Dear Beautiful Daughters of Mary,
September 6 is our 4th birthday. We mark another year of life—another year of grace. We have learned a great deal. We have learned to listen and hear, and heed—We pray to hear the voice of the Spirit in our hearts. And we pray to respond.
We have learned to endure, to persevere, to be faithful. Life is in a sense a purgatory—We hope and pray to stand fast and accept that times of suffering are opportunities to encounter God’s mercy. We have learned in other words to surrender to God and to the will of God. We have learned never to be afraid of our own weakness— we pray to be “content with weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties,” —For when we are weak, we are strong. (2 Cor 12:10).
We have learned that all is gift—and that God is the gift giver—God gives generously and graciously and we pray to open our hands and hearts in gratitude. And each week, we study the Gospel—we prepare for our Sunday liturgy—we prepare our hearts to meet Christ in Word and Bread. We prepare to encounter Christ’s real presence. And we pray to receive Christ’s real presence—Gift par excellence.
We have learned that formulating, writing, and verbally articulating biblical spirituality is transforming.
And we have learned to prayerfully bond with one another. Through prayer and reflection— insight and instruction—we have become a community. In your own words, we have encouraged, informed, inspired and enjoyed one another. We have learned that we need each other. And we have loved—we have loved each other.
We have learned that God is forgiving—God is merciful—God is good and deserves our praise—and most importantly, I hope and pray, we have learned that God is love and he loves each one of us— and we pray to love him in return.
We have learned the absolute necessity of prayer—and that we are free to pray —or not. And we seek to discern in prayer—we pray to resist our resistance to prayer. We have learned to turn to Mary, for she prays for us and with us—and we strive to model her prayer and her life.
We have learned that our desire for God is only outdone by God’s desire for us—and so we turn to God in prayer—and we find our desire, and God’s. And we have learned over and over that God is real and he will meet us where we are—if we are real.
So let us pray and be real……
DEB
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