Wow, here is really moving article about a Planned Parenthood worker who had a conversion after watching an ultrasound of what really happens during an abortion. God bless her.
We also pray for all those who have died on this Feast of All Souls. We pray all the souls whom God has ever created. Most of humanity is deceased, we are the rare few who walk the face of the earth at this time in history. We also remember in a special way deceased priests. May they be brought into the fullness of Love and may they all rest in peace.
Monday, November 02, 2009
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Eduardo Verastegui makes new short film
If you haven't checked out the new short film by Eduardo Verastegui entitled
"The Butterfly Circus" you can see it here.
It was the GRAND PRIZE WINNER of the 2009 Doorpost Film Project. Very moving and a really true message of the power of healing and redemption- loved it! Check it out!
"The Butterfly Circus" you can see it here.
It was the GRAND PRIZE WINNER of the 2009 Doorpost Film Project. Very moving and a really true message of the power of healing and redemption- loved it! Check it out!
Making the world more beautiful
I was graced with the opportunity of seeing the concert pianist Lang Lang this afternoon. He was performing downtown and someone graciously offered a ticket to go and so off I went.
As I sat there listening the music of Beethoven, words really can't described how beautiful it was. Simply amazing. The really cool part for me though was watching Lang Lang play. This young man seems to be transported somewhere else within himself as he plays. He sits there in his sharp, black tailored suit, and listens to the orchestra, not just with his ears, waiting for his cue to enter, but with his whole body, seemingly lost in the beauty of the banquet of sound.
He plays so lightly with his hands, the music notes pour out from his fingertips as he closes his eyes and plays from his heart. That playing makes everyone else's world a little more beautiful. It sure made my afternoon more beautiful as I sat there absorbed in the talent that God gave him.
You know, I think we are all like that. Whenever we allow the gifts that God gave us shine, we make everyone else's world more beautiful. It doesn't help anyone to hide our gifts or to think that they are unimportant, who are we to judge that? God gives what he gives, that's His business, all we are to do is allow them to grow in order to let the beauty of God shine through them. We may never be internationally known concert pianists but that is unimportant. We all have gifts from God, gifts that will heal the world if we allow them to.
Some people have the gift of intelligence and organization. Some people have social gifts and generous hearts- the list in infinite because God is infinite. But whatever the gifts are, we must let them out and allow God to shine in us- allow His love to heal the world. He will do this, if we let Him.
What's your gift? Let it shine! It makes everyone's world more beautiful.
As I sat there listening the music of Beethoven, words really can't described how beautiful it was. Simply amazing. The really cool part for me though was watching Lang Lang play. This young man seems to be transported somewhere else within himself as he plays. He sits there in his sharp, black tailored suit, and listens to the orchestra, not just with his ears, waiting for his cue to enter, but with his whole body, seemingly lost in the beauty of the banquet of sound.
He plays so lightly with his hands, the music notes pour out from his fingertips as he closes his eyes and plays from his heart. That playing makes everyone else's world a little more beautiful. It sure made my afternoon more beautiful as I sat there absorbed in the talent that God gave him.
You know, I think we are all like that. Whenever we allow the gifts that God gave us shine, we make everyone else's world more beautiful. It doesn't help anyone to hide our gifts or to think that they are unimportant, who are we to judge that? God gives what he gives, that's His business, all we are to do is allow them to grow in order to let the beauty of God shine through them. We may never be internationally known concert pianists but that is unimportant. We all have gifts from God, gifts that will heal the world if we allow them to.
Some people have the gift of intelligence and organization. Some people have social gifts and generous hearts- the list in infinite because God is infinite. But whatever the gifts are, we must let them out and allow God to shine in us- allow His love to heal the world. He will do this, if we let Him.
What's your gift? Let it shine! It makes everyone's world more beautiful.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Rainy Days
Greetings from the rainy Northwest. It's days like this that make me want to sit on the couch and work endlessly on my computer to update our SOLT Sisters website....oh wait....I am already doing that. :) We have a new format now, simple and clean. More work to come!
Check it out-
www.soltsisters.org
Happy Autumn :)
Check it out-
www.soltsisters.org
Happy Autumn :)
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Sports Quandary...
Okay, so I just don't get it. I am not an attorney or anything but it seems to me that legal decisions don't always make sense and have little to do with justice or truth.
One NFL player drives drunk and hits and kills a pedestrian. He pays the family of the victim over 4 million dollars, is suspended from the NFL for 1 year and walks free from jail after serving only 24 days.
Another NFL player is convicted of running a dog fighting business and pays over 1 million dollars in damages, is suspended from the NFL for TWO years and is released from prison AFTER SERVING TWO YEARS for harming dogs.
Both of these are horrible crimes and we all make mistakes we regret but when is the loss of human life so reduced that killing a human being is seen as less of a crime than harming animals? I just don't get it.
Do you?
One NFL player drives drunk and hits and kills a pedestrian. He pays the family of the victim over 4 million dollars, is suspended from the NFL for 1 year and walks free from jail after serving only 24 days.
Another NFL player is convicted of running a dog fighting business and pays over 1 million dollars in damages, is suspended from the NFL for TWO years and is released from prison AFTER SERVING TWO YEARS for harming dogs.
Both of these are horrible crimes and we all make mistakes we regret but when is the loss of human life so reduced that killing a human being is seen as less of a crime than harming animals? I just don't get it.
Do you?
Sunday, August 09, 2009
God's Creation
We did something really cool the other day. We had a guest visiting us and so we went downtown to visit the Science Center. They had all sorts of interesting exhibits there but the one that struck me the most was the Tropical Butterfly Room.
It was a room with two sets of doors that was kept at about 85 degrees and contained all sort of tropical plants and flowers. Among the flowers, tropical butterflies fluttered about all over the room from ceiling to floor. It was absolutely breathtaking.
I watched as butterflies gracefully landed on the fragrant blossoms and delicately rested on the leaves. They were awash in colors of red, black, purple and more. So lovely, so peaceful.
The thing that really touched me was the fact that the guide said that the butterflies only live about two weeks. It occurred to me that only God would do something this extravagant. Only God would create these beautiful creatures that live such a short time and bring joy and delight.
I think if it was left up to us humans, we would be far more calculating. We would weigh the cost, the output, how useful the creatures would be, what we would get out of it, etc. but God isnt like that. He creates the sunsets in dazzling colors, creates animals we have not even discovered yet and simple butterflies that bring gentleness and glory. I love that.
Happy Sunday
It was a room with two sets of doors that was kept at about 85 degrees and contained all sort of tropical plants and flowers. Among the flowers, tropical butterflies fluttered about all over the room from ceiling to floor. It was absolutely breathtaking.
I watched as butterflies gracefully landed on the fragrant blossoms and delicately rested on the leaves. They were awash in colors of red, black, purple and more. So lovely, so peaceful.
The thing that really touched me was the fact that the guide said that the butterflies only live about two weeks. It occurred to me that only God would do something this extravagant. Only God would create these beautiful creatures that live such a short time and bring joy and delight.
I think if it was left up to us humans, we would be far more calculating. We would weigh the cost, the output, how useful the creatures would be, what we would get out of it, etc. but God isnt like that. He creates the sunsets in dazzling colors, creates animals we have not even discovered yet and simple butterflies that bring gentleness and glory. I love that.
Happy Sunday
50th Anniversary Jubilee Hymn
Here's a nice clip of the 50th Anniversary Jubilee Hymn sung by one of our SOLT Priests Fr. Vlad
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Youth on Fire...
Youth on Fire is a new webcast produced in part by young Catholics who are on fire for Christ. I met these young people last week as I was totally amazed at their level of faith, commitment and love. They totally rock and they inspired me so much. I love that they are bringing the Good News of Jesus to the youth over the internet.
Here is a link to a show they broadcast when they asked me to come on and share the call of God in my life but you can find out all about it (and way more interesting stuff!) at www.mycatholicfaith.org
God bless you!
Here is a link to a show they broadcast when they asked me to come on and share the call of God in my life but you can find out all about it (and way more interesting stuff!) at www.mycatholicfaith.org
God bless you!
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Conversion Clip
Here's a little clip on the conversion story of actor Eduardo Verastegui, in his own words. God bless him!
First Professions of Vows
Here is a beautiful clip of seven of our SOLT Sisters making their First Profession of Vows on July 13th in Corpus Christi, TX.
A study in contrasts...
Hello out there, long time, no blog. Sorry! Hopefully this year I will be able to bring you some great articles and other links to enrich your faith and your life. Until then though, I will muse a bit ;)
I went for a walk today and saw an interesting site. I live here in the Land O' Coffee and Microsoft, affectionately known as Seattle. I am sure you are familiar with the political situation on the West Coast and people in Seattle are quite proud of being known as "progressive" and "eco-conscious." I am all for saving the environment and feeding the poor but I saw something today that really captured the misguided attitude that many people, and not just here, seem to have.
As I was passing a parked car, I noticed it was covered with bumper stickers that proclaimed the owner's opposition to war and violence. Some of them read, "I am already against the next war" and "Join the military, you get to visit foreign lands and kill people." etc. There were several other stickers like this one and I was about to move on when I noticed that right in the middle of all these stickers was a white one that read: "We won't go back; Keep abortion safe and legal."
I actually had to back up a few steps and read it again to make sure I was seeing things correctly.
Wow. Somewhere in the minds of people is a HUGE disconnect. Killing innocent people in foreign lands is considered outrageous but killing innocent children in the wombs of their mothers should be "kept safe and legal"? Whatever "safe" and "legal" means, that's just jargon.
I looked around to see if the owner was in site because I wanted to ask them to tell me about their stickers. I wanted to know how they could oppose one war and promote the most saddening crime of humanity. I really just don't get it.
All life is precious from conception to natural death.
We save the whales and the owls but not the people? It's time for a change, true enough. A change from living in darkness to the light of life.
I went for a walk today and saw an interesting site. I live here in the Land O' Coffee and Microsoft, affectionately known as Seattle. I am sure you are familiar with the political situation on the West Coast and people in Seattle are quite proud of being known as "progressive" and "eco-conscious." I am all for saving the environment and feeding the poor but I saw something today that really captured the misguided attitude that many people, and not just here, seem to have.
As I was passing a parked car, I noticed it was covered with bumper stickers that proclaimed the owner's opposition to war and violence. Some of them read, "I am already against the next war" and "Join the military, you get to visit foreign lands and kill people." etc. There were several other stickers like this one and I was about to move on when I noticed that right in the middle of all these stickers was a white one that read: "We won't go back; Keep abortion safe and legal."
I actually had to back up a few steps and read it again to make sure I was seeing things correctly.
Wow. Somewhere in the minds of people is a HUGE disconnect. Killing innocent people in foreign lands is considered outrageous but killing innocent children in the wombs of their mothers should be "kept safe and legal"? Whatever "safe" and "legal" means, that's just jargon.
I looked around to see if the owner was in site because I wanted to ask them to tell me about their stickers. I wanted to know how they could oppose one war and promote the most saddening crime of humanity. I really just don't get it.
All life is precious from conception to natural death.
We save the whales and the owls but not the people? It's time for a change, true enough. A change from living in darkness to the light of life.
Year of the Priest
Welcome to this blessed year devoted to and in thanksgiving of the priesthood. We thank God for all priests, living and deceased, and the way they serve the people of God. May God shower His tender compassion upon them and bring them closer to His Divine Heart and the Immaculate Heart of His Mother Mary.
Reading Pope Benedict's Letter announcing the Year of the Priest here.
Reading Pope Benedict's Letter announcing the Year of the Priest here.
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