Where are we going?

We're back home from our whirlwind weekend. We went to the Catholic Family Conference in Anaheim, CA. The conference always gives us much to chew on and conversation on the long drive is always thoughtful and stimulating. Spending wholesome time with family and friends also makes the conference worth while. There is so much to learn and understand about our Catholic faith. We are forever on a journey toward Heaven and we aren't on this journey alone. We take with us our spouses, our children and our friends. We are blessed with wonderful friends on our journey. This year, Team Hall and the Hicks family went with us. Hopefully next year other friends will join us. It is not to say that those that couldn't make it this year aren't on our journey. God has graced us with a great Catholic Family at Holy Trinity that actually reaches down to Mexico! With the help of my family and friends, we are journeying to heaven together.

For those of you that have never attended a Catholic Family Conference, check out this link: National Catholic Family Conference - Spiritually Refreshing and Stimulating Weekend
Here you can get an idea of the speakers and topics that were presented this past weekend. Check it out and God willing, we can go together next year.

There were many topics to choose from and listen too while at the conference. As most of you know, this is the Jubilee Year of St. Paul. Since I am going to do a study of St Paul this year I went to a talk about St Paul and the Mystery of Angels. Did you know that the word "angel" occurs 27 times in the Pauline letters! I was surprised! I didn't realize that St Paul talked about God's messengers that often. He doesn't call them angels in scripture. He names them by the work that they do: Principalities, Authorities, Powers, Dominions and Names. There are more choirs of angels, but these are the ones that St Paul mentions. Now, did you know that angels are purely spiritual (not having a body) and have intelligence and a will? That means they are personal and immortal creatures. Wow, they are like us without a body. We should be talking to them a little more. If you want to know more, go to the Catechism of the Catholic Church 328 - 336. It is short but packed with info.

The bible tells us that these Holy Angels have a role in God's Plan of Salvation. They dwell in heaven or in light -Gal 1:8; 2 Cor 11:14 They witness earthly events - 1 Cor 4:9 which mean they know what is going on in our world and they watch over us and help us. They are present during Christian Liturgy - 1 Cor 11:7, 10 which means they are at Holy Mass, celebrating along with us! Isn't that an awesome reality. Every time you participate at Holy Mass, you are surrounded by angels! And finally, they will accompany Christ at the Second Coming and Announce the Resurrection of Dead 2 Thes 1:7-8. They are spiritual warriors fighting for God and his people (us). Find time to meditate on the creatures that God has sent to us to be His messengers!

Now, we also know that angels have a free will. Yeah, they can do as they please just as we can. Well, the angels that didn't want to bow down to our All Powerful God, are known as fallen angels. The CCC (390-395) tells us about them too. Unfortunately, they have a whole other plan. They seek our damnation -Rom 8:38 and are the true enemies of all Christians -Eph 6:12. I don't mean to put a damper on your day, but we need to know that they are real and that there is a real battle going on around us.

I am telling you all this because we need to be aware. We need to prepare through prayer and by the decisions we make as human beings. If you look around at our world today, we can see the destruction that is already occuring. The breakdown of families and moral conscience. We need to fight back. We need to pray for guidance and protection. We need to protect our children and our families. There is a war going on and it is not only happening on the ground on foreign soil. It is happening all around us. We need to open our eyes and our hearts to see and hear where that war is in our own lives. Then we need to pray for the courage and perseverence to stand against what society tells us is necessary in order to be happy people. We need to use the Light of Christ to reveal to us His graces and we need to make sacrifices to protect our loved ones. Without sacrifice there is no love.

I know that Mike and I love our children and we are willing to make sacrifices to protect them. I only ask that you think about all this and ask for guidance from the Holy Spirit. Only then will you know what you need to do to protect yourself and your family. May God bless you with the gift of wisdom to know His will. Peace and Blessings to all of you.