Happy Feast of All Saints! I so enjoy this time of the Church’s Liturgical year when our focus is upon the why we strive to live lives like Jesus. Lives full of truth, goodness and beauty. And what’s that “why”? That everything we do in this life–all our thoughts, words and actions–are to be focused upon seeking to become holier. Seeking to be more like Christ with each passing day so that we will be prepared to spend eternity with Him when our time on this earth passes. Yet the journey towards holiness is challenging. We have to strive for […]
holiness
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Hey, Everyone! I am SO excited to announce that the Say Yes to Holiness podcast has launched! With all of the new integrative apps out there, doing things like podcasts is even easier for non-tech folks like myself, so no more excuses! Check out the result and would love to know what you think! https://anchor.fm/sayyestoholiness/episodes/Say-Yes-to-Holiness-Inaugural-Podcast-e7mfa6
October 4th marks the Memorial of St Francis of Assisi in the liturgical year of the Roman Catholic Church. On that day, we remember St Francis’ example of holiness as he struggled to become a sign and witness of Christ’s love and mercy in the world. When most people think about St Francis, they usually will consider his poverty of life, or his love and appreciation for the grandeur and beauty of creation. Or perhaps they know of Francis’ efforts to bring attention to Christ’s humility in the Incarnation which resulted in the now familiar Nativity scene, or in his […]
One of the most difficult challenges in the spiritual life is to continuously press ahead on the journey. To have an attitude similar to that expressed by Admiral David Farragut when he ordered, “Damn the torpedos, full speed ahead!” in the face of apparent disaster. Because making progress in the spiritual life is warfare. And the consequences of this war in which we are engaged has the highest of stakes–eternal life or death. However, there are two BIG challenges to forging ahead: 1)our human tendency to seek situations where we feel “comfortable,” and 2) to fail to use the weapons […]
For your inspiration and encouragement on the journey towards holiness, here is… Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #25 Greetings, my Fellow Pilgrims on the Way! Food for the Head“There are some who desire knowledge merely for its own sake; and that is shameful curiosity. And there are others who desire to know, in order that they may themselves be known; and that is vanity, disgraceful too. Others again, desire knowledge in order to acquire money or preferment by it; that too is a discreditable quest. But there are also some who desire knowledge, that they may build up the souls […]
For your inspiration and encouragement on the journey towards holiness, here is… Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #24 Greetings, my Fellow Pilgrims on the Way! Food for the Head“We can’t have full knowledge all at once. We must start by believing; then afterwards we may be led on to master the evidence for ourselves.” — St. Thomas Aquinas The spiritual life is the journey of a lifetime. It takes days and months and years of striving to grow in knowledge and understanding, but it begins with a simple act of faith. It is only after we profess our belief that Jesus then works […]
I was recently reading an article by Anthony Moore about the 5 Things You Must Sacrifice To Have A Better Future, and it got me to thinking. What are the things that we need to give up in order to have the life of purpose, peace, and abundance that God desires for us? After some prayer and contemplation, here’s my list of the 5 Things we should consider giving up if we really want to experience purpose, peace and abundance in our lives. 1) Comparing your Spiritual Life to Other People’s Spiritual Lives Probably one of the BIGGEST obstacles to […]
The phrase “Waiting is a kind of suffering” leapt out to me as I was reading an article by Claire Dwyer recently. This particularly holds true in my life right now as I am accompanying my mom on her journey of recovery from a stroke that she suffered at the end of June. The process of recovery from any kind of major medical event can be challenging and tedious, but it’s the length of time that recovery can take that usually causes us to experience “waiting as suffering.” However, I think that anyone who has lived through a time of […]
For your inspiration and encouragement on the journey towards holiness, here is… Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #23 Greetings, my Fellow Pilgrims on the Way! Food for the Head “Reading the holy Scriptures confers two benefits. It trains the mind to understand them; it turns man’s attention from the follies of the world and leads him to the love of God. Two kinds of study are called for here. We must first learn how the Scriptures are to be understood, and then see how to expound them with profit and in a manner worthy of them . . . No […]
For your inspiration and encouragement on the journey towards holiness… Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #22 Greetings, my Fellow Pilgrims on the Way! Food for the Head “This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections.” -St. Augustine How well do you know yourself? Are you REALLY open to an assessment of your ideas and actions, especially those that pertain to your spiritual practices? Do you seek out the advice of a spiritual mentor or director, or a close friend(s) in order to discover your imperfections? This week, make a commitment to seek out spiritual […]