1st & Last
A photo with a dear friend and patron, Carla Foster! She came to help spruce up my attire for a recent, hat-themed tea party for which I provided music. This photo was taking shortly after our van died en route to the performance. Carla came to meet me at the venue, and I was able to sing with flowers adorning my head!
Welcome to Word for the Week, the series in which I:
share my experience of hearing God’s Word in Mass last weekend,
explore what I believe the Lord is calling me to do about that Word, and
ask how this Word might impact your life, as well.
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Wow, these last few weeks have been a joyful, surprising blur!
Here’s a real-time update! I just tried to find the phrase “I am the first and the last” in the Mass readings from two weeks back. But now I realize, that was my Word for the Week three Sundays past! (I’m writing this on a Sunday night, from South Bend, Indiana.)
I was in Fargo, North Dakota, back on Divine Mercy Sunday! The parish of Holy Cross Church was super vibrant. At every Mass, there was an abundance of young children. The community is growing and the next generation is being raised in the faith! It was so beautiful to see.
At the same time of the visit, I was praying a Novena to St. Joseph the Worker to ask intercession about our career and how to best support our family. The word, “Do not be afraid, I am the first and the last,” from Revelation was so soothing to hear in Mass.
I was able to recall, through the Word, that God started all of this. It was the Lord who first stirred in my heart the desire to use music to tell people about Jesus. Likewise, it was God’s initiative to imbue David with incredible persistence and a genuine desire to reach a lot of people with the Good News.
And that’s not all.
God is also the Last. He’s the one who will bring it all to fulfillment. He’ll be there waiting for us at the finish line, when our work is complete and even when this life is over. That Word really helped to put things into perspective.
The ensuing few weeks have been jubilant, but they have not been easy. Between Divine Mercy Sunday and now, here are a few highlights from our family life:
-My sister, Deanna, moved to Phoenix with her husband and their three young children.
-David and I hosted 8 out-of-town guests at our home (not all at once!)
-Our 10-yr-old daughter Chiara received her First Communion and Confirmation.
-We installed a new, necessary, air conditioning unit for our home.
-Our singular family vehicle died on my way to a performance last weekend.
-We’ve almost sold out of the first 3k copies of When God Wrecks Your Romance. But the printer has no paper with which to print more copies!
These are just a few bullet points. Providentially, the Lord reminded me to commence this“sprint” of major changes by remembering the One who is ever ancient, ever new.
Are you being called into any life changes currently? If so, would you reflect with me on the words of Revelation: I am the first and the last! And also, this verse from Philippians 1:6 that often comes to mind when the path ahead looks unclear:
“He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
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Dick Safranski
Jordan Mendez
Julian Padilla
Jessica Cook
Kate Hicks
Deacon Tim & Lily Roberto
Carrie Brzezinski
Frances Jones
Elizabeth Herberg
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