The birth of our Savior Jesus Christ is profoundly beautiful and filled with hope. As I reflect on this special blessing in my life, I thank God for knowing that nothing is impossible with Him. I continue to pray and experience small miracles for those who God has placed in my heart for prayer.  

Novena Tradition

On December 9th, I started a novena to the Infant Jesus of Prague. A Novena is a special prayer petition that is recited for nine consecutive days. Each day the prayers are different and are concentrated on particular matters. One of the main prayers of this petition is asking God what direction to take with this Blog. I want to continue to be a light for others and to bring the truth of the Gospel to those who are either confused or do not understand who God really is. 

There is a special place in my heart for those who are sitting on the fence about religion. They have one foot in the world and another foot in the murky waters of which Jesus to follow.  Those in the valley of decision will one day become great soldiers in the kingdom of God. ( Joel 3:14) They have learned from life’s experiences and have grown to trust in God. I am a perfect example of this. 

God was always on my radar, but I did not know how to converge my world with His. It took a journey of almost 15 years to make a full circle and finally understand my calling. The gratitude that I have for the Protestant teachings will forever be part of my growth. My path to Catholicism was paved by searching for real truth. This Novena will become a Christmas tradition.

St. Francis of Assisi was the first to introduce the Nativity scene to the world.

St. Francis had a special devotion to the Child Jesus. He was inspired after visiting the Holy Land  and the humble stable, a Bethlehem cave. In the year 1223, with permission from Pope Honorius III  on Christmas Eve, St. Francis set up a manger in the village of Grecio, Italy, with hay and two live  animals. There St. Francis preached about “the Babe of Bethlehem.” St. Francis was so overcome by emotion  that he could not say “Jesus.” So the first Nativity did not have Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, or wise men either, just an ox and an ass.

Silent Night

Joseph Mohr, a Catholic priest from Austria, wrote the lyrics to Silent Night. The choir director of St. Nicholas Church in  Oberndorf, Austria, Franz Xaver Gruber composed the melody. Silent Night was first performed on Christmas Eve in 1818 at St. Nicholas Church.

The Holy Family

The divine providence of God was in perfect order when He picked this family. Mary was visited by the Archangel Gabriel heralding the great news of the upcoming birth of the Christ Child. Mary was engaged to marry Joseph, but when he discovered that she was with child (by the Holy Spirit) Joseph had second thoughts. After an angel appeared to him in a dream, he understood the importance of his role as the holy foster father of Jesus. He was called to protect his family from all harm.

St. Joseph is mentioned in the Bible, but he was never quoted in the Word of God. He became the silent example of holiness. He listened to the messages sent from God through holy angels, and departed to Egypt to save the Christ Child from the hands of King Herod.

Because of Joseph’s obedience,  Jesus’ life was spared from the hands of the evil King Herod. That’s what holy fathers do; they protect their children from all harm. Joseph serves as a role model on how to be a great father. The idea that he was a foster father to the Son of God gives us insight as to how deep the Lord wants fathers to exemplify Joseph’s fatherhood. Not only did he raise Jesus as his own, he handed down his trade as a carpenter to his Son. It is a common misconception that Jesus had brothers and sisters, but in New Testament times close relatives were referred to as brothers and sisters. Mary was set aside to carry the Christ Child in her womb; this was her main purpose in life, and Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, was her only child.

 

St. Anne and St. Joachim 

 

Mary was born to St. Anne and St. Joachim. St. Joachim was a wealthy man who benevolently gave to the work of God. He gave  one-third to the Temple, one-third  to the poor, and kept one-third for St. Anne and himself. They were judged harshly by their Jewish community because they were elderly and they could not bear children. They both fasted and prayed for a child. St. Joachim went to the desert and prayed for 40 days and 40 nights, while his wife fasted and prayed at the temple.

 

An angel appeared to St. Anne first to announce that she would bear a child. St. Joachim experienced an angel apparition around the same time, telling him to go back home to his wife because she was with child. When Mary was three-years-old her life was consecrated  in the temple.

 

Jesus’ Grandparents

 

As parents, St. Anne and St. Joachim made the ultimate sacrifice by consecrating Mary in the temple. They understood that Mary was a special gift from God. Their role as grandparents was to pray for the future of the Mother of God, their daughter Mary. St. Anne must have known that Mary would become the most famous woman in the world. Mothers have a God-given intuition for their children.

 

Mike and I have four grandchildren. Each one is different, and we have learned that we cannot treat them the same. We love them the same, but our involvement as grandparents is to be available to help at any time. I will drop everything when it comes to the needs of our grandchildren. I want to teach our grandchildren to love the Lord and to be an example of serving God. All grandchildren are special because we as grandparents have a great opportunity to witness what we have experienced in life. We have grown from all of our past hurts and pains, so we offer great wisdom.

My Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, may all our Christmas traditions include Jesus.  May we make  room in our heart for the greatest gift of all. Help us to fill the void in our souls, that we may receive the peace that surpasses all understanding. O Come, O Come Emmanuel! Amen.

 

Rejoice

We are in the third week of Advent. If you attended Mass this past Sunday, all the readings were about rejoicing. The second reading was from Philippians 4:4-7.

Guarding Your Heart and Mind

Guarding your heart and mind is difficult, especially at this time of year. We get caught up in the busyness of Christmas and attempt to do too much. This is exactly what happened to me last week. On Thursday Father Leonard, who was celebrating a wedding in Laguna Beach, was our guest. Mike made Father Leonard’s  favorite chili rellenos for dinner. It was such a quick visit that I did not have time to arrange for a Bible study and luncheon. The following morning he concelebrated Mass at our parish, plus it was Mike’s birthday.

Mike

We continued the tradition of celebrating Mike’s birthday at Ruth’s Chris. From the appetizers to the salad, it never disappoints. The best part was sharing it with family and our friends Larry and Helen. We missed Maddie, who was in the middle of finals.

I had no idea that Mike had saved a bottle of a 1990 Far Niente wine. This was a special day because my husband of almost 53 years was celebrating his 75th birthday. At first I was skeptical of how the wine held up for over 34 years but, much to my surprise,  it aged with grace and the oaky flavor was wonderful. The following night I had a dinner to attend at St. Norbert.

St. Norbert

Both my grandson Jacob and I attended the appreciation dinner for volunteers. At first Jacob was reluctant, “Am I going to be the only kid there?” I had no reply. Thankfully there were two other young boys there that Jacob could interact with. Jacob’s art skills came in handy because he won a gift card for his snowman.

The Surprise Party 

Our son Mikos had been planning a surprise party for his wife Jenny for several months. By the grace of God he pulled it off. He stored most of his supplies in our garage but by the time Saturday, the day of the event, arrived he was a wreck. His out-of-town guests arrived in time to save the day because not only did they set up the party, They helped  re-organize the furniture.

Jenny was truly surprised to see her mother, brother and sister-in-law, niece and grand-niece.  We ate, sang and danced the night away.  I did not get to bed until 1:30 a.m.  Mikos, Jenny and her family were all catching flights the following day. Mikos and Jenny were traveling to New York.  Our son asked if we could host a brunch for the Minnesotans.

The Brunch

Mike got up early and said he was going to cook some beans. “No! They won’t be ready on time! Besides we have plenty of food.” It’s a good thing that he didn’t listen to me, because the beans were a hit. We served fresh salsa, guacamole, eggs, chorizo and huevos rancheros. We had enough food left over to pack burritos for their trip. We love Jenny’s family, so it was a pleasure hosting a brunch for them.

Mass

Since we were hosting guests I could not attend our usual  Sunday Mass service. Because I was a walking zombie, I missed the 2:00 p.m., the last Mass at our parish. So Jacob and I attended a 4:30 p.m. Mass at his parish, La Purisima. This parish is much larger than ours, and I was overwhelmed by the sight of all the beautiful flowers for Our Lady of Guadalupe and all the lit Christmas trees. As tired as I was, the peace of God filled my heart with the message of rejoicing, and receiving communion filled me with great adoration. I was refueled to continue my day.

Overeating

This is the time of year that I pack on a few pounds because I do not make time for exercising, and I’m usually eating way too many desserts. Sugar does a number on me and makes me sluggish. My poor, foggy brain sends me messages to stop, but sometimes I’m too tired to receive any brain wave activity. Pray for me and for all of us suffering from brain fog.

Mario Update

Please continue to pray for Mario. He is doing great with the six college courses he is taking. Mario’s grades are five A’s and one B. Please pray that he gets into a program “Firefighters Workshop.” This program trains prisoners in firefighting skills, and it could be an open door for a career when he is released.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, I thank You for Jenny’s wonderful celebration and for my son, who lovingly put the party together. May You grant us all a wonderful Advent as we await the celebration of Your glorious birth. May we all rejoice with the choir of angels in welcoming You into our hearts and homes. Amen.

We are in the second week of Advent.

December 8th

On December 8th Catholics honor our Blessed Mother Mary’s Immaculate Conception. This refers to the Catholic belief that Saint Anne, Mary’s mother, conceived her without the stain of original sin.

The Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

Pope Pius IX formally defined  the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, Ineffabilis Deus, in 1854. In 1858 the Blessed Mother Mary revealed her name to Saint Bernadette, an uneducated, peasant girl by saying, “I am the Immaculate Conception.”

Notre Dame

On December 8th Paris, France will be buzzing. Dignitaries from all over the world will witness the Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Marie Ulrich, consecrate the altar of this grand cathedral. It is by no coincidence that this celebration falls on December 8th. It is the providence of God that this is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Dates and numbers are important in our liturgical calendar.

Holy Number Thirteen

It is not surprising that Satan wants to take over the 13th day of the month. He mimics anything holy, attempting to rob us of our blessings by using the 13th as a cursed number. Those of us who were properly catechized recognize the schemes of the Devil and will not yield to his diabolical antics.

The Blessed Mother Mary appeared to the three shepherd children of Fatima six times between May and October in 1917, always on the 13th day of the month.

Saint John Paul II

On May 13, 1981, while Pope John Paul II was greeting thousands of visitors in St. Peter’s Square, there was an assassination attempt on his life. After over five hours of surgery and the transfusion of six pints of blood, the pope survived. The pontiff credited his survival to Our Lady of Fatima by saying, “One hand fired the bullet, while another hand guided it.” A supernatural force saved him.

On this exact day, May 13, 1981, in Fatima, the pope had given permission for the Third Secret to be read. During the reading of the Third Secret the pope was shot.

The First Secret was the vision of Hell, and the Second Secret was the rise of Communism in Russia. The Third Secret was much more intense and apocalyptic.

The Third Secret Of Fatima

This information is from the Fatima Center in Portugal: In the conclusion to his study of the Third Secret, Frère Michel sums up his findings as follows:

“Having reached the end of our inquiry, we are able to discern, with near certainty, the essential elements of Our Lady’s final secret: While ‘in Portugal, the dogma of the Faith will always be preserved,’ in many nations, perhaps in almost the entire world, the Faith will be lost. The pastors of the Church will fail gravely in the duties of their office. Through their fault, consecrated souls and the Faithful in great number will let themselves be seduced by pernicious errors spread everywhere. This will be the time of the decisive battle between the Blessed Virgin and the devil. A wave of diabolical disorientation will be hurled over the world. Satan will introduce himself even to the highest summit of the Church. He will blind the minds and harden the hearts of pastors. And God will deliver them to themselves as a chastisement for their refusal to obey the requests of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This will be the great apostasy predicted for the ‘last times’; ‘the False Lamb’ and ‘False Prophet’ will betray the Church to the profit of ‘the Beast’, according to the prophecy of the Apocalypse.”

This Third Secret was given to the three children on July 13, 1917.

President Trump

There was an assassination  attempt on President Trump on July 13, 2024. His life, too. was spared. In the words of President Trump, “God spared my life not once but twice.” In the same speech President Trump stated that he would restore religion back to our country.

Preparing

How do we prepare for the great apostasy predicted in the Third Secret? As for me, I will continue to occupy until He comes. My life will be unchanged because God knows my heart. I am a sinner, whose sins have been nailed to the Cross. Attending daily Mass and receiving Holy Communion absolves me of all venial sins. The Devil cannot condemned me nor remind me of my past sins because Jesus paid the price on the Cross for not only me but for everyone.

Fear Not

If you are truly serving God, you have nothing to fear. The Enemy will use every trick in his dirty bag to try to bring you down. He is like an attorney from hell, and logic is his key weapon. But God has given us great discernment and wisdom to fight off the fiery darts of the Devil.

Covered By The Blood

Stay on the right path and know your giftings. We all have special gifts. The closer you approach the throne of God, the more revelation you will receive. Most importantly you must have a covering; mine is the Catholic Church. Be aware of false teaching, and flee if the beliefs of that church do not align with the Word of God. Lastly, stop preaching to Catholics that their doctrine is incorrect. We’ve been around for over 2,000 years, and our first pope was Saint Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ!

Paris

I have visited the Cathedral of Notre Dame many times. Once when we were attending Mass, it was crowded with many pilgrims, so we had to stand. At that time Mother Teresa’s nuns were giving communion. When a nun approached me, she motioned for me to open my mouth. As awkward as this was for me, I understood the reverence.

The Crown of Thorns

Only years later did I discover that the Crown of Thorns is deposited in the treasury of Notre Dame Cathedral. We praise God because the Crown,  along with other beautiful icons, was saved from the fire of 2019. I know soon, God willing, Mike and I will make our way back to Paris to visit Notre Dame and all the other holy sites that France has to offer.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, thank You for restoring Notre Dame. In many ways I believe that You are restoring France as well. Lord, just as You can rebuild edifices, You can restore us. Bring us from the ashes and breathe new life in us all. Amen.