Gifts of Grace, The Book

Have you ever seen Mother Mary in a dream? Have you woken and not known if something was a dream or a visitation from Mother Mary? If the answer is yes, then this book is for you.

When I was less than six years old, Mother Mary came to me in a dream. In the dream, I walked from my aunt's home to ours. I also stopped by the bakery. Mother Mary and St. Joseph were sitting on the floor of the bakery. They had big warm smiles on their faces. They seated me between them. I felt loved and protected.

This was just a dream. Over the years, I've been through dangerous and hard situations and still survived them. I think both Mother Mary and St. Joseph always look after me.

A day or two before I accepted my new job in Dallas, I had another dream -- or possibly a visitation since it felt so real. In the dream, a small statue of Mother Mary sat on the bedside table and pointed in Mark's direction. Mother Mary looked as if she was trying to deliver a message to Mark.

Then, I felt her stand next to my bed. She covered me with a black garment. After a short time, sparkling diamonds and flowers appeared on the garment, which made me happy. I'm not sure what this means. I'm taking it as a sign of a hard journey followed by great success.

After reading the book, I had a better understanding of those two dreams. I'm blessed by Mother Mary.

---

Gifts of Grace

A Piece of Cake

Sometimes we ask ourselves: What did I do to deserve this?
Why does God let these things happen to me?
Here is the explanation…

A daughter tells her mother how everything is going wrong for her. She probably failed her Math exam or her boyfriend just dumped her for her best friend.

In times so sad, a good mother knows just the thing to cheer up her daughter. ’I’ll make a delicious cake.’ In that moment the mother hugged her daughter and walked her to the kitchen, while her daughter attempts to smile.

While the mother prepared the utensils and ingredients, her daughter sat across from her at the counter. Her mother asks, ‘sweetheart, would you like a piece of cake?’

Her daughter replies, ‘sure, mom, you know I love cakes.’

‘alright’ the mother said, ‘drink some of this cooking oil.’

Shocked, the daughter responded, ‘what?!? No way!!’

‘How about a couple of raw eggs?’ To this the daughter responded, ‘Are you kidding?’

‘How about a little flour?’

‘No, mom. I’ll be sick!’

The mother responded, ‘All of these things are uncooked and taste bad. But if you put them together, they make a delicious cake!’

God works in the same way. When we ask ourselves why does he make us go through these difficult times, we don’t realize what or where these events may bring us. Only He knows and he will not let us fail. We don’t need to settle for the raw ingredients, trust in Him and see something fantastic come about!!

God loves us so much He sends us flowers every spring.

He makes the sun rise every morning.

And anything you need to talk, he is there to listen!

He can live anywhere in the universe. But He chooses to live in your heart.

Happy Moments
Praise God.

Difficult Moments
Seek God.

Quiet Moments
Worship God.

Painful Moments
Trust God.

Every Moment
Thank God.

-- Unknown Author

Lisa's Testament of Faith

Sometimes, readers send me stories that got be shared with the other readers. We can all learn from each other. Today, I share with you Lisa's story:

I was born into a Church of England family. My parents had me christened in the church that they married in. I assumed that I was a Christian. My Mum had been a Sunday school teacher, and used to sing “Jesus” songs with me in the bath, but I only remember them making me feel pretty uncomfortable.

As a teenager, I started to explore my identity. I studied RE in school. RE taught all major religions, and it started me thinking very seriously about whether or not there was a god. I was especially impressed by the Sikh religion. I also remember a group of us exploring the occult until a friend warned us that it would cause us to go to hell. We found an encyclopedia picture of hell, it did not look fun and so we stopped.

I took my A levels in science. It was at this point that I decided that there had to be a God on intellectual grounds. Chemistry taught the theory of chaos, in which all things became more disorganized unless an outside force organized them. Also I recognized the logic of the periodic table of elements. No one but a higher being could have done these things. I remember asking my Christian friends how they had found God. I also prayed to him myself, asking him to find me, or at least let me know which religion had the right answers.

After A levels I went straight to University. I wanted to be a missionary doctor; perhaps by being very good I would find God. I started to question evolution, which had been a large part of my biology studies. A close friend became a Christian in college, and he completely changed over night. It was like watching a different person take over. In my eyes he became a better person, and yet I was not convinced that he had all the right answers. He kept telling me that I needed to be born again. He invited me to his baptism and the pastor asked everyone to stand up if they wanted to receive Jesus as savior. I remember shrinking in my seat and wondering what my new university friends would think of me. At the same time I found myself standing up. At this point in time I was aware of a deep hunger to belong to God, and an awareness that I had sinned. I felt a relief after standing up, and a realization that Jesus was God. This was a completely new experience.

Several weeks later I was praising God, and became aware of a strong force upon me. I felt afraid and very ecstatic at the same time. I started to praise God in a strange language that I had never learnt.

However, I soon became unwell. I suffered from very severe anxiety. My Mother blamed my new faith and insisted that I never again go to church. My bible was burned. I felt worse and further away from God than ever before. I continued in my pre-Christian life, having no power to control my sin. I had a complete fear of death and hell.

For ten years I actively shunned the church. My Mother died and I got married and had my first child. It was after my son was born that I decided to return to my search for God. I went (very tentatively) back to church. I got baptized. I worked harder and harder to find peace with God, eventually getting involved with multiple church projects. You see, God had dealt with my sin, but it was not the sin but the sinner that needed to be dealt with. It was not what I did but what I was that was the problem.

I remember looking seriously at the 10 commandments. I had broken many of them over the years, but now I had reformed myself and could seriously manage them all, except “thou must not covet”-I remember feeling really perplexed when I thought about this, it felt impossible, there was something badly wrong. Then and there I decided to give up all my church work. If I could not keep the 10 commandments, then church work was a waste of time. Besides I was tired of it all, it felt like too big a job. I began to pray, I begged God to change me. I wanted to become acceptable to him. I realized that I was a sinner. God showed me just how badly wrong I was, in every area of my life. He also gave me the ability to turn away from my sin. I remember one night he woke me, I was really afraid to be in his presence, because He is a holy God and in comparison I am just a worm (I was reminded of Isaiah having an experience of God, in which he cried out “Woe is me, for I am a sinful man and I live within a nation of sinful men and my eyes have seen the king, the Lord almighty”). I thought that I would die as his holiness was totally overpowering, and my only plea was that Jesus is my savior.

The next morning it was like a complete miracle. I was really free. I have never since felt that overwhelming fear of death. I now know the peace that passes all understanding. I can truly sing “my chains fell off, my heart was freed, I rose went forth and followed thee,” I actually join with Newton singing “ amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” I know that in this life I will never be perfect, but the power of the cross can overcome. In him there is a power to change that is quite beyond description. He has taken me beyond a set of rules and adopted me into his family. Suddenly the New Testament makes perfect sense. Over the years that have passed, I have repeatedly asked the Lord at what point in my life he saved me and his answer has remained the same-2000 years ago, on the cross.

-- Lisa

Thank you Lisa for taking the time to write me your story. I really appreciate it.

The Honorable Homeless Man

If you believe there are "no good people" left in this world, the following story may change your mind:

DETROIT - A homeless man who returned $21,000 worth of saving bonds he found in a trash bin is finding out how much honesty can pay off.

Charles Moore, 59, had been searching for returnable bottles last week when he came across the 31 U.S. savings bonds. He turned them in to a homeless shelter, where a staff member tracked down the family of the man who had owned them.

For his good deed, the bond owner’s son gave Moore $100, but residents around Michigan and in other states decided his action merited a more generous reward.

So far, Moore has received over $4,000.

Read more...

As Jesus said in his Sermon on the Mount:

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are the meek: for they shall posses the land.

Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who follow Moore's example.

The Contact Lens and The Ant

 
I received this story from my cyber friend PebblePie:

Brenda was a young woman who was invited to go rock climbing. Although she was scared to death, she went with her group to a tremendous granite cliff.

In spite of her fear, she put on the gear, took a hold on the rope, and started up the face of that rock Well, she got to a ledge where she could take a breather. As she was hanging on there, the safety rope snapped against Brenda's eye and knocked out her contact lens. Well, here she is on a rock ledge, with hundreds of feet below her and hundreds of feet above her. Of course, she looked and looked and looked, hoping it had landed on the ledge, but it just wasn't there. Here she was, far from home, her sight now blurry. She was desperate and began to get upset, so she prayed to the Lord to help her to find it.

When she got to the top, a friend examined her eye and her clothing for the lens, but there was no contact lens to be found. She sat down, despondent, with the rest of the party, waiting for the rest of them to make it up the face of the cliff. She looked out across range after range of mountains, thinking of that Bible verse that says, "The eyes of the Lord run to and from throughout the whole earth." She thought, "Lord, You can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and You know exactly where my contact lens is. Please help me."

Finally, they walked down the trail to the bottom. At the bottom there was a new party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff.

One of them shouted out, "Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?" Well, that would be startling enough, but you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across the face of the rock, carrying it.

Brenda told me that her father is a cartoonist. When she told him the incredible story of the ant, the prayer, and the contact lens, he drew a picture of an ant lugging that contact lens with the words, "Lord, I don't know why You want me to carry this thing. I can't eat it, and it's awfully heavy. But if this is what You want me to do, I'll carry it for You."

I think it would probably do some of us good to occasionally say, "God, I don't know why you want me to carry this load. I can see no good in it and it's awfully heavy. But, if you want me to carry it, I will."

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

-- Josh and Karen Zarandona

OK God, I get it now.
 

Take My Son

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier.

The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.

He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art."

The young man held out this package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."

The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears.

He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.

"Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift."

The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.

On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son.. Who will bid for this picture?"

There was silence.

Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one."

But the auctioneer persisted. "Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?"

Another voice shouted angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!"

But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son? "

Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting." Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.

"We have $10, who will bid $20?"

"Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters."

"$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?"

The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.

The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!"

A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now let's get on with the collection!"

The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over."

"What about the paintings?"

"I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings."

"The man who took the son gets everything!"

God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: "The son, the son, who'll take the son?" Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

-- Unknown Author

Two Traveling Angels

By Unknown Author

Two traveling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the mansion's guest room. Instead the angels were given a small space in the cold basement.

As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied, "Things aren't always what they seem."

The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest. When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income, lay dead in the field.

The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel how could you have let this happen? The first man had everything, yet you helped him, she accused. The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.

"Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel replied. "When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn't find it."

"Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I gave him the cow instead. Things aren't always what they seem."

Sometimes that is exactly what happens when things don't turn out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need to trust that every out come is always to your advantage. You just might not know it until some time later...

God Still Answers Prayers

I'm not sure the following story is true. I post it here for its good meaning and message:

A young man had been to Wednesday night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, "Does God still speak to people?" After service he went out with some friends for coffee and pie and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways.

It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, "God...If you still speak to people speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey." As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, God is that you?" He didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. "Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk." It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience.

He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home. As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, "Turn down that street. This is crazy he thought and drove on past the intersection. Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, "Okay, God, I will".

He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi-commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either the businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed. Again, he sensed something, "Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street." The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat.

"Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid." Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the door, "Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here. "He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, "Who is it? What do you want?" Then the door opened before the young man could get away. The man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep.

"What is it?" The young man thrust out the gallon of milk , "Here, I brought this to you. "The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway speaking loudly in Spanish. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, "We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk." His wife in the kitchen yelled out, "I asked Him to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?"

The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put in the man's hand. He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face. He knew that God still answers prayers.

Something To Think About

Last week was full of surprises in my household. A regular reader sent me the following story. It really helped me when I needed it the most:

A poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was unable to work, they had seven children and they needed food.

John Longhouse, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said, "Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can." John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store.

Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family.

The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, "Do you have a grocery list?" Louise replied, "Yes sir." "O.K." He said, "put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries."

Louise, hesitated a moment with a bow ed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed.

The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down. The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said grudgingly, "I can't believe it."

The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance. So he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more. The grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement.

It was not a grocery list. It was a prayer which said, "Dear Lord, you know my needs and I am leaving this in your hands".

The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store.

The customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said, "It was worth every penny of it."

Only God Knows how much a prayer weighs. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost but a lot of rewards.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy :)
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.

No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but He did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears, and light for the way.

Disappointments are like road bumps, they slow you down a bit but you enjoy the smooth road afterwards. Don't stay on the bumps too long. Move on!

When you feel down because you didn't get what you want, just sit tight and be happy, because God has thought of something better to give you.

When something happens to you, good or bad, consider what it means. There's a purpose to life's events, to teach you how to laugh more or not to cry too hard.

You can't make someone love you, all you can do is be someone who can be loved, the rest is up to the person to realize your worth.

It's better to lose your pride to the one you love, than to lose the one you love because of pride. We spend too much time looking for the right person to love or finding fault with those we already love, when instead we should be perfecting the love we give.

Never abandon an old friend. You will never find one who can take his place. Friendship is like wine, it gets better as it grows older.

Presence of God

The author of the following viewpoint is unknown. Sorry :-(

Martin Luther King tells how he had his own labor. In the height of the struggle for civil rights for the black people, one night he suddenly reached a rock bottom. He felt he could not go on. He was tired of the insults and injuries. In the state of exhaustion and despair, he threw himself on his knees before God and prayed like this:

Lord, I have taken a stand for what I believe is right.
But now I'm afraid.
The people are looking to me for leadership.
If I stand before them without courage or strength,
they too will falter.
But I am at the end of my powers.
I have nothing left.
I've come to the point where I can't face it alone.

He said at that moment he experienced the presence of God in a way he had never experienced before. On the strength of that experience, he was able to continue the strength.

Shared Prayer

I found the following story on beliefnet and thought to share it with you:

When I was growing up, I lay in my bed every night and silently said my prayers. In synagogue, during the time for private contemplation, I could not hear a whisper, a sigh, or a plea from those around me -- only the organ playing. As an adult, I prayed late at night, my head under the covers. For me, prayers were private, on the list of taboo topics, along with sex and money.

When my friend Bev asked me if I wanted to be prayer partners, I stared at her.

"What does that mean?" I asked her.

"We pray together every week," she said. "We each write down our prayers, then read them aloud to each other."

"Read them aloud?" I repeated. That seemed like some sort of heresy—blithely stating my deepest spiritual thought to another mortal.

"It's quite powerful," Bev assured me. "It adds energy to your prayers." My palms were wet, my mouth was dry. I was both scared and curious. Bev and I held different religious doctrines: hers was Catholic and mine was Jewish. We would be directing our prayers to different names —- Bev to her Jesus, me to my God. Bev was used to praying with others; but I had never done so. What would it be like to pray together? How could I reveal even to a friend my very private conversations with God? Yet I had been reading about the power of collective prayer and the idea intrigued me. I agreed to try it.

We met a week later, early in the morning, before work. Our chapel was a coffee shop. Our spiritual music was supplied by the espresso machine. Bev had a short list of nondenominational responsive readings as a warm-up. How odd, to sit over a cup of coffee and read, "I surrender. I know that I need God's help." How unusual to sit among the bagels and pastries and ask out loud for help and forgiveness.

"Now, think of things you usually pray for and write them down," Bev instructed. My mind went blank. Though I prayed every night, those prayers seemed too childish and mundane to write down.

I smoothed my paper and fiddled with my pen. The cash register clanged. The red-cheeked baby across from me threw her pacifier on the floor. It tumbled near my feet. I picked it up and handed it to her mom. Behind me a newspaper rattled as a woman with wild gray hair turned to the features section. "You're not listening," a blond woman told a silver-haired man two tables over. Usually when I prayed, the world stopped or at least seemed to. But this time my prayers were not cloistered and hallowed; they were just another conversation in this busy coffee shop.

I picked up the pen and wrote "I pray for self-love." I took a deep breath. "I pray for more fun," I wrote. "I pray for meaningful work." I forced myself to put at least five prayers on my list. Was that too many, too greedy? I wondered.

"Are you done?" Bev asked.

I nodded, my voice in hiding.

"Want me to go first?" Bev asked. I nodded again. Bev read, "I thank God for my blessings. I pray to check in with God throughout the day and to listen to God's guidance."

As I wrote down her words, I savored the prayer. What a good idea, checking in with God. I had never thought to make that desire so intentional. Then I wondered, was there a copyright on prayers? How would Bev feel if I added that prayer to my list? She read another prayer: "I want to embrace beauty and order and release clutter with ease and grace." I thought of my kitchen, my garage, my basement-teaming with clutter. Yes, that too. I was practically bouncing in my seat as I read Bev's prayers back to her.

When it was my turn to read my own prayers it took me three tries to get the first sentence out. Bev wrote it down. I stumbled over the second sentence and marched my way through the third. I felt I had conquered something large when I finished reading her my list. It was quite remarkable, listening to her read aloud my sacred secret prayers as though they were already true.

"I love your prayer for a more compassionate world," she said. "I'm going to add that to my prayers."

I smiled, as if I'd just landed on my feet after a triple somersault.

We were just finishing when Carol, one of my coworkers, walked up to our table, to-go sack in hand, newspaper tucked under one arm, laptop slung over the other. "Hey, you seem pretty intent. What are you doing, cramming for an exam or something?"

I felt as if I'd just been caught peeling off my panty hose in public. I put my arm over my list of prayers and thought of saying, "We're just talking." But telling even a little lie during a prayer time seemed ill advised.

"Well," I said, looking at Bev for guidance, "we're, uh, praying." I watched Carol's face carefully.

"Good for you. I used to pray with a group on Saturday mornings. I really miss that," Carol said and walked away.

"Want to meet again next week?" Bev asked, putting her papers in her briefcase.

I nodded. I was already thinking of all the prayers I was going to add, real-life stuff that I wanted help and support for.

Bev and I have now been praying together for nine years. I still love silent prayer and I still do a lot of it. But I also love the vulnerability and openness of sharing my prayers. Writing down my prayers makes them more real for me. Saying them aloud makes me feel closer to God. Hearing Bev echo back my deepest spiritual desires makes me feel like they are already coming true.

Beyond the individual prayers, I like our intention: a Jew and a Catholic, gathering to make a "joyful noise unto the Lord," praying for ourselves and for a kinder, more compassionate world.


-- Deborah Shouse

Let's try to pray together?

The Meaning of Prayer

The other day, I found the most inspiring post I've read in a long time. I thought to share it with you.

I think it is true for every cancer patient to think, “Why did this happen to me?” I know I did. Why couldn’t Osama binLaden get cancer and die in some cave in Afghanistan? Why did G-d allow me to get cancer and not some scumbag terrorist?

I don’t have an answer to that. The best thing I can come up with is, it just is. We live in an imperfect world, and sometimes you get hit in the noggin with a curve ball.

Read more...

No matter what your religion is, prayer is an important part of our lives.

Footprints

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene,he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of foot - prints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me."

The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."


-- Author Unknown