Association Of Catholic Bloggers

Photo by  Greg Rakozy  on  Unsplash I've been feeling restless lately and begging God in prayer to reveal my vocation to me, the direction for the second half of my life. Then I realized something big: What if this is it? What if God wants me here, now, doing just this and there is no big "ah-ha!" moment? A few thoughts from the Salesian perspective on what finding God's will for you, living your vocation, and being who you are - and being that well (to paraphrase St. Francis de Sales). Read my article What if this is it? 

I like to imagine that, were he living in our age, St. Francis de Sales would be a blogger.  After reading the following on Catholic Online, I suspect my idea may not be all that far-fetched....   "Francis' unusual patience kept him working.  No one would listen to him, no one would even open their door.  So Francis found a way to get under the door.  He wrote out his sermons, copied them by hand, and slipped them under the doors.  This is the first record we have of religious tracts being used to communicate with people."  It is primarily because of his tracts, copied tirelessly by hand and slipped under doors, that Francis de Sales has been named patron of Catholic journalists. I cannot imagine a more appropriate saint for bloggers. May he pray for all who slip faithful, God-honoring, blog posts through today's cyber-doors... from thecloisteredheart.org

In 2013, I had the honor of traveling with the Boston Deaf Apostolate  to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day! Despite my best intentions to share every moment of #WYD2013, technology limits and a busy schedule left me only able to share my experience in snippets of 140 character moments. The sweet #WYDRio tweets: Finally here waiting for train to Christ The Redeemer Statue !! So blessed to be here #WYD2013 Came face to face with my favorite #EWTN Priest, Fr. Mark Mary yesterday was too #shy to say hi. Such a #Catholic dork #WYD2013 #Grace Just drove by building where Pope having lunch!!! At least that is what our guide said #WYDBOS By the way at 5ft tall I see nothing. lol #WYDBOS lots of happy screaming Catholics #blessed To SEE me wearing a very FASHIONABLE trash bag and to read more of my amazing World Youth Day experiences visit Allison's blog ... Reconciled To You 

   As wives and mothers, we often carry worries and anxiety about many things. If we're not careful these can often take hold of our heart and leave us in an even worse state than when our troubles began.  Here is St. Francis de Sales' advise concerning anxiety of mind and how to handle it from Introduction to the Devout Life.  "Anxiety of mind is not so much an abstract temptation, as it is the source from where various temptations arise. Sadness, when defined, is the mental grief we feel because of our involuntary ailments;--whether the evil be exterior, such as poverty, sickness or contempt; or interior, such as ignorance, dryness, depression or temptation. When the soul is conscious of some such trouble, it is downcast, and so trouble sets in. Then we at once begin to try to get rid of it, and find means to shake it off; and so far rightly enough, for it is natural to us all to desire good, and shun that which we hold to be evil.  If any one strives to be deliver

"Those who love to be feared, fear to be loved, and they themselves are more afraid than anyone, for whereas other men fear only them, they fear everyone."  St. Francis de Sales We've all come across those who seem to "love to be feared".   Most of the time, we just turn away and ignore their chest thumping.  Sometimes, we want to stand toe-to-toe and let them know what's what; especially when we see injustice. No matter how we decide to react to these persons who cross our path, we should try to remember that behind the bravado is really someone who is fighting a battle from within. Those who "love to be feared" choose to cling to the inclinations that we've all inherited as the result of the fall in the Garden of Eden.  They've developed a deep distrust of the world and have forgotten that it is God who is in charge. They take on the world with an "It's me or them." attitude.  They forget that God's

"How can we better manifest our faithfulness than by being faithful amid distractions. Alas! Solitude has its temptations, and the world has its trials; but through all we must have good courage, because help from Heaven is ever nearest to those who put their whole trust in God, and who earnestly seek His Fatherly help with humility and patience. Be not distressed, then, at the little vexations and troubles that a multiplicity of domestic affairs bring upon you. No! rather be thankful that..... To read more, visit The Sincere Gift

Recently, I’ve  found myself enjoying the writings of St. Francis de Sales.  Due to discovering much inspiration in his spiritual advise that is relevant to my vocation,  I’ve decided to dedicate Fridays at The Sincere Gift as a day to share some of the meaningful insights that I’ve found to be helpful.  His spirituality is a gentle one and very doable for the ordinary person.   “Go on kindling the spirit of joy and sweetness in your heart, and believe firmly that this is the true spirit of devotion; and if you are sometimes attacked by a contrary spirit of sadness and bitterness, make a real effort to lift up your heart to God, committing all to Him..... To read more, visit The Sincere Gift .  

January 24: St. Francis de Sales, (1567-1622) continue reading>

It's time to vote for the 2013 Frankie Award! One of the things I love about Catholic Spirituality Blogs Network is the variety of blogs and posts. This contest introduced me to some new writers--some witty, some deep, and all promoting the Gospel  About half are not currently members of CSBN. I enjoyed reading all the entries. Now it's your turn. Please vote for just one post--your favorite. I am going to post each one on Facebook and Twitter as well, to involve as many people as possible. That should also make them easy for you to share. I encourage you to do so.   Voting ends on December 3 at Midnight PST. See the nominees and vote at Catholic Spirituality Blogs Network.

Have you written a blog post on Catholic spirituality that your readers loved? Has another blogger's post inspired you to grow closer to Christ? Now is the time to nominate yourself or them for a 2013 Frankie Award. Named in honor of the great spiritual director and patron saint of journalists St. Francis de Sales, the Frankie Award recognizes the best in Catholic spiritual writing. The award winner will receive a special badge to proudly display on his or her blog, along with a $10 gift certificate to Mystic Monk Coffee. Plus, the winning post will be posted in full here at CSBN. I will promote it on social media and encourage CSBN members and our readers to do so as well. Read the rules at Catholic Spirituality Blogs Network.

Victory, O Lord by Millais (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons). Sunday’s Mass readings were all about prayer–winning battles through prayer, supporting each other in prayer, and never giving up. I love encouraging people to grow in their prayer life!  But today I want to ask a question that might seem odd to you: Can you pray too much? There are three ways in which I believe you can. Don’t let prayer keep you from living out your vocation   Again, this might confuse you. Haven’t I said before that prayer helps us live our vocation better ? That’s true. But you still need balance. If you are a stay-at-home mom with small children, you should not be spending hours a day alone in your room praying. If you are the father of a young family, you should not be spending most of every evening at Church. If you are a college student, you should not normally miss class to go to adoration. St. Francis de Sales, instructing lay people in Introduction to the Devout Life, wrote,

Praying Girl by Heyerdahl (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons). St. Francis de Sales is the master of the spiritual life for lay people. His book, Introduction to the Devout Life teaches us how we can grow closer to God while living out our lives as spouses or single people in the world. One of the practices St. Francis urges his readers to make a habit of is the morning offering. In fact he says, “Never omit this practice.” A morning offering sets the tone for your day. It helps you acknowledge that the day is God’s, not your own. It can give you the strength you need to face trials, peace amid busy schedules, and added grace for unforeseen temptations. I confess I was never taught to make my own morning offering as a child. We sometimes had family prayer in the morning. At Catholic elementary school we started the day with prayer. But no one told me I should make a private morning offering until I was much older. I found it hard to take up the practice, and even