Family can be a perfect paradox. We toil endlessly for the benefit of our family. Yet, we so often convince ourselves that the individuals with whom we share our lives are more trouble than blessing. Babies cry, toddlers test and cry, kids test, teenagers further test and eventually cry, husbands need, and even the extended family has its own wants and needs. And, in the middle of all of this mess, all of these people are hungry and want to eat more than one meal a week. Absurd! As the old adage goes "you can't pick your family, but you can pick your..." Well, as a mom of boys well versed in all parts that can be picked, I'll spare you the ending. Amusement aside, it is nevertheless true. We cannot choose our families. And those within our home can be a source of stress, no matter our role within the family structure, whether a child or parent. Familiarity breeds contempt. Yet, despite it all, there is no greater gift (other than the greatest gift on Gethsemane) that God has bestowed upon us other than the gift of family. These individuals in our lives know absolute everything about us-- our triumphs, but mostly our sins and failures-- and yet, they choose to love us any way. What is more humbling than this? God has placed each person in our lives with purpose. They may be our lesson in patience (or, which is most likely the case with all of those within my relation), we are (I am) their lesson in patience. Each interaction with the members of our family is an opportunity to grow in holiness and virtue. As God, the master craftsman, has hand-picked these souls to be in our lives, these are lessons that he has specifically chosen for our salvation.   Emily is a wife and mother to two hungry boys, and loves to bake and talk too much (one look at her 2nd grade report card will prove that old habits die hard). She writes about life, and mostly food, on her blog, Bacon is the Way to Happiness.

Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ. Feel free to share your answers to these questions in on our Instagram post and/or your own Instagram post, tagging #BISsisterhood. Gina Fensterer is a wife, daughter, mother, friend, homeschooling mama, Colorado native. Documenting life through photography and blogging at Someday Saints lets her share about thoughts about life, homeschool, faith, and save some memories for her family. She has 5 kids, a hubby, and some random pets in the care of her kids. What do you find yourself continually praying for? I am non-stop praying for the grace to get through each moment. Let's face it, being a mom of any number of children can be grueling! I'm always asking (begging!) for God to fill me up to overflowing so that His love will just spill over to my children. How does Christ call you to serve - is it prayer/contemplation/acts of service, etc.? St. Frances of Rome said, "A married woman must, when called upon, quit her devotions to God at the altar to find him in her household affairs." The service to my family in household affairs is most definitely where I am called.  

We love what Katrina of Hatch Prints did with the verse from today's readings. Saint Teresa of Calcutta did just this with her life, "Praise the Lord who lifts up the poor." You can download it for your phone and desktop below for free! Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper

After years of downtown driving I have come to the conclusion that no one is comfortable with street corner encounters, usually involving a hand-scribbled note on a cardboard square. I am not. I suspect these individuals are not either—all day they are ignored as they hustle for a glimmer of recognition, of eye contact, of hope. On my way to a friends’ party downtown one evening, I shared my potluck dessert with a man I regularly see. I drove on as the light turned green, half pleased with myself for having stopped, half embarrassed that all I had offered was fudge. His eyes had met mine: Clear, piercing, blue. Just like my daughters’. *** About a week later, I was repeating my bedtime ritual which involves whispering prayers over my girls while they rest . I was marveling at the speed with which my oldest is growing. I stood in amazement at this person that I have walked with and loved for the past four years. I found myself trying to imagine what she might look like when she is older—ten or twelve. My own age, and even how she will age. Suddenly hot tears were streaming down my cheeks as I imagined who would be caring for her when I am not—If the unimaginable happened and she found herself asking for help on a street corner, could anyone really see her with the depth of love that I have—that she deserves? I imagine on some level that this is the universal plea of a parent. *** My mind wandered back to the man with whom I had shared dessert on the corner of Broadway and Park—the one who’s eyes shined like my daughter’s. Mustn’t this be the plea of his parents, too? That the world might stop and see him for the man he was created to be? That it might be kind? That it would be safe? And, if circumstances called for it, that the world would be generous? And there it is—simultaneously my answer, my challenge & my prayer: To look with eyes of love that I might see with the eyes of love. I cannot drive past that corner any longer without thinking of this man’s family—which forces me to recognize him as a son. He is to be looked at and cared for as a beloved child in the same way I hope for my own children to be. As complex as this is, the Son of God calls us into ‘the muck of human existence’ to bring about the Reign of God on earth. This is the Incarnation. This is family.

Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ. Feel free to share your answers to these questions in on our Instagram post and/or your own Instagram post, tagging #BISsisterhood. Bobbi Rol is full time mom to a teen daughter, three rambunctious little boys and two babies in heaven. She lives on the Monterey Bay with her husband Brian. When she is not dodging light sabers she can be found outside with her family or catching a late night movie. Bobbi writes about family, homemaking, and loving God in the midst of daily life at her blog Revolution of Love. Do you have a special Saint that you feel a strong connection to? How so? When I was younger I had a love and devotion of St. Anne. She was my patron saint and I shared her name. (My middle name.) I prayed to her often, especially when I was looking for a holy spouse and later when I was dealing with fertility problems. However, another saint has made her way into my heart these last few years -- St. Martha. The busyness of motherhood and my natural tendencies helps me to identify with Martha who was busy and worried about many things. I find myself turning to her often for guidance. Which virtue do you find yourself working on the most throughout your day? Patience and acceptance of God's will. Throughout the day there are numerous times when things don't go the way I want them to go -- someone spills juice all over the table, the washing machine breaks down, a driver cuts me off on the road or a project deadline is moved up. There is always something. My first instinct is the flare up and get mad or frustrated. I am trying to learn how to calm down, be patient and accept that little crosses are a part of life. More importantly, God uses these crosses to help me grow in virtue and they can be prayer opportunities to "offer it up" for the special intentions of loved ones and the world at large. What part of your walk with Christ is the biggest struggle? Coming back to St. Martha, it is spending quiet time with God. It is much easier for me to serve and keep busy. It is hard for me to turn off the noise and sit at Jesus' feet and listen. I've got to remember that the quiet time is what should be powering my action and it must come first. And when life is too busy for quiet, then I have to be creative and make time. Where there's a will, there's a way. What keeps you Catholic? God's mercy. No matter how far I stray, God's mercy is always there beckoning me back to Him. That in turn leads me to Confession and the Eucharist, which restore my heart and power my spirit. Do you have a motto / quote / saying you live by? I've always loved the quote from St. Catherine, "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire." I think we sometimes wish we could be more like someone else, maybe more outgoing or more quiet and contemplative then we'd be holier or able to share God's word better. But God made each of us unique with our own talents and strengths. We don't need to change our personality or who we are to love God and bring others to Him. We just need to fine tune what's already in us and let God use our uniqueness to bring his love to others. Sometimes you'll find that you are doing things you never imagined but God knew it was always in you. You just needed his grace to bring it out. What do you find yourself continually praying for? These four intentions are always on my heart. For peace in the world and in the hearts of men. For victims of abuse and those who are alone, afraid, and depressed. For all pregnant moms, those trying to get pregnant, those who have lost their babies and for moms contemplating an abortion. For the souls in purgatory, especially those most forgotten. Save Save Save

So absolutely in love with this week's wallpaper by Lauren of When Beauty Met Truth! From today's psalms: "I will rise and go to my father." You can download it for your phone and desktop below! Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper

Again and again. Family – that messy, intimate, painful, glorious creation. It’s the place where the Divine takes ingredients from two separate families, blends them together, and observes the results. I imagine God probably sighed a lot during those first years of our marriage. I know I did. After all, He took two people who had never lived under the same roof, who each had a loving family, full of their own traditions, idiosyncrasies, and expectations. It was a steep learning curve. The dishes go on the right side of the sink, people. A little while later, God reached down and stirred the pot with His pinky finger, tasted it, and added Child the First. In 2011, Child the Second arrived, and shortly after his advent, Child the Third. A few years ago, something started bugging me. One of my kids would wrong one of her siblings, and under great duress, apologize. The response was a theatrically sighed, “It’s okay.” So we stopped forcing our kids to apologize to each other, and we stopped making the injured party immediately forgive the transgressor. Instead, the one who screwed up had to think about why the other person was upset and consider her own reaction in a similar situation. The result (usually) was a sincere apology. When the wronged party hears the apology, he doesn’t have to forgive, but he does need to accept that the apology was genuine and consider how God forgives us. When they're ready to forgive, they say, "I forgive you." They think together about a way to make it right, not as a condition of forgiveness, but as a way of restoring the relationship. This seems laborious at times, but the result is -- I hope -- a lesson in how injured relationships are healed by repentance and forgiveness. (NB: This is a work in progress. In the middle of Target, I’ll still settle for a sullen “Sorry”/”S’okay”.) In my pre-Catholic days, I made a retreat that included an afternoon session for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Fr. Alvaro listened as I expressed my skepticism of this whole “confession thing”, but I confessed my sins. I listened as Fr. Alvaro showered God’s boundless forgiveness on me. In all my years at church, no one had ever said to me “Your sins are forgiven.” In that moment, I realized the importance of hearing that phrase. It didn’t pretend my foul-ups didn’t happen. It didn’t mean I could escape the natural consequences of my sin. It did mean that God wanted our relationship restored. Again and again and again. This is marriage and family and friendship. Our family is a riot of ruined science projects and torn artwork and late dinners and tender feelings. We hurt each other again and again and again. We apologize again and again and again. We forgive again and again and again. God restores our family again and again and again. Tiff is a homeschooling mama of three, the wife of the best man she’s ever known, a writer, a milliner, and occasionally an attorney. She loves her current home of Kentucky, where fine bourbon and very large hats are in plentiful supply.

Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ. Feel free to share your answers to these questions in on our Instagram post and/or your own Instagram post, tagging #BISsisterhood. Beth Davis is a lover of Jesus, an aunt to five beautiful humans, and a full time youth minister in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is passionate about winning the hearts of young people for Jesus through discipleship. Be sure to ask her about the time she met Pope Francis. What is your favorite religious text or book? He Leadeth Me by Fr. Walter Ciszek, the spiritual memoir of a priest who was imprisoned for 23 years in a Soviet work camp. Do you have a special Saint that you feel a strong connection to? How so? Every year I adopt a patron saint to accompany me, thanks to Jennifer Fulwiler's Saint's Name Generator. I spend the year asking for my saint's intercession and reading about their life, sometimes in their own words. St. Maximilian Kolbe was a humble (and humbling!) witness of love, patience and forgiveness, ultimately volunteering to die in the place of another inmate at Auschwitz. I now consider him to be my heavenly go-to-guy. Which virtue do you find yourself working on the most throughout your day? Charity. Along with a patron saint, I also ask God for a word to serve as my theme for the year. 2016 is the year of Love and I'm (slowly) coming to understand that it all boils down to charity. At that heart of all of my sins or struggles is a need for sincere love: of others, myself and Him. What keeps you Catholic? The Eucharist. Do you have a motto / quote / saying you live by? Currently favoring, "Pray, hope and don't worry." (Padre Pio) What do you find yourself continually praying for? I'd like to say my family or ministry, a particular virtue or something valiant like world peace, but honestly? My husband, wherever he is! How does Christ call you to serve - is it prayer/contemplation/acts of service, etc.? My daily prayer. Everything flows from that.

Today's psalms give us such a beautiful message and Tara of Frame Worthy Designs made it even more beautiful for us. "Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days." You can download it below for your phone or desktop for free! Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper

I have this friend. This friend is a blogger. A successful blogger. She creates custom tote bags that are bought by the rich and fabulous. Her studio is obviously the staging area for Pottery Barn. Her house is immaculate and welcoming. Her husband still smooches her in the kitchen while he shakes cocktails and fixes dinner. Her twin boys are cute, mischievous, and bright. She has thousands of followers on Instagram. She is successful in all the ways that matter in our world today. More than that, she is successful in all the ways that matter to God. She is generous, kind, gentle, full of love and laughter. She’s extraordinary. I, on the other hand, remained in my pajamas all day yesterday. My house is pretty tidy at the moment, but let’s be honest, that’s a total fluke. My kids subsist on graham crackers, raisins, and peanut butter. My business is run out of our dining room/classroom/studio that is smaller than many closets. It is constant chaos. I pay no attention to my “social media presence” beyond cracking wise about my kids on Facebook. My life often feels extra ordinary. This last year, Christ has been calling me to revel in the ordinariness of my days. He constantly reminds me that the size of my laundry piles is not inversely proportionate to His love for me. That a spotless kitchen is not an accurate measure of my worth. He reminds me that although these days, this “Ordinary Time”, often feels like marking time between Easter and Advent, it’s this Ordinary Time that makes up the very stuff of our lives. The maintenance, the play, the work - they are the main event. Ordinary. It is anything but ordinary. We are anything but ordinary. During this time, we balance marriages, children, friends, Formation classes where we are expected to create Botticelli’s “Adoration of the Magi” in macaroni. You’ve seen that Hindu statue with the fifty pairs of arms? I’ve occasionally wondered why God didn’t see fit to give us a few extra pairs, but as I’m writing this, it occurs to me that He’s given us something even more miraculous. He’s given us each other. Extra arms. Extra eyes. Extra hearts. Extraordinary.   Tiff is a homeschooling mama of three, the wife of the best man she's ever known, a writer, a milliner, and occasionally an attorney. She loves her current home of Kentucky, where fine bourbon and very large hats are in plentiful supply.

Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ. Feel free to share your answers to these questions in on our Instagram post and/or your own Instagram post, tagging #BISsisterhood. Mary Catherine Craige is a lover of creativity and learning new things. When she is not guiding the development of young children through Montessori methods, you can find her behind her harp, taking an art class, or writing silly poems. What is your favorite religious text or book? Jacques Phillippe is one of my favorite spiritual writers. His book on St Therese, The Way of Trust and Love, is fantastic. Interior Freedom is his classic, and Time for God is also amazing as well as his books on the Holy Spirit and peace. His writing has changed my prayer life and has greatly deepened my interior relationship with God. Do you have a motto / quote / saying you live by? "The Lord will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength. You shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails." (Is.58:11) I want my life to be like this. I want to live my life like this. The promise and imagery of this Scripture is so powerful to me. To trust in a God who will always guide me and give me everything and more than I need, even in the parched land! The promise of God renewing my strength and making me into a beautiful garden, an overflowing spring (hopefully a reservoir of water and life for others as well), I want to live my life like that. What do you find yourself continually praying for? Healing. Most of my novenas and other intentions are usually offered for the healing and conversion of me and my family. I am frequently asking God for physical, mental/emotional or spiritual healing for myself, my family, and friends. My other most common novena and sacrifice intention is for my future husband (and the future spouses of my siblings and friends). And for trust and joy and mercy! I frequently repeat "Jesus I trust in you" over and over throughout the day. I want it to become the prayer of my heart.

I love this week's readings because it reminds us that life is indeed difficult, but it is all for our greater good! The things that are hard now are preparing us for something in the future and all leading us on the path to God. Don't lose heart! Strengthen your drooping knees and weak hands! What hope! You can download this free wallpaper for your phone and desktop designed by Erica of Be A Heart. Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper

SO, it's the middle of the week and this wallpaper is just getting up - it's been that kind of week! BUT what a beautiful reminder as we finish out the week. Katrina of Hatch Prints painted this free wallpaper for us from last weekend's readings. You can download it below for your phone and desktop! Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper

Learn how Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross can inspire us to incorporate love, trust, and patience in our daily lives, even when life grows mundane.

Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ. Feel free to share your answers to these questions in on our Instagram post and/or your own Instagram post, tagging #BISsisterhood. Heather Renshaw is a writer + speaker on a mission from God with her family of 7 in the Pacific NW. She loves singing, Adoration, all things Italy, and quality time with her husband. Heather blogs at Real Catholic Mom and co-hosts The Visitation Project on Catholic radio. Are you a convert to Catholicism? How did that happen? I was baptized as an infant, stopped going to Mass in college, and reverted in my mid-20s. What is your favorite religious text or book? Ooh. Tough one! This is like asking me to choose my favorite flower! I absolutely love Fr. Michael Gaitley's Consoling the Heart of Jesus, and Fr. Jacques Philippe's Searching for and Maintaining Peace. I often return to several C.S. Lewis titles, too. But honestly, I have a bookshelf full of books that I haven't read yet and look forward to devouring soon; I'm a bit of a bibliophile. Do you have a special Saint that you feel a strong connection to? How so? Although she isn't a saint (yet), I really love and admire Mother Mary Angelica of recent memory, God rest her soul. Mother Angelica had a fierce faith and amazing moxie and some truly supernatural trust in Jesus. I'm really excited to see if and when her cause for canonization is initiated by the Church. Which virtue do you find yourself working on the most throughout your day? I often pray for the perseverance to do what I'm supposed to do despite the challenges life throws my way. Sometimes these challenges are of my own making and sometimes they come from external sources; regardless, I try to trust that God will give me the grace I need to keep going. What keeps you Catholic? Jesus Christ keeps me Catholic - plain and simple. The Catholic Church is the Church Christ Himself started and we have the Eucharist. I'm sorry I thought I could ever leave. Do you have a motto / quote / saying you live by? Jesus, I trust in You. Always and forever. What do you find yourself continually praying for? I often pray for peace and conversion - in my heart, in my family, and in the world.  

Mother Teresa's quotes are gold. She famously once said, "I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts there can be no more pain, and only love." I read this quote for the first time the evening I departed for Kolkata, India to serve with the Missionaries of Charity a little over a year ago. Together, that trip and this quote slowly ignited a spark in my soul: a yearning to discover how to truly love. And not just love like a Nicholas Sparks movie, but love like Mother Teresa in her burning desire to win souls and spread joy. Love Until It Hurts Recently, I read a similar quote from Mother Teresa, saying, “Give! Give the love we have all received to those around you. Give until it hurts, because real love hurts. That is why you must love until it hurts. You must love with your time, your hands, and your hearts.” Real love hurts. Even now, reading this aloud puts a bitter taste in my mouth. Many of us know from personal experience that love can lead to pain, whether it be breakups, let downs, or rejections. However, we attribute this pain to something other than love. We stop loving when we are giving more than we are receiving. We equate feelings of happiness with love, and feelings of hurt with hatred. However, according to Mother Teresa, all the pain, let downs, and rejections we’ve felt by others are actually our first invitation to truly love them. Choosing Love Mother Teresa equated all of her success to one thing: Love. She loved deeply, wholly, and unconditionally. She placed every ounce of her trust in God. She poured her love upon strangers. Many of us idolize Mother, as we wish we had the capacity to aimlessly and endlessly love. However, Mother Teresa is saintly not because she effortlessly loved everyone, but because she chose to love, even in times it caused her hurt. This conscious choice to unconditionally love and trust in God made an earth-shattering and unforgettable impact on this world. Love Is Sacrifice While not all of us are called to serve to poor on the streets of Kolkata, we are all called to love in this manner. We are all called to, “love until it hurts” because true love is dying for another. True love is giving heart, mind, and body so that another soul may use you as a stepping ladder to see God more fully. Love is looking at a person’s deepest most faults, instabilities, and, proclaiming that this person, if only but a stranger, is worth laying down your life for. Love is sacrifice, and love requires vulnerability. These are two of the hardest attributes a person can simultaneously attain; it is a recipe for pain. Because we are imperfect in nature, love assures hurt. But love is the only force of nature powerful enough to bring another soul to God, and that gift alone should be worth any amount of agony. Mother Teresa is extraordinary, simply because she chose to unreservedly love each and every person she encountered, regardless of the pain, sadness or despair she felt. Love More Mother Teresa got it right: Real love hurts. However, this pain is temporary, and the love that is left is everlasting. If you love and are hurt, love more. If you love more and are hurt more, love even more. Fill the world with your love. Love so deeply, so widely, and so purely, that there simply is no room in your heart for hurt. A Study on the Works of Mercy Misericordia Walk with the saints, including Saint Teresa of Calcutta, and discover practical ways to live the Works of Mercy. Explore Misericordia → Britt is in her final year as an undergrad student at Ave Maria University in sunny Southwest FL. She is a mother to Christopher 3. She is devoted to living intentionally and loving unconditionally.

Today we are challenged to look at our most treasured parts of our life. You can download this wallpaper by the amazing Lauren of When Beauty Met Truth for free below! Phone wallpaper Desktop wallpaper