Here, we've shared a few articles from our Finding God newsletters in the hopes that they might nourish your faith and help you spy God in all things. We encourage you to share your thoughts in response, because faith is at its most vibrant when viewed through the colorful prism of a community. E-mail newsletter@loyolapress.com.
Volume 5
Five Reasons to Simplify Life in Your Family
Take your faith further. Read more from Susan Vogt's book on parenting, Raising Kids Who Will Make A Difference. Plan some time to talk with your family about ways that you can serve the parish and community. Stop what you are doing right now and say hello to God.
Friendship Field Day
Friendship is a skill that requires practice. It calls for negotiation, empathy, humility, strength, love, and the ability to forgive and be forgiven.
Give your child a chance to practice these valuable, lifelong skills. Coordinate with neighborhood or classroom parents to host a Friendship Field Day. Plan games that promote qualities necessary for strong friendships or that require teamwork, such as a relay, a tug of war, or a skit.
Jesse Tree
During Advent, we can decorate a special kind of tree called a Jesse Tree. It is named after King David's father. The Book of Isaiah said that the Savior would come from the “roots” of Jesse. Jesus is a descendant of King David. Whenever we decorate a Jesse Tree, we remember all who prepared the way for Jesus. We also celebrate God's promise to send a Savior.
For more information on how to make a Jesse Tree, see Our Jesse Tree.
Volume 4
Catholic with a Little “c”
I pulled open the huge, heavy door of a Catholic church my first day in Madrid and was overcome by awe. The enormous scale, the elaborate ornamentation, the weight of the centuries literally stopped me in my tracks.
Read on: Catholic with a Little "c"
Respond: In what ways have you experienced your faith away from home?
Devotion Rediscovered: Meal Prayer
Our family's restaurant manners are impeccable: Those of us with our food sit patiently, avoiding the temptation to dig in until everyone is served. At home, however, the appearance of food is immediately followed by its consumption, usually because someone has inconveniently chosen this moment to disappear and we have Places To Be after dinner.
Read on: Devotion Rediscovered: Meal Prayer
Respond: What are your favorite prayer ideas?
It's Never Too Late to Have a Good Day
A friend called as I was in the midst of a difficult day. When he asked, “How's it going?” I launched into a litany of woes: malfunctioning alarm clock, spilled grape juice on a new white shirt, three empty buses flying by as I hurried toward my bus stop, and an important and urgent e-mail inexplicably bounced back, missing a deadline. Now I'd begun to take out my frustrations on my coworkers. I was about to continue my griping when my friend gently interrupted: “Well, it's never too late to have a good day.”
Read on: It's Never Too Late to Have a Good Day
Respond: What's your secret to turning a day around?
Four Ways to Respond to the Gift of Grace
As you manage the usual busyness of your day—paying bills, making dinner, getting the oil changed in your car—consider this: At every hectic or mundane moment, you are invited to participate in the life of God.
Read on: Four Ways to Respond to the Gift of Grace
Respond: Where does grace surprise you in your everyday life?
One Great Reason to Be Catholic: Spring Flowers and a Budding Faith
It is my first “Catholic” memory: May Crowning, a tradition that celebrates Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth. This Catholic counterpart to Mother's Day marks a new and joyful spiritual season, when Our Blessed Queen reaches down from heaven and lifts us right out of the last long cold days of winter, firmly planting our hearts in the warmth and promise of spring.
Read on: One Great Reason to Be Catholic: Spring Flowers and a Budding Faith
Respond: What is your favorite Catholic memory?
Advent Amid the Gift Wrap
“Are you ready for Christmas?” asked a guy I see at the train station every day. I thought of the long list of gifts I still needed to buy and the calendar crammed with holiday events and parties, and I shook my head. “Hardly,” I said, and we both laughed knowingly.
On my train ride downtown I turned off my iPod and let my mind ponder that question a little deeper. “Am I ready for Christmas?” This time I thought about the meaning of the holiday—the Son of God coming to earth to dwell among us and show us the way to eternal life. Again I shook my head and murmured to myself, “Hardly.”
Read on: Advent Amid the Gift Wrap
Respond: Share your Advent memories and traditions.
Lent Lived After the Ashes
I attended Ash Wednesday services on my lunch break one year, heading back to work afterward. Throughout the afternoon, as coworkers came by with questions or pages needing proofing, they would catch sight of my forehead and inevitably remark, “Oh, you're Catholic!”
Read on: Lent Lived After the Ashes
Respond: How do you make the meaning of Lent real?