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TO YOU AND YOURS! Amen.
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June 4, 2008 I apologize. It has
been awhile since the last update… No I
have not joined a convent!
Our spiritual group annual retreat went well.
We had it the third weekend of May.
Even though it went well, we had a few inputs which I hope our next year
retreat will be even better. We
pray. I will update it with photos in a
week or so. God’s willing!
I just took a long trip last weekend to visit my mother and helped her with her
garden. I was able to stop and helped my
Russian teacher with his yard work as well.
Despite the weather forecast which predicted two rainy days, we had no
rain until all our cleaning and planting were finished. Thank you Lord. So my weekend trip was quite productive. What I most appreciated was the fact that I
was able to spend some good and quality time with my mother, my youngest
brother and his daughter. My mother and my
niece joined me for mass on Saturday and Sunday. I am grateful to God for that. As I continue to pray for their conversion to
seek and love God more personally and readily, I am saddened to witness the
changes in parish churches, for instance, one of two I attended last weekend. From the outside it was very Catholic bearing
the name of my beloved patron saint, St. Clare of
This weekend, Saturday and Sunday from 10a.m. to 5 p.m. our county will have an
Open Studio Tour participating by local artists (since I will be at mass for
about one hour each day, someone else will be there for me from 3:45pm-4:45pm
Sat and 9:45am-11am Sunday.) If you are in
I
hope to see you then. For information
concerning the event, you can email me or go to www.gvcaonline.org
, the Genesee Valley Council on the Arts web site for more details. Salome A. Farraro, the
Associate Director can be reached at 585.243.6785 - fax: 585.243.6787.
April 26, 2008 “In the
Renunciation chapter, Fr. Merton mentioned that love of poverty and love of the
poor make saints (p251). He went on to
say one: “needs to be able to identify himself
honestly and sincerely with the poor, to be able to look at life through their
eyes… to do many jobs he would rather not do, suffer many inconveniences with
patience…” The reading reassured me of my present experience. I was inspired to be involved with a local
group trying to fight poverty. Through
my contact with a social worker who presented to the group the need for
mentoring trouble and poor children. As
I am looking forward to this unique experience, I have opportunities to
perceive what Fr. Merton called poverty: facing the many inconveniences,
discomfort and doing what I do not prefer to do. As much as I vowed to love and to follow the
poor Christ until death and as much as the Beatitudes echo in my heart, it is
not easy when I have to experience poverty up close and personal. However, in faith I am grateful to God for
the experience which will be good for my soul as it learns, in humility how to
love Christ and his Church.
Facing
the present and immediate world food crisis and the rising in oil/gas price
besides war and other problems in life, how much faith does one have to stay
focused on being a good Christian and on meditating on the perfect and pure
love where the soul needs to raise above all that can weigh it down? When I first read the chapter on Pure Love, I
almost dared to say that my soul got a glimpse of what it is to rest “in a
deep, luminous and absorbing experience of love” that I could exclaim with the
Apostles: “Lord, it is good for us to be here (on
April 11, 2008
The day I was baptized…!
Ten years ago this night, I was baptized, confirmed and received my first Holy
Communion. I cried so hard during the
Easter Vigils of 1998. Seven years of
waiting was a long time. Praise the
Lord for my new life, my being born again in the Spirit. At mass this morning, the Holy Spirit shared
the grace with me. I felt so blessed and
joyful, the way I used to feel ten years ago being a brand new born Catholic.
The highlight of my 10th year anniversary was receiving a special blessing from
Rev. Father who knows my soul best and knows the joy of its journey to seek God
who has been with it lovingly and faithfully since it was just in his thought! J Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Rev. Father’s
blessing was longer and more intense as usual (he made the comment). I told him the Spirit motivated him to do so because
I am a tough soul who needs all the blessings she I can get.
Ten years is a long time, but it did not seem
so. I waited 7 years since I was
introduced to Catholicism to say yes to God and then 10 years, to consecrate
myself perpetually and totally to him.
I thank you so much for all who have promised to pray and are praying for
me. May the Lord always grant me the
grace to embrace all creations for when a soul tries to love God,
she learns to love everything that is created by him and for him. I pray the same for you. Amen.
April 2, 2008 A blessed Easter joy
to you and yours!
Easter seemed
to be more personal and intense this year.
I think it should be for all of us because we feel it more deeply as we
get older in faith. Life challenges sure
help us understand and accept the cross better as we walk deeper into God's
mystery. For me, I think the main reason
is because of who I have vowed to be and how I have promised to live my life
searching for God: "Dearest Lord, now I follow you; I reverend you and I love
you. I seek your presence in all that I
do and wherever I may be. Please fulfill
my hope and show me the greatest of your mercy..."
We made it to the Abbey in two hours on our Good Friday walk. It was really good for our soul. We were glad we did it. Thank you for your prayer. It was windy and
colder than we thought. The sunshine
helped but walking for a long time in the open fields against some strong wind
now and then really made it the way of the cross! Though, God's grace made it
bearable. I did not notice the
discomforts as much until later when my walking companion told me he was cold
the
Easter Vigils mass was beautiful and so was Easter morning
mass. Holy Abbots, John and John Eudes
are worthy of monks to celebrate reverently holy masses on such special days ...
Easter dinner with family and friends was too wonderful and festive. It was nice to spend time and visit with
them. I am grateful to the Lord for all
the graces and blessings he has given us, YES, ALL THAT HE HAS GIVEN ME! YOU
ARE MY EVERYTHING O LORD!
I must say the Lord has given me a very special grace to bring
forth these icons from the depth of my soul.
Many thanks to the icon teacher for his special gift and
graciously and generously passing down the Tradition. I thank to Rev. Father for his constant
support and encouragement to make sure I follow through with this grace despite
the many trials I have encountered. I am
so very grateful to you dear Lord.
Dear God's angels, please pray for
us.
Here we are!!!
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Now that I have
been working so hard on the icons of these angels, I finally have some prints
and cards available for sale. Since the
icons have not yet officially blessed, I asked Abba John Eudes and he graciously
blessed the 50 some prints I have prepared.
You can purchase them at the Abbey in person or through New Helfta by
mail. Send your order to minhkh@rochester.rr.com
. Beautiful note cards are also available. The matted 9"x12" prints are $30 each. Packages
of 8 note cards are $10 each. A standard
Shipping and Handling Fee for each total order is $8. Thank you for your interest. These special sales will enable me to continue
with the future lessons. God's willing.
March 20, 2008 Everything I celebrate
this year has become more personal to me after taking my perpetual vow of
virginity for the love of Christ until death.
As we celebrated mass today on this Holy Thursday, having been reflecting on
the readings of the Passion Sunday and listening to the readings today, I
realized that the Jesus whom we hold tight and dear to our hearts these days is
indeed the one my soul long desires to love.
He is all of the heavenly Father's goodness, mercy and perfection for he
is love; and he is everything; he is the greatest of all the greatness which I
have learned to embrace since I was a little girl and infinite times more.
Today we celebrated the Last Supper where the
Eucharist was instituted and so was the Holy Order of Priests. I am praying especially for priests, for more
priestly vocation. I am praying for the clergies
whom I have encountered and those who have had tremendous influences on me and
in my life of faith, especially Rev. Father John Eudes Bamberger, my spiritual
father and teacher who has been teaching me patiently, diligently and whole-heartedly
who the poor Christ is whom my heart belongs.
Tomorrow is Good Friday. I pray that the dear Lord will see to it that
I keep my annual Good Friday walk to the Abbey from Geneseo (a bit more than 4
mile long). It is going to be nice and sunny despite of the fact that it will
be in the mid 30's J. The fields will be hardened then, so my boots
will not be filled with mud as I took a test walk last Sunday. There will be a college student joining me on the walk this year. As much as I enjoy walking alone with the Lord, walking with others has its own grace as well and I thank the Lord to send this friend along. The more who love and devote to him, the better! We will do the Stations
of the Cross two-thirds of the way and then the rosary until we get to the
Abbey.
Please know that I will carry you all in my prayer intentions as I walk this walk. God knows who you are. Just tell him that I accept your asking me to
pray for you then he will see to it that it is done. Please say a prayer for us. Thank you.
Have a Blessed Triduum! And I will see you at the empty tomb!
March 15, 2008 Have a blessed Holy Week!!!
Without God, men can
accomplish nothing!!! He is the source of all things and his love rules
and governs the universe which continues to exist, grow and is sustained by
unending graces.
I recall the time when I realized there is a God who loves me unconditionally
and is the author of the book of my life. I also recall the time when I
was prepared to be baptized and entered the Church (it will be exactly 10 years
ago by April 11). His abundance graces carried me through all these months
like a little spoiled baby who got all the attention from her loving
mother. I experienced many things that are holy and perfect without any
of my effort to be righteous. I was so happy and joyful and also felt
like an angel for I have not yet seen the real me J whom the gracious Lord has
protected so lovingly. Then gradually, my true self emerged. Due to
pride, I began to try to control things which overzealousness did not
help. I made mistakes, but did not want to expose them so they became mine.
For their own sake, I hung on tight to rules and laws which helped me determine
how much I could achieve on my own as a Christian. I looked around
to criticize the faults of others while I was ignorant of my own. The
Lord again spared me by sending a good teacher who also introduced me to St.
Gertrude who advised me not to keep anything that is not mine.
As sad as it sounds, humbly I began to learn how to accept who I am. I
began to identify myself as a human and try to become one before I can hope to
be a saint as Fr. Merton pointed out. (P. 256). The stretch is
long. I may never make it while I am on earth, but I have hope for the
eternal life with God, no matter what it takes because God is who he is.
One step at the time I strive to do my best. For now, what I would like
to focus on, God's willing, is to study because: "... one sometimes finds in
contemplatives a kind of pride in being unlearned.... We must not separate
intellectual study of divinely revealed truth and contemplative experience of
that truth as if they could never have anything to do with one another...
the two belong together, just as body and soul belong together... " (P.254, 255)
I need to learn to empty myself to prepare room for what Christ emptied himself
for me on the cross. As I try to listen and cooperate with God's grace, I
know I need to stay calm and let God show me contemplation as Fr. Merton
pointed out. I am open to be helpful by sharing what I have experienced
in faith with others. Though, I will never know for certain whether God
wills it for me to do so. However, as I am advised that if I do it in
good faith and I am inspired by love, I will always please God who is love for
he cannot deny himself. And even if I should not have done so, when I am
home with the Lord, he will teach me how to grow and knows his will better
through experience.
Speak and teach us Lord for your servants are
listening. With the ear of our hearts, teach us how to identify with our
human nature so through humility sustained by your grace and loving mercy, we
may learn how to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. Amen.
(from my March reflection for our spiritual group)
March 4, 2008
Very
soon, hopefully before Easter, I will try to make time to share some pictures of
the new icons which I have written and am working on. It is sure a special grace the Lord has given
me at this point of my life. I was asked
whether these original icons are for sale.
Well, at the moment I do not have any available. Hopefully by the first weekend
of June when New Helfta studio is open to the public for the Genesee Valley
Studio Tour. It is on Saturday and
Sunday, June 7 and 8 from 10am-5pm. For
more information concern this event, please visit Genesee
Valley Council on the Arts .
At
the meantime, I work on commission only.
These Eastern Russian Orthodox Traditional icons are much smaller than
what I have done...
"It
is God's transcendent love revealed in his Son who redeemed us and continued to
take away our sin, teaches us how to love truly and transcendently. As I reflected on New Seeds of Contemplation chapters, what really matters is how we
learn to love God for who he is. As
In
the Gospel reading, Jesus clearly encouraged us to have faith in God who can
help us overcome any temptation, and even if we fall due to our human
weaknesses, we will learn how to grow stronger in our love and our trust in his
Father. Christ, the second Adam has been
given to us. God allows us to fall short
in life, not to punish us, but to help us experience humility. Only when we realized how small and wretched
we are, we appreciate greatly who God is to us.
On Ash Wednesday, Fr. Justin Sheehan gave the most wonderful Ash
Wednesday homily I have never heard (either that or the ear of my heart listens
better as I grow in spirit) . He wrote:
"This is not a day of long faces, but an
acceptable time, a day of salvation, the first of a 40-days' journey toward the
triumphant Passover. Ash Wednesday is
actually the first day of the Easter cycle, and the discipline of Lent, which
we begin today, forms the first part of the Church's annual celebration of the
death and resurrection of Christ our Savior...
... Adam broke the fast by eating the forbidden
fruit. Christ began his personal journey to Easter by keeping a 40-day fast.
Adam sinned and was doomed to die; Christ overcame temptation and conquered
death in his human body. Let us then receive these ashes as the mark of a
Christian, so that when we return to dust, we may hear Christ say, "Awake,
o sleeper, rise from the dead, and I will give you light".
As poor banished children of Adam, we were domed to die, but as Christ's
followers, we live with him who called us: "Awake, o sleeper, rise from
the dead, and I will give you light".
I
dare to think that God did not mind to allow Adam to commit fault, for through
it we gained Christ who teaches us how to love and return to the Father with
our whole being, through the noble and intimate way of the cross.
Dearest
Lord, is that why you put the forbidden Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden
in the first place? Is it through your transcendent love which gave us our free
will and through your only Begotten Son's sacrifice, we may learn who you are
and how to seek and find you who is LOVE?"
February 4, 2008 I
thank you all for your kind messages of congratulations, promise of prayers and
encouragement. I am grateful, and the
Lord is keeping me humble for I know in my heart how unworthy I am of the
calling. Like the Blessed Mother, the Handmaid of the Lord, I accept
the invitation to follow him and live the life depending on his loving mercy as
he promised to those who follow him. Even
though the dear Lord gives me so many graces to struggle to live it,
living the life is not so easy. However, he gives me peace in the heart. My poor confessor must get so tired of hearing
me making the same mistakes and committing the same sins often enough, not to
mention the new ones as I grow in spirit and in the awareness of my short
comings. Please remember me in prayer as
I commend you to God. Thank you.
As some of you know, I am writing (painting) icons of the angels these
days. After finishing St. Michael and the Guardian Angel, I am close
to finishing Sts. Gabriel and Raphael. Angel Uriel is next in line. (Micheal: He who is like God; Gabriel: God is my strength; Raphael: Healer of God; Uriel: God is my light)
As I am working on the icons, I am asking all the angels these days to deliver
our prayer to God, especially St. Raphael.
Also there are some difficult and hard parts in writing icons which
I experience some discomfort. Often, I got spoiled
and complained about it. Lately, I have the grace to see that I
could offer it up for those we pray for and those who are suffering, which
I am grateful. So your name and your intention are heard and known
to the angels, Saints, the Blessed Mother and the Lord as well as all the holy
men and women I depict.
Have a blessed the fruitful Lenten Season
January 1, 2008
Happy Solemnity of the
Mother of God!
Minh's perpetual vow of chastity
"When I found him whom my heart loves, I took a hold of
him and would not let him go" - The Song of Song 3:4
"Lord, look with favor on your handmaid. She places in your
hands her resolve to live in chastity. You inspire her to take this vow; now
she gives you her heart.
... Lord, protect her who seeks your help. She desires to be strengthened by your
blessing and consecration. Defend her from the cunning and deceit of the enemy.
Keep her vigilant and on her guard; may nothing tarnish the glory of perfect
virginity, or the vocation of purity which is shared by those who are married.
Through the gift of your Spirit, Lord, give her modesty with right judgment,
kindness with true wisdom, gentleness with strength of character, freedom with
the grace of chastity. Give her the warmth of love, to love you above all
others. Make her life deserve our praise, without seeking to be praised.
May
she give you glory by holiness of action and purity of heart. May she love you
and fear you; may she love you and serve you. Be yourself
her glory, her joy, her whole desire. Be her comfort in sorrow, her wisdom in
perplexity, her protection in the midst of injustice, her patience in
adversity, her riches in poverty, her food in fasting, and her remedy in time
of sickness. She has chosen you above all things; may she find all things in
possessing you.
We ask this
through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
All: Amen." - Rev. Father John Eudes'
prayer to God during Minh's perpetual vow of
chastity.
December 25, 2007
A
BLESSED CHRISTMAS
AND A GRACE-FILLED NEW YEAR TO YOU AND YOURS
DEAR BROTHERS AND SISTERS.
MAY THE NEW BORN SAVIOR BRING GREAT JOY AND
PEACE TO YOUR HEART AND
MAY GOD'S LOVE AND SAVING POWER STRENGTHEN YOU
IN EVERY WAY AND IN ALL THAT YOU DO,
AMEN.
December
9, 2007
"Lord, every nation on
earth will adore you" is our Responsorial psalm for today, the second Sunday of
Advent.
I am awakening to the realization that prophet Jeremiah's prophesy is still to
be fulfilled. We live in the midst of it,
even though the shoot of Jessie has blossomed; the star of Jacob has risen, and
the Virgin has brought forth a Savior.
Christ came as a man; He came again in spirit and is dwelling among
us. We are waiting for his third coming
when he will be the eternal judge of the world.
May he, the Savior and the Praise of all his saints,
come anew in your heart give you great peace and joy and let you know that your prayer,
kindness and good deeds in helping others do make a big difference in the plan of his salvation
of all mankind. Amen.
May we receive the grace to open our
heart to God's invitation so that we can be transformed and ready when he comes
again. Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!
November
25, 2007 Happy feast of Christ the King!
"The
children of this age marry and remarry; but those who are deemed worthy to
attain to the coming age and to the resurrection of the dead neither marry or
are given in marriage. They can no
longer die, for they are like angles; and they are the children of God because
they are the ones who will rise."
It
will be great to be like angels. Since I
was a kid, I dream now and then that I learn how to fly and be able to fly to
either help others or to reach a certain destiny where it reminds me of God's
presence. By the grace of God; the
prayer of many and the generosity of their support, I finally finished my first
two Russian icons of St. Michael and the Guardian angel. I have the inspiration to paint the rest of
the angels with names: Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel, Raguel, Sariel, and Jeremiel.
Let's
pray that with the love and mercy of God, all of God's children will be among
those "who are deemed worthy to attain to the coming age and to the
resurrection of the dead" whose spirit will be like angels who are forever live
for God and with God through the ages. Amen.
October 26, 2007 update on oUR FIRST Annual GROUP retreat
(photos). While you are there, do visit our group News page and its Home
page.
October 16, 2007 (in
response to last Sunday Gospel readings)
Naaman humbled himself and plunged into the water seven times for he trusted
Elisha's words and believed that Elisha's God would heal him. The Lepers also listened and followed Jesus'
advice. In both cases, they were all
healed. God's mercy and unconditional
love cure one's infirmity through his humble faith. I wonder if we were Naaman and the lepers, we
would react the same and would not feel foolish and
offended to do the same to be cured?
God can cure us any time and through anything, but it seems we need to
be humble and have faith in him. While one's eyesight was restored by mud,
another's infirmity was cured by the touching of Jesus' cloak. We hear many were healed by drinking holy
water or touching the saints' relics.
What do I need the Lord to heal me and how are my humility and
faith?
Also
in these readings, we could see that even though God wanted nothing in return
for what he had done for these people, he appreciated their gratitude and
acknowledgement, especially their love.
"For when God loves, he desires nothing else than to be loved, seeing
that he loves for no other reason than that he might be loved" (Sermons on the
Canticle: Sermon 83.4 trans. Rev. Father).
I thank God for all that he has been doing for me personally. And indirectly, I owe my gratitude to him
through the goodness, kindness and love of his people whom I encounter in my
life. "The more you know yourself loved,
the easier you will find it to love in return." (St. Bernard's On Loving
God) For me (and I am sure it happens to many, too) unless I acknowledge and appreciate what
others have done for me, and learn to be generous myself, I will not learn to
understand what true love is in my relationship with others. Love is selfless and transcendent. It speaks
loud and clear to those who open their heart to it. For those who take others' caring for them
for granted; those who are self-centered and live in their own narrow world can
miss it all. (I have been there and done
that.)
In
one of his talks on Love, Rev. Father mentioned about a study where many who
took part were quite comfortable talking about how much they are loved by God,
but when they were asked to share their love for God, they had a hard time
talking about it. They could talk about
their love for neighbors but not God himself.
Having private vow and being consecrated to God, with his grace, I pray
that I always try to put him and his interest above all else. I can be nice and generous to my neighbors,
but loving God, to me, requires my very self whom I tend to please most! So I also pray that whatever I do, my chief
focus and reason are about him whose honor and glory belong. Even if it takes long for my heart and mind
to be enlightened by the true Light, I trust that he will be patient and teach
me for he is faithful because he cannot deny himself (Reading II) With this
thought, may all who vow to follow Christ, faithfully, will to lose themselves
for the sake of the Beloved Lord. The
Saints have done so. May they intercede
for us who desire to prefer nothing what so ever to Christ. (RB) Amen.
October 9, 2007
I praise you Lord for your mysterious loving mercy!
As
I continue to ride on the spiritual rollercoaster, I have the grace to see more
deeply my ups and downs and the many faults and weaknesses I was born with as well
as the abundant graces and blessings God has been bestowing on me. "Commit
your life to the Lord and he will help you"; "Trust in Him and he will act".
"I am glad you are exciting about everything
that is happening to you. He will work
miracles through you! You have asked
what plan or plans God has in mind for you through this generous and
unconditional gift you have received. It
seems to me he is using you and very soon through all of the things you are
doing, you will realize your compassion for the people you don't even know
will touch your heart. Then through this love, you will find your true
happiness. Only through love, can one find everlasting happiness,
peace and the real meaning in life."
September 18, 2007 (in
response to last Sunday readings)
Reading I
"I
see how stiff-necked this people is. Let
me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great nation."
God told Moses who replied:"Why O LORD, should
your wrath blaze up against your own people,...Remember you servants Abraham,
Isaac, and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, 'I will
make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land
that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.'
"
Psalm 51 3-4;12-13; 17,19
"Have
mercy on me, O God, in your goodness; in the greatness of your compassion wipe
out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt and of my sin cleanse me...
A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence, and your Holy Spirit take not form me...
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit; a heart contrite and humbled, O God,
you will not spurn. (Psalm 51 3-4;12-13; 17,19)
Reading II
"I
was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and arrogant, but I have been mercifully
treated..." (Tm 1:13)
Gospel
"What
man among you... would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the
lost one until he fins it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his
shoulders with great joy ... in just the
same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than
over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance."
There is a real, bonded,
personal and intimate relationship between God and his people through these
passages. They show me that love is an
on-going relationship of the lover and the beloved. It is a cross they both share. Their relationship is human and at the same
time intimately sacred. And only by the
way of the true cross, they are able to persevere, to forgive, to stay patient and faithful so that as one, they are
forever united and bonded by the everlasting love of the Father and the Son in
whom the Father has revealed his undying and transcendent love to us.
In the story of the
Prodigal Son, we so often feel connected with the younger son. I wonder how many of us feel for the older
son whom the father really asks much of his effort to be generous in love and detachment
in natural feelings.
September 3, 2007 Sorry,
it has been awhile since I last updated the news. Besides keeping up with the many
responsibilities and chores that this life demands, I have gone back to take
more Russian icon writing classes. Thank
you all for your prayer and support. Many
thanks to a special friend and benefactor who has
helped pay for these classes. The Lord
gives me this special grace and through her generosity, I have humbly learned how
to accept his gift with much gratitude and appreciation.
I just got back from one-week-babysitting my two adorable nephews whose family
lives in
As our spiritual group members are going their own ways with new opportunities
with fresh challenges, I go on to live my vocation with faith and hope in God's loving mercy. Besides
learning how to write an icon according to the Eastern Tradition, I am challenged
to pursue and finish an icon commission of Dorothy Day. Please say a prayer for me. Thank you and have a blessed fall!
July 8, 2007 We
had a few hot days back in June, but lately we are so grateful with the pleasant
weather we are having. It has been in the upper 70s. Praise the Lord for the special treat, and we
remember to pray for those who are experiencing the heat in the
I am grateful to God for keeping me quite busy these last few months; However,
I am trying to find a balance so I do not get burn out being too active, even
though charity often gets a hold of me.
It is not so easy, but who among us does not struggle with it? It is a sign that we are alive and responding
to God's calling.
My classes of learning how to write icons according to the Russian Tradition have
come to a halt. A few factors helped me come
to the decision. It sounds sad; However,
I am at peace knowing that the dear Lord seems to want me to take it seriously
enough to work on what I have learned before I should go on with it...
Praising God for his miraculous and holy gift to the human race. A great-granddaughter
shared this: "Recently I was confirmed that I carry holy
gene. My great-grandmother's body was exhumed
after almost 30 years and it was incorruptible!!! I was told that is God's unique way of showing us that she is a saint.
If you were I what would you do and think differently now that you are consciously aware of who
you are related to your saintly ancestor?"
May He keep you close to his precious heart and may
his love for you miraculously heal all your infirmities in body, spirit
and soul according to his will so you can live to love and serve him faithfully
in union with the whole
' "Even though I had no
time for myself today, I was very aware of the Lord's presence and my
desire to please him and be at his Sacred Heart. The many antiphons
we had sung in the last two days expressed how he was lonely in
suffering while giving everything to us unconditionally. His heart thirsts
for our love in return: "For when
God loves, he desires nothing else than to be loved, seeing that he loves for
no other reason than that he might be loved." (Sermon on the Canticle, 83.4, trans. Rev. Father John Eudes.) - St Bernard wrote.
I felt deep in my heart that the
Lord is pleased because I did all of these in his love and I too desire to love
and serve Him who so loves us to give us his Sacred Heart. When a
friend asked me how my day went, after I told her I was quite busy doing
charity in the honor of the Sacred Heart, she told me she experienced the
opposite. She felt wonderful and loved because she could spend all
day in peace and felt his loving presence so strongly being alone in
prayer. I could see how different we are. However, I feel that: to
feel being loved and to experience love are great, but they should not stop
there. We have to respond to his love by loving him in return.
How? Besides being united with him in spirit and in prayer, and
desire to do his will, we have to deny ourselves for the sake of love as you,
teacher, have
taught me. We have to allow his Sacred Heart to be accessible, present and to
shine before all by our selfless acts of love if there are opportunities to do
so. Experience love is great but unless we respond to it and love him in
return, even not with equal measure, we can't really comprehend true love and
love fully. You often said in your homilies that when we love someone, we
always try to find things to do to please the beloved in a selfless and
wholehearted way...
So I told the friend: " Enjoy
the experience you have while you can at this stage because once you are more
mature and grow in spirit, you love God in a more selfless way. For
instance, on his special feasts, you will desire to do things to please
him because you love him instead of asking for the grace to feel how
much you are loved by him."
We praise the Lord for a very grace-filled and successful first spiritual group
three-day retreat last weekend as a small community of sisters at New Helfta
with one heart and mind. I will have the
update with some photos as soon. Many
thanks for your prayer and support. All
for his love and his glory!
As
I needed the Holy Spirit to cheer me up, I spotted a young snapping turtle
on my way out after Church. It was lost and scared in the
Abbey parking lot (and may be was praying for help as I was for my spirit. Before I left the Abbey gate, my last words
to a priest were: "Pentecost is coming.
The Holy Spirit just has to come and cheer me up!") I did not
hesitate to try to help it. I picked it up and gently delivered it
to the edge of the pond. I feel so grateful and happy for him. If
he did not get crushed by a car soon, it would have taken him a long time to
find his way back there not to mention he was heading for the wrong direction!
As
I got home and reflected on it, I saw myself in that turtle.
How slow my car was rolling, like a turtle and it went gently into the
ditch. The Blessed Mother and my Guardian Angel were there
helping me as I was so ready to do anything for this turtle. My
Godfather told me awhile back when we saw a huge snapping turtle on
the road and I wanted to help him get across the road that never to get near a
snapping turtle for it is very nasty and dangerous. I did not think
the Blessed Mother and the guardian angel worried about my many
weaknesses, faults and wickedness!. I was not
afraid of that turtle even though he hissed at me :-)
God
can use anything to show us he cares, even a lost, helpless and unhappy turtle
:-) It does not know that but it made my day today.
We are many times more special than a turtle so we have to remember and not
lose heart when we feel sad, helpless or undeserving, etc.
May
the Spirit of the Lord come and bring us closer to Him. Amen."
Come Holy Spirit, come!
April 8, 2007
CHRIST
HAS RISEN!!!
Allelua Allelua Allelua!!!
May his resurrection be a solemn reminder
of our Christian faith,
joy, hope and especially love.
May the Father's love for the Risen Lord and for us
be our constant source of strength and hope as we go on our journey
seeking and loving Him and all his creation.
Amen.
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