God Is Always There

Sometimes we go through periods where it seems like we haven't heard from God. We're open, we're praying, doing everything we can think of to hear from Him, and...nothing.

Well, not really nothing--God is always working in our lives, working through people to help us along our paths, even when it seems like it's behind the scenes. The quote that comes to mind is: "The teacher is always silent during the test."

I was recently reminded of this while filling out a student registration form for a local business. There is also a small yearly fee. I took care of everything and brought it all to my teacher.

As I handed her the form, I said, "It's funny. I don't ever remember filling this out before. I don't know how I got away with it."

She smiled and said, "That's because I filled it out for you." She didn't say so, but I believe she also took care of the yearly fee.

As I thought back on how many years I've been a student of hers and started tallying her blessings, I was filled with gratitude.

It was a simple gesture, yet speaks profoundly of her generosity and caring.

God is always there, even when we don't know--or recognize Him--right away. He's working behind the scenes and will reveal Himself at the perfect moment.

CLM Community Retreats

My heart is so full as I remember the last two weekends at the Saint Theresa National Shrine in Darien, IL, hosting our Student/Novice Retreat as well as our Monk/Ordain/Friar Retreat.

Our outstanding team of Rev Dana Duryea, Rev Robert Bearden, Rev Virginia Chapin-Sheff and I along with our Coordinator, Rev Kathy Bonvallet and Rev Susan Wallace, with the set-up team of Monks Renee Plendl and Mary Kay Simmons along with Rev Shirley Ryan made these retreat weekends SHINE.

These weekends become ever so special for every participant as we grow in our relationship with Christ as well as each other! Thank you for those who PRAYED for us to receive all that God had intended to share with us.

CLM hosted a Healing Service on that Sunday in between retreats, and we were overjoyed with the large attendance, as people came from as far away as Iowa, Indiana and Wisconsin. What joy it was for our team to pray for these individuals. The healing service lasted 3 1/2 hours as everyone got blessed. By the Grace of God, I stayed on my crutches the whole time...Thanks BE to GOD!

Don't forget to sign up for the East of Heaven - and the West of Heaven Healing Weekends in Sept! The Holy Spirit is stirring the waters for people to get touched by this Divine Grace for healing. Come and enjoy these two day events!

Your Authentic Self

My church has been breaking down Ephesians for the past few weeks. As we covered chapter four, Pastor Kevin spoke about being authentic. That word resonated with me, and it's come into my consciousness lately in a couple of different ways. As we think about being authentic, some big questions come up.

Who are you, really? We often identify ourselves by our name, by our occupation, our family, maybe our hobbies. But is that who we really are? Yes, here on Earth, that's one way to define ourselves. But we need to remember our spiritual selves, too.

Are there things that you are doing that don't feel true to who you are? I recently realized that an old hobby didn't allow for me to be my authentic self, while a new one does--which was eye-opening at the time, and reminds me to let go of the control of how I want things to be.

And finally, ask yourself, "What do I want? What brings me joy?" When you go into certain situations, do you find you have tense shoulders or a clenched jaw? Bring your awareness to what you are doing (or where you are at the time) and make the necessary corrections. God has better plans for you.

By asking ourselves these questions, and receiving our internal (and Divine) guidance, we can correct our course and make sure that we're living our best lives.

For those interested, here's the Ephesians message.