Do it now, before it is too late

We wanted to send a relative a special letter, asking her to participate in this blog by sharing a story about her own struggles on the road of life and the wisdom she’s gained. But we waited, and now have found out she’s had a heart attack. We are praying for God’s will to be done, and hope that she makes it out of this okay. And we would do anything if we could go back in time and send that letter to her, before it’s too late.

The lesson is to not wait to tell that person you love them, or to tell them you care and that they matter, because tomorrow could be too late.

Don’t Hold Grudges

“Then Peter went up to him and said, ‘Lord, how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.” -Matthew 18: 21-22

When life seems like a lonely island….

You say, “I feel all alone”
God says, “I will never leave you or forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5)

Parable of the burning hut ~
The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements and to store his few possessions. But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky.

The worst had happened; everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. “God, how could you do this to me!” he cried. Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. “How did you know I was here?” asked the weary man of his rescuers. “We saw your smoke signal,” they replied.

It is easy to get discouraged when things are going badly. But we shouldn’t lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground–it just may be a smoke signal that summons The Grace of God.

~origin unknown

It takes hard work to succeed

“Young people are threatened… by the evil use of advertising techniques that stimulate the natural inclination to avoid hard work by promising the immediate satisfaction of every desire.”

– Pope John Paul II

Video: Runner tears hamstring but doesn’t give up

Start by doing what’s necessary;
then do what’s possible;
and suddenly you are doing the impossible. ~ St.Francis of Assisi

Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of
the human spirit ~ Wilma Rudolph (the first American woman
runner to win three gold medals at a single Olympics)

Angelina sings the Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

Choose Life

“A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.” ~ G.K. Chesterton The Everlasting Man (1925)

God gave us free will, so be strong, going against the grain, sacrificing for real ideals like life, freedom, and nurturing our spirits.