Everyday Blessings
by Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle
The
Lenten “Grumpies”
By Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle
I think I detect a few cases
of the “grumpies” around here. It must be Lent. People must be craving
their candy and desserts that they have given up. Maybe they are
even in withdrawal. As I was out doing errands on a Friday in Lent
recently, a driver motioned his hand at me and I’m not talking about
a friendly “hello!” I guess I didn’t leave the drive up window of
the bank quickly enough for him. Well, that hand motion and his
mouth flapping got him a prayer from me, by the grace of God. That
day was a very good penitential day in so many ways as there were
challenges to deal with at home and out in the community and the
migraine head ache didn’t help.
The extensive wait in very long line at the Post Office gave an
opportunity to pray another decade of the Rosary for the impatient
people around me who may have been experiencing the “grumpies.”
Yet another opportunity for prayer was when a woman speeded towards
me, almost hitting me. I guess she felt she had to be somewhere
awfully fast! Later on, a rude person on the other end of the phone
helped to further set the tone for the day. A person could get grumpy
dealing with all of this!
Are you experiencing the “grumpies” or live with someone who is?
Are the kids bickering more than usual? Is your spouse having trouble
understanding you? Are you losing your patience over insignificant
trivial things? Are your buttons being pushed? Is everyone driving
you crazy? Does it feel like everything you are doing or attempting
to do is going wrong? Don’t worry, it’s just Lent. All of the above
is good material for penance, I think. Our dear Lord is very aware
of what we are experiencing.
We Can Counteract the “Grumpies”
Lent is a wonderful opportunity to reflect on our lives; to examine
what we are doing and what we should be doing. We have these forty
days to deeply reflect and pray. Each day comes to us with new grace
to help us on our journey. Each day comes with its own challenges
and joy of heart when we offer it all to God. Hopefully we will
be able to look upon the little inconveniences and annoyances as
a gift to help strengthen our resolves to be the Christian our Lord
calls us to be. Our actions are much more articulate than our words
can ever be. Let’s pause before reacting to the challenging situation
which fill our daily lives so that we won’t regret our actions and
responses. Keeping a prayerful attitude will aid us immensely. Making
use of the Sacraments frequently will fuel our souls and the love
in our hearts. Visits to the Blessed Sacrament will give us peace.
We can counteract the “grumpies” with our responses of joy and our
decision to turn to prayer when encountering discord and distress
rather than reacting to it in a negative way. I have found that
turning to the Blessed Mother immediately when experiencing a troubling
situation will merit immediate grace and help. A quick aspiration
to her asking for help or praying the Hail Mary will work wonders.
I have been known to even suddenly start praying the “Hail Mary”
out loud in my household, very loudly when I detect tension or when
there is any bickering. It may seem comical at times, but it definitely
“breaks the ice” and gets the point across. St. John Vianney (Cure
d’Ars, 1786 – 1859) has said, “If you invoke the Blessed Virgin
when you are tempted, she will come at once to your help, and Satan
will leave you.”
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou
amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy
Mary, Mother of God, pray for us, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
Let’s not forget about prayer and penance after Lent is finished
and after we have celebrated the joy of the Risen Christ on Easter
Sunday. We should continue to reflect and to pray and offer sacrifices
to God each day as if we were still in the Lenten season. In this
way we will please our Lord and together with our fellow pilgrims,
help to light the way to Heaven for others.
| Donna-Marie
Cooper O'Boyle, mother of five and Lay Missionary of Charity
writes from Connecticut. She is the author of the Best-selling
book, Catholic
Prayer Book for Mothers, published by Our Sunday Visitor
Publishing. Her book, The
Heart of Motherhood: Finding Holiness in the Catholic Home ,
published by Crossroad Publishing is also available. Her newest
book, Prayerfully
Expecting: A Nine-Month Novena for Mothers-To-Be ,
bears a foreword by Blessed Teresa of Calcutta whom the author
knew personally and will be released in April 2007. It can be
purchased earlier through Donna-Marie's website. These three
books were encouraged and endorsed by Blessed Mother Teresa
of Calcutta and given a blessing by Pope John Paul II. They
are available through her website: www.donnacooperoboyle.com.
Donna-Marie donates a portion of the proceeds to the Missionaries
of Charity to help the poor, as well as parish organizations.
Donna-Marie writes for a number of magazines, newspapers and
Catholic websites. She is a regular contributor to Catholic
Exchange, Catholic Online, and Catholic Outpost. She lectures
on a number of topics and can be reached through her website.
Visit Donna-Marie each day at her blog http://www.donnamariecooperoboyle.blogspot.com/
for a daily dose of inspiration! |
3/14/06
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