Life is hard. I don’t think anyone who has had to face the trials and tragedies of adult life could argue with this point. And there are times when we feel so completely crushed by the world where every day…
It Really Is a Wonderful Life
Finding God’s Purpose
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him and for Him. (Colossians 1:…
Physical minimalism, spiritual excess
Almost a year ago, I wrote about Seasons of Change and how, in the Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis tells us that “(t)he horror of the Same Old Thing is one of the most valuable possessions we have produced in the…
The Giving of Gifts
Some say Christmas is a season of giving of gifts, followed by January, a season of paying for them. So it is, for many people. The commercialism of Christmas is a significant thing: stores are thronged by shoppers at this…
The 5 Kings at Christmas
Yesterday was the feast of the Epiphany. This is the story about how the magi came and adored the Child Jesus. Matthew’s account of the story is very sparse. The word “magi” is a very difficult word to translate as…
Reminded by the Holy Spirit
I sat in the trade show booth stunned as Ryan Conklin, whom I had just met, told his faith story to me, and out to thousands of North Texans listening to KATH 910. The presence of the Holy Spirit was…
Christmas Is Not Over Yet
Tomorrow is the Feast of the Epiphany and the midpoint of the Christmas season is upon us. We have waited and prayed through Advent, preparing ourselves for the coming of our Lord at Christmas. We celebrated the Nativity of our…
Assorted Reflections on Christmas
We are once again approaching the hour and moment when the Son of God was born. I don’t think that I have anything too terribly original to say about this great event and I’m sure wiser and holier people could…
Prepare Ye the Way
Several years ago I was privileged to attend an elementary school Christmas concert. Having gone to many a public school Christmas concert and not so many Catholic schools Christmas concerts, I am never sure quite what to expect. When…
Faith in Receiving the Word
God asked faith of Abraham and Isaac. He asked it of St. John of the Cross, of Mother Theresa, and others. Sometimes their extreme examples seem just that — extreme. They seem to be on the edges of what’s possible,…