"Look! A virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, And they will call him, Emmanuel." Matt 1:23 ( Emmanuel means'God is with us.') (Common English Bible)
Our Virgin Mary was chosen from God to carry His Son. She has been magnificent since her own conception, her own soul being chosen to be carried in her own mother's womb! What a grand image! We glorify Emmanuel, giving thanks to Mary, for carrying out this great deed. He is part human, part divine, to be there for humanity and God. Let our emotions pour forth, never ending our praise for him!
Saturday, December 10, 2011
WHERE TO BE FED
WHERE TO BE FED
Feeding upon the past will get you nowhere. Feeding upon the future will get you somewhere.
~Marie T. Morrison~
Feeding upon the past will get you nowhere. Feeding upon the future will get you somewhere.
~Marie T. Morrison~
Thursday, December 8, 2011
LISTEN TO THE PLAN
We often question what we are told to do. Mary, our Blessed Mother, could only glorify the Lord and rejoice in God when the Angel Gabriel said she would carry God's Son. Mary teaches us to remember the Two Great Commandments, as well as the Ten Commandments, including honor, reverence, humility, compassion, kindness and love.
As Mary accepted what was told to her,God's will is different for each one of us. Listening to this individual plan, while in prayer, can deliver great joy and bring a new passion for life. Together, what He has planned for all will make a beautiful world, filled with all the goodness Mary taught us through her initial act of love.
~Marie T. Morrison~
As Mary accepted what was told to her,God's will is different for each one of us. Listening to this individual plan, while in prayer, can deliver great joy and bring a new passion for life. Together, what He has planned for all will make a beautiful world, filled with all the goodness Mary taught us through her initial act of love.
~Marie T. Morrison~
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
TIME OUT
In this week of school exams, hectic shopping and rushing to get here and there, remember our Lord. Take a moment or two and spend time to pray and converse with Him. Listen to His words of wisdom and understanding. He will give you the strength and planning to carry you through, as well as His blessings!
The LORD'S spirit will rest upon him,a spirit of wisdom and understanding,a spirit of planning and strength. Isaiah 11:2 (Common English Bible)
The LORD'S spirit will rest upon him,a spirit of wisdom and understanding,a spirit of planning and strength. Isaiah 11:2 (Common English Bible)
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
FORGIVING THE IN-LAW
FORGIVING THE IN-LAW
ADVENT is to be a time to practice forgiveness. Of course, it is something we should always be doing, but with the upcoming birth of our Christ child, it is a great time to start anew on relationships in our own lives.
Relationships with our own relations can be the hardest to forgive. With former friends, we tend to walk away and erase those people from our lives. The hurt is there, but not seeing them anymore eases the pain. A relative is another matter. There is the constant reminder that happens when family is involved. Take an in-law, for example. More specifically, take the mother-in-law.
My mother-in-law and I did not get along. First, there were the problems in how she raised her son. Of course, I was too blind to see that he was old enough to make his own choices by the time he married me, but I blamed her anyway. In return, she was upset that I did not pamper her son in the way a mother of her generation saw befitting.
That was the only beginning of a rough time, continuing for over twenty years. My cooking was horrendous, the house was not clean enough, my discipline of the children should be more on the spoiling end. In my eyes, all she did was paint her nails, spend her time at the beauty parlor and undo any discipline I had instilled in her grandchildren. Conversations were such a stretch that my eyes would literally be watering, with nothing to say.
Throughout this time, I was always the devout Christian, going to Church weekly, teaching religion classes and talking about what was in the Bible to different groups. I prayed daily, had endless conversations with God and had many calling me a spiritual person, an inspiration. In the back of my mind, though, I had a big, dark, problem; my mother-in-law. Here I was, being quite pious, but not so with a person who had given birth to my husband and was the grandmother of my children. I said “The Lord’s Prayer” daily, about forgiving others, yet I was going against these very words. Basically, I was a fraud.
I knew I had to change this. What could I do? Dialing her phone number, I rang her up to say hello. She was suspicious, a tone of questioning in her voice why I was calling; I would be too, if she had called me out of the blue. It was a short, but polite visit. I called her again the next day. Again, there was a bit of doubt in her voice. I remained friendly, telling her something about one of her grandchildren. I called the next, the day after that, and the day after that. Soon, the visits lengthened in time. Maybe we were on the phone forty-five minutes, maybe longer; we would lose complete track of time. Her daughters would tell me if they were over visiting and the phone rang, she would call out, “If that is Marie, give me the phone! Anyone else, say I am not here!” They were ignored as we visited away.
Two years later, she became very ill, unable to visit as before while in the hospital. She never returned home. Before she passed, she handed me her beautiful ring, wanting me to wear it. Overcome with emotion, I said it needed to go to her daughters. They all said no, I was to have it, that is what she wanted. I wear it thinking of our good visits in those years we did have together, not dwelling on the wasted time of the past.
I miss her so, especially this time of year, a season she loved. As I write this, I have a lump in my throat, tears in my eyes. This is the time of day I usually picked up the phone for our afternoon visit, where we would talk about anything and everything.
We did not have to say “I forgive you.” We knew it. Our words and love for one another said it all.
~Marie T. Morrison~
ADVENT is to be a time to practice forgiveness. Of course, it is something we should always be doing, but with the upcoming birth of our Christ child, it is a great time to start anew on relationships in our own lives.
Relationships with our own relations can be the hardest to forgive. With former friends, we tend to walk away and erase those people from our lives. The hurt is there, but not seeing them anymore eases the pain. A relative is another matter. There is the constant reminder that happens when family is involved. Take an in-law, for example. More specifically, take the mother-in-law.
My mother-in-law and I did not get along. First, there were the problems in how she raised her son. Of course, I was too blind to see that he was old enough to make his own choices by the time he married me, but I blamed her anyway. In return, she was upset that I did not pamper her son in the way a mother of her generation saw befitting.
That was the only beginning of a rough time, continuing for over twenty years. My cooking was horrendous, the house was not clean enough, my discipline of the children should be more on the spoiling end. In my eyes, all she did was paint her nails, spend her time at the beauty parlor and undo any discipline I had instilled in her grandchildren. Conversations were such a stretch that my eyes would literally be watering, with nothing to say.
Throughout this time, I was always the devout Christian, going to Church weekly, teaching religion classes and talking about what was in the Bible to different groups. I prayed daily, had endless conversations with God and had many calling me a spiritual person, an inspiration. In the back of my mind, though, I had a big, dark, problem; my mother-in-law. Here I was, being quite pious, but not so with a person who had given birth to my husband and was the grandmother of my children. I said “The Lord’s Prayer” daily, about forgiving others, yet I was going against these very words. Basically, I was a fraud.
I knew I had to change this. What could I do? Dialing her phone number, I rang her up to say hello. She was suspicious, a tone of questioning in her voice why I was calling; I would be too, if she had called me out of the blue. It was a short, but polite visit. I called her again the next day. Again, there was a bit of doubt in her voice. I remained friendly, telling her something about one of her grandchildren. I called the next, the day after that, and the day after that. Soon, the visits lengthened in time. Maybe we were on the phone forty-five minutes, maybe longer; we would lose complete track of time. Her daughters would tell me if they were over visiting and the phone rang, she would call out, “If that is Marie, give me the phone! Anyone else, say I am not here!” They were ignored as we visited away.
Two years later, she became very ill, unable to visit as before while in the hospital. She never returned home. Before she passed, she handed me her beautiful ring, wanting me to wear it. Overcome with emotion, I said it needed to go to her daughters. They all said no, I was to have it, that is what she wanted. I wear it thinking of our good visits in those years we did have together, not dwelling on the wasted time of the past.
I miss her so, especially this time of year, a season she loved. As I write this, I have a lump in my throat, tears in my eyes. This is the time of day I usually picked up the phone for our afternoon visit, where we would talk about anything and everything.
We did not have to say “I forgive you.” We knew it. Our words and love for one another said it all.
~Marie T. Morrison~
Monday, December 5, 2011
OH, WHAT A JOYFUL PLACE!
We see God’s passion for life in every sunrise and sunset. It is there in the beauty of a bird’s flight, the scent of a rose, the waves of an ocean and in the great heights of every awe-inspiring mountain. We, too, are part of His formula, being gifted with our own passions as soon as we had a soul. Using our passions with all our hearts, souls and minds will make our world a joyful place!
~Marie T. Morrison~
~Marie T. Morrison~
Sunday, December 4, 2011
AIM FOR THE ROAD!
Aim for the road to Heaven! We can do this by listening. Silence is golden, as it is then that we can begin to hear. There are the sounds in nature and even the sounds in the city that teach us about the life around us. Our minds are no longer based on our personal needs. A new outlook on life has begun. God has opened our eyes. Now, we must act upon what we have seen, continuing to listen, learning from actions and words as we work with others. This is how we become wise, setting our mind on the right course, a path that can lead us to Heaven.
~Marie T. Morrison~
~Marie T. Morrison~
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)