Handmaids of Mercy

Teach Me, Lord Jesus

Teach me, my Lord, to be sweet
and gentle
in all the events of life -
in disappointments,
in the thoughtlessness of others,
in the insincerity of those I trusted,
in the unfaithfulness of those on whom
I relied.

Let me put myself aside,
to think of the happiness of others
to hide my little pains and heartaches,
so that I may be the only one to suffer
from them.

Teach me to profit by the suffering that
comes across my path.
Let me so use it that it may mellow me,
not harden nor embitter me;
that it may make me more patient, not
irritable.

That it may make me broad in my
forgiveness, not narrow, haughty and
overbearing.
May no one be less good for having come
within my influence.  No one less pure, less
true, less kind, less noble for having been
a fellow-traveler in our journey toward
ETERNAL LIFE.

As I go my rounds from one distraction
to another, let me whisper from time to
time, a word of love to Thee.  May my life
be lived in the supernatural, full of power
for good, and strong in its purpose of
sanctity.

(From the back of a holy card, thanks to Aline (from Thomas Aquinas and More's blog) for sharing this)

Parenting: Mercy, Grace and Peace

In assisting my husband with expanding his practice (He is a Licensed Professional Counselor), I discovered the inner workings of the world of BLOGS. I'd been reading other people's blogs for a few years now, but had not explored the possibility of having blogs of our own until now. I feel through prayer and daily readings of other Catholic blogs I was led to start one for my husband and one for me. My favorites, by the way are the blogs of Elizabeth Foss, inspiring Catholic Mom of 8 and freelance writer: www.ebeth.typepad.com  and Lisa Hendley, founder of www.Catholicmom.com Her blog is: http://lisacatholicmom.blogspot.com/

Note to Self: "File that under crazy things people say to Moms of Six Kids!"

I've always taken a liking to writing and have been told so many times..."You should write a book!" I always smile, genuinely thankful for the compliment but interiorly file it in the deep dark recesses of my brain under "Crazy things people say to Moms with 6 kids". A blog seemed the perfect outlet for my situation. I can reflect on my quiet time which is spent with the scriptures, lives of the saints and meditations by Catholic authors and let these thoughts penetrate my soul throughout my day. These thoughts work themselves into my daily not-so-quiet times which take up the bulk of my day as part of the vocation of motherhood. Then I can find quiet times...early morning, nap times, and after the bedtime routine to write about matters of faith and family that I've been reflecting on throughout my day. The Holy Spirit never neglects to supply the sources I need to strengthen me on the subject that I'm struggling with the most.

My Lifelong Wrestling Match

While helping my husband grow his business, I've found myself wrestling once again with my old friend, Will....Free Will to be exact. I truly enjoy using my business degree to help my husband market the business, from decorating to advertising to webventures. Lately, I find myself drawn to those things and rather neglectful of my routines and responsibilities. I've struggled with finding a balance between discipline and freedom for myself my entire life. I'm one of those people that can be obsessively disciplined....at times....and at other times be so undisciplined that my life is out of control. I know it is all about how I choose to spend my time, the balance in exercising my free will.

HOUSE of Chaos: The Undisciplined Life

When I use my free will to dabble in all kinds of things that interest me...to the point of neglecting my set routine...I'm bound for trouble. Slowly but surely things start to unravel, then without a doubt someone will either get injured or get sick and throw our unraveling routine into total chaos. Then, Momma ain't happy and ain't NOBODY else happy either. It is as if we are all in a whirlpool swirling endlessly around in circles in a downward spiral. I bark at the kids then I bark at my husband. My mood changes. I'm frustrated at the chaos and as a result my language changes. I'm no longer kind but brutal, no longer patient but rude, dismissive and demanding. My tongue wrestles my spirit to the ground. I find myself annoyed at every little mistake my children and husband make and I begin to feel hopeless in my ability to change the situation. Then I become obstinate, and wonder why I even bother. I know at these times that I just can't do it alone and I feel ashamed that I've failed at the call of my vocation. I can clearly see that the poor choices that I have made are consuming my entire family and I am brought to my knees in humility. It is then I call out to the Lord in the darkness, with tears of frustration streaming down my face, "Lord, have mercy on me!"

HOME of Grace, Mercy and Peace: The Disciplined Life

When I choose to be disciplined in my household tasks, then I'm at peace, things flow well, I'm happy and my kids are happy because there is security in knowing what to expect. The language we use is pleasant, my children are willingly compliant and I feel pleased that things are working well. I speak to them differently, with love, compassion and foresight and I'm much more merciful with their misgivings. I feel at peace that I'm in sync with God's plan, meeting the call of my vocation as mother.

This is where divine intercession comes into play. Today, while tending to sick children in the wee hours of the morning, the thought came to me that all the frustrations I've been struggling with over the course of the last week, are due to my lack of discipline. So, I tucked the two sick babes into our king size bed with pillows guarding the edge. I then grabbed some soiled clothes from the night and slipped downstairs in the darkness to hopefully become enlightened. After throwing the putrid smelling laundry in, I stood thinking how much I will enjoy the look and smell of a freshly bleached load of white laundry... the simple joys of motherhood...this one I'll call the "white as snow blessing". I then sat down at the computer to do my daily readings and prayertime a little early. Here is what I read:

Isaiah 1: 18-20 Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD:Though your sins be like scarlet,they may become white as snow;Though they be crimson red,they may become white as wool. If you are willing, and obey (discipline), you shall eat the good things of the land; But if you refuse and resist, (undisciplined) the sword shall consume you: for the mouth of the LORD has spoken!

Psalms 50:15-17  Then call on me in time of distress; I will rescue you, and you shall honor me. But to the wicked God says: "Why do you recite my commandments and profess my covenant with your lips? You hate discipline; you cast my words behind you!

From my meditation site: James 3: 3-5 , 8-11 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide their whole bodies. It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot's inclination wishes. In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. 8... but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. This need not be so, my brothers. Does a spring gush forth from the same opening both pure and brackish water?

Finding Peace in grace and mercy

Dear God,

Thank-you for all my little blessings. Thank-you for your infinite mercy and grace which gives our family the only true peace we will ever find.

With sincere gratitude,

Mary

My lack of discipline ultimately leads our entire family into chaos. I am only one person, but responsible for so many others and at times it is truly overwhelming. The good news is that God never intended me to go it alone, or to rely on my own understanding. Rather, the Good Lord sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to bring his infinite mercy to each of us, trusting in Him, we will never be alone. We we cry out for the Lord's mercy and he answers us with a huge bonus... His infinite grace. The grace in fact, to do His will. The grace to turn our House of Chaos from hampers of dirty laundry, dirty dishes and sticky floors into a Home of Grace. Homes bursting forth with the hidden blessings found in the grace of freshly laundered clothing, clean dishes and floors and disciplined, peaceful, and refreshed souls that recognize in each other the responsibility we have towards souls created in the likeness of God. No small task. Thanks be to God for His grace and mercy.

For more help on family matters, visit my husband, John's (an orthodox Roman Catholic) blog: www.thecompassrose.typepad.com or his website: www.crossroadsfamilycenter.com

We can take the nails out.

Today, we were watching EWTN's Stations of the Cross. This is the conversation I had with my little one that turns four in two months.

Ryleigh: Why did they put Jesus on the cross Mommy? Why did they do that to Him?

Me: Well, there were some people that didn't love Jesus and they wanted to hurt him very much.

Ryleigh: That was very mean, Mommy. We HAVE to take Him down from that cross. We can take the nails out...(thinking for a few seconds) then, we can pick Him up and I can take a hug to Him.

That's child-like faith for you. Pure, unadulterated trust and unabashed mercy.

Every time we act with mercy towards another soul in thought, word or deed we "take the nails out" of Jesus. Most likely, we all have our own set of nails driven in by others who did not love us at some point in our lives. The nails of injustice, prejudice, abandonment, or abuse may be driven in so far that we can't imagine living without them. But, there is hope when we learn to abandon trust in ourselves and turn instead to trust in Jesus. Through our self-giving acts of mercy, Jesus will remove the painful nails driven into our own hearts and the hearts of the suffering. Whose nails can you remove today?

Vans and Mercy

Today, I was reading a blog on one of my favorite sites which stated something along these lines: " We need a new van. We just learned that we are expecting our seventh child. Please keep us in our prayers." It just so happens that this request is one dear to my heart, been there, done that. Thank-you Lord for your everlasting mercy. Here is the comment that I left:

Congratulations on the news of your newest blessing. May your mother's advent be one of great peace and trust in Jesus.  I have a very special devotion to the Divine Mercy Message: JESUS I TRUST IN YOU! I also beleive in the power of the communion of saints.

Two years ago, my husband and I learned that we were expecting Blessing #6, we had  a sedan and a conversion van which accomodated  7....so we had an issue with adding another blessing, which meant a third car seat.  So, I began to pray for the intercession of St. Rita (Saint of the Impossible) and any other saints willing to intercede! We told my husband's parents that we were going to start looking into getting a larger van and his Dad said he'd keep his eyes open. Well, the very next Sunday, in my in-law's parrish bulletin was an announcement that the church was selling a 15 passenger van and would use the money they earned to invest in a bus.

(Pictured: the van, St. Rita of Cascia and Our Lord Jesus, The Good Shepherd)

To make a long story short, we now drive that very HOLY van from ALL SAINTS Catholic Church. It was exactly available in the price range we felt we could afford and was in excellent condition, only having been used for church related transportation. God is so merciful.

Our family will pray for your family in this matter....maybe a 15 passenger is in your future too....to be filled with ALL the blessings the Lord has waiting for those who love Him. May God Bless You!

After all, it is all about trust, trust that Jesus will provide us with all we need according to the Father's will, if we only trust in Him. The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not WANT....Have a Blessed Day.