Our Father...

Outside early this morning.


I once heard that Catholics say prayers and Protestants pray.  For most of my life... I always thought.... maybe other denominations were on to something in the way they prayed to God.  They have this way of outwardly praying to God that's energetic... less formal and seems to come out quite naturally.  Now as I look back... I can see the power of reciting 
 the Lords Prayer that Jesus gave us. 
Years ago... my dad was in the hospital.  It was a rough sleepless night for him and it was approaching dawn.  He asked me to pray the Our Father with him.  We both prayed and I couldn't help but notice that after we prayed... he finally peacefully drifted off to sleep.   

At my husbands grandfather's funeral... we talked to an aide from the assisted living home where grandpa had lived.  Grandpa asked this aide to recite the the Lord's Prayer with him and kiss him on the forehead each night.  Because.... that's what he and grandma used to do throughout their marriage before she passed. 

My mom had a stroke years later and she was in intensive care before she passed away.  She barely spoke.  One evening... my siblings and I decided to say the Our Father with her.  Not missing a beat... she recited the whole prayer with us.  It was something that I'll never forget.    

Now...when I say the Our Father at mass...I feel this undying beautiful bond with my parent's.

  Those golden moments... as difficult as they were.... praying the Our Father with my loved ones... have proven to be a blessing and a gift from God.   I shall cherish those memories for the rest of my life.   I can't help but to be in awe and thankful to the aide that showed an act of kindness towards grandpa.  I believe through her... he experienced the presence of God.
Looking past the grief from these last 15 years.... 
I understand now...what the bigger picture was through this powerful prayer.

Today's Gospel Reading:  Mt 6:7-15

Jesus said to his disciples:

"In praying, do not babble like the pagans,

who think that they will be heard because of their many words.

Do not be like them.

Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

"This is how you are to pray:

Our Father who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name,

thy Kingdom come,

thy will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread;

and forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us;

and lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

"If you forgive men their transgressions,

your heavenly Father will forgive you.

But if you do not forgive men,

neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."

As I Reflect....Blessings From Suffering?

I mentioned in a previous post.. that our everyday inconveniences and disappointments in life can be thought of as building our muscle for the greater sufferings we may experience in life. 

My dear dad suffered with and passed away from cancer years ago.   For my siblings and I....it brought our family closer together.  We were all married with families of our own and a few of my siblings lived out of state.  We pulled together to be there for my mom and my dad.  For a few months there wasn't a night that my dad had to spend alone.  For my mom it gave her a chance to get a better nights rest.  

A little over a year ago...mom suddenly became ill and she had to be hospitalized for 10 days. Although...we were hoping for a better outcome for her... it wasn't God's plan.  It was God's plan for my siblings and I to come together again.  We were concerned for her, scared for her, hopeful for her, scared again for her and finally having to let go and mourn her. 

I had the humbling experience of being with both of my parent's when they faded from this life into the next.   As I reflect back...I see now... it was through their suffering and my grieving for them that has enabled me to embrace our Savior on the Cross.  I am blessed.