Make My Heart a Home

"To an open house in the evening,

Home shall all men come.

To an older place than Eden

And a taller town than Rome.

To the end of the way of the

wandering star.

To the things that cannot be and

that are,

To the place where God

was homeless

And all men are at home.

A Child in a foul stable,

Where the beasts feed and foam;

Only where He was homeless

Are you and I at home."

Venerable Fulton Sheen 

Make my heart a home for the Baby Jesus.

Make way and make room. 

The Christmas Celebration continues.

A season of joy instead of gloom.

Make my heart a home for the Baby Jesus, 

a home for his mom and for his dad.

Help me to fill my heart with goodness,

to see only the good and not the bad. 

"It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you." St. Mother Teresa

Make my heart, Your heart.

Forever your home. 

Christmas Miracles

My heart is melting! 

I want a Christmas Miracle too!

I am grateful for this reminder from my goddaughter.

The reminder to ask and to expect Christmas Miracles. 

Little kids write Christmas letters asking and expecting every year. 

Oh, to be a child again... 

The rest of us can learn from their faith and belief.  

To believe and to hope for Christmas Miracles. 

I don't know what Christmas Miracle I am asking for... 

There are many miracles I desire, but still I come asking and expecting to receive Christmas Miracles. 

Jesus, The Christmas Miracle, come into our hearts and gift us in ways we do not expect.  

For we ask and expect that only good things come.

That we continue to hope, like little children, in Christmas Miracles! 

Merry Christmas! 

 "Seek grace in the smallest things, and you will find also grace to accomplish, to believe in, and to hope for the greatest things."Saint Peter Faber   

 

The Nativity

During this Advent Season I have been listening to the Advent Reflections on the Hallow App. 

There was a reflection this past week that I am still pondering in my heart. 

The Nativity. 

I reflected by answering these questions and visualizing myself at The Nativity.

The Reflection begins with the Gospel of Luke, the story of the Birth of Jesus.

Everyone traveled to his own town to be enrolled. Joseph therefore went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David. He went to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. 

Luke 2:3-7

I then listened to the story a second time..

The next step was to visualize myself on the journey to Bethlehem with Mary and Joseph. 

What did they talk about? 

Me: I imagine they had a conversation about their change of plans. After imagining myself listening to their conversation, I reconsidered how I respond when my plans change. Mary and Joseph placed their trust and faith in God. I pray I learn to do the same. 

Now picture the manger, the animals and the humble stable...

Me: I watched The Chosen Christmas Episode last weekend. While watching I realized something I hadn't before... The stable wasn't ready. It wasn't clean because animals lived there. Joseph most likely had to shovel manure to make a birthing room for Mary. True humility. Teach me, St. Joseph and Mother Mary to be humble.  

 Imagine Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus... 

What do you see, hear and feel? 

Me: I see a glow. I hear the song silent night. I feel a warmth.

Now picture yourself as a shepherd going in haste to Bethlehem after being told by the angels that the Messiah has come. 

When you arrive at the manger what do you do when you see the Baby Jesus? How do you greet Him? 

Me: I am in awe. I can't stop smiling. 

What thoughts are going through your mind? 

Me: Is this for real? Am I truly witnessing the birth of our Savior? I am humbled. I am rejoicing. Glory to God in the highest! I am eager to hold Him. 

Imagine sitting with the Holy Family and spending time with them. 

What do they say? What do you talk about with them? 

Or perhaps you sit in silence with them... 

I am standing at a distance, still in awe from the light and love before me. Mary and Joseph invite me closer. Mary asks me, "Do you want to hold Him?" 

Sometimes we are afraid to hold something or someone. 

That was not my response to this question. 

"Do you want to hold Him?" 

I want to hold the Baby Jesus! 

I am eager to hold Him.

I hold the perfect Baby Jesus in my arms and close to my heart.

My hope for you, is to hold the baby Jesus close to your heart as well.

This blog does not do the reflection justice.

However, I wanted to share it and share the app, https://hallow.com/ . 

Broken Hearted

"Why are we so surprised when we discover another person is broken? Perhaps because we are so intent on ignoring our own brokenness?" Matthew Kelly 

We are all broken.

It is a broken world we live in. 

Sometimes we cannot explain the who, what, when or why. 

I have asked God many times in my life, "why do bad things happen?" 

I ask Him this question and expect to find relief by knowing the reason why. 

However, reasons don't put the broken pieces back together. Reasons don't suddenly make sense. 

 "Do not seek to know the reason why." - St. Faustina

Only God knows the reason why. 

He is with us in our brokenness.

There are so many things that have weighed heavy on our hearts this year.

So many broken things we want to fix.

So many people that I want to save from being broken.

I prayed this before praying the St. Andrew Christmas Novena.

Then I realized, I am not the savior.

Jesus is. 

That's why the Baby Jesus came.

So that "there will be no such thing as broken." 

He holds our broken pieces in His hands.

Jesus, a tiny baby. 

Hold the baby Jesus close to your broken heart. 

"The child Jesus may attract us with His tenderness and infuse the peace so necessary to disillusioned hearts searching for the meaning of life." Militia Immaculata 2021 Monthly Prayer Intentions  

The Immaculate Conception

"I am the Immaculate Conception," Mary said to St. Bernadette in Lourdes, France.

What does this title mean? 

It means that Mary was conceived without sin. 

God chose Mary from the beginning of time to be immaculate. 

He chose Mary to be pure and to become the Mother of His Son. 

Her heart was made perfectly in His image.  

God gave us the gift of the Immaculate Conception, let us give thanks and praise!

Mary, The Immaculate Conception, 

pray for us!

"Let us run to Mary, and as her little children, cast ourselves into her arms with a perfect confidence." St. Francis de Sales 

Photo from Lourdes, France 2010 

Only with Our Hearts

"When our heart beats with Christ's heart, we see the whole world differently. We see every human being differently." John Cardinal O'Connor 

Every human person is a gift. 

We don't realize that without Jesus. 

We need His heart to make the difference. 

His heart will not skip a beat, it will create a rhythm. 

He will invite our hearts to open and to believe.  

"Your job, as a believer, is to bring others to Christ." Bishop Barron 

From this day forward, let there be an awareness of this sacred gift. 

The gift of hope.

Something we cannot see with our eyes but only with our hearts.

"Loving God, we thank You for the example of St. Nicholas, who fed the hungry, brought hope to the imprisoned, gave comfort to the lost, and taught the truth to all. May we strive to imitate him by putting You first in all we do. Give us the courage, love, and strength of St. Nicholas, so that, like him, we may serve you through loving our brothers and sisters. Amen." Walking With Purpose 

Photo credit to Walking with Purpose 

Only Jesus

"Occupy yourself in beholding and bewailing your own imperfection rather than contemplating the imperfections of others." St. Ignatius of Loyola 

I placed my heart in front of Jesus at Adoration today. 

I listened to Matthew Kelly's Best Advent Ever video I missed yesterday.

Best Advent Ever - Emptiness

The ending of this video stood out to me.

Find a quiet place, sit down, close your eyes, acknowledge God's presence, breathe deeply, talk to him briefly about how life has left you empty and ask God to fill you up." Matthew Kelly

Sometimes we don't even realize we are empty. 

However, God is always willing and ready to fill us up. 

He filled my Adoration hour with His goodness. 

I read this quote, from my 15 days of Prayer with Chiara Luce book,

"She transformed her own errors and those of others into love." Blessed Chiara 

He answered my heart's prayer for peace with a prayer to love. 

"O God, we believe You are here. we adore You and love You with our whole heart and soul because You are most worthy of all our love. We desire to love You as the Blessed do in Heaven... Flood our souls with Your spirit and life.. Penetrate and possess our whole being utterly, that our lives may only be a radiance of Yours. Shine through us, and be so in us, that every soul we come in contact with may feel Your presence in our soul: Let them look up and see no longer us, but only Jesus!"

 St. Mother Teresa   

Erin K. McAtee

Artist, Printmaker and Educator

erinkmcatee.com

@erin.k.mcatee

Baptism

Today is my brother Max's baptism day!

My godson, Daniel, celebrated his baptism day yesterday!

Daniel's family sent me a picture of him holding his Baptismal candle.

The Baptismal candle was relit. 

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:5

 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

John 1:6-8 

This reminded me of my own baptismal promise. 

The promise of living out my baptism everyday.

We promise to take heart and to keep the faith, while allowing God's light to shine in us.

The Apostle’s Creed

I believe in God,

the Father Almighty,

Creator of Heaven and earth;

and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, Our Lord,

Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the Virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended into Hell.

The third day He arose again from the dead;

He ascended into Heaven,

sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty;

from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy Catholic Church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting. Amen.

This is our faith.

This is our Baptism! 

This is what I believe with my whole heart. 

I have been helping lead Confirmation this year. 

Confirmation is the Sacrament which affirms our baptismal belief. 

Thank you, Jesus, for the Sacrament of Baptism! 

Thank you for my godson, Daniel, and for my brother, Max! 

Thank you for pouring your grace into our hearts through the Sacrament of Baptism.

 "He who carries God in his heart bears Heaven with him wherever he goes." Ignatius of Loyola 

Daniel Joseph, November 30th, 2014 

Maximilian Joseph, December 1st, 2007