Martha and Mary, The Better Part

Friends of Faith:

 I’ve been feeling a little disconnected from God and overwhelmed by busyness. And while I realize in today’s world with all the distractions it’s probably not uncommon, it’s still difficult to get back on track. 

Andy sent me his “bulletin insert” for next week (he recently transferred as associate pastor at Resurrection parish in Dubuque to Pastor at Nativity Parish in Dubuque) and it made me realize that no matter where we are in life sometimes we just need a boost – for me his article – which I sought his permission to share with all of you.

 “On Tuesday, one week after I had started as Pastor, I was walking into the church and I realized that besides the Masses I had celebrated and the time in the confessional, I really hadn’t spent much time praying in the main body of the church, hadn’t taken the time for a Holy Hour, etc.

 “It made me realize that I had spent my first week being much like Martha, busy with many things, and not much like Mary, prayerful and reflective at the feet of Jesus.  Naturally, that realization made me stop and reflect on the situation, wondering “Why does Mary have the better part?  There is so much to get done, all of the time...”

 “Mary has chosen the better part because there will always be things to do, but there will not always be this time, right now, to be with Jesus, to learn from Him, to grow to be holier, to move closer towards the Kingdom of God.  Mary experienced this in a very direct way, but we experience it too.

 “Every day we have that choice too, whether we will take time in prayer or if we will let our busyness take over.  Realistically, we have to get some work done, so we can’t be like Mary all of the time, but we should try to carve out some time.

 “How much time is enough?  Well, it varies from person to person, situation to situation, but I believe God asks us not just to tithe our money, but to tithe our whole lives.  So, just for the sake of easy math, if we are awake for 15 hours a day, it seems reasonable to take 10% of that or one and a half hours and spend it in prayer, which could be attending daily Mass, doing spiritual reading, praying devotions, or just praying from the heart.

 “Take some time to stop and reflect on your situation.  We need not bite off more than we can chew, but start gradually.  I didn’t stop to do a Holy Hour, I took fifteen minutes right then and twenty minutes later, but the realization of that need to spend time at the feet of Jesus is the first step towards a holier and more joy-filled life.”

So for all of you Martha’s, May you all take the time to find peace and joy and be a little more like Mary this week!

Blessings,

Charlotte

www.morningreflection.blogspot.com

Watching and Waiting to Know What to Do

Friends of Faith:

The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying: Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God; let it be deep as the netherworld, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!” Is 7: 10-11

I’m always thinking about what I’m going to do next. And I pray to God often, what is it you want me to do, and help me to say yes.

But I wonder how often I am like Ahaz, that when God says, “Ask for a sign, I’ll tell you what to do.” My answer is: “I won’t ask, I’m too proud, I can do it myself, or I’m too afraid of what the answer might be.”

I so desire to be an obedient and humble servant, like Joseph and Mary, listening to and 

IMMEDIATELY following the signs they received that brought Jesus into the world.

The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, (Is 14) which means “God is with us.”

When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. Mt 1: 18-24

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Lk 1: 38

For hundreds of years, even before Jesus was born, we have been asking for signs. I personally have received many signs and God has answered many prayers. And still, I ask for more. I fail to listen or I fail to act even when I have asked and been granted a sign. There are some who won’t ask. There are some who fail to believe in God or even in Jesus’ coming.

And yet we continue to wonder, watch and wait for an answer to “what should I do.” Have I asked? Have I listened?

Maybe God is answering and I am just not looking in the right place.

In which manger do I look to seek Jesus? Will I listen to and answer God’s call? Will I say, “YES” like Joseph and Mary to make Jesus the reason and focus, not just for Christmas, but for life?

Be active. Don’t just watch and wait – ask and listen. God will give us a sign! This is what Advent is all about. This is what God promises!

Blessings,

Charlotte

It's Not about Me!

Friends of Faith:

It’s not about me. Why Me? Or is it about me?

These are interesting questions to ponder, and sometimes difficult ideas to accept because what I want is not always what God wants, or wants for me.

He has a divine plan for each of us, we were created in His order and “God saw that it was good.” Gn 1

I am supposed to do HIS will, not mine.

Christ knew what God wanted. Christ did as he was asked. And Christ knew it wasn’t about Him. And yet even Christ didn’t “want” to suffer. ‘He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.”’ Mt 26:39

I know this is the attitude I am supposed to have, but sometimes even thinking about accepting the challenges of day to day life means I feel like turning and running the other direction.

So, why is doing His will so difficult? Because there is one being left here on earth who wants it to be about anyone other than God, who is still actively trying to make it about me, who is actively and purposely trying to convince me that IT IS about me-- and that is the devil. The devil wants me to believe that it IS about me, about my happiness, about how I can get the best for me, about how I can maintain control or take charge, and about “what’s in it for me.”

Last week I had one of those weeks and several of those moments – when I asked: “Why me?” “What’s in it for me?” and I thru myself a little “pity party.” And like many who complain I even found a friend or two who sympathized with me and said, “you don’t deserve that” and “Go for it you deserve better.”

But in actuality I don’t “deserve” anything. “For the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Ps 23 Yet the devil is always out here tempting me that somehow I need more that I "deserve" more and that I shouldn't have to sacrifice or suffer in any way.

And in some ways I suppose my friends are right—‘I don’t “deserve”bad,’ but I don’t necessarily deserve the very best either. Rather I am called to accept the gifts I have been given, to make lemonade out of lemons, to find the silver lining and to react not with selfishness but rather to use whatever circumstance to show my faith and give back to others—even when doing so means my own wants have to be set aside: because God will make it “good!”

So how do I make it not about me? How can I do my best to react with a more Christ like attitude in whatever situation I find myself? 

The best example is Mary –today on this the celebration of the Annunciation of the Lord – 9 months
before the birth of Jesus. And, Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Lk 1: 26-38 Mary was not without fear or without questions, but Mary said, “it’s not about me.” And God made it very good!

So, it’s not about me. Or is it?

In a way it is about me, it’s about my choice, about my obedience to God and my discipline to living the commandments, about taking the gifts God gives me –even if at the time I don’t see it as a gift.

Every choice I have is a choice to choose Him. Every choice I make affects others directly or indirectly. Even the choices that seem to make myself and another “happy,”the seemingly personal choices affect others I don’t know, they have a ripple effect.

Think about movies like “A Wonderful Life” where the main character gets to see what the world would have been like without him. One decision today, good or bad, can affect a multitude of future happenings.

Heavenly Father, You have given us the world—everything in this world is your gift to me. Help me to use it wisely. You have given us free choice – but you ask us to be Christ for each other. Help me to do your will. Make my day not about me, but about those around me. Help me to accept the difficulties in my life because they may be placed there to help another. Help me to make choices with the attitude that it’s “not about me.” Amen.

Try on God’s truth: not “why me?” but “why not me!”

 

Make your choice be about someone else. Make your choice be to accept God’s will by walking in Christ’s path and being led by the Holy Spirit,

Blessings,

Charlotte

 

A Call to Joy

Friends of Faith:

“Joy is eternal but happiness is fleeting.”

Or as Matthew Kelly says it: pleasure cannot sustain itself beyond the activity producing it.

I often hear, “God wants me to be happy.” But being happy is different in God’s eyes than ours. Pleasure, happiness, joy … God’s call is a call to joy, not to a happiness that we equate with pleasure but to a joy that is sustained eternally.

The word of the LORD came to Jonah, saying: “Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the LORD’S bidding. .....When the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.” Jon 3: 1-5,10

God says to each of us, “Come follow me.” He said it to Mary, He said it to Jonah, He said it to Noah, He said it to Abraham, Isaac and David, He said it to each of the apostles, He said it to St. Mother Teresa and to St. (Pope) John Paul II, and He is saying it to each of us.  They all said yes to God’s call. And because they suffered and sacrificed their personal pleasures, they were made holy, blessed, saints. They were called to eternal joy, eternal happiness.

God calls each of us to follow him, to say yes to joy. So when I am asked to follow him, to sacrifice some pleasure to do his will, to stop my day for someone else, do I say, “YES,” or do I say, “wait, I’m can’t give that up now, I’m too busy?”

“Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Then they abandoned their nets and followed him. He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets. Then he called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.” Mk 1: 14-20

So what if I am too busy, take too long and the tomorrow I promised myself never comes? What if I am left behind like the hired men, too busy working to hear and answer the call? Or what if I am too busy listening to what the culture says should be my pleasure instead of listening to and searching for God’s truth which will achieve eternal joy?

“Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you; consider how their lives ended, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teaching.” Heb 13: 7-9

I know and realize just how much difference there is in my day when I really take the time to pray, to be in God’s presence (vs making prayer just a passing thought). And yet I am pulled by the culture to work, to be busy, to find immediate satisfaction and pleasure by saying “I’ll make time to do it later.”

I know how much better I feel when I give up my time to serve others—with an ear that listens and cares, a voice which praises, or a kind deed which makes someone else’s life easier.

I realize that in my busyness to be happy I only find joy (lasting happiness) when I have met the needs of others before I take care of my own; that the echo of a thank you goes beyond the pleasure of my own temporary fulfillment.  Seeing someone else experience peace, or bringing someone comfort or relief from stress, brings me a joy which I can recall many days later. Seeking pleasure is a constant temptation but unlike joy it never lasts.

It’s why cooking my favorite meal gives me more lasting joy when I give it away rather than the pleasure of eating it myself.

It’s why thinking of “happy times” doesn’t usually include a particular shopping trip or eating a Panera bagel (both which gave me a certain amount of pleasure and happiness at the time), but it always includes those times that were life changing or when there was healing and forgiveness – births, sickness and healing, marriage and recommitment, a retreat like CEW (Christian Experience weekend—see below) –joy, hope, resurrected peace and the comfort of healing.

God calls us to say yes to Him, as he called his disciples. God sends his messengers to us, as he sent Jonah to the people of Nineveh. I am called to listen and to imitate their faith. We are called to be countercultural in our actions – to love and to serve others, to use our riches for the good of others. We are called to inherit the earth, not to simply work to survive in it, or like the hired hands we may be left behind.

Heavenly Father, Your kingdom is far above the richness of this world. Help me to take the time to listen and to see all that you have blessed me with. When I am weak, grant me the patience and the wisdom to lay down my life for others as You did for us. Thank you for every opportunity I am given to be a witness in faith to others. Help me to say yes to your call to joy. Amen.

God is calling us to trust him and be faithful to Him. God is waiting to give us more than just happiness, He is waiting to bring us joy.

Be ready and say yes to His Call to Joy,

Blessings,

Charlotte

www.morningreflection.blogspot.com

PS: CEW is just a few weeks away. Say yes by going to http://www.sthenrychurch.com/CEW.htm

Simple Focus

Friends of Faith:

I am a little late this week, because I chose a simple focus: to deepen relationships designed by God. First, my marriage by attending the Alexander House marriage retreat, and then with the Alexander family as they simply chose to wind down at our house. Put quite simply, it is difficult to go back to all the complications of “life.”

Because—if it isn’t simple, it isn’t God’s.

What a profound statement.

Think about the basis for the complication in our lives: our jobs, our computers, our ipads and kindles, our cell phones, schedules, and an ever increasing desire to have more stuff. To say nothing of the evils which complicate life by destroying a natural order: addictions to alcohol, drugs, and pornography; the greed of money, power, and the need to have more; and the anger of misunderstanding and unforgiveness, in family (divorce) and in the world (war).

Our computers and our cell phones form a constant connection to the world around us – particularly our friends. But do we take as much time to connect with God?

Did God really create these things, or did I? Is their purpose to elevate God or myself? Is their purpose to put me in control or God?

God’s commandments: Love me and love one another as I have loved you.” Jn 13: 34 (He died for us. Are we also willing to die for those we love?)

Are my choices loving and respecting of 1) God and 2) those around me? Am I offending or hurting my relationship with God or anyone else (my spouse) by the choice/s I make?

Is my focus upwards to God, by honoring and loving my husband, my children, my family, and my neighbor OR about elevating myself with money or power? “You cannot serve God and mammon.” Lk 16:13

God’s designing order: He created man and a helpmate for man, woman— marriage between a man and woman, perfect unity, so that they would help each other, to bring each other, to holiness. Gen 2: 23-24, 1 Peter 3

And he gave them a focus: Be fruitful and multiply (have children) and be in charge of all of his other creations (we are a higher being). We are created in his image. We are co-creators with God thru the pro-creation of children.

To help us focus, he asks us to Pray—unceasingly. 1Thess 1: 2

If we don’t know how, the perfect prayer: The Lord’s prayer. Lk 11: 2-4

If we need someone to pray for us, Mary, Jesus’ mother – the perfect example of how to say yes to God.  We ask people on earth to pray for us so how much more effective will the prayers for us from those already in heaven be.

And prayer that helps me focus, meditative prayer, the Rosary, not a babbling repetition, but a meditation on Christ’s earthly journey, and Christ’s exampling purpose for me.

And simply to be prepared. To always live for the simple goal, to be with Him for all eternity—“you do not know when that time will come.”Mk 13: 32-33

Heavenly Father, You have given us simple and we have created complications. Help me to make my choices based on your plan, not mine. Thank you for the Alexander family who opened my eyes once again to a simpler life. Amen.

Focus on the simple: allow yourself to take the time to pray more and love (serve others) more, as God simply asked us to do. My life is much richer because of the choice.

Blessings,

Charlotte

 

Humbly Accepted

Friends of Faith:

I am sometimes confused by what it means to be humble—does that mean that I am to always remember that I am a sinner and that I can do nothing right, or that nothing that I do is quite “right enough?” And does it really mean I have to give up everything or can I keep some of my “favorite things?”

Everything I have, even my most basic needs, are God given gifts. So, which parts of my life did God give me as a gift so that I could survive, and which parts did he give me so that I would be able to serve others? And why does sorting through that question seem so difficult?

Although I heard the same gospel readings multiple times this past weekend it struck me that each time the description of humility included the word “acceptance.”

Acceptance of my weaknesses and my faults but with a firm resolve to try to do better; acceptance of the “critical analysis” which friends give me to help make me better and an accepting attitude that it is my will, my resolve and my perseverance that will convert ME to be the daughter of God that God created me to be--in His image.

Everything I have is His and I could have done nothing that I have done without Him. It is with great humility that I REALIZE just how much God has already given me AND that He has a purpose for not only everything but every person he has placed in my life.

Without Him I would have nothing. Without His grace to bless my decisions nothing that I do would make a difference. And it His grace that takes and makes whatever it is I do in His name into something that makes others feel His very presence in their lives.

Humility isn’t about how I see myself or even more importantly it isn’t about how others see me. But rather humility is the grace to choose to do God’s will and to accept my weakness in needing His power to make what I do acceptable to Him.

He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him, and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place. Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” …blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Lk 14: 7-14

Do I look and act like the person HE made—because I am created in His image, shouldn’t I do whatever it is that I am doing in the same way God would? Do I use and share the gifts that HE gave me in the way he expected I would use them? Do you?

Are my priorities the same priorities he would have chosen for me? What has He given me that I am trying to keep for myself instead of sharing it with others (time, talent or treasure)?

Do I willing accept the sacrifice of hard work or a suffering of discipline, or do I keep trying to find a shortcut, pain relief, or a way to make His work more politically correct so that I can have social gain, instead of heavenly gain?

Do I find excuses so that I can do what I want to do instead of taking the time to do what God wants me to do? Am I willing to walk the same path He did, choosing to be with the least, and putting others needs ahead of mine?

Or am I expecting something in return when I give up my place at the table?

Heavenly Father, When you sent the Angel Gabriel to Mary to announce that she would be the Mother of Your son, Jesus, “Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” (Lk 1: 38) Give me the grace to imitate both her humbleness and her acceptance of the gifts and the sacrifices that must be made because of those very gifts. As she thanked you for her son, Jesus, Your Son, so I thank you for the gifts of my family. As she sacrificed and gave everything back to you, help me to humbly accept all that You ask me to give back to you. In your name, Amen.

All of the earthly riches around me weren’t created for me to live happily, or have a greater place at the table. The gifts we each have been given are for us to use to joyfully help others see God, thru us, and thru our own willingness to give EVERYTHING for them regardless of their ability to pay us back for what we have given or given up.

Are we giving enough? Could we give more? What are we “expecting” in return?

Mary (and Joseph) and Jesus: we were all created in Gods image, with the Holy Family as our living example. Can we be as humble and accepting of the truth, of the way, and of the life as they were?

It’s a journey…..humbly accepted,

In Christ,

Charlotte

Focus on the Better Part

Women of Faith:

I have focused this past week yet again on my family. My co-workers probably think I have deserted them, but I know work will still be there when the grandkids return to Colorado to start school in what will be just a short time.

It is always difficult and a mind struggle however to be torn between “hanging out” and playing when you know there is work to be done. My focus is divided, but I often remind myself when I am divided—division equals the devil’s intrusion.

So what is the right answer, the better part, the choice that God would choose for me?

I find my solution in this question: “If I only had a day to live, or if I had one regret, what would it be?” I don’t want my own answer to be what I think is often the most regretful answer, and that is: “I didn’t spend enough time with my spouse or/and my family (or I mistreated them in some way, by some lack of forgiveness, or through some misunderstanding.)”

And I think this is a part of what God tries to tell us that in the famous Mary/Martha story: “Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” Lk 10: 38-42

Will we regret not having spent enough time with God? Someday will we ask ourselves: “Would I have received more answers to life’s challenges if I had prayed and listened more to God, instead of listening to the classic “everyone else is doing it” answer?”

God’s ultimate gift is forgiveness and mercy—to whom do I fail to give the same better part? Who is my first neighbor? Does my family come before work, or does my desire to be noticed in the world out rank the better part?

I hope that my focus is always on God first. For with God: all things are possible, God is the bearer of all good gifts, and God’s will for me is always the right choice for me.

There is a fine line between working to do God’s will and working to do what I want to do for myself. Without prayer (asking AND listening) to God it is difficult to know what the better part is that God wants me to chose.

Heavenly Father, You are the best part. Thank You for giving me the gift to know and trust You. Help me to always have the courage to allow you to be the better part of my decisions. Teach me to pray and to listen to Your call instead of answering the world. Help me to always choose the better part by following You and by serving those whom you place in my path. Amen.

Today and every day let us focus on the better part: the all powerful, the all truthful, the all knowing, wisdom, strength, courage, forgiveness and mercy that is the Spirit of God.

In the Spirit of Christ,

Charlotte

www.morningreflection.blogspot.com

The Greatest Mom of All Time

Friends of Faith:

Hallmark and ATT would both tell us that Mother’s day is one of the most celebrated days of the year.

But being a Mom (a woman, wife and mother) expands the emotional range from the ultimate joys, to the ultimate sorrows.

I have had several conversations with moms over the past few weeks expressing their heartfelt concern and sorrow over the choices being made by their children or of the pain their children or husbands were experiencing caused by illness and/or depression. My suggestion to them has been to turn to Mary and to ask her for her intercessory prayers and consolation—because Mary the Mother of Jesus, like no other Mother here on earth, has experienced each of our heartfelt emotions in her walk with her son Jesus through His birth, death and resurrection.

“As the Mother of God, the Virgin Mary has a unique position among the saints, indeed, among all creatures. She is exalted, yet still one of us.

"Redeemed by reason of the merits of her Son and united to Him by a close and indissoluble tie, she is endowed with the high office and dignity of being the Mother of the Son of God, by which account she is also the beloved daughter of the Father and the temple of the Holy Spirit. Because of this gift of sublime grace she far surpasses all creatures, both in heaven and on earth. At the same time, however, because she belongs to the offspring of Adam she is one with all those who are to be saved."

Mary embraces God's will and freely chooses to cooperate with God's grace, thereby fulfilling a crucial role in God's plan of salvation. Throughout the centuries, the Church has turned to the Blessed Virgin in order to come closer to Christ. Many forms of piety toward the Mother of God developed that help bring us closer to her Son. In these devotions to Mary, "while the Mother is honored, the Son, through whom all things have their being and in whom it has pleased the Father that all fullness should dwell, is rightly known, loved and glorified and . . . all His commands are observed." The Church honors her as the Mother of God, looks to her as a model of perfect discipleship, and asks for her prayers to God on our behalf.” www.usccb.org

I have a rosary reflection prayer book I often use when I pray the rosary. As I pray for marriages, children, and the intentions of friends and family (particularly those who are ill, or at a crossroads in their lives) the reflections remind me, that no matter what the intention, Mary has been there before us.

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Lk 1:38

At the annunciation: the difficult decision Mary had to make to say yes to God to accept the responsibilities of a child—think of other mother’s who were not expecting to be pregnant, and the struggle they go thru to say yes. Do we say yes each time God call’s us to choose a difficult path in life? Do we support unwed expecting mothers? Do we teach that every life, every child is God’s greatest gift?

The charity Mary exhibited by visiting Elizabeth to help her prepare for the birth of John the Baptist—think of the times we are asked to give up our time to help a friend. Do we take every opportunity to serve others or are we selfish with our time and talents?

The love she felt at the birth of her son, Jesus—think of the love we feel or experience in holding our newborn children or grandchildren. Do we take every opportunity to love and to say “I love you?”

The sacrifice of giving her son, Jesus, back to God at his presentation--EVERYTHING we have is a gift from God? Do we say thank you often enough, not just for the big and visible, but for the smallest acts of kindness given to us, especially by our spouses?

Mary’s compassion as she observed Jesus scourged and persecuted, knowing that he would be denied by those who did not understand his message and the reasons for his actions—most hurt is caused by a misunderstanding, or a miscommunication. Do I accept responsibility, or do I blame someone else for my actions and my words?

Her sorrow and pain in seeing him crowned with thorns—reflecting on my prayers for those I have hurt, and praying for those who by their actions may be hurting others (intentionally or unintentionally)—do I take every opportunity to forgive and do I pray for the forgiveness of others, especially my spouse?

The agony Mary felt in seeing her son carrying the cross, carrying OUR sins— I think of marriages broken and the suffering of the children who bear their parents pain. Do I realize the pain I cause others?

She experienced the ultimate sorrow in seeing her son suffer and die—comparatively as mom’s and wives we wish to take away the suffering our children and our husbands experience. Am I patient in my prayers, or do I expect problems to be “fixed” immediately, or because I demand it? Do I accept “thy will be done?”

And the ultimate joy in witnessing Christ’s resurrection—in knowing that because of Him all would be given the opportunity for life. Do I accept suffering (by denying myself) so that I will be allowed to experience the full joy of the Resurrection, or do I take the easy way out, and look for instant gratification?

God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple. A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. Rev 11: 19-12: 1

Mary, Queen of the Universe, I ask your intercession, to our heavenly Father, and thru your son, Jesus, to help me say yes to God, to realize the gifts I have been given and to accept the sufferings I must bear. May you be my living example of what true Motherhood means, so that like you I may experience the ultimate joy as you do in heaven. Amen.

For more on walking with Mary, honoring her, and requesting her intercession thru the Hail Mary prayer refer to my meditation on May 9, 2011 http://morningreflection.blogspot.com/2011/05/happy-mothers-day.html or www.morningreflection.blogspot.com(May 9, 2011)

May we as women strive for the perfection of the example of Mary, Our Mother in Heaven and on Earth,

Have a Happy Mother’s Day,

Blessings,

Charlotte