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“Love cannot remain by itself — it has no meaning. Love has to be put into action and that action is service.”

Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Happy Ash Wednesday! ♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥

It seems perfect that Ash Wednesday – a day that marks the start of Lent and our 40-day journey of spiritual preparation and self-examination leading up to the Easter celebration – should fall this year on Valentine’s Day –  a day associated with several early Christian martyrs named Valentine and recognized as a time for celebrating love and friendship.

Lent is certainly a time for abstinence, self-reflection, and penance. But Lent is also a time to listen more closely for Jesus and to trust in His loving call to follow Him. ♥

Luke’s Gospel recounts the story of Jesus calling Simon Peter as His disciple:

“One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around Him and listening to the Word of God, He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then He sat down and taught the people from the boat.

“When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’

“Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’

“When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

“When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

“Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.’ So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed Him.” Luke 5: 1-11

I can totally relate to Peter’s concern that his sins are far too great for Jesus. I can also totally relate to Jesus telling Peter not to be afraid and to believe in how much He loves him.

The love Jesus has for all of us is on full display within Luke’s story. Make no doubt about it – Jesus is telling us to stop sinning. But Jesus is also asking us to not be afraid to start loving Him – and each other! He is asking each one of us to follow Him, to cast our nets deeply into life’s ocean, and to draw more souls to Him.

This Lent, may we all embrace more fully Christ’s call to leave behind our sinful ways, and to love more deeply.

And this Valentine’s Day, may we all be assured of how very much Jesus loves us.

Jesus loves you.

He loves you deeply and without end.

God’s love never fails. ♥                                                       

As we enter a new week – and prepare for the beginning of Lent this Wednesday – I encourage all of us to take a few minutes to thank the Lord for all the goodness in our lives. There is so much goodness all around us. Even during the darkest of days, we can find goodness if we look for it.

I would venture to guess that all of us are thinking about some challenge that lies before us this week. Lay that challenge before the Lord, and ask Him to lead you through the challenge. Ask Him to help you turn that challenge into some sort of goodness. Spend time in the silence with Him this week. Think about what enters your heart and mind as you sit silently with Him. God speaks to us when we are still with Him, in the silence.

God wants to lead each of us forward – always. We can accomplish so much with Jesus and through Jesus:

“I can do everything through Him (Christ) who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13

Below are some verses from a beautiful hymn. Carry these words on your hearts this week:

Praise to the Lord¹

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation; O my soul praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation. All you who hear, now to His altar draw near, joining in glad adoration.

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee; Surely His goodness and mercy shall daily attend thee. Ponder anew, what the Almighty can do, who with His love doth befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him! All that hath life and breath come now with praises before Him! Let the Amen sound from His people again, now as we worship before Him.

¹Written by Joachim Neander

This morning, I rose early with the most vivid image in my mind. I had been dreaming. I do not normally recall nor spend much time thinking about my night time dreams! This dream was different. Given my new year’s resolution to draw nearer to Jesus, I will share this story.

I woke up with an image of Michelangelo’s Pietà on my mind – a marble sculpture of the Blessed Mother Mary holding the dead body of her Son, Jesus, after He was taken down from the Cross. In my dream, Michelangelo’s sculpture was painted with vibrant colors. I could see myself kneeling there, before the Pietà. The Blessed Mother was peering down at me intently, as if she were trying to say something.

As I sipped my morning coffee, the image remained on my mind, and slowly I felt a sense of peace settle on my heart. I thought more about the amazing Peace and Love that ultimately triumphed over that terrible event on Golgotha.

I began to think about the brokenness that exists in each one of us – a brokenness that causes indescribable pain at times. We tend to see this brokenness most clearly within our own families. We know each other so well.

We know that God gives us very specific people to love in the world. Jesus describes this in the Gospel of John, in a prayer to the Father:

“I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of this world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they have obeyed Your Word.” John 17: 6

Jesus asks that we follow His example of loving others, as God loves us:

“’As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Now remain in My love. If you obey My commands, you will remain in My Love, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commands and remain in His Love. I have told you this so that My Joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’” John 15: 9-11

Loving others – and in particular, our families – fulfills us. It completes us in ways we cannot imagine.

And yet loving others well requires sacrifice and effort. Love demands that we be willing to put the needs of others above our own. It commands a willingness to listen to and engage with one another – and a willingness to forgive. Love is not always easy. Loving family members, in particular, can be tough. Again, we know each other well.

Love is a choice we make. Before Jesus dies on the Cross, He asks His beloved disciple, John, to watch over His Mother:

“When Jesus saw His Mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His Mother, ‘Dear Woman, here is your son,’ and to the disciple, ‘Here is your Mother.’ From that time on, this disciple [John] took her into his home.” John 19: 26-27

Through this gesture, Jesus confirms that God gives us our families to love – and that we must choose how deeply we love them.

Through my dream, I feel the Blessed Mother was reminding me to love deeply those family members who have been given to me in this world.

Dearest Jesus, help us not to lose hope when we see brokenness in this world. Especially within our families, help us to love deeply, to seek to understand and to forgive, and to turn to You first, when we are angry and hurt. Help us to cherish the families You have given us, and to search for and find the goodness in one another.

These words from St. John of the Cross are compelling:

“In the evening of life, we will be judged on love alone.”

We are in this world to love.

Our desire and commitment to love ultimately defines our happiness on earth, and eternally with the Father. Someday, God will ask each one of us how much we loved others. He will ask us to recall those times when we gave of ourselves beyond what we thought was possible. He will ask about the times we chose to forgive – and not to forgive. God will ask about the times when we chose pride over loving each other.

What will I say to Him?

Nine days into the new year, I have one resolution on my heart – to draw nearer to Jesus. 

One way I plan to do this is by spending more time with Him in the silence.

Lastnight, before I fell asleep, I asked my guardian angel and the Holy Spirit to wake me early in the morning, before my alarm rings – and to get me out of bed. These two things do not always happen in tandem, right?!

As if on cue, at 4:45 a.m., I was awakened by our German Shepherd, who wanted to go outside. The wind was howling as I walked with her through the door and into the morning air. A wintry mix of snow and rain brushed my cheeks. As we made our way across the lawn, I couldn’t help but smile as I realized what had happened – my guardian angel and the Holy Spirit were hard at work, and there was no turning back. I was up and starting my day!

By 5:30 a.m., I was sitting at my table, with coffee in hand. I turned to the Gospel of John, Chapter 20, which details the empty tomb and Jesus’ subsequent appearances to Mary Magdalene and His disciples. It’s quite a scene – filled with two distinct calls to action. First, Jesus does all that He can to help the disciples believe that it is truly Him, risen from the dead. In particular, He shows the disciples the wounds from the crucifixion, on His hands and His side. (John 20: 20).

Second, as He breathes and prays over them, Jesus says these words to them:

“’Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.’” John 20: 22

Later in the chapter, Jesus meets up with Thomas, one of the disciples who doubts that He is risen from the dead. Jesus shows Thomas His wounds and says to him,

“’Stop doubting and believe.’” John 20: 27

Before we can do anything else well, we must first believe.

Jesus speaks so plainly to His disciples – and to all of us today – about how we can remain near to Him:

BELIEVE. FORGIVE.

What would happen if we focused more on Jesus’ gentle commands? What would change for us and for others in this new year?  

I bet if we believed more, we would readily get out of bed, to have time with the Lord in silence and to plan out our days together. We would reprioritize our time and look for more opportunities to genuinely help others. We would have more peace, even when chaos swirls around us. We would turn to Him first, when we are not sure what to do, and He would help us to stay focused on goodness.

I bet if we forgave more, we would more readily see Christ in one another. We would have more patience with each other – and with ourselves. We would certainly be more humble and more aware of the gifts of others around us. We would feel more hopeful and joyful.

We would draw and remain nearer to Jesus.

Jesus continues to call to us in the new year.

BELIEVE. FORGIVE.

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4: 31-32

Jesus is calling to us in the new year:

“’I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.’” John 10:10

I relish the promise of Jesus’ words: I do not want you to have just an ordinary life – I want you to have an extraordinary and abundant life. That is My dream for you, dear ones.

I think about the dreams and longings we hold in our hearts. God has given each one of us every talent and grace we need to bring those dreams to life. These talents and graces are as unique as our dreams.

The longings of our hearts matter – these are the things that make us come alive. These are the gifts of goodness, from God, that we alone can bring to the world. And some day, the dreams we realize will become our legacy.

Will this be the year we make a dream a reality?

I can remember a time when I was wrestling with change. A dear friend with much faith in God told me, “Do what frightens you. Say your prayers, listen for God, and take a chance with Him.”

That is perhaps some of the best advice I have ever received; so I pass these words along to you.

May this be a year of “abundant” living, with Christ and through Christ, for all of us.

Happy New Year!

The following prayer was written by the beloved Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, of Poland:

The Infinite Goodness of God in Sending His Only-Begotten Son

God, You did not destroy man after his fall, but in Your mercy You forgave him, You forgave in a Divine way: that is, not only have You absolved him from guilt, but You have bestowed upon him every grace. Mercy has moved You to deign (or to consider it worthy) to descend among us and lift us up from our misery …

Unfathomable and incomprehensible in Your mercy, for love of us, You take on flesh from the Immaculate Virgin, ever untouched by sin, because You have willed it so from all ages.

The Blessed Virgin, that Snow-White Lily, is first to praise the omnipotence of Your mercy. Her pure heart opens with love for the coming of the Word; she believes the words of God’s messenger and is confirmed in trust.

Heaven is astounded that God has become man, that there is on earth a heart worthy of God Himself. Why is it that You do not unite Yourself with a Seraph, but with a sinner, O Lord? Oh, because, despite the purity of the Virginal womb, this is a mystery of Your mercy.

O Mystery of God’s mercy, O God of compassion, that You have deigned (or considered it worthy) to leave the heavenly throne and to stoop down to our misery, to human weakness, for it is not the angels, but man who needs mercy.

To give praise worthy to the Lord’s mercy, we unite ourselves with Your Immaculate Mother, for then our hymn will be more pleasing to You, because She is chosen from among men and angels.

Through Her, as through a pure crystal, Your mercy was passed on to us. Through Her, man became pleasing to God; through Her, streams of grace flowed down upon us.¹

¹Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul (Massachusetts: Marian Press, 2020), Verses 1745-1746, pgs. 617-619.

This Christmas season, I find myself reflecting even more deeply on the miracle of Jesus’ human birth.

The Lord of Hosts, who keeps company with the Angels, willingly comes to earth to join in the company of sinners. Jesus enters our world as an infant. He is born of a Virgin woman, in a stable, in extreme poverty. His first crib is a manger – literally a trough from which livestock feed. Jesus, who can ask the Father for more than twelve legions (or armies) of Angels (Matthew 26: 53), entrusts Himself to the care of human hands and hearts, becoming completely dependent upon the love of His Mother, Mary, and of His earthly father, Joseph.

Why does Jesus do this?

Do you ever feel concerned that even if you attend church regularly, you will not be able to live a Christian life? Do you worry that you are not worthy of God’s mercy and love, because of past sins?

I worry about these things. ♥ I think it is safe to say that any person who desires to know Jesus more deeply worries about these things.

But especially during the Christmas season, when I worry that my life and faith are not nearly enough for Jesus, I am grateful to gaze upon the baby Jesus in the Nativity. I am instantly assured of how much Jesus loves us. I am reminded that Jesus chooses to live among us – to meet us in the middle of our chaos and sinfulness – because He knows we need His very personal guidance to rise above our shortcomings and to live the life that God dreams for us.

“Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23: 34

Centuries after the Savior’s human birth, the Christmas season is a beautiful reminder of how much Jesus wants to love us, and to be loved by us. Jesus still lives humbly among us so that each of us may have the chance to know Him personally. He teaches us His just Commands so that we may begin to live good and eternal lives right now, here on earth. Jesus desires to tell and show us all these things so that His joy may be in us, and that our joy in Him may be complete. (John 15: 9-11)

Through the humble birth and life of Jesus, we gain a glimpse of how much the Father loves His Only Son, in that Jesus would choose to share that Love with us by dwelling among us – all of us, from the lowly shepherds to the wise Kings.

The Christmas season is a precious reminder that Jesus’ love for each one of us is as strong and true today as it was centuries ago.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13: 8

Come, let us adore Him, oh Song that the Angels sing.

Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming
From tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse’s lineage coming
As men of old have sung.
It came, a flower bright,
Amid the cold of winter
When half-gone was the night.

Isaiah ‘twas foretold it,
The Rose I have in mind:
With Mary we behold it,
The virgin mother kind.
To show God’s love aright
She bore to men a Savior
When half-gone was the night.

This Flower, whose fragrance tender
With sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendor
The darkness everywhere.
True man, yet very God,
From sin and death He saves us
And lightens every load.

“Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming”
German Hymn first appearing in 1599

“There are owls outside!” my husband announced, as he entered the house. He had been out walking with our German Shepherd.

It was early and pitch-black outside. A dense fog hung low and the morning air was still – the fog so thick that we could barely make out the neighbor’s barn light across the field. Without saying much, we grabbed our coffees and went outside to the silence of the front porch.

To share some of my history with owls, we lost my husband’s mother, days before Christmas, five years ago. My mother-in-law loved owls, and we have come to love them too. At the time we lost her, we were living in a heavily wooded neighborhood. A family of Great Horned Owls lived among us there – an amazing gift. At 3 a.m., the morning after we lost her, I was awakened by a Great Horned Owl calling loudly from our roof. This was a common occurrence, to find owls on our rooftop! But on that particular morning, the owl’s call was unusually urgent.

My dog, Grace, and I ran downstairs to our back door, just in time to see a massive owl fly down from the rooftop, swoop low across our deck, and land in the garden at the rear of our yard. The majestic creature sat there, by an angel statuary, intently watching me and Grace. No one moved for some time. And then he spread his wings and flew away into the early morning darkness. At that moment, I knew my mother-in-law was ok. God had swooped down to remind me that Love goes on. I will always remember that morning, and the kindness of His gift to me.

This Christmas season, I have been missing both my mother-in-law and the owls. It’s been some time since I have heard a Great Horned Owl, so my heart was heavy as I settled into a chair on our porch early today.

And then as if on cue, the Great Horned Owls here began to speak. My husband and I could make out two – maybe three – distinct owls. They had a lively conversation that lasted about ten minutes. I kept my eyes fixed on the fog, content to hear them and to know they were near to us, beyond the veil of fog.

So on Christmas Eve morning, as light begins to fill the morning sky, I am assured again that Love goes on. I am reminded that God’s kind of Love brings challenge and change as it compels us to live beyond ourselves. God’s kind of Love asks us over and again to trust in the goodness of the plans He whispers within our hearts, even though we cannot see or touch Him. And I am reminded that always, when we are uncertain or sad, He lovingly sends us visible signs – in any myriad of forms – to confirm that He remains near to us.

We need only to wait for Him in the silence.

What a beautiful and unexpected gift this Christmas Eve morning, to hear the owls singing in the silence.

What a beautiful and unexpected gift, to celebrate once again the birth of Jesus, and God in our midst.

Thank you, dearest Father, for Your most precious and unexpected gift of a Love like none other.

“The Lord, Your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will renew you in His Love; He will exult over you with loud singing.” Zephaniah 3:17