I was talking with a group of college students tonight, and the theme was the power of prayer.
I shared with them a personal experience of years of prayer for a particular intention, but those prayers seemed to go unanswered. I prayed. My family prayed. My friends prayed. Nothing seemed to happen. We got discouraged. Some stopped praying. I gave up more than once.
Over the last six months, I haven’t been maintaining my eating and exercising routines that have helped me rectify some health issues. My weight has been creeping up, along with my blood sugar numbers.
This hasn’t happened all at once, but slowly, over time. I don’t know about you, but it’s easier not to think about it if changes happen over weeks and months versus hours and days.
We started our Freshmen Retreat today in the little chapel to the left of this photo. Known as Little Baker Chapel, people have been praying here since the late 1800’s, and today was our chance to continue the tradition.
The place was packed as our new participants in Campus Ministry joined with their parents and a small group of student leaders who will be responsible for the retreat. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the place so crowded. It was great.
I hope your weekend was a good as mine. I got a lot done, visited with friends, went to a crab feast, and enjoyed the much cooler weather that has come our way.
Yesterday, I had the chance to sit out on my patio for quite a while and catch up on my reading. It was great to be able to sit in my backyard for more than thirty minutes before being forced back into the air-conditioned coolness of the house. Can you feel the beginnings of fall? I can sense the changes coming, and I’m of the opinion that they’re good changes.
Today, July 31st, is the Feast of St. Ignatius. I’ve gotten to know this great saint over the last several years, and I’ve also come to understand that, even though he lived nearly 500 years ago, his teachings still have an impact on us today.
Instead of a long post highlighting some key points of Ignatian Spirituality, I thought I’d just provide you with a link to Ignatian Spirituality.com, where you’ll find a great list of ten elements of this form of spirituality.
Lastly, if you click the link above today (July 31st), check out the free eBook (see top right box on the linked page) Loyola Press is giving away FREE today ONLY. Recently published, Just Call Me Lopez was written by Margaret Silf. She’s a great writer, and I’ll be reading through my own copy in the next few days. Don’t miss this opportunity.
Thanks to Loyola Press for making this book available to everyone 🙂
Sorry for the delay in posting. I’m just about done with my first semester as a doctoral student, and am now in the midst of finishing my final three papers. I will be marking a second, more personal “independence day” when they are done 🙂
I’m really excited about something I learned earlier today. The folks at Loyola Press are getting ready to celebrate the Feast of St. Ignatius on July 31st, and they want us to join them.
My dog Maggie hasn’t been feeling too well lately, and she’s been getting me up extra early. That’s o.k. with me, especially because the sun is just coming up as I pour my first cup of coffee.
Today is a beautiful morning. This little container garden is just outside my kitchen door. The sun rises right behind it, and over the years, it’s become one of my favorite places to pray.
I change the plantings each year just to keep things lively. That being said, I always have some variety of hibiscus, geranium, fuchsia and coleus. I was in a peachy kind of mood when I was at the nursery this year, so here’s what I got.
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been working hard on a paper for my spirituality class.
The paper is on St. Bonaventure’s understanding of grace, as presented in his document called the Breviloquium. The challenge of the paper is how to help people in 2012 understand the thought of this Medieval writer, and make his beautiful understanding of grace come alive for them.
It’s been some time since I last quoted from the book Grace In Every Season, written by Catherine Doherty. Sadly, this book is difficult to find now, but I recently found that you can still get it through Madonna House, the community that Doherty founded.
So often, many of us are hardest on ourselves.