Lent and The Sacred Heart

At the beginning of Lent I was determined and gung ho about everythig I was going to do and not do.

I was doing well until life set it and I got off track. At the end of the day when I would lay in bed I realized I was too busy and I did not pray that day, I fell short on my diet restrictions, and my mind and heart were not focused on Lent.

This lasted for about a week. My husband and I briefly talked about it this past Sunday and once again I was determined to give my all.

This past Sunday night my husband and I were relaxing and watching tv. We turned on EWTN and listened to Archbishop Timothy Dolan. He was talking about the exact thing I had been going through that week. He told a story of when he was in school and a nun, who was his teacher, gave some great advice which included The Sacred Heart. My ears perked up.

I have always had a special pull towards The Sacred Heart. The Sacred Heart calms me, helps me in some way.

His teacher told him that we must try to do our best during lent when it comes to fasting, almsgiving, and prayer, but the least you can do is say these three prayers...

When you awake say, Sacred Heart of Jesus, all for you.

During the day when temptations, worry, and stress want to knock you off track say, Sacred Heart of Jesus, I put my trust in you.

Before going to sleep say, Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on me a sinner.

The Archbishop went on to explain that we are like Peter walking on the water to Jesus. If we focus on Him we will succeed. When we take our eyes away and concern ourselves with the waves of life, we will sink.

I felt this was a immediate answer to my prayer for help that Sunday night, and I am grateful for it.

I am going to try my best to move onward and to keep my eyes focused on The Sacred Heart.

I wish you all a blessed and meaningful Lent.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, all for you

Here Ya Go Kid

I love when prayers are answered! God has consistently answered my prayers during my life and sometimes I don't know it until I reflect back and see them answered.

I do become excited when I ask God for something and he drops it right on my lap, like He is saying, "Here ya go kid."

My family and I attended my first Tridentine Mass this past Sunday. All I can say is wow! The first thought that came to mind was, and they changed this Mass why? I do love the Mass we have now and I can always go to a Latin Mass when I want to, but this style of Mass really reached me.

This is where the answering of prayers comes in. This may sound silly because there are more important things to be praying for and I do pray for those things too, but I wanted to get out and visit the old churches of Detroit, go to more Latin Masses, be apart of it all.

Yesterday I found out that a home school group is going to Mass and getting a tour at a beautiful old church downtown and the kids and I were invited! Yay, but I don't really drive and can get lost going around the block. So I prayed that I would have the courage to get out there and just do it. If I got lost, I got lost. Well, my brother tells me that he has a GPS laying around that I can have! God is good!

Like I said this may sound silly, but if you knew me, you would know that me driving downtown alone is a feat. Not only has an opportunity to visit the church come up, but I now have a device that will keep me from freaking out.

I have been praying about Home school as well. The usual, asking for strength and courage. I also threw in that it would be great if I could meet more Catholic families, for encouragement, friendship, and just to be able to talk to people with the same ideas. Lo and behold I was invited to a group at a local parish for young Catholic families. We had our first outing and many more are planned. I am doing a happy dance!

Now I am waiting on the strength and courage to home school I have a feeling that prayer will be answered as I go along. That one is not as simple as a GPS. That prayer will take some work on my part.

We will see how my ride Downtown goes. I don't think asking St. Christopher for help would hurt any.

Peace

Martha or Mary?

One of my favorite bloggers Cathy at From the field of Blue Children has given me some thoughts about Lent.

Cathy's post Thanks is all about how little things like giving thanks to the Lord can mean so much.

After reading this post I started thinking about Jesus and when he went to the house of Mary and Martha. Martha kept busy cleaning, preparing food, and making the house perfect for her Lord. Mary sat at Jesus' feet and just wanted to be with him.

I am a lot like Martha. My family says Grace before every meal. Everyone sits at the table hands folded and gives thanks. I on the other hand am running around getting drinks, cleaning up messes, dishing out food while I am saying Grace.

While at Church or praying at home I always have my next task in the back of my mind. What do I have to do next, what do the kids need, what did my husband ask me to do?

I believe that Martha was doing what she thought was best to show Jesus how important he was. I think I can do that as well in my daily tasks but sometimes it is good to be Mary,to forget everything and put all of our attention on the Lord. Even if that means a quick little thank you to God or to others as Cathy mentioned in her post.

To be honest I think I will always be more like Martha, thinking about and praising God while my hands are busy, but I hope to let the quiet actions of Mary in as well.

Body Mind and Soul

Three days ago I started exercising, eating foods that are good for my body and have used prayer as my focus. I am happy to announce I have lost three pound, and the feeling of wellness is starting to occur

I want to be healthy mind, body and soul, these are not quick easy fixes, but nothing easy has ever worked for me in the long run. If I change the outside but neglect the inside I will never be whole.

A friend of mine has a great blog about weight loss, but it is more than that. It is about real people dealing with food, dieting, body image and spirituality. The blog is called In God’s Image. The writers on the blog have inspired me to take my whole being along on my spiritual journey through this life.

With God as my focus anything can be accomplished and for all the right reasons.