Sweet Mysteries of Life … and Faith

Welcome to the “Carnival of Catholic Parenting” hosted by Maman A Droit! This month’s submissions are inspired by Hebrews 12:1-2:

Therefore since we are surrounded with such a great cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us.

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After you read this great post, you’re encouraged to check out some of the other contributions to this month’s carnival through the links at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve wanted to head up to “Cross in the Woods” to the St. Peregrine Shrine, to light a candle and pray for my father’s recovery (St. Peregrine is the patron saint of cancer sufferers). I have two other friends whose fathers are similarly afflicted right now, so I went this weekend with the intention of interceding for the health of all three men.

When I arrived, all the candles in the shrine were either lit or broken. I stood there a moment, dumbfounded, wondering what to do. Having driven so far to get here, I didn’t want to leave without doing what I’d come to do.

An elderly gentleman on the bench behind me seemed to read my mind. “Don’t worry,” he said. “God knows your heart. Just say your prayer, and trust God for the rest.”

It seemed like good advice, so I touched three of the candles and asked God to bless the men they represented. And I left my offering, just in case St. Peregrine was watching.

Earlier that day Father Michael had spoken of invisible realities of faith … How we can’t always explain how God does things in ways that satisfy our human understanding. The reason for this is simple: His scope of understanding is infinitely greater than our own.

When I think of the great love of God, there are lots of things I don’t understand. Starting with, why would the Father send His Son to become one of us? Why would the Son condescend to die a criminial’s death … then continue to come to us through the centuries in the form of bread and wine? How does God bind us together as family through the sacraments, empowered by the atoning death of Christ, with bonds so strong, not even death can separate us? Why did Christ spent so much time healing the masses … knowing that they would still need to experience death? And why does he continue to provide in the sacraments the means of physical and spiritual healing … even though our final destination is not in this world, but the next?

I don’t know the answers to these questions. They are true mysteries. But I believe God uses my prayers, combined with those of the saints, through the infinite merits of Christ.

And THAT, dear friends, is why I light a candle, say a prayer … and trust God for the outcome.

Image: Flickr – Creed 400

Don’t forget to check out these other great Carnival of Catholic Parenting posts:

• Julie @ Journey to the Simple Life talks about her struggles to be a positive witness through her speech in her post, Finding a New Way
• Kate @ Momopoly discusses the importance of timing in Maternal Pacing
• Heidi @ Extraordinary Moms Network reflects on why she turns to the cloud of witnesses in Sweet Mysteries of Life & Faith
• Cassie @ There’s A Pickle in My Life talks about the temptation to let others’ choices distract us from our own families in her post, Running the Race
• Maman A Droit compares the people who help her be a better parent to the people who helped her be a better cross-country runner years ago, in her post, Run Faster!

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