Word of the Year

For the past few years I have been participating in the practice of choosing a word and a saint of the year. In November, my word became clear to me – rooted. I desired to grow deeper in my love of Christ and to not let worries or crosses sway my faith. I called to mind the parable of the Sower.

“Hear then the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy. But he has no root and lasts only for a time. When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away. The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.” (Matthew 13: 18-23)

I knew that this year was going to be a difficult one with my mom’s illness. I knew that my heart needed to be planted firmly in Christ in order to weather the storm. I just hadn’t realized how soon that cross would present itself. My word had to be put to the test the first week of the new year with the death of my mom, but blessed be God, He provided the grace to endure without being angry and bitter. (Well, not angry at God. As for the cancer, I’d like to beat the @#$% out of it.)

The year is still young and I don’t know what is coming next, but good or bad, I pray my heart remains rooted in Christ and that I praise His name, no matter what is going on in my life.

Saint(s) of the Year

In mid-2018, especially around the time  that I attended the Blessed Is She Wild retreat, St. John the Baptist had been knocking on my heart. I remember writing about him in one of my Blessed Is She devotions, Here is a portion of what I wrote:

I shared with my friend Liz that I didn’t feel comfortable with John the Baptist. He intimidated me with him camel hair wearing and locust eating ways. He seemed loud, forceful and no nonsense. For someone who didn’t like confrontation, he wasn’t exactly endearing. I laughed when Liz said she had thought the same thing. However, she shared that something changed in her perception. He became her “saint of the year” (when you choose a saint to learn about and ask for their prayers.) Liz got to know St. John through prayer and eventually she saw another side to him – a gentle, humble soul completely committed to Our Lord. 

I always thought that John the Baptist was completely out of reach and so unlike me, but I think I have it wrong. God wants me to be *more* like him, not in the camel hair and locusts way, (at least I hope not!) but in having a love for Our Lord so deep that it has to be shared, even in the face of death. Like St. John and Liz, I want the Holy Spirit so alive in me that people are inspired to love God more.

He has not left my mind and I knew God wanted me to get to know him better in 2019. However, he was not the only St. John knocking on the door of my heart. I was also drawn to St. John the Apostle. At first, it came out of my recent habit of making a weekly Holy Hour. Although sitting quietly praying for an hour is not easy for me, I loved the thought of visiting Jesus and keeping him company. I wanted to be a comfort to his Sacred Heart, like a beloved disciple. I also saw St. John the Apostle as someone who was completely rooted in the love of Jesus, as well as St. John the Baptist being completely rooted in Jesus no matter what turmoil was going on around him. So this year I decided to adopt both John’s as my saints of the year.

Again, my mom’s death has caused me to look to John the Apostle and follow his example of standing at the foot of the cross watching someone you loved dearly die. And now that I have the task of delivering my mom’s eulogy at her funeral, I am turning to St. John the Baptist to intercede and pray that I have the strength to speak the words in my heart with bravery and composure.

How about you? What is your word and/or saint of the year?

PS – You can follow RoL on Bloglovin, Feedly or another news feed. If you are a social media fan like me, we can stay in touch through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, GoodReads, Letterboxd, or Spotify, 😉
Save