not very good winners. Some folks are great winners but terrible losers. Neither person is very pleasant to be around for long periods of time.

Take the good with the bad. Mourn loss. Celebrate gain. Take as your motto the words of John Wooden: “Success is never final; failure is never fatal.” In all things, be grateful for who you are and who God calls you to be.

- Rev. Michael S. Murray, OSFS, Director, De Sales Spirituality Center

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

A morning prayer

John Baille was a theologian from Scotland who served as a minister of the Church of Scotland. He wrote a very moving book entitled "A Diary of Private Prayer", published in 1936. This prayer is a moving example taken from his book.

O God, ever blessed, who hast given me the night for rest and the day for labour and service, grant that the refreshing sleep of the night now past may be turned to Thy greater glory in the life of the day now before me. Let it breed no slothfulness within me, but rather send me to more diligent action and more willing obedience.


Teach me, O God, so to use all the circumstances of my life today that they may bring forth in me the fruits of holiness rather than the fruits of sin.


Let me use disappointment as material for patience:
Let me use success as material for thankfulness:
Let me use suspense as material for perseverance:
Let me use danger as material for courage:
Let me use reproach as material for longsuffering:
Let me use praise as material for humility:
Let me use pleasure as material for temperance:
Let me use pains as material for endurance.


O Lord Jesus Christ, who for the joy that was set before Thee didst endure the Cross, despising the shame, and art now set down at the right hand of the throne of God, let me consider Thee who didst endure such contradiction of sinners against Thyself, lest I be wearied and faint in my mind.


Holy God, I would remember before Thee all my friends and those of my own household, beseeching Thee that in Thy great love Thou wouldst keep them also free from sin, controlling all their deeds and this day in accordance with Thy most perfect will.


Amen

- John Baille, Scottish theologian

1886 – 1960          

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

I just LOVE this little girl!

Today's first post is here, but I just HAD to share this video as soon as I saw it.

God bless you, Savannah!

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

Calming our fears

I grew up with water skis on my feet. I loved the exhilarating feeling of the slalom as it beat a staccato rhythm across the water.

One summer day, my brother and I hit upon a thrilling idea. We would do without skis altogether and try skiing barefoot instead!

Our bold plan involved starting with one ski and then gracefully slipping out of it once the boat built up speed. But there was little grace in our attempt. As soon as we slipped out of the ski, we sank like cement blocks. We hadn't realized that our little motor lacked the power to keep our ski-less feet above the water.

That stormy night on Galilee, Jesus manifested a power beyond anything we can comprehend - not a sorcerer's magic over the elements but the Creator's control over  his own creation. His disciples were terrified.

How did Jesus respond to the disciples' fearful cries? Instead of telling them to buck up and stop being babies, he told them to have courage. Then he climbed into the boat and calmed the wind.


And that's the way he treats us, speaking a word of courage, climbing into our situation, and calming our souls.

We may feel we are alone on a dark night, in the middle of an angry sea, but the truth is that God sees us no matter where we are or what we are going through. Just as Jesus walked on the water to come to the disciples, he can come to us and calm our fears.

- Ann Spangler

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

This week's photo caption contest

How about a caption for this picture? Use McLinky to submit your entries. Winners will be announced next week!

Here are the winners for last week's contest. It wasn't easy to pick the winners. Some folks thought they were seeing a pizza, when the picture was actually a humongous sandwich. I must apologize if the picture was misleading!

Here they are:

Explaining death

A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to leave the examination room and said, "'Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side."

Very quietly, the doctor said, "I don't know."

"You don't know? You're a Christian man, and don't know what's on the other side?'

The doctor was holding the handle of the door. On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining, and as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, "Did you notice my dog? He's never been in this room before. He didn't know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear. I know little of what is on the other side of death, But I do know one thing... I know my Master is there and that is enough."

Do we "send the crowds away"?

Scripture relates an instance where large crowds gathered to hear Jesus teach. As the day drew to an end, his disciples offered a practical suggestion out of concern for the crowd: “This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” (Matthew 14:15)

It’s not at all difficult to understand why the disciples’ first response was to send the people away. After all, they’d been traveling with Jesus as he went from town to town, teaching and healing. They were tired, it had been a long day, and they only had five loaves of bread and two fish. They must have thought that they had barely enough to feed Jesus and the twelve of them.

But when they suggested that the crowds be sent away to find something to eat, Jesus said, “They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat.” (Matthew 14:16) And with a mere 5 loaves and two fish (coupled with the power of God), the multitude was fed, leaving 12 baskets of leftovers to be gathered up.

Look at the difference in the way Jesus and his disciples approached the problem of the hungry crowd. When the disciples saw that the people needed food, their first response was to send them on their way. But it wasn’t until “all ate and were satisfied” (v. 20) that Jesus dismissed the crowds.

It is easier… far easier… to “send the crowds away” when we see people in need. In this day and age especially, when we are bombarded by the media with 24-hour-a-day coverage of human misery, it is easy to develop a serious case of “compassion fatigue”. But this Gospel passage urges us to deal more directly with the needs of others. And this was evidently a lesson that the disciples took to heart, as we can see in this passage:

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

- James 2:14-17

What about us? You and I? When we see people in need, do we send them away out of our sight? Or do we share the little we have, counting on God to supply whatever we may lack?

From "A Cat's Guide to the Care and Training of Human Beings"

1. Introduction: Why Do We Need Humans?

So you've decided to get yourself a human being. In doing so, you've joined the millions of other cats who have acquired these strange and often frustrating creatures. There will be any number of times, during the course of your association with humans, when you will wonder why you have bothered to grace them with your presence.

What's so great about humans, anyway? Why not just hang around with other cats? Our greatest philosophers have struggled with this question for centuries, but the answer is actually rather simple:

THEY HAVE OPPOSABLE THUMBS.

Which makes them the perfect tools for such tasks as opening doors, getting the lids off of cat food cans, changing television stations and other activities that we, despite our other obvious advantages, find difficult to do ourselves. True, chimps, orangutans and lemurs also have opposable thumbs, but they are nowhere as easy to train.

2. How And When to Get Your Human's Attention

Humans often erroneously assume that there are other, more important activities than taking care of your immediate needs, such as conducting business, spending time with their families or even sleeping.

Though this is dreadfully inconvenient, you can make this work to your advantage by pestering your human at the moment it is the busiest. It is usually so flustered that it will do whatever you want it to do, just to get you out of its hair. Not coincidentally, human teenagers follow this same practice.

Here are some tried and true methods of getting your human to do what you want:

Sitting on paper: An oldie but a goodie. If a human has paper in front of it, chances are good it's something they assume is more important than you. They will often offer you a snack to lure you away. Establish your supremacy over this wood pulp product at every opportunity. This practice also works well with computer keyboards, remote controls, car keys and small children.

Waking your human at odd hours: A cat's "golden time" is between 3:30 and 4:30 in the morning. If you paw at your human's sleeping face during this time, you have a better than even chance that it will get up and, in an incoherent haze, do exactly what you want. You may actually have to scratch deep sleepers to get their attention; remember to vary the scratch site to keep the human from getting suspicious.

3. Punishing Your Human Being

Sometimes, despite your best training efforts, your human will stubbornly resist bending to your whim. In these extreme circumstances, you may have to punish your human. Obvious punishments, such as scratching furniture or eating household plants, are likely to backfire; the unsophisticated humans are likely to misinterpret the activities and then try to discipline YOU. Instead, we offer these subtle but nonetheless effective alternatives:

* Use the cat box during an important formal dinner.

* Stare impassively at your human while it is attempting a romantic interlude.

* Stand over an important piece of electronic equipment and feign a hairball attack.

* After your human has watched a particularly disturbing horror film, stand by the hall closet and then slowly back away, hissing and yowling.

* While your human is sleeping, lie on its face.

4. Rewarding Your Human: Should Your Gift Still Be Alive?

The cat world is divided over the etiquette of presenting humans with the thoughtful gift of a recently disemboweled animal. Some believe that humans prefer these gifts already dead, while others maintain that humans enjoy a slowly expiring cricket or rodent just as much as we do, given their jumpy and playful movements in picking the creatures up after they've been presented.

After much consideration of the human psyche, we recommend the following:

cold blooded animals (large insects, frogs, lizards, garden snakes and the occasional earthworm) should be presented dead, while warm blooded animals (birds, rodents, your neighbor's Pomeranian) are better still living. When you see the expression on your human's face, you'll know it's worth it.

5. How Long Should You Keep Your Human?

You are only obligated to your human for one of your lives. The other eight are up to you. We recommend mixing and matching, though in the end, most humans (at least the ones that are worth living with) are pretty much the same. But what do you expect? They're humans, after all. Opposable thumbs will only take you so far.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

"Careless words"

”The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12: 35-37)

These words are among the most frightening in the Bible. To think that we will need to answer for every “careless word”!! I don’t know about you, but as I look back over the years – even the last few days – of my life, I find ample reason for concern when I realize that I will be either acquitted or condemned on the basis of my words.

The apostle Paul expresses a caution about the words we speak a bit differently when he says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” (Ephesians 4:29)

Many years ago, I was given some wise advice. The suggestion was to ask three questions before beginning to speak:

1. Is it honest?
2. Is it necessary?
3. Is it kind?

If we use these questions faithfully, we’ll have little room for “careless words”.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

A commentary on conversation - Totally like whatever, you know?

Blogger note:

Evidently it's no longer possible to embed the video

that I'd posted here, so I'm posting the text of the poem itself:

Totally like whatever, you know?
By Taylor Mali

In case you hadn't noticed,
it has somehow become uncool
to sound like you know what you're talking about?
Or believe strongly in what you're saying?
Invisible question marks and parenthetical (you know?)'s
have been attaching themselves to the ends of our sentences?
Even when those sentences aren't, like, questions? You know?

Declarative sentences - so-called
because they used to, like, DECLARE things to be true
as opposed to other things which were, like, not -
have been infected by a totally hip
and tragically cool interrogative tone? You know?
Like, don't think I'm uncool just because I've noticed this;
this is just like the word on the street, you know?
It's like what I've heard?
I have nothing personally invested in my own opinions, okay?
I'm just inviting you to join me in my uncertainty?

What has happened to our conviction?
Where are the limbs out on which we once walked?
Have they been, like, chopped down
with the rest of the rain forest?
Or do we have, like, nothing to say?
Has society become so, like, totally . . .
I mean absolutely . . . You know?
That we've just gotten to the point where it's just, like . . .
whatever!

And so actually our disarticulation . . . ness
is just a clever sort of . . . thing
to disguise the fact that we've become
the most aggressively inarticulate generation
to come along since . . .
you know, a long, long time ago!

I entreat you, I implore you, I exhort you,
I challenge you: To speak with conviction.
To say what you believe in a manner that bespeaks
the determination with which you believe it.
Because contrary to the wisdom of the bumper sticker,
it is not enough these days to simply QUESTION AUTHORITY.
You have to speak with it, too.

January 22: Happy Anniversary?

Yesterday I read a CNA news report that mentions that Planned Parenthood is sending out letters requesting donations to rebuild clinics destroyed in Haiti. Frankly, I found this story mind-boggling. In the midst of a struggle for survival and the heart-breaking task of burying thousands of dead, I find it difficult to understand how anyone could consider rebuilding Planned Parenthood clinics to be a priority.

But perhaps it's because of the timing. I note that our  local “independent newspaper” just ran a 2-page advertisement to celebrate the 37th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade. In part, it said:

Few decisions are more personal and intimate, more properly private, or more basic to individual dignity and autonomy, than a woman’s decision – with the guidance of her physician and within the limits specified in Roe – whether to end her pregnancy.

“A woman’s right to make that choice freely is fundamental.” - Justice Blackman, Thornburgh Decision United States Supreme Court, June, 1986.

We, the undersigned, support a woman’s right top safe, legal, and accessible birth control and abortion. We condemn the acts of violence and intimidation directed at women and their health care providers. We agree that these rights extend to all women regardless of economic status, and, as taxpayers, affirm our support of the State Abortion Fund for indigent women.

I find myself agreeing with one sentence out of the bunch: “We condemn the acts of violence and intimidation directed at women and their health care providers.” But I find the rest to be untenable.

What about the “individual dignity and autonomy” of the innocent life that is taken through the act of abortion? What is “fundamental” about allowing one individual to determine whether another lives or dies? And what about my strong objection to having my tax dollars used to pay for a procedure that I find morally indefensible?

Unfortunately, there's no way for me to ensure that my tax dollars aren't used to finance things I conscientiously object to.

Mother Teresa of Calcutta was among the most respected women in recent history. Her deep and abiding love for life in all its forms was legendary. When she spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast in 1994, she captured the essence of her beliefs – and mine – on this controversial topic. I invite you to read the entire text of the words she spoke here. And once you’re through, look at my sidebar and read the number of lives lost to abortion since you found this site.

The figures are staggering.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

And visit Jen at Conversion Diary for this week's edition of 7 Quick Takes.

Sleeping in the arms of God

Just be very faithful about staying near God,
gently and quietly attentive to Him in your heart,
sleeping in the arms of His providence,
peacefully accepting His holy will;
for all this pleases Him.

~St. Francis de Sales

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here.

A new photo caption contest!

Can you think of a caption for this photo? Use McLinky below to enter this week's contest! I'm looking forward to seeing your ideas!

And here are the winners from the last contest, found here.

"His disciples began to believe in him."

In reading John’s account of the wedding feast where Jesus changed water into wine, I was struck by a phrase I hadn’t heard before: “Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him”. (John 2:11, New American Bible)

His disciples began to believe in him.

I’d never heard that expression before. I went out to the Bible Gateway site to read this verse in a variety of translations, and almost all of them said that his disciples believed in him. But the New American Bible translation of this verse still strikes me and even encourages me.

Why do I say this? I suppose it’s because I’ve so often heard folks say that moments of doubt or indecision are gravely sinful. And it comforts me to know that the faith of some of the most faithful Christians in the history of the world sometimes wavered.

These were men who actually saw Jesus. They watched him heal illnesses, raise the dead, change water into wine, walk on water, cast out demons… and nonetheless they sometimes had “little faith”.

When Jesus and his disciples were at sea and a terrible storm arose, the disciples were terrified. They woke Jesus and he calmed the storm, saying "Why are you afraid, you of little faith?" (Matthew 8:26)

The disciples witnessed Jesus walking on the water and were amazed. When Peter then walked toward Jesus on the water, he experienced fear and began to sink. Jesus caught him by the hand and said, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14: 31)

In Mark 8:29, Peter acknowledges the Jesus is the Messiah. Soon thereafter, Mark quotes Jesus as saying “Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this faithless and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels”. (Mark 8:38). This same Peter who recognizes Jesus as the Messiah later denies him three times. (Luke 22:54-62). Nevertheless, Peter was the Rock upon which the Church was founded. (Matthew 16:18)

In Luke 17:5-6, we read another verse that demonstrates that Jesus’ disciples have moments when their faith is weak, for “the apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith’”.

Even after Jesus’ resurrection… even after he met two of the disciples on the road to Emmaus and ate with them… even when Jesus appeared among them in Jerusalem… “they were startled and terrified and thought they were seeing a ghost. Then he said to them, ‘Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts?'” (Luke 24:37-38)

The fact of the matter is that even faithful Christians seldom experience unshakable faith that never wavers. The Christian life is a journey, not a single destination. And at moments when our faith seems weak, we can join with the father who prayed to Jesus as he said, "I do believe; help my unbelief." (Mark 9:24)

Take my will and make it thine!

Holy Father, remove from my soul, I pray, my own will and graft on it yours so that your will and not mine is always done.

Just as when one cuts a branch from a tree and grafts on a better one, its fruit is also much better, remove from this tree, Oh Father, the little branch of my will and graft on it your holy will; then I will be certain that it will bear beautiful fruit.

~St. Francis de Sales, Commentary on the Our Father

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Children's church

A pastor was giving the children's message during church. For this part of the service, he would gather all the children around him and give a brief lesson before dismissing them for children's church. On this particular Sunday, he was using squirrels for an object lesson on industry and preparation. He started out by saying, 'I'm going to describe something, and I want you to raise your hand when you know what it is.' The children nodded eagerly.

'This thing lives in trees (pause) and eats nuts (pause)...' No hands went up. 'And it is gray (pause) and has a long bushy tail (pause)...' The children were looking at each other, but still no hands raised. 'And it jumps from branch to branch (pause) and chatters and flips its tail when it's excited (pause)...'

Finally one little boy tentatively raised his hand. The pastor breathed a sigh of relief and called on him. 'Well...' said the boy, 'I *know* the answer must be Jesus... but is sure sounds like a squirrel to me!'

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Please consider helping the Haitian relief efforts.

As of Friday 1/15/10, more than $9 million had been raised for American Red Cross relief efforts in Haiti through text messages by Americans texting on their mobile phones. And it was raised $10 at a time.

While the Red Cross has received the largest amount of donations using this method, there are other charitable organizations that have also received substantial sums intended to benefit victims of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Cell phone customers can send text messages to certain organizations signaling their desire to donate $5-10 to charitable organizations for use in assisting survivors of the January 12, 2010 earthquake.

Customers who donate using the “mobile giving” process will have the money they pledge deducted from their phone bill at the end of the month. As of Friday 1/15/10, AT&T customers pledged $4.2 million, Verizon customer have pledged nearly $3 million, and Sprint customers have pledged more than $1.2 million to the American Red Cross.

Please consider donating to the Haitian relief efforts. If you are interested in donating using your mobile phone, you can use one of the following methods:

• To donate $10 to the American Red Cross, text the word “HAITI” to 90999.
• To donate $10 to the Clinton Foundation Haiti Relief Fund, text “HAITI” to 20222.
• To donate $10 to the International Medical Corps, text "HAITI" to 85944.
• To donate $5 to the International Rescue Committee, text "HAITI" to 25383.

Thank you for your generosity.

Making the most of what we've been given

Every day of your life is a gift from God; don’t squander it. Don’t waste it by being angry with anyone. Don’t let it slip away by feeling sorry for yourself.

Be grateful for this precious gift of life and spend it by being as happy and as thankful as you possibly can. Let your mind dwell on the good things which have happened to you. Let gratitude be your attitude.

Think of your assets and don’t let anyone else spoil your day for you. Enjoy every day of your life to the fullest.

Realize that you can add to the joy of each day by making someone else happy! The kind of prayer that helps you get into a peaceful, grateful attitude might be something like this:

‘Heavenly Father, help me to be grateful for being alive right now. Help me to realize that no matter what my problems may be, where there is life, there is hope. Help me to think positively and to realize that thousands of miracles are happening every day.

"Help me to pray, and help me to remember the times when prayer brought me peace. Let me be a better listener and not be self-centered. Help me to realize that if I get my mind occupied by helping and cheering up other people I will be healthier than if I were always checking my own pulse.

"Help me to look for the good in every one I meet. Let me realize that I cannot change anybody’s way of thinking. Only by doing the best I can and setting a good example may I influence someone to change their behavior. Help me to understand that other people have as much a right to their opinions as I do to mine.

"Let me love myself as I am. Make me realize that there is a purpose for every person being different. Let me realize that You, my Father, are with me always, to guide and comfort me. Let me open my heart and my mind and let Your love flow in. Let me accept the peace that You can bring, and help me to understand that You have a plan and purpose to everything that happens. Amen."

– Anonymous.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

A prayer of surrender

Anita of Simple Grace shared this beautiful prayer with me.

I surrender myself to You, Lord, and ask you,
Put an end to my restlessness.

I give you my will:
I do not believe any longer
that I myself can answer what I am doing,
and what is happening through me.
Lead me and show me Your Will.

I give You my thoughts:
I do not believe any longer
that I am so intelligent
that I can understand myself, my whole life or other people.
Teach me to think Your Thoughts.

I give You my plans;
I do not believe any longer
that my life finds meaning
in what I reach through my plans.
I entrust myself to Your Plan for You know me.

My anxiety for other people I give to You;
I do not believe any longer
that with my anxiety
I can improve anything.
That remains with You.
Why should I be anxious?

My anxiety about the power of others, I give to You.
You were powerless before the mighty.
The mighty have fallen.
You live.

My fear of failure I give to You.
I do not wish to be a successful person
if I wish to be blessed according to Your will.

I give up running into locked doors,
and wait for You.
You will open them.

I give you myself. I belong to You Lord,
You have me in Your Hand.
I thank you.

Seeking the will of God

Lord Jesus, I will go where you want me to go.
I will say whatever you want me to say.
And I will do whatever you want me to do.
Even if going means leaving people I love,
Saying what I need to say means saying something unpopular and difficult to speak…
And even if doing these things means that I am uncomfortable for a short while.
Help me to have the courage to follow you wherever you lead.
I want to be obedient to your will for me.

From My Silent Journey, by Lorraine Kimble

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Have you missed me?

I'm writing this post about 10 days ago (if you know what I mean).

By the time you read this, I'll be beginning my return from vacation. For the first time, I've gone on a cruise. It's been a dream of mine. And while I'm not trying to "rub it in", I will mention that the average nighttime temperature  for thie islands we've visited (St. Lucia, St. Kiits, and St. Maarten) is in the upper 70's with daytime temperatures in the 80's.

So while.we finish chugging back to the States, enjoy this video, and remember... SUMMER'S COMING!

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Listen to the echo, and learn...

A father and his son were walking in the mountains. Suddenly, the son falls, hurts himself, and screams: "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!" To his surprise he hears the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountains: "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Curious, he yells: "Who are you?" He receives the answer: "Who are you"

Angered at the response, he screams, "Coward!" He receives the answer: "Coward!"

He looks to his father and asks: "What's going on?"

The father smiles and says, "My son, pay attention." And then he yells to the mountain: "I admire you!" The voice answers: "I admire you!"

Again the man yells, "You are a champion!" The voice answers: "You are a champion!"

The boy is surprised, but does not understand.

Then the father explains: "People call this ECHO, but really it is LIFE. It gives you back everything you say or do. Our life is simply a reflection of our actions. If you want more love in the world, create more love in your heart. If you want more competence in your team, improve your competence. This relationship applies to everything, in all aspects of life; life will give you back everything you have give to it."

YOUR LIFE IS NOT A COINCIDENCE. IT'S A REFLECTION OF YOU!

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Joy

I saw rain drops on my window,
Joy is like the rain.
Laughter runs across my pane,
Slips away and comes again.
Joy is like the rain.

I saw clouds upon a mountain,
Joy is like a cloud.
Sometimes silver, sometimes gray,
Always sun not far away.

Joy is like a cloud.

I saw Christ in wind and thunder,
Joy is tried by storm.
Christ asleep within my boat,
Whipped by wind, yet still afloat,
Joy is tried by storm.

I saw rain drops on a river,
Joy is like the rain,
Bit by bit the river grows,
’til all at once it overflows.
Joy is like the rain.

By: Sr. Miriam Therese Winter, 1966

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Men are naturally happier than women!

Men Are Just Happier People! What do you expect from such simple creatures?!

• Your last name stays put.
• The garage is all yours.
• Wedding plans take care of themselves.
• Chocolate is just another snack.
• You can be President.
• You can never be pregnant.
• You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park.
• You can wear NO shirt to a water park.
• Car mechanics tell you the truth.
• The world is your urinal.
• You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just too icky.
• You don't have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt.
• Same work, more pay.
• Wrinkles add character.
• Wedding dress $5000; tux rental-$100.
• People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them.
• New shoes don't cut, blister, or mangle your feet.
• One mood all the time.
• Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat.
• You know stuff about tanks.
• A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase.
• You can open all your own jars.
• You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness.
• If someone forgets to invite you, he or she can still be your friend.
• Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack.
• Three pairs of shoes are more than enough.
• You almost never have strap problems in public.
• You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes.
• Everything on your face stays its original color.
• The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades.
• You only have to shave your face and neck.
• You can play with toys all your life.
• One wallet and one pair of shoes -- one color for all seasons.
• You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look.
• You can 'do' your nails with a pocket knife.
• You have freedom of choice concerning growing a moustache.
• You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives on December 24 in 25 minutes.

No wonder men are happier!!

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

The mousetrap

Disclaimer - This isn't original - it's making the email rounds - but it contains a good message.

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. What food might this contain, he wondered? He was devastated to discover that it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse shouted out the warning: "There's a mousetrap in the house! There's a mousetrap in the house!" The chicken clucked and scratched, then said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There's a mousetrap in the house! There's a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There's a mousetrap in the house! There's a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Gee, I'm sorry, Mr. Mouse, but it's no skin off my nose."

So the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone.

That very night, a sound was heard throughout the housel It sounded like a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she failed to see that it was a venomous snake whose tail had been caught in the trap. The snake bit the farmer's wife.

The farmer rushed her to the hospital for treatment, and after returning, she developed a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But despite the chicken soup, the woman's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.

But the farmer's wife did not get better. She died. So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.

So the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and you're tempted to think it doesn't concern you, remember - when one of us is threatened, we all are at risk.

The moral of the story: Each of us is a vital thread in another person's tapestry, and our lives are woven together for a reason. We must keep an eye out for one another and offer encouragement and help in all things.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Restoring a reputation: can it be done?

At the recent meeting of the U.S. Bishop's Conference, Cardinal Francis George spoke some powerful words:

If there is a loosening of our relationship between ourselves and those whom Christ has given us to govern in love, it is for us to reach out and re-establish connections necessary for all to remain in communion....

Our pastoral concern for ecclesial unity does not diminish our awareness of our own mistakes and sins. There are some who would like to trap the Church in historical events of ages long past and there are others who would keep the bishops permanently imprisoned in the clerical sexual abuse scandal of recent years. The proper response to a crisis of governance, however, is not no governance but effective governance.

Loss of trust, we know, weakens relationships and will continue to affect our ministry, even though clerical ranks have been purged of priests and bishops known to have abused children and the entire Church has taken unprecedented means to protect children and to reach out to vicitms.

In any case, the sinfulness of churchmen can not be allowed to discredit the truth of Catholic teaching or to destroy the relationships that create ecclesial communion.

As I read these words, I thought back to wise words from my father when I was young. He warned me that I must take care to protect my reputation, because once tarnished, it takes many years to overcome a bad one.

But on behalf of my church, I felt discouraged. The clerical sexual abuse scandal is far, far too recent to fade from our memory, of course, (and it should not) but there are many who continue to rehash Middle Ages abuses that led to the religious revolt of the 16th century.

And so I ask you: is it possible for the Church's reputation to be restored? As laity, is there something we can do to help with this process? Is it possible to defend our Church without being defensive (or, worse, offensive)?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

Wise advice from St. Clement

Brothers, we should be humble in mind, putting aside all arrogance, pride and foolish anger. Rather, we should act in accordance with the Scriptures, as the Holy Spirit says: The wise man must not glory in his wisdom nor the strong man in his strength nor the rich man in his riches. Rather, let him who glories glory in the Lord by seeking Him and doing what is right and just.
 

Recall especially what the Lord Jesus said when He taught gentleness and forbearance. Be merciful, He said, so that you may have mercy shown to you. Forgive, so that you may be forgiven. As you treat others, so you will be treated. As you give, so you will receive. As you judge, so you will be judged. As you are kind to others, so you will be treated kindly. The measure of your giving will be the measure of your receiving.

Let these commandments and precepts strengthen us to live in humble obedience to His sacred words.

St. Clement

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. The winners’ names will be posted on January 20, 2010.

New photo caption contest

Please suggest a creative caption for this photo using McLinky below.

Winners will be announced in two weeks. (I'll be out of the bloggosphere for a few days, although I've scheduled posts to continue in my absence.)

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And here are the winners for last week's contest:

Be joyful!

Have you ever noticed how popular literature sometimes portrays Christians as glum, humorless people? Unfortunately, I've met some Christians like that, and I can't understand why that would be.

As Christians, we have much to be thankful for. The God we love is the all-powerful Creator of the universe, yet he took on human form. He understands our weaknesses - not because he succumbed to them, but because he was tempted just as we are, and yet did not sin. Rather than being angry with us for our failure, he showed his great compassion in allowing himself to be crucified to secure our redemption.

What's not to love about a God like that?!?

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1:3-9

We have ample reason for joy!

Anyone truly in touch with God is joyful. When you're deadly serious, you're probably seriously dead.

- Fr. James Martin, S.J.

Three simple rules

The biggest mistake that most of us make about God, the one that most consistently undermines the peace of our soul, is the idea that God demands a lot of us, more than a fragile being like ourselves could ever give.

Such a God is frightening.

But God in reality is content with the little we can give, because God knows -- and accepts -- the little that we have. We need to do just three things:

Do the best we can to find and honor God in everything we do.

Do whatever-- however little-- we can to live this way.

Let God do the rest.

If we follow these simple rules, we will possess God. And possessing God we will not be disturbed, we will not be anxious, for we will have no need to fear a God who never asks of us more than we can give.

– St. Francis de Sales

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. It’s the last one for 2009!

New Years Resolutions

Resolution
1993: I will read at least 20 good books a year.
1994: I will read at least 10 books a year.
1995: I will read 5 books a year.
1996: I will finish The Pelican Brief
1997: I will read some articles in the newspaper this year.
1998: I will read at least one article this year.
1999: I will try and finish the comics section this year.

Resolution
1993: I will get my weight down below 180.
1994: I will watch my calories until I get below 190.
1995: I will follow my new diet religiously until I get below 200.
1996: I will try to develop a realistic attitude about my weight.
1997: I will work out 5 days a week.
1998: I will work out 3 days a week.
1999: I will try to drive past a gym at least once a week.

Resolution
1993: I will not spend my money frivolously.
1994: I will pay off my bank loan promptly.
1995: I will pay off my bank loans promptly.
1996: I will begin making a strong effort to be out of debt by 1999.
1997: I will be totally out of debt by 2000.
1998: I will try to pay off the debt interest by 2000.
1999: I will try to be out of the country by 2000.

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Please visit Elizabeth Esther’s “Saturday Evening Blog Post”.

Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. It’s the last one for 2009!

I Stand by the Door

I stand by the door.
I neither go too far in, nor stay too far out,
The door is the most important door in the world—
It is the door through which people walk when they find God.
There's no use my going way inside, and staying there,
When so many are still outside and they, as much as I,
Crave to know where the door is.
And all that so many ever find
Is only the wall where a door ought to be.
They creep along the wall like blind people,
With outstretched, groping hands.
Feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door,
Yet they never find it ...
So I stand by the door.

The most tremendous thing in the world
Is for people to find that door—the door to God.
The most important thing any person can do
Is to take hold of one of those blind, groping hands,
And put it on the latch—the latch that only clicks
And opens to the person's own touch.
People die outside that door, as starving beggars die
On cold nights in cruel cities in the dead of winter—
Die for want of what is within their grasp.
They live, on the other side of it—live because they have not found it.
Nothing else matters compared to helping them find it,
And open it, and walk in, and find Him ...
So I stand by the door.

Go in, great saints, go all the way in—
Go way down into the cavernous cellars,
And way up into the spacious attics—
It is a vast roomy house, this house where God is.
Go into the deepest of hidden casements,
Of withdrawal, of silence, of sainthood.
Some must inhabit those inner rooms.
And know the depths and heights of God,
And call outside to the rest of us how wonderful it is.
Sometimes I take a deeper look in,
Sometimes venture in a little farther;
But my place seems closer to the opening ...
So I stand by the door.

There is another reason why I stand there.
Some people get part way in and become afraid
Lest God and the zeal of His house devour them
For God is so very great, and asks all of us.
And these people feel a cosmic claustrophobia,
And want to get out. "Let me out!" they cry,
And the people way inside only terrify, them more.
Somebody must be by the door to tell them that they are spoiled
For the old life, they have seen too much:
Once taste God, and nothing but God will do any more.
Somebody must be watching for the frightened
Who seek to sneak out just where they came in,
To tell them how much better it is inside.
The people too far in do not see how near these are
To leaving—preoccupied with the wonder of it all.
Somebody must watch for those who have entered the door,
But would like to run away. So for them, too,
I stand by the door.

I admire the people who go way in.
But I wish they would not forget how it was
Before they got in. Then they would be able to help
The people who have not, yet even found the door,
Or the people who want to run away again from God,
You can go in too deeply, and stay in too long,
And forget the people outside the door.
As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place,
Near enough to God to hear Him, and know He is there,
But not so far from people as not to hear them,
And remember they are there, too.
Where? Outside the door—
Thousands of them, millions of them.
But—more important for me—
One of them, two of them, ten of them,
Whose hands I am intended to put on the latch.
So I shall stand by the door and wait
For those who seek it.
"I had rather be a door-keeper ..."
So I stand by the door.

- Reverend Sam Shoemaker,
one of the spiritual leaders
who helped draft the 12 Steps of A.A.

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Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. It’s the last one for 2009!

Welcome to 2010!

What are the most popular New Years resolutions? According to this site, they are:

• Getting into Shape
• Getting More Organized
• Giving up Smoking / Drinking
• Getting / Changing a Job
• Keeping a Check on Expenses & Pay Down Debt
• Buying a House / Renovate / Relocate
• Finding a Mate
• Learning Something New
• Enjoy More and Travel More
• Spend More Time with Family
• Working on a Hobby
• Helping Others / Doing Service to the Society

It’s interesting to me that out of the 12 most popular resolutions, the majority of them benefit one person: the ever-popular “number one”. Few of them benefit others directly, and none of them address our relationship with God.

It’s all too easy to become self-absorbed… After all, I’m the person I spend the most time with. But it’s not the key to happiness. I think we need to direct our attention elsewhere to live lives that are truly fulfilled.

How do we go about that?

Back in March, I posted something called Just For Today. It contains a lot of wisdom, and is worth the time to read. But I’d like to take one of its suggestions and make it my resolution for 2010:

“Just for today… I will do somebody a good turn, and not get found out; if anybody knows of it, it will not count.”

Imagine if all of us made it our goal to do something good for someone each day. And by “not getting found out”, we avoid the temptation of doing it for the recognition or praise of others.

How about you? Do you have a resolution you'd like to share? If not, would you like to join me in an "underground campaign of kindness"?

Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest, found here. It’s the last one for 2009!