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The Glory of the Lord

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The Responsorial Psalm for today says: “The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.”

When Jesus walked on Earth and people heard Him speak, they could not help but become excited. They were on fire for the truths He taught. And He charged them to go out and spread the Good News. He charges us to do the same.

Where the Good News is taught and believed, there indeed will the glory of the Lord be seen.

But too often today people brush aside morality. They want to create a “woke” culture where everyone can do what he wants, as long as it feels good.

Yet we know that the glory of our Lord does not reside in a culture that devalues human beings. This culture of death has its grips on society now more than ever. With laws allowing the killing of preborn babies and the euthanizing of the elderly and disabled, and with hatred apparent in so many violent acts around the country, we may feel tempted to lose hope. We may wonder where God is when so many Godless acts pervade our daily lives. 

But God has not forsaken us. Though terrible and devastating things happen, and though it may be difficult to see or feel His glory at times, it is ever present.

We can see it in the beauty of nature, in the smile of a stranger, in the helping hand of a neighbor, in the acts of those who stand up for the tenets of our faith, in the kind word of a spouse or child, and in so much more! 

And, through our actions, we can help others see the glory of God. We live our lives as God would want us to live them, not as 21st century culture wants. We are not accountable to the media, to political leaders, or to anyone else. We are accountable to God.

At the end of our lives, God will ask us what we did to glorify Him on Earth. He will ask us how we helped build a culture that respected and revered human beings. He will ask us how we changed lives for the better. He will want to know how we used His gifts to glorify Him and lead others to Him.

What will be our answer? And will this answer please Him?

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Susan Ciancio has a BA in psychology and a BA in sociology from the University of Notre Dame, with an MA in liberal studies from Indiana University. For the past 17 years, she has worked as a professional editor and writer, editing both fiction and nonfiction books, magazine articles, blogs, educational lessons, professional materials and website content. Eleven of those years have been in the pro-life sector. Currently Susan freelances and writes weekly for HLI, edits for American Life League, and is the editor of Celebrate Life Magazine. She also serves as executive editor for the Culture of Life Studies Program-an educational nonprofit program for K-12 students.

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Keeping the Commandments: A Matter of the Heart

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Keeping the commandments. It is something that children wrestle with as they prepare for their First Penance. Do you remember that first time you had to examine your conscience? Later this tension to fidelity to God’s Word and the Ten Words of Law become “second nature,” spiritually speaking, or else rebellion to the invitation to holiness found in the commandments becomes ingrained in thoughts, words, and habits, ultimately manifesting in a life of pain and sorrow. According to the words of Jesus there is no middle road: “Whoever breaks one of the of the least of the commandments…whoever obeys and teaches these commandments… (see Mt 5:19).”

St. Silouan the Athonite said that the apostle John says that the commandments of God are not difficult to keep (see 1 John 5:3). For the one who loves, they are easy to keep. They are difficult only for the one who does not love.

Keeping the commandments is a matter of the heart. Recently I was resting in prayer, silently contemplating Jesus who had climbed a mountain for time alone with his Father. It was night. I imagined myself quietly watching from a short distance, my elbows on a large boulder, holding my face in my hands, as I observed Jesus standing a few yards away. I could just see the silhouette of Jesus as he stood looking up into the star-lit night sky in this place to which he had retired to be with his Father. The intensity of love that I sensed between him and his Father, the energy of their wordless communion, the giving and receiving, the loving and responding, the gift and obedience…. Even though I was not a part of their unspoken communication, Jesus’ bond with his Father was unmistakable and strong. When Jesus had finished praying he turned and noticed me watching. He walked quietly toward me and sat down. My heart full, I said simply, “I want what you have.” And he said to me, “I want you to have it too.”

I want the love that Jesus experiences to take hold in the deepest recesses of my heart. I want my sole desire to be to surrender my life entirely to that love, to desire to speak, think, and do only what the Father has given me to do. In other words, I want to be true to the Father’s love for me and for others in the totality of the way I live. But when I examine myself I see that I am not like Jesus who could say, “I say only what I hear from the Father.” (see Jn 12:49). My love is only a distortion of divine love. 

The law of God helps us recognize our poverty and our utter dependence on God. It floods us with God’s mercy which renews us, as we realize we cannot keep the commandments unless God himself remakes our hearts. And he will do so, if we open our hearts to him. As Jesus said to me, “I want this for you too!” What generous kindness that will not fail to be brought about through Jesus’ action on my poor heart.

Pope Francis said that the commandments help people face the disarray of our hearts in order to stop living selfishly and become authentic children of God, redeemed by the Son and taught and guided by the Holy Spirit.

The commandments are a gift. They save us, as Saint John Paul II reminded us in his speech on Mount Sinai, from the “destructive force of egoism, hatred and falsehood. They point out all the false gods that draw [us] into slavery: the love of self to the exclusion of God, the greed for power and pleasure that overturns the order of justice and grades our human dignity and that of our neighbor.” 

To keep the commandments is paradoxically to know that we can’t keep them without the power of God at work within us, without the Spirit remaking our hearts and minds, without the blood of Jesus washing us clean and transfiguring our entire being in Himself.

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Sr. Kathryn J. HermesKathryn James Hermes, FSP, is the author of the newly released title: Reclaim Regret: How God Heals Life’s Disappointments, by Pauline Books and Media. An author and spiritual mentor, she offers spiritual accompaniment for the contemporary Christian’s journey towards spiritual growth and inner healing. She is the director of My Sisters, where people can find spiritual accompaniment from the Daughters of St. Paul on their journey. Website: www.touchingthesunrise.com Public Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/srkathrynhermes/ For monthly spiritual journaling guides, weekly podcasts and over 50 conferences and retreat programs join my Patreon community: https://www.patreon.com/srkathryn.

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Salt of the Earth

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Jesus invites us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world to others. We can impact all aspects of society by living out our faith and sharing the Gospel message as His representatives. As faithful followers of Jesus, we can go forth in the power of the Holy Spirit to be the salt which seasons the earth with the virtues of Christ, and the light which shows God’s truth. Jesus reminds the disciples that the Kingdom of Heaven is for all walks of life and meant to be shared throughout the world. 

The light that we shine comes from the transformation which Christ has begun in our hearts and is in fact Christ Himself. As St. Paul tells us “For God is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure … that you may be blameless and innocent children of God … whom you shine as Lights to the world (Phil 2:13-15)”.  If we live out our faith, by both words and deeds, we will be the city on the hill whose light cannot be hidden.  Jesus invites us to live out a faith that is sincere and genuine to others. Notice this passage follows the eight beatitudes (Matt 5:1-12) where Jesus highlights the principles of living out the New Covenant He is establishing.

During the month of June, we are invited to come to know Jesus and His most Sacred Heart. This devotion deepens our intimacy with Christ by inviting the Heart of Jesus in our homes and honoring His Heart through our prayers, words, and deeds. This devotion calls us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world through living out our faith by creating a covenant of love with Him. I have witnessed firsthand how the Sacred Heart has renewed families and restored faith through this beautiful devotion. 

May we choose to be faithful followers of Christ and seek to live out the Kingdom of Heaven each day here on earth. May we accept his invitation for friendship and work to be kingdom builders here on earth. 

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Emily Jaminet is a Catholic author, speaker, radio personality, wife, and mother of seven children. She earned a bachelor’s degree in mental health and human services from the Franciscan University of Steubenville.  She is the co-founder of www.inspirethefaith.com and the Executive Director of The Sacred Heart Enthronement Network www.WelcomeHisHeart.com. She has co-authored several Catholic books and her next one, Secrets of the Sacred Heart: Claiming Jesus’ Twelve Promises in Your Life, comes out in Oct. 2020. Emily serves on the board of the Columbus Catholic Women’s Conference, contributes to Relevant Radio and Catholic Mom.com.

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Taste and See

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Usually I like focusing on one of the main readings, or the Gospel, but today the Responsorial Psalm really stood out to me. The words “Taste and see the goodness of the Lord” fly directly in the face of those who think Christians just believe in this invisible God who can’t be proven or disproven. It immediately flies to the defense of any of those, hopefully all of us, who see the importance of the sacraments and the physical presentation of the invisible grace of God. This is the faith of the Church from the very beginning, our faith is incarnational. That is to say, our faith proclaims the spiritual and physical, body and soul, matter and form.

You see, we love through our bodies and God became man to give up his body for us in the most concrete and tangible act of love. The incarnation is so important to the Church, in fact, that the Catechism in paragraph 1015 says, “The flesh is the hinge of salvation. We believe in God who is creator of the flesh; we believe in the Word made flesh in order to redeem the flesh; we believe in the resurrection of the flesh, the fulfillment of both the creation and the redemption of the flesh.”

The chasm between the human person and the grace of God that was brought about by the fall, was bridged by a human body, a human heart, and divine love. This is why St. John Paul II could say, “Through the fact that the Word of God became flesh, the body entered theology. I would say, through the main door.” (TOB 23:4)

The second Person of the Trinity did not become man solely to save us from sin, but also to remind us of who we are as human persons, and to be an example of who the human person should be. He elevated the human person to a level that was previously unknown and inaccessible. The Church proclaims this loudly and boldly during the Easter Vigil when we hear, “O happy fault that gained for us so great a Redeemer.”

This is what we just celebrated on the Feast of Corpus Christi and this is the key to our faith. We celebrate a God who became man so that we might become God (See Catechism 460). We hear it in the Psalm today, “Taste and see the goodness of the Lord”. God is real, his love is real, so real we can quite literally taste it. Let’s never take that for granted. From all of us here at Rodzinka Ministry, God bless! 

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Tommy Shultz is the Founder/Director of Rodzinka Ministry and a content specialist for Ruah Woods, a Theology of the Body Ministry. In these roles, he is committed to bringing all those he meets into a deeper relationship with Christ. Tommy has a heart and flair for inspiring people to live their faith every day. He has worked in various youth ministry, adult ministry, and diocesan roles. He has been a featured speaker at retreats and events across the country. With a degree in Theology from Franciscan University, Tommy hopes to use his knowledge to help all people understand the beauty of The Faith.

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God’s Flesh and Blood

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On this Solemnity of Corpus Christi, the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, we focus on the ultimate sacrifice of Our Lord, and just as much on His ultimate miracle. In the Eucharist, Christ feeds us with His very Body and Blood, the same that was given on the Cross for our salvation. He gives us food for eternal life while perpetuating that one perfect sacrifice which ushered in the New Covenant.

Our First Reading, recounting the sprinkling of the blood of the covenant upon the Israelites in the desert, shows us the importance of Christ’s sacrifice. In the Old Covenant, blood was considered to hold the life of the animal. The sprinkling rite in Exodus was not simply a reminder of punishment for not following the covenant — it was moreso a purification, as Paul points out in our Second Reading: “If the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of a heifer’s ashes can sanctify those who are defiled so that their flesh is cleansed, how much more will the blood of Christ … cleanse our consciences” (Heb 9:13–14).

Christ’s Blood, shed for us on the Cross, is also a cleansing agent, but one infinitely more potent than that of sacrificial cattle. While their blood sanctified legally, His sanctifies thoroughly. But as Paul is at pains to explain, Jesus follows in the same tradition, building upon it while at the same time surpassing and perfecting it. His is the definitive sacrifice, and He commands it to be re-presented in the action of the Mass. 

It is enough for us to attend Mass to participate in this sacrifice. But to truly experience its fruits in the most extraordinary way, to have life within us, we must receive His Body and Blood. As most of us know, this is not a metaphor at all. The Eucharist is truly Jesus Christ’s, God’s, Body and Blood. 

Through transubstantiation, the changing of the substance of bread and wine into His Body and Blood, we can receive Him without having to experience the potentially-nauseating taste of human flesh and blood. He preserves the accidents, the non-essential features proper to bread and wine: taste, shape, color, smell, and the like. How this is possible may be difficult to understand, but we know that it is true, at the very least from Christ Himself in John 6 and in our Gospel passage, and again from the infallible definitions of the Council of Trent.

This ultimate sacrifice made present to us is a profound gift, allowing us to experience and participate in the New Covenant in the same practical, visceral way that the Jews did in the desert. The Cross and its fruits are not something abstract, thanks to God’s providence: they are present at every Mass throughout the world, available to us day after day.

Corpus Christi is a wonderful time to reflect on the Eucharist. Though I cannot go into it here, I strongly suggest reading over the full Sequence, read between the Second Reading and the Gospel, for today. Take your time, look up the words you don’t know, and pray over the words detailing God’s providence and His impressive design in the Eucharist. Happy Solemnity!

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David Dashiell is a freelance writer, editor, and proofreader based in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area. His writing has been featured in Crisis Magazine and The Imaginative Conservative, and his editing is done for a variety of publishers, such as Sophia Institute and Scepter. He can be reached at ddashiellwork@gmail.com.

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Putting Ourselves Ahead of our Gift?

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We’ve all heard the axioms about giving: Be generous. It’s better to give than receive. Do not let the right hand know what the left is doing. We must give of our time, talent, and treasure. 

And we do! We give gifts to others to celebrate special events. We donate to good causes. We buy the little trinkets or subscriptions or chocolate for our neighbor’s fundraiser. We contribute to our parish and diocese.

But HOW do we give? Do we give immediately and generously? Do we sacrifice our own time to do good to another? Do we give of our talents even without repayment or recognition? Do we give from our surplus only? Do we give only after we have secured our own retirement, or our own wants, or our own savings account? These are not bad things to do, but today’s readings make a point: TRUE GIVING is an act of love for another, and an act of trust that God will take care of us.

“A little with righteousness is better than abundance with wickedness,” Raphael tells Tobit and Tobiah. Would you leave your dinner to get cold while you did something for someone else? Giving up their dinner in order to bury the dead brought down the blessing of healing on Sarah. In the Gospel, the widow who gave from what she actually needed had given more than those who gave only from their excess. It was her complete trust in the Lord’s providence for her that allowed her to give what others might have held onto as “necessary” or even “prudent.” And she did it in secret: no one saw this but Jesus. This is in contrast to the Scribes Jesus warns about: those who give publicly for public recognition, those who make a show of their praying or doing or giving so that others will praise them for their “goodness.” It is not WHAT they give, but HOW they give it that makes the difference.

Essentially, if we give so that others will see our generosity, we make ourselves the recipient of our own “gift”! We are really doing it for our own benefit, and not only for the benefit of others, or for the Lord. But as today’s Communion Antiphon reminds us, “Whoever loses his life for My sake will find it in eternity” (Mt 10:39). We are called to “lay down our lives,” trusting in the Lord, by giving all we have and all we are in service and in praise to God.

Today, let’s sit with the Lord and look at our giving to make sure it aligns with His glorious invitation to us: to offer our time, talent, and treasure for the good of others, without mixing in the need for recognition and without putting ourselves ahead of our gift.

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Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including newly ordained Father Rob and seminarian Luke ;-), and two grandchildren. She is a Secular Discalced Carmelite and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 25 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE. Currently, she serves the Church as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio, by publishing and speaking, and by collaborating with the diocesan Office of Catechesis, various parishes, and other ministries to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is https://www.kathryntherese.com/.

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Hope for Healing

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Today’s First Reading tells a beautiful story of healing with a powerful and yet often-overlooked role player – the archangel Raphael. 

When it comes to the three archangels, Michael and Gabriel seem to get most of the attention. I mean, Michael’s job is literally to defend us against Satan while Gabriel heralded the coming of the Messiah, the Son of God. But there is very little known about Raphael … until we turn to the pages of the Book of Tobit. 

The book’s namesake, Tobit, had gone blind and suffered for years; however, he was not the only one in need of healing as a woman named Sarah had suffered many misfortunes at the hands of a demon. Both ultimately found themselves begging for death to end their respective plights. 

Enter the archangel Raphael, whose name means “God heals” or “Divine healer.” To make a long story short, with the help of Raphael, Tobit sees again and Sarah is no longer tormented by a demon. What powerful works of healing!

Not only are the angels and archangels powerful intercessors for us in times of need but they show us the mighty works and wonders of God, who can heal every affliction of ours – great or small. 

We are all in need of healing in some way, shape or form. Maybe some of us need physical healing from an illness or injury like Tobit. Maybe we are in need of mental, emotional or spiritual healing like Sarah due to wounds of sin, our fallen human nature or other evils. Unlike Tobit and Sarah, though, we should not beg for death as an end to our suffering but, rather, have hope in our Lord Jesus who conquered sin and death, hope for healing. 

We certainly can – and should – pray to the angels, archangels and saints to intercede for our healing because who better to ask God on our behalf than the ones that are closest to Him in Heaven? But that also doesn’t mean that we should stop praying and asking God for our own healing. After all, He is the Divine Physician and He wants to hear from His beloved sons and daughters. 

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Erin Madden is a Cleveland native and graduate of Franciscan University of Steubenville. She is passionate about the Lord Jesus, all things college sports and telling stories and she is blessed enough to get paid for all three of her passions. You can catch her on old episodes of the Clarence & Peter Podcast on YouTube as well as follow her on Twitter@erinmadden2016.

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The Angels Walk With Us

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So the other day when I was walking with my guardian angel. Wait what? Yes, you heard me right, I was walking with my guardian angel. You can see how saying something like this kind of shocks us. It isn’t normal language that we are used to hearing. But in the First Reading today that’s how it begins. The angel Raphael is walking with Tobiah.

This led me to ponder why that language is so mysterious or shocking to us today. We believe that angels exist don’t we? We see them all through Scripture helping man on his quest to draw closer to God. So why is it so shocking that angels would be with us? I think this is why the Bible puts it so plainly. It shouldn’t be shocking to us. We should all be aware of this spiritual presence of angels.

I love how the Catechism puts it, “the whole life of the Church benefits from the mysterious and powerful help of angels.” Take just a second and reflect on the depth of that passage. The entire Church, including you and me, benefit from the powerful help of angels. They are here with us guiding us and helping us just as Raphael did for Tobias.

Aquinas, who is known as the angelic doctor, made the point that every angel is its own species. Here in the animal kingdom we have species to group things together that are common in certain aspects. Every angel, however, is so unique that it is its own species entirely. Think about that. God cares about you so much that he created an angel, that is its own species, to help you. To personally help you.

This isn’t just a fun little theological thing to contemplate, this is an actual teaching of the Church. The Catechism states, “From its beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life. Already here on earth the Christian life shares by faith in the blessed company of angels and men united in God.”

So there you have it straight from the Church. You can take that to the spiritual bank if you will. You have a guardian angel who loves you, protects you, and guides you. Let’s not forget to ask for help from our angel every day. From all of us here at Rodzinka Ministry, God bless!

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Tommy Shultz is the Founder/Director of Rodzinka Ministry and the Director of Faith Formation for the North Allegan Catholic Collaborative. In these roles, he is committed to bringing all those he meets into a deeper relationship with Christ. Tommy has a heart and flair for inspiring people to live their faith every day. He has worked in various youth ministry, adult ministry, and diocesan roles. He has been a featured speaker at retreats and events across the country. With a degree in Theology from Franciscan University, Tommy hopes to use his knowledge to help all people understand the beauty of The Faith. Contact Tommy at tommy@rodzinkaministry.com or check out his website at rodzinkaministry.com.

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God of the Living

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In today’s Gospel, the Sadducees ask Jesus a question that reveals their preoccupation with the world. Because the Sadducees do not believe in immortality, the purpose of the question they ask Jesus is to discredit the idea of life after death. Their difficulty with comprehending what life after death would be like stems from their attempt to imagine Heaven using only their earthly experience: “At the resurrection when they arise whose wife will she be? For all seven had been married to her.” 

Christ’s response reveals that the mistake the Sadducees are making is assuming that the relationships we have here on earth will remain the same in Heaven. Christ tells us that we will be like the angels in Heaven who, in all things, worship the Lord. The purpose of our earthly relationships, especially marriage, is to walk with one another on the way to Heaven. Therefore, being united with God in Heaven will be the “completion” of those earthly relationships. 

God’s promise of Heaven, of eternal life with Him, is not something that we can ever understand based on our experience on earth. We know that our relationships – again, especially marriage – are meant to be an imitation and a foreshadowing of our relationship with God when we get to Heaven but, we do not know a perfect relationship (with God or with man) because we are marred by sin. Our faith and our hope are in the resurrection because it is through the resurrection that we know we will be united with God in perfect relationship with him. As Christ tells the Sadducees about God: “He is not a God of the dead but of the living.” 

May our hope in the resurrection and eternal life with God guide is in all our thoughts and actions. May we remember every day that our God loves us enough to desire nothing more than for us to share eternal life with Him.

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Dakota currently lives in Denver, CO and teaches English Language Development and Spanish to high schoolers. She is married to the love of her life, Ralph. In her spare time, she reads, goes to breweries, and watches baseball. Dakota’s favorite saints are St. John Paul II (how could it not be?) and St. José Luis Sánchez del Río. She is passionate about her faith and considers herself blessed at any opportunity to share that faith with others. Check out more of her writing at https://dakotaleonard16.blogspot.com.

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The Mysteries of God’s Sacred Heart

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Have you ever heard the song “Blessings” by Laura Story? It beautifully depicts one of the greatest paradoxes of the Christian life. 

“ ’Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops? What if your healing comes through tears? What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you’re near? And what if trials in this life, are your mercies in disguise?”

As I sit in a hospital room yet again with my son, who is experiencing post-op complications, I listen to this song over and over and let the tears fall. Are they healing tears? I have yet to find out. Have I had a thousand sleepless nights? It’s definitely been more than a few. Do I feel like this trial is God’s mercy? Absolutely not. 

Yet, who am I to predict the end of the story? Maybe I do need a few more nights of agony to realize how near God is to me through it all, how He wants to hold me close and wipe my tears away.

The song goes on to say “The pain reminds this heart that this is not, this is not our home. It’s not our home”! [] “What if my greatest disappointments, or the aching of this life, is a revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy?” Well, I am aching for sure. There is something basically unfair about watching a child suffer. It is times like these that truly make us long for heaven. 

And how fitting to long for heaven on a day like today, when we begin the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. We will never understand the depths of His love or why it is that the trials of this life are evidence of his mercy. These are just a couple of the mysteries whose answers will be revealed in heaven. 

Today’s Alleluia Antiphon states: “May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts, that we may know what is the hope that belongs to his call.”

I pray that He enlighten the eyes of my heart. I need it so bad. I feel like my faith is so practical yet so little heartfelt. I live it day in a day out, but how much do I love within it? I love through actions, fulfillment of duty, yet when I am not able to carry out that duty due to headstrong children, a family member’s angry reaction or continuous illness, where is my love then? Where is my hope?

Friends, our Lord has come to give us this hope and show us His fathomless love. Whether you are going through a storm right now as I am, or your raindrops have ceased for a season, I pray that the Lord show you the depths of His Sacred Heart. May you truly know the hope that belongs to your call to be His disciple and carry His love to others. 

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Tami Urcia grew up in Western Michigan, a middle child in a large Catholic family. She spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, studying theology and philosophy, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in Western Kentucky. She loves tackling home improvement projects, finding fun ways to keep her four boys occupied, quiet conversation with the hubby and finding unique ways to love. She works at her parish, is a guest blogger on CatholicMom.com and BlessedIsShe.net, runs her own blog at https://togetherandalways.wordpress.com and has been doing Spanish translations on the side for almost 20 years.

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