Blog

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Joyful Mysteries: The Visitation

When is the last time you responded to your spouse, parents, or customers “with all haste”? When your husband or wife asks you to do a chore, or when your manager at work asks you to do a little extra, do you respond with an enthusiasm to serve? We live in an age of meaninglessness, because we have lost sight of the fact that our very purpose is to serve God and others. God wants to fill us with a holy sense of urgency. Mary wants to teach us to love God and neighbor with this holy sense of urgency. It’s

time to strive again to recognize God and his invitation to serve in life’s ordinary moments.

Today: Pray one decade of the Rosary at the time and place you decided on yesterday.

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Joyful Mysteries: The Birth of Jesus

I love Christmas. People are different during this season. There seems to be more of a spirit of goodwill in the world. I am different. There is a peace and a joy that are unattainable through the things of this world, and we find it in the nativity with Mary, Joseph, and the child Jesus. God gives us a new beginning, a fresh start, freely and without merit.

Today: Let’s exercise our spiritual senses and imagine that it is the night when Jesus is born. Place yourself there in Bethlehem on that holy night. Who will you imagine yourself as?

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Joyful Mysteries: The Presentation

How often do we decide that a particular rule or law doesn’t apply to us? When we drive faster than the speed limit or leave our phones on when we’re on a plane or in a theater, we are really saying, “That law doesn’t apply to me.” To whom are you willing to be obedient? We are allergic to the very word. It seems we are obedient only to our own desires. No wonder we have such a hard time surrendering in obedience to the will of God. The word obedience comes

from the Latin word obedire, which means “to listen deeply.” By listening deeply we can see the wisdom of God’s way.

Today: Pray two decades of the Rosary today.

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Joyful Mysteries: Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple

Think about when your wallet or your keys go missing. You panic at the possibility that they are lost or stolen, but most of the time you have just misplaced them. These are just things. And yet, so often we lose Jesus in our own lives and don’t even notice. It might be days or weeks before we realize that we have lost him.

Today: Reflect on a time in your life when you lost Jesus. How did it affect you? How did you find him again? Do you need to find Jesus in your life now?

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Luminous Mysteries: The Baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan

It seems to me that the more someone tries to grow spiritually, the more he or she struggles to embrace in a healthy way the unworthiness we all share. Teresa of Ávila counsels us: “Humility is truth.” Jesus counsels us not to bury our talents or hide our light. Are we unworthy of God’s love and infinite blessings? Yes. But that is only half the picture; the other half is that

human beings are amazing and God loves us beyond comprehension.

Today: Pray three decades of the Rosary today.

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Luminous Mysteries: The Wedding Feast at Cana

Hospitality is a powerful ministry. Jesus never preached to anyone before he had addressed some human need. First he fed them, healed them, comforted them, made them feel like they belonged and were welcome. He opened their hearts to the divine by paying attention to their ordinary human needs. People hear differently, respond differently, live differently, and give differently when they feel welcome.

Today: Spend a few minutes reflecting on your own parish. Sunday an out-of-town visitor will walk into your parish church for Mass. Will she feel welcomed? Do you feel welcome in your own parish? How many people do you think don’t really feel welcome in their parish?

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Luminous Mysteries: The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God

Everyone needs the kingdom. It’s a place; it’s a person; it’s a worldview; it’s the question and the answer; it’s the ultimate system of values. And it is to be sought unrelentingly. Jesus came to reveal the kingdom of God to us so we could live loving and just lives in the eyes of God. He stays at our side, encouraging and challenging us, so that we can live up to the promise of baptism, live more loving and just lives, and in the process make our tiny corner of the world more loving

and just. Jesus invites us to live in this world in a kingdom way.

Today: Think about your own life. Are you making the world more like the kingdom of God? How are you proclaiming the kingdom of God in your own life?

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Luminous Mysteries: The Transfiguration of Jesus

What is the problem in your life? Are you allowing Jesus to be the solution? Or are you looking at it from an earthly perspective and trying to solve it with your own might? Jesus wants to show us what is possible. God is constantly trying to help us to see possibilities that we don’t see because of our blind spots, low self-esteem, attachment to a particular path or outcome, and other flaws and limitations. Most of the time we don’t see many of the options and possibilities that exist for us in a situation. God 

wants you to see things differently. He wants you to see all that you are capable of doing, being, and becoming. With this new sense of yourself, he wants you to live differently.

Today: Pray four decades of the Rosary.

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Luminous Mysteries: The Institution of the Eucharist

Have you ever helped somebody, really gone above and beyond to make his life better, but then afterward he resented you? His indifference toward you stings at first, but as you reflect on all you did for him, the pain goes way beyond a shallow sting; it goes deep to the core of your heart and soul. You are shocked and appalled, but you shouldn’t be. We all do it. Worst of all, we do it to God. It’s amazing what we choose to focus on in our lives. It’s astounding what we choose to care about. Put whatever you are worried about right now in the big picture of

God, life, the history of the world, and eternity, and let God rearrange your priorities.

Today: Make a list of the top five priorities in your life. Then, make a list of the top five things that take up the most time in your life. How are these lists similar? How are they different? How should you rearrange your time to reflect your priorities?

Posted on

Rediscover the Rosary – Sorrowful Mysteries: The Agony in the Garden

Stay awake. Jesus says it three times in the garden. But we cannot. I still fall asleep today. Sometimes I fall asleep when I am praying. I fall asleep in other ways too. Some days I fall asleep in my marriage, or as a parent. There are times when I have been asleep for weeks or months with regard to physical fitness. It’s so easy to take a nap from financial responsibility. God instructs us, as pilgrims who are just passing through this place we call earth, to

stay awake and be constantly vigilant and attentive to what matters most, rather than letting what matters least take over our schedules and lives.

Today: Pray five decades of the Rosary.