"Those who celebrate the sacrament say, 'I promise to be true to you, in joy and in sadness, in sickness and in health; I will love you and honour you all the days of my life.' At that moment, the couple does not know what will happen, nor what joys and pains await them. They are setting out, like Abraham, on a journey together. And that is what marriage is! Setting out and walking together, hand in hand, putting yourselves in the Lord’s powerful hands. Hand in hand, always and for the rest of your lives." —Pope Francis
.
I recently came across one of our engagement photos with this caption, and it was a much needed reminder. How different marriage is compared to engagement and courtship! Marriage is beautiful, and also filled with many crosses. Sometimes Jon keeps us moving onward, sometimes I do. The most important part however is that while remaining hand in hand, we are placing our marriage in God’s hands above all else. #livingoutthevows
📷: Fernan Caparas
Hi 👋🏽 friends! I do apologize for the crickets as of late as I’m trying to navigate through some questions on my heart with this account/shop. I did want to hop on, however, to share one thing for now, especially if this may be something the Lord wants you to remember as well.
.
.
Recently I went on my community’s annual silent retreat. The silence was so good and so needed. One of my favorite parts was the Sacrament of Reconciliation as this tangible encounter with Christ’s unfathomable mercy is always a restorative experience. After having confessed my sins, my confessor told me to repeat this statement in the photo ten times as my penance. I teared up upon hearing that as well as during my prayer time thereafter in the chapel because I truly felt this as Christ’s clear and direct response to my constant struggle with not believing I am not good enough. Well, those are all lies. Now that I am one week post-retreat, it would not be true if I said I don’t think these ill thoughts. From time to time, I still do. So when I feel any doubts or insecurities as a mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend, missionary, in my job or even as a creative here with @thishouseyourebuilding, I hope I always come back this simple truth.
.
.
Anyway, I share this because perhaps you need to remember this, too. If you’re like me, you probably give yourself a hard time often. If that’s the case, know of my prayers for you and that you’re not alone, and that you are a beloved daughter (or son) of God and you are trying your best. 💛 #restoredtoChrist2019
#spaceandfaith photo and caption repost from @houseofjoppa ✨
Whether you work from home or out of the home I came across this prayer from the Laudate app many years ago... it’s the perfect way to start your work week off right. “My Heavenly Father, as I enter this work place, I bring your presence with me.
I speak your peace, your grace, your mercy and your perfect order into my work.
I acknowledge your power over all that will be done, spoken, thought and decided within these walls.
Lord, I thank you for the gifts you have blessed me with.
I commit to use them responsibly in your honor.
Give me a fresh supply of strength to do my job.
Anoint my projects, ideas, and energy, so that even my smallest accomplishment may bring you glory.
Lord, when I am confused, guide me.
When I am weary, energize me.
When I am burned out, infuse me with the light of the Holy Spirit.
May the work that I do and the way I do it bring faith, joy and a smile to all that I come in contact with today.
And oh Lord, When I leave this place, give me traveling mercy.
Bless my family and home to be in order as I left it.
Lord, I thank you for everything you've done, everything you are doing, and everything you are going to do.
In the name of Jesus I pray, with much love and thanksgiving.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.”
With everything happening in the world, let alone our own country within the last few days even, I have been feeling discouraged, overwhelmed, and for brief moments, hopeless. Will we ever achieve peace? —I would think. Or, how much longer must evil prevail and will our suffering last? Then I remembered afterwards how much more I need to cling onto the Rosary and recite the prayers with confident hope in God’s plan for our world. I firmly believe that by reciting the Rosary, we meditate on the mysteries of Christ’s life which will in turn bring consolation, peace, trust, and an understanding of how we can strive to be holier witnesses in our world, no matter what the state of our lives is. How? Because by meditating on the life of Christ we are transformed to mirror His love and mercy to all we meet. Apart from the mysteries, the prayers (especially the Hail Mary) are SO powerful and by praying them can save many souls... Oh, and also the devil HATES the Rosary so that only fuels me to keep at it.🔥 ——
On that note, here are some of my favorite quotes on the Holy Rosary. May they encourage you to pray the Rosary more. It is a powerful spiritual weapon. Feel free to add more quotes below. 🙏🏽
.
Give me an army saying the Rosary and I will conquer the world. —Blessed Pope Pius IX
.
The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the demons to flight and to keep oneself from sin…If you desire peace in your hearts, in your homes, and in your country, assemble each evening to recite the Rosary. Let not even one day pass without saying it, no matter how burdened you may be with many cares and labors. —Pope Pius XI
.
The Most Holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or above all spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families…that cannot be solved by the Rosary. There is no problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary. —Sister Lucia dos Santos of Fatima
.
.
.
#spaceandfaith photo by @littlelightfamily 💛
