Bible Heroes

May God Bless Always, 

Created by Katie Robinson 

Our second bible hero is Noah.

 

Our second bible hero is Noah.

What makes Noah a hero?

• ·       God told Noah to build a big boat called an ark. This boat saved his family and all the animals in the world.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson. 

Our first bible hero is Adam.

 

Our first bible hero is Adam.

What makes Adam a hero?

• ·       Adam is the first man and father of all humankind.
• ·       God brought all the animals he had created to Adam and Adam gave every creature a name. This accomplishment made Adam the first zoologist.
• ·       And Adam was also the first landscaper and horticulturist.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Heroes!

 What is a hero?

Who is your hero?

What is a bible hero?

When I think of a hero, I think of someone who has tremendous strength, courage, and confidence. A bible hero on the other hand, is strong and has the duty to put up with the qualms of the weak without thinking of themselves. Instead, they think of their neighbors and help them to become stronger Christians.

My hero is my mum, despite what she may think or believe about herself I admire her strength and confidence especially when she fights for injustice. I suppose that is where I got it from, I hate fighting because I get angry, but I cannot tolerate unfairness. Somehow, I believe I have a moral obligation to stand up and fight for what is right and fair for the underdog, the excluded, and the marginalized.  

What about your favorite superhero?

My superhero is Buffy the Vampire Slayer, she is fast, strong, saves the world a lot and has unconditional love for her family and friends and those she saves.

Well, by now you should know we are going to spend September getting to know our bible heroes, a few Holy Handmaids of the Lord and let us find out who battles for our souls. So, Faith, Hope, and Love by My Mother Rose let us grab our armor, be strong and courageous and go on a journey to meet amazing individuals who have fought the fight of faith and who have made a difference in this world.

May God Bless Always,

Written and created by Katie Robinson.  

The Feast Day of Saint Monica.

 Novena Day Nine, The Feast Day of Saint Monica.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

So, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose do you feel empowered to keep going on the journey despite the challenges and difficulties we sometimes face? Life is not easy, but something I am starting to reflect upon is that our lives are full of important lessons so what are you learning? I think I am learning that I need more patience, and I need to trust more in God's plans for my life and my children's lives. This informal novena has helped me to become more aware of the presence of God in my life and that he is always waiting for me to return home when I am ready. I went to a staff meeting on Monday evening and a lady sitting across from me had written on her jumper "Come as you are." We all know the hymn and we all know when we hear "come as you are, we also hear, "that is how I want you." There is no other way he wants us because he accepts us for who we are, and he meets us where we are at in life sometimes imperfect but a soul who tries and keeps going no matter what. 

Saint Monica is so relevant for all of us, so we ask her to pray for us today and always. 

Let us pray. 

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

 

Her Last Words to Saint Augustine.

 

Novena Day Eight, Her Last Words to Saint Augustine.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

“For my part, my son, I find pleasure no longer in anything this life holds. What I am doing here still, or why I tarry, I do not know, for all worldly hope has withered away for me. One thing only there was for which I desired to linger a while in this life: to see you a Catholic Christian before I died. And this my God has granted to me more lavishly than I could have hope., letting me see you even spurning earthly happiness to be his servant. What now keeps me here?”

I am not overly proud of my last words sometimes they have been said out of anger, frustration and straight away I regret those words I have spoken because I know that I can never take them back. There are last words I speak that can be uplifting, inspiring, and there are last words I speak that come from a heart that loves. Last words are so significant and important they hold so much meaning like when you say, “take care,” it is saying that you wish and hope the best for that person. It can also be a type of sentiment such as kindness and love.

“Your words have the power to hurt, to heal, open minds, open hearts and change the world. Never forget the responsibility you have over the words you speak.” Author Steven Aitchison.

Let us Pray:

Saint Monica, we pray today that God can grant us with kindness and love in our hearts and on our tongues. May we be blessed with gentle words that bring us a good life and great health. Amen.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Her Journey to Sainthood.

 

Novena Day Seven, Her journey to Sainthood.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

“There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future.” Saint Augustine.

We all know that a saint is someone who follows Jesus and lives according to his teachings and lives a virtuous life inspired by their faith.

A saint pushes on, is joyful and patient in difficult times. A saint can be silent when there is a need to speak and scream out loud. I like this quote by Pope Francis, Twitter, 11/19/13, “The saints were not superhuman. They were people who loved God in their hearts, and who shared this joy with others.”

How do you share your love of God with others?

How can you explain God to someone who is resistant?

Through Saint Augustine, we become clear and see a mother like many of us who has had to face many difficulties, such as difficulties in relationships, difficulties financially, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. Saint Monica had love in her heart for God and all she wanted was to share that joy with others specifically her children. She became holy by living her life relating everything to God.

A little trivia for us, a devotion to Saint Monica didn’t develop until the beginning of the 12^th century. Throughout the years many devotions to Saint Monica have increased among Christians particularly Christian mothers. To continue, in the year 1162, on the 4^th of May this is when the feast of Saint Monica began, and it was believed to be the date of Saint Augustine’s conversion. However, in the year 1566 after her body was transferred to the casket an obligatory memorial for Monica was established for all dioceses of the world and we celebrate now on the 27^th of August the day before celebrating her son Saint Augustine who died in the year 430, August 28^th (Saint Monica, The Power of a Mother’s Love, by Giovanni Falbo, p.121-126).

Let us Pray:

Saint Monica, life can be difficult, it can be challenging but we ask you today to help us to remain steadfast in God’s love and to remember how important it is to share that love with others. Amen.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Saint Monica's Wisdom.

 Novena Day Six, Saint Monica’s Wisdom.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

Saint Monica displayed a love and a connection with the truth only found in the pure of heart. She was indeed a wise woman, her understanding, her knowledge, and experiences rewarded those around with a model of prayer and patience. Her true wisdom reflected God; she saw life from God’s perspective and in every conservation Monica’s character was revealed, where she had a way to make things clear and fathomable.

Let us Pray:

Saint Monica, you communicated and bestowed upon others the love of God so today with hope in our hearts we pray and ask for the ‘God of hosts, to bring us back, to shine his face on us so that we shall be saved.’ Psalm 79:4

I wanted to leave you with this from the book Saint Monica, The Power of a Mother’s Love by Giovanni Falbo. These are words Saint Monica prayed and had engraved on her heart, they are from one of Ambrose’s hymns ‘Help, O trinity, those that pray.” So simple but beautiful and powerful. Amen.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Continuing the Journey.

 Novena Day Five, Continuing the Journey.  

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

As we continue to grow and love Saint Monica, I understand that she had a special gift of fortitude and patience in prayer, she knew God would answer. We don’t always see the fruits of our prayers well not straight away. It is written that she prayed for seventeen years before Saint Augustine converted in August of 386.

Despite the setbacks she was persistent and kept on praying she had shed a lifetime of tears. Seventeen years is a lot of tears to be shed so something I can’t wrap my mind around is how could God resist a woman’s constant appeals for so long?

Well, it’s all got to do with God’s timing. For us it might feel as though God’s timing is never perfect, but it is perfect, never early and never late. It takes a whole lot of patience and an enormous amount of faith to believe and trust in God’s timing. For everything if it’s meant to be, it will be at the right time and for the right reasons.

I love the following from (© 2023 Spiritual Inspiration), “God uses difficult times to shape us and make us more like Christ. We can understand that God is there in every difficult time and helps us because the bible says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” The Lord allowed those challenging hours, days, and years to turn you into the person He wants you to become.”

I believe in that, and I believe that was the case for Saint Monica, God doesn’t give us more than we can handle as 1 Corinthians 10:13 suggests, "you can trust God not to let you be tried beyond your strength, and with any trial he will give you a way out of it and the strength to bear it." Although, it took seventeen years for Saint Augustine to be converted, Saint Monica continued her journey until the day she died at the age of fifty- six, Augustine thirty- three, and the year was 387.

Let us pray:

Saint Monica, we can sometimes doubt and fear and decide not to continue our journeys because it can feel as though it’s a lifetime before we see the fruits of our prayers. But today we pray for strength and faith in God’s perfect timing. AMEN.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Her Endurance.

 

Novena Day Four, Her Endurance.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

This morning I got up early to watch Mass for You at Home on channel Ten, but Hour of Power was still on and somehow the person who was talking reminded me of what effective prayer is “Ask, and it will be given to you, search and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives, the one who searches always finds, the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him” Matthew 7:7-8.

In that moment, I couldn’t help but think of all the times I have asked, searched but then haven’t knocked on the door except for one situation in my life where I asked, I searched and found a door that was opened to me but after entering there was hate, pain, hurt, rejection and loss. The way I see it, or my perspective is someday God is going to give me another opportunity to open a new door and after entering I am going to experience love, a love so powerful it moves mountains. Somehow, I need to believe in that and believe that God gives good things to those who ask him.

How do we keep going while waiting for God to answer our prayers?

Are we impatient?

Do we struggle or give up?

Waiting on God to answer any prayer is mentally agonizing. You wonder if God cares or can really hear you or is he truly listening because waiting is difficult, overwhelming, and sometimes painful especially if what you pray for like a job goes to somebody else or the guy you like starts dating somebody else or moves away.

How can we be prepared for when God opens the door for us?

How can I be ready to receive the greatest gift of all ‘LOVE!’

Therefore, we can say that it is endurance. For endurance is having the ability to endure pain, suffering in any difficult situation you may be in. Saint Monica’s endurance proves through discomfort, agony and many hardships things work out and get a whole lot better. Her prayer life, her purpose to convert her children, her husband and many more she served is an example of her endurance. Saint Monica endured so much, especially in her marriage, her relationship with her mother-in-law and her servants and despite it all Saint Monica had the courage to keep going and endure and so can we Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Here is a little encouragement for us instead of a prayer but we should ask Saint Monica to pray for us. “Be resilient to overcome the obstacles in life, keep going remember that life is a journey. It’s an experience and God will always put us back on the right track and on the right train of life.” Author Katie Robinson.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

Her Purpose.

 Novena Day Three, Her Purpose.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

“In my confession, I explained how salvation was granted to me through the sincere tears that my mother poured out on my behalf each day.” St. Augustine’s Affirmation.

How has the grace of God triumphed in your life?

I love Saint Augustine’s affirmation it sums up perfectly Saint Monica’s purpose and mission in seeing her son convert and become a disciple of the Lord. Saint Monica had many visions and dreams where she saw Saint Augustine’s conversion and where he would come to understand more fully that the complete truth comes from God. One account recorded was when Saint Monica had a vision of Saint Augustine standing on the rule of faith and no longer, seeking a wife or any worldly hope. Her prayers, sacrifices and hard work paid off, she had converted him to herself and God.

How does her purpose help us today?

As a little girl and even as an adult I could always imagine my family and our life together. This morning I sat and watched my son basking in the sun, having fun with sticks, dirt and rocks and I wondered what he imagines and sees in his future. So, I asked and according to Anthony he is going to change the world somehow and all he knows is this good thing is going to be something good for everyone and faith will help him decide. I am glad he sees that because it brings some peace to my heart, for right now my visions are a little blurred and I cannot see clearly with my faith.

I must admit, I was worried, concerned and it brought pain to my heart that my children weren't interested in attending church or following in my footsteps but as I continue to read about Saint Monica’s life and her powerful love for her children, her family and those she serves I understand her purpose to save her lost son, her children and bring them back to God. Even as I am writing, I am thinking about my own journey and how I can lose hope and sight of my own faith in God.

Saint Monica saw clearly; she dedicated her life to prayer for her children to follow Christ. According to Pope Benedict XVI “Saint Monica was not only his mother, but the source of his Christianity.” Her spiritual travail of prayers and tears saw him embrace the faith, receive Baptism, and dedicate himself to the service of Christ. Her example, her purpose lives on in many hearts.

Let us pray:

Saint Monica, we pray for your guidance and help to become more dedicated to prayer. May our hearts be opened to receive blessings and grace from God. Amen.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.

 

A Patron Saint for You and for Me.

 

Novena Day Two, A Patron Saint for you and for me.

We begin with one Our Father, One Hail Mary and One Glory Be to God.

Over these past four years, we have explored and discovered Saint Mary Mackillop, Saint Mary Magdelene and now we have embarked on a journey to discover Saint Monica.

Who is Saint Monica?

Saint Monica was born at Tagaste, in Numidia, in 331. In the year Monica was born Numidia was linked to the fierce religious battles, Madura to the south and Carthage to the north. Even though there were religious struggles her parents gave her a catholic education. According to Giovanni Falbo, Saint Monica, The Power of a Mother’s Love, Monica’s parents were not known but clearly were observant Catholics who didn’t really get the chance to know of God’s great plans for their daughter. These are words from Saint Augustine to his grandparents.

“(F)or she did not fashion herself or bring herself up: you created her, and not even her father or mother knew what kind of child would be born from them. She was brought up to reverence you, schooled by the crook of your Christ, the shepherd’s care of your only Son, in a faithful family that was a sound limb of your Church.”

Saint Monica was taught like most of us to pray, to serve and to love others. She was destined to live a life of true Christian virtue but of course at times she was weak and tempted. We are not born Saints, like Saint Monica we must grow in our faith, in our virtues and work hard at our missions. She embraced her life and armed herself with patience and endurance serving her family.

So, why then is Saint Monica a patron Saint for us all?

She is a patron Saint for us all because we can recognize God in her, see her incredible strength, wisdom and knowledge. We also understand that even though God graced her with many gifts, she made the effort to grow in Christian love, to help others be happy and to live with peace in their lives. 

Let us pray:

Saint Monica, we are grateful for this journey in getting to know who you are as a woman, a mother, and a wife. Teach us to live in peace and show us how to grow in Christian love. Amen.

May God Bless Always, Faith, Hope and Love by My Mother Rose.

Written and created by Katie Robinson.