We Are Very Blessed

By Liz Wiskowski

      We are very blessed. Through the efforts of some very dedicated people and our pastor we have a chapel and Eucharistic adoration over 100 hours per week – more than any other church in this area. I have had three couples from out of state tell me that when they came to this area, one of the first things they looked for was a Catholic church with adoration, and they found it at St. Therese. Yet, many of our people don’t realize what we have. Some of you have asked me “what would I do in the chapel for an hour.” Let me give you some suggestions.

    First of all, adore Him and thank Him. Thank Him for our Church, our priests, and the Eucharist. Many areas of the world don’t have priests. No priests means no Eucharist. Thank God for where we live. We don’t have bombs falling on us. We haven’t even had earthquakes, tornados, or floods. Thank Him for your families, your friends, your health, your mind. The list could go on and on, because everything we have is a gift from God. And like us, He likes a thank you.

    We are so full of pride, and think we are so self-sufficient, that we forget to ask Him for help until something drastic happens. We have to humble ourselves, and tell Him what is bothering us. He knows our very thoughts, our every emotion, and no problem is too big or too small. Pray for our country, your children and grandchildren, the jobless, the poor, the hungry, the souls in purgatory. Whatever is on your mind, talk it over with Him.

    Another thing you can do in the chapel is pray the rosary. Our Blessed Mother said at Fatima, that we could gain peace in the world by praying the rosary and visiting the Blessed Sacrament. 

    Open up the Bible. Read one passage and think about what God is trying to tell us in that passage.

    Learn to listen. This may take some practice. Try to clear your mind of all worldly thoughts, and concentrate on just you with Jesus. God will give you answers, not with a loud voice from heaven, but He will quietly enter your heart and soul, and you will find solutions, and you will receive the strength and fortitude to bear the things you can’t change. You will receive many graces, and you will leave the chapel feeling at peace. Many people have told me that when they miss their hour, their whole week doesn’t go as well.

    Most adorers wouldn’t think of missing their hour, but sometimes things are unavoidable-illness, job changes, shift changes, etc. This leaves us with some open hours. The most difficult are between midnight and 6 am. I appeal to you who are retired and don’t have to get up in the morning to consider these hours. Those of us who are senior citizens have much to offer including our aches and pains.

    If you can help out, put your name and phone number in the book I have in the back of church or call me at 359-2651.

    Thank you for reading and remember, God gave us 168 hours every week, and as Jesus said to his apostles, “Could you not watch with me one hour?”