Celebrate Love- A Mission to Love

Several Years ago Dermot & I attended a Weekend that would change our lives forever. We attended a Celebrate Love weekend- (look at the sidebar for the link). We call it our Couple conversion, and slowly over the years we have given our lives, more and more to God.

This community and the Couple who are the national directors -Fran & Byron, are awesome people. It however, has not been without the ups and downs that different people coming together can bring. It is great to get together with like minded couples though. We cherish all our friendships we have made.

Dermot & I have been involved with meeting once a month with other couples in a home-setting, since we participated on the weekend. We were asked to become a presenting couple early on, but this is not Dermots calling, so I needed to be patient and wait for what was right for us.

So we helped on the catering team and prayer team of several weekends and have put our hands up for additional training and enrichment weekend.

It hasn't all been easy but we knew God would provide for our family. He was moving us in this direction, and we were saying "YES". So we knew he was going to provide for us.

We believe that Celebrate Love teaches the true meaning of Marriage in the Catholic Church and we wanted to know more and more .......

We were thirsty for knowledge so we could have the information to bring other couples into this greater awareness and love that God truly wants for us all.

A few years ago, we were asked to be Mentors for the Engaged "Embrace', and this was the opportunity that we were waiting for. This was right up Dermot alley- 'one on one'. It was made for us. Not really, but it felt like it.

We have been privileged to have mentored several couples and we are in the process of one such couple at present. Such a privilege to be with a couple, at the special exciting time of their lives to help shape and teach them about what God wants for there Marriage.

We discuss communication, formation, natural family planning and much more. We gain as much out of each couple as they do from us. We sometimes think, "Are we getting more out of this?" We know we are giving so much as well.

This brings us under spiritual attack each time, but we know we are doing 'good', when this is happening, so please pray for us.

So if you have seen an add for Celebrate Love in your church, ( in USA-it is called Living Love), take it up, do it. We had a great marriage before we embarked on this weekend, but now it has enriched it so much more and we know it has touched our children's lives as well.

OUR mission is to love one another, as Christ loves his Church.

St John of Kanty

Every year we attend a Summer School of Evangelisation run by the Disciples of Jesus, and every year one of the 'team', put much work into preparing saints names on little pieces of paper, with descriptions and places them in a container for people to take one each for the year. Like a lucky dip- but with a difference, God has his hand which one we receive.

I have had some interesting saints over the years, and have wondered- why that one?, especially when I hear some people have some of my favoured saints already.

Anyway this year I placed my hand in the container and was guided to Saint John of Kanty.

In short ' he did not only read and study much but he discussed every question with the Lord- on his knees- for he strove to look at life's issues from God;s perspective'.

I have been asked to pray for scholars and university students.

I had a little God moment when I opened the paper up, because I am going back to study this year to do a Course in our Faith.

I am really looking forward to it, and this Saint has just confirmed it for me.

So this year I will ask Saint John of Kanty to intercede for my prayers.

Dermot has his own, and Brid was drawn to Sister Faustina.

Our Family Patron Saint is St John of God- we decided to keep the same one as last year.

So we feel very blessed to have a variety of Saints interceding for us in our Prayers.

A real communion of Saints.

Through the years of doing this I have learnt so much about so many different Saints and it isn't until time goes by, I realise why each of us was given that particular one. I no longer look at others and go "I wanted that one", but delight and rejoice in the Saint given to me.

We are sorta back

Yesterday we started preparing ourselves for the year.
Colouring Book Covers, Covering books. Deciding what we will use.
Today we have been working on a our new look Timeline.
It has been several months in the process of looking, discovering and putting on to paper what I think will work for us. Then giving Brid an outline and letting make several decisions about how it will look. We will after- all be using it for years.
Today is really a joint effort. I do not expect a 10-11 year old to know what is the grand plan in my mind, so we are doing little by little.
Yesterday I needed to buy a guillotine to help Louise make her 21st birthday invites. So we now have acquired a guillotine- and boy am I impressed. It cuts a straighter line than me, and so much quicker. I now have the paper I wanted to use all stuck in the book, rather than still measuring, cutting and getting hot and bothered.

So Brid is happily creating. Now the boring bits are out of the way, she can begin decorating.
The part she always likes the best.

Mission

We have been on a week long retreat with 90 or so other wonderful Catholic families/ young people. Many old friends, some friends we hadn't met before. Recipe for lots of interaction. Awesome. Lots of Lectures, Seminars, Daily Mass, Rosary, Praise & Worship, Evening Adoration and although very hot, too much fun, and great food. Pretty full on days, with early mornings, but very very late nights.
As I have said before I am Charismatic by nature, so this was an excellent week for me. As a family we have returned to the same place 4 years in a row to experience all God has to give to us.
We were sent out last Sunday to be commissioned in our Mission.
But........ now the question is posed, what is our Mission, where is our Mission, What does God what us to do.
You know to me, it is a given, Dermot is my Mission, and I am Dermots, and the family is our misssion, but together....
We came away exhilarated, and an overwhelming sense of what do you what from us all.
We are / or have we already come to that conclusion.

I suppose, God will reveal it to us piece by piece, just as we need to know, but I sort of get a strong sense of knowing what it is anyway. But all in God's time, his plans will be revealed.

Until then we stand in excited anticipation. And as we keep our eyes on Our Lord, we are giving him ALL the Glory.

Glory Box

When I was a teen my grandmother and Mum, set me up with a Glory Box. Every birthday and Christmas something would appear for my 'box'. I in turn added to it.
By the time I was married, I had towels, sheets, dooners, pillows, crockery, glassware, and much more. It was a wonderful starting point.
It seems that it is a tradition that has not been kept up, maybe by our need everything now society.
So I have started setting my own daughters up in the same way, but when I was talking to them about it, they just looked. 'what are you talking about'.

Now every birthday, my Mum and I buy one gift that is a 'glory box' gift.
I tend to by serving dishes, cutlery, dinner set, cooking ware. I will make the girls some items as well throughout this year.

I had some beautiful pieces, some I used as I was living away from home in Sydney and lots I kept especially for when I was married.

Does anyone else have a tradition like this.

What our Saints say on Modesty.

I was watching Pure Life last night, and Jason quoted a several Saints on Purity:-
It gave me an idea to quote some on Modesty.

Modesty
"Either we must speak as we dress, or dress as we speak. Why do we profess one thing and display another? The tongue talks of chastity, but the whole body reveals impurity."-St. Jerome.


"Certain fashions will be introduced that will offend Our Lord very much." - Our Lady of Fatima, in 1920.

Facelift continued

I have been searching for the right picture/ photo for my blog title. I couldn't find one.
So after discussing this with Dermot, we set off setting items up that made up the title and tried to find the best place for photo taking.
So with Dermots help we chose this one above.
It reflects my day, my life, my faith.
My Nanna gave me her tea cup and saucer sets, when I was setting up a flat, when I started my nurses' training. Little did I know that they would truly become precious to me. But I will leave that story.
My Mum added to the collection this year. Its Royal Alberts' 100 year celebration this year. It is very pretty and I was delighted to receive it as a gift.
We grow several varieties of Roses in our yard, and one of our favourites is the one in the blog photo called Princess de Monaco- beautiful perfume, strong lasting rose, and so pretty. So we have roses in our home many months of the year. Brid has started placing them in everyones bedrooms and in Dermots' office, bathrooms and living area, but always a rose next to Our Lady.
Our Lady was given to us by my Mum, when I said I would like to have a statue like ' my Nanna had'. That was a long time ago, many Rosaries and prayers ago.
Our children are situated around her with holy cards, oil and scapulars surrounding them all.
I think you can just see my blue Rosary beads which are my Nannas. She used to re-sight this whisper of a prayer, every night as she stroked my back to settle me to sleep, when I stayed there as a child. As I was not brought up with Rosary, it wasn't until I heard it said that I remembered the whispers of this prayer.
You see Our Lady has been drawing me close to Her and Her Son for many years. She has been protecting me and guiding me. That is why when Brid when suggesting names for my blog, all these things sat so well with me
So all these items remind me of my Nanna who was my Rock when it came to my faith formation.
My Nanna died before I married Dermot, but she is always in our lives. Everytime I pray the Rosary or say a Novena or move my beads I am immediately reminded of this beautiful woman I call my Nanna.
So there you have it.