A Couple of Catholics

A blog about faith, intentional living and the joys and struggles of married life.

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The Fellowship of the Unashamed

After listening to a talk from Patrick Madrid called “Why Be Catholic?” he quoted this as his mission statement. If you are Catholic it is incredibly inspirational, it’s too bad the author is unknown. Enjoy…

The Fellowship of the Unashamed

I AM A PART of the Fellowship of the Unashamed.

The die has been cast. The decision has been made. I have stepped over the line. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is in God’s hands. I am finished and done with low living, small planning, the bare minimum, smooth knees, mundane talking, frivolous living, selfish giving, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, applause, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, the best, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith. I lean on Christ’s presence. I love with patience, live by prayer, and labor with the power of God’s grace.

My face is set. My gait is fast, my goal is heaven. My road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my Guide is reliable, and my mission is clear.

I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, let up or slow up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and spoken up for the cause of Christ.

I am a disciple of Jesus. I am a Catholic. I must go until He comes, give until I drop, speak out until all know, and work until He stops me. And when He returns for His own, He will have no difficulty recognizing me. My banner is clear: I am a part of the Fellowship of the Unashamed.

This was adapted from the original (author unknown) by Patrick Madrid

4 Resources to Make Lent More Agonizing

Welcome to the second week of Lent. How has it been going so far? I hope you are off to a great start!

Admittedly, this post probably would have served you better if it were posted before Ash Wednesday. But hey, part of being Catholic is always striving to be better. So if you need a bit of a Lent pick-me-up, here are four of our favorite Lent resources to help you deepen your faith journey.

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How Having a Baby Ruined My Marriage

Babies change EVERYTHING. Some would even say that having a baby ruined their marriage and I would have to agree with them. I love my daughter as well as the life my husband and I are building with her, but that doesn’t mean my pre-baby life isn’t ruined. In fact, it’s been demolished.

I can never go back to life before kids…never. From the moment my daughter was born until the day I leave this world, I will forever be a mother.

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Musings on Motherhood: Curse of the Breast Pump

I’m sure that there are lots of embarrassing and awkward moments that motherhood will bring, but so far pumping in public has taken the cake. As other mothers who have nursed can empathize, the first few times you nurse in public are quite uncomfortable.

My experience has been no exception. Yes of course there are nursing covers to aid with modesty and I always use one, but really who are we kidding? Trying to get some squiggly baby to nurse while smothering them with a sheet is hardly ideal. Plus, there is the self-consciousness that comes with the whole ordeal. I mean really the only thing keeping the entire world getting a free peek at your breasts is a thin, flimsy parcel of fabric. Oh and the nursing covers they sell…it can’t be any bit conspicuous. Nope. It has to be some bold pattern covered in bright pink flowers (at least mine is).

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Three Tips to Survive the First Year of Marriage | Newlywed Advice

About a year ago I made the best decision of my life–I married my wife Nicole. This has been the most significant thing I’ve ever done (sans having our daughter). We celebrated one amazing year of marriage in November. So much has happened in the past twelve months that it feels like we’ve been married for much longer (kind of like dog years, but in a good way). However, its seems like this time of flux is rarely unique for newlyweds.

With a year of experience under my belt and since I’m clearly a pro at married life (yeah right, just ask Nicole), I thought I would share some of the things I have learned so far. Here’s some newlywed wisdom for you–three points on how to survive, or better yet thrive in the first year of marriage.

Tip #1, make time for your wife

This sounds pretty basic. When you get married you will naturally spend more time together, right? After all, isn’t this what the honeymoon period is for? Ahh…thus the conundrum. Story time…

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Beyond the New Year’s Resolution

The time is upon us…it’s the season of New Year’s resolutions. Another opportunity to start fresh and recreate ourselves, but before we rush into the vast arena of resolution clichés (you all know them…quit smoking, eat healthy, loose weight, etc.) maybe we should take a moment and reflect on what area of life we really hope to grow in.

There is nothing wrong with resolving to get fit, but what if in addition to that we decided to push ourself to grow in other ways…more lasting ways?

What if we chose to focus the hopes of our future-selves on our spiritual life or family life? And what if instead of just making some obscure blanket statement that is destined to get lost in the cracks of our day-to-day lives we actually made a plan of how we could grow in such areas?

For example, instead of just stating that we are going to get healthy we could stand firm in our commitment to working out 2-3 times a week. Or instead of exclaiming that we want to grow in holiness, we could resolve to personal prayer for ten minutes a day or sign up to do a holy hour once a week. This gives us a measurable to goal in which we can mark our progress.

I’m all for New Year’s resolutions and I love the notion of a fresh start. That being said I think our resolutions should be meaningful, purposeful and attainable.

Instead of one single resolution for the year, I like to come up with a broader theme for the year and then create mini-goals I can put my focus towards each month.

One year my theme was to find balance. One month I spent focusing on developing my prayer life, another month I honed in on cultivating my friendships, and in another my energy was spent on eating healthier. Personally I’ve found that this approach helps me to stick with it as I can continue to evaluate my progress throughout the year and I have an easy mantra to refer back to.

What’s your 2015 focus and how do you plan to stick with it?

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Saying Yes to Motherhood

It’s no secret that motherhood is challenging. It’s the most challenging job I’ve ever experienced. Still, it wasn’t like this was any sort of well-kept secret. People told me it would be tough, that there would be days when I would just want to cry and tear my hair out all at the same time. Just like they told me that marriage would have it’s rough patches, but for some reason I never listened to them. I guess I just thought they were exaggerating or too cynical or whatever.

The truth is they were all right. There is one thing that they didn’t tell me, though. One aspect that I wasn’t prepared for. That was how much the trials and victories of motherhood would alter my spirituality.

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