I Am Pondering The Lord's Beatitudes

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Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall have their fill.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.*

*Please Lord, fulfill Your promises to those who are faithful to You.  

Help me sustain my trust and faith in you in this unjust situation that I am in.

I beg you, Lord, to lead me and guide me to where you want me to go to fulfill your wishes and Will.

In Jesus' name, I pray.

Resolving To Live My Faith More in 2011

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I have finally fallen apart at the seams.  No need to go into all of the details, but things have just got to change and there's no time than the present (which happens to be January, 2011) to begin again.

I know that I cannot live a second of my life without God and know that I need to pray more fervently and constantly for the intimacy with Him that I seek and need.  It just seems to me that as things worsen around the world, in this country, in my family with my father failing more each day, and my work environment stress increasing each day with the sad state budget problems, that it is just as true now as it has always been:  I cannot live without God's love, Providence, forgiveness, and protection in every beating moment of my life.

For this I re-committ myself to Him now and forever.

Blessings in this new year.


2011 image above source: Ramakanta Sahoo

Your Support Has Helped Me to Decide to Keep The Blog Going

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Holy Card image reprinted with permission from Micki at

"Holy Cards for Your Inspiration"

which has an additional link posted on the sidebar

Dear Friends in Christ,

I received so many emails from all you in which you demonstrated such love and support for me to continue this blog after the unwarranted attacks that I received lately from one very unhappy soul. I even spoke on the phone with Micki, a wonderful Catholic blogger from the Midwest, who suggested that I prayerfully reconsider this decision.

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She also said that if I did indeed shut down this blog and/or make it for private readership only, then the person who is obviously very possessed by the evil one, will certainly have won his/her goal. She is absolutely correct! She said that someone had also been harassing her in an 'anoymous' way. A kind soul then wrote to her stating that there are people influenced by Satan 'out there' who are trying to shut down Catholic Christian blogs! So it is not just my blog! How sad this is, but triumphant in Christ we shall all stand!

'nuff said, friends . . . I'll keep the blog (that really is ALL of ours, not just mine) public and posted for all of us to come together to share and learn about "OUR Beautiful Catholic Faith"!

Many blessings to each and all of you for your kindness and support,

"Courage does not always roar.

Sometimes it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying,

I will try again tomorrow."

Anonymous

Please Donate To Catholic Relief Servies For Trusted Aid To Haiti Victims

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Haiti still needs all of our help and will continue to need our aid for years to come. As we all continue to pray for Haitians and everyone involved in the rescue and recovery efforts, many of us want to offer financial assistance as well. So where should you send your valuable, hard-earned money and KNOW that your money is in trusted hands and going where you want it to go to help the victims in Haiti?

Give to Catholic Relief Services

The following information is taken directly from the web page of Catholic Relief Services, ranked as one of the top charities around the world.

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(I have correctly and professionally provided an official credit and legal citation to the CRS web-site. I also place the information in "quotations" which correctly indicates that the statement is from CRS and not myself. I take no credit in the words of CRS, but only own the desire to share information for trusted use of charitable donations).

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You can go directly to the site by following this link or read the information that I have posted for you.

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To donate, you need to go to CRS at:

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http://www.catholicrelief.org/

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Here is the information for you to feel more confident of where your money is being used for not only Haiti aid, but throughout the world:

"You've probably heard some of the inspiring stories of people whose lives have been transformed through the generosity of CRS donors like you. Your donations hold incredible power to alleviate suffering and restore hope for our brothers and sisters overseas. But we know you want to be sure your gifts will be used wisely, and we respect your concern. Through careful stewardship of resources, we make sure the funds you have so generously entrusted to us go where they are most needed. We want you to feel confident that your decision to give to Catholic Relief Services is a sound one, and that your donations will be used effectively and efficiently to make a lifesaving difference.

Please take a moment to review some of the resources provided here and learn more about how we work. CRS is most thankful for your help—we would be unable to carry out our lifesaving work without it.

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CRS is Efficient

Additional Ratings and Rankings of CRS:
Chronicle of Philanthropy's Top 400 Charities
NonProfit Times' Top 100
Valued Partner of Guidestar
Awarded Best in America Seal

How we ensure your donation will be used wisely:

We are one of the most efficient organizations in the world. Did you know that 93 percent of the money we spend goes directly to programs that benefit the poor overseas? We work hard to keep our overhead down and consistently work smarter and find better ways of doing things to eliminate redundancies that often plague other organizations. You are always welcome to review our financial statements.

Additionally, we meet all 20 of the strict Charity Standards set by the

Better Business Bureau's charity rating arm, the Wise Giving Alliance, and have an "A" rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy. Both of these charity watchdog groups use criteria that confirm fiscal efficiency, such as percentage of funds going directly to programs, cost to raise a dollar, transparency and honoring of donor intent.

CRS-funded relief supplies are packed by students at Saint Paul University in Manila, the Philippines, to be delivered to flood victims affected by 2009 Typhoon Ketsana.

We strive for efficiency in all that we do. Under our Guiding Principles, based on Catholic social teaching, we follow the tenet of subsidiarity: A higher level of government—or organization—should not perform any function or duty that can be handled more effectively at a lower level by people who are closer to the problem and have a better understanding of the issue. In many of the countries where we work, our local Church partners represent an efficient network already on the ground. Their work allows us to mobilize quickly to distribute food, emergency supplies and information, often within hours of a disaster. Together, we can meet the most critical needs and then help people "build back better" so that their communities will be stronger and better able to contend with future events.

CRS is Effective

How do we know we are making a difference?

Catholic Relief Services has more than 60 years of experience and technical expertise to help as many people as possible in an organized and manageable way, quickly and reliably. The unspeakable 1994 genocide in Rwanda was a turning point for our agency as we vowed to not only meet immediate needs but also challenge structures that promote injustice. In 1988, our experience responding to Hurricane Mitch in Central America gave us invaluable knowledge and honed our approach to disaster response. It was this expertise—and the overwhelming donor response—that fueled our five-year effort to help survivors rebuild their lives after the Indian Ocean tsunami.

Our programs are carefully executed, monitored and evaluated by our talented staff—some of the best and brightest—who have chosen to dedicate their lives to serving the poor overseas, even if it often means long hours and scant visits back home to the United States. It is the caliber of CRS' staff around the world that has earned CRS respect in the humanitarian community. Thanks to their expertise, CRS is regarded as a leader in many of the diverse fields that we work. Below are some examples where CRS embodies the best:

A CRS water project has had a profound impact on the health of residents, especially children—who are most susceptible to illness and disease—in Legedini, southern Ethiopia.

Founding member of the Sphere Project that set the standards for humanitarian and disaster response.
Founding member of NetHope, an Information Technology consortium with the goal of bringing technology to the developing world.
Member of the PEPFAR Consortium—the largest undertaking by any nation to combat HIV and AIDS.
CRS' work for orphans and children affected by HIV is considered to be a key model to follow, and a forum was held in 2008 to share best practices.

Learn more about why CRS' emergency response programming is held in high esteem by reading this article about Pat Johns, known as the "Master of Disaster." CRS' microfinance programming helps the very poorest by introducing savings and internal lending communities and self-help groups that strengthen the entire community.

CRS strives to be innovative and solve problems in creative ways that often resolve two needs at the same time. Take, for instance, building keyhole gardens in Lesotho. These waist-high gardens allow people with HIV to tend their gardens without stooping, giving them a way to get manageable levels of exercise as well as grow fresh food to eat.

CRS is Accountable

How do we maintain integrity in all the work that we do?

As a faith-based 501(c)(3) charity, Catholic Relief Services is exempt from filing a Form 990 with the Internal Revenue Service. However, we make all of this information available on our website every year. We invite you to look under the hood and read our Financial Information Form, Annual Report and Summary of Program Activities. You'll see that 93 percent of the money we spend goes directly to programs that benefit the poor overseas.

We so value the trust placed in us by our donors that we have created a Pledge to Donors. To report back on how donations are being used to transform lives overseas, we publish a monthly CRSbriefing e-newsletter, presenting stories of those we serve with our donors' support. Additionally, our interactive Annual Report highlights the previous year's accomplishments and a breakdown of how much money was raised and how it was spent.

We strive to be good stewards, not only with the donations entrusted to us, but also through careful program planning that ensures good stewardship of natural resources by using strategic measures in watershed management and conservation agriculture that will protect resources for future generations.

Each year we sign pledges with many outside organizations to uphold integrity in the work we do overseas. We also comply with U.S.-based charity watchdog groups who confirm that we meet their strict standards:

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (CRS is governed by the USCCB)
Caritas Internationalis (consortium member)
National Catholic Development Conference (accountability standards)
Association of Fundraising Professionals (Donor Bill of Rights)
Direct Marketing Association (Commitment to Consumer Choice)
InterAction (PVO Standards)
Sphere (Standards in Disaster Response)
Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance (Charity Standards)
Independent Charities of America (Best in America seal holder)
2008 Global Accountability Report results - CRS ranked six out of 30 overall.

Finally, please take a minute to review our revised Mission Statement, Guiding Principles and Privacy Policy. We are most accountable to those we serve, alleviating the suffering of the poor overseas and giving Catholics in the United States the opportunity to live their faith in solidarity with their brothers and sisters around the world."

Again, this information is directly from the CRS web-site, with proper, legal citation and quotations, and is only posted for you to help you make a more confident decision, with the help of the Holy Spirit, regarding which relief organization to send your financial assistance to for the victims in Haiti and around the world.

Blessings,

~ bella

Prayers for the Dead on Memorial Day - Honoring our Loved Ones Who Have Passed Away &/Or Died For America

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My Dear Friends in Christ,

Today is a special day in that we, Americans, remember, recall, honor, and pray for our loved ones who have passed away, and for those who have sacrificed their lives for America and her values.

I am unable to visit any of the graves of my deceased relatives because I simply live so far away from the Midwestern state of Iowa where I was born and raised and where both my husband's and my relatives are laid to rest. I am very sad about this reality, but I know that prayer is powerful no matter WHERE it takes place.

Who do you remember today? Do you remember who died for us in WWI? in WWII? in any other war, including the devastating war that we are currently engaged in?

There was no one who died in any war in my immediate family, however, I do know that one of my relatives in Italy stood up to Mussolini's Fascist soldiers in his tiny village, REFUSING TO MAKE AN ALLEGIANCE TO FASCISM and NAZISM. He was placed along a wall and SHOT TO DEATH for his position on democracy and freedom in Italy. What an incredible level of strength in the face of extreme adversity! His Catholic faith and love of our Lord will hopefully redeem him in his ultimate sacrifice of personal life!

Let us always remember: FREEDOM IS NOT FREE!

I googled the web to find some Catholic prayers for the deceased for today's post for Memorial Day. I have found the following on Catholic Evangelism.com

Catholic Prayers for the Dead

O loving God . . .
I pray you to welcome my deceased family,friends, loved ones into heaven with you. Forgive them their sins and reward them their goodness.
Grant that I may be with them again in your Peaceful presence.
Amen.

O God our Father,Creator of all the living,
we entrust to Your gentle care all those we love who have gone before us;
and have gone to their rest in the hope of rising again.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

O God, Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful,
grant to the souls of our departed loved ones,
the remission of all their sins,
that by means of our pious supplications,
they may obtain the joy of heaven which they have earnestly desired.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Let us Pray:

Merciful Father, hear our prayer and console us.
As we renew our faith in your Son,whom you raised from the dead,
strengthen our hope that all of our departed brothers and sisters
will share in his resurrection,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

blessings today and always,
~ bella

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Horses and Heaven

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Hello my dear friends in Christ,

It is nearly 3:00 in the morning and I just can't sleep. After the death of my most precious horse companion-friend, Ace, yesterday, I feel like a living zombie (if there even is such a thing). Today before he was buried, we clipped strands of his mane and tail to have a few bracelets tastefully braided.

I wrapped a blue rosary around his right front hoof and asked our Lady to watch over him. (Later I realized how perfect 'blue' was for Ace due to all of the blue ribbons he won when he was in Hunter/Jumper competitions before we adopted him). My husband said, "I didn't know that horses were Catholic (trying to cheer me up) . . . and I said, "Mine is." We'll plant a tree over him when the time is right.

I'd like to thank Esther, Reenie, Kathy, Sally, Janice, Adrienne, Maryann, and Danielle, my blogging friends, for their immediate sentiments of sympathy to me. My tears flooded with gratitude for their caring concern for me.

But I wanted to just talk about my prayers that I said tonight before (trying to get to) sleep:

I am feeling this emotion of sadness, Lord, and yet I feel so SELFISH because there are so many FAR WORSE situations and issues in this world that are taking place right now. I am so sorry, Lord, if I am being selfish.

Yet, on the other hand, Lord, I believe that you gave us our emotions to feel, and to love, and to mourn, and to feel joyful. So I think that if You gave me these emotions, that it must be OK to feel them.

Lord, I truly do believe that you gave Ace to me. You love me and all of Your children so much, that You would do anything for our happiness, including the sacrifice of Your son for our eternal life with You in Heaven.

You gave me a love for horses upon my conception or even before the human thought of my conception! You strengthened that love throughout my younger years. You instilled in me, my own special dream . . . the goal of living on a country acreage with horses someday. Dear Father, I KNOW that You gave Ace to me and my son. He was a gift from You. Because of Ace's need for pasture, we found this lovely acreage that we know he enjoyed in the last 5 years. Father, I thank You for him and the years that he had with us.

Once again, Father, please forgive me for my sins and please help all the souls here on earth who suffer from loss, whatever that may be.

~ bella

P.S. If you care to see photos and a poem (author unknown) for Ace and how it all came about, you can find it on the 2 posts on March 15th, on my "La Bella Vita" blog at http://bellavita-bellasblog.blogspot.com

Buona Notte' (Good Night)

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Denying Ourselves During Lent: Personal Sacrifices and Fasting

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Holy Card image re-printed with loving permission from "Holy Cards for Your Inspiration"

http://thewindowshowsitall.blogspot.com/

"If anyone wishes to come after me,

he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

What profit is there for one to gain the whole world

yet lose or forfeit himself?"

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Luke 9:22 - 25

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Thankful this Thursday for Persecution and Suffering

Holy Card image re-printed with permission from "Holy Cards for Your Inspiration" blog

http://thewindowshowsitall.blogspot.com/

Hello my dear friends in Christ,

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You are probably thinking, "What is she, nuts?" To be thankful for being persecuted for living for Christ? Yes, that's right . . . today was a day from h--l with a very, very difficult student threatening me to do something dishonest and unethical for him regarding one of my classes that I teach. I've never received a threat letter before in my life and so I forwarded it to my Dean and Associate Dean and asked for their assistance in handling the matter.

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On my commute home, I once again needed to hear some inspiration! So I plugged in my Father Corapi CD on the Consecration of Jesus through Mary. I didn't know which of the 3 discs I was going to listen to. . . I just grabbed one. Low and behold it was the same message that I listened to last week . . . I guess I need to hear this repeatedly for it to sink into my long-term memory! Once again it was a reminder of the Beatitudes: Blessed are those who suffer for Christ! He said the way to Jesus is through the CROSS, since He too suffered due to sin.

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Father continued to say that if someone is causing you and me suffering in our lives, that we should PRAISE GOD . . . it means that the devil is trying hard to bring us down as we grow in our Faith! Father said you must be doing something right and standing for what is right, when this happens to you. I need to be reminded of this so often.

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So gee, thanks to this young adult student of life!! And even more PRAISE to God! It thrills me that my journey is heading more towards where I truly want to be!

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Are you being persecuted in some way by some thing or someone? If so, Father Corapi's advice will be very helpful to you during your trial.

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Well, I'm off to get some sleep for the evening; lots of work awaits me tomorrow -- grading all those tests that I gave Tuesday through today. Phew!

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Blessings,

~ bella

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Admonishing a Sinner

Image from private blogger granting written permission to reprint

Dear Friends in Christ,

When I started this blog last fall, I never imagined that I would ever encounter another Catholic blogger's harassment. Lately, the level of negativity she has directed towards me has reached a point that I had no other choice but to engage in one of the "SPIRITUAL ACTS OF MERCY" - - - to admonish the sinner (see complete list of Spiritual Acts of Mercy in the sidebar).

However, the devil knows the weaknesses of humans and takes over in those areas ..... he is working amidst us through this particular blogger who has harassed me twice in just 24 hours directly through my personal e-mail address!

So what does the Catholic Church teach us regarding the "admonishment of sinners"?

Quoted directly from "The Catholic Community Forum" by Father Albright, he states that "admonishing a sinner" is:

". . . the most loving thing we can do is tell people the truth, and try to save their soul. . . in certain situations, there comes a point when nothing we say or do will help. Some conversions are not intellectual. Our words and thought processes will not convince. Once you have clearly made your point in charity and sincerity, all that is left is to pray (and fast) for his (the sinner's) conversion . . . . If we lose someone in our life, we lose also the chance to help them grow and to grow ourselves because of them. . . It is true that, as we grow close to God and stand firm in faith, people we know and encounter - even friends - will be turned off. If they are living sinfully or inauthentically, they will shy away from "too much religion. . . "

As I said before and will always say, THE DEVIL CANNOT STEAL MY JOY nor THE LIGHT OF CHRIST IN MY LIFE!

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One final note that I was so profoundly reminded by Father Corapi in his CD "Consecration to Our Lord Through Mary", . . . in which he reminds us of what Jesus said in His Beatitudes "BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO ARE PERSECUTED". Father Corapi also says to PRAISE GOD for those that persecute you as a disciple of Christ.

Much love and blessings to my beautiful friends in blog-land,
~Bella

I'll pray the following prayer to St. Michael as much as I have to:

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Prayer to St. Michael

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Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -
by the Divine Power of God -
cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.

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Amen.

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