Tag: Goodness

Inspiration

The Mystery of Prayer

Smitten With Goodness

Prayer is one of the most familiar words in the Christian life, yet it remains one of its deepest mysteries. We speak, we listen, we open our hearts and somehow, in ways we cannot measure or control, God meets us there. The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes prayer as “the encounter of God’s thirst with ours” (CCC 2560). That line alone could occupy a lifetime of reflection. Prayer is not simply our effort to reach God; it is God already reaching for us. It is an encounter with the living water.

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Inspiration

Extraordinary Presence

Smitten With Goodness

Some people walk into a room and nothing flashy happens—no grand speeches, no dramatic gestures—yet something shifts. The air feels lighter. Hearts feel steadier. Hope feels possible again. That is extraordinary presence, and it is one of the quiet miracles of a life rooted in Christ.

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Inspiration

Praying for Christian Unity

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This week, the Church enters a sacred rhythm shared across the world: the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. It’s a tradition with deep roots, stretching back nearly two centuries and one that has been strengthened by the encouragement of popes, theologians, and ordinary believers who long for the unity Christ prayed for at the Last Supper.

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Inspiration

Light, Justice, and Steadfast Love

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Today we honor Martin Luther King Jr., a man whose words still call us toward courage, compassion, and moral clarity. He reminded us that darkness and hatred can never heal the world—“only light” and “only love” can do that. His insistence on nonviolence wasn’t passive; it was a fierce commitment to transforming injustice without becoming what we resist. We dream the same dream he had if we are honest with ourselves…to be judged by our character.

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Inspiration

God’s Glory Revealed

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John the Baptist’s life begins with a powerful truth: he is formed by God “as his servant from the womb.” His identity is not something he stumbles into; it is woven into him from the beginning. His entire being is oriented toward one mission—pointing to Christ.

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Inspiration

Adore

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Do you ever have a word jump out at you in various places and contexts? Lately, I keep noticing the word adore. It keeps surfacing. Like in the beautiful image above of Mary holding her Son, in the quiet act of adoring Jesus in prayer. Or in an article I recently read about the neurobiology of “glimmer” and gratitude. It feels like the Spirit is drawing a circle around this word, this action: when we adore, we don’t just observe; we receive and release. We make meaning. We transcend what is immediately before us.

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Inspiration

Stepping Into the Water With Us

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As the Christmas season draws to a close, the Church leads us to the Jordan River—quiet, dusty, and crowded with sinners seeking a new beginning. And there, astonishingly, we find Jesus. The sinless One stands among the broken, the weary, the repentant. He joins the line of those longing for mercy, not because He needs cleansing, but because we do.

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Inspiration

Remaining in the Love That Remains in Us

Smitten With Goodness

John’s words in 1 John 4:11–18 draw us back to the very heart of the Christian life: love. Not the fragile, shifting kind we often encounter in the world, but the steady, self-giving love that begins in God and flows through us. “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another.” It’s both a command and a revelation. We love because we have first been loved.

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