Ora et Labora

My recent days have been summed up with this simple, yet profound Latin verse given to us by the Rule of St. Benedict. For those Latin deficient, it means literally "prayer and work." For the monks it is their life; for me it is slowly becoming my Truth. We pray together for almost three hours daily, which for me is a serious challenge in faith because my prayer life has well...sucked. I am being challenged in faith like never before, here amongst brilliant young men and women, and holy instructors, I am used to being the one 'in the know.' We have prayed formally together (all FOCUS staff) on several occasions where I had no idea what was being prayed (it was a prayer of the Church of some sort), whereas everyone else followed along.

Have you ever met someone who challenged you? Have you ever met someone or heard someone speak where you thought to yourself, "wow...that guy/girl has fought hard, and I want to learn how to be a Catholic/Christian/father/mother from them?"

Today Curtis Martin, the president of FOCUS spoke to the Team Directors during training. He has labored long and hard to make FOCUS what it is today, named by the USCCB as the single greatest supplier of seminarians of any apostolate in America, he has worked, prayed, and devoted the last ten years to watering and plating. However, in his humility, he is not leading every class, in fact he isn't even at training all summer. He allows those he and his team have built up to lead the new missionaries, as well as teachers and professors from universities throughout America. His talk wasn't just inspiring, it was necessarily difficult. He spoke about the reality of what happens in our lives when Christ's light shines brightly on the Truth of what we are in Him, which is completely messed up, broken, and battered. And yet He, in His INFINITE mercy chose to love us, WE who are broken sinners.

I pray the God who shines His divine Face on you who is reading this, continues to reveal your imperfections so as to lead you closer to Him. He has been working over time on me, and while the fire can burn, it is that which purifies us to become that which will lead others to Him. And if that is not our purpose and goal as Christians, what good do we serve the Kingdom? This gift of faith will wilt and die if it is not shared.

Ora et Labora.

Fun at the Park

It turns out that I am extremely allergic to something in the air here in Atchison, Kansas. It's not too bad if I stay indoors, but yesterday we spent an extraordinary amount of time outside. Charlie's afternoon session was cancelled, so we took the girls over to the playground at the Catholic school across the street. By the time we got in the car I couldn't stop sneezing and my eyes were swollen. Not pretty! Even though I brought our WHOLE first aid/medicine kit, all that I had available to take was some Children's Benadryl. I am extremely embarrassed to share that it just knocked me out!!! Charlie was home during most of the time that I was sleeping, but he had to leave at some point and all I remember after that was Felicity climbing up on the bed with me, shoving my rosary bracelet in my mouth and saying, "Body of Christ!" LOL! All this daily mass has obviously affected her....it's always interesting to me that she picks up on things that I didn't even know she was paying attention to!

On that note, here are some pictures from the last couple of days!

Gabrielle wanted to play baseball with her Daddy! We eventually had to leave because they guys couldn't play for fear of hurting her... (ETA: After we left, the men had a "Home Run Derby," which Charlie won -he wouldn't tell you that though! ;-) yay!)
Ok, this is something only little girls would do! It was raining out, so we were sitting on our porch watching the storm. The girls were playing in little puddles with sticks pretending to put "makeup" on each other!!!!! hehe

Training and the Glory of God

Hello everyone who reads this! If you are an Andrea reader, my name is Charlie and I am the goof who is lucky enough to be Andrea's husband! For everyone else who I already have the joy of knowing, HELLO!

The last two weeks have been trying on me as a man, husband, father, and servant of God. My wife is pregnant (duh) and there couldn't be a worse time to uproot a family than when the mother hen is nesting! But, I married an amazing servant and she has been beautiful throughout this whole process.

We have had to put our entire trust in God's mercy, and God's grace for the last two weeks. My last paycheck from Nationwide was a mere $750, which $725 of that was already allocated for bills and payments. So we put our trust in the Lord, and sold almost everything we had, gave it to Penske (Man we ALMOST fulfilled Mark 10:21 And Jesus looking on him, loved him, and said to him: One thing is wanting unto thee: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me). It feels good to get rid of many of those earhtly possessions (though I miss my Jeep!), and after all of those last minute sales we still had a few dollars left over to eat after we paid for the moving truck and the storage shed! GOD IS GOOD!

Training so far has been exactly what I needed. I feel like God is really wanting to father me right now, through other men and experiences. My regional director, Sean Dalton, who is a holy man speaks about the strength and resolve Christian men must have, and I think there might be a lot of opportunities for growth within my humble area of Greeley.

Dr. Jonathan Reyes has been speaking about Christian Community and the beauty of vulnerability and authentic Christian friendship and it spoke directly to the need I have been feeling lately. I would venture to say that we all have this need, maybe to varying degrees, but that God placed that need in us specifically for us to join together against the enemy, and to affirm and correct us in our walk with Christ.

I am excited to continue to soak in the beauty of our faith, and be strengthened for the road ahead, which is unknown and a bit intimidating for me. But as God chose me, I seek not to be small but to serve as He has called me to. Please pray for our family, that we may take the next month to grow in faith, hope, and love, and that we may find within FOCUS authentic Christian community that seeks the good of its brothers and sisters!

For all of you reading this I am praying for you and your families. I encourage you to add this to your feeds (it tells you every time we have updated the BLOG) (on the new internet explorer) click on the orange button next to the home tab at the top of the web page, and then click "add to RSS". Then the new page just click on "add to feeds" and every time you open IE click on the star, and then click feeds, and if our blog is bold print that means there is a new 'feed' or blog entry, and you can visit our site again.

Dominus Vobiscum

Recommended Reading

Today Charlie got a recommended reading list from Focus. I am going to print it out in just a few minutes because there are TON of great sounding books that I want to look at! There are a bunch that I have read and I know I have several more of them in boxes in Greeley, Colorado and will look forward to busting them out after we move in! For now, I have ONE sitting on my desk here in Atchison that I have been meaning to read. Once I get through it, surely I will be able to find a few others, we are on a Catholic campus after all!

Anyway, I thought maybe some others might be interested to see what is reccomended, so here is the list:
Recommended Resources (books) Last updated March 2007

Internet Resources:
http://www.catholic.com/
http://www.newadvent.org/
http://www.ewtn.com
http://www.vatican.va/
http://www.faithfulchristians.org/
http://www.cuf.org/

The following is a list of books that have been recommended by FOCUS staff. If you are looking for a book to read either in relation to training or for your own personal growth, this is a great place to look. Some of the following books have a summary of content located at the end of this reading list.

Some of the books indicated below have non-Catholic authors. Please note that some of what they write may conflict with the teaching of the Catholic Church.


Prayer
The Liturgy of the Hours with Office of Readings
Ascent of Mount Carmel / St. John of the Cross
Augustine on Prayer / Thomas Hand, OSA
Christian Perfection and Contemplation: According to St. Thomas Aquinas and St. John of the Cross/ Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
Christian Spirituality in the Catholic Tradition / Jordan Aumann
Compendium of Spirituality / Emeterio De Cea, OP (ed.)
Conversation with Christ / Peter Thomas Rohrbach
Difficulties in Mental Prayer / Eugene Boylan
Discernment of Spirits: The Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living/ Timothy Gallagher
Fire Within / Fr. Thomas Dubay
Interior Castle / St. Teresa of Avila
Introduction to Spirituality / Louis Bouyer
Prayer for Beginners / Peter Kreeft
Prayer: Living with God / Simon Tugwell, OP
Prayer Primer: Igniting a Fire Within / Fr. Thomas Dubay
Spiritual Exercises / St. Ignatius Loyola
Spiritual Passages / Fr. Benedict Groeschel


Spiritual Reading
A Simple Path / Mother Teresa
Abandonment to Divine Providence / Jean Pierre de Caussade
The Autobiography of St. Theresa of Avila / St. Theresa of Avila
The Cloud of Unknowing / William Johnston (ed.)
Conferences / John Cassian
Confessions / St. Augustine
The Conversion of St. Augustine / Romano Guardini
The Dialogue / St. Catherine of Siena
The Divine Favors Granted to St. Joseph / Pere Binet
Divine Mercy in My Soul: The Diary of St. Faustina Kowalska / St. Faustina
The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ / Blessed Anne Catherine Emerich
The Four Loves / C.S. Lewis (non-Catholic)
The Friendship of Christ / Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson
The Genesee Diary / Henry Nouwen
Happy Are You Poor / Fr. Thomas Dubay
He and I / Gabrielle Bossis
He Leadeth Me / Walter Cixzek
The Hidden Power of Kindness / Fr. Lowrence G. Lovasik
I Believe in Love / Jean du Coeur de Jésus D'Elbée
Imitation of Christ / Thomas A. Kempis
An Introduction to the Devout Life / St. Francis de Sales
Journal of a Soul / Pope John XXIII
Journey Towards Easter / Joseph Ratzinger
The Ladder of Divine Ascent / St. John Climacus
The Life of Christ / Fulton Sheen
The Little Flowers of Saint Francis / Anonymous
My Daily Bread / Anthony Paone, S.J.
On the Holy Spirit / St. Basil
On the Beatitudes/Commentary on the Our Father / St. Gregory of Nyssa
Opening to God / Thomas Green
The Passion and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ/ Archbishop Alban Goodier
Prayers of Meditations of St. Anselm / St. Anselm
The Prison Meditations of Alfred Delp / Alfred Delp
The Reed of God / Carryl Houselander
Rosary Meditations from Mother Teresa of Calcutta: Loving Jesus with the Heart of Mary / Published by Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament
The Rosary of Our Lady / Romano Guardini
Rule of St. Benedict (Introduction to Humility) / St. Benedict
The Sacrament of the Present Moment / Jean Pierre de Caussade
The Sanctifier / Luis Martinez
Screwtape Letters / C.S. Lewis (non-Catholic)
Searching for and Maintaining Peace/ Fr. Jacques Philippe
The Secret of the Rosary / St. Louis de Montfort
Seek That Which is Above / Joseph Ratzinger
Silent Pilgrimage to God / Charles de Foucald
Something Beautiful for God / Malcom Muggeridge
The Soul of the Apostolate / Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard
The Soul’s Journey to God / St. Bonaventure
The Stairway of Perfection / Walter Hilton
Story of a Soul / St. Therese of Lisieux
This Tremendous Lover / Dom Eugene Boylan
Transformation in Christ / Dietrich von Hildebrand
True Devotion to Mary / St. Louis de Montfort
The Way of Perfection / St. Theresa of Avila
Weeds Among the Wheat / Thomas Green, S.J.
When the Well Runs Dry / Thomas Green, S.J.
A Woman Clothed With the Sun / John Delaney
The World’s First Love/ Fulton Sheen


Liturgy/Eucharist
Adoration / David Guernsey
The Hidden Manna: A Theology of the Eucharist / Fr. James O’Connor
In the Presence of Our Lord: The History, Psychology, and Spirituality of Eucharistic Devotion / Fr. Benedict Groeschel and James Monti
The Lamb’s Supper / Scott Hahn
Mass Confusion / James Akin
A New Song for the Lord / Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
Preparing Yourself for Mass (previously titled: Meditations before Mass) / Romano Guardini
Sacrosanctum Concilium / Vatican II
The Spirit of the Liturgy / Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
St. Cyril of Jerusalem on the Sacraments / (St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press)


Church Teaching/Doctrine
Catechism of the Catholic Church
50 Questions on the Natural Law: What it is and Why We Need It (revised) / Charles Rice
The Aquinas Catechism / St. Thomas Aquinas
Documents of Vatican II (begin with four major Constitutions)
Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Heaven but Never Dreamed of Asking / Peter Kreeft
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma / Ludwig Ott
The Truth of Catholicism: Inside the Essential Teachings and Controversies of the Church Today / George Weigel


History
A Compact History of the Catholic Church / Alan Schreck
Characters of the Reformation / Hilaire Belloc
Christ the King-Lord of History: A Catholic World History from Ancient to Modern Times / Anne Carroll
The Everlasting Man / G. K. Chesterton
Great Heresies / Hilaire Belloc
History of Christendom Series (Volumes I – V) / Warren Carroll
How the Reformation Happened / Hilaire Belloc
The Popular History of the Catholic Church/ Philip Hughes
The Spirit and Forms of Protestantism / Fr. Louis Bouyer
Triumph: The Power and the Glory of the Catholic Church: A 2,000-Year History / H. W. Crocker III
The Courage to be Catholic/ George Weigel


People/Saints
John Henry Newman / C. S. Dessain
King’s Good Servant, but God’s First: the Life and Writings of St. Thomas More/ James Monti
The Life of Bishop Neumann / Thomas Langan
The Life of Saint Anthony / St. Athanasius
A Man for Others, St. Maximilian Kolbe/
The Martyrdom of Edmund Campion / Evelyn Waugh
Padre Pio, the Stigmatist / Rev. Charles Carty
Saint Francis of Assisi / G. K. Chesterton
Saint Francis of Assisi / Johannes Jorgensen
Saint John Vianney, Cure D’Ars / Abbe Francis Toch
Saint Thomas Aquinas, The Dumb Ox / G.K. Chesterton
Treasure in Clay: Autobiography of Fulton Sheen


Philosophy
The Evidential Power of Beauty / Fr. Thomas Dubay
Friendship: The Art of Happiness / John Cuddeback
Fundamentals of the Faith / Peter Kreeft
The Sources of Christian Ethics/ Servais Pinckaers


Theology
Spiritual Theology / Jordan Aumann
Theology and Sanity / Frank Sheed
Theology for Beginners / Frank Sheed


Marriage/Family
Catholic Sexual Ethics/ Ronald Lawler, Joseph M. Boyle, and William E. May
Casti Conubii / Pope Pius XI
Familiaris Consortio / Pope John Paul II
First Comes Love: Finding Your Family in the Church and the Trinity / Scott Hahn
Good News About Sex and Marriage / Christopher West
Humanae Vitae / Pope Paul VI
Love is a Decision / Gary Smalley (non-Catholic) and John Trent (non-Catholic)
Three to get Married / Archbishop Fulton Sheen
What Wives Wish their Husbands Knew about Women / James Dobson (non-Catholic)


Priesthood
Letters to My Brother Priests / Pope John Paul II
On the Priesthood / St. John Chrysostom
The Priest in Union with Christ/ Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
The Priest is not His Own/ Archbishop Fulton Sheen


Evangelization and Discipleship
Becoming a Contagious Christian / Bill Hybels (non-Catholic)
Boys to Men / Curtis Martin and Tim Gray
Catechesi Tradendae/ Pope John Paul II
The Cost of Discipleship / Dietrich Bonhoefer (non-Catholic)
Crossing the Threshold of Hope / Pope John Paul II
Evangelii Nuntiandi / Pope Paul VI
General Directory of Catechesis/ Vatican
Heart of Virtue / Donald DeMarco
Journey of Desire / John Eldredge (non-Catholic)
The Master Plan of Evangelism / Robert Coleman (non-Catholic)
Novo Millenio Ineunte / Pope John Paul II
Redemptoris Missio / Pope John Paul II
The Sacred Romance / Brent Curtis (non-Catholic) and John Eldredge (non-Catholic)
Wild at Heart / John Eldredge (non-Catholic)


Apologetics / Conversion
Apologia Pro Vita Sua / John Henry Newman
Beginning Apologetics (Series) / San Juan Catholic Seminars
Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic / David B. Currie
By What Authority: An Evangelical Discovers Catholic Tradition / Mark Shea
The Case for Christ / Lee Strobel (non-Catholic)
The Catholic Church and the Bible / Fr. Peter Stravinskas
Catholic for a Reason (Volumes I – III) / Edited by Leon Suprenant
Catholicism and Fundamentalism / Karl Keating
Christianity for Modern Pagans / Pascal Pensees – edited and with an introduction by Peter Kreeft
Confessions of a Convert / Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson
Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine / John Cardinal Newman
Faith Facts (entire collection) / Catholics United for the Faith
Faith of the Early Fathers (Volumes I – III) / William A. Jurgens
The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense / Suzette Haden Elgin
Handbook of Christian Apologetics: Hundreds of Answers to Crucial Questions / Peter Kreeft
How to Win an Argument / Michael Gilbert
Mere Christianity / C.S. Lewis (non-Catholic)
New Evidence that Demands A Verdict / Josh McDowell (non-Catholic)
Nostra Aetate / Pope Paul VI
Orthodoxy / G.K. Chesterton
The Problem of Pain / C.S. Lewis (non-Catholic)
Radio Replies (Volumes I – III) / Fr. Rumble and Fr. Carty
A Rocking Horse Catholic / Caryll Houselander
Rome Sweet Home / Scott and Kimberly Hahn
Search and Rescue / Patrick Mardid
Snakebite Letters / Peter Kreeft
The Spirit of Catholicism / Karl Adam
Surprised by Truth: 11 Converts Give the Biblical and Historical Reasons for Becoming Catholic / Patrick Madrid
Unitatis Redintegratio / Pope Paul VI
What Went Wrong with the World / G.K. Chesterton
Where We Got the Bible: Our Debt to the Catholic Church / Henry Graham


Leadership
*These works don’t focus on Christian doctrine, and therefore we have not indicated non-Catholic authors.
Beyond Success: The 15 Secrets to Effective Leadership and Life Based on Legendary Coach John Wooden's Pyramid of Success / Brian D. Biro and John R. Wooden
Courageous Leadership/ Bill Hybels
E Myth/ Michael E. Gerber
Five Dysfunctions of a Team/ Patrick Lencioni
The Greatest Salesman in the World / Og Mandino
Gung Ho! Turn On the People in Any Organization / Ken Blanchard
Leading With the Heart: Coach K's Successful Strategies for Basketball, Business, and Life / Mike Krzyzewski
One Minute Manager / Kenneth H. Blanchard
Please Understand Me II / David Keirsey
Principle Centered Leadership / Stephen Covey
Servant Leadership / Robert Greenleaf
Seven Habits for Highly Effective People / Stephen Covey


Scripture
The Holy Bible / God
The Dictionary of Biblical Theology / Xavier Leon Dufour
A Father Who Keeps His Promises / Scott Hahn
First Corinthians/ Richard Hays (non-Catholic)
A Guide to the Bible / Antonio Fuentes
Ignatius Bible Commentary/ Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch
Inside the Bible: An Introduction to Each Book of the Bible / Fr. Kenneth Baker, SJ
Jesus and the Victory of God/ N.T. Wright (non-Catholic)
Mission of the Messiah / Timothy Gray
Mystery of the Kingdom / Edward Sri
Our Father’s Plan Study Guide and Timeline Band / Jeff Cavins
The Sacraments in Scripture / Timothy Gray


Finances
*These works don’t focus on Christian doctrine, and therefore we have not indicated non-Catholic authors.
Avoiding Common Financial Mistakes / Ron Blue
Complete Financial Guide for Young Couples / Larry Burkett
Every Single Cent / Larry Burkett (for singles)
Funding Your Ministry: Whether You're Gifted or Not / Scott Morton
How to Manage Your Money / Larry Burkett
Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money--That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! / Robert T. Kiyosaki, Sharon L. Lechter
Total Money Makeover / Bill Ramsey


Fiction
*These works don’t focus on Christian doctrine, and therefore we have not indicated non-Catholic authors.
Anna Karenina / Leo Tolstory
The Ball and the Cross / G.K. Chesterton
Ben Hur: A Story of the Christ / Lew Wallace
Brideshead Revisited / Evelyn Waugh
The Brothers Karamazov / Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Chronicles of Narnia / C. S. Lewis
Conceived without Sin / Bud MacFarlane Jr.
Count of Monte Cristo / Alexander Drumas
Crime and Punishment / Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Darkness at Noon / Arthur Koestler
Death Comes for the Archbishop / Willa Cather
The Death of Ivan Illych / Leo Tolstoy (short story)
Divine Comedy / Dante
Don Quixote / Cervantes
Father Elijah: An Apocalypse / Michael O'Brien
The Four Quartets / T.S. Eliot
Flatlands: A Romance of Many Dimensions / Edwin A. Abbott
Fr. Brown Mysteries / G.K. Chesterton
Good Country People / Flannery O’Connor (short story)
A Good Man is Hard to Find / Flannery O’Connor (short story)
Ivanhoe / Sir Walter Scott
Joan of Arc / Mark Twain
The Kings Achievement / Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson
Kristen Lavransdatter / Sigrid Unset
Leaf by Niggle / J.R.R. Tolkien
The Lord of the Rings / J.R.R. Tolkien
Master and Man / Leo Tolstoy (short story)
Master of Hestviken / Sigrid Unset
My Antonia / Willa Cather
O Pioneers / Willa Cather
Pierced by a Sword / Bud MacFarlane Jr.
The Power and the Glory / Graham Greene
Pride and Prejudice/ Jane Austen
The Queen’s Tragedy / Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson
Quo Vadis / Henryk Sienkiewics
Revelation / Flannery O’Connor (short story)
The Song of Bernadette / Franz Werfel (non-Catholic)
Space Trilogy / C. S. Lewis
Three Musketeers / Alexander Drumas
War and Peace / Leo Tolstoy
The Wasteland / T.S. Elliot
With Fire and Sword / The Deluge / Fire in the Steppe / Henryk Sienkiewics

Home is Where the Heart Is

We are "home" in Atchison until July 7! It is so nice to be somewhere and know that we are staying a while! Upon our arrival on the Benedictine campus, we were told that instead of on-campus housing (which we thought we would have), we are going to be living in a house just across the street from campus. It is HUGE and more than we could have possibly hoped for! We are all moved in and enjoying the blessing of living out of drawers and closets instead of suitcases and the van! Felicity kept saying that we lived in our van!

While in Greeley, we got cell phones - if you want our numbers and don't have them yet, please email. Also, we can get mail while we're here at training, if you would like to send anything here is the address:
Our Names
FOCUS
Benedictine College
1020 N. 2nd Street
Atchison, KS 66002
This isn't the address at our house, but to those in charge who can get us our mail!

Lastly, I have some pictures of our house here:







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Moving Pictures

The Beginning

Welcome to our new blog! We have created this page so that all of our friends and family can keep up with the goings-on of our family as we embark on our new adventure in Colorado!

On May 1st, the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, Charlie heard from FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students, www.focusonline.org) that they had received his resume and wanted to meet him. Less than a week later, he was heading off to Denver for interviews. He had a wonderful time and came home raving about the organization and the people in it. The following Monday he was offered the job! We had a very short amount of time to pack up our home in Houston and figure out logistics since training in Kansas would be starting for us at the end of the month! In one week, we packed our house, put it in a moving truck, made the 1100 mile drive to Greeley, Colorado, put everything we have in storage, and have started looking for a new place to live here in town.

We have been in Greeley since last night, and a relative of one of Charlie's new co-workers has so kindly and graciously allowed us to stay in her apartment while she is out of town. We spent today looking for a place to live when we come back at the end of the summer, and I think we will find something, although, we could really use prayers on that front! Tomorrow we leave from here to stay in Denver for a night and then we are heading to Atchinson, Kansas for FOCUS training on the Benedictine College campus. We are really looking forward to staying somewhere for longer than a night or two! In fact, training lasts until July 7!

When training is over, we will be returning to Houston where I will have sweet baby Colette! Hopefully that will be a peaceful and uneventful birth so that we can get back to Colorado as soon as possible!

I won't go on and on, but I thought I might share some pictures from the last few weeks of preparation for this huge change we have been called to.