They Strike Against the Flesh of Holiness (2021 Purpose)

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It was my intention to stay silent until after Christmas. But the enemy is bold and so I am compelled to be bold as well.⁣

At the precise moment when we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Infant King...⁣ the enemy strikes directly at the heart of innocence through the torture, murder, and use of the bodies of babies in the name of "health."⁣

The demons cackle because they fancy that they have somehow defeated Christ by disfiguring and brutalizing the ones who bear His holy image. Just as Herod did to the Holy Innocents of his time. Just as all the tiny anti-Christs have done in their feeble grabs at power.⁣

They tear at the flesh of holiness. The provoke division and aggressively drag souls onto the path of perdition.⁣

"What has been is what will be,⁣
and what has been done is what will be done;⁣
and there is nothing new under the sun."
(Eccles. 1:9)⁣

But their boldness is part and parcel of their ruin. Christ has the victory. It is over for them. And as we wait, we praise. And we raise our voices and trumpets with the cries of holy justice.⁣

Where have they taken the Imago Deo, the Christ Child? To the chamber of "science" and sanitized homicide. To the hands that dissect and strip away dignity.⁣

What have they done with the body of our crucified Lord? They have taken him to be made into medicines and experimental formulas to be injected into the ones the enemy would have faceless and tormented.⁣

When the Holy Spirit entered into the womb of Mary, He knew. When Jesus Christ wept in the Garden of Gethsemane, He knew. When He hung on the Cross and pled for your soul, He knew. That He would be stripped of every dignity and comfort before the victory in order that you might know the fullness of eternal joy.⁣

May the joy of our Christmas celebrations be more passionate than the hatred of the enemy. It is the least we can do.⁣

What is holding you back from announcing His goodness and mercy to the world?⁣
That is what 2021 will be about.⁣

It will be a year of MERCY for the believer, in which we have the opportunity to become what we have been afraid of becoming...⁣

Children of the living God.⁣
Saints.⁣

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel 🔥

A Joyful Fighting Spirit

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Oh, child of the Midwest... I love you so. “Seasonal clothing” is a relative term for you. And every year, when you open the door to the first snow and throw yourself out in it, my heart explodes. Don’t ever stop. I love going through Advent with you. Your life is healing. Creative. Astonishing.⁣

The hardness and ugliness of current times highlights the beauty of Christ by contrast. I don’t think I will see anything quite the same again...⁣

I hope I don’t.⁣

In a recent article recommended by Bishop Joseph Strickland, Austin Ruse speaks of the “Joyful fighting spirit.” And that pierced me.⁣ That’s what I want. That’s what this child has. That’s what I owe to God. And that is what Advent brings.⁣..

Quietly.⁣
Intensely.⁣
Intimately.⁣

Then when the time comes...⁣

Oh, come let us adore Him! And testify to the ends of the earth.⁣

True intimacy with Him brings the confidence that necessarily becomes a force in the world. We can now work with vigor to become the greatest saints. Because Christ is with us.⁣

“Christ’s coming into the world was not like that of a sightseer to a strange city, but rather like that of an artist visiting his own studio or an author paging the books he himself has written, for in becoming incarnate, the divine Word was tabernacle himself in his own creation.”⁣ - Ven. Fulton Sheen

Jesus Rejoiced and Gave Thanks

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The snow is disruptive but stunning. Pure. The adults are burdened. Stuck in ditches. Dealing with power outages. Shoveling. But... the children seem to have new life breathed into them. It is beautiful.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
In the Gospel today... ⁣
JESUS REJOICES.⁣⁣⁣
⁣And He gives thanks.⁣
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I’m working today to allow His Word to penetrate all anxiety and sorrow that has settled on me this week.⁣⁣ All the heaviness and adult cares.⁣
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Come, Lord Jesus! Transform me in Truth. Help me be your little one. ❤️⁣⁣⁣
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Luke 10:21-24⁣⁣⁣

“In that same hour HE REJOICED in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will...⁣⁣⁣
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All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”⁣⁣⁣

⁣⁣⁣
Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”⁣⁣⁣

Run energetically towards Christ!

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Run energetically towards Christ!⁣

Americans are prone to depression at Christmas because we have made “the season” an idol. We have forgotten that the true joy of Advent is running energetically towards Christ.⁣

He is the goal. And anything short of Christ leaves us feeling agitated and incomplete. This is why the Church describes Advent as a “little Lent”… because when our beloved seasonal emotion, beauty, and “magic” is separated from Christ, it does not satisfy. And it does us good to simplify rather than to multiply.⁣

“Only one thing in life matters. Being worthy of the Light of the World in the hour of His visitation.” - Ven. Fulton Sheen⁣

There’s a part of me that wants to make Christmas “extra” this year. To balance out the anxiety of the world with sparkly things. But I’m also wrestling with the thought that perhaps this is one of the greatest Christmas opportunities I’ve ever had…⁣

To understand Christmas joy without all the props and consolations.⁣

Certainly, my home will be decorated and my family will feast! But this idea (shared by a priest this weekend) of running energetically towards Christ is tugging at me. And causing me to withdraw a bit from the elaborate trappings of a world that has forgotten Christ. And which is seeking to replace Him with good feelings and purchases.⁣

Are you running with me?⁣

Come what may, let’s be His little children who hear the key rattling in the door and race to greet Him in the hall. No matter what… He comes! And how will we be disposed to greet Him?

"Lend me your heart"

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Mother Teresa’s words rattle around in my head today as I bustle around preparing for our Thanksgiving feast...⁣

“Lend me your heart.”⁣

She spoke these intimate words to Mary. Having just renewed my Marian Consecration, I’m leaning into them.⁣

Last Thanksgiving was the strangest one ever... until this year. A loved one was suffering in the hospital and we didn’t know if he would be coming home.⁣

We were divided and a little unmoored and worried. But we rallied and made a meal and consoled each other with “Wait until next year... when we are all together again!”⁣

So here I sit in grief and gratitude because nothing seems to be as it should be. Separated again. For different reasons. And the injustice threatens to unseat gratitude...⁣

But doesn’t quite win.⁣

Oh, beautiful Mother Mary... lend me your Immaculate Heart so that I may see with fullness of gratitude the promises of your Son. Oh, Sacred Heart of Jesus, transform my complaints into songs of praise! Eucharisteo!⁣

Today is a national holiday but also a day of holiness... a day of beginning and of revelation...⁣

The key ingredient to my physical healing is gratitude.⁣
The rope that pulls me out of doubt is gratitude.⁣
The glue of my marriage is gratitude.⁣
The secret to peaceful motherhood is gratitude.⁣


Gratitude rooted in the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ who takes away the sins of the world and gives us hope and joy beyond measure. So...⁣

When I’m finished nursing my hurts, I’ll dry my eyes and step out into a day of goodness. And I’ll start the song of thanksgiving which is an anthem of revival. “Thank you, Jesus, for...”⁣

I am a child again and the world is new. And I will give thanks today without ceasing even if it comes with tears.⁣

This sweet Sacred Heart ring is from Jessica @telosart . A concrete and pretty reminder of everything good. If you’re shopping small, please visit her shop. She is not only talented but loves the Lord deeply.⁣

Happy Thanksgiving ❤️ Deo Gratias! Mary, lend me your heart.

She crushes the serpent (and this scarf is beautiful)

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As we wait and pray for our nation, we are also necessarily managing the practical details of life. Mary has been my lifeline... leading me to the peace of her Son, Jesus Christ.⁣

And in the midst of this endless stretching of 2020, I admit... I’m Christmas shopping. So let’s merge the pragmatic and the needs of our soul a bit here, shall we? 😊⁣

I’m collaborating with Outrageous Mom to give away one of these gorgeous Marian scarves...⁣ (GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED)

They are absolutely beautiful with many more styles and colors on the website. And they outwardly (yet subtly) express what is going on in my soul.⁣

❤️ Oh Mary, beautiful Spouse of the Holy Spirit, be with me now and at the hour of my death. Intercede for America and the world. Accompany my children. ❤️⁣

I’m wearing the blue Miraculous Medal scarf. This is the style we are giving away! The scarves from left to right:⁣

🌷Mary, the New Eve⁣
🌷Miraculous Medal in Blue⁣
🌷Miraculous Medal in Neutral⁣

There is a tiny Miraculous Medal sewn onto the corner of each scarf.⁣

I once met a man from Ireland who was wearing a Notre Dame hat while walking the campus. It only said “ND” but he said he could not wear it without being attacked in his home town. I didn’t understand...⁣

He said: “You see, those who hate the Church know that Notre Dame means Our Lady. American college kids think they are just wearing the symbol of their school but they are really wearing her beautiful name. I wish they had half the passion of the enemy.”⁣

If we had half the passion of the enemy, everything would change. In our homes, in our country. But either way, in the end, she crushes the head of the serpent. Deo Gratias!⁣

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