Pray for Marriages (End of Life Challenges)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

We have prayed for marriages at many stages: engaged couples, newlyweds, new parents, and empty-nesters but I am not sure we have ever prayed for those walking the end of life with their spouse. What a lonely and devastating journey that must be!

After years of growing together, having a family, raising children, and getting reacquainted and readjusted as their home empties, there comes a time when the health of one takes a downturn. It may be early in the marriage, or later, but either way, their life has changed. Maybe dementia creeped in.  Maybe there was an injury/accident that caused a disability. Or still yet, a disease has taken root. Sometimes there are supportive family members around to share the responsibilities. Other times one walks alone. 

Lord, we bring before you those who feel the burden of being a caregiver for a spouse. Whether it is a privileged joy to be present or not, it still bears a heavy weight. We ask you, Lord, to accompany the caregiving spouse in a very powerful way. Teach them how to love in sickness and in health. Show them how you carried them during their trials, so that they may imitate your love, and trust in your strength. And for those caregivers and family supporters struggling the most, give them a double portion of your grace.

 “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Lord, we trust in your love and care. Drown these caregiving spouses and their caregiving family members in your grace, so that love comes easily, their caring and comforting touch is but an extension of you, and no burden feels too heavy.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Your prayers uplift the weary. Pray without ceasing! Pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Mercy and Forgiveness)

Greetings Prayer Warriors, 

We all have family members who have lost their way. It is easy for us to see their flaws and identify what they need to change. Yet, how much more difficult is it for us to look in the mirror and instead do a deep self-examination of where we have lost our way? Maybe we are now on the straight and narrow, but have we looked in the rear view mirror to identify and atone for our past sins? 

The goal is never to self-flagellate for our past sins, but to acknowledge them and bring them before God, for he is the God of mercy. Allow him to show you if perhaps there is someone you need to make amends with or forgive. 

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. Colossians 3:12-13

From resentment or excessive preoccupation with the past. Deliver me, Jesus.*

Conversely, perhaps the person you  most need to forgive is yourself?

Lord, your love goes deeper than my sins and transforms me.* Help me trust in your mercy.

Whatever weighs heavy on you, give it to Jesus. Ask for his healing grace. Only after doing so, place your family before him also, and pray that they too will be drawn to his mercy and forgiveness. 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13

May the Lord grant you and your family his peace!

Peace, Joy, and Love, 

Janet

Offer some mercy and forgiveness. Pass it on!

*From the Litany of Trust

Pray for Marriages (Embracing the Cross)

Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Life is filled with crosses, and throughout the course of marriage, we are sometimes given individual or shared crosses.  Ideally, spouses would support one another in the carrying of their crosses, but what happens when you feel like your spouse is the cross? 

While crosses are difficult they are often the means of our sanctification. Yet, we never are meant to carry them alone, for Jesus is right there with us.  He knows that only through the cross can we bear fruit.  So He challenges us to pick up our cross(es) and follow Him. Perhaps there’s a certain virtue he is hoping to build in you. Could your relationship benefit from showing more patience, kindness, compassion, mercy, gentleness, faithfulness, and so on? You will have the opportunity to be so challenged. 

Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.  Matthew 10:38

Lord, graciously grant each one of us the grace in marriage to carry our crosses. Help us to grow in virtue where we are lacking. But also grant the wisdom to know the difference between a cross ordained by you, versus a cross of abuse. For the former, make us worthy. For the latter, grant them the light to discern, to act, and to seek help. May they feel the comfort of your presence, and the guidance and protection of the angels. Hear our prayer petitions, that you may grant each person exactly what they need to grow in faith, hope, and charity, bearing fruit in their marriage while bearing a witness of love in the world. 

But may I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which* the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatian 6:14

Pray that all may learn to embrace their cross, especially those in marriage.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Persevere in prayer and pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Courage to Be Witnesses)

Greetings Prayer Warriors, 

It’s been a heavy couple of days as we remember the anniversaries of the Charlie Kirk assassination and the 9/11 terrorist attack. In the former, a young and gifted Christian was targeted, leaving behind a young family and many fans inspired by his boldness, tenacity, and faith. In the latter, a nation was rocked while so many families were torn apart and their lives shattered. Subsequently, many still live with traumatic memories. It is a stark reminder that we never know when our time here on earth is up, so we should live it to the fullest, living God’s commandments, and spreading His love. 

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. Matthew 28:19-20

We are commissioned, like the disciples were, to do as much. A great example of trying to live this commission can be seen in Charlie Kirk. When asked, “How do you want to be remembered? Charlie said, “I want to be remembered for courage for my faith.”

Similarly, when we remember 9/11, Christ’s love and power was shown in all those first responders who ran towards the disaster, and all those untold individuals who ran out of the building, in service of helping others out. 

Let us pray for all of God’s family, our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Lord, no matter the trial, no matter the disaster, may we always feel your presence comforting and guiding us. Heal all of our trauma wounds, and may they somehow serve to empower and embolden us to love more, pray more, and serve others. May we bring the face of Christ to those around us, through our actions and words, so that they may experience your love. Transform us and conform us to your will!  Amen.

And finally, may we never forget the Lord’s promise,

And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Have courage and pass it on!

Pray for Families (Caring for the Caregiver)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Most of us have someone struggling with health issues in our family, and usually it is the family members who become the primary caregivers. The worse the sickness, the bigger the toll it takes on the caregiver. This can feel like the intersection of love vs. exhaustion. While most people focus their compassion predominantly on the sick, this week let’s pray for those who assist and care for the sick. You know them as the ones who are always there for others; come whenever needed and rarely complain. They nurture and protect. Their presence is comfort in and of itself. 

But who supports the caregiver?

I turned every way, but there was no one to help; I looked for support but there was none. Sirach 51:7

Lord, you see everyone and everything, and wait for us to turn to you. Before our petitions leave our lips, you answer them. Bring relief into this sickened world, to injured bodies, and to the exhausted souls that take care of them. Give us the strength and courage to get down on our knees and ask for the grace we and others need to humbly serve others. As we meditate on your wounds, may we realize they were received and accepted in service to us. May we show our gratitude by serving others with joy, radiating your love, and leaving your peace.

Draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty power.  

Ephesians 6:10

We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19

You can do all things through Him who strengthens you!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Love by serving, praying, and passing it on!

Pray for Marriages (Reset, Renew, and Try Again)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

The waves of disunity are ever present. The existing culture is formulated to drive apart and separate. We are constantly in front of some sort of screen, wherever we are, no matter what time of day. That is what we are in a relationship with. And if you say that you aren’t, perhaps you are driving yourself or family members here and there and back again, not engaging, but transporting to yet another activity, meeting, or event that keeps you and everyone else busy, but not necessarily engaged.

Ask yourself, during what part of the day are you engaging with your family or  your spouse? I don’t mean hanging out in the same space (room, car, other) but actually engaging? I am certainly not one to point fingers, but to challenge everyone to pause and reassess. Do you carve out/make time for and with your spouse even?

Ask the Lord help you to see how you can improve in this regard.

If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but [also] everyone for those of others.  Philippians 2: 1-4

Keep on praying for marriages! Why? Well, for one… 

The LORD’s acts of mercy are not exhausted, his compassion is not spent; They are renewed each morning—great is your faithfulness! 

Lamentations 3:22-23

Lord, I ask that you send special graces to all those who receive this email, especially those it is passed on to. We are weak, but renewed each day in your love, which provides us the grace to reset, try again, and do better.  Strengthen, fortify, and enrich all marriages, especially those in most need. Amen.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray, and pass it on!

Pray for Families (The Power of Praying Parents)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

There is incredible power in praying parents, but let’s never underestimate the power of a praying mother! We all know such mothers, whose prayers and devotions bring about incredible goodness and change. 

What a lioness was your mother, a lion among lions! She made her lair among young lions, to raise her cubs; One cub she raised up, a young lion he became. Ezekiel 19:2-3

As mothers (and fathers) we need to pray not only for our children and those of our friends and family, but we need to pray for the institution of motherhood itself. Unfortunately, we can no longer presume it is a protective role, as too many children are dying with the consent of the mother and sometimes the father. Let us pray with our whole hearts, that the Lord might shower grace upon this world to minimize the scourge of self-centeredness, self-will, and pride. 

Lord, we are weak; please strengthen us! Give us the courage to speak against the destruction of your children both in and out of the womb. Our silence makes us complicit, so help us to grow in boldness of conviction so that we may speak the truth.  As praying parents, hear out prayers for our children and your children. Answer our prayers so that more may believe!

Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you. Isaiah 49:15

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Your voice needs to be heard! Pray and pass it on! 

Pray for Marriages (It Will Always Bear Fruit)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Whether you noticed or not, it has been some time since I’ve last posted and sent out an email reminder to pray.  Thank you “K” for noticing and calling me out on that.  I had what I will call a Forrest Gump moment.  Anyone who has seen that classic movie knows that Forrest runs and runs for years across the country and one day just says, “I’m pretty tired… I think I’ll go home now.”   That’s the closest I can describe how I felt. 

But that certainly isn’t the note I want to end on.  I am still discerning this blog and next steps and what the Lord has in store for me. I ask that you unceasingly  pray for marriage and family, and I hope that it has become a well ingrained habit in your lives . I am confident your prayers continue to bear much fruit.  You are called, so continue to pray!   

You are my witnesses,  my servant whom I have chosen to know and believe in me and understand that I am he. Isaiah 43:10

 “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. 

Mark 16:15

Lord, I ask that you pour out abundant blessings on marriages, especially those in most need. Bring wisdom, clarity, and renewed love, through each transition and season. Keep Satan at bay, who seeks always to bring ire, quarrels, and a great divide. For you Lord are the Unifier, Peacemaker, and Destroyer of Evil.  Jesus we trust in you!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

The Lord continues to call. Pass it on! 

Pray for Families (The Blessing of Mothers)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

While these posts have been inconsistent as of late, as we approach Mother’s Day, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to dedicate and direct some love and prayers towards moms. 

“The blessing of the LORD be upon you!" Psalm 129:8

Mothers are the heart of the family. They express their love, not just demonstrably, but in so many subtle and silent ways that are rarely noticed. They build cohesion within the family and nurture each member. They sacrifice a good night's sleep as their consciousness remains attentive to any nocturnal cries or whimpers they might hear. Even as children leave home, no phone call goes unanswered, and no problem is too big or little for them to listen to. Moms do  all the emotional heavy lifting and are only as happy as her saddest child. Moms encourage, build up, and ask questions, while also providing advice and even keeping silent when necessary. Mothers give tirelessly to their families, beam with pride as their children move into independent adulthood, and suffer silently when their children appear to not need them anymore. 

Lord, we pray that you would give mothers the grace of endurance, perseverance, and unshakable love, for it is the hardest job in the world but the most important to humanity. Grant them the wisdom to guide their children through the hurdles, setbacks, and roadblocks of life. Gift them with patience and bless them with a tongue that uplifts and comforts, yet is not afraid to mercifully admonish. 

At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain, yet later it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it.  Hebrews 12:11

Bless mothers abundantly, for they reflect your love so beautifully. For those who have left this life, grant them your mercy and love, bringing them into your holy embrace. Thank you, Lord, for these special graces! Amen.

To all the mothers, the unsung heroes, we honor not just for a day,  but for a lifetime. We commit to keeping you in our daily prayers, that you might know our gratitude!.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray and give thanks for mothers, and pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Who Else Will?)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

May blessings of peace and joy be upon you! I pray your Lenten sacrifices produced an abundance of fruit!  

As I spent time in contemplation during Lent, something occurred to me. Of all of the many prayer intentions that come my way, there is one I rarely ever get; a request to pray for someone’s marriage. Yet, no one can doubt the need! Why might it be an unspoken request?

• There is a perceived shame in admitting a relationship is broken
• One is in denial 
• One wants out so they don't care that the union is deteriorating
• One lacks the faith to believe that God can heal it

“I do believe, help my unbelief!” Mark 9:24

Each scenario is in need of prayer, for when marriages dissolve, often families do too.

I know, my God, that you put hearts to the test. 1 Chronicles 29:17

With prayer petitions, let us answer the requests of “Lord help us!” hidden deep within aching hearts. Let us also lift up to God the silent pleas of children suffering the fallout.

Lord, you call many to the married life, to build families which become the foundation of good societies. Yet, we all have so much difficulty letting go of the “I” and becoming the “we”. We love, but resist loving until it hurts. One hopes for a 50-50 partnership, but struggles when the balance shifts. One trusts in You, but wearies of the wait. Lord, hear the desperate pleas, the quiet moaning, the waning hope, the children whimpering. With expectant hearts, we call for a torrential outpouring of your grace, a shoring up of foundations, and an abundance of not just good marriages, but thriving ones. Bring miraculous healings to the most broken marriages. Divine Healer, we trust in your extravagant love and mercy! Amen.

The Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. Romans 8:26

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Save a marriage! Pray and pass it on! 

Pray for Families (The Power of Fasting)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Discouragement in prayer is not at all unusual. How many of you have become frustrated because you have been praying for a particular intention for so long, that it feels like God is ignoring you? How many of you decry the advance of evil in the world, the loss of morality, and its cultural impact on society (and your family)? What can you do?!

“Forty days more and Nineveh shall be overthrown,” The people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. Jonah 3:4-5

Are you willing to respond to today’s evils in the world (and your own personal orbit) like the Ninevites did?

Fasting is a powerful spiritual weapon in our arsenal that we often forget to use. With God’s grace, it has the power to conquer evil, in our lives, in our family, and in the world. Collectively, our fasting can crush the forces of evil.

Thus, it is encouraging that Bishop Strickland is calling all to participate in a Nineveh Fast in reparation for grave sin.  

While I rarely share such things in my blog, I find this call to fasting very timely and  important, especially in these times.

Per the details in this link, this effort will begin on Friday, March 27th, and will continue on the fourth Friday of each month, for the next eight months – for a total of nine days of fasting. *

Please prayerfully consider participating in this, not just for the intentions as listed, but in reparation for the generational sin seen and unseen within your family.

This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” Mark 9:29

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Call upon others to join the Nineveh Fast! Pass it on!

* More information, along with prayers and reminders can be found here.

Pray for Families (It Begins with Us)

Greetings Prayer Warriors, 

We all seek to do good. It is the execution of that good that is difficult!

‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. Mark 12:31

Loving others can be easy when the “other” is sweet, kind, and loving. But if they are cranky, rude, sick, needy, belligerent, lack a filter, or just plain evil, this command becomes challenging.

So let us draw upon the many graces the Lord offers us. First, let’s empty ourselves of all evil intent, malice, judgement, grudges, pride, and discontent.  Then let us ask for an abundance of His grace to fill us, for how can we give if we aren’t first filled? Then let us pray that His goodness works through us, allowing Him our hands, feet, and heart. 

“Empty me, fill me, use me.”

I love you, LORD, my strength, LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock of refuge, my shield, my saving horn, my stronghold. Psalms 18:2-3

In Him, we can do all things. Let’s pray for one another's “yes” to God, and for the strength and perseverance to do His will. May God be praised!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Make a small sacrifice on behalf of another. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Suffering for the Beloved)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Marriage can be paradoxical. When one marries, they think they will never have to struggle alone again. But partnership takes on many forms and they aren’t all glorious. Thus, the faithful expectantly  turn to prayer.

When marital  struggles occur, be they fleeting, cyclical, or daily, offer your suffering as a gift to the Lord, for who better knows suffering? 

When the Lord was betrayed by one in His inner circle, His heart was crushed. Unite your heart with the Lord’s when you experience heartache. He will seek to heal it.

When Christ brought friends to accompany him and pray for him, he was left alone as they slept.  Offer up your times of emotional loneliness. 

When Jesus  was arrested, those he trusted the most, fled.  Offer up the times in marriage you’ve felt abandoned to handle things on your own. 

 It was our pain that he bore, our sufferings he endured. Isaiah 53:4

When Christ endured His excruciating Passion, only the beloved disciple remained to affirm their union. Know that Jesus considers YOU beloved too. 

He was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity. He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed. 

Isaiah 53:5

Thank you, Jesus, for taking on our woundedness, brokenness, and sufferings. As we pray for your intercession, may your precious blood continue to heal our past and preserve our future. Jesus, we trust in You!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

With humility and gratitude, pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Let Go, LET GO, Let God!)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

As parents we try to do the best we can for our children and hope that the Lord makes up for our ignorance, lapses, and mistakes. Our instincts are always to protect our children physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Yet, once they grow up and leave home, we hope the seeds we have planted will bear fruit. 

One can worry or one can trust and pray. All one has to do is look back on their early life and see how far they have come, not on their own, but by the Lord's grace and mercy. Just as the Lord was patient and loving towards us we must trust that he will be no different with our children.

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, deluded, slaves to various desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another. But when the kindness and generous love of God our savior appeared, not because of any righteous deeds we had done but because of his mercy, he saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the holy Spirit, whom he richly poured out on us through Jesus Christ our savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life. Titus 3:3-7

Lord, renew our faith in your eternal and merciful love. Boost our hope in your promises!

Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit. Romans 5:5

Thank you, Heavenly Father.  Help us to be patient and wait upon You. Saint Joseph, Pillar of Families, pray for us! 

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray for an outpouring of faith. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Discern to Love)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Scripture speaks a lot about judgement. But it also esteems discernment. 

Judgment is about criticizing and forming negative opinions, lowering others, and in essence, elevating ourselves. Whereas discernment is more thoughtful, focusing on what is right, appropriate, or beneficial to an individual, seeking understanding while retaining boundaries.

Thus, we should not judge, especially in our marriages (where it can come too easily)!

Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Luke 6:37

Wise words. However, marriage does call for discernment, so that we may respond and act in a manner appropriate to the situation.

The wise of heart is esteemed for discernment. Proverbs 16:21

Wisdom can remain silent in the discerning heart, but among fools she must make herself known. Proverbs 14:33

In marriage, focus on discerning while seeking to mitigate any judgement. Be gentle with your spouse and yourself, pondering each situation in life, just as our Blessed Mother did.  

Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. 

Psalm 19:12

Lord, bless us in our marriages, that we may reflect more our own actions rather than those of others. In prayer, help us see the way. Take us by the hand and guide us.

It does not concern me in the least that I be judged by you or any human tribunal; I do not even pass judgment on myself. 1 Corinthians 4:3

Love remains the answer!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Love, pray, and pass it on!