Take My Hands

Lyrics from a song sung today at Liturgy by Fr. Jim. He has a beautiful, warm voice. Made me think of Blessed Mother Teresa and the books that I have read about her life.

Sebastian Temple

Take my hands and make them as your own, and use them for your kingdom
here on earth.
Consecrate them to your care, anoint them for your service where you
may need your gospel to be sown.
Take my hands, take my hands, O Lord.
Take my hands, they speak now for my heart, and by their actions they
will show their love.
Guard them on their daily course, be their strength and guiding force
to ever serve the Trinity above.
Take my hands, take my hands, O Lord.
Take my hands, I give them to you, Lord. Prepare them for the
service of your name.
Open them to human need and by their love they'll sow your seed so all
may know the love and hope you gave.
Take my hands, take my hands, O Lord.

A Letter from Rachel's Mom

I am including a letter that was sent to us at school from Rachel's mom. Please, please pray for this little girl. See my earlier posts for more information. We are praying for the tumor to be completely gone from her body. We are one body in Christ!

To my Unified Catholic School Family,
It is very
sad to hear when anyone has cancer – never mind someone you love with all your
heart. God has blessed my life with three things that have helped me
endure throughout Rachel’s initial pain, diagnosis, and continued
treatments.
First, when I asked God what I
should do with my life He opened my mind to the possibility of a nursing
career. My nursing career has been a blessing in numerous ways.
Daily, I thank God for giving me the opportunity to be an active team member in
all phases of Rachel’s care. Rachel’s continual care has become a top
priority.
Second, I asked God to
give me someone to love. God blessed me with three beautiful children. I
embrace being a mother with enthusiasm and devotion.
Third, I asked God for a church that accepted me as
I am, yet ignited a passion within me to be a better Christian. God showed
me Catholicism. Through the Catholic Church, I have received a devotion to
Mary. The faces of Mary I love the most are Mary as, the mother of Jesus,
a perfect role model for handling tragedy, and my mother. The Catholic
Church has given me the Saints, who inspire me to achieve more. The
Catholic Church has given me and my children a loving, kind, caring family and
school right here in Oshkosh. I use to think it was necessary to drive for
hours to visit family.
Grace has taught me to
put God, my children and others before myself, but I do intertwine personal
sacrifices with indulgences to keep me sane (or as close as possible). One
of my favorite passages states it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye
of a needle than a rich person to get into
heaven.
Thank
you everyone for your prayers and support. You have made life less
complicated. I have learned that it is in giving we are blessed, but I am
not very skilled in receiving. Your show of support is over
whelming.

Bless you,
Brenda (Rachel's Mom)

Some portions edited for privacy. -Mary

St. Pio Feast Day!

Just a short post today... :)

It's the feast day for St. Padre Pio. It was so awesome to talk to the children about Padre and his life. They love hearing and reading about Saints. If you want to learn more yourself, check out the many wonderful sites that are online.

I need to scoot upstairs to check on the scalloped potatoes and ham that is baking in the oven and then we are off to cello lessons for Maddie.

God's Peace to you!

Mary

Jesus, I trust in You!

The Sign of the Cross

First things first...I should be grading papers and submitting the grades online but--I just got back from my adult Catechism class and I can't think of anything else right now.

Tonight was a lot of information. A lot to think about. After each class we get a 3"x5" card and we have to answer one or two questions on the card so that we are able to get our religious certification. Now I need to say that I didn't attend the first evening with the intention of receiving my cert. I just wanted to learn more about my Faith.
Back to the card...
These questions aren't meant to be difficult. But they are difficult for me! I like to think about things...(from previous posts you probably already know that!) There is not enough time to really 'think' about our answers on the little white cards. Tonights was something like: When you are teaching, what do you want your students to gain from watching you? In light of everything that was discussed tonight. How do you want people to 'read' Jesus in you? Has your philosophy changed after learning what was discussed tonight?

I want Jesus to use me where He needs me. I remember the first time I
prayed:

Place me where you need me to be. Use me so that
others can see You. Give me words and action so that others fall
deeply in love with You.

I want the children to think of Jesus with every breath that they take. I want them to love Him with every beat of their hearts.

Being in school with children is such a gift from God. I am so thankful for that gift. Learning what I am learning in this weekly class is increasing my passion for Christ. The more passionate I become...the easier the children will see Christ's love for them. It's impossible to hold it back. The children are so very hungry to learn about Jesus. Their prayers are so heartfelt. Their prayers are so beautiful.

To guide them as they discover compassion towards a classmate who is bullied...to hold their hand as they gather the courage to help someone who is teased...to help them handle anger...to lead them as they learn to pray to Our Blessed Mother in a Rosary for their classmate diagnosed with cancer.

Thank you God! You are indescribable.

This post is getting long but I need to tell you that today at Mass Rachel was sitting with her class. She had her second chemo treatment last Monday. She is a beautiful child. I know that there are many of you from all over the United States praying...and I thank you!! Linda in Pennsylvannia, Janet, Harriet in Indiana...Thank you!! Please get the word out, please. If you could see this child's smile...pray for a miracle! God is awesome, isn't He?

Mary

Jesus, I trust in You!

St. John Vianney Prayer

I was just introduced to this beautiful prayer last week. It's amazing.

I love You, O my God,
and my only desire is to love You
until the last breath of my life.
I love You, O my infinitely lovable
God,
and I would rather die loving You,
than live without loving You.
I love You, Lord
and the only grace I ask is to love You
eternally...
My God, if my tongue cannot say in every moment that I love You,
I want my heart to repeat it to You as often as I draw breath.
Amen.

Continued Prayers Please!!!!!!!

I was dropping off my daughter, Meri Claire, at a gymnastics center for a birthday party and I ran into the family of the little girl that has cancer...the one I'm asking you to pray for with me.

She had her first chemo last Monday and will have another one in two days. She is much thinner and has difficulty walking due to where the tumor is located on her spine. (see earlier post)

Please, please. Pray with me for the total healing of her body. Pray for a miracle for that tumor to be gone from her spine.

Thank you.
Her name is Rachel.

Mary

Jesus, I trust in You!

USCCA Class - Pillars of Faith

I am taking a class on Thursday evenings. It is to learn more about being Catholic. We discussed Covenants last week. I started thinking about my husband and our Covenant (Marriage). Be patient with me if I don't write the correct words...I'm just learning.

Isn't it beautiful that through our Marriage we gave ourselves to each other? It isn't just a contract that can be voided. You can't void out a Covenant. Then I started thinking about God and His love for us...
Sam, our teacher, told us about the Covenants that God made and I wish I could remember them all to write them here. I believe there were six altogether. Each one seemed to build on the one before. How awesome and beautiful!

I'm looking forward to next Thursday's class...I want to know more. :)

Mary

Jesus, I trust in You!

Fourth Grade Morning Rosary

Absolutely beautiful! You should walk into my classroom around 8:00 in the morning...
the children are all praying for Rachel. Please pray for us that we continue to grow in our own faith as we pray for our fellow student.

Help us pray for a miracle for her!

Jesus, I trust in you!

Mary

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha

Prayers Requested Please!

We have a little girl at our school who needs your prayers...I believe she needs a miracle. This last July they found a large tumor on her spine. Surgery didn't remove the entire tumor. They were fearful that complete removal would leave her without the use of her legs. She was diagnosed with Glioma. I believe I have the correct spelling. It's a fast moving cancer and the outlook is not good.

Please, please add Rachel to your prayers. She is in fifth grade.
I take prayer requests very seriously and I hope that you do also.

My class is going to be asking for Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha's intercessions. I have expressed to the children the need for a miracle, if it be in Our Lord's Will.

Thank you in advance.

Remember, her name is Rachel.

Mary

Jesus, I trust in You.

Our Family Pilgrimage Summer 2008

We decided to take our children to Lacrosse, WI to spend the day at Our Lady of Guadelupe Shrine. We had a beautifully cool, sunny day in August. The area is absolutely beautiful and I would recommend the trip to everyone. The Church that was built is beautiful. It gave the children a chance to learn about Our Lady and also Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha and St. Juan Diego.



I have some recommendations if you plan to take children younger than three! Just ask and I will provide...



Jesus, I trust in You!

Mary