Category Archives: reality

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Faith Lives Next-door

Dearest reader,
It has been quite a while since I’ve posted. It hasn’t been out of the lack of wanting to post, but more out of me allowing other things to take precedence-yet again.

When I think about what the delay between posts means for my Faith relationship with Christ, I believe that it implies that it continues to be a struggle for me to put God first in my life.

I know people who were able to make their faith the surefooted foundation of every moment of every day. I know others who book and the day with prayer, bo.th of asking and of gratitude. And still others who speak of face and yet live a life that demonstrates such a great lack, at least to those looking in.

So the great question today is – does faith lives inside of me, or does it live outside, as something to be accessed when I have need or want or a minute?

Since I believe in the Gospels, and the Acts, and the rest Bible – I know Faith is inside me. It remains an intrinsic part of my very being, even when I allow other things to precede its greatness in my life. Faith is not so easily swayed from being, and as we have heard time and again, even faith as small as a mustard seed, can yield greatness when we await with patience for it to grow…watering and providing sun even sporadically…

What does this mean for each of us? It means that the dormancy of an individual’s faith does not mean that the individual has no faith, or little faith, or misplaced faith but rather, faith is sleeping…waiting to be awoken again and loved and nurtured into greatness.

What does it take to awaken dormant faith? Acknowledgment, penitence, desire. We must acknowledge that faith continues to exist in the core of our being, as it cries out for its creator from whom it is separated while bound on earth in our mortal body. We must repent for allowing our faith to whither and hide from the glory and majesty of the Father. We must desire the assistance of the Almighty in growing, nurturing, and loving the faith that we’ve been given.

Where do we go from here? Remedy requires commitment. I have committed to the following to regrow my faith and make it the strong foundation from which every thought, word and deed emanates from:

  • Read the Bible. The USCCB has a subscription service. You can receive the readings for each day direct to your inbox every day.   http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/  (scroll down for the subscription box)
  • Read a daily meditation.  I love Word Among Us.  Even if you cannot afford the monthly subscription, each day’s is available online for free on their website. http://wau.org/meditations/
  • Pray!  If you haven’t seen War Room, the movie – I highly recommend it.  I watch it every so often to remind me of the importance of fervent prayer.  The wife in the movie, Priscilla Shirer, has a book called Fervent: A Woman’s Battle Plan for Serious, Specific and Strategic Prayer.   You can also download an audio version of her book.  If you want to pray fervently, this book will help you do it!
  • Pray the Rosary!  If you don’t already pray daily (I often fail at this task myself), start.  There is a terrific website if you need assistance with the mysteries or meditations – http://www.rosary-center.org/howto.htm#loaded There are so many graces and promises attached to the rosary, it is our most powerful weapon in the prayer arsenal.
  • Confession, Mass and the Eucharist – I put these together as repentance, forgiveness and the gift of the Eucharist belong together.  The gift of Transubstantiation and the ability to bring Jesus physically into our own being still astonishes me.  The Eucharist is the center of my Catholic faith and without it, we are bereft.  In context, it explains why those who do not believe and who do not have the Eucharist seek to fill the void outside of themselves and their faith.
  • Spend time listening to God’s voice.  I struggle with even spending 60 seconds in quiet without my mind racing onto my to-do list or a conversation I wish had gone differently or my next meeting, etc… That’s how I know this is important – because it is so hard to do.  Even in Church – eyes on the tabernacle – my mind still doesn’t want to stay settled.  Still I try.  I pray.  I keep at it.

Perhaps all of this comes easy to you, my dearest readers.  Perhaps none of it does.  Regardless, I hope you will join me for a moment in raising our voices up to God right now, as we pray:

Lord, I believe:
I wish to believe in Thee.
Lord, let my faith be full and unreserved,
and let it penetrate my thought,
my way of judging Divine things and human things.
Lord, let my faith be joyful
and give peace and gladness to my spirit,
and dispose it for prayer with God
and conversation with men,
so that the inner bliss of its fortunate possession
may shine forth in sacred and secular conversation.
Lord, let my faith be humble and not presume
to be based on the experience of my thought and of my
feeling; but let it surrender to the testimony of the Holy Spirit,
and not have any better guarantee than in docility to
Tradition and to the authority of the magisterium of the Holy Church.

Amen.

 

 

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Reflection on The Bread of Life

During Mass, the priest begins the ancient rite of transforming host and wine into the body, blood, soul & divinity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Transubstantiation is the word we use to describe what occurs during this part of the Holy Mass.

Kneeling there in my pew, I reflect on this gift. We as Catholics, in unbroken succession from the Apostles and our first Pope, Peter, have been given this gift. It does not exist in other Christian denominations nor does it exist in any non-Christian faith.

Ponder for a moment, that your Lord and Savior, who died so that His blood could cleanse the faithful of their sin. All sin. Sins of the past, sins of the present, sins of the future. All cleansed and forgiven in one act of humility and love by Jesus Christ.

In addition to this gift of forgiveness, Jesus Christ also gave us the gift of always being present with us in the Eucharist. We are allowed to consume Him into our beings. His divinity becomes a part of us in that moment we receive the host and consume it.

As we kneel before the altar and the priest speaks the prayers, this ordinary host and wine starts its transformation. We cannot see this transformation with our eyes but if we open our hearts, we can feel it in the fiber of our being. Christ’s love calls to us in this moment in the Mass. He wants us to recognize this unique and special gift. He wants us to understand in the moments leading up to receiving Him that He pours all of His love into every host, every drop of wine. We are consuming His love for us.

How do we not change after having consumed Christ’s love through the gift of His body present in the Eucharist?

How can we not see Christ in our brothers and sisters in faith? They, as we, have consumed Christ’s body and therefore physically have Christ within them. We should recognize that fact even if they do not.

Think about that. Pray on the fact that God allows us this special gift. He allows us to physically consume Christ at every Mass. This physical consumption brings us closer to Christ, closer to the Father. We cannot KNOW this truth and not be humbled by it.

This truth is why I sometimes cry during the Eucharistic Consecration. Not out of sorrow, but out of joy and gratitude for the gift I receive every time I consume the body of Christ.

Today I pray that every Catholic feels this the next time they are at Mass.

Clear your mind. Focus on the joy of knowing Him through His sacrifice and His gift of the Eucharist.

Yours in Christ’s Love and Generosity,
Mrs. Summitt

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Still He Calls Us…

It’s been over a year since I last posted on this site. I have not lost faith in the purpose but I have allowed life to step in the way. Such a human thing to do 🙂

I ask you, as you come across this post, to stop for a minute and say a prayer for me. That I continue to work set out for me and for protection from those who would keep me from it.

Yours in Christ’s Absolute Love,
Mrs. Summitt

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Why I Cover My Head In Church

My Dear Reader,

During my trip last year to Italy and the tours we took at the Vatican, I had an awakening.

I had gone back and forth between wearing a veil and not wearing a veil when I was younger.  I often stopped wearing when I felt that uncomfortable by being the only one in a congregation that was wearing one.  Peer pressure put me at odds with something I wanted to be doing.  I am blessed now to know I don’t need to be worried about what others think of me while I’m in church.

There are a lot of reasons why women veil inside the Catholic Church.  Some quote scripture and say that they veil based on scripture, others say it comforts them and reminds them of the way the congregation once respected God’s house pre-Vatican II, and others that it is a sign of respect and humility.

I fall into that last category.

We know that Jesus resides in our churches.  The red glow of the candle lit near the tabernacle reminds us so.  In the consecrated host, He is physically present in every church most days during the year except for the time between the Maundy Thursday and the Easter Vigil on Saturday when the consecrated host is removed from the tabernacle to symbolize for Catholics the time between Jesus’ death and His resurrection.

Now, the moment of awakening…we took a tour under the basilica and came up to the inside of the basilica at St. Peter’s feet.  After seeing what I had seen underneath and knowing what I now knew about the Vatican and the faith that built this amazing city, I knew I wanted to humble myself before my God and my Savior.  Not so others could see me and think me pious.  Not so Father would think of me as devout.  Not to “prove” anything to anyone.

In this act of covering my head, I honor my God.  He created me.  He loves me.  He sent His only Son to die for my sins so I can be with Him in eternity.

How can you know this and not want to cover your head before your Savior’s physical presence inside the church?

It is interesting to me that in Italy, especially in Rome but also elsewhere, there are signs in the churches and baskets of cotton scarves.  They ask women to cover their shoulders when entering, as a sign of respect for the holiness of the place they are entering.

I contend that when we humble ourselves before God, when we show that we understand that Jesus physically lives in our churches through the Eucharist and in the consecrated host that stays within the tabernacle behind the altar, that we are transformed and are better disposed to hear the voice of God in our lives and to remember the amazing sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.

Covering your head can take many forms.  I have recently ordered veils from Liturgical Time on Etsy because I think the Infinity-style of the veil will make it easier for me to wear as a scarf before I place over my head as I step into church.  I usually wear scarves or hats although I keep a small black triangle veil in my car in case I decide to stop at church or I forget to wear a scarf.  Overtime, I’ve found that infinity scarves or long rectangular scarves work best for me versus other types of scarves but I really think it is a personal choice.  Many ladies at our church wear white or black veils, some with adornments, others plain.  The style isn’t as important as making that initial decision to cover your head.

You may be asking yourself, why are you sharing this?  No one cares.  Or even, why is she preaching at me about veils, scarves and hats?  It’s not her concern.

That may be so, but again, my readers, I write as I am inspired to do so.  I believe that I am called to share this information about my own journey.  It may not change anyone’s life but perhaps it will inspire you to remember that you are in the presence of the physical body of Jesus Christ when you walk into church.

As always, you are in my prayers.

Yours in Christ’s Love,

Mrs. Summitt