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Praise Amid the Storm

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I read a really good reflection the other day by Dr. MaryRuth Hackett, who writes for Blessed Is She. It spoke about the suffering of another woman who was questioning why God would allow her to go through what she was going through, and how the response of a friend helped her change her perspective. Her friend reminded her that perhaps her own sufferings were in preparation for something yet to come, or simply to help her be there for others.

Dr. Hackett writes: “It is very difficult to have empathy if we lack experience. Even if we love someone deeply, it is impossible to walk the path of grief for example, if we have never experienced grief. We can sympathize, but we cannot empathize. We can witness and listen, but we lack a level of understanding.”

This was truly helpful to me considering all we continue to go through with my son’s health. It is so easy to question why a small six-year-old boy must endure this. It is so easy to get angry and become anxious.

Yet, what if these trials will later allow me to be there for someone else who is suffering? What if the suffering will make my son stronger or get him thinking about ministering to the sick as a doctor or a priest?

We do not know the big picture. We do not know the reasons. We can only trust, holding on to God for dear life during our wild ride on this planet.

I pray that somehow I may find the strength that the people of Macedonia had in today’s First Reading, who “in a severe test of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their profound poverty overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.” In the midst of their suffering, they found a way to be generous to others. I have no doubt they also praised God, just as Job had done during his time of great trial.

So, instead of getting stuck in a rut of anguish, I feel called to view this trial with a wider perspective. Just yesterday as I was talking with my husband he mentioned that my eight-year-old was now playing much more with his younger siblings, whom he didn’t interact with much before. I also thought that since my ill son is very sensitive, this ordeal might grant him more strength of character to endure life’s blows.

The end of the First Reading also grants comfort: “For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although he was rich, so that by his poverty you might become rich.”

I have yet to comprehend what fruits or “riches” this trial may bring, but in the meantime, may God grant me the grace to exclaim with the Psalmist: “Praise the Lord, my soul!”

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Johannes Plenio, https://unsplash.com/photos/2QUvkQTBh5s

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Jonathan Dick, OSFS, https://unsplash.com/photos/BJlO1Jt8sdQ

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God as Father and King

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“Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.”

This passage was far from my mind as I watched my six-year-old son get up on all fours in the hospital bed, retch, and then tell me his tummy “really, really, really, really hurt”.  Acute appendicitis had my little guy suffering and mommy suffering right along with him. Post-op was almost worse as all joy and silliness was gone from his normally playful demeanor and he didn’t even dare to move out of fear it would hurt. He didn’t want to eat, drink or talk.

I was about to have a breakdown, the tears finally falling a few days into my new normal. So many were reaching out by text and social media, expressing their concern, offering their help and most of all, praying for him. Suddenly I realized that my own prayers were sorely lacking.

“Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.” I asked for a priest to come anoint him, prayed my rosary and a few simple supplications. It was all my worried and weary soul could manage.

A few hours later, he seems to perk up. I finally got my first smile out of him, and later on, a giggle. The next day he was eating much better, walking more and played most of the day.

“For the Father himself loves you…”

His appendix was ruptured and infected. I could have lost him. Yet the Father showed his love for me and His love for my son by allowing him to recover, however slowly it may be.

I could question, just as his grandma did, why one so young has to suffer so much. I could cry and complain, wag my head at God and lose faith in Him. Perhaps no one would even blame me for doing so, but how could I distance myself from the very One who sustains me?

Today’s Psalm sums it up precisely: “God is king of all the earth.” Period. He is king of this hospital room, king of my son, king of his health, king of my heart. His will dictates what will and will not happen. I am not in control.

May this day bring you the opportunity to ask for what you need, receive it gratefully, realize how much the Father loves you and experience joy as His gift to you. May He be king of your life and your heart.

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Markus Spiske, https://unsplash.com/photos/-NlLXMpE-AY

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Hardworking St. Joseph

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This day has always been one of the most special dates on my calendar. As a young adult, I made an effort to foster a close relationship with Mary and Joseph, and today we get to celebrate them both (since it’s the first day of the month of May)! When I finally found my husband, we decided to name our first son after this incredible saint. We couldn’t believe that one of my numerous siblings hadn’t named one of my even more numerous nephews after him. What a blessing!

Today we focus on a specific aspect of Joseph’s holiness, his spirit of hard work. We know that he was a carpenter and worked with his hands to provide for Jesus and Mary. I find this virtue to be particularly difficult to instill in our Joseph. As parents, we want to give our children everything, to provide for their every need and at times it’s hard not to spoil them. The chore charts hang on the refrigerator unenforced, the dishes schedule remains an idea in my head, and it’s like pulling teeth trying to get him and his brothers to pick up toys so we can vacuum.

Sure, we’ve had plenty of teaching moments where we talk until we’re red in the face about the importance of helping out as a family and how when he grows up he won’t have money to buy food unless he works… but what will help him and his brothers to truly understand?

I admit mommy and daddy need to be a tad more consistent, but deeper than that, we can point him to the example of good St. Joseph. The optional reading for this feast day states “Over all these things put on love…And let the peace of Christ control your hearts…And be thankful. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus…for the Lord and not for men…”

I can see St. Joseph living out these words each and every day, working tirelessly out of love. He worked calmly, peacefully, skillfully using his tools to shape the wood, most likely praying as he went along. And most certainly he was thankful. Thankful for God’s guidance and provision, for allowing the work of his hands to provide for the needs of his most holy family. And we already know he did not live before men, because if he did, he would have never married Mary in the first place. His vocation was to serve the Lord.

Dear St. Joseph, thank you for your example of hard work and fidelity to God’s will. Help us to imitate your loving, peaceful, grateful and pure way of living and to teach our children to do the same. May we pray with hearts full of trust “Lord, give success to the work of our hands” (Psalm Response) that we may glorify you. Amen. 

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Michael O’Sullivan, https://unsplash.com/photos/xA36Wy213uM

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Final Preparations

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As a child, this day seemed to drag on and on. Sure, we tried to fill the time by boiling eggs and coloring them, helping Mom with final Easter preparations or going to the store to get the ham, but nothing seemed to fill the void. The anticipation of Easter Sunday was enough to pull me through, but I remember thinking that this was the only day that God was dead. He was gone. He wasn’t there. He was absent from the tabernacles throughout the world and I just felt so empty.

This is it. In just a few hours, many of us will be participating in the Easter Vigil Mass, the high point of the entire liturgical year. We will walk through history, from Creation to Salvation. Candidates and Catechumens will be brought into full Communion with the Church. We will sing a joyful Alleluia for the first time in over 40 days.

But what can we do with ourselves in the meantime? How do we fill this day of seemingly endless waiting? Perhaps silence and simplicity are the best answer. Today is not quite as sad and solemn as yesterday, since we know the end of the story, but it is still a day of preparation. Our Lent is coming to a close, but we have these last few hours to focus our minds and our hearts on the incredible mystery that we are about to experience.

Perhaps the very first line of the creation story sums it up best for us: “Then God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Isn’t that what the Resurrection is all about? God coming into our darkness, our sinfulness, our fallen nature, and filling it with light?

Yes, it can be just as simple as that. Christ is our light. And on that Easter morn he broke the natural rule of every life ending in death and showed us that we could live again. Darkness does not have to prevail, will not prevail, because the light of the Resurrection is more powerful, and it overcomes.

I cannot fathom how bright that Easter morning must have been. Surely it was intense! Yet instead of blinding, it was revealing. And although it may take a while for the eyes of our souls to adjust to the light, we eventually come to grips with its reality. Death is not the end. Christ has died so that we might live. What an incredible truth!

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Sixteen Miles Out, https://unsplash.com/photos/PUjAEwV9PeQ

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There is a Time for Every Season

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The first signs of spring are a reason for rejoicing in the colder, northern regions. Here in West Michigan, all the snow has melted, the birds are singing as morning dawns, and although the nights are still crisp, the days are growing warmer. There is no telling when that white stuff might randomly fly a few more times between now and early May, but the promise that spring officially starts in just 3 days fills us with hope. 

The sun’s welcome rays warm us longer and longer each day and the kids start asking to get their bikes and scooters out. Just a week or so ago they were complaining that there was too much snow and they wanted to play soccer on the grass, and now they ask, “Can I just wear my sweatshirt today?” when it’s barely 45 degrees out. Yet, mommy is excited too and starts putting away winter gear and getting their Easter baskets ready. 

We celebrated Laetare Sunday this past weekend, so we know we are closer to Easter than we are to Ash Wednesday. In just two weeks, we will be in the midst of Holy Week. And just as the promise of spring brings us hope, so does the promise of Easter, the highest feast of the whole Liturgical Year. 

Perhaps you’re like me and love to anticipate special times and special days. Perhaps you book your vacations months in advance and already have your Christmas presents bought and wrapped by October. But the truth is, we still have work to do. Lent is not over yet. And the most intense days are still to come. 

Today’s Gospel foreshadows Jesus’ death with these words: “Jesus answered the Jews: ‘My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.’ For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.”

It is so easy to get angry with the Jews and exclaim, “Don’t they get it?! Why don’t they understand?! He IS equal to God!!” Yet in our own hearts we may still deny him. That little white lie, that burst of unnecessary anger, that silent treatment we gave our loved one, that busyness we allowed when we should have taken time to pray…

Yes, it is tempting to look ahead to the sunshine after the storm, yet we are still called to endure it a little while longer. Let us continue to weed out what prevents us from getting closer to him, remembering all the while that “The Lord is gracious and merciful.” (Today’s Psalm)

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Biegun Wschodni, https://unsplash.com/photos/ZloDJXzcMGA

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Return To God-His Arms Await You

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I come from a family of exaggerators. (Did you notice I didn’t say “a long line of exaggerators”? See! I’m working on it! ☺) Anyway, we love to tell stories, look for a reaction, get a good laugh out of someone. It would not be uncommon for you to hear something like: “Did you see that?! There were like 50,000 birds on that line!” When really there may have been 50, tops. Or “I was laughing so hard I almost fell off my chair!” When really we just had ourselves a hearty guffaw. 

Isn’t it interesting how our human nature has us seeking attention so often. I, for one, love drama. I enjoy giving lengthy explanations of how I’ve suffered, who has wronged me or how off that person was when they said this or made that decision. It all has to be scandalous. “Oh my goodness! Can you believe it?!”

Now most of this exaggeration is done innocently, in good fun, but in the end, it isn’t completely truthful, is it? That is something I have decided to work on this Lent, sins of the tongue. How often do I complain, criticize, blow out of proportion, look for attention when I could just grin and bear it? 

One year I gave up complaining for Lent, and let me tell you, I spent a lot of time in silence! This year, I have decided to target criticism. Why do I feel the need to talk about others as if they were wrong? Does that mean I am always right? Do I really think I’m always right? Well…maybe… but deep down, I know that’s not true. I have my faults and shortcomings just like anyone else. And if I think I am better than others, that is prideful. 

In the end I am no better than the Pharisees who were grumbling to Jesus in today’s Gospel saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Not only were they criticizing Jesus’ actions and the sinners themselves, they were also revealing their jealousy. They wanted a bit of Jesus’ attention too, and they weren’t getting it, so they began to whine. 

Jesus goes on to share with them one of the most beautiful and beloved parables in the Bible, the Prodigal Son. The Father does not focus on the fact that he was treated as if he was already dead when his son asked for his inheritance. He does not focus on the fact that he was abandoned by his child in favor of a life of sinful pleasure-seeking. He does not focus on the fact that his son only came crawling back when he was in dire need. No. His only concern was that he had returned. “This son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.” He was not angry, he did not chide, he simply welcomed him home. I can only imagine how his eyes must have filled with tears and his heart swelled with joy.

And the good news is that this kind of joyous welcome belongs to each and every one of us when we return to God. Whether you also struggle with sins of the tongue or something completely different, God’s arms are always open in order to enclose you in a loving embrace. 

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Pompeo Batoni, Wikimedia Commons

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Salvific Suffering

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Here we are. We’ve made it through the first week and half of Lent already. Have these past ten days been as rough for you as they have for me? UGH! I could share sob stories about countless hours put into renovating our house only to find renters who didn’t pay and then threatened to sue us. I could moan about how tired I am being unexpectedly pregnant at the ripe old age of 41. I could pour out my tears to God about my father, and then my father-in-law being hospitalized with life-threatening illnesses. I could explain to you how I didn’t sleep most of the night because I was worried about my son’s upcoming surgery…. 

There are seasons in life where we definitely feel overwhelmed, as if 20 baseballs were thrown at us all at once and we can’t catch a single one. But the thing is, we ALL go through these seasons. I think it is safe to say that not one of us has floated through life on a cloud without a single hardship. I also think it is safe to say that many of you have suffered far more hardships than I have. 

Lent is a perfect time to embrace these hardships and allow them to unite us ever closer to our Lord. During last weekend’s homily, our Pastor reminded us of St. John Paul II’s encyclical “Salvifici Doloris”, regarding salvific suffering.

The encyclical states: “suffering is the undergoing of evil before which man shudders. He says: ‘let it pass from me’, just as Christ says in Gethsemane.” What a profoundly human statement! Just reading this, I exclaim “Yes! God understands me!” It goes on to say: “Christ has also raised human suffering to the level of the Redemption. Thus each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ.” So although profoundly human, Christ has elevated it to a supernatural level.

“As a result of Christ’s salvific work, man exists on earth with the hope of eternal life and holiness. And even though the victory over sin and death achieved by Christ in his Cross and Resurrection does not abolish temporal suffering from human life, nor free from suffering the whole historical dimension of human existence, it nevertheless throws a new light upon this dimension and upon every suffering: the light of salvation.”  

“In the Second Letter to the Corinthians the Apostle writes: ‘We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh …. knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus’(58).”

So whether your sufferings be numerous and burdensome, or relatively few and far between, may today’s Scriptures remind us that as long as we follow God’s commands we will be blessed. We suffer now but we will be redeemed!

May the rest of your Lent be full of salvific suffering that unites you more intimately with our Lord. 

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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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Our Tangible Faith

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Today is the feast of St. Blaise. Many will find themselves driving to church to seek the traditional blessing of the throats. Two candles tied together with a ribbon somehow give us comfort that we will be protected from infirmity. 

Perhaps we need this blessing this year more than ever, both physically and emotionally. We need that tangible reminder that God is with us, that he longs to heal us, and that his saints are interceding for us in heaven.

Around Christmastime, my husband and I found out that we were expecting our fifth child. And while we are overjoyed at the thought of another little one entering our family, we are also a little concerned. We are both in our early forties and we ask ourselves, will I have the stamina to keep up with them all? How will we homeschool with a baby? Oh my goodness, I will be 60 before the baby is even 20! How will I get through this pregnancy if I’m not even in my second trimester yet and I’m already exhausted?

So many thoughts and so many questions running through our heads. Yet, somehow, the joy of a new life overshadows it all. Many mornings my husband will draw near and give my tummy gentle massages and tell me how excited he is. Every day my four year old rubs my belly and says “hello little baby”, and often insists that it should come out now. And whether it be another boy to add to our little soccer team, our our first little princess, we are joined together in love for this new creation. 

It’s amazing how much the tangible symbols of our Catholic faith touch us. Just as we find comfort in the two candles touching our necks today, we also find joy and peace in the other sacraments. Whether it be something as palpable as a new life as a fruit of the sacrament of marriage, or something as hidden as Christ in the Eucharist, the physical elements that surround us enrich us greatly. 

On this feast of St. Blaise, I pray that God free you of all ailments and that you also find comfort in all the life-changing sacraments our Church has to offer. 

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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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Childlike Awe

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As a working mom, I make it a point to spend individual time with each of my kids as often as I can. They take turns having mommy “dates” and treasure their time with me just as much as I do with them. And although our one-on-ones often include a trip to the grocery store or the thrift shop, they get to chatter away telling me about whatever suits their fancy. These days, it’s usually either Legos or soccer. 

It’s so refreshing amid life’s calamities to spend time with children. No matter what stresses are thrown your way, you can’t help but smile at their antics, their silliness and even their mischief. Just the other day, I was fretting about some ongoing issues we are dealing with and my son just started singing his own version of “Fa-La-La-La-La” in the back seat. His words were more like “Fa-La-La-La-La-Dah-Doo-Dee-DOWN!” After we sang that together for a while we changed it to “Fa-La-La-La-Dah-Doo-Dee-UP!” and had ourselves a good laugh.

I wonder if we saw things through the eyes of children we would be more astonished at Christ’s teachings as the people were in today’s Gospel… “for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.” As parents we have authority over our children, but do we truly comprehend the authority of God? I think many times we don’t or perhaps we simply don’t think about it. 

Where is that sense of awe and wonder at reading His word? Does His fame spread everywhere this day in age because we, those who believe in Him, are speaking with others about Him in sheer amazement? Do we believe that he can drive out any “unclean spirits” that might plague us, whether they be unfortunate events, impure thoughts or unkind words?  

I find it interesting that the unclean spirit was able to proclaim with such certainty that Jesus was the Holy One of God. What about us, those of us who try our best to live good lives and grow in our faith. Can we proclaim with certainty “I know who you are – the Holy One of God!”? Do we know who God is? Can we even fathom His holiness? 

With prayer and quiet time we can definitely experience glimpses of these concepts this side of heaven. When we allow child-like simplicity instead of adult complicatedness to enter our souls we can begin to grasp His grandeur. When we turn our hearts to praise and gratitude we can begin to know who He is. 

Today let us exclaim with the Psalmist: “O Lord, our Lord, how glorious is your name over all the earth!”

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Kayan Baby, https://unsplash.com/photos/5xGMUBRJUq0

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Let His Light Shine

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As I stepped into the office at my new job, it felt familiar yet different. I had worked at parishes before, both as an Administrative Assistant and Director of Family Ministry, yet they were in different towns and one in a different state. Each community has its own flavor, its own strengths and weaknesses, its own offerings and its own needs. 

As I was welcomed by the staff and ushered into my new space, I felt ready for what was to come. Sure, there would be a learning curve. Sure I would discover additional aspects of what was expected of me as I went along, but I would be serving God’s people once again and I would be close to home. Thank you, Lord! 

Just as the Magi did so long ago, I felt joy and peace that I could finally bring my gifts to Jesus. Sure, being bilingual, having good organizational skills and a solid work ethic are a far cry from gold, frankincense and myrrh, but they are what I have to give. Just as the little drummer boy played his drum for Jesus because that was all he had, so also I offer to my newborn Savior what I have to give.

When working in ministry, it is so important to remember the words of our First Reading: “the glory of the Lord shines upon you. See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; but upon you the Lord shines, and over you appears his glory.” It is the Lord who shines in and through me. It is His light alone that will dispel the darkness and the clouds. If I let Him radiate within me, others can also be radiant with joy. And however small the gifts I bear, I must realize that they are both from Him and for Him, and continually “proclaim[] the praises of the Lord.”

In the Hispanic culture the Feast of the Epiphany, which we celebrate today, is considered a second Christmas. Just as the magi gave gifts to the Christ-Child, the children are also given gifts. I even know a family that chooses to focus on the birth of Jesus spiritually on Christmas day and holds off all gift giving until Epiphany.

No matter what the date or the occasion, the act of gift-giving is important. Whether we give of our creativity, our resources, a well-thought purchase, our time, our talents…all is gift. It is that outpouring of ourselves to others, that sharing of ourselves for the good of others, that moment when we take the backburner so that others may find joy. 

So as we gaze upon the Baby Jesus, visited by the wise men today, may we prayerfully discern which gifts we are called to give in order to let God’s light shine through us. 

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Ivana Cajina, https://unsplash.com/photos/dQejX2ucPBs

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The Holy Innocents and Good St. Joseph

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Today is my good friend’s birthday. We always used to joke with him about how he was so innocent because he was born on the feast of the Holy Innocents. He is actually a priest now, but his personality still holds more than a hint of mischief, so he is far from innocent.

But really, are any of us? The First Reading states: “If we say, ‘We are without sin,’ we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” That is the whole reason Jesus came to this world, because we are not innocent.

There is certainly sadness to be felt this day, knowing that so many little children who were innocent had to die due to one man’s (Herod) anger and jealousy. It makes me think of all of the tiny lives lost through abortion every single day.

Today’s Gospel contains one of the saddest passages in Scripture: A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more.” Yes, it is right that we mourn such an evil injustice and it is right that we mourn our own losses as well.

But let us not remain in this sadness. Let us shift our focus to the first part of the Gospel.  An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream instructing him what he must do, and without argument “Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt.”

I am so inspired by Joseph’s holiness, his blind trust and obedience, that I named my firstborn son after him. He is mentioned so little in the Gospels and very little is known about him. Yet we know that he was so favored by God that he was chosen to be an integral part of the Holy Family. Was he scared?  Yes. Did he feel unworthy? Yes. Was he sure about what to expect? No. Yet in the end, he always made the virtuous decision to obey. And his obedience was blessed by God allowing him to live under the same roof as the Son of God.

The First Reading says: “If we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.” Joseph certainly was a man who walked in the light. He is such a great example for us! And maybe, just maybe, as he was walking toward Egypt and all the children were being slaughtered behind him, he recited to himself today’s Psalm to calm his spirits: “Had not the Lord been with us-when men rose up against us, then would they have swallowed us alive, when their fury was inflamed against us… Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

May we follow the example of St. Joseph today and keep listening, keep obeying, and keep walking along no matter what sadness or distress or loss life throws at us.

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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.

Feature Image Credit: Julia Kadel, https://unsplash.com/photos/a8GewfTgpys