 Photo Attribution: en.wikipedia.org Common Domain Burnt cookies. Sleepless nurses. Test cramming.
We are so lucky! OK, blessed is more like it. Just think about it. How cool is it that for basically every aspect of our day-to-day living we have someone we can call upon specifically to help us out? As part of God's redeeming plan for us, calling on the aid of the saints is not just some "human comfort" story. It is REAL and actually very important. Among the numerous reasons that this connection with heaven exists is the fact that it makes so very clear God's great mercy and love for us. He allows and encourages human/saint interaction because it perfectly demonstrates the impermeable nature of His love and mercy - nothing can limit it - neither time, distance, nor even death itself. Although we have the ability to put it on hold, this continuously open "phone line" is never closed to us. People like to joke about the "silly" things that patron saints are asked to intercede for. But are they really silly? The point is that we have people who have gone home ahead of us into their eternal reward that "get it." They DON' T view a request too silly or obnoxious to pray for, as long as the prayer is sincere and from the heart. And yes, some of what patron saints have been given charge of can be quite humorous, if not downright confusing. But that's my point. Somewhere along the line, someone placed an usual prayer in connection with a saint that was clearly heard and interceded for. Sure, it may strike us as odd, but to that person a plea for intercession was requested and received. This should be a huge relief for us! God is the giver of the grace and the ultimate Answer to our prayers. But, how incredibly wise He is to allow us to continue asking our loved ones and those proven saints to pray for us even though they are across the divide of time, dimension, and space. The Body of Christ, of which we are a part, is ALWAYS ONE. It always has been and always will be. And, even the GREAT DIVIDE between heaven and earth cannot separate it. Yes, this concept does sound like a great movie premise, but the cool fact is that it is actually real. (They say that real life is crazier then fiction.! I would say that it's also cooler!) So go ahead and call on the saints. Dial them up! They are always waiting and ready to pray for any genuine intention you may have. Just remember to trust God's final answer, since only He knows the BIG PLAN. And, should you think your prayer is unworthy or too crazy to ask, here are some examples of saints who have prayed for such prayers already: St. Clotilde - Disappointing Children St. Friard - Fear of Wasps St. Vitus - Oversleeping St. Barbara - Fireworks, Lightning, Artillery - anything that makes a loud noise! St. Drogo - Unattractiveness St. Germaine Cousin - Girls from Rural Areas St. Isadore - The Internet St. Polycarp - Dysentery and Earaches The list goes on and on. Bottom line: Never be afraid to approach the saints. The truth is, the more we lean on them, the more likely we are to become saints ourselves! :)
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 Check out this latest video: a song about the Seven Sacraments sung by the Kid Korner Kids and their friends! Super catchy, this short song basically assures that your child will never forget the names of the seven sacraments, as well as learn quick basics as to what they are about. (Actually, if you listen to it more than a couple of times you might never get it out of your head!) :) We learned a lot from this film shoot (like how earbuds don't pick up wind in the microphones but your computer does!), which gives us plenty of ammo for our next song video we'll be doing with kids to make it even better. We truly hope you enjoy it! PLEASE pass this on to other sources (homeschool educators, Religion and PSR teachers, etc.). Our goal is to someday create a CD of songs about our faith, and the more support we have, the quicker this will happen! :) Enjoy this video and enjoy the rest of your day!  No Saint charm collection could be complete without an adorable charm of our beloved St. John Paul II! With his feast day coming up this weekend, this seemed the perfect time to create something to honor him. Enjoy making this next addition while watching this step-by-step tutorial. For more tutorials on more Saint charms, check out our Teen Take page! God bless and have a truly blessed day!!  http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=184531&picture=rural-road-to-snow-mountains There are quite a few weeks during the year that are jammed-packed with stand-out feast days. This week happens to be one of them! From St. Ignatius to St. Luke, St. Isaac Jogues to St. Paul of the Cross, this week of loaded inspiration finds its end with the one and only St. John Paul II! And what do these saints have in common? Among a great number of attributes, they are shining examples of true obedience.
I find this ironic, in a way, that this week of feasts should occur right now in my own life. (Not that I should be surprised.) It seems that everywhere I turn I am coming across the subject of obedience. From recent homilies and devotionals quoting saints on this topic to conversations with family, God is making it ABUNDANTLY clear that He is trying to tell me something. But am I really listening? What is He trying to tell me? Now there's the rub. Let's break it down. It's obvious He is making the clear point that I need to focus on obedience in my life. At least I've picked up on that part of the message! However, I'm not sure as to which aspect of life that He is directing me to apply it to. I can see areas that are sorely in need of a better response to obedience, but in no way have I been able to discern to which He is referring. Is it one area? Is it many? I came across a quote (naturally!) from St. Mother Theresa that practically jumped off of the page a few days ago: "Once you begin to neglect obedience, one by one everything goes. It can happen to any of us. Obedience is difficult but that's where love comes from. We belong to Jesus and obedience is our strength." Then, today this quote showed up on my computer (of course!), this time from St. Ignatius: "It is not hard to obey when we love the One Whom we obey." I spent some time reflecting on these quotes and others that I had read (No joke, 5 quotes on obedience have popped up so far this week from different sources - daily actually!). It took some time to get past the feeling that this week I have been playing a version of the character Evan in the movie Even Almighty (which, by the way, just happened to be showing during our Edge Night for 6-8 graders at our church this past Monday), but I finally had my epiphany. God is not asking me to be obedient in one specific aspect of my life. He is asking me to be obedient IN ALL AREAS of my life - in each and every one!!! That's what He is asking of me. That's what He is asking of ALL of us. I had been over-complicating a very simple instruction. "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." John 14:15 Yep...words from the Man Himself. And, now that I've gotten the message, I'd better get crackin'! :) God bless you on your own road to obedience in the Lord. If you and I live it well, it's guaranteed to be a road beyond our wildest dreams!  "Mom, when I say the word 'Lord', I just want to sing! But is it OK that I don't want to be a priest?"
I smiled as my 7-year-old guy jabbered along in the car. His thoughts move at the speed of a freight train, but at least today I could decipher some connections between sentences! "That's fine," I assured him. "You just need to keep that door open in case God might be calling you to that vocation. Have you thought about becoming a deacon?" I suggested. "No, I don't think so. Is that bad?" he responded, obvious worry in his tone. We dug deeper into our discussion as we journeyed along a road of pavement while examining his spiritual road to his vocation. Suddenly , he interrupted. "Why am I even having this conversation? God's in charge. He knows what's going to happen. I don't need to worry about it!" And, just like that, the conversation was over and comments about Rex, our rooster, topped the priority list. I couldn't help but shake my head in amazement. As I did, however, a revelation hit me. His simplistic view on God's providence and plan wasn't just a naive, innocent statement. In truth, his words held a great lesson in wisdom for me. Why do I worry so much? Why can't I take on his faith and trust? For certain, life would be a whole lot easier! Sometimes it takes the faith of a child to remind me just how responsible I am for some of the difficulties and frustrations that intrude my own life. The needle in the "Blame Game" points right back to me. It's so good to know that God has given us a reset button! Having the faith of a child - innocent, faithful and WISE. Thank you, God, for reminding me of this gift!  Enjoy this walk through "Inspiration Lane" as you check out this cute video made up of the great creativity of our viewers! View Saint costume ideas for All Saints Day and Halloween and enjoy such super artsy expressions of Saints like St. Francis, St. Lucy, the Pope, St. Peter, St. Rita, and more!! AND REMEMBER TO TAKE PHOTOS OF YOUR KIDS THIS YEAR AND SAVE THEM! We will be making another video next year and want to add your creative ideas to it! God bless you and your "little saints!"  On Oct. 4th, we celebrated the feastday of St. Francis of Assisi, the beloved saint whose story has become a familiar tale to children and adults alike. The books, movies, and animated shorts depicting his life and teachings are so numerous that I doubt that I could count them! So, making his life the focus of this week's Lego and Craft Challenge seems like a natural fit!
And, if you are looking for a really neat perspective on this amazing man to share with your kids (or just see yourself - it's really neat!), check out the link below! The 3 minute, 51 second animated short even includes some outtakes. The picture above gives a snapshot of the original artwork of its creator. God bless you all, and we can't wait to see what you've created!!  The deadline is coming up to send in a photo (or multiple photos!) of your child or grandchild in a saint costume! We LOVE your ideas and could really use some more to make a video that gives lots of inspiration and ideas to others considering Saint costumes this year! I know that you may have planned on sending in that great picture that you have in your archives but haven't yet had a chance. Please send it in - it has the potential to help others! We can't wait to see your ideas!
The picture does NOT have to be a "perfect image" of a costume, just clear enough to pass on a creative costume idea. So, in other words, ALL SAINT COSTUME PICTURES ARE WELCOMED ENTHUSIASTICALLY! Submitting a phot is easy - just click Here for the original post that includes the submission form. God bless you, and if you feel any inclination at all to send in a picture, PLEASE DO. We can't wait to share your creative ideas!!! Next in our line of Chibi-Inspired Saint Charms: St. Francis of Assisi, in honor of his feastday today! Enjoy this seriously adorable charm: such a perfect addition to the charms series! Enjoy and have fun creating, and don't forget to say a prayer to St. Francis!  The family here at Catholic Conundrum seriously loves popcorn! We love it salty, sweet, and anywhere in between! Since fall is the season that celebrates popcorn more than any other, we thought it would be the perfect subject for a new Kid Korner Cooking segment. This video teaches kids (and adults, like myself!) how to create 3 super yummy recipes: Apple Cinnamon, Salted Chocolate Caramel, and Browned Butter Snickerdoodle. The downside to making this video? The 3 varieties Jocelyn made were gone in 2 DAYS - they were that good! We know you'll LOVE these truly delectable delights, and they would make an amazing homemade gift for someone special, too! Enjoy and God bless you!! |
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Summer Praise
If a song's title includes (family recording), please refer to the blog entry on 3/8/16 for info...
Christina NagyHi! I'm a Catholic mom who loves to encourage and support others in their journey to live the beauty of our Catholic faith in a modern world. It can be a struggle, no doubt, but God has given us the tools we need! Join my family (both immediate and extended!) and me as we take on this incredible journey of our path to holiness. You can also find us here:
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