hope – Page 97 – hugsnblessings

50 things to tell you.

Published on May 31, 2016May 31, 2016 by Dawn Marie6 Comments

FullSizeRender — The first 50 years of childhood are always the hardest!

What is a period of 50 years or grouping of 50?

Well, let me tell you…

“A Half-Century!”

Which means I have had a Half-Century of blessings to be thankful for!

I Hope-ity-hope if anyone ever re-enacts ME in another 50…they remember 2 important things: hats and polka-dots!

Does this mean it has been 50 years of perfect-living?

Of day after day of over-flowing joy?

Of no tears nor pain?

Of only sunshine beams streaming and eating zero-calorie ice cream for my dinner?

Let me tell you…

“NO!”

But I have learned, while skipping along the way,

(even if it were to have been *admittedly* s-l-o-w-l-y)

that the “perfection” of my life has occurred in the

Sweet Surrender of accepting God’s will.

Let me tell you…

God knows what He is doing!

God has a bigger plan for me than I have ever had for myself

and His plan far exceeds the circumstances of any one given day!

And, let me tell you…

I can hardly wait to discover what this next

half-century

will contain!

Erie, Pa is a beautiful place to have lived for 50 years.

There is so much more I would like to sing-song-say,

but if I could only tell you 50 things

I’ve discovered during this first half-century

Let me tell you…

Let go! Let God!
Peace on the outside comes from knowing God on the inside.
Start each day with a grateful heart.
The older I get the surer I am that I’m not running the show!
Life is not meant to be perfect…it’s meant to be LIVED with all its imperfections.
We aren’t called to shine our own light; we are called to reflect His.
Find joy in the ordinary.
Pray hardest when it is hardest to pray.
Not my circus. Not my monkeys.
Let it be.
Don’t worry about others opinions of you. God never told you to impress people; only to love them.
Character is how you treat those who can do nothing for you.
Learn to say “no” without explaining yourself.
Sometimes not saying anything is the best answer. (Silence can never be misquoted.)
We aren’t called to be like others, we are called to be like Christ.
To forgive takes love, to forget takes humility.
Heaven is not a prize for the perfect, but the future home for all who are willing to be perfected.
Sometimes you’ve just gotta accept that some people can only be in your heart, not in your life.
Let all that you do be done with love.
God refuses nothing.
Until God opens the next door, pray in the hallway.
Faith means that you have peace, even when you don’t have all the answers.
Having a soft heart in a cruel world is courage, not weakness.
A certain darkness is needed to see the stars.
Say you’re sorry, ask for forgiveness, and mean it. Truly.
Be prepared when you pray to God to defend you against your enemies, you may lose a few friends.
Each day is a decision!
You can’t but God can!
Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever; and take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow.
You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there’s still going to be somebody who hates peaches.
Everything is going to be alright. Maybe not today but eventually.
On a bad day…there’s always crochet!
If it doesn’t make you feel fabulous; don’t do it, don’t buy it, don’t keep it.
No one heals themselves by wounding another.
NO ONE will ever love you more than Jesus.
Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.
Life becomes easier when you learn to accept the apology you never got.
Someday it’s going to make sense!
For what it’s worth: it’s never too late to be whoever you want to be! I hope you live a life you’re proud of , and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start over.
Do the next thing.
Be confident because you are a child of God. Be humble because everyone else is too.
The unhappiest people in this world, are those who care the most about what other people think.
God often uses small matches to light up great torches. No matter how small you feel in this world, He has something big in store for you.
Surround yourself with the dreamers and the doers, the believers and the thinkers, but most of all, surround yourself with those who see the greatness within you, even when you don’t see it yourself.
A few nice words can help a person more than you think.
It’s okay to say no to unnecessary crazy.
Sometimes it’s better to react with no reaction.
Never get tired of doing little things for others. Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts.
We don’t stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing! AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST…..
It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end.

I pray my humble-attempts at living out

this half-century

has been pleasing to Him…

but even perfect people (of which I am not) make mistakes

(that’s #51 I’d like to tell you!)

Where I have failed I pray, with God’s help,

to do better this next half-century

so that I may celebrate

2 Solid-Gold 50’s someday!

(I wonder if Smucker’s could add some polka-dots?)

hugs n’ blessings to all those who will tell me new life-lessons, along the way!

Will you be the first to share?

(I hope you will!)

the Wedding War Room

Published on May 12, 2016May 12, 2016 by Dawn Marie3 Comments

it’s a 3hugs&blessings thursday and even though the blessings exceed far beyond the required 3, it is the perfect day to share this post because…

Today

the page officially turned…

with a tiny-tidge of sorrow & a heaping portion of joy,

the entirety of the Wedding process has been completed!

(However) this doesn’t mean it’s the last time I will write about it, as a few of you have requested information about particular items from that day; which will spill out like sprinkles from time to time…I promise! (Giggles.)

Over the course of the past several days we watched as the after-wedding brunch tent, tables, & white garden chairs were removed from our backyard. Cuppycake, our youngest son, and I picked up all the items from the Reception Hall and returned them to their rightful places. Dresses & a very suave tux were sent off to the dry-cleaners. Bills were paid, appreciation gifts delivered to our vendors, and today the final and last task necessary, to complete the Wedding planning/preparation/procedural process, was accomplished!

You see my friendly friends, today the Wedding War Room has been deconstructed!!

(Can you hear the sound of the Heavenly trumpets playing???)

“What is a War Room?” you might ask.

In business terms a War Room is a command centre which is any place that is used to provide centralized command for some purpose.

While frequently considered to be a military facility, these can be used in many other cases. Simply put, it is a room (or facility,) where people meet and exchange plans, ideas, information, etc., in an active way.

In governmental or military terms it is a room where battles are planned that is specially equipped with maps, charts, and computers showing the current status of troops in battle and how they are maintained.

In spiritual terms there are War Rooms as well!

They are the spaces and ways in which we centralize our prayer efforts. Spiritually, we have three battlegrounds: our own hearts; the spiritual realm (against spiritual forces, and where God works on the spirit of others); and the physical world where we interact ourselves. Prayer engages the battle in the spiritual realm. And it prepares our hearts to participate in that spiritual battle. But it also prepares us to engage in the physical world. Prayer War Rooms help us to activate and intentionalize our prayers and monitor how they are maintained and through the grace of God, answered!

Our Wedding War room was all of this (minus the battles) and more, wrapped up into one centralized effort…storing everything necessary to prepare/provide for The Wedding!

Normally, this particular room serves to house our youngest son during his time home for an occassional over-night visit. But he graciously surrendered this space during the many months we plotted and planned!

(Rest assured there was still another place for him to sleep, should the need occur!)

And so it was,

month after month,

that we stacked and stored and constructed!

Neatly arranging everything

to be ready

for the Wedding Day!

But today

piece by piece

what little remained

I put away.

First I sorted.

Then sifted and carried.

Returned items to their former homes.

Placed what could not be reused/repurposed in the trash.

And collected a sampling of all important items to be kept for the new

Mr. & Mrs.

in a forever box.

“Until all that remained was just a tender reminder

of the only thing missing on that special day.”

-Said I to Cuppycake.

Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. -Romans 12:12

So with this last little item tucked safely away, (for another day when we shall play,)

the need for a Wedding War Room

was no more…

and in it’s place is,

once again,

a comfortable space for our son

to lay his head!

hugs n’ blessings

to all who have succeeded

by the efforts of what was activated

in their War Room!

And I hope-itty-hope and pray you too may find 3hugs&blessings this day!

A Mother’s love has no expiration date!

Published on April 27, 2016May 3, 2016 by Dawn Marie11 Comments

I love my mother.

Both of them!

The one God entrusted me to…

here on earth.

IMG_5095_0167 — My mother is the most supportive person in the world. (She’s magical!)

And the One who…

waits for me in Heaven.

(Our Virgin Mother, Mary.)

_MG_8981 — When life gets hard and you feel all alone, remember you mean the world to someone. And that someone is called Mother.

One of the reasons I love them, and count myself blessed to have them, is the constant support, guidance, and protection they have offered me throughout my life.

They have both been there to celebrate in my greatest joys!

But more importantly… to assist me in carrying my heaviest trials.

Image 4-27-16 at 1.52 PM — Photo courtesy of Pinterest

And in a culture that promotes “My Mom is Cooler than your mom,” or “My Mom is hotter than your mom,” I am grateful that my mother(s)’ example to me was not built on appearance or popularity but instead…

on prayer.

(Because nothing is more cool or beautiful than to see your Mother pray!)

It is the greatest example I have ever been given!

And it is the one strength I have run to the most in my own vocation of Motherhood. (For the power of a mother’s prayers cannot be easily defeated.)

No matter how old I may be it will be their voice I will hear consoling me.

So it was that several days ago I sought my Heavenly Mother’s voice as I entered into a Novena with her. Each day she has reminded me of the beautiful gift, both have given me, in their love which holds no expiration.

Perhaps you too need the voice of your mother today!

Won’t you join me in prayer to find her there?

Unfailing Novena To The Virgin Mary Untier of Knots

How this devotion started?

To show us the mission granted to the Virgin Mary by Her Son, an artist Johann Melchior Georg Schmittdner painted Mary Undoer of Knots with great grace. Since 1700, His painting has been venerated in the Church of St. Peter in Perlack, Augsburg, Germany. It was originally inspired by a meditation of Saint Irenaeus (Bishop of Lyon and martyred in 202) based on the parallel made by Saint Paul between Adam and Christ. Saint Irenaeus, in turn, made a comparison between Eve and Mary, saying:“Eve, by her disobedience, tied the knot of disgrace for the human race; whereas Mary, by her obedience, undid it”.

But what are these knots?
There are the problems and struggles we face for which we do not see any solution … knots of discord in your family, lack of understanding between parents and children, disrespect, violence, the knots of deep hurts between husband and wife, the absence of peace and joy at home. There are also the knots of anguish and despair of separated couples, the dissolution of the family, the knots of a drug addict son or daughter, sick or separated from home or God, knots of alcoholism, the practice of abortion, depression, unemployment, fear, solitude…Ah, the knots of our life! How they suffocate the soul, beat us down and betray the heart’s joy and separate us from God.

Day after day, more and more Christians kneel to pray to Her as soon as they meet the Mother of the Fair Love. Many families have become reconciled! Many diseases have been healed! Many spouses have returned to the Church! Many jobs have been given! Many conversions have taken place! Many have been on their knees praying and giving thanks for graces received from our sweet Mother. For that reason, Mary Who undoes the knots, Who was chosen by God to crush the evil with Her feet, comes to us to reveal Herself. She comes to provide jobs, good health, to reconcile families, because She wants to undo the knots of sin which dominate our lives, so that – as children of the King – we can receive the promises reserved for us from eternity. She comes with promises of victory, peace, blessings and reconciliation.

Then, free from our knots – filled with happiness, we can be a testimony of the Divine Power in this world, like pieces of God’s heart or small bottles of perfume exhaling mercy and love to our neighbor. Like ambassador of Jesus Christ and the Virgin of the fair love, we can rescue those who cry without any consolation, those who are lonely, tied with knots, who have no God, no Father nor Mother.

Mother of the Rising Sun, Immaculate, our Advocate, Helper in moments of affliction, Mother of God and made by Him our Mother, this is how Mary, Undoer of Knots is presented. Above all, She comes as the Queen of Mercy, the one who knows all about us, who has compassion for us and hurries to rescue us, praying for each one of us to Her beloved Jesus.

(source: http://www.maryundoerofknots.com/history.htm)

For more information on this beautiful devotion:
http://www.desatadora.com.ar/titulo-i.htm
http://www.mariequidefaitlesnoeuds.com/GB/index

The Novena has the Cardinal ecclesiastical approval, receiving the “NIHIL OBSTAT and IMPRIMATUR
Imprimatur Paris Archdiocese