As a member of the Church Militant and part of the Mystical Body of Christ one of my greatest blessings is the access I have to the Church Triumphant. And I use it daily. The canonization process of the Catholic Church is very rigorous and the saints are living models of holiness for us. I stress living because they are not dead at all. On the contrary, they are more alive than we are and encompassed by the glory of God.
Everything and everyone can be a stepping stone to God and the saints are the most powerful intercessors of all. Knowing that, I turn to them for help in my daily life, especially in the area of faults, family life and spiritual progression. They love when we ask for their intercession and we can be assured that they are pleading our cause before the throne of God.
I enjoy reading about saints and how often our prayers are answered through their intercession. Having a close relationship with the "great cloud of witnesses" who have gone before me is a very important aspect of my spiritual life and I pray the Litany of the Saints quite often. Plus, I have my "favorites" and each has a charge over certain areas of my life; I am not one to refuse a gift that the Church has placed in my lap.
Here is a quick breakdown of some of saints that "work" with me:
~ St. Faustina has charge of my blog, my own intercessory prayers for others, my understanding of justice and mercy and other areas.
~ St Pio is my "spiritual father" and is in charge of my spiritual life and progress, along with my patron,
St Teresa of Avila
~ St. Joseph is in charge of family unity and family matters
~ St. Bernadette is in charge of my growth in humility
~ St Benedict and St. Gemma help with spiritual battles (though I often call on the whole lot of them for this task)
~ Blessed Kateri and St. Tarcisius are in charge of certain areas of my childhood that pop up from time to time. They were my favorite saints as a child.
~ St. Peter and the other apostles have charge over keeping my feet firmly in the Faith.
~ St. Paul has charge over my spiritual gifts and my weaknesses (the thorns in my side)
~ St Dymphna over my propensity toward anxiety
~ St. Therese is in charge of saving a spot on God's lap for me (grin)
The list could go on forever but I'll stop here...lol. I thought I'd post this because I often wonder why people settle for vague "spiritual guides" when God has placed so many holy men and women as models and helpers for those of us still on earth. It's truly a great gift and blessing from the Lord!
And Our Lady?
She is my mother and I am her daughter. This spiritual motherhood is by God's design. Every single word that Jesus spoke on the Cross has infinite meaning because God is eternal.
"Behold thy mother."
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I'm very interested in hearing about the saints and their place in the lives of others. I pray with the saints and also use the Saint Calender to ask assistance on a daily basis. I would like to hear how other people incorporate The Church Triumphant into their spiritual lives. Anyone want to share their stories? You can leave a comment on my blog or a link to your post about this subject if you are interested in this too. Thanks!
Showing posts with label The Mystical Body of Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Mystical Body of Christ. Show all posts
Monday, July 16, 2012
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
We Are All Interconnected
I was thinking about The Mystical Body of Christ and how we are all interconnected through Him and I wanted to share a story, as strange as it is, which points to this fact. When I had Myasthenia Gravis I would often have "visual disturbances". Many times half my vision would cut out and I would not be able to see properly for a while.These disturbances are quite common in MG. Sometimes these came with headaches, sometimes not. A bit different from migraines,
I wouldn't get the "halo" effect and get headaches quite that severe but it was still hard to walk around when my vision would cut out, especially in public.
Last month, before we went on vacation, Randy, Michaela and I went out looking for a bathing suit for Michaela. We were at a local department store and I was in the fitting room helping Michaela try on swimsuits when all of a sudden...my vision cut out. I said, "C'mon, Michaela, we have to leave right now! Mommy can't see right." We dashed out of the fitting room and I told Randy what was happening and that we had to get out of there. He looked at me in shock and we left the store. When we got outside Randy this is what Randy said to me:
"While you were in the fitting room helping Michaela my Blackberry dinged so I went to check the new e-mail that had just come in. I read the e-mail, which was for you. You gotta read this."
I couldn't read it, of course, because I didn't have my vision back yet so Randy read it to me. A young woman who had been recently diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis had written me an e-mail. Here are portions from some of her e-mails to me:
"I suffered from severe almost sudden weakness when I was 22 years old, I am 26 now. I take medication everyday for Myasthenia Gravis and I had a thymectomy a couple years ago and that has helped. I am a follower of Jesus Christ and a firm believer in His healing power!! I have never accepted that i will be sick for the rest of my life even though my doctors keep explaining that "MG is a chronic disease that you will have for the rest of your life so you just have to find a way to make your life as manageable as possible." I was very active before i was diagnosed. I have a black belt in Karate and played almost every sport, so needless to say this was a huge life changer and i was so weak at the beginning before I got officially diagnosed that I had fallen down the stairs, I couldn't talk, chew or even walk for most days. I have been on a mission to change my diet and try to exercise and find some way to fight this!! I have noticed some good changes due to my Gluten free diet but i know what it feels like to be normal and even though if feels like a lifetime ago I want that back!!! IN JESUS NAME!! I googled "Jesus healed my Myasthenia Gravis" and i was happy to read your blog explaining your experience being healed from this awful disease. I would love to hear back from you."
From another e-mail she sent after I had asked her to tell me more about her symptoms:
"I did have had the worst symptoms. I was working at target and started noticing that my hands were getting weak and it was difficult to straighten my fingers, I had to wear gloves at some points for work and could hardly get them on well I thought it was bad at first but had no idea how serious it really was.I didnt have insurance so i couldnt go to a regular doctor so when i went to ER the doc spent 5 mins with me and said that bc of my hand weakness he said that i had a "pinched nerve" and gave me a prescription for viacadin!!! i didnt even take it bc i knew he was wrong. I was on the computer looking different things up all the time and within a few short months i was having difficulty raising my arms and holding my head up. One night i was at my dads helping them move into a new place and I couldnt do much but that was not the kind of person i am so i pushed myself ( i know now that is why i became so weak) but i didnt know what is was so i thought i could just fight against it i guess. Well I was by myself unpacking and my neck became so weak that i couldn't keep my head up so i just broke down and literally got on my face and prayed and asked God to help me figure out what was going on ... so i got up of the floor and went to the computer where i had explored many other options but never really found the right one (vitamin B deficiency, seizures ,MS) but some how I at that time found the symptoms for a disease called Myasthenia Gravis and it described everything i had a symptom. That was the beginning and it progressed really fast.. but i have no pain just weakness, debilitating weakness.
To make a long story short i went over a year without medication with my body being so weak I was unable to shower without my husband bc he had to do everything for me. I had problems eating, talking, walking, it effected ALL of my muscles. I went to free clinic with the diagnoses that I MADE and a young helpful doctor FINALLY believed me and wanted to help me so he set up a blood test and within a week i was on medication.
There is a huge improvement from now to when i was first diagnosed but i have never accepted that i would be sick for the rest of my life!! I have fought and prayed and cried!! it has been a long difficult past few years.. and now i feel like something amazing is about to happen. I have talked to everyone in my family about you and shared your story and it really encouraged me!!! "
When Randy read her first e-mail to me... to say I was shocked is a huge understatement. What are the odds that I would have a return of one of the symptoms of Myasthenia Gravis at the precise moment that this e-mail came in? The odds seem slim at best. It was as if the Lord was giving me a nudge to pray for this young woman. But why such a strong nudge? This still puzzles Randy and I. My heart really felt for this young women as I could certainly relate to her suffering. She was not the first person with Myasthenia Gravis to write to me but the other woman had a relatively mild case compared to A. Most people would simply chalk this up to coincidence but I no longer write stuff like this off so easily.
Myasthenia Gravis can be life threatening. Those with severe cases can have "breathing crises" and can die from these. I warned her in an e-mail that if this should ever happen to make sure that her husband called an ambulance immediately. I am praying for A. and I am hoping that some of my fellow bloggers might join me in praying for her. We are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ and through our prayers we can all assist each other here on earth and our prayers for those who are battling terrible diseases can bring healing and help when they need it most.
I wouldn't get the "halo" effect and get headaches quite that severe but it was still hard to walk around when my vision would cut out, especially in public.
Last month, before we went on vacation, Randy, Michaela and I went out looking for a bathing suit for Michaela. We were at a local department store and I was in the fitting room helping Michaela try on swimsuits when all of a sudden...my vision cut out. I said, "C'mon, Michaela, we have to leave right now! Mommy can't see right." We dashed out of the fitting room and I told Randy what was happening and that we had to get out of there. He looked at me in shock and we left the store. When we got outside Randy this is what Randy said to me:
"While you were in the fitting room helping Michaela my Blackberry dinged so I went to check the new e-mail that had just come in. I read the e-mail, which was for you. You gotta read this."
I couldn't read it, of course, because I didn't have my vision back yet so Randy read it to me. A young woman who had been recently diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis had written me an e-mail. Here are portions from some of her e-mails to me:
"I suffered from severe almost sudden weakness when I was 22 years old, I am 26 now. I take medication everyday for Myasthenia Gravis and I had a thymectomy a couple years ago and that has helped. I am a follower of Jesus Christ and a firm believer in His healing power!! I have never accepted that i will be sick for the rest of my life even though my doctors keep explaining that "MG is a chronic disease that you will have for the rest of your life so you just have to find a way to make your life as manageable as possible." I was very active before i was diagnosed. I have a black belt in Karate and played almost every sport, so needless to say this was a huge life changer and i was so weak at the beginning before I got officially diagnosed that I had fallen down the stairs, I couldn't talk, chew or even walk for most days. I have been on a mission to change my diet and try to exercise and find some way to fight this!! I have noticed some good changes due to my Gluten free diet but i know what it feels like to be normal and even though if feels like a lifetime ago I want that back!!! IN JESUS NAME!! I googled "Jesus healed my Myasthenia Gravis" and i was happy to read your blog explaining your experience being healed from this awful disease. I would love to hear back from you."
From another e-mail she sent after I had asked her to tell me more about her symptoms:
"I did have had the worst symptoms. I was working at target and started noticing that my hands were getting weak and it was difficult to straighten my fingers, I had to wear gloves at some points for work and could hardly get them on well I thought it was bad at first but had no idea how serious it really was.I didnt have insurance so i couldnt go to a regular doctor so when i went to ER the doc spent 5 mins with me and said that bc of my hand weakness he said that i had a "pinched nerve" and gave me a prescription for viacadin!!! i didnt even take it bc i knew he was wrong. I was on the computer looking different things up all the time and within a few short months i was having difficulty raising my arms and holding my head up. One night i was at my dads helping them move into a new place and I couldnt do much but that was not the kind of person i am so i pushed myself ( i know now that is why i became so weak) but i didnt know what is was so i thought i could just fight against it i guess. Well I was by myself unpacking and my neck became so weak that i couldn't keep my head up so i just broke down and literally got on my face and prayed and asked God to help me figure out what was going on ... so i got up of the floor and went to the computer where i had explored many other options but never really found the right one (vitamin B deficiency, seizures ,MS) but some how I at that time found the symptoms for a disease called Myasthenia Gravis and it described everything i had a symptom. That was the beginning and it progressed really fast.. but i have no pain just weakness, debilitating weakness.
To make a long story short i went over a year without medication with my body being so weak I was unable to shower without my husband bc he had to do everything for me. I had problems eating, talking, walking, it effected ALL of my muscles. I went to free clinic with the diagnoses that I MADE and a young helpful doctor FINALLY believed me and wanted to help me so he set up a blood test and within a week i was on medication.
There is a huge improvement from now to when i was first diagnosed but i have never accepted that i would be sick for the rest of my life!! I have fought and prayed and cried!! it has been a long difficult past few years.. and now i feel like something amazing is about to happen. I have talked to everyone in my family about you and shared your story and it really encouraged me!!! "
When Randy read her first e-mail to me... to say I was shocked is a huge understatement. What are the odds that I would have a return of one of the symptoms of Myasthenia Gravis at the precise moment that this e-mail came in? The odds seem slim at best. It was as if the Lord was giving me a nudge to pray for this young woman. But why such a strong nudge? This still puzzles Randy and I. My heart really felt for this young women as I could certainly relate to her suffering. She was not the first person with Myasthenia Gravis to write to me but the other woman had a relatively mild case compared to A. Most people would simply chalk this up to coincidence but I no longer write stuff like this off so easily.
Myasthenia Gravis can be life threatening. Those with severe cases can have "breathing crises" and can die from these. I warned her in an e-mail that if this should ever happen to make sure that her husband called an ambulance immediately. I am praying for A. and I am hoping that some of my fellow bloggers might join me in praying for her. We are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ and through our prayers we can all assist each other here on earth and our prayers for those who are battling terrible diseases can bring healing and help when they need it most.
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