There are TONS of people watching, visiting, listening, and GLUED to the Pope right now.... Why? Well, that's the phenomenon....
He's in the United States right now, and to be honest, I don't think there are many world religions who can garnish such amazing turn outs like the Popes of the Catholic church. Seriously.
But what is more amazing to me is the amount of people who LOVE him. I mean, deeply love him. Who are not even Catholic. My prayer is that despite what the media would LOVE to make people think, this Pope, who often, VERY often, quotes his two prior predecessors, is as Catholic as Catholic comes, and people recognize that....
He's staunchly pro-life- from the womb to the tomb.
He's staunchly pro-marriage- even mentioning to congress that is the reason why he's even HERE in the US!!!!
He's not changing anything in the Catholic faith. (he apparently said that on the plane ride from Cuba??) Which, duh. We knew that.
But what I loved most is that I think, just a teeny, tiny, tiny, super tiny bit, he's softening these die hard Catholics who just need to relax....
Because some of them have a hard time trusting him.
So, with that said..... LOVE the Pope, can't WAIT to see the pictures my friends who are there will post. Can't WAIT to hear all the stories that don't make the secular news -
Which, by the way- can't pass this up- read online last night that there was one very funny mistake a certain secular news/radio outlet ran-
It read something like this:
"Pope Francis wears green during ceremony to show solidarity in wanting climate changes."
OH.MY.HEAVENS....
Can I get a giggle sound inserted here????
Excellent....
No, I don't mean to laugh- well yes I do. Mostly because as much as I love when my faith gets on TV (in a positive note) I really get annoyed when media does NOT do their research. Or perhaps actually thinks to hire someone who is a practicing Catholic, or has at least been to Mass in the last decade or century, and can catch that tiny little error....
They must of realized the errors of their ways, because I can no longer find the article.
It's ordinary time. Priests and deacons wear green during ordinary time. FYI my non- Catholic, Catholic experts....
So onto my nutty family.
I need prayers. My whole family needs prayers.
The devil is real. Anyone who tries (and believe me, I've actually had close people in my life try to tell me the devil isn't real), anyone who tries, to tell me the devil isn't real, well, if you get near me? I'll smack ya. And no, it won't be that cute, 'oh you're so funny' smack. It'll be a 'hang on a sec, while I grab the blessed salts and the holy water and smack you with both' smack.....
The devil is real. And JUST like Pope Francis said to congress- marriage and the family are under attack these days. He didn't specify an attacker, but let's be real for second.
Does anyone read that best seller put together oh, about 1700 years ago called, "the bible?" If you don't, you should. If you've never, you better, and if you scoff at me, well, please stand back, cause it's real and even Jesus Christ talks about the evil one. Even if you DON'T believe the book of Genesis can help you see how God created and wanted the world to be before the fall of man, you can't dispute the fact that Jesus Christ, and his predecessors, have talked about the evil one, since the beginning of Jesus' ministry....
Shoot- one of my kiddos (the one named after a modern day saint who's DAUGHTER IS AT THE CONVENTION IN PA THIS WEEK!!!! And the daughter is actually a first class relic in the flesh- think about that one for minute..... uh-MAZING!) anyway- sorry for the squirrels today- my daughter who is #4 in the food chain named after St. Gianna Beretta Molla, loves the book of Job. Job loves God but God wants to prove to the devil that Job really does love God. Anyway- go read it, it's too much to type and I've got way too much to vent (oops, talk) about here, but honestly, we've been lamenting over evil for well on a gazillion years.....
The devil is destroying family and marriage at every place imaginable. First and foremost- babies can only come, (naturally mind you-take science, drugs, un-natural out of the equation) babies can only from a man and a woman during a specific act. (seriously, don't make me go there...I have seven children- should I draw a picture???)
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Families are being torn apart. And here is where I might lose some people.
Marriages are being destroyed, we can see this. It's a given. Between the culture of no-fault divorce, men AND women addicted to porn and therefore creating this incredible delusion of "love" and what love "looks" like, the world making us feel as though marriage is not a necessary part of life anymore since we have science and drugs that can "make" us have children. We don't have to look very far to see that even though we should UNDERSTAND that societies can not continue without "old fashioned" marriages producing and raising offspring to help continue the society, we can't see past the fact that the society wants us to believe marriage is obsolete. Archaic. And unfortunately, I've seen some say so much as, barbaric.
How dare a woman lose her identity to a mere MAN....
Did I miss something? Have we decided to stop the train a floor shy of the top floor? Cause we is heading down a track that is volatile with these ideas.....but I digress and darn it- saw another squirrel.....
Families however, are being destroyed much more subtly.
And the devil is hard at work with all his scary minions making it their top priority to destroy the family.
Pope Francis recognizes this and I can honestly say I can not WAIT to hear his homily at Mass for the world family meeting. I know it's been on his heart as well. I have been reading on the Vatican website his various talks/homilies he's been giving. (seriously, if people would just read from the horse's mouth, they would see that this man is about as Catholic as Catholic comes...)
And this is where I need your prayers.
You see, the devil is working overtime on my family. Which is what evil does. It digs into the deep recesses of your most intimate and personal part of your life. Mine? Is my children. I love each one of my babies with a passion. A healthy passion mind you, I haven't time to be a hovercraft parent, but it's a passion nonetheless...
Nothing breaks a mother's heart worse than seeing a child decide that no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, teaching them to know the difference between right, wrong, a lie, a truth, making good choices and staying away from bad, that making bad choices is just how they're going to live their young life.
I am broken right now. I thought I was making strides with this child. And before you say it- yes, kids do dumb things. Kids are absolute morons at times.... I get it. But when you decide time and time again to lie, steal, be deceitful, choose the bad choice, well, eventually, that life turns into a grown up life of making those same decisions.....and we all know what happens to grown ups who are deceitful, liars, and thieves....
So last night, my husband and I discovered that one of ours has been a little less than honest about school, school work, and lying to our faces about it all!!!
The first thing that happened is that several siblings started crying. They love this sibling, and have been rooting for this child to make good decisions. That turned into a huge debacle as my superhero hubs and I got angry.
Anger isn't a bad thing. Shoot, Jesus cursed the fig tree. He turned the money changers tables over in the temple. He got angry. Anger is ok. It's how we direct our anger and yes, there was some anger that was not directed in an appropriate way.
I'm going to be incredibly raw here. And pray to God no one calls child social services because, dammit, parents can't be friggin parents anymore without worrying about being arrested for being real.....so just relax and know we are about as normal as it gets....
I yelled. I told my child that time and time again I have been lied to. Eyes looked into mine and so easily and honestly lied. Without batting an eyelash! You know how kids can get that certain look about them when you know they're lying? This child doesn't have it. It's amazing (well, I need to see some positive...)but absolutely frightening at the same time. I suppose when this particular child is an adult and gets kidnapped by some horrible terrorist, they will believe the lies as well...
Insert a humorous face, please to somewhat lighten a depressing mood here....
| Close enough... |
We were angry last night. My children were all upset. We were not speaking to each other as parents/spouses.
See how sin/evil can tear a family up?
One simple, little, teeny, tiny lie.
One simple, little, teeny, itty, bitty lie.
Becomes two simple lies.
Which becomes three simple lies.
Which eventually becomes a few complicated lies.
Which eventually becomes more complicated lies and a few really difficult to explain lies.
One after another, after another until the light shines just a bit in the darkness. Exposes that original lie and the wall of lies comes out like a toilet overflowing with crap in it....
I know, before you say it. I have toilet issues. Clearly I have a potty mouth. Ok, that was funny and I didn't intend it to be....
But I also have six girls who I can assure ANYONE, are nastier than the one boy I have when it comes to toilet etiquette. I promise....
So back to the lava of toilet yuck flowing....
BTW- side note squirrel here- don't ever, oh Lord, promise me, EVER google images of toilets overflowing.
I have seen things that have been permanently burned onto my retinas and won't disappear until I die....
Anyway- the volcano of toilet water, AKA-lies, exploded last night after a few suspicious things came about. We got mad. We yelled. We cried. Siblings defended their sibling out of misguided love, but love nonetheless. Mom and Dad got mad at each other. It was pandalerium. And I'm not trying to make light of a very serious situation. My child needs to realize that life is all about choices and with these choices come consequences and these consequences can be good or bad-all dependent on the CHOICES we make. And choices can be both good and bad. Sometimes we get several GOOD choices, but most often we are faced with the dilemma of choosing between good and evil.
And let me remind you- I've blogged about how attractive sin is.... if it were packaged the way it really looked? We wouldn't choose it! Matter of fact, if it were packaged the way it truly looked? We would RUN from it!
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| Sin lurking in the box |
But sin isn't packaged that way. It's tempting. That's why we call it temptation. And it's completely and solely up to us to choose to avoid it, or run into it's arms....
I worry about my children. I try not to. But we live in a world where morality has been made to look like a disease and immorality made to look like the best choice. My children are up against a stacked deck when it comes to battling this world. Everything we've tried to teach them, instill in them, raise them understanding, will be challenged. They will be faced, daily I'm guessing, with temptations that will test their very being....to the core.
And I can tell you, I feel it in my bones that the more this child keeps giving into the temptation of lying, stealing, and being deceitful? The easier it will be for the world to swallow this child up....
And that, my friends, breaks my heart into a million splintering pieces.
My baby. My flesh and blood. Part of my superhero husband and I. A piece of my soul. And all I can do is shout to the God of the Universe, "WHY?" Why won't this child of mine listen. Why won't this child of mine stop lying to me? Why won't this child understand that for years, we've been trying to teach that honesty is the best policy and no matter what, the truth always, always, ALWAYS, seeps it's way out, no matter what, because light can't be destroyed.
Needless to say, I fell asleep on the couch in a hot ball of tears and sadness and fleeting despair. My baby must of sensed it as well, because she was up from 1:30-4am this morning upset and crying as well.....so I sit here, on this stupid little blue box and type. While the crazy Taz eats snack number 23 at 9:43 this morning. And I drink my sugarless coffee and eat my glutenless breakfast and have my 30th pity party this morning....
My family left this morning angry, tired, hurt, sad, and lost.
And that is why I need your prayers.
It's Friday. It's the weekend. For the love of God and all that's holy- spend time this weekend in prayer. Spend time this weekend in prayer alone in silence, with your spouse, and then with your entire family.
And also- go to Church.
It's an amazing love story, where you're brought up to Heaven, ever so quickly, and united with the angels, saints, and our Lord. I need it. If I need it, I know we all do.
Blessings to you from~
~crazycatholicmommaof7
I like this blog!!!!!!!!!!
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