Today is #GivingTuesday. The natural response to feeling deep gratitude is to pay it forward. So after a long weekend of celebrating the gifts in our lives, it is beautiful to have a day where we stop to think of others.
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My Saint My Hero Blog
With the start of this beautifully crisp month of November most of us begin thinking about preparing and decorating for the holidays...Do something special this year.
In this month of October we join hands and hearts as we come together to continue our prayers for a cure for Breast Cancer.
Madi, our newest team member, shares her experience and reflections from the LA Prayer Breakfast that took place at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Downtown Los Angeles, this past Tuesday, September 19, 2017.
Today, on the feast day of St. Teresa of Calcutta, fondly known to us as Mother Teresa, we stop to remember the humble yet powerful way she loved Jesus: through serving and loving the poorest of the poor... Be the one who offers hope; be the one who gives a hug or shares a smile; be the one who brings light into the room; be the one who loves.
Gathered as a Family Last Thursday our My Saint My Hero family gathered together for a beautiful evening Mass on the beach in Rancho Palos Verdes. The majestic views of the cliffs, the crashing waves, and Catalina Island in the horizon was inspiring and reminded us of how great our God is-how magnificent His creation! Bishop Brennan, […]
This is where my annual retreat into family, love and quiet happens. There on that small island is where family matters most, conversations linger and a warm embrace is truly felt. It is a place where my feet feel steady and I’m not jumping from one activity to the next. Coffee is served in a beautiful china cup and one is meant to stay at the coffee bar and enjoy it among one another rather than speeding off to consume it in the car or at the desk… a change, a shift, a remembrance … June is my month of renewal!
“I give you my strength.”
These were the last words my father whispered into my ear as his breath became labored. A few hours later my dad passed from this world to the next and I sat in awe of the feeling of Heaven that filled the space. His transition was peaceful… and his last words directly to me mattered deeply. I give you my strength…. Those few words continue to echo in my heart. Whenever I feel completely weak and ready to throw in the towel, a strength starts to bubble inside and provides me the courage and inspiration to carry on…to be fearless, to be uniquely me and to find my own finish line to cross. My dad truly gave me his strength and Our Father provides the love and protection for me to be fearless.
He is with you right now. In fact, He never stops thinking about you: You really matter to Him.
This is the heart of Jesus Christ’s revolutionary message. But today’s world is so noisy, so disoriented, so crazy that His message is getting lost.
The two colors of this bracelet represent how God has woven us together, and how our prayers keep us connected to Him and to each other.
The heart of Jesus...is there anything more beautiful, more passionate or inspiring? I recently had an experience of the Sacred Heart which I shared on my personal blog, but I want to continue to reflect with you here how we, at My Saint My Hero venerate and love the most Sacred Heart of Jesus.
My vocation has changed so much. I was delivering babies and now I’m a full-time mom, a full-time wife, and raising my own little church. That has become my “yes” and while some people ask, “Do you miss work or the adult interaction,” and I do, but raising good catholic men and women with a foundation of faith that I know to be true is so much bigger than me.
I feel like being a mom and a wife has totally groomed my femininity. In Pope Saint John Paul II’s, “Letter to Women,” he says that we find true fulfillment in this complete gift of self and I’ve found that when you marry someone you get a glimpse of that. You completely give yourself to someone else and through that communion, you bear this fruit of life.
The Lord spoke to my heart and said, “Who are you to say that what I have created isn’t perfect?” As I was praying with these words, my mind was filled with images of the people in the Dominican Republic I had encountered. There were few opportunities for education, many didn’t have much food or clothing, yet many exuded joy in their state of simplicity. I recalled a sweet grandmother who had a few people from our mission group over for lunch one day. She lovingly prepared a meal for us in her home made up of sticks and mud and said to us, “I feel bad for many Americans because they are spiritually impoverished. I know that I am rich in the Lord.” The people in this community knew their worth and identity as children of God, and rejoiced in that. How could I not live in joy and gratitude as well? How could I question who the Lord had created me to be or where my true identity was? During that hour of prayer, the Holy Spirit revealed to me my truest identity, and it forever changed the way I view myself and those around me. I am a daughter of God, beloved and treasured beyond my own understanding.
With a pastor as a father, my mother learned the importance of faith, fellowship, and love at an early age. She passed down those same key values and principles, which has become the foundation of my life. Some of my mother's favorite bible verses, "faith without works is dead" (James 2:24-26) and "put God first In everything you do and He will crown your efforts with success" (Proverbs 3:6-8) are ones I always remembered as a child that provided guidance and clarity throughout the challenging times of my life.
All of us are invited to come home to where God dwells with us, wipes away our tears, and gives us the fullness of life and joy in the presence of Christ. During Easter season, you have a very special and heartfelt invitation; no matter how far you have wandered, no matter where you […]
In this Lenten season, may we join our hearts in prayer as we walk to the cross together… may we be granted a “Servant’s Heart!” We are reminded of the words of Visionary Mirijana during our most recent pilgrimage in Medjugorje, “When I get down on my knees to pray I don’t ask for help in […]
My sweet sister and I sat in the car the other night and she asked me what it meant to hear God. And I said, “What the heck, lets just ask Him to speak to us.” We sat there, waiting on God and after not even 2 minutes she said, “Madi, God showed me a […]
The Garden. In the word, we see the Garden is the meeting place of God, where Adam and Eve walked with God without fear or shame, in pure intimacy with Him. It’s where Jesus knelt as the soldiers came and the deepest of darkness fell upon Him, where He chose us, to be our Redeemer, […]
“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a bit more!” I think to myself, “Finally! A weekend to relax and recover from the previous weekend that was Thanksgiving and watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas on replay.” Then in that same moment I realize Christmas is right around […]
I arrived in Medjugorje with an open heart and left filled with renewed hope and uplifted spirit. The My Saint My Hero team were beautifully illuminated as they guided us through the many special Holy places to pray and receive the messages we were called there to receive. I can honestly say that we were guided […]
We began our 20-minute steep and rocky climb in the dark. We weren’t even sure if we were going the right way. Fortunately, a full moon helped lead the way! My three amazing and loving girlfriends had joined me on the pilgrimage and were by my side on this moonlit hike. We were soon joined […]