Sr. Sue's Thoughts on Prayer

The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the United Nations General Assembly. Two decades later, in 2001, the General Assembly unanimously voted to designate the Day as a period of non-violence and cease-fire. This past Monday we marked that day by holding a space of prayer in our chapel. Twenty-five people joined us throughout the course of the day for adoration of the Blessed Sacrament as well as prayer experiences in word, image, movement and song.

May every day, be a day that we pray for peace in our world, in our country, in our communities, in our homes, and in our hearts. And may our words and actions bring only love, healing and hope to those around us.

Be well and be at peace!

Have you ever noticed that when you are away on vacation, or traveling for work or family, (or for college students moving away) that the whole routine of your life changes during that time? And where does prayer fit into that?

This vacation, I made a conscious effort to make sure I found a quiet space to spend some time in prayer every day.  Whether that meant walking on the beach, finding a quiet corner, or reflecting at the end of the day, I wanted to make sure that I took time with God, even as I was taking time for myself and my family and friends.

Wherever we go, God goes with us. Let’s remember to invite God in wherever we are!

Be well and be at peace!

Sr. Sue is on a well deserved vacation this week.

Thoughts on Prayer will return September 19th!

Be well and be at peace!

We had a static issue on Zoom the other night which I was finally able to fix after the fact. It was incredibly frustrating on both ends. As usual, it got me thinking...

What is the static in our lives? 

What is the "noise" that gets in the way of me hearing God clearly... or at all! 

God, give me the grace to acknowledge those things that distract me from hearing you, both in my prayer and in my life.

In the words of the song “Day by Day” from Godspell:

"Three things I pray - to see thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, follow thee more nearly day by day."

Be well and be at peace!

I brought my car in for its regular oil change and tune up. I began thinking about my spiritual tune up...retreat. I have found that making my regular retreat each year refreshes my spiritual soul.  Time away from distractions clears the way for me to listen more carefully to what God is saying to me about the things going on in my life.  But once a year is not enough.  In between times, I have to find spaces periodically (a day, a few hours) to simply stop the normal routine of my life and take some intentional time with God - perhaps in quiet, or walking in nature, or listening to inspirational music, or doing some spiritual reading.

What's the mileage reading on your spiritual life? Is it time for a tune up?  What will that look like for you? Spend some time with the Master Mechanic of your life!

Be well and be at peace!

The other day, one of our computers glitched. The first solution is always to reboot - turn it off, give it a minute, turn it back on.

I think prayer is our personal rebooting. Prayer allows us to stop, take a break from the busyness of our lives and the busyness in our heads, and perhaps the anxiety in our hearts. We pause to spend some time with the one who created us and loves us beyond all comprehension - sharing all we want to about what's happening in our life and in our heart. Then we move back into our day with a new start...a little more focused, a little more peaceful knowing that God is with us.

Have you rebooted yet today?

Be well and be at peace!

I had quite the travel adventure this week with storms disrupting my flights multiple times. In the midst was a reminder that whenever things are uncertain or chaotic, it is important to keep your eyes open for God's presence in the middle of it all. As I found a quiet corner to wait out the delays, I found a sparrow fluttering around the area. The sparrow was calm and I was calm…and we simply spent some time together. I remembered the passage that says if God so cares for the sparrow, how much more does God care for you? I knew in my heart that whatever happened with my travels that day, God was with me.

May you, in moments of uncertainty, have the ability to open your eyes and notice the "sparrow" God is sending to reassure you!

Be well and be at peace!

Today is the Feast of St. Dominic, founder of a family known as an Order of Preachers. So, as we celebrate with our Dominican Sisters and Brothers throughout this world, I would like to share a prayer from our Dominican tradition.

A Dominican Blessing (13th Century)

May God the Father bless us,

May God the Son heal us,

May the Holy Spirit enlighten us and give us eyes to see with,

ears to hear with,

and hands to do the work of God with,

feet to walk with,

and a mouth to preach the word of salvation with,

and the angel of peace to watch over us and lead us at last,

by our Lord’s gift, to the kingdom.

Amen.

Be well and be at peace!

Many areas of our country are recovering from floods after a deluge of rain. So let us pray:

~ For our police, firefighters and other responders who worked so hard to attend to our safety and to all those in need in the midst of the storm.

~ For all those dealing with damage to their homes, business, schools, and places is worship as a result of all the water.

~ For all of those working clean up - restoring power lines, collecting debris, checking the safety of roads and bridges.

~ For farmers who have lost crops or livestock as a result of the flooding 

~ And for our earth, may we respect the power of the elements and tend mindfully to this one precious planet that sustains us.

Be well and be at peace!

When it comes to laundry, there seems to be two ends to the spectrum. On one end, everything goes in together. On the other end, care is taken to sort like things together so that light stuff is separated from dark items; delicates are not mixed in with work clothes... you get the idea. Either way, you give it to the washing machine to clean it all up.

I think our conversational prayer, with God can go either way as well!

Sometimes my prayer thoughts are all mixed together- one thought leading to another as I talk to God about life.

At other times, my prayer is more sorted, so to speak: I might pray about what's going on in my life at the moment, then move onto all the people I'm concerned about or who have asked me to pray for them, and finally I might spend some time sharing all the things I'm grateful for. 

How do you converse with God? How do you share the aspects of your life with the One who can clean it all up and give you some clarity? 

Be well and be at peace!

Many areas of our continent are being affected by the wildfires in Canada.

Let us pray for all affected:

~ For all those working to extinguish the fires by land or by air, may they be successful and stay safe in the process.

~ For all that is destroyed by the wildfires – the trees and plants and animals, may we honor their existence.

~ For the tens of thousands affected by the smoke and ash in the air, especially those who have health conditions that already make it hard to breathe, may they have places where they can breathe easily.

~ For anyone who has lost their homes, business, school, or place of worship to fire, may they find a community of support in the rebuilding.

~ For each of us, that we be conscientious of the conditions around us and the things that might spark a fire in dry conditions, may we always treat the gift of fire with respect 

Be well and be at peace!

Some days, things just happen - like the maintenance truck stops working in the parking lot of a store. Then you have to call AAA and wait for roadside assistance... watching and waiting until help arrives.

In the course of our day or week, unexpected things happen. The prayer becomes, "Help" and then we wait and watch for assistance. God always answers, but maybe not in the time frame we would like or in the manner that we hoped.

God, give us the grace to wait and watch for your presence with us whenever we are in need of help.

Be well and be at peace!

On this July 4, 2026 let’s pray for our country:

~ May the values of freedom, equality, justice and democracy be the guiding principles for all our governing bodies.

~ May we be mindful of the common good in all decisions that we make.

~ May we treat every other person with dignity and respect.

~ May we welcome those seeking a safe place to live.

~ May we cherish and steward wisely the natural resources that the land, waters, and air provide for us.

As we honor 250 years, may God give us the grace to celebrate what we have done well, acknowledge where we have caused harm, and commit to doing our best to create a country where all have enough and are able to live with each other in peace.

Be well and be at peace!