Doodle Acres

The theological virtues are practiced essentially by the will.  When they are accompanied by feeling, the practice of them is pleasant and consoling; but when the act must be made by the will alone, then this exercise is dry and cold, but is not for this reason of less merit; on the contrary, it is even more meritorious and therefore gives more glory to God.

-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 742

God does not account for His actions nor does He reveal his plans to us; therefore, it is difficult to endure in faith and hope - difficult, but not impossible, for God never sends us trials which are beyond our strength, just as He never abandons us unless we first abandon Him.

-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 742

God loves us, not because we are without sin, but because we are his children, in whom He has diffused His grace.  We should never insult God by refusing to believe in His forgiveness; neither should we become discouraged because of the faults which escape us in spite of our good will.  If we become discouraged, it is because we are seeking perfection not for God’s glory alone but for our own satisfaction as well, and also because we would prefer to find security in ourselves rather than to rely upon God alone.  All this, in reality, is the result of subtle pride.  Instead of becoming disturbed and irritated by our imperfections, we must acknowledge them humbly, present them to God as a sick man shows his wounds to his doctor, ask pardon, and then immediately renew our efforts with great confidence.

-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 745

If, in the face of difficulties and sacrifices imposed on us by our duties, we stop to calculate our strength, we will draw back and be tempted to give up;  but if, on the contrary, we stop looking at ourselves and turn our eyes to God, to His infinite love, the certitude of His help will give us the strength to go on.  Firm hope in Him will make us strong, courageous and generous; it will be the lever of our life.

.-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 739

In a previous post, I talked about my new schedule.  As part of that schedule, I talked about “Sitting at Jesus’ Feet”.  A dear friend emailed me and asked me what I did during that time.  So this post is an explanation for any who might be interested. 

I usually start with the Lord’s Prayer, 3 hail Marys and some other similar prayers.

Next I read a chapter of the Bible.  I am currently in Philippians.

Then as suggested by the Shopping for Time book that I read recently, I write a statement in my journal that starts with “God….” This statement answers the question: “What do theses verses reveal about God?” 
Then I write at least one statement that begins with “I…”
This statement answers one of these questions: “What do I learn about myself in relation to God from these verses?” OR “What do I resolve to do in response to God’s revelation of himself in these verses?”

After this I read the daily entry from Divine Intimacy by O.C.D. Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen.  This book is EXCELLENT and so worth the price tag!!!  It is deep and I have to read it slowly but I am getting a lot out of it.

This all takes about 30 minutes or so. 

Well that is it!!! Nothing fancy but it has been rewarding.  Hope this makes sense.  If you have any questions, just ask!!!

Baptism has begotten us to the life of the spirit, but it has not suppressed the life of the flesh in us; the new man must always struggle against the old man, the spiritual must fight against the corporeal.  Baptismal grace does not excuse us from this battle, but it gives us the power to sustain it.-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 732

Since we know and believe that He who directs all things is our Father, we entrust ourselves to His direction with absolute confidence, and thus we will remain serene even in adversity, strong in the conviction that He can make use of evil, of man’s errors, and of sins and malice for the good of the elect… With this view of faith it will be easier for us to accept the painful situations and hardships of life, for we will be able to see in them God’s paternal hand ordering everything for our sanctification.

-Divine Intimacy, Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, p. 730

This morning we had the privilege of worshiping at St. Mary’s in Middlebury, VT.  And what makes participating in the mass at a parish other than our own so special?  It’s the continuity.    I love that going to one Novus Ordum mass is much like going to another.  And while we usually attend the Extraordinary form of the Mass (Traditional Latin Mass) back home, it is so comforting to know that we can find the mass (in some form - NO or TLM) just about anywhere we go, even in Protestant-dominated Vermont.  God is good!!!

OK, I admit it.  The last couple of months have been a wonderfully crazy blur, full of many blessed events (hence the reason that I have been blogging so infrequently and also the reason that I encouraged you to add me to your Blogreader —Bloglines is my personal favorite).  While wonderful, these last few months have left me feeling a bit out of sorts with our lack of a real daily schedule and our overstuffed house, which never seems to stay picked up for more than 5 minutes!!!  In fact I feel as if my head has been spinning and in danger of falling off altogether!!!

Needless to say, I really needed this vacation!!!  Vermont is always a place where I find inspiration and peace.  Being here in God’s beautiful nature show always makes me long for simplicity and order in my life and the life of my family.  Being among the trees and on the lake seem to give me clarity of vision that I can lose at home, if I’m not careful.

Having just recently finished Shopping for Time, I have been enjoying “sitting at Jesus’ feet” these last three or four mornings before my family has arisen from their blessed slumber.  This has meant getting up at 6 a.m. while on vacation (I know, I know, I can hear you groaning!!!).  I consider this preparation for when I get home and push up my wake up time to 5 a.m. (Now I hear you really moaning!!!).  This time away and my early mornings spent at Jesus’ feet have made my path clear to me.

Like it or not, 5 a.m. is a necessary evil.  It is the only way that I can have my quiet time, get my housework back on track, and still find time for exercise which is a must for getting off / reducing my blood pressure medication.  These are all things that I used to do thanks to Flylady but have lost sight of in the recent past.  I am grateful for the Control Journal that I put together a while back which makes it easier to get back on the straight and narrow. 

I have spent a couple of hours over the last few days working on a schedule to fulfill all my goals.  I know it will need some tweaking and I will need some patience as I put the plan into action.  Something that I have been learning over these last several months is that when I stumble, I need to just brush myself off and begin again.  Sometimes this means asking the Lord’s forgiveness and forgiving myself.  But when all is said and done, I need to get up and try again (preferably without beating myself up too severely).  So in this spirit I continue this blessed journey.  Now without further adieu, here it is:

Morning Routine 

5 am     Get up

            Make bed

            Go to bathroom

            Vitamins/Medication

            SITTING AT JESUS’ FEET

5:45     Brush teeth

            Apply moisturizer

            Dress

            Hair

            Make-up

6:00     Empty dishwasher, if necessary

            Breakfast, newspaper

            Diet Center food planning

            Daily planning, check calendar, update “to do” list, plan day/errands/goals

            Menu planning, grocery shopping planning

            Puzzles, clip for later

7:00     Defrost meat for dinner, dinner prep

            Breakfast prep for children (CHILDREN”S BREAKFAST at 7:30)

            Put out hotspots

            Wash breakfast dishes

            Shine sink

            27 Fling Boogie, time permitting

7:30     Walk, while children have Breakfast

8:00     Heather & children: Daily jobs

Monday: Change sheets, vacuum and dust bedrooms

Tuesday:  Dust downstairs, vacuum upstairs hallway, vacuum thoroughly downstairs

Wednesday:  Blue bathroom

Thursday:  Upstairs bathroom

Friday:  Kitchen

Daily: 27 Fling Boogie and Zone work, time permitting

8:30     Children’s Individual Chores while I check email, read, blog, correspondence

9:30     Rosary & Beginner’s Bible

10:00   Basic School plan with children

12 pm  Lunch prep

12:30   Lunch

I ask for your prayers as I put this into action next week. 

=

One of my favorite parts of being on vacation in Vermont, as I am now, is that I get a chance to read, read, read!!!  Well this morning I just finished a wonderful book called Shopping for Time by Carolyn Mahaney, Nicole Whitacre, Kristin Chesemore, and Janelle Bradshaw.  It is an easy read and yet very thought provoking.  I have just come through a period of two months of running, running, running and this book is very timely for me as I seek to find balance in my life.  There are so many good things to do, so many good opportunities but what are the best choices for my family and me.  This book has helped me by reminding me that all my days need to be started by ”sitting at Jesus’ feet.”  It’s been a while since I’ve done that!!! And I know from personal experience what peace that can bring to my life.  Shopping for Time offers practical solutions and ideas for finding the time to sit at Jesus’ feet and to live a proactive lifestyle rather than a reactive one, and much more.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!!!

P.S. The authors (a mother and her daughters) have a blog called GirlTalk…