Come Away to a Deserted Place … and Rest
This is Week 2 of The Desert Shall Rejoice, a Lenten blog series by Sarah Damm. Each week of Lent, she offers reflections and invites us into prayer.
Led by the Spirit, We Enter the Desert
Today, Sarah Damm begins a new blog series, The Desert Shall Rejoice. For the next six weeks of Lent, she will share reflections, provide a Scripture passage to read and meditate on, and offer journal questions for further reflection.
Centered on Christ: Inviting God into Your Lenten Plans
This Lent, Sarah Damm shares four simple steps to invite the Lord into our Lenten plans and keep Him at the center of the season.
Lenten Inspiration: Heart, Home and Family
Lent begins tomorrow! Ready or not, the season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving is upon us. Are you ready? Or not? I am mostly ready. God has given me a very personal invitation to spend more time in prayer, so that is going to be my focus. And with my ongoing struggle with Hashimoto’s (an autoimmune disease that attacks my Thyroid) and the various symptoms that accompany it, I am also going to pay closer attention to my diet by…
Four Spiritual Books Invite Us to Pray With Scripture This Lent
With Lent less than one week away, many of us are taking time to decide how we want to spend this prayerful and penitential season. What prayers will we say? How will we fast or sacrifice? Where will we give alms? One of my favorite Lenten practices is finding a new spiritual book to read. When we read spiritual books, we are inspired to grow in holiness, and our insights into the Catholic faith are deepened. Spiritual books can include…
Let Us Adore Him: Embracing the Babe, Embracing the Cross
As I sit in the Eucharistic Adoration chapel, I am graced with this very visual meditation of the life of Christ. As if the very heartbeat of Christ in the monstrance isn’t enough, today I also get to praise and adore the infant Jesus, who the shepherds worshiped and who the magi traveled far to find, honor, and present gifts fit for a King. There He is before me. In my prayer, I recall how I waited and watched for Him…
Trusting in God’s Patience
Originally written last Lent, I thought I would share it here for #WorthRevisitWednesday! It is always a good time to ponder the Lord’s mercy, patience, and love! +++ In this Year of Mercy, I wonder how I experience God’s mercy. It is difficult to wrap my head around something so profoundly miraculous, because often, I feel so unworthy of it. But as I ponder the Scriptures, I cannot deny the reality of God’s mercy. Pope Francis explains it well when…
Thirsting For Souls: Jesus, the Samaritan Woman, and the Sacrament of Confession
Last Sunday’s Gospel about the Woman at the Well (John 4:5-42) is very common during the season of Lent, and over the years, it has become one of my favorites. Several years ago, I attended a women’s retreat, and an image of the Woman at the Well was the focal point. A small holy card was taped onto our retreat journals. Large posters with the image on it surrounded our meeting room. And every time I gazed upon it, I saw myself….
Finding Joy in the Season of Lent
This was originally posted during Holy Week 2011. I thought it might be helpful to repost it earlier in the Lenten season in case we are already waiting for Lent to be over. Perhaps we are even tempted to give up. The Lord is inviting us into the desert to be with Him, to remain close to Him, and to one day share in His glory for all eternity. We can do this! We can do this with joy! +++ This is…
Lenten Weariness: How to Avoid the Temptation to Quit
It was January 1, and I was gung-ho to begin my New Year’s resolution. My plan was to start a rigorous elimination diet in the hope of feeling better. I purchased ingredients to make healthy meals, and I set aside time to cook for the week. I knew it was going to be hard, but I reached a tipping point in my chronic illness and knew I had to try more drastic measures. After a week, I started to regain…