Thirsty Thursday: Advent Atonement

Since Advent and Lent are Penitential seasons, these are times for us to repent for our sins.

In my own Catholic faith, we must confess our sins regularly to a clergy member to cleanse our souls for communion.

No matter how holy I strive to be, I as a human have my share of shortcomings. With a conscience, I’ve constantly prayed

• The Act of Contrition
• series of the Hail Mary

Remorse for our mistakes won’t do us any good if we keep repeating them. Learning lessons from our wrong actions and doing right by GOD will lead us closer to Heaven …

R.I.P., Father Romanus ✌ 

Thirsty Thursday: Contentment & Peace

Grad Cat & Stats Cat bid me farewell from our *Dallas Cowboys* desk chair as I snap this shot to grace me with their purrfect presence on my dashboard as I drive!

As I prepared for my school trip this past week

Driver’s Prayer: Dear LORD, Protect me today in all my travels along the road’s way. Give Your warning signs if danger is near so that I may stop until the path is clear. Be at my window and direct me through when objects appear from out of the blue. Defend this vehicle and everyone inside, keep me always focused, be my watchful guide. Carry me safely to my destined place and bless this journey with Your constant grace. Amen. ~ Stephanie Wilcox [from Maryknoll Missions]

 I lifted up these petitions to the Holy Trinity at the ♥Adoration♥ Chapel:

Progress on our Stations of the †Cross† at our ♥Adoration♥ Chapel ☼Garden☼

Even if/when I …	†LORD†, please guide me away from having _______ in my ♥heart♥ to take over me
Finish my doctoral degree☼	Pride
Reap success in my career☼	Greed
Find the ♥love♥ of my life	Lust
Make time to relax☼	Sloth
See several YOLOs to consume♣	Gluttony
Am challenged with accepting Your will	Anger
Observe someone else having my desires	Envy

Especially, as Bishop Mike, my mentor, has advised

To seek the light of the ~*~Holy Spirit~*~ while remaining grounded ✌

That way, I, as a grateful and humble servant, DON’T take GOD’s blessings for granted.

Thirsty Thursday: Contrition Way

†The Prayer Way† continues with Contrition

“May the †LORD† be in your ♥heart♥ and help you to confess your sins with true sorrow.” ~ Rite of Penance

There are times in our lives when we make mistakes that we may regret and repent, or we at least learn from them and don’t repeat them anymore. When we have a conscience for venial sins (non-mortal sins ~ meaning that they don’t kill our spirit and keep us from †GOD†), then we confess them and reflect on how to redeem ourselves. Yesterday, my childhood Church had a Penance service in which we confessed to our priests from our local Catholic parishes.

Act of Contrition

O my †GOD†, I am heartily sorry for having offended You. I detest all my sins because of Your just punishments, but most of all because they offend You, my †GOD†, who are all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.

Check out our other ways to pray…

• ♥Adoration♥ 
•  THANKSgiving
• Supplication  

Sources

• Fr. Oscar J. Lukefahr, C. M. “From the Spiritual Director.” The Association of the Miraculous Medal, Vol. 47, No. 3: Fall Bulletin (2014).*
• Jesus Our Life Activity Book, Faith and Life Series, 3rd ed. (Book 2). Chapter 9, Lesson 2, (p. 34)**; “Kinds of Prayer,” Chapter 15, Lesson 3 (p. 59)***. Ignatius Press, San Francisco. Catholics United for the Faith, Steubenville, Ohio. (2014).
• Jesus Our Life  Student Text, Faith and Life Series, 3rd ed. (Book 2). Chapter 9, “I Choose to Love God” (pp. 45-49); Chapter 20, “The Sacrament of Penance” (p. 95). Ignatius Press, San Francisco. Catholics United for the Faith, Steubenville, Ohio. (2014).

For me personally, I’ve admittedly broken some of the Commandments, so I’m confessing having committed those sins, preventing myself from breaking them again and making peace as I approach a more holy life. As we enter Advent season and prepare for Baby JESUS’ birth, I encourage my fellow believers to this CHRISTmas Challenge of daily devotions and good deeds: Random Acts of CHRISTmas Kindness (RACK).

CHEERS to this time of year, as JESUS’ birth is very near ~ NO worry about presents, for His presence that we need indeed is here!

Thirsty Thursday: Commandments vs. Capital Sins

In my quest to get closer to Heaven …

Regalo de México de mi Suegra

I strive to thrive on the Ten Commandments and live by the Four Cardinal Virtues while doing my best to resist the Seven Deadly Sins. Here is a list of each of them: the Commandments, along with the Sins that impose temptation to break those Commandments, and the Virtues to keep in order to prevent myself from committing those Sins:

Regalos de Puerto Rico de la Familia Bruno

10 Commandments = MUST Do	7 Capital Sins = DON’T Do	4 Cardinal Virtues = MUST Maintain
You shall have no other gods before me.	Greed, Pride	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not make for yourself a carved image – any likeness of anything that is in Heaven above, or that is in the Earth beneath, or that is in the water under the Earth.	Pride	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not take the name of the LORD your GOD in vain.	Anger	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep holy.	Gluttony, Lust, Sloth	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
Honor your father and your mother.	Anger, Pride, Sloth	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not murder.	Anger	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not commit adultery.	Envy, Greed, Lust	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not steal.	Greed	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.	Greed, Pride	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not cover your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.	Envy, Greed, Lust	Fortitude, Justice, Prudence, Temperance

Regalos de Puerto Rico de la Familia Bruno