Prayer is hard...

Prayer is hard...

My prayer life is very uneven to say the least. I can't always follow my own advice and pray daily.
It takes a lot of effort and forming a new habit in order to set aside time to pray each day.

My family Bible in my Prayer Closet

I must say that my biggest problem is myself. I find it hard to form habits of any kind, from brushing my teeth, (no my teeth aren't green and I still have 98% of them) to writing a bi-weekly blog.
Not that that is a bad thing, I also have never smoked cigarettes, don't have addictions to alcohol or drugs, never been arrested, never passed out from too much partying, and I don't steal. Well, I have been known to open my purse and find pens that I have no idea where they came from, but hey, isn't that why they put advertisements on them? (You can smile here! You know you have the same problem now and again. )

But then on the other side of the coin that is me, the habits I have formed are what I believe are important ones, like faith in God. That has been part of my life since I can remember, although we did have some rocky times in my early life. The other good habits are faithfulness and loyalty to my husband, my family, my friends, and to my job.

One habit that I used to keep, at least until I lost my job in the secular world, was getting up everyday Monday through Friday, and going to work! I loved working. That's where my second family was located. Most people do not realize that you spend more time with the people you work with than your own family most of the time. So these people become a second family, with the weird Aunt Sally, the boring cousin that never stops talking, your brother that is a little too loud, or the sister that is a little too jealous. There's the flirt, the gossiper, the romeo, the grandmother, the rich matron (boss), the procrastinator, the idea thief, the showoff, and the introvert, and let's not forget, the lunch thief. Once I even worked with a schizophrenic that believed the men in black were stalking her and playing tricks on her! 

I miss my routine and sometimes have trouble organizing my day because there are so many things at home that interest me. They constantly pull me away from one thing to another until finally it's dinner time and the husband comes home. Have you experienced something like that before?

Now I want to return to school, to college, albeit online, it is scary! Middle aged woman who hasn't set foot on a school in thirty years, shiver!  How do I squeeze more time into this day that I have filled with so many chores? How do I still find time to pray, to work, to Blog and evangelize, to study?
God will provide! Yes, He will be there with me and help me work it all out, and if it be his will, I'll get the funds to pay for it. Getting the "A's" is up to me, I can't bother Him over grades, and nuisance things like that, because that's why he gave us the ability to think and reason and free will. If I flunk, it's on me.

Back to prayer!

Everyone's schedule is different, their circumstances, their family size and ages, so some people can set aside time in the morning, for fifteen minutes to say their prayers of Thanksgiving and ask for protection during the day. Some may have time before work to get up a little earlier and go to Mass before starting work. Some squeeze in time at Noon or during their lunch period to spend some quiet time with the Lord. Some can stop at the Adoration chapel on the way home and share their day with the Lord and decompress before arriving home to family. There are lots of ways to include prayer in your daily life, you just have to study yourself, your current habits, your schedule and find a way. Then the most important, just do it! They say it takes at least two weeks to form a new habit, so just stick to it and you'll get there eventually!

The Bible has many, many passages regarding prayer, and the Psalms is a great way to get started.
Jesus' teaching on prayer is one we should all know, in Matthew 6:9-15

9   “This is how you are to pray:

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name,

10    your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as in heaven.

11    Give us today our daily bread;

12    and forgive us our debts,

as we forgive our debtors;

13    and do not subject us to the final test,

but deliver us from the evil one.

14 If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you.

15 But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.

In Luke there is slight differences because Luke was written in a different language than Matthew so when they were translated, they come out slightly different. The thing to remember is that it still means the same thing.  

Luke 11: 1-4

1   He was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”^*

2  He said to them, “When you pray, say:

     Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.

3   Give us each day our daily bread

4    and forgive us our sins

      for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,

      and do not subject us to the final test.”

By tradition, in the USA at least, when we recite the Lords Prayer, we say it the way it translated a century or two ago: 

Our Father who Art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come. 

Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us, 

and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen

You can say this prayer while driving to work, or washing dishes, doing laundry, taking out the garbage, or walking the dog. Add a "Hail Mary", (no, not the football pass), and a "Glory Be".
Look how easy is that? We can start out small and work up to doing a Divine Mercy prayer daily, then a Decade of the Rosary with your prayer intentions for all those Email and Facebook prayer requests.
Then add another decade every so many days until you've made it to a full Rosary! Whoo Hoo! We're prayer warriors!

I have a small package or envelope of prayers I try to say daily for various Saints and Angels, with different intentions related to them. I also keep a small prayerbook in my purse, (there are wallet sized ones as well) for those times when my own words are not enough, or for the Litany's and Novena's that I may want to say or participate in while at church. That is a nice thing about Catholic Traditions, the prayers that were written by the Saints are so beautiful. Sometimes the prayer can say so much that you wanted to say but couldn't thing of, and in a way that can be soothing to our hearts. Prayers are not just for God, they are for us, to help us sort out the menagerie of thoughts and emotions that are tooling about in our mind and soul. They allow me to focus my petitions and my mind on God the Father and on our Lord Jesus.

Another way I add prayer time is in the car. I listen to Lighthouse Catholic Media CD's while I'm driving and I get a bible study on the road. It has cut down on my road rage tremendously, I never get upset in traffic anymore, I don't worry about the jerk that just cut me off, I just relax and enjoy the ride.

One of their recently released talks on prayer was given by

Sister Mary Gabriel, Novice Director for the Sisters of Life, spoke to college students about the transforming power of prayer at the Seek 2013 conference presented by FOCUS. Drawing on personal experience and her lively faith, Sister encourages all of us to rededicate ourselves to growing in relationship with Christ through a life of joyful prayer.

This talk was featured in the April 2013 edition of Truth be Told. Sign up today to receive incredible talks like this straight to your inbox every month!

                          For a sample of the talk, click here.


Be inspired, find new ways to pray through out your day. Your prayers will be heard and they will be answered, although not necessarily the way you think. 

Blessings!,
The Catholic Lady©

I'm now on FaceBook, GloriaTV, BlogTalk Radio and Twitter!

Hi folks!

Just to keep you informed and to expand my reader base, you can find me on

Twitter@catholicladytal

Facebook.com/the-catholic-lady-talks

GloriaTV.com/thecatholiclady

Blog Talk Radio- The Catholic Lady Talks X Live

The Radio show is still in the experimental stage but I'll send schedule times via twitter and facebook!

All for the Glory of God!

Blessings!

Annunciation: Why did Mary say Yes? Part 2

Annunciation: Why did Mary say Yes? Part 2

The Proverbs 31 woman has been a Godly example of our roles as spouses to our husbands. I have read this chapter so many times in my life when I thought that I was not being the woman I thought I was supposed to be, or when I was married to my first husband, when he told me I was not a good wife or mother, (he was bi-polar and would assail me with denigrating comments every few months) I'd turn to the Proverbs and pray for guidance. Here it is, with commentary that I included in my talk. This is to help you see how this is truly for all ages, not just Ancient Jerusalem.

These words are from the mother of King Lemuel who was giving him advice and admonition for his behavior and spending time with women. Proverbs 31:10-31

10 Who can find a woman of worth?  Far beyond jewels is her value.

 A good wife is worth her weight in Gold.

11 Her husband trusts her judgment; he does not lack income.

 Her husband trusts her with his finances, she does not spend un-wisely so as to put him in debt with credit cards.

12 She brings him profit, not loss, all the days of her life.

 She helps him become financially sound, building savings, living good but not above your means.

13 She seeks out wool and flax and weaves with skillful hands.

She looks for ways to make money, using her skills.

14 Like a merchant fleet, she secures her provisions from afar.

 She invests money in the market, 401K, bonds, etc.

15 She rises while it is still night, and distributes food to her household, a portion to her maidservants.

 She gets up early and takes care of the family, feeding them and getting them off to school and work.

16 She picks out a field and acquires it; from her earnings she plants a vineyard.

 She uses the money she earns to purchase investments, land or business.

17 She girds herself with strength; she exerts her arms with vigor.

 She takes care of herself, she is strong in mind and body, she works out, or if a stay home mom, she works hard keeping up the household.

18 She enjoys the profit from her dealings; her lamp is never extinguished at night.

She enjoys the profit of her work and doesn't stop at 5PM. She multi-tasks.

19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her fingers ply the spindle.

She doesn't waste time on television, she sews, or knits, or works on her home business, or balances the checkbook, or pays the bills.

20 She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy.

She volunteers at the food bank or church, she gives alms, helping those in need.

21 She is not concerned for her household when it snows— all her charges are doubly clothed.

 She doesn't have to worry about her family during hard times or winter, she makes sure everyone has warm clothing and whatever they need to keep them safe.

22 She makes her own coverlets; fine linen and purple are her clothing.

She makes her own bed, decorates her home, and she is dressed in finery from her own hands.

23 Her husband is prominent at the city gates as he sits with the elders of the land.

 She is a force of good and makes her husband proud, making him look good to the community.

24 She makes garments and sells them, and stocks the merchants with belts.

She sells her wares to shops, the work of her hands, clothing or jewelry, or Tupperware.

25 She is clothed with strength and dignity, and laughs at the days to come.

Strength and dignity shine from her, people see her wisdom, she doesn't worry about the future.

26 She opens her mouth in wisdom; kindly instruction is on her tongue.

 She gives good advice, and is kind, never rude in her instruction.

27 She watches over the affairs of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.

 She makes sure that her children and husband make good decisions and is never lazy or self absorbed.

28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband, too, praises her:

 Her children love her and never speak ill of her, her husband knows he's a lucky man and let's her know he loves and trusts her and tells her:

29 “Many are the women of proven worth, but you have excelled them all.”

You are the best thing that ever happened to me, no other woman could replace you.

30 Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

 Charming smiles are deceptive, and beauty doesn't last, a woman of God is to be praised.

31 Acclaim her for the work of her hands, and let her deeds praise her at the city gates.
Tell everyone what a treasure you have, and her works will bring praise from the community.

Whew! Tough one , huh? I read these verses and I can see myself, and know where I need improvement. I also read these verses and see women of worth around me, in my family and in my church.

Do you think Mary was intimidated by these words? I don't think so. For Mary was chosen by God before she was born. He knew she had a kind heart, he knew she would be the best mother for his child. She was all of this and more, I'm sure, to Joseph and Jesus as he grew up. 

Mary was about fourteen when the Angel Gabriel came to her, so young by our standards, but so mature by the standards of her day. Back then, girls were taught what it was to be a good wife and mother from the time they could walk, everyday, helping the mother with her chores, laundry, shopping, cooking, going to temple. 

Mary must have been a very devout young woman who have heard the stories of the Angels of God, the seraphim's, (burning ones), the angels that came to Abraham and Isaiah, so was she prepared when this bright shining being came to her to tell her she would bear a child for God?   

Mary was simply doing what she knew was needed of her. In her beautiful prayer, the Magnificat, Luke 1: 46-56, she says "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord”

Mary knew the scriptures and the prophesies of the Christ. She understood what was being asked of her, and she did not turn away from God. 

The Visitation-by Champaigne

How many of us have heard the call from God in our hearts and have turned away? How often have we heard and wanted to do something but found some excuse as to why it was impossible? How many of us are afraid to answer the call? We all have a gift or a talent that the Lord gave us, and wants us to use for His Glory. Some of us are called to speak, like me, to proclaim God’s word, and to Evangelize. For many years, I kept telling myself, I’m too busy, I have to care for my husband and family. Some of us are called to sing for the Lord, but are afraid or shy. Some are called to feed the hungry at a homeless shelter, others to care for the sick, still others to bring the Eucharist to the sick. Some are called to be missionaries, or religious.

What is God asking of you? Think today about your gifts, and listen closely to your heart and the call of the Lord, and maybe, just maybe, we can all say “Yes” to God!  

Blessings!,

The Catholic Lady ©

The Annunciation: Why Mary said Yes to God!

The Annunciation: Why Mary said Yes to God!



What does annunciation mean, anyway? Well, according to the Free Online Dictionary:

an·nun·ci·a·tion  (-nns-shn) n. 1. The act of announcing. 2. An announcement; a proclamation. 3. Annunciation Christianity a. The angel Gabriel's announcement to the Virgin Mary of the Incarnation. b. The feast celebrating this event. c. March 25, the day on which this feast is observed.

In the Catholic Church, it is a Feast usually observed on March 25th of every year, but this year, due to Holy Week falling on that day, it was moved to April 8th. So today we observed a full Mass for the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. The readings reminded me of a talk I gave to the Ladies of our church a couple years ago, and decided I might be able to get two posts out of it. We shall see where this takes me.


The basic question I was asking the Ladies from my church was, "How did Mary say "Yes" to God so easily? Well to begin, we must first read the annunciation as it appears in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1:26-38

26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, 

27 to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary.

28 And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.”

29 But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 

30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 

31 Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. 

32 He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, 

33 and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” 

35 And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. 

36 And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; 

37 for nothing will be impossible for God.”

38 Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

How was this very young woman able to say “Yes to God” so easily?

This was a major life changing request and yet, she says, “May it be done according to your word” and agrees to be the mother of the Christ Child!

Let’s take a step back in time, and look at her life in the small town of Nazareth.

According to tradition and legend, not from any Catholic approved documents, Mary’s parents, Joachim and Hannah (Anna or Anne) brought Mary up to love and fear the Lord and to obey his Law’s. According to the Document called the Gospel of James, (completely unrecognized as accurate, it was not allowed in the Bible as it was found to be uninspired, or not 'inspired by God'), Mary was taught in the Temple of the Lord, and studied the scriptures. Whether taught in the Temple of Jerusalem, or at the feet of her father, Mary would have known the Prophesies of the Christ, the Psalms and the Virtuous women of the Proverbs. And perhaps marveled at the women of the past that had saved the People of Israel when men were unable to do so. 

Let’s look at those women, Mary’s “Hero’s”. Not the imaginary female hero’s like we and our children grew up with, Wonder Woman, Bat Girl, and Super Girl, comic book hero’s that had super powers.

No, these were real women, women that God chose to serve his purposes in teaching the Children of Israel to repent and abide by his Law.

Naomi and Ruth, from the Old Testament Book of Ruth

Naomi was the wife of Elimelech and had two sons. During a famine in Judah, they moved to the land of Moab, where her husband soon died, and son’s eventually found wives, Orpah and Ruth. They lived well for ten years in Moab until both of Naomi’s son’s died and left no grandchildren for Naomi.

Naomi told her daughter in laws to return to their mothers’ houses and find new husbands, as she would return to her land of Judah where the famine had ended.

Both the daughters cried and did not want Naomi to go, but Naomi insisted they go home to their homes and their gods. Orpah returned to her family.

But Ruth refused to go and said, 

 But Ruth said, “Do not press me to go back and abandon you!

Wherever you go I will go,

wherever you lodge I will lodge.

Your people shall be my people

and your God, my God.

17Where you die I will die,

and there be buried.

May the Lord do thus to me, and more, if even death separates me from you!”

So off they went to Bethlehem of Judah. When Naomi returned everyone knew her and welcomed her back. But Naomi said to them,

“Do not call me Naomi [‘Sweet’]. Call me Mara [‘Bitter’], for the Almighty has made my life very bitter.

 Naomi sent Ruth went to glean food in barley fields, as it was harvest time. While she worked all day in the fields and collected a good amount of barley, she caught the eye of Boaz, the owner of the field. Boaz just happened to be a relative and close family male in Elimelech family, which made him a possible husband for Ruth. Boaz told Ruth to only glean in his fields and had his people watch over her and make sure they left a little more barley for her to find.

Since it was tradition that a widow would marry her husband’s brother or closest male relative, Naomi sent Ruth to the threshing floor and where Boaz was celebrating the harvest. He had laid down a blanket and fallen asleep. Ruth slipped in and lay down to sleep at his feet. Boaz woke up during the night and asked what was this about? Ruth told him he was her redeemer or in other words, my husbands relative, and she asked him to take her under his wing.

He told her there was another family member that had first dibs, and he would check with him first. Boaz made sure she left before daylight so no one would know she had been there and cause a scandal.

Boaz went to the gates where the elders would meet and men conducted business and waited for his cousin to arrive. He then asked his cousin if he would like to purchase Elimelech’s land. At first he said yes but when Boaz told him he must also take Ruth, he changed his mind and told Boaz he may take the land. Well one thing leads to another and Boaz takes Ruth as his wife and she produces a son, a grand child for Naomi, and named him Obed, and Obed was the father of Jesse, who was the father of David the King.

Ruth’s love for her mother-in-law, and faithfulness to her people and God, allowed her to become an integral part of the people of Israel, and bring David who would be the King of Israel. 

Another hero may have been Deborah the Prophetess, Judges Chapter 4.

The people of Israel had angered God again and it was allowed that they be conquered by the Canaanite King, Jabin. The Kings general, Sisera, had tortured and killed the Israelites for twenty years and was known to be ruthless and without mercy. He had at his disposal, over nine hundred Iron Chariots; he was a formidable Army.

The people prayed to God, please save us, (we’ll be good this time.)  So the Lord sends them Deborah, and she became a leader and Judge of the people of Israel, holding court and judging the disputes of the people. Deborah would pray and the Lord God would speak to her.

One day she sends for Barak a leader of the army or Israel and tells him that the Lord God wants him to take ten thousand men and go fight Sisera, whom he would send to the river valley of Kishon. But Barak would not go unless Deborah went with him, as he believed that they could not win unless she was there.

So Deborah tells him, OK but because you did not trust the Lord, you will not be the one to kill Sisera; instead a woman will have that honor.

They go to Mount Tabor above the valley by the Kishon River and what happens? It rains! And it rains and the fields turned into mud pits. 

     (Have you ever been mud bogging and seen these huge trucks get stuck in the mud?) 
Well, all of Sisera’s chariots and horses got bogged down and Barak’s men wiped them out, except for Sisera. He was a sly old dog and knew he had to get while the getting was good!

So Sisera escapes and comes to the tent of Heber whose family had an alliance with King Jabin. Heber’s wife, Jael, was home alone. Sisera comes in to the tent to hide and asks for water. Jael knows this man is evil but she plays it cool. She, instead of water, gives him some warm milk (curds, or buttermilk) and a blanket and due to his exhaustion, he tells her to keep a watch at the tent door and he falls asleep.

Now imagine her standing at the door and listening. As soon as he starts to snore, little Jael picks up a tent peg and a heavy mallet, tippy-toes over to Sisera and with all her strength, she slams that mallet down and drives the tent peg right into his temple! Now how many of us could have done that? Barak finally arrives having tracked Sisera to Heber’s tent.  Jael comes out and calls him and tells him, come inside, I know who you are looking for, and there he finds Sisera dead at the hands of this woman.

Deborah and Jael, two women that did what the Lord asked of them to save the people.

One more story, there are many more, but the story of Judith was awesome too!

Now my Non-Catholic Friends, you may have to borrow you Catholic friends Bible, or you can go to the USCCB.ORG website and look it up in the New American Bible, The Book of Judith is one of the seven books that we Catholics have but are not in most protestant versions of the Bible or the King James Version the Baptists prefer. It is worth the read, it has excitement, intrigue, murder, and saving grace, all rolled into sixteen chapters!

The Assyrian general Holofernes was on his way to destroy all the cities that had snubbed King Nebuchadnezzar, when he laid siege to the city of Bethulia, cutting off their water and soon the inhabitants began to talk of surrender.

 Judith who was well respected and prayerful widow, still in mourning for her deceased husband Manasseh, conceived a plan and called to the elders the chief priest and reminded them they must Pray to God for help, not surrender to be killed. She told them to open the gate that she would be leaving. She went home and prayed to God to make her a good liar, then she bathed, removed her widows garb, dressed in her finest clothes, jewels and perfumed with ointment, she passed through the gate with her maid who carried several days supply of food and walked across the valley to the encampment of Holofernes.

There, she explained to the guards that she wanted to provide the general with information about the best means of entering Bethulia. They took her to the general right away.

When Judith was admitted to Holofernes presence, he was immediately smitten by her beauty. Judith explained that the siege had caused the Jews to turn away from their religion, and so they therefore merited destruction. She maintained that God himself had sent her on this errand. Judith and Holofernes came to an agreement: he would not harm her, and she would be allowed to leave the camp at night for prayer This, Judith claimed, would allow her to learn from God exactly when the city should be attacked. For three days, Judith stayed in the camp, eating only the food her maid prepared and carried with her in a cloth sack. And at night Judith, and her maid, would pass, unobstructed to the river to pray and bath to purify her after being in the presence of the Assyrians.

On the fourth night, Holofernes held a banquet for his captains, and he invited Judith, in hopes of wooing her. Judith came dressed in her finest clothes and also took with her the fleece she had been given to sleep on. Judith lay on her fleece and drank only the wine and ate only the food given to her by her maid. Happy with her there, Holofernes drank quite a lot, more than he’d ever drunk in his life, and far too much to retain consciousness. Everybody but Judith and Holofernes left the tent. Alone with the drunken, sleeping general, Judith prayed for strength. Then she took hold of his sword, and, in two strokes, cut off his head. Her maid, waiting outside the tent, came in with the food sack. Judith put Holofernes’ head in the sack, pulled down his bed curtains, and the two women left the camp upon what seemed to be their nightly errand of prayer.

Only this time they went straight to Bethulia where she called for them to open the gates and she showed the head to the elders. She told them to put it up on the wall where his men could see it, and while there was confusion in the camp, to take all the men in the city down to the camp and finish them off. Which all this happened and Israel is again saved by a little woman that answered God’s call.

Mary had a lot of examples of virtue and faithfulness to the Lord's calling. Her heart was pure, and she would have also known the Proverbs by heart, specifically, Proverbs 31. 

We'll discuss this further in part two, to follow soon.

Blessings,

The Catholic Lady©

Divine Mercy, Divine Love

Divine Mercy, Divine Love

The first Sunday after Easter is the day set aside by Blessed Pope John Paul II, as Divine Mercy Sunday, in order that we celebrate our Lord's greatest gift to sinners, His Divine Mercy, and some may say, His Divine Love.

Sr. Maria Faustina Kowalska became a nun during the 1930's after World War I. Although she was not a highly educated person, she was graced with visions of Christ which she wrote in her daily prayer Diary, along with the messages that Christ gave her to pass on to the rest of the world.

Despite being banned by the church for a short while, (due to a very bad interpretation of her writing) and with help from a future Pope, her writings became recognized as authentic revelation and her writings were approved for general reading and devotion.

I have not yet had the opportunity to read the complete diary, only pieces, I have it in my to be read list of books. it would be great if an Audio version was recorded for people with failing eye site like my own. That sounds like a challenge for my future! Maybe I'll record it. Hmmm. let's pray on that one!
(After further investigation, sure enough, there is a audio version, but it is $69.00! Not in my budget just yet.)

I have spent many hours in a local 24 hr adoration chapel dedicated to the Divine Mercy and find it to be one of my favorite prayers. About a year ago when I first heard of it, I was fostering an elderly dog that liked to go for walks instead of using the backyard facility, and so I began saying the divine mercy chaplet on the walk. I found that it was perfect for the length of the walk, finishing just as we arrived back home. Eventually, I was saying the chaplet two to three times a day. Hey, there's no such thing as too much prayer, God loves it when we pray!

One of the best places to learn about the Divine Mercy Devotion is at the Marians of the Immaculate Conception website dedicated to Divine Mercy, http://thedivinemercy.org/index.php.

There they have the Novena, the Chaplet, all the prayers, and so much material it will take me months to read it all with my busy schedule.

One of the messages given to Sr. Faustina by Jesus was that we honor his hour of 3 o'clock PM, the hour of his passing from the human life, back to the completely divine life in Heaven. It is at that hour that His Mercy was poured out for us. This is a prayer from her Diaries that you can memorize and say internally, for Jesus' Mercy:

At 3:00 o'clock we can pray:

You expired, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fountain of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. (Diary, 1319).

O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fountain of mercy for us, I trust in You. (Diary, 84).

I'm sorry it took me so long to publish this but I was delayed unavoidably. I will complete this at a later time and re-publish, but please visit the website I listed above.

Blessings,

The Catholic Lady