A NEW YEAR!
Nothing gives hope like a blank slate and this, the beginning of 2015, offers every chance for improvement that I could possibly hope for. Like any fresh-start-revering American, I fantasize about pursuing health, purging our house of excess, and finally running a half marathon; but the best I can do this year is refresh my soul by drawing closer to God as an individual, with my husband, and with my family. My faith has grown lazy and slightly round in the middle – no good when you want to be spiritually fit. Prevent your faith from going flabby with these Catholic New Year’s resolutions. Add your own in the combox or at #TCWresolutions!
FOR THE INDIVIDUAL
1) Attend Mass more than each Sunday. Blessed Pope Paul VI called Mass “the source and summit of the Christian life.” Above all else, seek to receive Christ in Holy Communion; it’s literally Heaven on Earth.
2) Commit to quiet personal prayer for at least five minutes a day. Find a favorite corner of your house, detach from obligations, and draw close to God. Read the Bible or pray a Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Everyone has five minutes of wiggle room in their schedules. Gradually increase your time as you’re able.
3) Pope Francis exemplifies the fact that Catholicism is an active faith of love and mercy because he strives to imitate Christ. Follow his instruction by going out of your way to be helpful to a stranger, a friend, or better yet your own spouse.
4) Go to confession once a month or every couple of weeks to receive absolution and sacramental grace frequently. It’ll keep you humble and at peace.
MARRIED
If you’re married, prayer with your spouse is arguably more important than individual prayer since your vocation is the means by which you reach Heaven. A couple who clings to Christ will consequently be drawn closer together. Make 2015 the year you and your sweetheart become more prayerful.
1) Read the daily Mass readings together, easily found through the Magnificat app or on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ site. It takes little time and can be the perfect way to begin or end the day.
2) Check in! Once a month or so, have an open conversation specifically about how you and your spouse are doing with each other, with the kids, and with God. Begin by asking the Holy Spirit to be present to help you improve your love for each other. Allow ample time, get a babysitter if necessary, and enjoy being able to freely communicate.
3) Go on a marriage retreat! No matter how long you’ve been together, your marriage needs refreshing and refocus. So many retreats offer holy insight into your relationship and it will send your sacrament through a good ol’ fashioned revival. Nothing will give you a strong sense of the greatness and teamwork of your relationship like a retreat. Call your arch/diocese for retreat opportunities.
FOR THE FAM
Pope St. John Paul II said “As the family goes…so goes the whole world in which we live.” As the most basic unit of society, the family should grow in faith to sharpen itself, as well as each member.
1) Simplify your family’s schedule and list of commitments to make room for more time together. Make your newly found togetherness intentional.
2) Dedicate your family to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Seal it by hanging images of each in your home.
3) Pray the Rosary as a family. Daily. Weekly. Monthly. However often you can. This devotion is surprisingly possible even with little kids if you take small steps and check your expectations; and there is the added bonus of a plenary indulgence attached when the Rosary is recited as a family. We pray a decade after dinner and before bedtime with lit candles in the dim living room as well as a statue of the Holy Family.
And with all else, pray for the grace and strength to stay the course while you strive to become closer to the Lover of your soul.
Happy New Year! and God bless your 2015!
