The "God Box"

In the Aug/Sept 2012 of Catholic Digest, Mary Lou Quinlan wrote a touching article on her mother's "God Box." Like many of us, her mother had lots to pray for. Quinlan writes, "With a growing list of wishes and worries on her willing shoulders, Mom decided to adopt the idea of a God Box to lighten her heart. She'd grab any handy scrap of paper . . . date it, write 'Dear God,' describe her need, sign it 'Love, Mary,' place it safe inside her God Box, and let it go."

After her death, Quinlan found ten of these God Boxes up in her closet with petitions covering over twenty years. "We were overwhelmed to see how often she took our cares to God. It was like being wrapped in her arms all over again." She also always put God's will before her own, adding, "if You think it's right" to her notes.

I think that this is a beautiful idea. I know so many people need and ask for prayers and I do try to honor every request, even if it is only a quick Hail Mary when I read a Facebook post or think of someone who needs help during the day. And I hope others do the same for me! It can be hard to keep track of all the requests, however, and I feel badly when I hear about something bad happening  to someone and then I remember, "I promised to pray for that person, but then I forgot in the busyness of life."

I have heard of people keeping lists of those who need prayer and then they pray for those "on their list." In some ways, this is a similar idea. However we do it, we need to turn our prayer requests over to God. A "God Box" is a wonderful thing to have.

Quote for the Day

Today (July 31st) is the feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola. In their "Quiet Moments" supplement, Catholic Digest shared the following quote, which you have probably heard before, but it is worth repeating and posting somewhere you can see it and be reminded of it every day!

Pray as if everything depended on God. Work as if everything depended on you. - St. Ignatius

Quote for the Day

Today's quote for the day comes courtesy of Danielle Bean in Catholic Digest.

Messes are temporary things, but the souls we are raising are forever.

Catholic Digest: A New Look at an Old Favorite

I grew up reading Catholic Digest. I was one of those children who would pick up and read anything that was lying around the house, and it was a magazine that my parents subscribed to. Honestly, I don't remember all that much about the articles. I'm guessing that, as a child, many of them probably went over my head, but I always enjoyed reading religious books and articles. What I do remember were the ads at the back - there would be pages and pages of ads for religious communities. I would read them and dream of which community I could be part of (this was before puberty hit).

I don't know at what point my parents stopped subscribing (probably the same time my Catholic school stopped having magazine drives), but I didn't see another issue for a long time. A while back, I had gone to Mass at a different church than my usual parish and they had a stack of free copies. I picked one up, read it and enjoyed it. I even queried them to see if I could have an article published (the editor declined), but I didn't subscribe.

Recently, though, with the news that Danielle Bean was taking over as editor, I sent in my subscription. The March 2012 issue arrived in my mailbox last week. I eagerly read it cover to cover. It has a new size and a new focus. Subtitled "Faith and Family Living," the articles deal with many aspects of marriage and family. There were practical articles on gardening and health and managing your children's screen time. There were spiritual articles on Lent and coping with spiritual dryness. There were two advice columns handing out helpful answers to troubling problems. One of my favorite articles was on male / female communication - it provided a humorous, but very true look at the way our communication styles differ and the challenges that presents. Overall, the magazine was a delight to read and I am looking forward to the next issue.

In today's world, when so much good Catholic information is available on line, one might wonder why she should subscribe to a print magazine like Catholic Digest. As a parent, I think it is important to have our children see us reading Catholic materials and continuing to learn about our faith. They don't see me reading the many Catholic blogs that I follow, but they do see me reading Catholic publications. While neither of my sons has ever picked one up and read it, that day may come. In the meantime, I'm setting a good example and subscribing to Catholic Digest is definitely money well spent.