Association Of Catholic Bloggers

In today’s Gospel reading, we learn of Jesus’ healing of a blind man. As Jesus cures the man, He asks him, “ Do you see anything? ” (Mark 8:23). The man’s sight begins to clear, but not completely. Jesus lays His hands on the man to complete the process. How often in our lives have we seen gradual healing, like this blind man? Do You See Anything? Last fall, while I recuperated from my ankle fusion, at first, all I saw was lots of recuperation time ahead (four months). But, as time progressed, I began to see the healing aspects take place. God sent people to me who shared their love with me (friends, neighbors, and family). That outpouring of love did something good for my heart. Then, God sent my priest to my home, near Christmas, to hear my confession (Since I couldn’t stand in line on any given Saturday, he came to me). That healed my soul. My Pastor’s actions touched me greatly, knowing how busy priests are at Christmastime. And all the while, throughout the entire four-mon

This has been a year of ups and downs for me, as I’m sure it has been for you, as well. With the passage of time, (a long time I might add), I finally got my new front top teeth this past year (three implants, and a five-tooth bridge) – ka-ching! Then later in the year, two more crowns! My dentist loves me! Yet, with that money going out the door, God has also blessed me with new business (editing manuscripts for Catholic authors). So, all in all, as 2018 comes to an end, I am counting my blessings. I look forward to new opportunities in 2019, without having a clue what God might have in mind for me. But, I am open to His will. I know that He has plans for me, plans to give me hope and to make me prosper (Jer 29:11). For that, I am grateful for His blessings. Your Blessings What might God have done for you, or given you, in 2018, for which you are grateful?  What new opportunities might you hope would be on your horizon, as we enter 2019? Read more...

In the Compass Catholic small group bible study: Navigating Your Finances God's Ways -- week 5 examines the 4 elements of giving: attitudes advantages amount approach   Attitudes My discovery here was si mple and was  eluded to in the last week's post .  I have no trouble giving money. I think it is a wonderful gift to be able to share with others.  I do need to be weary of my motives - the whole don't let your left hand see what your right hand is doing.  My trouble honestly is not in my generosity with treasure but with time and talent.  Although, I have also learned that my monetary generosity needs to be budgeted and that 'giving from your poverty' does not mean  going into credit card debt .  My attitude needs some tweaking as I consider how I will share my time. I am very stingy with my time.  Perhaps this is best explained by sharing that I am an extrovert with introverted tendencies; meaning I love being with people and I especially love sh

Grateful hearts humbly acknowledge that there is a need to be filled, via the talents of others. We consider it a blessing from God when someone steps up to address the need that we couldn’t otherwise fulfill ourselves. We are grateful to God and to our fellow man for rushing to our aid! What are you grateful for these days? When was the last time you counted your blessings? I can attest from experience that when I count my blessings and express my gratitude to God, my mood improves. I have had many opportunities to do so, while going through… Read more...

 Every now and then I am given the opportunity to see life through a different lens. I have experienced some difficult and even scary circumstances that have compelled me to view life differently. These times challenge my faith, present me with a different perspective and allow me to draw closer to God. There have been tragedies among family members and dear friends, my own miscarriage, and health scares with my children, just to name a few. I think the scariest time of waiting as a mom, was four years ago. We were told that our newborn had a hole in her heart. (This actually was rivaled by some scares with our first daughter years ago, when we had a lymph node removed to see what it was. Thankfully it was nothing, but that waiting was hard.) Back to four years ago when we needed to wait to follow up with a cardiologist when the baby was two weeks old. The hospital could tell us nothing else. We left with complete uncertainty and had no choice but to wait and pray. To view what i

I am always so thankful this time of year when the fresh garden produce is ready to be turned into great dishes to get through the bleak winter.  Has God blessed your garden with an abundance of tomatoes?  I have a great tomato basil sauce recipe that freezes well and can be used as a base for soups and sauces. If you have a post with your favorite sauce recipe, feel free to leave us a link in the comments! To read more, please visit The Sincere Gift .

My husband has been coaching our sons in  basketball  for more than a decade. This afternoon, he coached as a father for the last time. During more than 20 years of knowing my husband, I have rarely seen him cry, even in private moments. Today he nearly shed tears as he spoke with his eighth grade recreation department team after their final game. He has been filled with sadness the past few days with the sense of loss over this part of his life. How blessed I am to have this man in my life and as the father to our two teenaged sons.    Keep Reading...

Last night, I awakened at least four times due to tingling hands and feet and, frankly, stinky perspiration. As I live out my fiftieth year on the planet, I am experiencing that change of life that is the trade-off for the miraculous ability to nurture life inside me and give birth to children. As a culture, we rightly celebrate women's fertility. A woman of child-bearing age is considered the most beautiful of all. Think Jennifer Lopez.  I've never looked anything like her, but the thing is, she is beautiful in this picture largely because she looks so fertile. Read more here...

My blogging friend, Judy, has an inspiring blog, A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings . Join her every Wednesday in giving thanks for the many blessings we receive from God. Write a list of 5 blessings and then link to Judy's blog. Thanks, Judy, for helping me keep an "attitude of gratitude!" :) I am thankful for:  1. We have had so much rain this week. More rain than I can remember in a long time. However, I made it safely home from work, driving through flooded streets and low visibility. And there is something comforting about sitting in my chair at home, listening to the rain falling outside my window. Very cozy. 2. The blogging world. My blogging friends. Some new friends I have "met" recently. Sharing our faith. Supporting each other. And giving thanks! 3. I had some quiet time to pray last weekend. Time to pray and read and write. A peaceful time to treasure. 4. There are a lot of devotionals to choose from these days, including some for the Nook

Our 14-year-old son returned from a vacation with the youth group of Communion and Liberation this week, eager to buy a copy of the latest translation of Giacomo Leopardi's "Canti" as well as a good translation of Fyodor Doystoevsky's "Crime and Punishment." His emerging interest in fine literature is yet another reason my husband and I are so grateful for CL, a lay ecclesiastical movement within the Catholic Church. Our son is learning that faith is a living entity and that the beauty expressed by poets, and musicians is one way we can gaze upon the Infinite. My conversation with him also is a reminder we parents have an obligation to continue to nurture our children's souls as they navigate adolescence. Here is what Leopardi, a poet, essayist and philosopher of the early 19th century, has to say about the Infinite: Read more here...

(This was originally posted on the website of one of our country's leading newspapers, the Philippine Star . Feel free to follow my posts there every Tuesday, Philippine time. Or you can also follow my blogs: www.trulyrichmom.com and  www.teachermamatina.blogspot.com . Thank you and God bless you all!) Couples for Christ , our Catholic community, just celebrated its 30th anniversary. CFC’s Main Anniversary Celebration was held at Rizal Park last Sunday, June 26. It was a very busy  week  for a lot of us, myself included. I was tasked to be part of the Documentation Team, heading the CFC Writers’ Guild. It was a fun but tiring job, and I missed my two kids a lot during the entire week, as we had to go home late many nights. Typhoon Falcon came and threatened a lot of our activities, but thank GOD for answering our prayers! People still came to the conferences and were blessed by the messages. One such conference that we thought would be greatly affected by the heavy rains and f

By Allison Salerno  Morning came too early for me; I had stayed up very late at a neighborhood block party and had to rise with the rest of my family as we scattered in different directions - my husband to lector at an early Mass, and our 10-year-old son to a Little League baseball playoff game. That left G. and me at home, where I attempted to supervise his remaining homework before the 11 a.m. Mass, where he was an altar server. This was a morning of poor parenting; my frustration with his disorganization devolved into my raising my voice, speaking to him harshly, and then  dissolving into tears of regret and exhaustion. Mass and the Penitential Rite ("I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault...")  could not come soon enough.

Recently I won an online contest from  Glam-O-Mamas , which is a website for moms set up by Amanda Griffin-Jacob and Nicole Jacinto. This was the first time for me to ever win an online contest, so I was pretty psyched about it. My prize: a makeover from  Make Up Forever . This is what I looked like after the makeover: Thank you Glam-O-Mamas and Make Up Forever for the free makeup session! And this is what I looked like in my new dress, a gift from The Florence Fling, which was also part of my prize. Thank you The Florence Fling for this chic dress! But you know what made me even happier and feel most “glam” that day? Coming home to my family. Yup, I value my family a lot. (I guess you can glean that from my personal   blogs  too!) Right after the makeover at Bonifacio Global City, which incidentally took up my whole morning, including travel time, I rushed home to be with my ever-supportive and loving husband and adorable, sometimes-quite-a-handful kids. As a mom who has never re