I just realized that I have neglected to post my weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletters here on my blog in addition to sending them out as a weekly email. (Duh!)
My Newsletter is designed to inspire, encourage and challenge people to strive to live lives of holiness in the midst of the challenges, joys, and struggles of daily life.
I will try to rectify my oversight going forward, but in the interim, please enjoy my latest newsletter that I sent out this week.
God bless!
Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #19
Greetings, my Fellow Pilgrims!
Food for the Head
How well have you embarked upon the journey of being a Christian? Is it taking the whole of you, brains and all? This week, reflect about what parts of yourself might need to be “sharpened” or educated, and then make a resolution to start sharpening or educating those parts.
Food for the Heart
“When you pray, you only have to ask for two things: You should ask for the light to see the will of God, and you have to ask for the courage to be able to do the will of God.”— Venerable Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz
“Jesus changes everything. Just like when a young man meets the woman he is going to marry, or when a couple has their first child—everything changes. The Messiah, the King, the Lord, has arrived, and things cannot be the same any more. If we set out on a serious life with Jesus, we can’t expect our lives to look the same as before. If we try to hold on to our old lives, habits, plans, social activities, and schedules, our relationship with Him will weaken. Only a whole new way of life will have enough room for Jesus.” —School of Love Reflection
There’s an old saying, “out with the old; in with the new.” What old things do we still need to get rid of in order to live and love as Jesus asks of us?
This week, make a resolution to make at least one change in your life to try to make your daily life better reflect the life that Jesus desires for you.
Am I willing to to do whatever it takes to become a saint?
Am I dying to myself? Or am I motivated by what others think of me? Am I spending more time on getting things done or planning a weekend getaway than I am in focusing on spending time with the person in my life who needs my time and attention? Or am I motivated by comfort? To have what I want, when I want it?
Or are you making the small sacrifices that will bear fruit? Like taking the time to do the extra chore to make your spouses’ day a little easier, taking the time to knock on your son or daughter’s bedroom door to ask about her day? Or spending time in the grocery store line to engage with the cashier? Did you hold the door at the bank for that lady running to get out of the pouring rain?
I implore you to do whatever it takes to be Jesus to others and by your own growth in holiness, you help others become more holy and able to bear good fruit, too. Don’t get distracted by all the “stuff” surrounding you, or the things “to do”, or how you may feel at that moment. Set aside all those things that you do not like, do not choose, and can not change and and die to yourself little by little each day.
Do whatever it takes.
So we can tell the Master of Death, NOT TODAY.
God bless each one of you, and I look forward to seeing you on the Way soon!
All the best,
Christina
@SayYestoHoliness
PS–THANK YOU for your continued prayers for my mom”s recovery, but I also ask for your prayers this next week especially for my husband and youngest son, Sean, as they will take the point for my mom’s care as I travel to the Voice and Vision National Summit on Youth and Young Adults being held at Franciscan University in Steubenville, OH, July 31-Aug 2.
PPS—Also if you are finding this newsletter to be of help to you, PLEASE share it with a friend! (Nothing better than helping a friend on their journey to holiness!)
And then if this has been shared with you and you want to sign up to receive it directly to your own inbox, just go to the www.sayyestoholiness.com website, or click on the Newsletter signup link here.
