“Eyes on me.” If I could sum up in just three words what the Holy Spirit had been saying to me for the first 3 weeks in January, this would be it. But it was hard to hear amongst the noise of a million distractions.
I missed the mark with Advent this year. It definitely wasn’t what I intended, but I allowed the hustle and bustle of activity to suck me into the vortex of being way too busy to focus on the coming of Jesus. With lots of family in town, multiple celebrations, get togethers and a lot less sleep, I arrived in the New Year lacking joy. Joy… a word that we throw around as if it is easy to just live joyfully. Well I am here to tell you that living joy is simple. Very simple. But it ain’t easy.
Enter the Christmas gift given to us by the parish, Living Joy, 9 Rules to Help You Discover and Live Joy Every Day, by Chris Stefanick. Now I’ll be honest… this book has been sitting on a bookshelf, untouched, right next to where I sit every day in silence. As I sat there one morning, frustrated by the dryness and lack of anything decent to offer the Lord, I happened to pick this up and begin reading. I won’t spoil it for you and tell you what is in it. But I will tell you it has been an eye opening game changer. In fact, I have recommended this to my friends and family and when I came to St. Ignatius to get a few more copies to give away (since there were TONS of them left right by the Church doors for WEEKS…), they were gone. I learned that they had all been taken. The assumption is that people began reading it and did the same thing I was about to do once they discovered what was under the cover. It is so hard to stay focused on God in a state of constant distraction, which is the way so many of us live. God’s face gets lost in the crowd.
Break from the crowd and put (and keep!) your eyes back onto Him. This gem of a book will help. I promise, it’s a very easy read and Chris himself, recommends just reading one chapter at a time.
I enjoyed presenting on Integrated Health, Body, Soul and Spirit on January 19th. Preparing for this presentation served as a great reminder that we are both body AND soul and that when we give our bodies all of the necessary things for good health… sleep, nutrition, exercise, manage our stress, etc., we are better able to serve God and carry out His will for our lives. Our physical health matters. When we feel well, we are better workers in the vineyard.
Our February Physical Therapy screenings will take place on February 26th from 9:30am- noon in Loyola Hall. Come and take advantage of Matt Gingras’s generous services and expertise! Also on February 26th, our monthly blood pressure screenings will take place after all weekend Masses in the back of the church. Stop by and let one of our stellar nurses take your BP!
May God bless you and keep you and your families safe!
Kate Rewwer,
Parish Health Coordinator
