My Soul is Thankful...

At our school retreat this fall, we were given right of the start time for silence with the Lord to assess our state. Venturing myself outside, I sat beneath one of Entheos' trees to reflect on the words spoken to us. When came the time to share, we were invited to answer this question:

©Makeup by Caroline OB

'How is your soul?'

The answer I shared with my peers then is so fitted for this day: 'My soul is tremendously thankful.' 

Oh my, my, my, YES! She is THANKFUL!!!
Yes, my soul is thankful, and so am I as well that our good Lord sustained me through it all. As said by St John Paul II in the Theology of the Body: 'The body, in fact, and only the body, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine.'(Man & Woman He created Them, 121). And since it is so, my being as well is manifesting one day at a time this thanksgiving. 
Dear one, each season of life comes with its highs and lows. In the highs, it is easy to trust God, but it is in the moments of uncertainty that our call to testify gets real.
And so it's been. And yes, I am thankful for the doors the Lord has opened for His glory, for the good of His people, and for my good. And Yes, I am also thankful for the doors that have closed. 
Oh my, I am thankful for the gift of community. You see, we can say that we need not to go to mass to worship God, but when trials hit. It takes a community of prayer and love to lift you to God. And so, I am also thankful to the Lord during the season of healing, and recovery, I tasted what it means to be prayerfully love by the Holy Trinity. The phone calls that flooded our home just because the Holy Spirit moved many to pray for my health. Going to mass and participating in the prayers of the faithfully has a whole new meaning, because mass after mass over the past few months, I've shared the beauty of being lifted and lifting others to the Lord during the Eucharistic celebration of the mass. God is Faithful!
Today, I am thankful because I've been witnessing in deeper ways again the Healing power of our Lord in the Eucharist, and the nursing skills of our Blessed Mother through the Rosary. I knew that God loves me, but He's allowed me to experience His love in ways that now moves me to joyful tears.
So today, my soul has experienced and continues to give thanks to the Lord in so many ways, and for so much...  Regardless of your circumstances today, be thankful to the Lord for He is with you.
Yes today, my soul is so thankful that Psalm 107's words have unceasingly been on my lips. Permit me to share an exerpt with you.. 

                '1Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,

                     His faithful love last forever...

                22Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,

                     and recount with shouts of joy 

                             what he has done! -Ps 107

I wish you each a Blessed and Holy Thanksgiving! 
Prayerfully and turkeylly... 
©Fanny Magnificat

Who's the Author?

My dear friends, 
it is one thing for me to say 'Don't mess with me or my Heavenly Father will deal with you.' Now, it is something else when my Lord and God stands & shows me clearly that He's got my back... Where am I going with this? heart emoticon
Few days ago (March 30), upon returning late from school, my mother sat and said that a dear Sister In Christ called for me. She shared that she had prayed all day long because she woke up with a dream about me: "In the dream, there were girls attempting to set me up with a guy. Our good Lord showed her these young ladies were not devoted to the Lord, and she saw clearly that the young man seemed Christlike, but he did not have a heart for God. So our good Lord was not in approval..." Ha! Ayayayayaya!!! smile emoticon
You see my friends, I could not doubt her because my Sister has true dreams. When God gives you a spiritual gift, it is not you who will say 'I have this...', and it is not for you, but the people of God. He'll hint you, but the people of God will testify. 
So when my mother gave me the message, I could not doubt a bit. First, I knew the Lord had been shielding me so much from attempts not pleasing to him especially lately, and at times, I would notice later. Next, I believed that our good Lord was probably warning me through her and asking more than ever vigilance since yesterday in the morning, the same thing arose while making my way to school with another Sister in Christ of mine and my classmate. This was twice in the same day! Ha! My friends, give thanks to the Lord who affirms again and again that He is in charge of our future, and who protect us until victory be given to Him His way. So today, I thought I'd invite you to pray with me...
Dear Lord, 
I do not know what surrounds me. I do not see what you see, but I thank you for the guardian angel you've assigned to me who follows closely your instructions.  I thank you for the Holy men and women you've set on my path who are constantly interceding for me, and are challenging me to WAIT on you, who are BELIEVING with me. Lord, you know my sister's gift and how it has blessed us and her family. You know it is not parable, so I offer whomever, girls or anyone who has fallen in the traps of manipulation when it comes to their relationship with you. Restore them in your heart and in your Mercy that they may experience your true Love and comprehend that Trust in you is what unlocks your heart, not manipulation. Restore their relationship with you that they fall in Love with you. Grant them to learn to simply present you with their hearts' desire, and trust that if it be your will it will come to pass your way, but not their way. 
Lord, we have become people who forget what it is like to trust in you. Waiting has become something that causes discomfort rather than a blessed journey. O Lord, teach whomever these girls are or these people that to come to you seeking after our desires is to worship our desires rather than worshiping you. And to that young man or any man, deliver him from such trap. Detach him and cause him to seek after your heart, Lord. Lead him to other godly brothers who will challenge him to be what you will first. That image you gave my sisters is the image is the reflection of many young men today. O Lord, many young men in my generation have forgotten what it truly is to long for you for who you are rather than for what you will give them. History has proven time and time again that those who use you Lord to fulfill their desires undeniably get hurt; Forgive us Lord for having become worshipers of our desires, for turning our desires into idols. Dear Lord,

 you've been clear when asking us to '... seek first (Your) kingdom and (Your) righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself." -Mt 6:33. Lord, I do not understand the depths of this dream, so I present it back to seeing what we've been through, and believing in where you are wanting us to go. May you keep hiding me in our Lady's mantle as she crushes the head of every plot and instill stillness. May our Lady, the Undoer of knots, destroys today the knots of human tradition so that only my Catholic Tradition be given glory. May she destroys the knots of manipulation, maneuvering, pressure thus transforming hearts and minds during this Easter Season with a renewed focus on you. My Lord God, I offer you every struggle for every Single who has succumbed to the ways of the world. Renew their hope and their strength in you that they may walk secure in your ways. For those who are resisting human traditions, remind each and every one of us that You are indeed the Author of Our Love Story. May those of us you've blessed with a prolonged season of Singleness praise you and seek from you daily: "Lord, how can I bring your glory about today?" Grant me the grace to resist temptations till the day you affirm your will in my heart and through those coaching me to walk in your ways. We were born to know you, love you and serve you. Heavenly Father, I claim this day again that you are the AUTHOR of MY  LOVEheart emoticon STORY.  I claim this through our Lord Jesus Christ who is the Way, Truth and Life. I claim this by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes, my Lord, You are Victorious...

Husband of Mine

Husband of my beloved sister

Christ humbled Himself

          Being a servant to His Bride the church

Thus every day is your responsibility

          Humongous to practice making Thyself

The

       Faithful Servant of

                                         Your family In Christ.

Husband of mine, faithfulness

Christ willed at any cost to show

the church His Bride I am gifted to be

Quiet he stood in the face of all offences

Just for me not once he made use of his

Divine power not once he manifested

Pride of his divine inheritance in the face of anger

Quiet he stared in the midst of their actions

            Not once he resisted the thorns the scourging

            Not once he complained of the deep wounds

All this to let his Bride the church his LOVE for her

Husband of mine do you understand

the Love Christ wills of you of you of you

calling yourself a Christian Man?

Husband of my beloved Sister

Am I painting well for you the calling you are bound

to once you embrace the sacrament of Marriage?

Christian husbands ain’t no longer ‘bout you

For centuries your focus  extended to your

Lady submission so much easier than yours

Christ now sends me to shift your attention

Back to him that you be a living witness of

His Love for the Church for your spouse

Deeper traveling I am taking you too

Your pride is not a reflection of his humility

Your  yelling not identical to his meekness

You serving the beatings to your wife

Disproportional to him served the beatings

I am sorry of the painting I am serving you

But the time has come for you to see

That which I’ve come to see so well

Once baptized you rose to Christian Man

Will you permit to be wounded for my friend?

Will you sacrifice yourself for my sister?

Will you stand when you loose face?

Will you ensure that I return to him bruises free?

Let us hold hands you and I

His Grace and Love we shall live

Reflecting daily Christ, my faithful Husband

Living daily in the Holy Spirit to be a picture

of his Merciful Love to your spouse in thy family

Husband of mine,

Friend of mine

Father of mine

Brother-in-Law of mine, Uncle of mine,

Grandfather of mine, plentiful is your mission

It’s all about Love

                      love Your wife as Christ has loved the Church his bride

you shall see His Glory fill The temple your home

You ABBA Father has established to manifest

His

                                         Passionate

and

                                                                         Fatherly Affection

AMEN! AMEN! AMEN!

--------------------------------------------------

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Welcome 2016 !!!

Every year, I long to hear these words during the Eucharist celebration of January 1st:

 "As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart." 

Whomever asks for my favorite, one-liner biblical verse knows that even if you pinch me at night in my dreams, I will cite Luke 2:19. 

This year again, I have the privilege to hear it. It always resonates differently in my ears. It is incredible how Our Lady didn't brag when the shepherds narrated to her what the angel had told them. She just listens, and she ponders. It is so bizarre because with Elizabeth, she bursted open the Magnificat. She doesn't say; 'Yah, indeed my Son is God, etc...' No, she ponders. 

If it was I, I would have been like: 'Really? Praise The Lord! Halelluja! My Beloved (talking about Joseph) you see? You see? Our God is good now! Ha! Our sufferings are not wasted! I wish the people who did not give us a place could hear this. Ha! Praise the Lord. People of God, dance with me now! God is mighty! Please my shepherds, tell me more... details for details. Repeat line for line, yadaddi yadadda... etc...' 

hehe! Yeah, that would have probably been me. Nay! She remains quiet, and every year I am reminded of that precious gift of hers. For me, it has become a season of learning about timing; When do I speak? and when do I speak not? Who do I talk to? and who do I withhold from? How much details do I give? Is this the right time? It is an art. Whenever I face this, I remember the Scripture 'Be Still and know that I am God' (ps. 46.10)

This is serious exercise for me, because I love to share God's wonders in my life...  On the other hand, I began to learn the consequences of sharing before God's time. It bothered me so much that I began to wonder why Our lady kept to herself for 33 years that her Son is divine. So I been learning the art of pondering! That pondering gift of hers worked me, works me, and probably will for the rest of my days. So here we are again... January 1st,the feast of our Blessed Mother Mary, Mother of God! Let us faithfully sit at her feet hoping that she could unfold further the fruits of that virtue in my life, and in our life. Enjoy this little token!

I wish you a Blessed Christmas Season. May our Lady intercedes ever more for each one of us, and with you, I welcome 2016!!!

Fanny Magnificat

In My Thoughts...

Confiteor: I confess to Almighty God,

and to you my brothers and sisters 

that I have sinned

in my thoughts...

Hold up here for a moment!

After complaining to my parents over the years about understand why my blessings were not coming to me like everyone else, and after wondering why the more I walked with our Lord, the harder things got at times. Yet when Jesus would unleash the fullness his blessings for me, it was often more than I had dreamed of. Still I would wrestle with it. I finally resolved myself to reporting once Jesus to my spiritual director. His words dropped like Wasabi (Japanese pepper). It was one of those moments when you sense clearly that it is not the priest, but Jesus Himself who just spoke to you, and you realize that you just reported Jesus to Jesus! That day it became clear that mortifications have been much part of my upbringing, liked me too much, and were not ready to part from me. So I learned that day that whether I searched for them or not, my dear mortifications would always find me. As hard as there are, I have been challenged to grow in the way of the Lord through them. I, later, came to discover that you cannot be a Beloved daughter of Our Lady and be exempt of mortifications. Great! 

But what are mortifications?

The New Catholic Encyclopedia defines mortification as a “…deliberate restraint that one places on natural impulses in order to make them increasingly subject to sanctification through obedience to reason illumined by Faith… And so mortification… has become a distinguishing mark of those who are Christ’s…”[1]. As per St John Paul II in one of his letter to priests, these  “…forms of penance – which, unfortunately, our times are not accustomed to (have for ) motives: the love of God and the conversion of sinners.”[2] Therefore, when we embrace mortification in our life, it is because we ourselves desire to grow closer to the Lord. You’ll be tried, but you know at as long as you stick with God like Job, you’ll come out more victorious; shining more Christ for the world. When we welcome mortification, it is because our Lord’s ultimate goal is to sanctify us and perfect our communion with him. Jesus himself in the Scriptures clearly said “If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross every day and follow me.” (Lk 9:23)[3]

Now going back to the Confiteor, every Sunday or every day at mass, we get through it either profoundly considering its every word, or routinely reciting through it. Yet, there is one line that tends to get to me, and that line broken down has had even more impact in my life when I was introduced to a specific type of mortification; Mortification of the Mind! 

I still remember as if it was yesterday the day Jesus, through the priest, gave me for spiritual exercise to practice 'Mortification of Mind'.  My thoughts went racing in all directions. It was the weirdest experience ever. It is almost as if my brain felt threatened for a moment; a moment that lasted a whole day. It was so bad, and so unusual that I was not able to study and went straight to bed in the middle of the afternoon. However, as the fruits of it unfolded over the days, weeks, and months to come, this type of mortification has become my best friend, my ally. I can no longer part from it, as I see that it is necessary for me every jiffy of the day. It literally helps me deal any other mortification that comes my way. It’s been blessing me again and again to live out in a concrete manner the words of the apostle Paul to the Romans: 'Do not model your behaviour on the contemporary world, but let the renewing of your mind transform you, so that you may discern for yourself what is the will of God - what is good and acceptable and mature.' (12:2)

There is so much I wish to share in terms of how I did benefit from it. However, let me say that the ongoing practice of disciplining my mind has rescued me from sabotaging myself when I expected it the least, and on the other hand has given me the courage to seek both God’s will and walk into it at other times. It has challenged me to trust God’s time and purpose rather than live in my mind my relationship with others. As a single,  it is so easy to get sidetracked and want to do your own thing. So as a Lady-In- Waiting, I would constantly find myself running now to God’s arms to seek to understand God’s purpose when it comes to others before drawing conclusion. Other times, if there is no answer, I’ll let it go until our Lord unfolds the meaning. When my mind attempts to go sideways in a conversation, I’ll start pray or shout loudly ‘Mortification of Mind’ :-)

So imagine when in class last week, my professor mentioned, a few times, struggles affecting both youth, singles and families. The lightbulb went on when she gave the statistics of the amount of Singles that do not transition well from singleness to marriage; it is easily in the eighty percent. At that point, I confess my mind did not stay still. Rather, I caught myself rebuking such statistics, and praying: ‘Oh Heaven no! Mother Mary, you been handling this child, and you must continue to handle my future’s every step because too much has been invested in this child spiritually! Lol!’ Since the focus are not the stats and its consequences, let this be a conversation for another day, and let say this much. I am blessed at school to hear all the amazing stories of the classmates I am surrounded with especially my sisters in Christ during this season of my life. I feel blessed of all I am learning, and how God is using every bit to form me.

Now, for those of us singles walking either as Singles permanently or as Ladies in Waiting, do we present our every decision to the Lord? Do we submit our friendships and/or courtships to the Lord?  Have we asked Him if He’s given permission for the steps ahead? Are we still and moving with the Lord or are we attempting to bypass Him? It is up to Him to open the doors when He wills and how He wills. Until then, the Lord wills of us to continue to walk as Virtuous Ladies. My dear Ladies In Waiting, dying to ourselves and trusting the Heavenly Father to mold our minds will save us from worrying, because training our minds will teach us to seek whether this moment is about us  or about God’s glory. Whether it be intellectual, social, spiritual, issues to be resolved, do we move as the world, or do we pause at the feet of our Lady for counsel? My favorite part, submitting our mind to the discipline of the Holy Spirit even detaches us from stress before our imagination flies to Troubleland... lol, true or truth !?! 

Mortification of Mind for my Sisters and Aunties In Christ can make a difference in your marriages. It delivers us from the temptations of unnecessary arguments or ill accusations in a marriage. There is power in it, because Mortification of Mind, for my sisters, aunties in Christ who are married, will train you and your spouse’ thoughts before we speak them.

Seriously! Because you will learn to fast like Queen Esther before you speak. It will get you to ask yourself: ‘Is this I am seeing what it truly is?’ or an attitude of ‘Lord, I surrender this to you.’ It is powerful to run things through God before we act. Sometimes, He will affirm your walk through Scriptures. Other times, He won’t.

What St Paul is asking of us is hard, but he wants us to let the Holy Spirit convicts us again and again. I've come to personally see Mortification of Mind as my daily intellectual workout. I am not saying that it is the only thing that helps, but I am confident that Our good Lord in his infinite mercy unfolded another depth of the gift of allowing the Holy Spirit to shield our minds through our Lady’s intercession. As challenging as it, you’ll soon realize that this is one of the most amazing gifts God can give us during the seasons of our Singleness. You’ll see that when you compare seasons of your life without it, you are blessed during these days to be clothed with it. I know I've addressed quite a bit my sisters in Christ, but to practice mortifying our minds isn't just for ladies. Therefore, to both my sisters and my brothers in Christ, mortification of mind train us to pray differently, to respond to God differently, to move with God peacefully, patiently and obediently. It will change how you deal with your colleagues at work. Mortifying our minds teaches us to practice Self Control of the mind, of our words and even our actions. It teaches us to see things through the eyes of the Holy Trinity.  Nowadays, Mortification of Mind gives me the strength of a baobab J, so wherever you at in your life, start and share with me how it moves you one day at a time. As we prepare to enter this year of the Jubilee, may God bless us to move through life according to His plan for His greater glory. Unless our minds be trained, we cannot see all He wills for us to see. Therefore, let us be blessed, and unite ourselves with God in Faith, as He continuously challenges us to Be who He's calling us to be. I bet reciting the Confiteor will never be the same again when we go for mass :-)
Cheers, 

Fanny Magnificat.

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[1] Opus Dei and Corporal mortification, http://opusdei.org.in/en-in/article/opus-dei-and-corporal-mortification/

[2] Letter to Priests on Holy Thursday, March 16, 1986

[3] New Jerusalem Bible