by Catherine | Nov 20, 2014 | Faith, Family
I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but I’m a planner, and I’m writing this column for myself. I’m going to print it off, stick it to my refrigerator, and remind myself of these words when Advent is upon us. As our family grows, the Advent and Christmas seasons get a little more chaotic with each year. I thought I’d come up with some survival tips for those trying to keep the time holy…
![Put It To Work 6]()
by Catherine | Nov 17, 2014 | Faith
 |
| Put It To Work |
Happy Monday morning! It’s time for Put It To Work, our weekly opportunity to swap prayer intentions. The goal of Put It To Work is to actively unite our intentions to the cross for one another, putting the prayer intentions “to work”–especially in times of suffering (no matter how small).
Thank you for continuing to share your prayer intentions with me. My weeks have been transformed by the power of your prayers. Being able to lift up your intentions throughout the ordinariness of my days sanctifies and blesses my work. Thank you for the honor of entrusting some of the most private and painful intentions to me. I continue to pray for all of them.
Please put these intentions to work this week:
- Strength, peace, and comfort for those who struggle with depression, anger, and loneliness during the holiday season.
- For a softening of heart and a warm homecoming for those loved ones who have left the Faith
- Safe travels for my family members as they journey here on Saturday for our first Thanksgiving celebration in our new home
- As we prepare to host my (large!) family this week, for Philip and I to prioritize and remember what really matters when snafus arise
- For my patience as I learn how to coach Jane and Walt through the preschool years
- That Philip and I will continue to work everyday to further strengthen our marriage
I know you’ve been seeing those last 2 intentions on here week after week. I’ll probably keep asking for prayers for my patience and for continued strengthening of our marriage for a long, long time because, well, who doesn’t need more patience, and who doesn’t want an even stronger marriage?
What about you? What prayer intentions can I start “putting to work” for you this week? I’ll add them to my prayer journal and bring them with me to my prayer time throughout the week.
Thank you for praying for us! You’re in my prayers this week, too!
![Thirsting Thursday: "I'm Sorry"]()
by Catherine | Nov 13, 2014 | Faith, Marriage
I know, I’m crazy, but I have another harebrained idea for a new regular series on the blog. I’m calling it “Thirsting Thursday.” No, no, I’m not talking about the “Thirsty Thursday” from your college days. J.C. gave me the idea when he said, “I thirst” (John 19:28).
I don’t know about you, but by Thursday, I’m usually thirsting. With the weekend nearly in sight and the exhaustion of the week building up, I. Am. Thirsty. I’m thirsting for inspiration, for encouragement, for a break.
- Amen, brother!
On those Thursdays when I’m needing a little pick-me-up, I thought it would be fun to revisit my previous blog posts. I’ve been writing for three years, so I’ve accumulated all kinds of posts with fun dialogues from you readers. On Thirsting Thursdays, let’s go back to those treasured posts, pull out the nuggets, ask some new questions, add new insights, share how we’re STILL struggling, and encourage each other to keep going!
Today, let’s go back to my post called, “I’m Sorry.” I published it in August 2012. It’s all about how a Catholic Answers Live episode taught Philip and I how to readily forgive one another when we’re fighting.
Philip says, “It’s helpful if both people are willing to say they’re sorry because usually both people contributed to the problem. Even if you don’t feel like you’re wrong, saying you’re sorry doesn’t mean that you’re wrong, but that the way you approached making your point might have been the issue rather than what you were saying. Saying ‘I’m sorry’ doesn’t mean ‘I was wrong.'”
He had this to add: “Show the other person that you understand where they are coming from and show them that you understand their reaction. Keeping the focus on their feelings and not just on the problem helps you both to move on.
When you get to a standstill, focus on understanding where the other person is coming from rather than trying to make them understand your point of view. That helps us to move on faster and spend more time together.”
After you (re)read the post, I’d love to discuss:
- Do you and your spouse have a strategy for moving through conflict faster?
- Have you noticed any patterns to your fights?
- Are you guilty of keeping “I’m sorry score”?
- When was the last time you said the words, “I forgive you”?
- When was the last time you heard the words, “I forgive you”?
Cheers to you this Thirsting Thursday!
![Thirsting Thursday: “I’m Sorry”]()
by Catherine | Nov 13, 2014 | Faith, Marriage
I know, I’m crazy, but I have another harebrained idea for a new regular series on the blog. I’m calling it “Thirsting Thursday.” No, no, I’m not talking about the “Thirsty Thursday” from your college days. J.C. gave me the idea when he said, “I thirst” (John 19:28).
I don’t know about you, but by Thursday, I’m usually thirsting. With the weekend nearly in sight and the exhaustion of the week building up, I. Am. Thirsty. I’m thirsting for inspiration, for encouragement, for a break.
- Amen, brother!
On those Thursdays when I’m needing a little pick-me-up, I thought it would be fun to revisit my previous blog posts. I’ve been writing for three years, so I’ve accumulated all kinds of posts with fun dialogues from you readers. On Thirsting Thursdays, let’s go back to those treasured posts, pull out the nuggets, ask some new questions, add new insights, share how we’re STILL struggling, and encourage each other to keep going!
Today, let’s go back to my post called, “I’m Sorry.” I published it in August 2012. It’s all about how a Catholic Answers Live episode taught Philip and I how to readily forgive one another when we’re fighting.
Philip says, “It’s helpful if both people are willing to say they’re sorry because usually both people contributed to the problem. Even if you don’t feel like you’re wrong, saying you’re sorry doesn’t mean that you’re wrong, but that the way you approached making your point might have been the issue rather than what you were saying. Saying ‘I’m sorry’ doesn’t mean ‘I was wrong.'”
He had this to add: “Show the other person that you understand where they are coming from and show them that you understand their reaction. Keeping the focus on their feelings and not just on the problem helps you both to move on.
When you get to a standstill, focus on understanding where the other person is coming from rather than trying to make them understand your point of view. That helps us to move on faster and spend more time together.”
After you (re)read the post, I’d love to discuss:
- Do you and your spouse have a strategy for moving through conflict faster?
- Have you noticed any patterns to your fights?
- Are you guilty of keeping “I’m sorry score”?
- When was the last time you said the words, “I forgive you”?
- When was the last time you heard the words, “I forgive you”?
Cheers to you this Thirsting Thursday!
![Put It To Work 5]()
by Catherine | Nov 10, 2014 | Faith
Hey! Look! This is #5 in the “Put It To Work” series! This just *might* stick as a regular feature!
|
| Put It To Work |
It’s another Monday morning, so it’s time for Put It To Work, our weekly opportunity to swap prayer intentions. The goal of Put It To Work is to actively unite our intentions to the cross for one another, putting the prayer intentions “to work”–especially in times of suffering (no matter how small). Thank you for sharing your prayer intentions with me last week. I continue to bring your intentions with me to my prayer time.
My intentions this week:
- Remember my friends Amanda and Jonathan Teixeira? Today is their baby’s birthday!!! Please pray for them, their baby, and their courageous birth mother. Check out their blog for information on how to follow along today. Look for the hashtag #BabyTex. They have an 11:30 a.m. (Pacific Time) scheduled c-section. Please lift them all up in prayer at that time!
- For the repose of the souls of my Grandpa Gene and Philip’s Grandma Pat. They both had November birthdays, and we’re missing them this month.
- For the safety of all of the guys in the family as they prepare for their big hunting trip this weekend. Safety first, boys!
- For my patience as I learn how to coach Jane and Walt through the preschool years
- That Philip and I will continue to work everyday to further strengthen our marriage
What about you? What prayer intentions can I start “putting to work” for you this week? I’ll add them to my prayer journal and bring them with me to my prayer time throughout the week.
Thank you for praying for us! You’re in my prayers this week, too!
![Meeting Trent Horn]()
by Catherine | Nov 9, 2014 | Faith
Trent Horn, one of my favorite Catholic apologists and speakers, came to St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Lincoln yesterday. I got to attend his talk with my sister and brother-in-law. What a fun way to spend a Saturday morning! (A Christian apologist, from the Greek word meaning “to give an account,” is a person answering Paul’s call in 1 Peter 3:15 to always be ready to give a defense of the faith.)
- Trent Horn, photo from Catholic Answers Live
Trent is a regular guest on Catholic Answers Live. As I’ve mentioned several times before on the blog, Catholic Answers Live is a dynamo call-in radio show. It airs for two hours Monday-Friday. The show has a range of topics related to Catholicism. When Trent Horn is the guest, the hosts kiddingly say they “discriminate against the Catholic guests” and ask only non-Catholics to call-in. The show topics include:
(Click on any of the above links to listen to podcasts of the archived Catholic Answers shows with Trent Horn.)
I love it when Trent Horn is on Catholic Answers because of his unique ability to defend the Faith. When many Christians get riled up by the vitriol spewed at them from those that call themselves pro-choice, atheists, or anti-theists, Trent remains calm. By using the Socratic Method (asking a whole lotta good questions), Trent gently and lovingly exposes the weak or false beliefs of the caller. While many callers do not hang up convinced of the Catholic worldview, many thank Trent and Catholic Answers Live for offering a venue to discuss these matters in ways that are rarely achieved elsewhere. In fact, many of the callers say that they are leaving the call with more questions and that they look forward to talking again.
Yesterday at St. Michael’s, Trent shared a talk that he called a “Beginner’s guide to defending your faith.” Before the talk began, he greeted the guests and signed his materials in the vestibule. A few of our GodTeens call themselves atheists, so I thought it would be wise to get Trent’s DVD and book Answering Atheism. I noticed he had a DVD called “Why Believe in Jesus?” too, so I asked him which would be better for our GodTeens group. He said that he believed in getting the materials to as many people as possible, so he said that he would give me one for free if I bought the other. So, I got them all! He graciously signed the DVDs and book for me.
I love how he signed the book’s title page:
I wonder if Trent regularly listens to Fr. John Riccardo too, because Fr. Riccardo regularly says that Sirach 2 is going to be to focus of the eulogy at his funeral Mass. It was endearing to meet Trent in person and get to talk with him for a few minutes. I even got to ask him what he, his wife, and Pope Francis were giggling about in his Facebook cover photo. Ha!
Trent’s talk gave all of us helpful insights into how to defend the faith rationally. When we get stumped, he recommended these 4 steps:
- Pray, pray, pray!
- Ask the person, “What do you think?” about the topic you’re discussing.
- After they’ve answered, ask, “Why do you think that?”
- If you’re still stumped, say, “Let me think about it, and I will get back to you.”
- How adorable is the guy in the suspenders in front of me???
I appreciated the practical tips on how to defend the faith. I felt like I had gained a handy dandy toolbox for handling the tough questions that get hurled my way, especially with our GodTeens.
Trent took some time to answer questions at the end. I raised my hand and said, “Let’s say you are leading a small youth group, and a few of the young people struggle with anger toward God and doubt in His existence because of their childhoods. What would you say is the most convincing argument for a young person that God loves them and that they should have a relationship with Christ?”
I loved, loved, loved Trent’s answer. I have to paraphrase because I can’t remember every word he said, but the gist was this:
- First, give the rational defense of God’s creation of the world. God’s creation of the world and our existence demonstrates His love.
- Second, reflect on Christ’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection. God is omnipotent, so He didn’t have to send His Only Son to die for us, but He did. Aquinas reflects on God’s choosing to send Christ and have Him die on the cross. God’s choice to send Christ on our behalf is a visible, tangible way for us to remember that He loves us enough to do that (pointing to the crucifix).
We all want to know that we are loved, that we are precious, and that we matter. When we look at the crucifix, how can we not be convinced of His Love for us? Great answer, Trent!
Thank you for coming to Lincoln and for sharing your wisdom with all of us, Trent! You, your ministry, and the Catholic Answers apostolate are in our prayers!
