A Good Shepherd Will Lay Down His Life for His Sheep

Prayer/Prayer Requests

Prayer.

That very intimate and special gift of yourself that you can offer for the good of someone else.

When I really need someone to pray for me, I will ask my priests. Not to say that I won’t be asking *everyone*, but I will specifically ask my priests to pray for me.

Why is this? I ask myself.

Perhaps it’s because I expect that they will “get it” more than the average person. That they will truly understand the gift of prayer and the import of this communication with our Lord. That they will not pray in a careless manner, but pour themselves into it sincerely.

Perhaps because of their ordination. That extra mark on their soul. That special conformity to Christ. The way a miracle happens in their hands (at least) once a day. Perhaps I have some expectation that because of this their prayers are heard (or at least heeded) louder than someone who is not a priest.

But, perhaps most of all, it is because of an image lodged in my mind. Of what they look like when they pray for me:

And of course, they do this for hours at a time. Wearing a man-shaped depression into the floor.

So, if you ever wonder why Father is busy, where his time goes, or why his back hurts … question answered. He’s been praying for me! (And probably you, too!)

Because a good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. Or at least lays down. 😉

The First Day of Advent!

Advent, Prayer/Prayer Requests

Happy Advent!

It feels as if this season just snuck up on me! To be honest, I am not fully prepared for Advent yet. I haven’t found my Advent wreath from last year, although I didn’t have dinner yet and I did light a purple candle tonight. I hope that “counts.” 🙂

I did put up parts of my Nativity to get ready:

Mary and Joseph are starting their long trek from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
dscn4778

Meanwhile, in Bethlehem, the manger and the sheep are waiting for their arrival:
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A new tradition that I am starting is what I call the “Advent Tree of Prayers.” I didn’t know that there already was something called an Advent Tree, otherwise known as a Jesse Tree, before I named it. On my tree, I intend to place prayer intentions each day of Advent, and pray for those people and intentions throughout the season. To make my “tree,” I cut down a branch from a pine tree in my yard.

And here is my first intention of the season!
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More time in prayer, reading Scripture and participating in the sacraments are also on my agenda for this season.

What are your plans for Advent? Also, if you have any intentions for which you would like me to pray, please let me know! 🙂

Why the Wedding Ring is Worn on the Fourth Finger

Neat Things I Didn't Author
Why Wedding Ring on Fourth Finger?

The thumb represents your parents.
The index finger represents your siblings.
The middle finger represents yourself.
The ring finger represents your spouse.
The little finger/pinky represents your children.

Hold your hands together like the picture. Join your middle fingers back-to-back, and the remaining fingers tip-to-tip. Now, try to separate your thumbs. They will separate because your parents are not destined to live with you forever. Rejoin your thumbs and separate your index fingers. They will separate because your siblings will have their own families and lead their own lives. Rejoin your index fingers and separate your little fingers/pinkies. They will separate because your children will grow up, get married, and settle down. Rejoin your little fingers/pinkies and try to separate your ring finger. They will not be able to separate because your spouse is meant to be with you throughout your entire life, through thick and thin.

(Re-posted from a friend’s Facebook page).

Question of the Day

Question of the Day

What would it have been like when the apostles first celebrated the Eucharist?

It seems that Peter would be the one to lead. Can you imagine, though, going to your friends, “Hey guys, He said, ‘Do this,’ so why don’t we give it a go?” And then trying to figure out precisely what it is that you were to be doing, with everyone watching? Even if you remembered everything with perfect clarity, to ask yourself if this is what He meant? Would James and John be asking to be the celebrant for the next day?

I don’t think they would have celebrated Mass while the Risen Lord was with them, but what about the 10 days until Pentecost? Or did they have to wait until the coming of the Holy Spirit? I’d think it would have to be after Pentecost. Because 1) it’s the calling down of the Holy Spirit which transforms the gifts and 2) if they partook of the Eucharist, presumably they wouldn’t have been hiding scared in the Upper Room at Pentecost, but would have been able to draw upon His strength.

So, if they waited until Pentecost, what did they do on that Sunday in between?

How the Navy Taught Me to be a Better Catholic

Jennspeak
Navy

One of the first things you learn when you are in training to be a Reactor Operator is Basic Electricity and Electronics, or B-double-E. A solid foundation for the rest that you will learn in order to be successful in your job. In our training program, we have to go over a vast amount of material in a relatively short time. It is much faster-paced and dense than most college curricula. Because of this, there is not enough time to explain the origin of all of the theories and formulas which we employ. To try and diffuse our persistent, “But why?” questions, Chief instituted this simple practice:

The “I Believe” Button

So, there would be concepts that he would introduce, saying, “This is the way it is. You’re going to have to trust me and hit your ‘I Believe’ button, so we can continue.”

In a way, the Church is full of opportunities for us to hit our “I Believe” buttons. The very nature of the Church herself is a mystery. God is a mystery. Sacraments are a mystery. Faith is a mystery. We can understand these things to a degree, but never in totality, due to the infinite nature of God.

Because I have been conditioned by my military training to take some things on faith, I am better disposed to submitting my intellect and my will to the teaching of the Magisterium on matters of faith and morals.

I know that it’s possible to not know exactly how everything works, but trust that I will have enough knowledge to get the job done (or in the case of the Church, be provided with all the knowledge necessary for my salvation and my mission to evangelize others).

It is also a reminder to me to be humble, for there are things which I don’t know, and there are things I will never completely understand and that’s okay. My worth and dignity aren’t based on the knowledge filling my brain, or the sharpness of my intellect, but rather the way I live my life according to the faith.

I am glad that I have had this idea presented to me, so that when confronted with a difficulty, instead of allowing it to present a question in my faith because I don’t have an answer, I can hit my “I Believe” button and be strengthened in my faith. Because I trust in the Holy Spirit which guides the Church according to His Truth.

Worse Than the Hippo…

Holidays, Humor of the Day, Tales of My Amazing Priests, , , ,

Okay, sometimes I stumble across things which are just not right, but which are exceedingly funny. In the spirit of the Halloween holiday, I will share:

A while back, one of my priests asked me to pray for a shepherd’s heart for him, because he said that he sometimes felt like the wolf wanting to devour the flock.

Later, we edited this to a hippo because I have a fear of dogs. (Even though hippos are like *the* most vicious mammal ever…)

Well, someone, inspired by Jurassic Park no doubt, came up with one even worse.

The Velocipastor!

Happy Halloween!

Because Prayer is Important

Prayer/Prayer Requests, ,
praying man

Since I have a long commute, I have a long time to think about things in the morning. This morning, intercessory prayer was on my mind. Specifically, I had asked a friend of mine to pray for a different friend of mine and was thinking about this.

See, I ask this particular friend of mine to pray for others on a fairly regular basis. And, when I have a intention that really needs prayer, I always ask this particular friend.

He happens to be a priest, but this is not why I ask him to pray for others.

I’m sure he gets many prayer requests due to his line of work, but I go to him for who he is. Of course, this gets a bit complicated because ordination changes you, and you are ontologically conformed to Christ, so being a priest *is* a part of what it means to be him in a way that my job is not and will never be a part of who I am.

What I mean, then, is that I go to him because I recognize him to be a man of integrity. And I don’t just mean that he does what he says he will do (although this is part of it), but an all-encompassing integrity that colors everything.

So, when I ask him to pray and he says he will, I know that he isn’t praying in an empty fashion, but is putting something of himself into the effort. Which is how we are all supposed to pray, right?

Prayer is an encounter with God. So it really shouldn’t be undertaken lightly. Happily, joyfully, frequently — of course! But with gravity, reverence and sincerity, also. In a way, prayer is an offering of myself to God. Hopefully, I would do this to benefit others much more than I do so to benefit myself.

And because prayer is an encounter with our Lord, the God who made us, and because it necessarily involves all of me (and not some sort of superficiality), prayer is at once incredibly important and the best gift you could possibly give another person.

So, I do not take this lightly. If you ask me to pray for you, I will do so with as much integrity as I can. And if I ask you to pray for something or someone for me, it is because I trust you and believe you to be a person of integrity.

And I don’t ask lightly, because I know of what I am asking of you.

With all my heart, Thank You and God Bless!

Some Things Shouldn’t Be Sung About in a Trivial Manner

Pop Culture

I admit it, my stereocilia dance to pagan music. If purgatory is the place where God pries our fingers from the sin we are still clinging to at the time of our death, then my iPod is surely to be found in the palm of my hand.

That being the case, I quite often run into morally objectionable material. I shouldn’t be surprised by anything anymore at this point. However, one song is making me wonder, “What were they thinking?!”

It’s called “Pumped Up Kicks” and is an infectious bit of bubble gum pop. The lyrics are simple and easy to remember and sing, the beat is catchy and makes you want to dance (or at least tap your feet, if you aren’t the dancing type)…

But the content of the lyrics is shocking.

Not that they are talking about sex, drugs or any of the other stuff that we are used to being assaulted by in secular media.

No, that would be too … common.

This song seems to be at least trivializing and at worst glorifying … events such as Columbine or Virginia Tech! What?! No way! You’d better believe it. I’m not going to repeat the lyrics here, but you can look them up on your own and check it out. It’s pretty obvious.

And this song is mainstream. They even played it between bands at the Enrique Iglesias/Pitbull concert.

Free speech is one thing, but shouldn’t we be responsible for what it is that we are saying publicly?

Sometimes It’s the Smallest Things

Tales of My Amazing Priests, ,

..that can really make your morning. Like this morning, after Mass, Fr. Anonymous was walking out with me and said, “You need to get a coat.”

It’s definitely not summer any more, but it wasn’t that bad outside. A little damp, perhaps. I only had on a thin shirt and had my arms crossed in front of me. However, this is a normal posture for me, so I replied, “Oh, I’ll walk like this in 100 degree weather.” He responded, “Still. Get a coat!”

🙂 Ah, the caring between friends. There is nothing like it.

Thanks be to God!

The Lipstick Paradox

Girl Talk, ,

Today, I decided to put my hair in pigtails and wear makeup. 🙂 I am rather fond of this lipstick as it lasts all days with only minor touch-ups needed, even through meals.

However, on the way home, I had some time to really think about this product. Visually, it looks great. Deep color and tons of shine. But what is the purpose of lipstick? Like most beauty products, it’s purpose is to make the wearer more attractive, right?

What happens if it is successful? What happens if you actually attract a man and he wants to kiss you? Here, the product fails. The base coat is quite sticky. You definitely don’t want to be kissing that. The top coat isn’t any better, as it is so goopy, I’d think that the guy would be totally turned-off by it.

So, really it’s a lipstick that you wear when you don’t anticipate actually kissing anyone. 🙂

A flirt’s lipstick.

No wonder I was drawn to it. 😉