The Powerful Examen Prayer

I’m always surprised by the parallels between our physical and spiritual lives.

With strength training, a workout often agrees with our bodies while we are doing it, but then later that day, or the next day, we realize you did too much or that a particular lift or movement doesn’t agree with our body. That realization and reflection on what we did well and what might need to change moving forward is very important for growth and sustainability in physical training.

In the same way, reflection on how we are doing in our daily relationship with God and with each other is something that requires reflection for growth and sustainability. As it turns out, a couple friends in a discipleship program which I’m a part of shared the role of the examen prayer in reflecting on their daily lives. I wanted to learn more so I’ve been exploring the Ignatius Examen that is part of his Spiritual Exercises (#43) and I have enthusiastically incorporated this method of prayer into my life.

Generally speaking, the Ignatius Examen has five parts which include: gratitude for the blessings of the day, petitioning God for his grace and strength to see where we can do better, reviewing the day through spiritual eyes, asking for forgivingness where needed, and planning for the next day. Examen prayer time typically begins and closes with prayers of your choice. From what I’ve learned, the examen is meant to be brief and simple, but it can often lead us into the deep waters of discernment and growing in love of God and neighbor.

St. Ignatius of Loyola

There is so much to the examen, and I am new to it, but there are two books that I found helpful: Reimagining the Ignition Examen by Mark Thibodeaux, SJ and The Examen Prayer, Ignatian Wisdom for Our Lives Today by Timothy M. Gallager, O.M.V.

As someone who prays mostly in morning, I felt a void in my spiritual life not praying in the evening. Praying an evening examen has become a way to review the day with God to see where he was working and where I was and wasn’t cooperating with his grace. I also sometimes do a mini examen at lunch time or after key events of the day. For me, it’s been 5-15 minutes most days and I look forward to it.

There are times of course when I’ve had a ‘bad day’ where things didn’t go well and I didn’t respond with love — and it can be easy to decide to avoid the examen on those days, so as to not face my failings, but what I’ve found most interesting is that on those ‘bad’ days there are so many blessings, so much to be grateful for that I am actually lifted up by the examen prayer rather than feeling discouraged by my weak responses to the events of the day. Those days often increase my resolve to call on God more the next day (as we know, going it alone never works.)

At the essence of the examen is the daily practice of discernment in our lives. Where is God? Where am I? Am I seeking him, thanking him, responding to his grace throughout the day? Am I allowing him to work through me to others? Where can I do better? What needs to change in my life? How can I see God more fully in my daily adventure with him? What virtues and habits can I grow in to live the next day even better?

I think that is the key point — that through this practice of honestly reviewing the events of the day with God, we begin to respond with more faith, hope, love, wisdom and understanding the next day and the next day — on this journey toward sainthood.

It has been an interesting journey so far. It takes some real effort to make the examen a daily habit, and I can see the challenge of making it sustainable over years, but I also see how active God is in every minute of the day, the gift of his grace that is being poured out, and how he desires that we be more attentive vessels. From Ephesians 2:8, “ For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you, it is the gift of God.”

Our Call to Greatness this Lent

Mediocre is such an odd word. It’s Latin root is ‘medius’ meaning middle and ‘ocris’ which means rugged mountain. So mediocre is being about half way up the mountain. I don’t think any of us want to be mediocre in any area of our lives, but ’mediocre' is a good word for us to consider during this season of Lent in which we are called to go all in with spiritual practices for 40 days.

Spiritual mediocrity can mean something different for each of us. I think that we can agree that we want to keep climbing the mountain, the entire 40 days of Lent, and not be stuck halfway up with habits of prayer, fasting and almsgiving that fizzle, become ho-hum, or are cast aside altogether.

We are all called to greatness. Each. And. Every. One. Of. Us. How we get there is very individual, between each of us and God. It is not something we can do on our own and it often doesn’t feel like the world is helping us much.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said, “The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness.”

The secular world doesn’t encourage the sacrifice and selflessness that we seek during Lent. It is however, the giving more of ourselves that helps us lean into Jesus and his love more deeply, richly and purely.

I want Lent to be meaningful for you and for me. I want to pray more, be faithful to holy and healthy habits that will help me grow closer to Jesus and grow in holiness. Of course, our desire needs to be paired with solid actions that we discern and implement to see real, sustainable changes in our attitudes and actions, to avoid mediocrity.

Journaling is something I have added to my prayer life this Lent, so I can reflect on the Gospel, a saint, or my love (or lack of love) of neighbor. I haven’t journaled for a while, but so far it is revealing a lot about my motivations, where I am weak or strong, and I think this practice will bear good fruit over time.

As we seek to implement Lenten actions that help us rise above mediocrity, the word ‘courageous’ comes to mind. Feeling called to a new spiritual or physical practice this Lent? Do it. Go for it. Be courageous and give your yes to God! 

I’ll close with these encouraging words St. Pope John Paul II, “It is Jesus who stirs in you the desire to do something great with your lives, the will to follow an ideal, the refusal to allow yourselves to be grounded down by mediocrity, the courage to commit yourselves humbly and patiently to improving yourselves and society, making the world more human and more fraternal.”

St. Augustine's New Years' Wisdom

The New Year is always filled with promise. Something shifts in us that makes us want to become more holy and healthy. Maybe its the change of routine during Christmas and New Year, the travel, or our over-indulging in things of the world (like cookies and wine) that make us ready to begin anew in January.

It’s a great to build new habits of exercise and healthier eating patterns, but more importantly, this is an excellent time of year to renew our commitment to prayer, fasting and receiving the sacraments. Developing strong holy habits now can help us have a more holy and healthy Lent (which is just around the corner.)

As it turns out. St. Augustine has some priceless and even humorous words of wisdom about the power of habits and the role of God in our lives. 

He said, “Such is the strength of the burden of habit. Here I have the power to be but do not wish it. There I wish to be but lacks the power. On both grounds, I'm in misery.”

I laugh (and cry) in agreement with him. I want so much to be faithful to holy and healthy habits that will help me grow and to more fully live out God’s mission for me, but I try and fail, try and fail, again and again. Oh misery!

He encourages us. “You aspire to great things? Begin with the little ones.”

Small steps daily, little things with great love, small changes like 10 more minutes of prayer, offering kind words to others, doing a chore without complaint, starting a Holy Hour. A series of small steps can be a gift, a surprise of happy and holy changes that take root and bear fruit in our lives and in the lives of those we love.

St. Augustine said, “For if God is man's chief good, which you cannot deny, it clearly follows, since to seek the chief good is to live well, that to live well is nothing else but to love God with all the heart, with all the soul, with all the mind.”

And so in our steady stream of resolutions, goals and desires for achievement, we are reminded by this dear saint to stay the course, to pray, to listen and rely on God by seeking his will and loving him with all we’ve got.

When the discipline of holy and healthy habits becomes wearisome, we are reminded that what we are trying to do here on earth is filled with temporary toil and that our true destiny is to be with our God one day in heaven. 

St. Augustine said, “When I come to be united to thee with all my being, then there will be no more pain and toil for me, and my life shall be a real life, being wholly filled by thee.”

Just in case we become full of ourselves with all of our trying, controlling and doing to improve conditions for this temporal body, St. Augustine points us to hope in our mighty Lord and the powerful union we have with him as his beloved sons and daughters.

“Now, may our God be our hope. He Who made all things is better than all things. He Who made all beautiful things is more beautiful than all of them. He Who made all mighty things is more mighty than all of them. He Who made all great things is greater than all of them. Learn to love the Creator in His creature, and the maker in what He has made.”

May this new year be a joyful kickstart of holy and healthy habits for you, with our mighty God at the helm, and with a new appreciation of God living (and working) within each of us.

From Within the Familiar

In physical training, there is much to gained by training a limited number of key exercises. I think good coaches don’t seek to entertain, but rather help people learn, grow and progress with a small set of lifts and movements that have the most potential to help them achieve their goals. People like familiarity, and in the familiar, they gain the courage and strength to move to new heights.

I was re-reading the Gospel of Matthew recently, and though I have read and participated in bible studies many times, I am amazed how the familiar words moved my heart in a new way. This time, the familiar became a catalyst for something new.

I love how Matthew describes Jesus and the disciples teaching, healing, praying and responding to the actions of Pharisees and Sadducees. The stories are familiar and comforting, but in this reading, I became almost solely focused on how often Jesus went away to pray alone.

From Matthew 14:23, “And after he dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.”

What does it mean when scripture jumps off the page and into our hearts in a new way? Most of us have been introduced to Lectio Divina in some form — the reading and prayerful reflection of scripture to allow God to work in us, but discerning the meaning in our lives can take time. 

I wanted a quick answer, but instead felt called to go up the mountain to pray. For me this is on our back dock by the pond, or in my favorite chair in the family room, or walking around our yard in the sunshine. Probably much like you, I have lots of ‘mountains’ in which to pray.

In the familiar stories of Matthew, God was trying to teach me something new or to take me to new heights. I began to set aside time to pray, not with my usual routine of Mass readings, the Rosary and Chaplet, but instead being quiet and listening, asking, waiting and allowing God more time and space to work in me.

I asked for a saint to assist me in praying more from the heart and St. John of the Cross turned up; I found this deep and tender prayer from him that revealed more of what I felt God was trying to teach me.

O Blessed Jesus, grant me stillness of soul in Thee. Let Thy mighty calmness reign in me. Rule me, O thou King of gentleness, King of peace. Give me control, control over my words, thoughts and actions. From all irritability, want of meekness, want of gentleness, O dear Lord, deliver me. By thine own deep patience give me patience, stillness of soul in Thee. Make me in this, and in all, more and more like Thee. Amen.

Our amazing God can break through, crack us open, and pull us closer to him through the words of scripture — and in any other way he desires. May we be watchful for these breakthroughs from within the familiar — as the familiar may be just the catalyst that God uses to move us to new heights.

Love of Neighbor

When COVID-19 started, the gym where I teach closed and I began video recording myself and my husband working out in the basement. I also loaned out my equipment so my students could continue their training at home. There were challenges, but we persevered. 

Gyms opened at the end of May and we moved to outdoor classes in the parking lot. New challenges emerged as we had to deal with the heat, wind, rain, humidity and having limited equipment to work with. But we adapted and thankfully we stayed healthy.

Now we are indoors and a whole new set of challenges is upon us with face coverings, social distancing, equipment cleaning, and concern about touching surfaces and equipment.

This experience has reaffirmed for me that the only way to get through change and challenging times is to turn to God in prayer to be filled with his strength. By his grace, and his grace alone, can I be kind, patient and loving to my neighbor. Faith applies 100% to daily life and that is more real to me now than ever.

I see the challenge of loving my neighbor most clearly in my secular activities —  living my faith is hardest in the day-to-day, nitty-gritty details of ordinary life. God sees those times where there is angst in my heart as I discern how to respond to a concern, complaint or a difficulty. I want to be a vessel of his love, I truly do, so I regularly unload on him in prayer to help me to be more loving, patient and kind as we are all adapting to the new norms related to COVID-19.

When I give in to my weaknesses, I am reminded how selfishness brings sorrow, not joy, for us and for others. Our weaknesses are immensely powerful teachers and I have been asking God for the light to see my failures with more patience and gentleness — and with a sense of humor — how can I be so silly to let little things get to me or drive me to annoyance or impatience? Acknowledging our weaknesses, with an ardent desire to learn and grow from them, can set us on the trajectory to be more loving, kind and gentle with ourselves and others.

From 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

This time of living with COVID-19 continues to be a time of learning how to love my neighbor more fully, with the heart of Christ, and with the gentleness of his Blessed Mother. May this scripture encourage us on our journey. From 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.”

Encouragement

Any teacher or coach knows that while we our job is to instruct others, there is also the aspect of encouragement that is an important part of our role.

I teach group strength classes and each student is different in the type of encouragement they need to excel. For example, some need encouraged to try heavier weights and others need to be encouraged to pull back so they don’t overdo it.

Encouragement is part of the instructional process no matter what we are coaching or teaching and it applies to all areas of our lives.

I’ve been thinking about encouragement in spiritual terms lately. One of the primary roles of a Christian is to lead others to Christ. To do that we need to pray and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to encourage people on their journey of growing in relationship with Jesus. 

Much like coaching and teaching in our temporal roles, this encouragement is a very individual process and we are called to simply give what we have been given. Encouraging people with love, being authentic — and following the promptings of the Holy Spirit is what we are asked to do. The rest are up to him.

We can look to Jesus in the Gospels as our model of how to encourage others. Encouragement is rooted in love, forgiveness and being willing to stand up for others and to share the truth. Never has there been a time when our culture needs love and encouragement rooted in faith in God. May our role of encourager foster hope and healing in those who are hurting, angry, and feel misunderstood.

St. Paul said, the second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy, 4:2, “be persistent; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.” He is one of many saints who encourage us to persevere constantly no matter what the circumstances. In fact, the saints are the embodiment of encouragement.

St. Teresa of Avila is one of my favorite saints when it comes to simple, everyday words of encouragement.

She said, “May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.”

She also said, “May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.”

One more beautiful thought from St. Teresa, “May you be content knowing you are a child of God.”

Encouragement. It’s simple, but not easy in a world where we are busy and often too focused on ourselves rather than lifting up others. Telling someone they are a beloved child of God is amazingly encouraging. God loves us and asks only that we pass on his great love. May St. Teresa’s message inspire us to be courageous encouragers in our everyday lives.

“Christ has no body now on earth but yours,
no hands but yours,
no feet but yours,
Yours are the eyes through which to look out
Christ's compassion to the world
Yours are the feet with which he is to go about
doing good;
Yours are the hands with which he is to bless men now.”

Time to Ponder

For people who have a consistent exercise routine, there is sometimes a need for what is called a ‘deload’ week. This is a voluntary break from our regular exercise routine to allow the body and brain to rest, refresh and renew with a set time away from training. Rather than losing their fitness level, this rest helps people come back stronger with a fresh attitude and a rested body to help prevent injury and burnout.

I’ve been looking at our stay-at-home order during COVID recently as a deload time as it is a break from the normal routine of all the things we humans do, such as working, running errands, going to restaurants, volunteering, visiting family and friends, attending Mass, events and so much more.

The Holy Spirit has given me optimism about this deload time and I’m trying to allow the Holy Spirit to guide me in how I use it. Some of the fruits of this forced rest so far for me include learning how to use technology and social media in new ways to work from home and to stay connected with family and friends. I have more time to pray, read and listen to God. I spend more time with my loving husband. I’m learning how to talk on the phone again with family and friends near and far. I have time to cook nice meals, clean the house, listen to music and play outdoors. 

There are times of peace and joy throughout the more unstructured pattern of my day that are unexpected such as ‘attending’ Mass, Adoration and other group prayer events online in different chapels, at different times around the country. I have more time to exercise than ever before. I am also aware of Spring bursting forth in a way that feels hopeful and personal and getting outside is life-giving.

I also think there is a big opportunity here to take advantage of the little crack of open space in our lives for some carefree timelessness. With more time at home, and by moving through daily life at a slower pace, there is the potential to spend time pondering what is going on around us. We have the beautiful example of our Blessed Mother who pondered all things in her heart to encourage us in this practice of spending time in prayerful contemplation amidst the trials and mysteries of our lives.

So rather than choosing to complain, worry, predict, panic, regret or fear, our faith in Jesus Christ calls us to trust in him without reserve as our Blessed Mother did — and to do this we might feel called to spend quiet time pondering the events of our lives and how we are called to respond to them with and through Jesus Christ.

I didn't research the definition of pondering, but my definition would be to think and reflect about an event with a loving countenance, asking God to enlighten me and to help me keep an open heart and mind as I prayerfully seek to learn from the event or experience.

Pondering feels like a deep place of honesty even though it doesn’t always feel comfortable. Pondering can be a time of reflection and discernment, a time of growth in virtue, that when paired with prayer, can be this amazing gift, that when unwrapped, allows us to discover more about ourselves and how we are called to fulfill the mission God’s has for each of us.

Pondering feels like a deep place of honesty even though it doesn’t always feel comfortable. Pondering can be a time of reflection and discernment, a time of growth in virtue, that when paired with prayer, can be this amazing gift, that when unwrapped, allows us to discover more about ourselves and how we are called to fulfill the mission God’s has for each of us.

May we be open to this unusual gift of time to ponder our lives, our mission, our relationships, and the role of Jesus and Mary in our lives. May we also ponder how we can become more fully alive to love and serve others — with the possibility of coming out of this time stronger in the virtues of faith, hope and love. In the words of St. Catherine of Siena, and in the joyful spirit of springtime, “Ponder that fact that God has made you a gardener, to root out vice and to plant virtue.”

Set the World on Fire

I have always loved these words from St. Catherine of Siena, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” We see this on tee shirts, journal covers and I even have it in my email signature.

But what do those words really mean, practically speaking, in our daily lives? I don’t know about you, but I often don’t feel like my ordinary life is setting things on fire.

But then let’s think about starting a fire. We have an old-fashioned wood-burning stove in our kitchen, with no gas starter, so It’s really challenging to get a fire going. We use different types of kindling and patiently feed a few sparks with more wood until it catches on and ignites the bigger logs — which eventually results in a strong blaze … and a nice warm kitchen.

If we look at starting a fire in a spiritual sense —lighting up our souls with prayer, Scripture study, the Sacraments, and acts of charity — over time these habits ignite our hearts with more love for God and neighbor. When the flame of faith is fanned, it catches on to others. The spiritual life takes patience, care and nurturing, like starting a fire; if we don’t stay united to God in this process, the embers of love can quickly fade and die out.

Let’s look at setting the world on fire. Some saints did visibly great things, but most saints are relatively unknown and grew in love (greatness) over the course of a mostly hidden life. They were often of ill health and had to persevere through many obstacles to do God’s will. One thing they had in common was the fire of faith that carried them through their lives and grew into magnificent flames of love by the time they were called to their eternal home.

It seems that setting the world on fire is the result of patiently seeking to be the person God created us to be with our unique mission and circumstances — and persevering through all of it with great love. So that fire is love … and if it is real, the flame of love will grow and ignite others.

A friend of mine died of cancer recently and I had the privilege of visiting her in Hospice before she passed into eternal life. God has given me the grace to be comfortable in a Hospice environment and I love being with the sick and dying near the end of their lives as God is so present there. 

My friend told me she loved God and she was grateful to have received Last Rites. Her family was by her side through the entire cancer journey and they had done everything that was medically possible. She said she was at peace, grateful for the loving support of family, friends, and her trusted medical team and she was ready to go home to God.

She was setting the world on fire for all who were touched by her illness and passing. By God’s grace, she was able to do, what we all hope we can do in death … trust in God and be at peace in his embrace as we return home. Her faithful witness was a form of evangelization on her death bed. I believe that the impact of her joyful witness will stay with me forever. 

The fire of her love for God was ablaze in her heart, and since our time together, I have shared her story with many people, and now I am sharing it with you. So the fire of her faith continues to burn bright and set others aflame even though she isn’t physically here anymore — all praise and glory to God!

So I think my takeaway is this … setting the world on fire is about being true to what God is individually calling us to do — right here and right now — sharing whatever gifts we have with as much love as we can muster. The example of St. Therese’s ‘Little Way’ challenges us to love the people God places in our ordinary lives and this may be exactly what God is calling us to do to set the world on fire.

Our fire may not be fully visible to anyone except God (many did not truly know St. Therese’s holiness until well after her death), but that doesn’t matter. God sees and loves even a tiny flicker, a small burning ember, and the more we lean on him, the more he fans the flames of love in our hearts. Be who you were meant to be and you will set the world on fire.

The Power of the One-to-One Encounter

In my group strength classes, every now and then, students are busy traveling or working and only one person shows up for class. That student doesn’t usually like it at first because all of the attention is focused on her. However, it usually ends up being a great session as we talk, laugh and deepen our friendship and understanding of each other.

It got me thinking about the power of the one-to-one encounter. Having time with that one person is special and is important in building a more authentic and caring relationship. 

How often did Jesus, in the midst of a crowd, have a personal and life-changing encounter one-to-one … like the woman who came up behind Jesus to touch his cloak to be healed, and Zacchaeus the tax collector who climbed the Sycamore tree to have a better view of Jesus, and Nicodemus the Pharisee who came at night to question Jesus about his teachings.

In our daily lives, we are called to a one-to-one encounter with God in the Sacraments and through personal prayer. By giving time and attention to our relationship with God, we receive his grace so we can be Jesus to others. I know that when I’m not attentive to my prayer life, it’s harder to be loving and patient with people amidst the challenges of everyday life.

One of my favorite saint quotes is from St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, “Don’t wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” Her entire ministry was working one-to-one with the dying and the sick, strengthened by her one-to-one time with God in daily Mass and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Her ministry, and that of the Sisters of Charity around the world, is about the power of being 100% present to that one soul in need. 

I’m blessed to take communion to a hospital and there have been times when only one person has received — for various reasons. At first I was discouraged when people declined the Eucharist, but over time, God has shown me that I’m simply to be his hands and feet and to trust the results to him. He is teaching me to pray more fervently for the sick, to be a joyful and authentic witness to him, and to savor each one-to-one encounter. Even if no one receives, I trust that God will bring about a greater good than I could never imagine.

I was sharing my one-to-one thoughts with a friend recently and she said that in our world of ‘how many Likes on Facebook’ it can be terribly easy to overlook the power of one. Never fear, there might be only one Like, but thanks to the algorithm of Facebook, thousands of people may have seen the post and who knows how it may have impacted that one person!

I remember a priest telling me that he didn’t get caught up in whether people liked or disliked his homily message. He said that he wrote his homilies in prayer, and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and that perhaps the message was meant for just one person; in writing his homilies, he simply desired to be an obedient servant.

So let us try to do what God is calling us to do, trust the results to him, and remember that touching one soul always matters. From 1 Thessalonians 5:11, “Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, as indeed you do.”

Endurance

Endurance in sport is cultivated with patience and time, training and conditioning, under the guidance of a good coach.

In the same way, we seek to build endurance in our spiritual lives with Jesus guiding us. Our journey to spiritual maturity is a life-long process of growing in virtue. This quest for holiness requires patience and time, training and conditioning with an unwavering commitment to a sacramental life, prayer, study and service to others. It isn’t easy, but there is no greater goal for the Christian.

Psalm 136 reminds us that God is Endurance as his love and mercy endures forever. He never gives up on us and desires only to bring us closer to him.

Praise the LORD, for he is good;
for his mercy endures forever;
Praise the God of gods;
for his mercy endures forever;
Praise the Lord of lords;
for his mercy endures forever.

We see in the lives of the saints these amazing people who endured temptations, difficulties and trials of every kind. We could use the words ‘saint’ and ‘endurance’ as synonyms since there every saint ended their lives with an enduring love of God and neighbor.

St. Gregory of Nyssa said of endurance, “He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows.”

When we reflect on St. Gregory’s words, we see that spiritual endurance is just that — going from beginning to beginning — every day, every situation, every conversation, every interaction, literally every moment of every year is a new beginning for us to do what we know we should do — love more fully to become the person God desires us to be on our journey from this world to the next.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque said, “Let us begin in earnest to work out our salvation, for no one will do it for us, since even He Himself, who made us without ourselves, will not save us without ourselves.”

So we work side-by-side with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, with the loving intercession of Our Lady, to grow in holiness, to love more perfectly, to forgive ourselves and others, and to share the truth of the Gospel each as we are called.

Just as endurance in sport requires both mental and physical work, there is great work for us to do in the spiritual life. Let us see each day is an opportunity to grow closer to God as we train to have more faith, hope and love. May each day be filled with with training in virtue so that we persevere with love when the going gets tough.

As athletes depend on their coaches, peers, tools and training methods, we too, in the spiritual life, have help  … from the Holy Trinity, our sisters and brothers in Christ, the great Communion of Saints and all that Holy Mother Church gives us so that we can grow and endure with love.

We can be inspired by the subject of endurance in Scripture. From Deuteronomy 31, “Be strong and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.”

We do not run this race alone. God is with us to aid us in this pursuit.

Let us pray: Father God, give us endurance in the spiritual life and help us to trust in the strong and mighty shield of your love which endures forever, Amen.

St. Peter the Rock

It is both holy and healthy to reflect on the New Testament readings from daily Mass this Easter season as the apostles are on fire with the Holy Spirit and begin to teach, preach and evangelize freely.

From Acts of the Apostles 4:13-14, “Observing the boldness of Peter and John and perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men, the leaders, elders, and scribes were amazed, and they recognized them as the companions of Jesus.”

Peter went from denying Christ to preaching boldly in the name of Jesus at risk of imprisonment and even death. His courageous words challenge us to live and share our faith with others in our daily lives.

It can be difficult to know how to specifically do this in our lives today, but if we stay committed to a daily prayer life and receive the Sacraments as frequently as possible, we might be surprised how God’s grace will work in us to inspire, form, transform, and enliven us with the Holy Spirit to be more fully alive in our faith — and willing to bravely share the Gospel message in the ordinary circumstances of our lives.

I’d like to use the Knights of Columbus as an example. Their humble service in parishes around the world is a beautiful example of being St. Peter-like by serving in many ways in their families, parishes, communities as a result of their relationship with Jesus. 

We are all called to serve and evangelize in different ways — most often the ways are quiet and behind-the-scenes, such as cleaning up after a Fish Fry, adoring our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, making dinner for a sick friend, and even allowing someone to go ahead of us while we are driving, but Jesus sees all and loves all that we do — even the tiny seeds of desire to serve that haven’t sprouted yet do not go unnoticed by our Lord.

It is my hope and prayer that as we move through this Easter season we do so with an uncommon courage and glorious hope in the power of our relationship with Jesus Christ.

St. Charles Borromeo said, “God wishes us not to rest upon anything but His infinite goodness; do not let us expect anything, hope anything, or desire anything but from Him, and let us put our trust and confidence in Him alone.”

Let us spend time in silence to get to know Jesus even better and to open our hearts to what he is asking of us. It matters not whether our time with God involves a walk in nature, listening to spiritual music, reflecting on sacred art, reading scripture, or just sitting quietly in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.

May we take to heart these words from St. Peter the Rock in 1 Peter 3-5: 

“By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and to an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

Conversion

I’ve been helping people get physically stronger for nearly eight years. In that time, I’ve gone through a lot of changes in how I teach others and how I train and care for my own body. I’ve watched my students learn and grow. I’ve seen my training program, change, evolve and it continues to do so.

Change is inevitable in all areas of our lives, and it can be good, but sometimes life hits us hard with any number of challenges in family, work and life. On top of that, we are aging and dealing with forms of physical suffering, such as injury, illness and infirmity. In our physical difficulties, we learn about the spiritual power of suffering with love and perseverance—and by God’s grace, we have an opportunity to grow spiritually and to develop more compassion for the hardships faced by others.

Spiritual conversion is similar in that changes occur in us that can be both uplifting and challenging. We may experience many conversions in our lifetime as God seeks to bring us closer to him to help us grow in holiness. Changes, both big in small, by the grace of God, can lift us up, lead us into darkness, move us into new ways of serving, living and doing for God and for others. The changes might surprise us, even frighten us a little, and we may, believe it or not, even have an occasional longing for some sins that we’ve left behind.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1989: “The first work of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conversion, effecting justification in accordance with Jesus' proclamation at the beginning of the Gospel: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Moved by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, thus accepting forgiveness and righteousness from on high.”

Sometimes conversion, or this movement away from sin and toward God, means we change how we use our resources, our time, our energy, and even the people we spend our time with. We might be called to simplify, to give more, to lead or to follow in new ways, to pray more, or to just be more. God works with us so personally that the path of conversion is not predictable nor is it ever universal.

I look to the saints for wisdom on this journey of conversion which we pray continues throughout our lives here on earth. The saints are regular people who had many points of conversion in their lives and grew to great holiness by their gradual, yet eventual submission to God’s will.

Pope Saint John Paul II encourages us. “I plead with you! Never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, never become discouraged. Be not afraid.”

The fruit of conversion can in fact, be the gift of journeying more fully with and for others. Other times, it can be more of a dark and lonely road like St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta experienced when God didn’t feel near to her — and so we rely on faith to keep moving forward without the clear light of His presence guiding us.

In our physical journey, as in our spiritual journey, there will be changes, conversions, movements, big and small, good and not so good — I pray that we listen to our bodies and respond with prudent care — and more importantly, listen to God, accept and cooperate with his grace with a steely focus on the ultimate goal of eternal life.

St. Padre Pio knows well the struggles we face. “The life of a Christian is nothing but a perpetual struggle against self; there is no flowering of the soul to the heart of its perfection except at the price of pain.”

Our Lady of Good Help National Shrine - A Place of Hope and Healing

Lori originally wrote this post for the Columbus Catholic Women’s Conference blog, January, 2019.

I was very excited to recently learn about the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help located in Champion, Wisconsin, 17 miles north of Green Bay.

This is the site where our Our Holy Mother appeared to a young Belgian-born woman, Sister Adele Brise, 160 years ago in 1859. The apparition was formally approved on December 8, 2010, by Bishop David Ricken, becoming the first Marian apparition approved by the Catholic Church in the United States. In 2016, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) officially designated these grounds as a National Shrine.

The National Shrine is open every day of the year, and welcomed 160,000 visitors last year, and continues to welcome pilgrims from around the world, including Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Much like the apparition sites of Lourdes, Fatima and Guadalupe, the National Shrine is the site of numerous miracles and graces to this day.

National Shrine Marketing and Development Director Corrie Campbell said that when people visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, they experience an “overwhelming peace, healing grace and a heaven-like feeling that can often be quite emotional. Many carry this in their hearts for their entire lifetime. Many young people come and experience the joy of hope and healing in this holy place which is so needed in our times.”

Adele Brise

The story of Our Lady of Good Help began in the Fall of 1859 when Our Holy Mother appeared three times to Sister Adele Brise and asked her to teach the children in the area about their Catholic faith.

Our Holy Mother had already appeared twice to Adele between two trees – one a maple, the other hemlock – along a rural trail. When she appeared for the third and final time, young Adele asked, “What more can I do, dear Lady?” Mary’s direction was simple: “Gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation.”

“But how shall I teach them who know so little myself?” Adele asked.

Mary replied, “Teach them their catechism, how to sign themselves with the sign of the Cross, and how to approach the sacraments; that is what I wish you to do. Go and fear nothing. I will help you.” Adele devoted the rest of her life to spreading Mary’s good news.

The Great Fire

In 1871, there was a great fire in the area and the families that Adele visited gathered at the site of Our Holy Mother’s visits to pray the Rosary for the safety of their community. The fire raged and burned everything around them, but the fire stopped exactly at the line of Shrine location.

The National Shrine Today

Today the National Shrine enjoys the help of 200 volunteers—most of whom had their lives touched by Our Lady of Good Help in some way as many are the great grandchildren of those who experienced Our Holy Mother’s intercession during the great fire.

The National Shrine offers Masses and the Sacrament of Reconciliation and hosts many special events during the year. They recently opened a new prayer and event center. In remembrance of Our Holy Mother’s care during the fire, they host an overnight rosary event on October 8 and 9 with a procession and an an all-night prayer vigil in which the Rosary is prayed every hour, on the hour.

From October 1-9, we are all encouraged to pray the National Novena to Our Lady of Good Help for her intercession. The National Shrine also sponsors a 21-mile walking pilgrimage in the area. Please visit their event calendar for more information.

May we all prayerfully consider making a pilgrimage to this holy and wooded location in Wisconsin to grow closer to Jesus through Our Holy Mother. Our Lady of Good Help, pray for us!

Astonishment

We see repeatedly in Scripture that people were astonished, amazed and surprised at the teachings of Jesus. 

From Luke 5:26, “Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, “We have seen incredible things today.” 

They hung on his every word, they followed him wherever he traveled, and they were in awe of his teaching, preaching, healing and forgiveness of sins. Jesus barely had time to eat or sleep, but he prayed to be filled with the Father’s love to continue to minister to the people then—and to you and me now.

Astonishment can be described as a feeling of great surprise, wonder and awe and it defined Christ’s public ministry.

We also see that whenever Jesus astonished the crowd, it angered the Pharisees who wanted to arrest him, yet they were afraid of the reaction of the astonished crowd.

Do we experience astonishment at the words of Jesus? Are we surprised when his words reveal to us exactly what we need to do to respond to a problem or to a person, or to address an area of sin in our lives? Do we give thanks, with a sense of awe, when he heals one of his beloved children physically or spiritually? Is his endless mercy something we reflect on in prayer with wonder and joy?

St. Augustine said, ”In my deepest wound I saw your glory, and it dazzled me."  

I don’t want to miss moments of astonishment, and in fact, I want to meditate on, celebrate and share these moments with others as Jesus calls us to evangelize and encourage each other on our spiritual journey. 

I pray to grow in humility and childlikeness so that moments of wonder and dazzlement change me and make me more like him. We pray for him to pour his grace into us as grace can open the door for us to make real changes in our lives.

Recently, I felt called to go to Confession. I wasn’t sure how to make that happen with a full schedule of family, work and ministry commitments. So I prayed for Jesus to make it possible whenever the time was right.

About a week later, I attended daily Mass at another parish and I was astonished when the pastor announced that the Sacrament of Reconciliation would be offered afterward—as Reconciliation isn’t typically offered after daily Mass at this parish. Jesus led me to that place, at that time, and worked out the details so that I could receive this vital sacrament.

Astonishment can take many forms and I love hearing stories about how Jesus works in peoples’ lives in astonishing ways, both in suffering and in joy, in little ways and in big ways too.

I pray that we cultivate a childlike openness so that we see and appreciate Jesus guiding and protecting us in our everyday affairs. May our hearts be open to an astonishing journey with Jesus.

Holy Friendships

This Scripture passage really hit home recently, from Matthew 12:47-49, “Someone told him, “your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wishing to speak with you.” But he said in reply to the one who told him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers? And stretching out his hand toward his disciples he said, “Here are my mother and brothers.”

This Scripture can be a confusing because we love our mother and our brothers. However, recently I gained new clarity when I had the opportunity to visit St. Louis to meet new people, speak and lead SoulCore Rosary prayer and exercise at a parish.

A sister in Christ read a blog post that I’d written for soulcore.com and she contacted me to see if I could speak at her parish. The Holy Spirit worked out the details, and I had a wonderful visit to share, learn and grow with some marvelously faithful sisters in Christ.

Studies show that they key to a long and happy life, well into our senior years, is strong connections with others. When you love Jesus, and are united to him in Baptism, and you have that in common with someone, I have found that friendship comes easy. You have a bond that is not of this world, and God willing, can help prepare our hearts for the next. That is what I experienced with my new friends in St. Louis.

It is both holy and healthy to build authentic and loving connections with our brothers and sisters in Christ. While we are called to love and serve all of God’s children, but those who are on the journey with us can play a special role as they challenge, support and intercede for us.

Holy friendships can inspire us to be more faithful to the Sacraments, to nurture an active prayer life, study Scripture and to become more bold about sharing our faith with others.

The disciples traveled in pairs and small groups—and for good reason; we need each other! We are called to love God and love neighbor and we can get all caught up in ourselves if we try to do it alone. God works through each of us differently, and in many cases, speaks to us through those friends with which we have a spiritual connection.

When I have a life challenge, I have no qualms about asking a friend to pray for me for strength. Intercessory prayer is powerful!

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori said, “How pleasing to Him it will be if you sometimes forget yourself and speak to Him of His own glory, of the miseries of others, especially those who mourn in sorrow; of the souls in purgatory, His spouses, who long to behold Him in Heaven; and of poor sinners who live deprived of His grace.”

When people express concern about having a personal relationship with the Blessed Mother, I explain that seeking Our Lady’s intercession is just like asking a friend to pray for you. Our Lady loves each of us and wants nothing more than to grow in friendship with us to continually move us closer to her Son and his will for us.

We have to make some effort to foster holy friendships. When you ask the Holy Spirit to bring holy friends into your life, you might be surprised what happens next. That was my prayer a few months ago and I see the Lord placing new people in my life who are striving to grow in holiness and who desire to be a saint—and they inspire me.

May these words from St. John Vianney challenge us to persevere in our quest to build holy and healthy friendships: “O my dear parishioners, let us endeavor to get to heaven! There we shall see God! How happy we will feel! If the parish is converted we shall go in procession with the parish priest at the head … we must get to heaven!”

The Present Moment

There is nothing like the present moment. It’s right here, right now, and it demands our full attention. I first discovered the spiritual importance of living in the present moment when my husband and I moved to New Hampshire as a young, newly-married couple. 

We registered at the Catholic Church in Hampstead, New Hampshire and I’ll never forget attending our first social event at St. Ann because we met a very wise priest. He asked us about our lives and we shared all of our plans and goals to start a family, expand our careers and much more.

I will never forget his reply to us. He said these two little words, “Just this.” He told us to focus on the here and now, the present moment, whatever was happening right here before us in our lives and to let the future unfold with full trust in God’s plans for us. 

I admit that sometimes it’s easy to do, and sometimes I look ahead or look back too much, so I am renewing my commitment to “Just this.”

As you and I seek to become more holy and healthy, these two little words, “Just this” can guide us to move throughout our day, week, month, year and entire life, with the Holy Spirit taking the lead with our hearts, minds and bodies focused on the present moment.

When we replay past events in our minds, with worry or regret, we miss the joys and sorrows of the present moment. We can’t change the past anyway, but in our humanness we go there, or perhaps we’re led there by the evil one, and what good does that do for our soul?

If we look ahead to the future, the present moment is sidelined, in fact maligned. Yes, some planning takes place in our lives, but when our future plans overwhelm the present moment, and fill us with unrest and worry, we are not truly lifting our hearts to God and living these words, “Jesus, I trust in you.”

We see Jesus teaching us to embrace the present moment in Scripture often. From Matthew 6:34, “Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil.”

I have discovered that one of the reasons people enjoy exercise is because it forces them to be in the present moment. The do-lists, family concerns, and work struggles are not on one’s mind when they are lifting a weight overhead or swinging a kettle bell. That is part of the joy of exercise—being fully present to something that helps us feel better and become physically stronger for the mission God has set before us.

The saints advise us to live in the present moment with trust and a spirit of childlikeness. St. Faustina of Kowalska gave us this beautiful Prayer for the Present Moment which is at my bedside to pray daily:

Oh  My God,
When I look into the future, I am frightened,
But why plunge into the future?
Only the present moment is precious to me.
As the future may never enter my soul at all.

It is no longer in my power to change, correct or add to the past;
For neither sages nor prophets could do that.
And so what the past has embraced I must entrust to God.

O present moment, you belong to me, whole and entire.
I desire to use you as best I can.
And although I am weak and small,
You grant me the grace of Your omnipotence.

And so, trusting in Your mercy,
I walk through life like a little child,
Offering You each day this heart
Burning with love for Your greater Glory.
~St. Faustina’s Diary: Divine Mercy in My Soul, Notebook 1 (1)

I pray that we all discover the treasure of the present moment and that it brings us true joy and peace.

Simplifying our Lives for Jesus

Trying to live a more simple life can help us to become more holy and healthy. What is a simple life? That will vary for you and for me. Here are some thoughts for us to consider.

A good place to start is looking at areas of our lives where there are excesses. I’m thinking about my kitchen pantry right now that has built up with too many items; it’s time to clean it out and give food to my local food pantry. Too much stuff weighs us down. In the example of my pantry, I can’t find things quickly and easily, so it takes extra time to prepare a meal. I also end up buying duplicate items because I can’t see anything in the mess. Simplifying helps me be more efficient at home and giving food away helps others.

Another area of our lives to consider is our activity level. Do we have too much going on, feel stressed, too busy, rushed or worn out? These are signs that we might be doing too much and not doing God’s will. Taking this to prayer can help us sort out what God is calling us to do—and then we can reduce or eliminate activities that are not using our gifts and talents to be balanced and peaceful servants for Christ.

We can also look at how we spend our time. Time management can be critical in simplifying our lives. For example, we can examine how much time we surf the Internet, watch television or pursue a hobby. If we are not finding time to pray or keep up with work and family responsibilities, we might need to adjust activities that are not essential to our vocation. 

Simplifying our lives doesn’t necessarily mean we are doing less. Before making changes, we should pray and ask the Holy Spirit to help us order our lives. It might mean adding in more activity that is aligned with God’s will for us and removing those that don’t contribute to our desire to be holy and healthy. Maybe we need to add more silence to our lives, commit to a regular Holy Hour to talk to Jesus, exercise for more mental clarity, read a good book, or reconnect with a friend.

Simplicity can make more room for God to work in us and help us be better to serve the people we love—and this can help us grow in holiness. 

“Order your soul. Reduce your wants.”―Saint Augustine

The Holy Spirit has showed me that I need to give more time to nurturing friendships. I’m trying to organize my time so that I’m more available to meet friends in person, talk on the phone and hand-write notes. Simplifying my exercise routine and spending less time online is helping me do this.

When our lives are too busy, too complex, with too much stuff, activity, or noise, we can feel lost, lonely, out-of-control, and out-of-touch with God and his mission for us.

Think about a saint you know and love. Look at that saint’s life and you will see a spirit of simplicity. One thing common among the saints is their desire to love and serve God and to do his will—and they make a lot of changes in their lives to do this. Ask your special saint to intercede for you as you seek to simplify your life to be more free to respond to God’s call to you.

The more you have, the more you are occupied. The less you have, the more free you are.” ―St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

The Slippery Slope of Sloth

Have you ever thought about the sin of sloth? It’s number four on the list of the Seven Deadly Sins. I haven’t thought about it either, until recently, when I would catch myself having difficulty attending to both temporal and spiritual responsibilities.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church #2094 states that “spiritual sloth goes so far as to refuse the joy that comes from God, and to be repelled by divine goodness.” Wow, that’s more serious than I thought!

“Because of laziness, the rafters sag, when hands are slack, the house leaks.” Ecclesiastes 10:18

I was looking at sloth as laziness in my temporal activities, but more importantly, I was reminded how much sloth leads us away from God. If we ignore our day-to-day responsibilities, we can fall prey to the evil one who would like us to think we don’t have what it takes to serve God either. Sloth can lead us into a lonely pit of selfishness and despair.

St. Thomas Aquinas said, “Sloth is sluggishness of the mind which neglects to begin good. it is evil in its effect, if it so oppresses man as to draw him away entirely from good deeds.”

It’s not holy or healthy to be slothful. So how do we get off the slippery slope of sloth?

We are nearing the end of Lent, so hopefully we’ve been trying to be faithful to prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Acts of love, where we put the needs of others first, can strengthen us. Reading Holy Scripture fortifies us. Frequenting Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation help lead us away from sin and toward God.

In my own life, I see the lure of sloth in unstructured time, so I often ask the Holy Spirit to order my day and set my priorities. Isn’t it amazing how much we can accomplish when we ask the Holy Spirit to guide us? Haven’t you been amazed at what you can do when you seek God’s will in your daily affairs… especially when you think you don’t have the time, energy or resources you need?

“I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13.

Some closing thoughts for staving off sloth:

First we can pray and ask God for everything, anything, big and small. Don’t limit God. He knows our needs better than we do and He delights in helping us with even our smallest corporal concerns.

Second, we can look deeper to see what is tempting us to sloth. There may be an issue behind our sloth that needs to be taken to prayer or addressed with a spiritual director or a faithful friend.

Finally, sloth is a sin against God and it will harm us spiritually, especially if we are not fulfilling the duties of our vocation. We have to fight like St. Paul to be Christ-like, put on the armor of God, and run to finish the race … because God is counting on us.

St. Catherine of Siena

Have you ever had a saint burst into your life and you’re not sure why? St. Catherine of Siena has been pursuing me recently, so I became inspired to look more closely at her life and teachings.

I am a convert who has been Catholic for 32 years and I continue to be amazed at the lives of the saints and how we can develop such personal relationships with them. The saints watch over us and assist us when we call on them. They are our heavenly friends who teach us and intercede for us at different times in our lives and stand along side us on our march toward heaven.

St. Catherine of Siena is a doctor of the Church, canonized in 1461, and she is a patroness of Italy and Europe. She was a third order Dominican who lived to the age of 33. She was a spiritual guide to many, and in the words of Pope Benedict, “guided  people from every walk of life: nobles and politicians, artists and ordinary people, consecrated men and women and religious, including Pope Gregory XI who was living at Avignon in that period and whom she energetically and effectively urged to return to Rome.”

She had a profound “mystical marriage” to Christ whom she loved with intimate faithfulness. She is one of a small group of saints who Pope Benedict identified as having an extraordinary devotion to the Holy Eucharist.

I feel connected to St. Catherine in many ways; I admire her directness and the poignant simplicity in her words inspired by her love of Christ and her understanding of the spiritual life. “If you are what you should be, you will set the world on fire.”

It’s funny how sentiments from centuries ago resonate in our times. “Proclaim the truth and do not be silent through fear.” 

Her words inspire me to deeper reflection with Lectio Divina.“All the way to heaven is heaven, because Jesus said, ‘I am the way.’”

Just as our friendships with certain people seem to start almost naturally, and can feel like we’ve known them forever, our friendships with saints can happen in the same way. 

During this month of All Saints, St. Catherine nudged me along as she became our Walking with Purpose table name. I discovered that was the saint in a small image that I had in my kitchen (who I mistakenly thought was St. Teresa of Avila until a friend cleared that up!) St. Catherine’s reflections jumped off the page as I was preparing SoulCore Rosary meditations for All Souls Day. And I am blessed to lead SoulCore at, where else but, St. Catharine of Siena Catholic Church.

I continue to pray for this amazing saint’s intercession to help me stay centered on Christ, to be courageous in speaking the truth and guiding others to Christ with humility. May we all open our  hearts to this saint, friend and “coach” as we seek to discern and live out the mission Christ has in mind for each of us.

Changes in Our Spiritual Lives

I’m writing to you from the dock on our backyard pond and I am contemplating change. While it feels like a mid summer day, it is fall, and change is in the air. Leaves are landing all around me and the wind and sun’s warmth on my face is intoxicating. This spot in nature is where I pray the Rosary, talk to Mary and Jesus, wait and listen for God to prepare me for the day.

As I reflect on the beauty of God’s creation, I feel a rush of uncertainty in the change of seasons. While I tell my friends that I like change, I know that with change comes new responsibilities. With the advent of fall, the fireplace needs cleaned, firewood ordered and stacked and gardens and porches cleaned and prepared for winter.

Isn’t it the same in our spiritual lives? Change can be seasonal, constant, comfortable, unpredictable or a little of all of these. As we head into the winter months, we might have a tinge of excitement about change and our plan to start a new spiritual book, begin a bible study or make a retreat.

It’s funny … at the gym, my students tell me one of the things they like most about how we exercise is that it’s never the same. It may feel that way, but there is a consistent structure, and while the tools and movements vary, the change has a pattern that is familiar and comfortable to them … so there isn’t as much change as they think.

Similarly our spiritual lives may change in the way we feel called pray, but we have the sturdy anchor of the Holy Mass, Eucharistic Adoration and perhaps a calling to pray the prayers of the Catholic Church, such as the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet. The Church and our parishes give us a sturdy structure, along with other constantly changing ways to grow in our faith no matter where we are on our spiritual journey. 

When I contemplate change, I think of the Blessed Mother and her preparation for the birth of her Son who would change the world forever. Change must have been on her mind on her long journey to visit her cousin Elizabeth who was also expecting a son, John the Baptist. She must of known that her life would be one of constant change, but with the sturdy structure of uniting her will to the will of the Father. May her example inspire us to stay strong in our faith amidst the changes in our lives.

Let us pray: Blessed Mother, you give us the perfect example of embracing change according to God’s will for your life. We pray to imitate your surrender to God’s plan for our lives with joy, trust, and patient perseverance. Amen.