Are you a disciple?

Thanks to a new co-worker I have a very long reading list now (and it's AWESOME!). Most of the list has grown through conversations usually going something like this:

"Oh, have you read this book/heard of this author?"
And, the response of the mom of a 3 year old has been, "Uhhhh....no."

The first book on the list was Forming Intentional Disciples. If you are in ministry or volunteering at your parish or thinking "where are the excited Catholics?" then you must read this book.

The book is incredible and answered a lot of questions, however, it's a little depressing as well. I'm a freak about the Catholic faith - I love it! I love Jesus, I love the Church, I love the liturgy, I love theology. This pretty much has made me a freak for a long time now and I've gotten used to it. Yet, it's also pretty sad because there's a very small contingent of Catholics who are Jesus freaks - and I mean that in the best possible way.

Every year the Church loses people to evangelical Protestant churches because they have more fire in their hearts than Catholics do when it comes to Jesus. They're not afraid to talk about Jesus, but if you mention Jesus to an everyday Catholic they get a little scared. If you're one of those Catholics, then please ask yourself why does talking about Jesus make you nervous and share in the comments section.  

Every Christian should be a disciple, but the sad thing is, not too many of us are in the Catholic Church. Why? Jesus is THE rock star of the universe...and dang it, he is worth talking about! Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us, the Prince of Peace, the Son of God (that's just a sampling of his titles), we should't be nervous or shy or worried or scared to talk about Him.  We need to proclaim Him with our lives, but we also need to proclaim Him with our mouths.

My life reduced to 6'x7'x8'

No...I'm not in prison. The long title of this blog should be: My life reduced to 6'x7'x8', a Hyundai Elantra Touring, and a rooftop bag. 

On June 7th I got a phone call from Bishop Edward Burns of the Diocese of Juneau, Alaska and I was offered the position of Executive Director of the Shrine of St. Therese. From that point forward life got a little crazy! 

My husband and I sold off or gave away most of our belongings. Even my son had to part with toys and books in order to make this move - and he was a trooper. My theology book collection was reduced to the essentials. I even had to leave behind my glider (rocking chair). In the space of three weeks we packed boxes, had a garage sale, I flew to Juneau to meet the Diocesan staff and the Shrine staff, we packed a very small pod, drove from Southaven, Mississippi to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada, and spent a day and a half on a ferry to Juneau. We arrived on June 28th and I started work on July 1st. 

I had been praying for weeks and weeks that I would get this position, but didn't want to blog about it. Juneau seems to be heaven on earth for us. 

Many people have asked if I've had second thoughts about this. And my answer is: not a one. Everything fell into place and I can see the fingerprints of God all over the place. 

Please check out the Shrine website and Facebook page:

http://www.shrineofsainttherese.org/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shrine-of-St-Therese/483369845080958