"The Lord live! And blessed be my Rock!" Psalm 18

I am puzzled that some of my pictures move!  But this one is too fun - yes!  If you look at it too long you might get motion sick, but it is such a cute combination of about 5 pictures I took of the Ruth's 3 youngest having some fun sharing Rose's blanket in the floor the other night.  Luke was very happy to hang out with his brother and sister.  I want to yell - stop!!! 
It has been kind of a crazy ride lately in life!  So this can be a picture of how I feel with all the things that are pulling at me in prayer these days.  There are a lot of prayer concerns among my kids and I handle that with my frequent thoughts and prayers for them as well as the decade of the rosary that I have for each of my 5 kids!  It works out that I have 5 kids and there are 5 decades of the rosary so starting with the oldest as the first - I go down the list with each succeeding decade.  As their families grow each decade gets more and more filled.  So Ruth's 3 miracle babies here are all on the first decade with Ruth and Paul and any other prayer needs that are related to Ruth!  Yes, if there is a big prayer request that reminds me of the journey of one of my kids - I will place it there with the assurance that I will remember that need daily as I do my kids and husband!

You might wonder about praying for my husband each day... Yes!  I have run out of decades with 5 kids and 5 decades each day... well, I have merely added decades and am now up to 10 each day.  I felt that for the good of my married life that it was important for me to pray for Pat each day, so I thought of which mystery would be right for him.  His patron saint is ST Joseph, and I thought that the annunciation where we look at Joseph behind the scenes listening to the angel and becoming the husband of Mary although she is pregnant with the Son of God... he becomes her protector and husband and shares in her saying yes to bringing LIFE/LOVE/LIGHT into the world.  I always ask St Joseph to assist his son, Patrick, on his journey as I pray for him.  When I realized how powerful and good it was to add decades... I decided that I would add the first luminous, the Baptism of Christ by St John the Baptist, for our 5 Godchildren, whom I promised on their baptism day to help on their journey of faith!  I am especially thinking about my Godson, David and his wife Kristi... they are in the midst of having their baby boy!  Time for prayers and awaiting the news...

 Rose looks special with her flower in her hair...maybe she will be like her grandma and wear flowers in her hair- not caring what the world thinks but knowing that it makes her very pretty! 
St John the Baptist is very much on our minds and hearts this day, as the Gospel is the shocking one of the beheading of St John the Baptist.  Put that in your heart and mind and soul starting the night before, and see what it does to you.  I find that I want to skip over it, when I see that is what it is.  But no...  We need to realize that as David did, so did St John "with his whole being he loved his Maker."  Sirach 47 - the first reading from mass today.  He humbly gave his life as a forerunner for Christ - just as he did with his entire life!  It just seems like such a story of idiotic shallowness to take the life of such a great man of God for a dance!  And there are all those undertones of intoxication and sexual enticement that make it that much more unpleasant and ugly!  Reminding us of the ugliness and darkness of our sins and how the perfect God come as man - the Lamb without blemish that was the final sacrifice!  How do we call Him our Rock?  We know that he has come to LIVE in us as the Holy Spirit dwells within us, and we gain strength and the ability to be a LIGHT to those around us through that in dwelling Spirit!  Indeed He LIVES, yet how are we to follow HIM?  By taking up our  Cross and following His example of sacrifice without counting the cost.  Just as this hard story of St John the Baptist, who seemingly gave his life for nothing. 
"O impiety, O Cruelty!  A just man is beheaded and his head becomes the price paid for a dance; it is carried away in a dish; it is laid before those at table, a triumphant offering but horrible to look upon!  Chrysostom writes: On this day, as the virtue of John and the bestiality of Herod are brought home to us, we are struck in our innermost being, our hearts tremble, our faces blanch, our brains are numbed, our sense of hearing flees.  What can our senses accurately report when the enormity of the crimes overshadows the greatness of John's virtues?
John was the cloak of virtue, the teacher of life, the figure of holiness, the measure of justice, the mirror of virginity, the exemplar of modesty, the example of chastity, the way of repentance, pardon for sinners, training in the faith.  John, greater than man, equal to the angels, the culmination of the Law, the confirmation of the Gospel, the voice of the Apostles, the silence of the prophets, the lamp of the world, the forerunner of the Judge, the mediator of Christ, the witness of the Lord, the intermediary of the entire Trinity."  Ludolph of Saxony (1378)  It appears that his life was not spent for nothing after all!!!

The first calf born is not usually so easy and healthy... and with the horrible cold it shows the importance of dry bedding and a good mother!  Thank you, Lord, for a good start!
Jesus, in the psalm from mass today - Psalm 18 - we are reminded "The Lord live!  And blessed be my Rock!"  How we need to remember that no matter what we are called upon to do - maybe not to the extent of St John the Baptist today in giving of his head and life, but certainly each day we are called in many ways to give up of our selfish desires and die to self - may we humbly accept this call to death to self so that You, O Lord, may LIVE in me!  It is so hard to do those things that we don't want to or that are hard.  Yet, there are many examples for us to gain courage and strength from in our lives and our Church!  Surrounded by the lives of the Saints and how they show us that no matter what we can persevere if we call upon the Holy Spirit that dwells within.  Then we are also blessed with the examples set by The Community of the Lamb - "Wounded, I will not cease to love."  This is the message of the Lamb to us as we live in HIM in our domestic Church/families!  May our homes be built upon the Rock and not be shaken by the trials and tribulations we encounter.  Jesus, we trust in YOU.  Amen and Hallelujah

Bless-bless, Barbara Luke
Today at 1p join me in praying for Nancy and her family - they will have their 20 week ultrasound and discover boy or girl and how perfect this little one/created by God is in every way!  Life is a gift to be cherished no matter what!  Jesus, we trust in YOU.
"Thus the Lord passed before Moses and cried out, 'The Lord, the Lord, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity, continuing his kindness for a thousand generations,, and forgiving wickedness and crime and sin."  Exodus 34: 6-7
How can we question anything that comes our way when we are so assured of HIS LOVE and MERCY?

Just one that doesn't move!  Little Luke is sandwiched in love and knows that he is a blessing to his family!  May all new life be cherished and protected in such a way!

Danielle Rose - Wonderfully made - Psalm 139

The Saint that is just Me by Danielle Rose

 Two groups of loving siblings sharing their lives in peace and love... some of the time anyways!

A picture to give flesh to "the warmth of love."  I feel warmed by their sweetness and love of being together how about you?