I don't know about you, but this time of year gets so busy with fall activities, Halloween, and the impending cold of winter.  

This week there are three important holidays:  Halloween (Friday), All Saints Day (Saturday), and All Souls Day (Sunday).  

I have not been good in the past with celebrating All Saints or All Souls Day, except with going to mass.  This year I really want to do better, but as I said, things have been hectic.  So I'm aiming to have my family celebrate these two special days with limited preparation or time.  

This week's family meeting focuses mainly on All Souls Day, as that is Sunday's mass.  However, I tried to tie in a little about All Saints Day in some of the family activities.  

Check it out and I hope you have a wonderful week of celebrating!

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, October 26}

This week's gospel message is such a great one for kids and a much-needed reminder for myself.  

The Pharisees are again ready to trick Jesus into saying something for which them can arrest him.  One of them asks, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" (Matthew 22:36)

Jesus responds:

 "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind.  This is the greatest commandment.  The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

(Matthew 22:37-39)

My family had a very fruitful discussion about how we can love God and how we can love others.  It can be hard in today's world to put God first.  Our family is trying to put certain structures in place to help us be successful.  

Here are some practical ways we are trying to love God first:

• Go to mass every Sunday
• Make Sunday a day of rest, God, and family
• Pray regularly throughout the day as a family (morning, meals, bedtime, etc)
• Pray the rosary as a family
• Have these weekly family meetings to read scripture and learn about God together
• Celebrate saint feastdays 
• Read the bible at bedtime regularly
• Take part in adult bible study programs 
• Spend time with other families from our church

Here is this week's family meeting slideshow:

Have a blessed week!

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, October 19}

Hello and welcome!  

This week's gospel reading has a couple different focuses, with Jesus' response to the pharisees on whether or not they should pay taxes.  Rather than let himself be tricked, Jesus states, "repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."  There is a need to pay taxes and live in earthly, human ways, as we are humans of the earth.  However, everything belongs to God, and it's important not to lose sight that He should be the center of our lives.

Life often seems too busy; full of things that are vying for my time.  So many commitments and responsibilities, and sometimes it feels like I'm on a hamster wheel and can't get off.  

In my bible study, I was reminded of this quote by Rick Warren from his book, The Purpose Driven Life:

"If it impossible to do everything people want you to do.  You have just enough time to do God's will.  If you can't get it all done, it means you're trying to do more than God intended for you to do (or, possibly, that you're watching too much TV."  

This week's gospel is an important reminder to put God where he belongs: first and foremost in our lives.  When I do that, everything else falls into place.  

For our family meeting this week, we are focusing on putting God first in the way we spend our time, how we treat others, and how we use our resources.   

So here is this week's slideshow...

Catholic Family Meeting {October 12 Sunday Gospel}

It's really feeling like October here.  Cool air, leaves starting to change, and a pumpkin candle burning as I write this.  I hope your family enjoys this week's Catholic family meeting on accepting God's invitation.  Everything you need is linked right in the presentation below.  Enjoy!