Sabbath Moments~Consistency

My friend and fellow blogger, Colleen hosts this meme each Saturday. She invites her readers to reflect on and share their Sabbath Moments; those quiet moments where we can be still and know that God is God. Click this image on my sidebar to visit Colleen, read other Sabbath Moments and perhaps share your own.
This week for me it is all about remaining consistent and faithful to some practices I began last week. Letting the day wear off before diving into evening prayer. This has helped not only my prayer life, but my overall stress levels as well. I noticed I was also beginning to neglect my Advent spiritual reading a bit, my new evening routine has helped me to get back into that too.
The other is attending Mass on Friday evening instead of the morning. This allows me to get to church about an hour before Mass begins to spend some quiet quality time with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. It doesn't get much better than that!

Touch of Our Savior's Hand ~ It's All In The Letting Go

As we come to the end of another week, it is good to look back to see and be aware of just how and where God has touched our lives. Join me here each Friday and share you God Moment in a post or a comment. God lavishes us with His attention~He just asks for a little of ours in return.
So where have you felt the touch of our Savior's hand this week?

This past Monday I was responsible for coming up with a prayer focus for a monthly prayer meeting. I needed to choose a Scripture passage and then provide some kind of meditation relating to the passage.
It should have been easy, it was the eve of the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Well me being one of our Lady's more rebellious daughters, I was looking for something else. As is usually the case when I try to carry out my will instead of God's, I was coming up with nothing. So I gave in to my Mother who of course knows better than I do and chose the Scripture passage on the Annunciation (Luke 1:26~38). OK that part was easy, now I need to write a meditation. As a backup I have a book of meditations by Ken Gire, Moments With The Savior. However the meditation that went with this passage was a bit too long for what I needed. This is all going on Sunday night! Well sometimes it is just best to lay things aside for awhile. Around 10pm I officially gave up for the evening and went to bed.
That brings us to Monday. All day in work as the hours ticked away, I was just praying to the Holy Spirit to come and do His thing. Finally at around 3pm I decided to just pick up my pen and write whatever came. The fruits of all this can be found over at Daughter of the King. I decided to post the meditation there.
My point in all this is that I just needed to let go of my will and give in to God's, and in this case Mary's. As soon as I did that, the Holy Spirit did come and do His thing. This all happening at 3pm, the Hour of Mercy, was not lost on me either.
As a side note, the other thing I did at our meeting was allow everyone there to choose their patron saint for 2010. I just put slips of paper with a saint's name on them in an envelope and let everyone pick one. In reality the saint picks you. I have some saints left. If you would like me to pick one for you let me know.

Modesty

I came across this quote from the Catechism today. I loved what it had to say. It seems to be an all encompassing definition and one that is desperately needed for our times; one that desperately needs to be taught to our young men and women. I think if they and all of us understood modesty in these terms, the immorality we see in today's culture would be vastly decreased.
Since I have written here on this topic before, I thought I would share the quote.

"Modesty protects the mystery of persons and their love. It encourages patience and moderation in loving relationships; it requires that the conditions for the definitive giving and commitment of man and woman to one another be fulfilled. Modesty is decency. It inspires one's choice of clothing. It keeps silence or reserve where there is evident risk of unhealthy curiosity. It is discreet."
~Catechism of the Catholic Church #2522

Thank God In All Things

My dear blogger friend Judy hosts this meme each Wednesday. In it she invites us to count and share our blessings. Click the horn of plenty on my sidebar to read the blessings of others and add your own.
I will begin my thanks by thanking Judy for hosting each week, for her wonderful blogs and for her friendship.

"...give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
~1Thess. 5:18

11"> Sometimes it is easier to thankful than others. It is during those times that the above Scripture verse usually comes to mind.
I almost didn't post today because I am feeling extremely under the weather, but then realized that was the Evil One trying to get in my way. Nice try, cause here I am!
Here are my blessings for this week:

Heavenly Father,
I thank you for freedom; the freedom to love and worship You openly. I thank You for minor health discomforts that help me to appreciate feeling well.
I thank You for the grace you have given me to allow Your Spirit to work in my life.
I thank You for your constant care and providence in all the areas of my life.
I thank you for answered prayers; especially the little ones.
I thank You for helping me to see that love knows no bounds~ not even death!
Above all I thank You for the gift of Your Son who gives Himself to me each morning in Holy Communion.
Thank You, Father in Jesus' name in all things.
Amen.

Music Monday~Give Me Jesus

Well here we are at Monday again which means it is time for Music Monday hosted by our friend Shawntele at Saved By Grace. Click this musical image on my sidebar to visit Shawntele's wonderful blog. You can listen to other musical posts as well as share your own.
Thanks for getting our week started with this fun meme, Shawntele.

This week I thought I would post Jeremy Camp's Give Me Jesus. Really, could we ask for anything more? I will leave it at that and let you enjoy this beautiful song.

Happy Monday!

Celebrate Friendship~A Friendship Bouquet

Ruth at Daily Divine invites us to celebrate God's beautiful gift of friendship each Saturday. Click this lovely image on my sidebar to visit Ruth, read about the friends of others and find the details for joining in yourself.

This week I am going to do something a bit different, but still play by Ruth's basic rules :) There were several people I could have written about, but these three ladies kept coming to mind and heart.
I began blogging a year ago with my Daughter of the King blog. The blog you are reading now will turn one in February, but I digress. My point in this is that the three ladies I wish to recognize in this post have been with me since my humble blogging beginnings and have provided encouragement, support, and fellowship in faith each in their own unique way. The fact that we have never met in person has not stopped unique friendships from forming. Oh~you may be wondering who they are. There names are Anne, Colleen and Judy. Together they are like a beautiful bouquet of wildflowers~adding a splash of brilliant color to life while individually they have their own unique and beautiful qualities.

Here are my gifts for each of them:



For Anne~Sea glass to add to her beautiful collection







For Colleen~ Snowflakes. She mentioned something about missing the seasons in New England.









For Judy~Some very special candles to remind her of Christ's presence. Judy, Click the link(Christ's presence) to find out more about these beautiful candles.











Dear Anne, Colleen and Judy,
I thought about doing a separate post for each of you, but as I said you have all been faithful followers and friends from the early days of my blogs and you really are like that beautiful bouquet of wildflowers I mentioned earlier.
Anne, with your sensitivity and gift with words. Colleen, with your insight and reflection, and Judy, you have been my own personal cheerleader encouraging me every step of the way not only in my blogging, but in my faith journey as well.
Like I said, I could have done a post on each of you, but for some reason I felt together was better.
Thank you to each of you for the gift of your friendship in the Catholic blogging community and in faith.
Hugs & Blessings to you!

Karinann

By the way for those of you who have not met these lovely ladies, you can check out their wonderful blogs by clicking the following links:
Anne
Colleen
Judy

The Saturday Evening Blog Post~#4

Elizabeth Esther is our lovely hostess or this monthly meme where she invites us to share our favorite post from the previous month. Join her and other bloggers here the first Saturday of each month.Click the link to read other posts and for details on how to join in the fun. It's a great way to meet others in the blogging community as well as showcase your own blog. Thanks for hosting, Elizabeth!

This is a post from my Daughter of the King blog. In The Teacher Becomes The Student, I wrote about an interesting conversation I had one night with one of my 17 year old students. I think we both walked away from it learning a little something from each other.
Let me know what you think.

Sabbath Moments~A Calming Ritual

Colleen at Thoughts On Grace hosts this relaxing meme each Saturday. She invites her readers to share their moments when they slow down to find God in the ordinary of each day. Click this image on my sidebar to visit Colleen and read about the Sabbath Moments of others. The think about sharing your own.
Thanks for hosting, Colleen!

This week I began a new ritual for God and myself each evening. After arriving home from work I take a warm, relaxing shower to get rid of not only the physical grit and grime of the day, but also the emotional. I get into my comfy jammies and robe and sit down with my Bible and Magnificat for Evening Prayer. If I really want to add to the experience, I'll light a scented candle, usually vanilla, and play some chant in the background.
Until this week, I would come home and immediately start Evening Prayer. It was becoming mechanical and I was beginning to feel like I was doing it to get it over with. God deserves better than that from me! My new way prepares me for prayer; it allows me to shake off the dust of the day first. I feel like I am actually praying the prayer rather than just going through the motions. I'm sure our Lord is happier about this as well.

Touch of Our Savior's Hand~ A Mary Moment

Friday is upon us once again, and so it is time to reflect on the week and see where we have felt our Savior's gentle touch in our lives. God speaks to us and enters our lives in so many ways. This meme helps me to be alert, aware and attentive to His movements and promptings on my life. I invite you, my readers, to share your own God Moment here in a post or a comment.

God often speaks to me through others. This week He chose to speak to me through His Mother.
Last Sunday was the first Sunday of Advent. My parish has the beautiful custom of praying the Liturgy of the Hours Evening Prayer before the Saturday evening Vigil Mass so this was the Mass I attended.
However, my God moment did not come during the Evening Prayer, but during Communion. After receiving our Blessed Lord I returned to my pew and began my usual prayer of thanks. It was at this moment that our choir director began singing Ave Maria. Almost instantly I found myself kneeling in Mary's presence. Please don't misunderstand, I did not have a vision; I just felt her presence and an overwhelming peace. Between the beauty of the music and the moment itself, I could not hold back the tears. This was one of those rare, grace~filled consoling moments.
Before every Mass, I always ask Our Lady to help me receive Jesus as she did, with complete love, humility and purity of heart. In this beautiful moment, it was as if our Lord answered that prayer, through His Mother, instantly.
Thank you Jesus and Mary for this beautiful moment.
While I can't reproduce the moment, I can reproduce the music. Here are The Priests singing Ave Maria.

Thankful and Blessed In Faith

My good friend Judy of A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings and BenMakesTen is the hostess of this meme where she invites her readers to share their blessings each Wednesday. Click the horn of plenty on my sidebar to visit Judy, to read the blessings of others and to add your own. Be sure to visit BenMakesTen while you are there as well. Thanks for hosting, Judy!

Heavenly Father,
I thank you for my childlike faith that allows me to see and hear you everywhere and in everything.
This faith that allows me to see and hear what others are still seeking.
Father it has been your gracious will to reveal to me Your Son, Jesus who is Your love and Your face revealed to me.
I thank You Father for blessing my eyes and ears to see and hear what those greater than myself still can not see and hear.
I thank You for the humility to come to You in my need and poverty; it is all I have to offer You, but in Your great love for me, You fill it with Your very self through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.
~Prayer based on Luke 10:21~24

Music Monday~Magnificat

It is time for Music Monday once again. Shawntele at Saved By Grace has made facing the new week a little easier and more pleasant by hosting this musical meme each Monday. Click this image on my sidebar to visit Shawntele. While you are there, you can listen to other musical posts and add your own as well.
Thanks, Shawntele for brightening up our Monday mornings with your sweet smile and a little music.

As is usually the case when I go to post for this meme, my intentions are not what the Holy Spirit has in mind. In this case though I think Our Blessed Mother wanted to chime in. I was looking for something in particular by the Christian artist Todd Agnew. When I typed his name in the YouTube search box, this video came up.
While it may be his music, it is clearly not Todd's voice. In fact there is no mention of who the female vocalist is. (If anyone knows, do tell)
The song is too beautiful not to share, and far be it for me to veto Mary's musical vote :) The video shows scenes from the movie The Nativity.
Sometimes I tend to think of Mary as this woman who always had it all together just because she was chosen to be our Lord's mother. I tend to forget that she was called to do so as a very young Jewish girl who found life difficult and scary at times just as we all do. The scenes from this movie are a good reminder of this.
Enjoy this prayerful moment with Our Lady and as we enter into the season of Advent, let us also remember that we too are called by God to bring Christ to the world~well at least our own little corner of it.

Christmas Playlist

I have created a new playlist for the Christmas season. Personally I think radio stations start playing the stuff way too early and often it is more the secular rather than the sacred. Since I don't want to bore anyone with too much of a good thing, I have turned the automatic play function off, so if you want to listen, just hit the play button. There are some traditional favorites as well as some not so traditional, and even some traditional done in an nontraditional arrangement.
Hope you enjoy!

Celebrating Friendship~My Sister, Kristine

Ruth at Daily Divine has begun this lovely way of sharing and celebrating God's very special gift of friendship. She invites her readers to share about someone special in their lives. Click this beautiful image on my sidebar to visit Ruth, read about the friends of others, and maybe share your own.
Thank you, Ruth for helping us share one of God's treasured gifts.

The friend I would like to tell you about this week is my sister, Kris. We are the only two children in our family so we grew up together being very different yet still close. We are three and a half years apart in age; she being the younger. I think this difference in age made it easy for us to get along. If you ask my Mom, she will tell you that we never really fought; sibling rivalry was never an issue for us.
Now that we are grown women, our lives have gone in different directions, but whenever we are together, it is like no time has passed between us; we easily pick up where we left off.
Kris is not only the best sister anyone could have, she is a great friend as well.
And we still enjoy driving our parents a bit crazy(in good ways:).
My special treat for Kris are these lovely spa goodies. She just loves beautiful scents and calming treatments.Dear Kris,
I am so glad that God has given you to me as a "little sister" and friend. We may not see or even talk too each other as much as we used to, but we still have great fun together when we are together. I also know that no matter what, you are always there for me, just as I am always here for you. Growing up in our house was not always easy so I am glad we had each other to see us through. I'm glad we can now laugh at all those conversations you wold start with," I have to show or tell you something..." That always meant you had been up to no good :)
I am looking forward to our sister day at the concert and dinner in a few weeks.
I know how much you love spa goodies. I hope you find calming enjoyment from these.

Love you lots!
Sis

Sabbath Moments~Living In The Moment

Colleen from Thoughts On Grace hosts this reflective and relaxing meme each Saturday. She invites us here to share our Sabbath Moments with her and her readers. The thing I love about this meme is that it helps me to be more aware of those moments God calls me to share with Him. Click this image on my sidebar to visit Colleen's blog and add your own Sabbath Moments.
Thanks, Colleen for keeping me aware, alert, and attentive to these moments.

My Sabbath Moments for this week are really just my living out the ordinary of every day. I had the day off from work on Monday which I used to recuperate from working a retreat the previous weekend, Tuesday was a usual workday, and Wednesday was the last day of the work week. My Thanksgiving Day was quiet; it was just my sister and me, my parents and my Mom's cousin. Today I stayed away from the stores (I hate shopping in malls; I shop online) and simply went about some things around the house. I spent a good amount of time working on a new, but simple design for this blog for Advent. As time consuming as this can be because I try a hundred different things before I settle on something, I really get lost in the somewhat creative process.
So as you can see, nothing special this week, but trying to rest in God in the sacred of the ordinary. Hope I didn't bore you too much :)

New Blog Button!

In addition to changing my blog background to purple for Advent, I also decided to create an official blog button for Blessings. Just copy and paste this photo if you care to put it on your sidebar. I tried the code stuff and couldn't get it to work right so I figured this was easier for everyone.
The picture is courtesy of All Posters, and I used Photoshop to create the button.
For those of you who also follow my Daughter of the King blog, I will be doing some work over there as well throughout the weekend.