In this episode, Christina Semmens welcomes author Eric A. Clayton to discuss this question in the context of Eric’s sharing about his latest book, Where Wonder Leads: Finding God Through Fairy Tales, Myth, and Contemplative Prayer. Drawing on Ignatian spirituality and his love of fantasy and science fiction, Eric explores how wonder, curiosity, and imagination help us recognize God at work in our lives. From Middle-earth and Star Wars to a minotaur and an ordinary onion, this conversation will help you connect storytelling with discernment, self-awareness, and everyday holiness. Eric also shares how to pray with the book’s 35 meditations and why even a few quiet minutes of daily prayer matter.

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Key Takeaways

- Wonder makes room for surprise.** Approach prayer with curiosity and openness rather than a fixed agenda about what God should reveal.

- Imagination can help us respond to God’s call.** Eric points to St. Ignatius’s story to show how imagining a different life can help us move beyond familiar patterns.

- Stories can reveal our interior lives.** Unfamiliar worlds and exaggerated characters help us notice desires, fears, resistance, and habits we might otherwise overlook.

- Bring the imagined scene into conversation with real life.** Enter the scene with your senses, pause to reflect on your everyday experience, then return to the scene with what you have discovered.

- Discern storytelling by what it awakens in you.** Eric suggests noticing whether a story deepens curiosity, empathy, and openness to God and others when distinguishing fruitful imagination from escapism.

- Holiness grows through ordinary attention and faithful prayer.** Finding God in all things includes mundane moments, uncomfortable invitations, and showing up to pray even when it feels quiet or unrewarding.

My conversation with Eric was an uplifting and wonderful one, full of hope, and like his book, sure to help you find God through stories and imagination!

Suggested Resolutions from This Conversation and Your Invitation for the Week

Set aside a few quiet minutes. Bring a story, character, or ordinary moment into prayer and ask: *What is stirring within me? Where am I clinging to comfort? Where might God be inviting me to take the next step?

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Chapters and Timestamps

00:00 — Welcome and introduction to Where Wonder Leads

01:17 — Eric’s journey: creative writing, international development, and the Jesuits

04:35 — The book’s inspiration: moving from analyzing stories to praying with them

07:22 — Wonder, curiosity, and openness to God’s surprises

09:37 — Imagination in prayer and St. Ignatius’s invitation to a different life

13:26 — Why fantasy worlds help us see ourselves differently; a Star Trek example

17:02 — Why 35 meditations? Editing the book and the bonus mermaid chapter

19:42 — How the meditations work: entering a scene and returning to ordinary life

21:35 — The minotaur: reflecting on embodiment and how we see ourselves

23:40 — Christina’s experience: magic stones, hope, and interior movements

24:49 — Prayerful imagination versus escapism

26:25 — Finding God in all things—even while chopping an onion

28:53 — The challenge of letting go and writing to serve the reader

31:06 — Living the message: comfort, trust, and crossing into the unknown

33:12 — A simple practice: daily prayer, silence, and showing up

34:19 — Eric’s favorite fictional worlds: Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings

36:31 — Where to find Eric’s books and work; closing encouragement

Books and Resources

Where Wonder Leads — Loyola Press

Eric A. Clayton’s website

Bonus chapter: Sample Chapter! Discernment & Mermaids

Now Discern This — weekly Ignatian reflections and newsletter signup

My Life with the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars

Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith

Eric’s bookshelf, including Finding Peace Here and Now

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Yesterday was the feast day of one of the most beloved saints in the Catholic Church—Saint Francis of Assisi. I have had the privilege of knowing Saint Francis fairly well during my faith journey, especially since my late husband was a Secular Franciscan. Because of this, we tried to be as attentive as possible to living out the Franciscan charism of simplicity, trust, surrender, accompaniment of the poor, and care for creation in our daily lives.

In the Gospel yesterday, Jesus tells the parable of a landowner who carefully prepared a vineyard and entrusted it to tenants. Then, when the time arrives for the landowner to collect the fruit of his vineyard, the tenants refuse to hand it over because they believe they deserve the harvest themselves.

How is that attitude possible? Well, I think that until Saint Francis entered my life, I probably was a bit like the tenants were. I felt a bit entitled to the fruits that “my labor” has brought about in my life—even though it was God that entrusted me with my life and the vineyard that accompanied it. However, through Saint Francis, I have grown in awareness of my attitude, and through practice of simplicity and trust and surrender, I now understand more deeply the reality that everything we possess--our time, talents, relationships, resources, opportunities, and even the very breath in our lungs, is ultimately a gift given to us by God, just like the landowner entrusted the vineyard to the tenants.

So, the question that emerges from all this is—are our lives producing the fruit God desires of us?

Therefore, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will turn to Saint Francis of Assisi to help inspire, encourage and accompany us in becoming faithful tenants who produce abundant fruit for the Kingdom as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"By the anxieties and worries of this life Satan tries to dull man's heart and make a dwelling for himself there.” —Saint Francis of Assisi

There are many things that keep our lives from producing fruit, and Saint Francis points out that one of the most insidious is anxiety and worry. For whenever we become overly concerned about what might happen tomorrow, or how someone else is doing compared to us, or whether we will have enough, or how we could possibly manage whatever lays before us, our hearts become closed and our minds become dull.

It causes us to stop noticing God’s providence and recognizing His gifts. We end up ceasing to listen for His voice. And in the end, we can begin acting like the tenants in the Gospel did—acting as if the vineyard depends entirely upon us. Even though this isn’t the case because the vineyard belongs to God—just like our lives do.

In fact, everything we possess has been given to us by God, so our job is not to control the vineyard, but to work in it and produce good fruit. So, if we ever find anxiety and worry beginning to overwhelm us, remember whose vineyard it is, and surrender the harvest to Him.

This week, resolve to surrender your anxieties and worries to God and trust Him with the vineyard of your life so you may produce a good harvest.

Food for the Heart

"Lord, help me to live this day, quietly, easily. To lean upon Thy great strength, trustfully, restfully. To wait for the unfolding of Thy will, patiently, serenely. To meet others, peacefully, joyously. To face tomorrow, confidently, courageously.” —Saint Francis of Assisi

Saint Francis gives us a marvelous description of what life can be when we we are mindful that God owns the vineyard. When we do, we can live our days quietly, trustfully, patiently, serenely, peacefully, joyously, confidently and courageously. Despite all of those things, Saint Francis does not mention that our lives will be without difficulty. Instead, Saint Francis describes for us what can happen within our hearts if we stop relying upon ourselves and, instead, begin leaning upon God’s strength.

It is unfortunate that the tenants in the Gospel refused to trust the landowner and to be open to receiving the gifts which he has entrusted to them, and instead, they grasped at the gifts and tried to make them their own.

How often do we do the same? I know I do when I try to stay in control because I am afraid of what might happen if I surrender. How about you?

But Saint Francis offers us another way. He suggests that we should lean upon God’s strength and wait for His will to unfold as we meet whatever comes with peace and joy.

And then we can face tomorrow with confidence and courage.

This week, resolve to lean upon God’s strength and patiently wait for the unfolding of His will.

Food for the Hands

“The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today.” —Saint Francis of Assisi

In the Gospel, Jesus concludes his parable of the vineyard with a sobering statement about the fact that God will give the Kingdom to a people who produce its fruit.

Because the focus of the Lord is upon a people who actually produce.

For the Kingdom doesn’t go to those who just talk about producing, or who think about producing, or who plan to produce someday. But for those who actually produce.

Saint Francis understood this reality that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel, and knew that the best way for our faith ro become visible is through our deeds.

Every act of patience, and every moment of generosity, and every person we forgive, and every sacrifice we make, and every lonely person we notice, and every hungry person we feed, and every word of encouragement we offer, and every time we choose love when something else would be easier.

These are the deeds that produce the fruit of the vineyard.

Now, for someone who may never read Sacred Scripture, or ever enter a church can still encounter Christ—by seeing the produce of the vineyard that is shown in our deeds. This is why Saint Francis tells us that our life might be the only sermon they ever hear.

So, our task is to not only produce fruit, but to make sure that the sermon we speak through them is a good one.

This week, resolve to perform one intentional deed each day that allows someone else to encounter Christ through you.

Food for the Feet

"Do few things, but do them well, simple joys are holy.” —Saint Francis of Assisi

Most often, we think that to produce abundant fruit means that we have to do more. We need to do more prayer, and more service, and more activities, and more commitments, and more projects.

But doing more is not the way to produce more fruit because the end result will usually leave us exhausted, distracted, burned out, and unable to do anything particularly well.

But Saint Francis points us toward simplicity. He tells us to do few things and to do them well. And in the process we find that simple joys are holy.

To determine what few simple things we should do requires discernment.

First, we must determine what portion of God’s vineyard has actually been entrusted to us. Not the portion entrusted to your neighbor, or your pastor, or someone you follow on social media, or even your spouse. Rather, what has been entrusted to you.

Perhaps pursuing holiness this week doesn’t mean that you have to add anything else to your life. Perhaps it means that you need to simplify your life so you can produce fruit in the vineyard God has entrusted to you.

This week, resolve to simplify something in your life so you can better attend to what God has actually entrusted to you.

One of my favorite ways to quiet my heart and simplify my attention is by praying the Rosary. Allow Mary to help you keep your eyes fixed upon her Son and discern what He is asking of you today. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

“Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received—only what you have given: a full heart, enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage.” —Saint Francis of Assisi

Eventually, each of us does have to leave the vineyard.

When we do leave the earth though, we won’t be taking any of the things that we spent our lives accumulating with us. Not our possessions, or our accomplishments, or our titles, or our bank accounts. Not even our part of the vineyard.

Why? Because none of it ever belonged to us in the first place.

But what will remain is whatever fruit we have produced.

All the love we have given. Any people we have served. All the sacrifices we made and the courage we have shown. What will remain are all the ways in which we allowed God to work through us.

This is why Jesus’ parable should give us pause. We need to examine our lives and determine if we are producing fruit in the vineyard God has entrusted to me, or am I anxiously trying to control it? Am I trusting the Landowner? Am I patiently allowing God’s will to unfold? Are my deeds proclaiming Christ to others? And am I faithfully tending what God has actually given me rather than constantly seeking more?

But most importantly, am I producing fruit?

Saint Francis spent his life answering that question. Eventually he possessed nothing the world considered valuable, but he left this earth with a heart overflowing with the fruits of service, love, sacrifice and courage.

We are called to do the same.

All we have to do is remember that the vineyard belongs to God, surrender our anxiety and worry, lean upon His strength and wait patiently for His will to unfold as we preach the Gospel through our deeds and simplify our lives enough to see the holy joys already before us.

All so that whenever the Landowner comes looking for fruit from His vineyard, we will have something beautiful to return to Him.

Therefore, may each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES this week to produce abundant fruit in the vineyard the Lord has entrusted to us, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my latest book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time. It is available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Are you looking for spiritual direction or for life coaching? Then check out my christinasemmens.com website to see how you might benefit from working with me as well as get access to free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation.

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Two Things I Ask of You (Sept 23)

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #266

“9/11, Fulton Sheen, Faith, Freedom and Liberty”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Here is the latest podcast on The Catholic Leadership Puzzle for your listening pleasure:

Pope Leo XIV and Pastoral Insights

In this episode I reflect upon the ideas that Pope Leo XIV shared with the Diocese of Rome, and how they are similar to the ideas I wrote about in Solving the Parish Puzzle. Holy Spirit is at work in the Church for sure!

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it on Substack at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle.

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As a convert to Catholicism, one of the greatest aspects of the faith that I came to learn and deeply love is the Communion of Saints. The Communion of Saints has three parts--the Church Militant—us here on earth, Church Suffering—those in purgatory, and the Church Triumphant—all the saints and angels in Heaven. Although I have prayed to my guardian angel and believe in the protection and intercession of the angels, it was only after reading Father Boudon’s Devotion to the Holy Angels that I had to consider whether simply believing in the angels is the same thing as having a devotion to them. And because of that, I came away realizing how much more there is to discover about the angelic hosts that serve throughout the spiritual realm.

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I was extremely impressed by how clearly Father Boudon offers a thorough explanation of both why we should practise devotion to the holy angels and how we can integrate that devotion into our daily spiritual lives. Although this book is a spiritual classic written hundreds of years ago, its central message is still an important one because although God has surrounded us with heavenly assistance, we go through much of our lives without acknowledging that reality. Father Boudon has done a magnificent favor for us with his book by trying to help us rectify that reality.

One of the best ways Boudon demonstrates this is through his emphasis on how the angels serve humanity. He points out that these heavenly beings are not simply distant inhabitants of Heaven whom we occasionally invoke when we are frightened or in need, instead they actively desire our good. They do this by assisting us on our journey towards holiness by protecting us from the influence of evil, and accompanying us throughout the hour of our death. Knowing that makes me think differently about the angels who surround us every day, but has helped me be even more appreciative of my own guardian angel.

Although Father Boudon’s explanation of the motives for why we should have devotion to the angelic choirs has been beautifully outlined, I believe that the second half of his book is the most valuable. In it, Father Boudon shows us how we might actually live that devotion by providing twelve concrete practices to grow in our devotion to the nine choirs of angels. These practices convert what might seem to be an abstract theological idea into something extremely practical.

Several of his suggestions especially resonated. One is the instruction to make it a habit to hold interior conversations with the angels to become more aware of their presence throughout the day. Two more recommendations are to celebrate the feast days set aside for the angels with heightened devotion and to visit churches and chapels dedicated to them. One powerful recommendation can be done anywhere, and at anytime, by practicing particular virtues, or from abstaining from particular vices—and doing these things in honor of the angels.

Perhaps most striking to me is his recommendation for us to imitate the angels by being concerned for souls by laboring for the conversion of others and praying for the souls in Purgatory. This practice shows us that devotion to the angels doesn’t cause us to turn our attention away from other people, rather it makes us more concerned about them.

Through this book, Father Boudon helps us understand that authentic devotion to the angels is ultimately not about the angels themselves, but instead acts as a way to draw ever closer to God. For through appreciation of the angels’ love and obedience for God, as well as admiring their purity, their worship, and their desire for our salvation, then we are inspired and encouraged to cultivate these same qualities ourselves.

We might easily think of prayer only in terms of what we can see and hear, but our Christian understanding of reality should be far larger than the visible world. Father Boudon encourages us to grow in awareness of the heavenly companions already sharing our journey and to also confidently seek their assistance. It is this instruction that makes this more than a book about angels, but instead is a book about learning how to live with a greater awareness of the spiritual reality around us.

Devotion to the Holy Angels is a book for anyone to increase their knowledge and devotion to the holy angels. It is especially instructive for anyone who wants to better understand the nine choirs of angels and the Church’s tradition that encourages us to seek out the friendship and assistance of the angelic hosts.

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Although Father Boudon writing reflects the time period in which he wrote, this is not a negative. Instead, I found his language to lend itself best to being read slowly and reflectively, and this permitted the wisdom he shares that we are not making our journey towards God alone to be highly consolingly. For God, in His goodness, has given us spiritual companions who desire our holiness and to assist us in our struggles, while they defend us against evil, and accompany us on our journey toward Heaven. Therefore, our question should not be whether angels are real, but how differently might our lives be if we remembered that they are?

Prayers that you find this book to be as edifying as I did, and may all of our guardian angels, as well as the entire angelic host, continue to guard, defend, and guide us towards our eternal home.

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

This last week has been an absolutely magnificent one for the universal Church. We have a new Blessed in Archbishop Fulton Sheen here in America, and Pope Leo’s visit to France has revealed the vibrant and passionate young disciples who are in the heart of Europe. Signs of hope indeed…

This next week liturgically is a powerhouse. On Monday is the Memorial of Saint Wenceslaus and Saint Lawrence Ruiz and his companions, Tuesday is the Feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Wednesday if the Memorial of Saint Jerome, Thursday is the Memorial of Saint Therese of Lisieux and on Friday we celebrate a Memorial honoring our Guardian Angels. Day after day, we are reminded of the entire Body of Christ—Church Triumphant, Militant and Suffering, but most importantly, we are reminded that there is more to this life than the physical reality we are surrounded with—there is also a spiritual reality that includes the angels and saints.

Bottom line, we are not alone.

Not in a creepy kind of way, but in a transcendent, powerfully transformative way in which God is surrounding us with His grace and providential care through and with His angels, and this week we have the perfect opportunity to grow in our capacity to become more aware of our heavenly companions, and to live differently because if it.

Therefore, in honor of my own patron, Saint Michael, and his fellow archangels and every one of our guardian angels, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet is going to focus upon how we can immerse ourselves in both the physical and spiritual realities by increasing our devotion to the Holy Angels, so that we might be inspired, encouraged and accompanied by the entire Mystical Body of Christ on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"We should show our affection for the angels, for one day they will be our coheirs just as here below they are our guardians and trustees appointed and set over us by the Father.”—Saint Bernard of Clairvaux

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux gives us a marvelous thought—the angels are our coheirs.

Along with the angels, we, too, hope to someday be in Heaven alongside them worshiping and serving God as we behold Him face-to-face.

The Feast of the Archangels on Tuesday helps us understand more fully how God has given providential care to them in His creation by examining their names which Scripture gives us. Micheal means “Who is like God?” and reminds us that no power can rival God. Gabriel means “God’s messenger” and reminds us to listen and respond to God’s Word. While Raphael means “God has healed” and reminds us of how God accompanies, guides, and heals His people.

Just like Mary, the angels never draw attention to themselves, but instead point us towards God. Our devotion to the angels should seek to do the same by helping us become more aware of God’s providence, increase our attentiveness to His Word, and grow in confidence in the spiritual battle in our determination to reach Heaven.

This week, resolve to learn more about the Archangels—Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael while asking each of them to help you grow in in your capacity to experience God’s loving care.

Food for the Heart

"Since God often sends us his inspirations by means of his angels, we ought frequently to offer him our aspirations through the same channel. ... Call on them and honor them frequently, and ask their help in all your affairs, temporal as well as spiritual.”—Saint Francis de Sales

Saint Francis de Sales challenges us to move from simply believing that angels exist to actually developing a devotion to them by calling upon them, honoring them and asking for their help at all times, or as Saint says, “in all your affairs, temporal as well as spiritual.”

Today, we remember Saint Wenceslaus and also Saint Lawrence Ruiz and his companions, all of whose courage as martyrs reminds us that the Christian life involves a spiritual battle—but Heaven accompanies us within it.

Remembering that reality, we need to learn how to call upon the angels to help us with the meeting we are worried about, or the conversation we don’t know how to handle, or the temptation we repeatedly struggle against, and the decision we need to make, and the person we are trying to help, and the prayer in which we cannot seem to concentrate. In other words, with all of the ordinary tasks filling our day.

What might change if we consciously began to ask our Guardian Angel to accompany us in all of these moments? Maybe nothing—at least anything we can see outwardly. But we will begin to change—inwardly. We will become more recollected, and more attentive and more aware of God’s presence as we become more receptive to His inspirations and more trusting of His providential care.

Bottom line, it’s a win all around.

This week, resolve to greet your Guardian Angel each morning and ask for help with whatever responsibilities, decisions, temptations, and opportunities you face throughout the day.

Food for the Hands

“If you remembered the presence of your angel and the angels of your neighbors, you would avoid many of the foolish things which slip into your conversations.”—Saint Josemaria Escriva

Now Saint Josemaría makes an observation that might make us a bit uncomfortable. How often have we said foolish things in our conversations? I know I have! But Saint Josemaria gives us a practical way to guard against such foolishness in the future.

Imagine your next conversation and also remember that your Guardian Angel is there along with the Guardian Angel of the person standing in front of you. Are you going to say the same things? Would you gossip? How about whether you would criticize someone unnecessarily? Maybe you refrain from a sarcastic remark? Or perhaps would not speak impatiently? Or you would refrain from participating in a conversation that might damage another person’s reputation?

Now, it is relatively easy to have a sentimental devotion to our Guardian Angel, but it is different to live knowing that our angel is actually present. But this is where devotion becomes discipleship. It is where our awareness of the spiritual world changes how we behave in the physical world.

On Thursday, we celebrate the memorial of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and her Little Way which teaches us holiness is found in trusting God and doing ordinary things with extraordinary love. Saint Josemaria’s suggestion is helping us to do exactly that by making the small choice to speak and do the good.

We can do this in may small ways—by giving a smiling look or by sharing a kind word. By refusing to gossip and remaining silent instead of criticizing. By being encouraging rather than discouraging, or listening instead of interrupting.

Small things, but all done with great love with the help of our guardian angels.

This week, before any conversation, but especially a potentially difficult one, resolve to remember both your Guardian Angel and the other person’s angel by asking them to help you speak only what is true and necessary with love.

Food for the Feet

"At the orders of the queen, the angels frequently assisted the apostles in their travels and tribulations ... The angels often visited them in visible shapes, conversing with them and consoling them in the name of the most blessed Mary.”—Saint Mary of Agreda

What a beautiful image Saint Mary of Agreda paints for us here. And it reminds us of the reality that Mary, the angels, and we as disciples of Christ are all working toward the same goal—leading souls to Christ.

Mary is Queen of the Angels because she always points toward her Son, just like the angels do. Gabriel comes to Mary with God’s message at the Annunciation, and she responds by declaring “Let it be done to me according to your word.” And her response allows salvation history to move forward.

Maybe there is a lesson here about the fact that on our spiritual journeys, we are not to remain stationary, but are created to be sent out. Sent out to love, to work, to proclaim the truth, to endure suffering and overcome temptations as we live out our vocations on our journey towards Heaven. And throughout it all, our Guardian Angel accompanies us.

So maybe we need to stop thinking about our Guardian Angel simply as someone who protects us from physical harm, but rather as our traveling companion on the road toward holiness.

So whenever you wander from the path, ask your angel to redirect you. And when you become discouraged, ask for help. And if you are tempted, ask for protection. Whenever you are uncertain, ask for guidance, and whenever God calls you forward, ask for your angel to intercede for you to have the courage to go.

This week, resolve to consciously invite your Guardian Angel to accompany you whenever you leave home, asking for protection not only from physical danger, but especially from anything that might lead you away from God.

One of the most beautiful ways to practice this is while praying the Rosary and asking your Guardian Angel to pray with you. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

“The powers of hell will assail the dying Christian; but his angel guardian will come to console him. His patrons, and St. Michael, who has been appointed by God to defend his faithful servants in their last combat with the devils, will come to his aid.”—Saint Alphonsus Liguori

Saint Alphonsus Liguori may initially be disturbing, but it really is a statement of great hope because he reminds us that our Guardian Angel is not just accompanying us through the day. Rather, our angel is accompanying us home.

This is because God does not abandon us at any point during our earthly life by giving us an angel who will be with us when we struggle, are tempted or afraid. Our angel is with us as we pray and worship at Mass, and is with us every moment until the end of our earthly pilgrimage.

This is why devotion to the Holy Angels is not just about the angels, but is about God’s extraordinary love for us. A love so great that He surrounds us with grace in His Word and in the Sacraments, along with His Mother, Mary, and all the saints and angels. All to help us get home to Him.

So, this week, remember your angel and ask for help as you listen for God’s inspirations. Make sure to guard your words and strive to resist temptation. Perform small acts of love. And ask your Guardian Angel to keep you heading toward Jesus.

You are not alone and never have been.

And because of God’s extraordinary providence, you never will be.

Even if there is no other reason other than the one given to us by Saint Alphonsus about our guardian angel and Saint Michael coming to protect the dying Christian, that reason alone should be enough to cause us to honor and praise the angels, and this week of the liturgical year gives us not one, but two opportunities to do so.

Therefore, let us take the advice of all those who have come before us, and give honor and praise to the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael as well as our guardian angels.

So, may each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES to cooperate with God’s grace and deepen our devotion to His Holy Angels by allowing them to accompany us faithfully throughout our earthly pilgrimage until the day we join them in the presence of God—and all together we will be able to tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my latest book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time. It is available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Are you looking for spiritual direction or for life coaching? Then check out my christinasemmens.com website to see how you might benefit from working with me as well as get access to free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation.

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Two Things I Ask of You (Sept 23)

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #266

“9/11, Fulton Sheen, Faith, Freedom and Liberty”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Here is the latest podcast on The Catholic Leadership Puzzle for your listening pleasure:

Pope Leo XIV and Pastoral Insights

In this episode I reflect upon the ideas that Pope Leo XIV shared with the Diocese of Rome, and how they are similar to the ideas I wrote about in Solving the Parish Puzzle. Holy Spirit is at work in the Church for sure!

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it on Substack at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle.

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This reality is partially as a result of the majority of the content of the book—the thoughts and writing of soon to be Blessed Archbishop Fulton Sheen. Blessed Fulton Sheen always shared that his extraordinary preaching and writing flowed from his commitment to spending a daily Holy Hour in the presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, and The Soul of a Disciple invites us to do something similar. This occurs by having us not simply read Sheen’s words, but through the crafting of a space in which we can allow those words to lead us into a deeper encounter with Christ.

It is in the structure of the book where I believe Allan Smith has truly excelled due to the simplicity and depth of the retreat format. Although each meditation is short, they are definitely not superficial as each day integrates the spiritual wisdom of Blessed Fulton Sheen with a brief reflection, Scripture, prayer, and a simple practice to help you integrate that wisdom into your daily life. Most brilliant in my opinion is that Smith doesn’t give you pages and pages of material to absorb—which would definitely be possible in light of Blessed Fulton Sheen’s life and extensive apostolate, but rather he selectively gives one sufficient material to ponder and then gives you the space necessary to bring that into prayer and concludes with encouragement to integrate that wisdom into your life of Christian discipleship.

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The book is structured into six retreats of ten days each that serve to gradually draw you more deeply into the Christian life. Although you can use any of the retreats separately, you also can begin by learning to gaze upon the Holy Face of Christ, and then from there, learn to remain with Christ by beholding his Mother, Mary. After that, you can learn to become more like Christ through faithfulness to the Beatitudes. From there we learn how to love through the mystery of the Cross, and then learn to abide with Christ in the Most Holy Eucharist. Finally, there is a special retreat designed to walk alongside Jesus through the events of Holy Week, from Palm Sunday to the joy of Easter Sunday.

For me, I found this progression particularly meaningful because it reflects the essential movements of discipleship because following Jesus is not simply about knowing more about Him. As disciples, we must first encounter Him and learn to remain with Him so that our relationship with Him gradually transforms how we see, love, suffer, pray, and live, and Blessed Fulton Sheen proves to be a remarkable spiritual companion throughout this journey.

If you have ever read any of Blessed Fulton Sheen’s writings or listened to any of his talks, you know of his extraordinary ability to take profound theological and spiritual truths and express them in ways that speak directly to the human heart. What is particularly beautiful is how Allan Smith has gathered that wisdom and then placed it within a structure that encourages us to not merely admire the insights Blessed Fulton Sheen provides us, but empowers us to pray with those same insights and put them into practice.

This last element was especially important to me, as my own work has always been an attempt to provide Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet to inspire, encourage and accompany others on the journey towards holiness. In this book, Allan Smith gives us Food for the Head by giving our mind something to consider, then Food for the Heart through Scripture and prayer to help move that truth into the heart, and then Food for the Hands and Feet through a suggested practice that invites us to carry the encounter into our daily lives. So, in the end, these reflections are not something to just be read and checked off, but are small invitations to conversion.

As mentioned before, the flexibility of the book lends itself well to use more than once as the six retreats can be made individually at different times, or prayed as part of one’s regular spiritual life, or to be shared with others. Although the final retreat would make an especially meaningful companion during Holy Week, walking with Christ day by day from Palm Sunday through Easter, I could easily imagine using it at different points during the year as the circumstances of my own spiritual life change.

What has remained with me most after reading The Soul of a Disciple is not simply the structure of the retreats or even the wisdom contained within them. It was the experience of encountering the remarkable spiritual depth of Blessed Fulton Sheen’s love for Jesus Christ. Throughout these pages, Blessed Fulton Sheen continually points beyond himself and toward Christ—to His Holy Face, His Cross, His Eucharistic presence, His Mother, His teachings, His suffering, and ultimately His Resurrection. The result is a book that has the potential to do exactly what good spiritual reading should be all about--transforming the mind, touching the heart, and nourishing the soul.

For those who already love Blessed Fulton Sheen, The Soul of a Disciple offers a beautiful new way to pray with his writings. For those of you encountering him for the first time, it provides an entry point into the remarkable depth of his spirituality. For anyone else seeking to become a more faithful disciple of Christ, these short and powerful retreats will serve you well in providing a practical path in striving towards that goal, so I highly recommend it!

Because the goal of discipleship is not to merely learn more, but to become more through transformative encounters with Christ, and The Soul of a Disciple beautifully reminds us that transformation like that happens one encounter, one prayer, and one faithful response at a time.

Blessed Archbishop Fulton Sheen, pray for us!

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Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Welcome to the 25th week of Ordinary Time, but if you are living in the United States, this week is going to be FAR from ordinary as the beatification of Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen will be happening this Thursday in St Louis—and I will have the privilege of being there!

In recognition of this happening within the Church, I have selected quotes from the work of Fulton Sheen to help us dive deeper into this week’s Gospel and to be inspired, encouraged and accompanied on our journey together.

So, first, the words sahred by Jesus in Sunday’s parable—“You too go into my vineyard.”

This is the directive from the owner of the vineyard to everyone—those who began early in the morning, others who strted at nine, noon, and three. And finally, to those who arrive when there is barely an hour of daylight remaining.

But what struck me was how it was that the landowner keeps going out. Again. And again. And again. And again. He’s always on the lookout for people to invite to go into his vineyard, and he doesn’t care whether they can work for eight, six, four, or less than two hours.

But then at the end of the day, he does something even more radical, and it completely upsets any ideas we might have about fairness—the owner gives everybody the same wage! Understandably, those who had all day are upset, and grumble about how they surely deserve more than those who only worked part of the day!

Yet the landowner responds with a question that all of us need to consider—“Are you envious because I am generous?” The owner (God) is challenging us to think differently about grace, justice, generosity, and God’s call. Instead of calculating, the Lord is inviting us to give. Rather than comparing, the Lord wants us to invite and to not consider who might deserve what, because God just wants to pour out His grace. But the biggest lesson is that like God, we need to never tire of going into the marketplaces of our lives looking for people whom we can invite into the Lord’s vineyard.

How especially appropriate that this message is shared with us at the beginning of the week prior to the beatification of Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen in St. Louis. Fulton Sheen spent decades proclaiming Christ through his preaching, writing, radio, and television shows. He, too, never tired of inviting others into the Lord’s vineyard, and partially because of that, this great American evangelist will formally be recognized as one of the Blesseds of the Church.

So, let the wisdom of Fulton Sheen continue to guide us as our Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet so that it may inspire, encourage, and accompany us in receiving God's grace with humility, resisting comparison, practicing generosity, and answering His invitation to labor in His vineyard as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"Patience is power. Patience is not an absence of action; rather it is ‘timing’—it waits on the right time to act, for the right principles and in the right way.” — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

Why do you think the landowner keep returning to the marketplace? Why did he not just hire everybody first thing in the morning? Well, Jesus doesn’t tell us. But maybe that was part of the point to help illustrate that God’s timing is God’s timing.

Some folks encounter Christ early in life, while others only find Him after years of searching. Same goes for those who discover their vocation when they are young while others might spend decades wondering what God wants them to do.

Same thing with prayer. Some prayers seem to appear to be answered immediately, while other prayers take years. Now, during that waiting, it can be easy to assume that nothing is happening, but Archbishop Sheen reminds us otherwise. Because patience is not passivity. Rather, patience is all about trusting that God is working even when we can’t see what He is doing.

The workers hired late in the day might have spent hours wondering whether anyone would ever choose them. Until the landowner arrived and told them, “You too go into my vineyard.” They had not been forgotten. Not has God forgotten about us—even if it might seem that way at the moment.

So, strive for patience in the midst of whatever situation you may find yourself as you remember that God has not forgotten you.

This week, resolve to identify one area where you have become impatient with God's timing. Instead of trying to force an answer, pray each day, “Lord, help me trust Your timing and recognize what You are asking of me today.”

Food for the Heart

"Humility is dependence on God as pride is independence of Him. The humble soul is always the thankful soul.” — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

We might think that the issue Jesus is pointing out is only about generosity. But it’s really about comparison.

The workers hired first thing in the morning were perfectly content with getting the daily wage—until they saw that others were getting what they were getting without having to work all day. Now, instead of seeing that they had enjoyed the blessing of a job for the day, they now resented the work they had agreed to do. Their blessing now seemed like a curse.

How often do we do the same? We are grateful for our gifts until we notice the gifts that someone else has. Or we are satisfied with the opportunities we have until someone else receives something that we wanted. Or we are only thankful for God’s blessings until someone who swe perceive deserves them less receives more of them.

The pattern is that comparison will always turn gratitude into resentment.

But Fulton Sheen points out how humility can change the equation because a humble person recognizes that everything is grace. Through humility, you see that your talents and opportunities are all gifts. You can see that your vocation is a gift. You realize that even your ability to work in God’s vineyard is a gif.

So instead of asking why someone received what they received, instead you aks yourself how you might thank God for what has been received. You are no longer comparing yourself to others, but simply grateful for all that you have and are.

That is the freedom that comes of humility.

This week, resolve that whenever you are tempted to compare yourself with someone else, resolve to immediately thank God for one grace He has given you and one grace you see Him giving that other person.

Food for the Hands

“You must remember to love people and use things, rather than to love things and use people.” — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

The complaining workers reduced everything to a transaction. They worked x, therefore they should receive y. Too often, we go through life this way, don’t we? We reduce everything to a transaction, including the things that can not be measured like goodness, kindness, generosity, friendship, and love. And because of it, we end up poorer.

Because economics is no way to live. Praise God, Jesus gives us the key to seeing things as more than economics. Instead, He invites us to see people. People who need work and purpose. Folks who need the dignity of being invited into the vineyard. Of people who need enough to truly live.

The Kingdom of God cannot be reduced to a transaction, and neither can our relationships. Because people are not instruments to be used for advancement, comfort, status, productivity, success, or wealth. Rather, people are to be loved.

This is what generosity requires. Generosity demands that we stop trying to figure out what we will get in return, and instead start by asking what we can give. And all of us can give our time, attention, encouragement, compassion and forgiveness. We can share our resources along with a listening ear and a helping hand.

The example of the landowner’s generosity disrupted the way everyone around him was thinking and perceiving the people that He had invited to go into His vineyard.

Our generosity towards others should strive to do the same.

This week, resolve to perform one deliberately generous act for someone who cannot repay you—and don't tell anyone about it.

Food for the Feet

"If you do not live what you believe, you will end up believing what you live.” — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

“You too go into my vineyard.” This invitation by the landowner, is the same invitation that the Lord give sto each of us, and eventually, His invitation requires a response.

You might know Scripture, or understand Catholic teaching, or go to daily Mass, or know all about the saints, or say that Jesus is Lord. But sooner or later, you have to go into the vineyard. And this is why Fulton Sheen tells us that if you don’t live what you believe, you’ll end up believing what you live instead.

Archbishop Sheen’s life exemplifies what he meant. Fulton Sheen did not simply proclaim the Gospel by his voice, he proclaimed it by his life. Although he used the emerging media of his time to carry Christ beyond church walls and into people’s homes, and in the process became one of the best-known Catholic communicators of the twentieth century, his entire public apostolate rested upon a deeply prayerful life, especially a commitment to a daily Eucharistic Holy Hour.

Faith must eventually acquire hands and feet, and this is what Fulton Sheen’s apostolate showed. He believed every person possessed dignity, and his behavior demonstrated it—just like ours needs to as well.

Therefore, if we believe forgiveness matters, then we must forgive. If we believe the poor matter to God, then they must matter to us. If we believe Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist, then that reality should shape our priorities by our spending time with Him every day. And if we believe that God has called us into His vineyard, then we eventually we have to start working.

This week, resolve resolve to identify one belief you profess but are struggling to consistently live, and ask God for the grace to take one concrete action that will bring your life more closely into alignment with what you profess.

Just like Archbishop Sheen, the importance of spending time before Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration can not be overemphasized. His daily Holy Hour was foundational to his spiritual life and ministry, and Eucharistic adoration will be a part of the official celebrations surrounding his beatification this week. Therefore, consider spending time before the Blessed Sacrament this week—even if only for fifteen minutes—and ask Jesus one simple question: “Lord, where are You calling me to work in Your vineyard?” Then listen. One of the most beautiful ways to do this is while pryaing the Rosary. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

“Evil may have its hour, but God will have His day.” — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

Something else to consider from the parable is about the workers who had yet to be hired by the edn of the day. They could have given up because the opportunity seemed to have passed. They could have thought that no one needed or wanted them. Maybe tomorrow would be a better day. But then the landowner appeared and told them, “You too go into my vineyard.”

For me, I think this is one of the most hopeful messages in the entire parable because it reminds us that it is never too late to answer God’s call.

It’s not too late after failure, or sin, or maybe after years away from the Church. It doesn’t matter if you might have chosen the wrong path, or wasted opportunities, or believe that your most fruitful years are behind you. With God, there is always an invitation—and that is the great hope that Archbishop Sheen spent his life proclaiming.

The reality that Jesus Christ has already won the victory.

It might appear that evil is more powerful, or that injustice may rule the day. Or that our personal failures might seem insurmountable.

But none of them gets the final word.

God does.

Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s beatification gives us an opportunity this week to not simply celebrate his life, but to also ask ourselves, What am I doing with my life?

God is still calling. He is still giving grace. He is still inviting workers. But most epsecially, God is still astonishing in His generosity.

So stop comparing yourself to others, and be grateful.

Seek to be generous and trust in God’s timing.

Live what you believe, so that when you hear God say, “You too go into my vineyard,” you’ll be ready to go.

So, regardless of whether it is the first hour or the eleventh, answer the call by doing WHATEVER IT TAKES to receive God’s grace with humility, rejoice in His generosity toward others, and faithfully labor wherever He calls us in His vineyard, trusting that evil may have its hour, but God will have His day, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

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Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

I will be in St Louis this week at Fulton Sheen’s Beatification!

If you are going to be there, PLEASE reach out via email— christinasemmens@gmail.com—I would love to connect with you in person!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

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Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

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Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #266

“9/11, Fulton Sheen, Faith, Freedom and Liberty”

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Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

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Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Today is the Feast of the Exhultation of the Holy Cross. It also would have been my 30th wedding anniversary, so today’s newsletter will be a bit different than previous weeks in that instead of focusing upon the Gospel, we’ll focus upon how we might carry our crosses, especially in the joys, sorrows, challenges that occur in the midst of our daily lives.

“We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world.”

This is our response throughout the Stations of the Cross, a devotion normally practiced during Lent, but we celebrate that reality, and confront one of the great paradoxes of our faith today with the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

How is it that an instrument of torture becomes the instrument of salvation? How can a symbol of humiliation become a sign of victory? How can an apparent defeat become a triumph of Love? And how does death become the pathway to eternal life?

These are the questions we confront on this day, and ones that I am meditating upon as I look back upon my life with my beloved late husband, Paul. When we were married on this day back in 1996, neither one of us registered that the Exhultation of the Cross was the feast day, but eventually when we did realize it, we would joke that each of us was the cross that would get the other into Heaven!

Although we joked about it, this actually is the truth of the cross.

For every cross we encounter in our life has the capacity to become the means by which we are prepared for eternal life with the Lord in Heaven.

No one knew this truth better than Mary as she stood at the foot of the Cross, and tomorrow, September 15th, we celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. This day gives us the chance to intentionally contemplate the woman who stood faithfully beneath that Cross and showed us what it means to remain with Jesus in suffering.

We continue this contemplation on Wednesday as we celebrate the memorial of Saints Cornelius and Cyprian. Each of them remained faithful to Christ and His Church as bishops in the midst of persecution, and ultimately they both embraced martyrdom as a result.

Thursday is the memorial of two Doctors of the Church—Saint Robert Bellarmine and Saint Hildegard of Bingen. Each led very different lives, but they model for us how our enitr lives with our gifts, intellect, creativity, and wisdom can all be placed at the service of Christ and His Church.

But that brings us back to today. Everything this week begins at the Cross because Christianity without the Cross would be a Christianity without Christ. Jesus never promised us a life without suffering. But He did enter into our suffering, then transformed it before invites us to follow Him.

So, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage, and accompany each of us in seeing Jesus in the midst of our crosses, surrendering those crosses to God, seeking to allow them to teach us how to love, and ultimately discovering the Cross is our great beacon of hope to sustain us while we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"Yes, I love the cross, the cross alone, because I always see it behind Jesus' shoulders." — Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

Perhaps one reason we struggle so much with our crosses is because we look at the cross and stop there.

Perhaps we hear the diagnosis. Or see a broken relationship. Or experience the disappointment. Or encounter the financial difficulty. Or feel the loneliness or the grief. Or remember the unanswered prayer.

But Padre Pio tells us that when we look at the Cross, we should see something else.

Jesus.

And Jesus changes everything. I can attest to this after having walked with Paul through his cancer journey. Jesus didn’t take away the suffering or the challenge of walking with Paul during that difficult time. But the Cross doesn’t give an explanation for suffering.

Rather, the Cross is God’s response to it. God chose to not remain distant from our pain. Instead, He entered into it by carrying the Cross and falling beneath its weight. In the process, He experienced all of what we experience in our lives—rejection, abandonment, physical agony, and finally, death.

Padre Pio invites us to look beyond the cross to see the One carrying it, and then to remember that when we encounter our own crosses, we are not going anywhere that Jesus hasn’t already been.

So, perhaps the question we need to ask when a cross enters our lives is not just, “Why is this happening?” But rather, “Jesus, where are You in this?”

Because if we can see Jesus behind the Cross, we’ll know that we don’t have to carry it alone.

This week, resolve to identify one cross you are carrying and then consciously look for the presence of Jesus within it. And if the cross has become burdensome, resolve to pray, “Jesus, help me see You behind this cross.”

Food for the Heart

"Let us bear our cross and leave it to God to determine the length and the weight." — Saint Rose Philippine Duchesne

I know that at the beginning of Paul’s cancer journey, two questions were subtlely present. First was ”How difficult is this going to be?” And second was “How long is this going to last?”

If we are honest with ourselves, those tend to be the two questions that come up any time we run into a cross. But usually, God doesn’t answer either question, does He?

Instead, He asks us to trust Him.

I would contend that Our Lady of Sorrows understood this better than almost anyone. From the moment of Simeon’s prophecy in the Temple that “a sword would pierce her heart” to standing beneath the Cross of her Son, Mary encountered suffering that she neither chose nor completely understood. But she remained faithful.

Just like Saint Rose Philippine Duchesne tells us, Mary could not determine the length of Calvary, or the determine the weight of the sword that would pierce her heart. All she could do was to keep saying YES—just like the YES she spoke in response to Saint Gabriel in Nazareth.

That is what surrender looks like.

And Saint Rose reminds us that we aren’t responsible for determining the dimensions of our crosses, but rather to only carry today’s portion of that Cross. When we do this, our hearts are freed from an enormous burden.

Because we don’t have to figure out how we will endure tomorrow. Or next month. Or next year. We just simply need to ask God for enough grace to get through today.

And God promises to provide it.

This week, resolve that when you find yourself worrying about how long a difficulty will last or how much harder it might become, that you will pray, “Jesus, I trust You with the length and the weight. Simply give me the grace to carry my cross today.”

Food for the Hands

“The Cross is the school of love." — Saint Maximilian Kolbe

I have discovered that there are so many lessons that we can learn at the school of the Cross, but the primary one is that we learn how to love. Not a sentimental love or a convenient love or a love that exists when the other person loves us in return.

We learn sacrificial love.

Saint Maximilian Kolbe knew something about this, didn’t he? So much so that he literally was able to offer himself as a sacrifice for the life of another and subsequently was placed in a starvation bunker and eventually shot to death at Auschwitz.

Saints Cornelius and Cyprian, whom we remember on Wednesday, learned this lesson of sacrificial love through their fidelity to Christ. Such faithfulness demanded courage, perseverance, and ultimately the sacrifice of their lives.

Both of them discovered what every disciple must eventually discover—love costs something.

Parents can discover this. Spouses can discover this. Caregivers can discover this. Friends can discover this. In fact, anyone who has genuinely tried to love another human being can eventually discover it. But we must be willing to sacrifice something that world tells us to hold on to—our time.

But sacrificial love requires us to sacrifice not only our time, but also our preferences, our comfort, our pride, and sometimes even our plans. I know my plan wasn’t to become a widow by the age of 56, but would I change it? Absolutely not.

Because Jesus teaches us from the Cross what love actually looks like: “This is my body, given for you.” And every day Jesus invites us to imitate Him. All the crosses created by our responsibilities, relationships, and vocation are actually be classrooms in which Jesus is teaching us to love more like Him.

Is it painful, difficult, and sometimes overwhelming?

Yes.

But is it also a school filled with love, joy, peace, goodness, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control?

Yes to all that, too.

This week, instead of merely enduring one sacrifice required by your vocation or responsibilities, resolve to allow your cross to become an act of love by consciously offering it for someone you love.

Food for the Feet

"One cannot desire freedom from the Cross when one is especially chosen for the Cross." — Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)

Our natural response to suffering is to escape it, isn’t it?

We pray for the problem to disappear or for God to remove the difficulty. (Or at least this is the first thing that I do!)

Now, there is nothing wrong with asking for relief. Jesus prayed for it in Gethsemane when He asked His heavenly Father, “Let this cup pass from me.”

But He also said, “Yet, not as I will, but as you will.”

Eventually, being a disciple requires us to stop asking only about relief, and instead to start asking, “Lord, how do you want me to follow You through this?”

Both of the Doctors of the Church whom we celebrate this week, Saint Robert Bellarmine and Saint Hildegard of Bingen, show us that following Christ can take wonderfully different forms according to our unique gifts and talents.

God calls some to teach. Some to create. Some to lead. Some to counsel. Some to heal. Some to defend truth. and some to quietly serve.

Holiness does not require us to become someone else. Rather, it requires us to surrender who we are and what we have been given back to God.

Inevitably, our journey towards holiness and our surrender will involve the Cross. So, allow Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross to guide you in this process. Because the question is not whether we will spend our lives trying to escape every sacrifice, but rather will we allow Christ to use those sacrifices to make us saints?

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross might be better known to you as Edith Stein. Edith was a brilliant woman who also happened to be Jewish. Although she eventually converted to Catholicism and became a Carmelite nun, she was still perceived as a Jew, and because of it, was eventually sent to the death camp at Auschwitz where she was killed in 1942. Only a year after Saint Maximilian Kolbe’s death there.

Although Saint Teresa was given the opportunity to flee, she refused knowing that her path to sanctity would probably involved the cross of marytrdom, and it did. She did not run away, rather, she embraced the cross and God’s will for her life.

The question for us is, will we have the courage to do the same?

This week, resolve to stop resisting one unavoidable cross in your life by asking Jesus how He desires you to carry it, and then take the next faithful step.

One of the most beautiful ways to learn how to walk with Jesus beneath the Cross is by praying the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. This week, consider praying them with Our Lady of Sorrows, especially as you walk with Mary from Gethsemane to Calvary, and ask her to teach you how to remain beside Jesus when you cannot fix the situation, remove the suffering, or understand what God is doing. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

"The Cross is a beacon of hope towering above chaos, calling us to embrace it with faith, love, and hope as the path from earth to heaven." — Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)

Saint Teresa Benedicta has such a wealth of wisdom to share with us regarding the Cross that I couldn’t help using another one of her quotes to conclude this week’s newsletter that is focused upon the Cross.

The idea that the Cross is a beacon is such a beautiful image, especially when you remember the purpose of a beacon—to shows us where to go in the midst of storms and chaos.

Our world contains plenty of chaos for sure.

And so do our lives, don’t they?

Yet towering above all of the chaos stands the Cross. The Cross bears witness that God has NOT abandoned us. In fact, Our Lady of Sorrows stood beneath that beacon. Under its shadow, Cornelius and Cyprian gave their lives while Saints Robert Bellarmine and Hildegard of Bingen used their gifts to point others toward its truth.

Countless saints throughout the centuries have discovered that the road to holiness inevitably passes through the cross, and so will ours.

But we don’t need to be afraid.

Rather, when the Cross appears, look for Jesus.

When its weight becomes heavy, let God determine its length and weight.

When sacrifice is demanded, enter the school of love.

When you are tempted to run, ask Jesus how He wants you to follow Him through it.

And when the chaos becomes so great that you cannot see the way forward, look again at the Cross.

Because the Cross is never the end. It just is pointing towards Resurrection.

No cross that we offer to Christ is meaningless.

And no suffering united to Him will ever be wasted.

All our acts of sacrificial love will be remembered for all eternity, because darkness never will have the final word.

So, keep doing WHATEVER IT TAKES to embrace the Cross with faith, love, and hope as you keep your eyes fixed upon Jesus, trusting Him that the road through Calvary ultimately leads to Resurrection, all so that we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #266

“9/11, Fulton Sheen, Faith, Freedom and Liberty”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Summary

Christina reflects on 9/11, Fulton Sheen’s teachings and faith, freedom and liberty. Especially that freedom is a moral responsibility and not simply the ability to do whatever we want while also connecting that idea to sanctity, mission, and the need to stay rooted in virtue even in a divided culture.

Freedom is not about doing whatever you want. It is the moral power to do what you ought—and that changes everything about virtue, character, and how you love others.

In this episode, Christina Semmens unpacks Fulton Sheen’s vision of holiness in a conversation that moves from daily self-denial and responsibility to the deeper meaning of freedom as a grace-shaped capacity for good. If you have ever wondered why discipline, law, and moral clarity actually protect freedom instead of limiting it, this episode gives you a compelling answer.

Christina shares how virtue forms character, why the law is not a cage but a safeguard, and how surrendering to the Lord builds the inner strength needed to choose the good even when it costs something. She also connects holiness to mission, pointing to Jesus with outstretched arms on the cross as the model for embracing others without abandoning truth.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why Fulton Sheen describes freedom as a moral power, not a license

• How self-denial becomes “daily bread” for a life ordered toward holiness

• Why responsibility and virtue are essential to true human freedom

• How love of God opens us to love others without losing our moral footing

• What 9/11 and national unity reveal about the danger of fear, division, and discouragement

Finally, Christina reflects on the way fear can shape whole societies, how division takes root when we abandon moral clarity, and why the call to holiness is inseparable from the call to witness.

If you need a reminder that real freedom is forged through virtue, dependence on God, and courage in the face of division, this is essential listening.

Subscribe now

Key topics

• Why Fulton Sheen’s quotes are serving as “food for the head, heart, hands, and feet” ahead of his upcoming beatification.

• Freedom is not license — She emphasizes Sheen’s point that freedom is the power to do what we ought, not just what we please.

• Virtue forms true character — She explains that moral power grows through grace, self-denial, and cooperation with the Lord.

• Law as protection, not restriction — She frames the law as a safeguard that keeps people on the right path rather than a burden that limits goodness.

• Responsibility matters — She underscores accountability for our deeds and the need to act for the good of all, not selfish ends.

• Holiness and mission belong together — She contrasts the way of sanctity with the way of mission, pointing to Jesus on the cross with arms outstretched as the model of universal love.

• Love requires moral clarity — Christina says encountering God opens us to others, but not at the cost of surrendering virtue or good character.

• Dependence on the Lord is essential — She argues that growth in love and capacity to serve others only happens through reliance on God.

• 9/11 as an example of unity — She recalls how the nation came together after 9/11, setting aside differences after the 2000 election turmoil.

• Division has spiritual roots — She warns that deceit, discouragement, and division remain active forces in the world and names Satan, Lucifer, as the source of that influence.

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.”

Simple advice, but incredibly difficult to follow, right?

In this Sunday’s Gospel (Matthew 18:15–20), Jesus speaks about something every one of us encounters—conflict. The division that occurs when someone hurts, disappoints, acts unjustly or outright sins against us.

Now, Jesus tells us what to do. Go to them and have a conversation.

Don’t talk about them. Or complain about them to others. Or worse, post about them on social media or try to recruit people to our “side.”

We are to reach out and go to them.

And if that doesn’t work, Jesus tells us to keep trying, and it’s only then when we are to involve others, and even the Church, in the effort to bring about reconciliation.

Why? Because Jesus is not interested in whose “right”. Rather, Jesus desires communion among all the sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father.

How appropriate that this week we celebrate as a Church saints and devotions that remind us of what happens when we allow God’s love to overcome division.

Tomorrow, we will celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was through Mary’s birth that the way for the One who would reconcile humanity with God was begun, especially as Mary’s entire life would become a YES to God’s plan of salvation.

On Wednesday, we remember Saint Peter Claver, whose ministry proclaimed the dignity of people whom society treated as less than human. Saint Peter Claver understood that our relationship with Christ must transform how we treat every brother and sister.

And on Saturday, we honor the Most Holy Name of Mary, reminding us that when loving another person becomes difficult, we can call upon the Mother who continually leads us to her Son who is the source of reconciliation and all peace.

Therefore, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage and accompany us in speaking truth with love, seeking reconciliation, recognizing the dignity of others, and becoming instruments of communion as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"United in the truth, show the Lord's own gentleness in your dealings with one another, and look down upon no one." — Saint Polycarp

Truth matters.

Jesus never tells us to pretend that sin does not exist. In fact, He explicitly tells us to address it. But how we address it matters. And Saint Polycarp gives us the key: truth and gentleness belong together.

Too often, we separate them though, don’t we? Many times we will avoid difficult conversations in the name of being “loving.” While other times, we might wield truth like a weapon and justify harshness because “someone needed to say it.” But Jesus offers another way.

Speak the truth, and speak it directly to the person. And when you do, speak that truth privately and gently. Speak the truth because you desire the good of the other person—not because you want the satisfaction of proving that you are right. Because the purpose of fraternal correction is not victory—it is reconciliation.

Reconcilation so that we can be united in the truth together and be a sign of what is possible as disciples of Christ when we love one another as He loves us.

Difficult? Absolutely.

Worth it? Absolutely priceless.

This week, if you need to say something difficult to another person, resolve to first ask yourself: "Am I saying this because I love this person and desire his or her good?" If the answer is yes, then ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to speak the truth with gentleness.

Food for the Heart

"As often as I look upon the cross, so often will I forgive with all my heart." — Saint Faustina

Sometimes reconciliation is difficult because the wound is real. We have genuinely been hurt, so maybe forgiveness can seem impossible. But Saint Faustina tells us where to look—the cross. Because when we look upon Jesus crucified, we are reminded of how much we ourselves have been forgiven.

Now, Jesus does not minimize our sins, rather, He takes them upon Himself, and from the Cross, He offers mercy.

This is why forgiveness is not about pretending that what happened did not matter, or mean that trust is immediately restored or that appropriate boundaries disappear. Rather, forgiveness means allowing Christ’s mercy to become greater than the wound.

This is precisely why Jesus’ instructions in the Gospel yesterday are so important. In order to start the work of bringing about reconciliation, we have to stop allowing hurt to remain hidden within our hearts, and instead bring it into the light of Christ.

The light of love and grace which can heal all things, restore all things, and sometimes, even bring about miracles.

This week, resolve to look upon a crucifix and ask Jesus to reveal whether there is someone whom you need to forgive—or from whom you need to seek forgiveness. Then ask for the grace to take the first step.

Food for the Hands

“Beauty is Life-Giving—Beauty nourishes our souls the way food nourishes our bodies. Search for the beauty that is all around you, and try to see God's face in every person you meet.... Dear Lord, help me to see You in everyone I meet." — Father John Catoir

On Wednesday, we celebrate Saint Peter Claver who ministered for decades among enslaved Africans arriving in Cartagen in the New World. Where others saw cargo, property, or people of lesser worth, Saint Peter Claver saw something entirely different—he saw Christ.

Now, this is where Sunday’s Gospel becomes more challenging. Because Jesus does not say: “If the brother you like sins against you...” or: “If the person who agrees with you sins against you...” Instead He says: “If your brother sins against you...”

And who is our brother (or sister)? The person standing before us.

And they remain our brother or sister even when we disagree, or they frustrate us, or when they sin. And even when reconciliation is difficult.

It will be virtually impossible for us to become instruments of reconciliation if we cease seeing the image of God in the person with whom we are in conflict. And this is where Saint Peter Claver’s witness can help to challenge us to look again.

Who have we dismissed? Who have we labeled? Who have we decided is unworthy of our attention, compassion, or love?

It is exactly those people to whom we must look again and see Christ.

This week, resolve to intentionally look for the face of Christ in one person whom you normally find difficult to love, and strive to perform one concrete act of kindness for them.

Food for the Feet

“Let them fly with utter confidence to this most sweet Mother of mercy and grace in all dangers, difficulties, needs, doubts, and fears. Under her guidance, under her patronage, under her kindness and protection, nothing is to be feared; nothing is hopeless." — Blessed Pope Pius IX

This week begins and ends with Mary. Tomorrow, we celebrate her birth, and on Saturday, we honor her Most Holy Name.

Between those celebrations, we are trying to do something incredibly difficult—to love one another as Christ loves us.

There will be relationships that seem impossible to repair. Conversations we are afraid to have. Wounds where we struggle to forgive. And people we simply do not know how to love.

So what should we do? Call upon Mary.

Mary knows what it means to remain present in the midst of suffering. She stood beneath the Cross and watched her innocent Son be mocked, tortured and killed. But she still remained united to Him in love.

So, whenever reconciliation seems hopeless, ask Mary to help. If you don’t know what to say, ask Mary. Whenever you find your heart filled with resentment, ask Mary to help you release it. If you need courage to approach another person, ask Mary.

And when you have called upon her to help, then let her to lead you to Jesus.

This week, resolve to invoke the Holy Name of Mary whenever and wherever you encounter conflict by simply asking, "Mary, Mother of Mercy, help me love as Jesus loves."

One of the best ways to learn how to call upon Mary is through praying the Rosary. As we meditate upon the mysteries of Christ's life through Mary's eyes, she teaches us to see others as her Son sees them and helps us become instruments of His mercy. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

"Without love, deeds, even the most brilliant, count as nothing." — Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Jesus concluded the Gospel yesterday with an extraordinary promise: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

Maybe we have heard this verse so often that we miss its significance within this Gospel.

Jesus just spent time teaching His disciples how to deal with conflict by going to one another, speaking the truth, seeking reconciliation, asking for help when necessary, turning to the Church, and finally, by praying together.

And when we do these things, Jesus promises us that He will be there.

Christ desires to be present in the space between us.

In our families. In our friendships. In our parishes. In our communities. And even in our disagreements.

But we have to make room for Him.

Mary showed us how to make room for Christ through her YES. Peter Claver made room for Christ by recognizing Christ’s presence in people whom others refused to see. And the Holy Name of Mary reminds us that we always have a Mother willing to help us make room for her Son.

Our world desperately needs disciples willing to do the difficult work of reconciliation. Those who will not abandon the truth, or by pretending differences do not exist. Rather, it is by by allowing truth and love to meet.

So, seek to speak directly to others instead of gossiping. Strive to listen before judging. Forgive as you have been forgiven, and try to recognize Christ in the difficult person as you ask Mary for help.

But above all, invite Jesus into the middle of it—because when Christ truly stands in the midst of us, enemies can become brothers and sisters again.

So, keep doing WHATEVER IT TAKES this week to become instruments of truth, mercy, forgiveness and reconciliation so that as we are gathered together in His name, we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #265

“America’s Saint--Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Converation with Dr. Peter Howard, President of Fulton Sheen Institute

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Welcome to another week on our journey towards holiness!

Last week, Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter gave the answer the Lord was looking for: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Now, this Sunday’s Gospel from Matthew 16:21-27 provides one of the most repeated phrases from Scripture that encapsulates the essence of what is necessary on the way of discipleship, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” And it is then that Peter discovers that knowing who Jesus is and understanding what it means to follow Him are two very different things.

Because Jesus begins explaining that He must go to Jerusalem, suffer, be killed, and then be raised on the third day, but Peter wants no part of it, so He pulls Jesus aside and rebukes Him.

Why? Perhaps because Peter had imagined that following the Messiah would lead to victory, success, honor and glory. Instead, Jesus speaks about suffering, sacrifice, self-denial, and the cross. But Peter doesn’t understand.

Truthfully, neither do we much of the time.

We do want to follow Jesus—but without inconvenience. We long holiness—but without sacrifice. We hope for resurrection—but without the cross. Yet Jesus can’t be clearer, can He?

“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”

This week, the Church also gives us two wonderful witnesses who show us what this kind of discipleship looks like when lived faithfully. First, on Thursday, we celebrate Saint Gregory the Great, a man who would have preferred the quiet contemplative life of a monk but accepted what what to be his cross in life—the tremendous responsibility of serving the Church as Pope.

Then on Saturday, we celebrate Saint Teresa of Calcutta, who heard Christ’s invitation to serve Him among the poorest of the poor in India and spent the remainder of her life answering that call—even while enduring profound interior darkness.

Both discovered what Peter had to learn: Following Jesus means surrendering our plans for His.

Therefore, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage and accompany us in denying ourselves, embracing our crosses, surrendering our plans, and learning to faithfully follow Jesus wherever He leads on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"Many men keep the commandments in the way sick men take medicine: more from fear of dying in damnation than for joy of living according to our Savior's will.... On the contrary, a loving heart loves the commandments. The more difficult they are, the sweeter and more agreeable it finds them, since this more perfectly pleases the Beloved and gives Him greater honor." — Saint Francis de Sales

Peter did not like when Jesus suffering might be a part of God’s plan. Yet Jesus’ response to Peter questioning that reality is really startling: “Get behind me, Satan!” Why does Jesus use such strong words? Because Peter was not thinking “as God does, but as human beings do.”

But we often do the same, don’t we? We will evaluate God’s will according to whether it is comfortable, convenient, or fits within the plans we have created for ourselves.

But Saint Francis de Sales offers another way to consider. Instead of asking whether God’s will is easy, we should ask whether it pleases the One we love. And that changes everything, because self-denial no longer is simply about giving something up, rather, it becomes about choosing God over ourselves.

Because we should not choose Him because we have to, out of obedience or fear, but rather because we want to, out of a desire for what is sweetness and agreeable. So, examine your life and determine where you are not thinking as God does, and then surrender those to Him.

This week, resolve to identify one area where you have been resisting God's will and ask for the grace to lovingly say YES to Him instead.

Food for the Heart

"My Lord, I offer you myself in turn as a sacrifice of thanksgiving. You have died for me, and I in turn make myself over to you. I am not my own. You have bought me.... My wish is to be separated from everything of this world... for my praise and strength shall be in you. Enable me to carry out what I profess." — Saint John Henry Newman

“Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

These words of Jesus make little sense according to the wisdom of the world because the world gives us a bunch of messages. We need to protect ourselves. To promote ourselves. To fulfill ourselves. To put ourselves first.

But Jesus tells us to give ourselves away. And Saint John Henry Newman understood why—because Jesus gave Himself completely for us. Therefore, our response is to give ourselves completely to Him.

Now, this does not necessarily mean doing something dramatic.

It begins with something small. Like surrendering one of those selfish desires. Or sharing the credit with others on a project that you were responsible for. Or maybe giving to others what you might want for yourself.

Most often, this surrender begins within the heart. We surrender our desire for control. And our need for recognition. Or our expectations. Perhaps our preferences or our plans. And then slowly, our lives cease being about what we want and become about what God wants.

Only then do we discover the paradox Jesus reveal—that it is precisely by losing ourselves in Christ that we finally discover who we truly are.

This week, resolve to begin each morning by praying, "Jesus, I give myself to You. Help me desire Your will more than my own."

Food for the Hands

“Action relies upon contemplation for its fruitfulness; and contemplation, in its turn... pours out upon our active works some of its overflow.... And so, in the soul of a saint, action and contemplation merge together in perfect harmony to give perfect unity to his life." — Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard

On Thursday, we celebrate Saint Gregory the Great. Now, Gregory loved the contemplative life. Yet God called him from the quiet of the monastery into tremendous activity and responsibility as Pope. But Gregory did not abandon contemplation for action. Instead, his prayer sustained his service.

This is an important lesson for us. We need to remember that taking up our cross does not mean filling our schedules with more activity. Rather, our service must flow from our relationship with Christ. Otherwise, our service will become exhausting because we begin to rely upon ourselves instead of God.

We then tend to become frustrated when others fail to appreciate our efforts, and when this frustration increases, we eventually burn out. This is why Jesus regularly withdrew to pray precisely so that He could pour Himself out in love. And Saint Gregory did the same.

So must we.

This week, before beginning your work each day, resolve to spend a few minutes with Jesus and ask Him to make everything you do an overflow of your love for Him.

Food for the Feet

“The best way to show your gratitude to God and to people is to accept everything with joy." — St. Teresa of Calcutta

On Saturday, we celebrate Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta. She spent her life serving people most of the world preferred not to see. The dying, the abandoned, the sick, and the unwanted.

But perhaps even more remarkable is that she continued faithfully carrying out that work while experiencing years of profound spiritual darkness. Yet she kept walking and serving and loving.

Bottom line, she kept carrying her cross.

But she she did it with joy. Not because everything she experienced was pleasant, and not because suffering itself is good. Rather, her joy was rooted in knowing that she belonged to Jesus. And that is what taking up our cross should look like as well.

Carry the cross is not merely enduring difficult things. It is about carrying them with Christ, and for Christ—trusting that nothing offered to Him in love is ever wasted. And that we should do all of this with joy.

This week, resolve to accept one inconvenience, frustration, or unexpected difficulty without complaining and offer it joyfully to Jesus as an act of love.

One of my favorite ways to learn how to carry our crosses with Jesus is by praying the Rosary. Mary accompanied her Son all the way to Calvary and can teach us how to remain faithful when the road becomes difficult. Consider praying the Sorrowful Mysteries this week and asking for the grace to follow Jesus wherever He leads. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

"Do not let the past disturb you, just leave everything in the Sacred Heart and begin again with joy." — St. Teresa of Calcutta

In light of Mother Teresa’s memorial on Saturday, I thought using a second quote from her would not go amiss, especially her emphasis upon joy—even when we must deny ourselves and take up our crosses, and follow Him. Three commands that lead to one path.

Now, none of us will walk that path perfectly. Peter certainly didn’t. The very man whom Jesus called the Rock upon which He would build His Church was rebuked only moments later for thinking according to the ways of the world. And Peter would stumble again. And again. And again. Yet Peter kept following.

Saint Gregory the Great had to surrender the life he preferred in order to serve where God needed him. And Saint Teresa faithfully served Jesus despite years when she could barely perceive His presence as she endured spiritual desolation.

Each one of them reminds us that discipleship is not about carrying our crosses perfectly. Instead, it is about continuing to follow Christ.

So, when we resist God’s will…we choose to begin again. And when we become selfish… we choose to begin again. And when we complain about the Cross...we choose to begin again. Whenever we fall beneath its weight...we choose to begin again.

And each time these things happen, we leave everything in the Sacred Heart and begin again with joy—because the Cross is never the end of the story. Jesus tells His disciples that He will suffer and be killed, but He also tells them that He will be raised.

That is the ultimate hope—and it is our hope.

For every cross carried with Christ leads ultimately toward resurrection.

Therefore, may each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Jesus wherever He leads, trusting that in losing our lives for His sake, we will truly find them, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #265

“America’s Saint--Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Converation with Dr. Peter Howard, President of Fulton Sheen Institute

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Augustine is one of the most well known of the early Church Fathers, and his writings, especially the Confessions and The City of God have impacted millions of people throughout the last fifteen centuries.

I share this because Saint Augustine is one of the disciples chronicled in a book I just finished reading. by Cardinal Fernando Filoni entitled, My Days Are in Your Hands: Men and Women in the Footsteps of Jesus.

One of the things I appreciated most while reading Cardinal Filoni’s book was the wonderful diversity of the people whose stories fill its pages. They come from Scripture and from the centuries that have followed. Each of those included in the pages come from remarkably different circumstances and walks of life, yet each offers us a glimpse of what it means to place our lives—and our days—into the hands of God.

That diversity is one of the great strengths of this book. In its pages, you encounter familiar biblical figures such as Abraham, Moses, John the Baptist, Mary, Joseph, Mary Magdalene, Peter, and Paul, but then also some of the world’s most well known saints like Augustine, Helena, Francis, Thomas Aquinas, and Mother Teresa. Cardinal Filoni invites us to look at each of them again through the lens of discipleship.

As the book moves through the centuries, we discover again and again that following Christ is never limited to only one personality, vocation, temperament, or path to holiness. The circumstances may change, but the invitation remains the same: to encounter Christ, surrender ourselves to Him, and then allow that encounter to shape how we live.

I particularly enjoyed the way Cardinal Filoni organizes each of the encounters. He first allows us to become acquainted—or reacquainted—with the disciple by sharing the story of his or her life, and only then does he move into reflection upon the significance of that life. He asks questions like: What difference did this person make? What can we learn from the choices he or she made? Where was God at work in that person’s circumstances?

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But the book doesn’t stop there.

Cardinal Filoni continually brings the question of what it is like to place one’s life into God’s hands back to the reader by reminding us that the lives of these disciples aren’t simply interesting stories from Scripture or Church history to be admired from a comfortable distance. Rather, their witness should challenge us to consider how the lessons of their lives might actually be lived in our own circumstances, relationships, responsibilities, struggles, and opportunities.

And this is what makes My Days Are in Your Hands much more than just a collection of short biographies. Instead, it serves as a continuous invitation to discipleship through the sharing of those stories.

For me, I found this invitation to be very reassuring. As I reflected upon the diverse collection of men and women Cardinal Filoni highlights, it reaffirmed what I have intuitively always known–that holiness does not belongs only to a particular “type” of person. God has worked through people who were courageous or hesitant, prominent or obscure, strong or struggling. Their paths towards sanctity were different because their lives were different—just like our lives are. What each of them has in common was their willingness to entrust their lives to God and follow where He led.

In this, the book’s title is absolutely spot on. For “My days are in your hands” is not simply a beautiful spiritual sentiment, but is a way of approaching life.

Each one of us has been given a particular number of days, a particular set of circumstances, and a particular opportunity to respond to God, just like the disciples Cardinal Filoni chronicles, and it is up to us to SAY YES to the invitation God presents to us to put our days into His Hands.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a spiritually enriching, but also a very practical exploration of Christian discipleship. It is especially valuable for personal spiritual reading because Cardinal Filoni has designed it so that each section naturally lends itself to prayer and reflection. But it would also work well within a small group, or used as a parish formation program, or simply by a group of like-minded people seeking to deepen their understanding of what it means to follow Jesus in everyday life on the journey towards holiness.

Ultimately, Cardinal Filoni doesn’t simply introduce us to men and women who followed Jesus. He invites us to join them. And that is perhaps the biggest question I carried away from this book is this: My days are in God’s hands—but what am I choosing to do with the days He has given me?

That final question continues to sit with me today, and I invite you to sit with it as well on your own journey of discipleship. AMDG!

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Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Welcome to the Twentity-First week in Ordinary Timeanother week on our journey towards holiness!

“But who do you say that I am?”

This is the question Jesus asks His disciples (and us!) in yesterday’s Gospel from Matthew 16:13–20. In fact, it may be the most important question any of us will ever answer.

Now, the disciples have plenty of answers about who other people say Jesus is. John the Baptist. Elijah. Jeremiah. Or one of the prophets. But Jesus then makes the question personal, “But who do YOU say that I am?”

And Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

And from that moment onward, everything changes. Jesus tells Peter that this truth has been revealed to him by the Father and that upon this rock He will build His Church. But Peter’s confession cannot remain merely words, and neither can ours.

For if Jesus truly is the Christ, the Son of the living God, then that truth must become the foundation upon which we build our entire lives.

So how marvelous that the Church gives us four witnesses this week who demonstrate different ways of recognizing Christ and then allowing that recognition to transform their lives.

On Monday, we celebrate the Feast of Saint Bartholomew the Apostle, traditionally identified as Nathanael in John’s Gospel. His first encounter with Jesus changes causes Nathanael to respond by proclaiming, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Just like Peter, Nathanael recognizes who Jesus truly is—and then follows Him.

Then, on Thursday, we remember Saint Monica, whose confidence in Christ allowed her to persevere in prayer for years for the conversion of her son, Augustine. Then Friday sees us celebrate Saint Augustine himself, whose restless search eventually led him to discover that only God could satisfy the deepest longing of his heart.

Then on Saturday, we conclude our week by commemorating the Passion of Saint John the Baptist, who remained faithful to the truth even when doing so cost him his life.

These four saints witness to us the different ways that we can all be disciples of Christ. Nathanael encountered Christ. Monica trusted Him. Augustine sought and found Christ. And John the Baptist witnessed to Christ through his death. Each, in their own way, answered the question Jesus places before every one of us: “Who do you say that I am?”

So, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage and accompany us in answering Jesus’ question for ourselves—and then building our lives upon our answer—as we continue our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"Love takes up where knowledge leaves off." — Saint Thomas Aquinas

Peter knew the right answer, but knowing who Jesus is was only the beginning. Peter would still have to learn what it meant to love Him. And in the process, Peter would stumble, misunderstand, and deny Jesus three times. And yet, ultimately, Peter would give his life for Him.

Saint Thomas Aquinas reminds us that knowledge must eventually give way to love. Therefore, it is important to know what the Church teaches by studying Scripture and the Catechism.

It is important to understand our faith, but ultimately, all of that knowledge must lead us into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ.

The question is not merely, “What do I know about Jesus?” Rather, the question is, “Do I love the One whom I know?”

This week, resolve to spend time each day with Jesus—not simply learning something about Him, but asking Him to help you love Him more deeply.

Food for the Heart

"To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek Him the greatest adventure; to find Him, the greatest human achievement." — Saint Augustine

Few people demonstrate the difference between knowing about God and actually encountering Him better than Saint Augustine, whose memorial we celebrate on Friday.

Augustine spent years searching. He searched for happiness. He searched for truth and for meaning. He looked in philosophy, intellectual achievement, ambition, relationships and worldly pleasures. Yet none of them satisfied him.

All the while, God was pursuing Augustine. But so was Augustine’s mother, Saint Monica. She prayed and prayed and prayed. She refused to believe that her son’s wandering was the end of his story. And eventually, Augustine discovered the One for whom he had been searching all along.

Jesus’ question—“Who do you say that I am?”—became personal because Jesus was no longer merely someone Augustine knew about.

He became the One Augustine loved, and that love transformed everything.

This week, resolve to ask yourself honestly, "Where am I searching for fulfillment apart from God?" Then invite Jesus into that place and ask Him to become the deepest desire of your heart.

Food for the Hands

“My confidence is placed in God who does not need our help for accomplishing his designs. Our single endeavor should be to give ourselves to the work and to be faithful to him, and not to spoil his work by our shortcomings." — Saint Isaac Jogues

Saint Monica understood this truth, and she desperately desired Augustine’s conversion. But she could not convert him. Only God could do that.

But Monica did what she could. She loved. She prayed. She sacrificed. She persevered. And she entrusted Augustine to God.

How difficult this can be for us (or at least it is for me!)

Because want to fix things for people, don’t we? Especially for those we love.

We want to change circumstances. Or we want to produce results. Or we want God to work according to our timetable.

Yet Saint Isaac Jogues reminds us that God does not need us to accomplish His designs. He simply asks us to be faithful. Sometimes faithfulness means doing something. Other times it means praying. And sometimes it means waiting while God works in ways we cannot yet see.

Saint Monica’s life reminds us never to underestimate what God may be doing through years of seemingly unanswered prayer, and Saint Isaac Jogues reminds us in whom we are to place our confidence.

This week, resolve to identify one person or situation you have been trying to change and entrust it to God. Then simply do the next faithful thing He asks of you.

Food for the Feet

“We ought to speak, shout out against injustices, with confidence and without fear. We proclaim the principles of the Church, the reign of love, without forgetting that it is also a reign of justice." — Blessed Miguel Pro

Peter proclaimed: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Eventually, each of us as Christ’s disciple must be willing to proclaim what we believe.

Saint John the Baptist certainly did. On Saturday, the Church remembers his Passion—his martyrdom because he refused to remain silent about the truth. John understood something our culture desperately needs to remember—Truth and love are not enemies. Authentic love desires what is true and good for another person. But proclaiming truth does not mean being harsh, argumentative, or self-righteous.

Blessed Miguel Pro reminds us that we proclaim the reign of love and justice. John the Baptist’s entire life pointed away from himself and toward Jesus, and that should be our goal as well.

We do this through our words, our choices, our priorities, our relationships, and our public witness. In fact, everything in our lives should answer Jesus’ question: “Who do you say that I am?”

So, what does your life say?

This week, resolve to courageously witness to one truth of the Gospel through both the way you speak and the way you live.

A beautiful way to gain courage to witness to the truth that Jesus is Lord is by praying the Rosary. Like Saint Monica, Mary teaches us how to trust God's work in those we love, and like Saint John the Baptist, she continually points beyond herself toward Jesus. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

"The only person who is free is the one who lives for Christ." — Saint John Chrysostom

“Who do you say that I am?”

Ultimately, no one else can answer that question for us. Not our parents, our spouse, our priest, or our friends. Not even the saints. Instead, we must answer it ourselves.

But our answer cannot remain merely words. If Jesus is truly the Christ, the Son of the living God, then He must become the foundation—the rock—upon which everything else in our life is built.

Saint Monica shows us what that looks like through persevering prayer. Saint Augustine shows us through a restless search that ultimately finds its fulfillment in God. Saint John the Baptist shows us through courageous witness to the truth regardless of the cost. And Saint Peter shows us that even when we fail, stumble, or deny Jesus, we can begin again and ultimately become the person God created us to be.

Each one answered Jesus’ question not merely with words, but with a life. And each one of us are invited to do the same.

So this week:

Know Him. Love Him. Trust Him. Proclaim Him.

And then build your life upon Him.

May each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES to proclaim with Peter—and with our lives—that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” so that together we can tell the Master of Death,“NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

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Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #265

“America’s Saint--Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Converation with Dr. Peter Howard, President of Fulton Sheen Institute

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

In this Sunday’s Gospel from Matthew 15:21–28, a Canaanite woman approaches Jesus and begs Him to heal her daughter.

At first, Jesus appears to ignore her, so she cries out again. Now, the disciples want Jesus to send her away, but she continues to persist.

So, Jesus challenges her, and she still persists. Jesus seems to be intent on refusing her, but she finally kneels before Him and says simply: “Lord, help me.”

Jesus continues to challenge her, but she refuses to leave.

Why? Because she knows who Jesus is.

The Canaanite woman believes Jesus can heal her daughter, so no silence, obstacle, rebuke, or delay is going to convince her otherwise, and the result is that ultimately Jesus praises the greatness of her faith with one of the most extraordinary compliments we hear Him share in the Gospels as He finally grants her request: “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

I don’t know about you, but I long to have such persistent faith!

Because how often do we stop praying because God seems silent? Or we assume that a delay means “no”? Or we become discouraged because God’s response does not come in the manner—or according to the timetable—we expected?

The Canaanite woman models for us another way.

Keep asking. Keep trusting. Keep believing.

This model is particularly appropriate during this week in which we will celebrate the Feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary on August 22, because Mary exemplifies for us what a lifetime of persevering faith and trust in God looks like.

Therefore, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage and accompany us in growing in faith, persevering in prayer, interceding for others, and confidently approaching Jesus—with the help of His Mother—as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"Something does change when we trust God. But it may not always be our circumstances. Often, the thing that changes is our disposition and our hearts, knowing that God is with us in this place." — Father Pierre Toussaint

The Canaanite woman’s circumstances did not immediately change.

Her daughter remained afflicted and Jesus remained silent and the disciples were annoyed by her presence. Yet, she continued to trust.

This is probably one of the most difficult lessons of the spiritual life, because we often think that trusting God means believing that He will change our circumstances.

And sometimes He does.

But trust means something much deeper. Trust means believing that God is present even when our circumstances do not change.

The Canaanite woman trusted Jesus more than she trusted what she could see happening around her.

The question before us is, can we do the same?

Can we believe that God is good when our prayers appear unanswered? Can we believe He is working when we cannot see evidence of it? Can we remain confident in His love when everything around us seems to suggest otherwise?

That is faith.

And it is the most difficult kind of faith to hold on to because it seems like God isn’t responding.

I can truly identify with this, especially in the last year and a half since my husband’s passing. It has seemed like God was not answering my prayers, especially when circumstances in some areas of my life seemed to get worse. But the fact is that God was moving. He was preparing the circumstances for a life that was beyond what I could even pray for, and now that life is beginning to emerge through new opportunities and new connections and new friendships. And I need to persist and have faith so the Lord can continue to love me and care for me—even if I still can’t see it sometimes.

That is the faith the Canaanite woman displays for us, and the same faith which Jesus invites us to cultivate in our lives.

This week, resolve to identify one circumstance you have been asking God to change and instead ask Him to help you recognize His presence within it.

Food for the Heart

"Know, dearest daughter, how, by humble, continual, and faithful prayer, the soul acquires, with time and perseverance, every virtue. Wherefore should she persevere and never abandon prayer." — Saint Catherine of Siena

The Canaanite woman gives us a beautiful model of humble, continual, and faithful prayer. She asks and waits. She asks again. She kneels and pleads. But most importantly, she refuses to stop believing.

Saint Catherine of Siena reminds us that perseverance in prayer does more than obtain something from God.

Prayer changes us.

Because it is through continual and faithful prayer that our desires are purified and our humility grows and our trust deepens. In the end, our faith becomes stronger.

Perhaps this is why God sometimes allows us to wait.

I know that the waiting for my son to secure a job as a golf instructor was a long time coming. And many prayers were offered for him to find not just a job, but the right one. To find the job that has him in the right place, with the right people, doing the thing that helps him become more fully who God created him to be. It took more than a year and a half, but it finally has happened.

All of us have something that we are seeking and desiring and praying for. For the Canaanite woman, she came seeking the healing of her daughter. But through her perseverance, something else was revealed—the extraordinary depth of her faith.

So extraordinary that Jesus Himself praised it!

Saint Catherine tells us how to do the same as the Canaanite woman. To remain humble, offer continual and faithful prayer so as to persevere in acquiring every virtue we will need to be a person of faith.

But also remember that our unanswered prayers could be the very places where God is quietly forming something beautiful within us—if we but persevere and remain faithful.

This week, resolve to return faithfully to one prayer intention you may have become discouraged about and entrust it to Jesus every day.

Food for the Hands

“You know well enough that Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, nor even at their difficulty, but at the love with which we do them." — St. Thérèse of Lisieux

The Lord tells us that there are only two commandments—to love God with all our heart, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. This is important to remember in that the Canaanite woman was not asking for herself.

She was asking for her daughter.

Her persistence was an act of love.

And love is the heart of intercessory prayer.

Intercessory prayer is simply that we bring someone we love before Jesus and ask the Lord to help them. Because sometimes there is nothing else we can do.

We cannot heal their illness or repair their relationships, or make their decisions, or remove their suffering.

But we can carry them to Jesus.

Interceding for another is no small thing, and Saint Thérèse reminds us that God measures our actions according to the love with which they are offered.

All of the smallest acts, at least in the eyes of the world, are acts of love that are great in the eyes of God.

The persistent prayer of a parent. The quiet prayer of a spouse. The Rosary offered for a friend. The Mass offered for someone who has died. The whispered prayer for someone who may never even know we prayed for them.

These are all tremendous acts of love in the eyes of God, so love God even more by loving your neighbor.

This week, resolve to choose one person in particular and faithfully intercede for that person's needs each day.

Food for the Feet

“Let them fly with utter confidence to this most sweet Mother of mercy and grace in all dangers, difficulties, needs, doubts, and fears.... [S]he has been appointed by God to be the Queen of heaven and earth.... [S]he presents our petitions in a most efficacious manner. When she asks, she obtains. Her pleas can never be unheard." — Blessed Pope Pius IX

This Saturday, we celebrate the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and I can’t think of a better way to conclude a week spent reflecting upon persistent intercession!

But let’s not only remember the Canaanite woman who interceded for her daughter. Let’s remember that Mary intercedes for all of her spiritual children—and that includes each and every one of us!

Because Mary’s Queenship is not about worldly power or prestige. Mary’s queenship is all about being perfectly united to Christ the King. And through that union, Mary loves us and desires for us what is best for us.

And what is it that our Queen desires? For us to draw closer to her Son.

We see this throughout Mary’s life. At Cana, she recognizes the need of the newly married couple and brings that need to Jesus, and then she tells the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

She tells us to do the same thing. And she has continued to do the same thing in Heaven by taking our needs to Jesus and then pointing us back towards Him.

So, let’s approach our Blessed Mother with confidence and ask her to intercede for us, so that we can keep asking, trusting and believeing—especially when we find it difficult to persevere.

This week, resolve to bring one seemingly impossible intention to Mary and ask her to present it to her Son.

A beautiful way to do this is through the Rosary. Place your intention into Mary's hands before beginning and allow her to accompany you as you meditate upon the life of her Son. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

"When will the happy time come when the divine Mary will be established Mistress and Queen of all hearts, in order that she may subject them fully to the empire of her great and holy Jesus?" — Saint Louis de Montfort

Queen of all hearts.

Saint Louis de Montfort beautifully captures what Mary’s Queenship is ultimately about—Jesus.

Because Mary does not desire our hearts so that she can keep them for herself. She desires to bring them completely under the reign of her Son.

This is why Mary can help us imitate the Canaanite woman. Mary knows what it means to trust when God’s plan is mysterious. She knows what it means to persevere when circumstances appear impossible, and she knows what it means to stand faithfully before Jesus in the midst of suffering.

Most importantly, she knows the power of intercession.

So when Jesus seems silent...

Keep praying.

When circumstances do not change...

Keep trusting.

When you become discouraged...

Keep believing.

When someone you love desperately needs God’s grace...

Keep interceding.

And when you feel as though you cannot persevere any longer, fly with confidence to your Queen and Mother and ask her to help you approach her Son, so perhaps one day we, too, might hear Jesus say: “Great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

This week, may each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES to persevere in faith, hope and prayer, trusting in the goodness of Jesus and seeking the intercession of Mary, our Mother and Queen, so that together we can tell the Master of Death,“NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say Yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #265

“America’s Saint--Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Converation with Dr. Peter Howard, President of Fulton Sheen Institute

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Storms.

We all experience them—just like the disciples did in the Gospel this weekend.

Now, sometimes storms arrive suddenly. Like a diagnosis, a death, a financial difficulty, the loss of a job, a broken relationship, or something else that we can’t quite control.

Right now, I am in the midst of a minor storm myself as I am still helping my son move and settle into his new apartment, so have had the challenges of trying to get access to the internet, and figuring out a place to and time to write the newsletter. :)

At other times, storms develop slowly in the midst of circumstances we thought we could control, but gradually become unmanageable. Regardless of whatever form they take, storms have an uncanny ability to reveal where we have placed our trust.

In the Gospel this Sunday from Matthew 14:22–33, the disciples find themselves in a boat being tossed about by a storm while Jesus is away praying. Later, in the middle of the night, Jesus comes walking toward them across the water, and when the disciples see Him, they become frightened. Yet Jesus reassures them that it is He. Then, Peter responds in a way that should inspire all of us.

He asks the Lord to command Him to come to Him, and when the Lord does, Peter gets out of the boat. But even more amazingly, Peter walks on water!

Until he notices the wind.

Then Peter becomes frightened and begins to sink.

Can you identify? I know I can.

We hear Jesus’ invitation. We step out in faith. But then we look around at the circumstances surrounding us, become afraid, and begin to sink.

But the most important part of this Gospel is what happens next.

Peter cries out, “Lord, save me!”

And immediately, Jesus reaches out His hand.

So, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage and accompany you in keeping your eyes fixed upon Jesus so you can trust Him amid life’s storms, and have the courage to step out of the boat while we continue on the way towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"The life of faith is nothing less than the continued pursuit of God through all that disguises, disfigures, destroys and, so to say, annihilates Him.... God hides beneath veils of darkness and illusive appearances which make His will difficult to recognize; but in spite of every obstacle these souls follow Him and love Him even to the death of the Cross." — Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence

The disciples could not recognize Jesus at first. Rather, they saw someone walking across the water and cried out in fear, believing they were seeing a ghost.

Why?

Because they were trying to interpret what was happening through the storm surrounding them with their own understanding.

But we do exactly the same thing, don’t we?

We try to interpret things without God’s input. This is especially true when life becomes difficult, and God’s presence becomes harder to recognize. In fact, many times, we even interpret His apparent absence as evidence that He has abandoned us.

Yet, as Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade reminds us, the life of faith requires pursuing God even when circumstances seem to disguise His presence.

Jesus was present in the storm. He was walking toward His disciples even before they recognized Him.

And Jesus is doing the same for us right now.

So, keep your eyes on Him, and trust He is already there to help you get through.

This week, resolve to look for God's presence in one difficult circumstance rather than focusing solely upon the storm surrounding it.

Food for the Heart

“My daughter... Entrust everything to Me and do nothing on your own, and you will always have great freedom of spirit. No circumstances or events will ever be able to upset you.... And so, set free from everything, rest close to My Heart, not allowing your peace to be disturbed by anything." — Jesus to Saint Faustina, Diary of Divine Mercy

Peter was doing the impossible by walking on water. But then Matthew tells us that Peter “saw how strong the wind was and became afraid.”

In that moment, nothing about Jesus had changed. Rather, the only thing that changed was where Peter placed his attention.

How often is this true for us?

We begin by trusting Jesus, but then we start focusing upon our problems, don’t we?

We replay conversations. Or we imagine everything that could go wrong. Or we attempt to solve situations beyond our control.

And as we do, fear slowly replaces peace.

But Jesus’ words to St. Faustina offer the remedy: “Entrust everything to Me.”

Because peace does not come when the storm disappears, rather, peace comes when we turn our attention back upon Christ, and entrust everything to Him.

This week, whenever anxiety or fear begins to overwhelm you, resolve to stop and pray, "Jesus, I trust in You," while intentionally placing the situation into His hands.

Food for the Hands

“My confidence is placed in God who does not need our help for accomplishing his designs. Our single endeavor should be to give ourselves to the work and to be faithful to him, and not to spoil his work by our shortcomings." — Saint Isaac Jogues

Peter deserves more credit than we usually give him. Eleven disciples remained in the boat, but Peter got out.

Yes, he eventually sank. But before he sank, remember that Peter walked on water!

But to do that, Peter had to be willing to leave behind what was safe.

We, too, need to be willing to leave what is safe so that we can follow Jesus—even if we may not know exactly how things will work out. Or we may not feel prepared. Or we may be frightened.

But when Jesus says, “Come,” then our task is to go.

Saint Isaac Jogues reminds us that God’s plans do not depend upon our strength. Instead, our responsibility is to give ourselves faithfully to the work He places before us—even when He tells us to get out of the boat.

Trusting that Jesus will take care of the water. :)

This week, resolve to identify one thing you believe God has been asking you to do and courageously take the next step.

Food for the Feet

“The road is narrow. He who wishes to travel it more easily, must cast off all things and use the cross as his cane." — Saint John of the Cross

Getting out of the boat is only the beginning.

We then have to keep walking.

Peter discovered how difficult that can be, especially when there are storms raging about.

But the Christian journey does not promise calm seas. In fact, following Christ often takes us directly through circumstances we probably would rather avoid.

Yet, Jesus never asks us to walk anywhere that He has not already gone.

He walks before us, and whenever we stumble—or even if we begin to sink—He remains close enough to reach out His hand and save us.

So, the key is not to never fall. Rather, the key is to know where to turn when we do.

Peter knew where to turn, and he did. And when he did, he simply asked, “Lord, save me!”

Three simple words, and Jesus immediately reached out His hand.

The question is whether we will do the same.

This week, resolve that whenever you stumble, fail, become discouraged, or begin to sink, immediately turn back to Jesus and ask Him to take your hand.

One of my favorite ways to learn how to keep our eyes upon Jesus is by praying the Rosary. Mary continually directs our attention toward her Son, and each of the mysteries allows us to walk beside Him throughout His life. A favorite rosary podcast of mine is the Daily Rosary podcast by the School of Faith.

Exhortation

“Do not let the past disturb you, just leave everything in the Sacred Heart and begin again with joy." — Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Peter sank. But Jesus still chose Peter.

Peter later misunderstood Jesus, argued with Him, fell asleep when Jesus asked him to pray, and even denied knowing Jesus three times.

Yet Jesus still chose Peter.

Peter’s holiness was not found in his never failing. His holiness was found in repeatedly turning back to Christ.

The same is true for us.

There will be storms. There will be fear. There will be moments when we take our eyes off Jesus. There will even be times when we begin to sink.

But Jesus remains before us saying: “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

So, listen for His voice, and keep your eyes fixed upon Him.

SAY YES and get out of the boat when He calls. Walk toward Him. And when you inevitably sink (like we all do!), cry out: “Lord, save me!”

And then take His hand and begin again.

This week, may each of us do WHATEVER IT TAKES to keep our eyes fixed upon Jesus and courageously step out of the boat whenever He calls, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #265

“America’s Saint--Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Converation with Dr. Peter Howard, President of Fulton Sheen Institute

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #265

“America’s Saint-Venerable Fulton Sheen”—1:1 Conversation with Dr. Peter Howard, President, Fulton Sheen Institute

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

During this conversation, Dr. Peter Howard shares his inspiring faith journey, his deep admiration for Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, and details about the upcoming Fulton Sheen conference and beatification. Listen now to discover how Sheen’s teachings can transform your spiritual life and inspire a renewed evangelization effort in America.

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Key Topics

• Fulton Sheen’s impact on American Catholicism

• The importance of the daily holy hour

• Sheen’s approach to evangelization in the modern world

• The significance of Sheen’s beatification in 2026

Takeaways

• Fulton Sheen emphasized the importance of the daily holy hour for spiritual growth.

• Sheen’s teachings focus on meeting people where they are to evangelize effectively.

• The upcoming conference and beatification are opportunities to rediscover Sheen’s wisdom.

• Sheen’s approach to evangelization involves addressing the wounds of the modern person.

• The movement around Sheen’s legacy aims to inspire a renaissance in faith and family.

• Sheen’s message is not a finish line; it is a launch pad.

• Sheen’s life offers a blueprint for meeting the challenges of the modern world.

Sound Bites

• “We are just now beginning to rediscover why God has given us him.”

• “Support the Vicar of Christ through prayer and defense.”

• “Make your daily holy hour and ask the Lord.”

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Dr. Peter Howard and Fulton Sheen

01:32 Dr. Howard’s Faith Journey and Discovery of Sheen

05:02 The Transformative Power of Fulton Sheen’s Recordings

07:52 Sheen’s Call for the Holy Hour During WWII

11:15 The Significance of Sheen’s Beatification in 2026

14:36 Key Themes in Sheen’s Teachings for Today

19:45 Sheen’s Anthropological Approach to Modern Disordered Man

23:09 Vatican II, Sheen, and the Battle for the Church

27:19 Details of the Fulton Sheen Conference and Pilgrimage

33:33 Speakers and Highlights of the Conference

41:55 Mary, Sheen, and the Mission of Evangelization

Resources

Fulton Sheen Conference

Treasure in Clay

Fulton Sheen - Official YouTube Channel

EWTN - Fulton Sheen Collection

Pope John Paul II on Sheen

Links for Dr. Peter Howard

Website

Twitter

Beatification Pilgrimage:

Begins September 19 in Peoria, and is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate “America’s Saint” and encounter Sheen’s legacy through speakers, pilgrimage sites, and liturgical events.

America’s Conference on September 23rd.

Featured Speakers:

• Bishop Joseph Coffey

• Monsignor Landry

• Jason Jones

• Father Thomas Loya

• Father Jason Sharon

• Tammy Peterson

• John Yep

• Dale Alquist

• Sherry Ballinger

• Sister Dede Byrne

• Terry Barber

• Arthur Brooks

Subscribe now

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Welcome to another week on our journey toward holiness! I have to confess that I am writing this in the midst of moving boxes. so am a bit distracted. I am not moving, but my son is as he just secured a new job and is moving, so have been a bit preoccupied, so apologies in advance for a somewhat shorter newsletter this week.

However, this Sunday’s Gospel gives me great consolation because Jesus tells His disciples (and us) in the midst of feeding the multitudes, “Bring them here to me.”

Which means that what I write is all to be about bringing you to Jesus, so here goes…

At first glance, the Gospel appears to be about bread and feeding folks, but it’s not.

It is about compassion and about trust and about surrendering what little we have into the hands of Christ and then allowing Him to multiply it beyond anything we could imagine.

But us, like the disciples see only five loaves and two fish, don’t we?

But Jesus sees that there is enough, and He sees an opportunity for His Father’s generosity to be revealed.

I can’t tell you how often I only see my limitations, and tell myself that I don’t have enough time, enough talent, enough patience, enough money, enough courage, enough faith, or enough whatever it is that I think is necessary to deal with something or someone in my life.

But Jesus keeps saying to us, “Bring them here to me.”

Why? Because everything changes when we place what little we have into His hands.

So, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to inspire, encourage, and accompany you in the process of learning to trust Jesus enough to offer Him everything you have as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"People often think of Christian morality as a kind of bargain... Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you... either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature." — C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The miracle of the loaves began with a choice.

Now, the disciples could have continued focusing on scarcity, but instead, they obeyed Jesus.

We have a similar choice before us every day as every single choice we make either draws us closer to Christ or further away from Him. WHat this means is that each act of trust enlarges our capacity to receive God’s grace, and to be an instrument of His miraculous Presence.

The miracle of the loaves and fish is not simply that food multiplied. The greater miracle is that ordinary men chose to trust Jesus despite His request making no earthly sense.

Holiness grows in exactly the same way. We have the chance to allow God to transform us into either a heavenly creature or a hellish one. It all comes down to the choices we make, and whether we trust and our obedient—one faithful decision at a time.

This week, resolve to make one intentional decision each day based upon trust in Christ rather than fear of scarcity.

Food for the Heart

“Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the most tender of friends with souls who seek to please Him. Be not afraid... to tell Him of your miseries, fears, worries... your projects, and your hopes." — St. Damien of Molokai

Before Jesus multiplied the loaves, He first welcomed the crowds and healed them and cared for them.

His Heart moved before His Hands did.

And that same Heart waits for us in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

How often are we carrying our worries alone when Jesus simply asks us to bring them to Him?

He wants to listen to our fears and disappointments and hopes. He wants to hear about our loved ones, and our vocations, and our struggles. He wants to hear about everything.

Like the five loaves, all of what we have to share may seem insignificant to us, but once we place them into Christ's hands, they become the beginning of miracles.

This week, resolve to spend time before the Blessed Sacrament—or before the tabernacle—and simply place your concerns into the Heart of Jesus.

Food for the Hands

“What was the first rule of our dear Savior's life? ... to do His Father's will... The first end I propose in our daily work is to do the will of God." — St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

The disciples did not understand how Jesus intended to feed thousands. Yet, despite their lack of understanding, they trusted and simply obeyed.

God’s will doesn’t make sense until after we have acted.

I can’t think of how many times I had no clue how something was going to work out in a situation, but I followed the Lord’s promptings, and later, came to see that it all served a purpose.

But I also can remember many times waiting until everything became clear before taking the first step. In those situations, I felt like I was being prudent, but what I was really doing was trying to remain in control and acting from my fears.

Jesus asks something different.

Trust first, and then understanding will follow—most of the time! :)

The disciples distributing bread did not know that the bread would continue multiplying, yet they remained faithful and kept doing it.

In order to discover God’s providence, we have to do the same by remaining faithful by doing the work He has placed before us.

This week, resolve to perform every task—large or small—with the simple intention of doing the Father's will.

Food for the Feet

“I urge you with all the strength of my soul to approach the Eucharistic Table as often as possible. Feed on this Bread of the Angels from which you will draw the strength to fight inner struggles." — Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati

The multiplication of the loaves points us directly towards another meal—the Most Holy Eucharist.

While the miracle in of the loaves and fish satisfied physical hunger, the Eucharist has the capacity to satisfy the deepest hunger of the human heart.

Because Jesus never intended merely to feed crowds for one afternoon, rather, He came to give Himself as the Bread of Life.

Every Mass is another invitation to bring our poverty before Christ and receive His abundance so that we can leave strengthened. Not because of our worthiness—but because of His generosity.

So, let us humble ourselves and open our minds, hearts and hands to receive the graces Jesus desires to give us each time we approach the Eucharistic Table.

This week, resolve to prepare intentionally for Mass by asking Jesus to satisfy the deepest hunger of your heart in Holy Communion.

Exhortation

“Once you have surrendered yourself, you make yourself receptive. In receiving from God, you are perfected and completed." — Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

The miracle of the loaves and fish began with trusting surrender.

Only five loaves and two fish, but that was enough. Because of whose Hands the loaves and fish were placed into.

The same remains true for us today.

Jesus is not asking whether we have enough. Rather, He is asking whether you are willing to offer Him what we have so He can transform it into abundance.

So, bring Jesus your gifts and your weaknesses.

Bring Him your fears and your hopes.

Bring Him your entire life.

Jesus will take everything that seems small, and will bless it, multiply it, and use it to feed far more souls than you could ever imagine. You just need to remember one thing.

“Bring them here to me.”

May each of us continue to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to place everything we are and everything we have into the hands of Christ, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #264

“Healing and Hope through Faith: A Conversation on Anxiety, Trauma, and Spiritual Wellness with Catherine DiNuzzo”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #264

“Healing and Hope through Faith: A Conversation on Anxiety, Trauma, and Spiritual Wellness with Catherine DiNuzzo”

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The next in the series was just released, and the topic this time around was HOSPITALITY. My guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Richard McCorry, Author of Company's Coming: A Spiritual Process for Creating More Welcoming Parishes.

The Power of Hospitality: Insights from Richard McCorry

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

As we begin this Seventeenth week of Ordinary Time, I invite you to consider this question—What is the greatest treasure you possess?

For some of us, it might be our family. For others, it might be our health, friendships, meaningful work, or financial security.

Yet in this Sunday’s Gospel in Matthew 13:44-52, Jesus tells us that there is one treasure so valuable that it is worth giving up everything to possess it. And what might that be?

The Kingdom of Heaven.

Each of the parables Jesus shares in the Gospel emphasize this reality. The man who discovers a treasure hidden in a field and joyfully sells everything to buy it. Or the merchant who finds a pearl of incomparable value and willingly parts with all he owns.

Yet neither man sees what he gives up as a loss.

Why?

Because once they encountered the treasure, everything else found its proper place.

This is the power of the Kingdom of God. It has the power to reorder our priorities, reshape our desires, and transform the way we live.

So, this week’s Food for the Head, Heart, Hands, and Feet will seek to help us recognize the treasure Christ offers and joyfully place Him above every other pursuit as we continue on our journey towards holiness...

Food for the Head

"Can there be a more fitting pursuit in youth or a more valuable possession in old age than a knowledge of Holy Scripture? In the midst of storms it will preserve you from the dangers of shipwreck and guide you to the shore of an enchanting paradise and the everlasting bliss of the angels." — St. Boniface

Before anyone searches for treasure, we first must know that it exists. Thankfully, God has not hidden the Kingdom from us, or made it impossible for us to find. Rather, He continually reveals His treasure through Sacred Scripture, the teachings of the Church, the saints, and the Sacraments.

In fact, every page of the Gospel points toward Christ—the Treasure hidden in the field, and the pearl of great price. in fact, the more we immerse ourselves in God’s Word, the more we will begin to recognize what is truly valuable—and also what merely distracts us.

Like the merchant searching for fine pearls, knowledge of Holy Scripture will help us become better able to distinguish eternal riches from temporary pleasures, and this will ensure we are preserved from the dangers of shipwreck and be guided to the shore of an enchanting paradise and the everlasting bliss of the angels.

This week, resolve to spend at least fifteen minutes each day reading the Scriptures—like the Gospel of the day, as you ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the treasures hidden within His Word.

Food for the Heart

“God walks into your soul with silent step. God comes to you more than you go to Him. Never will His coming be what you expect, and yet never will it disappoint." — Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

The treasure of God’s Kingdom is not merely an idea.

Rather, the treasure is a Person. Jesus Himself.

The beautiful thing is that Jesus comes searching for us long before we begin searching for Him. A

And like the hidden treasure buried in the field, God’s grace often quietly works beneath the ordinary circumstances of our daily lives.

He meets us in prayer. He meets us in the Eucharist. He meets us in unexpected conversations, difficult trials, moments of beauty, and quiet invitations to trust Him more deeply.

But greatest treasure we can ever possess is not something we own. Rather, it is Someone who loves us beyond measure.

Yet, as Venerable Fulton Sheen reminds us, never will it disappoint.

This week, resolve to spend five quiet minutes each day simply resting in God's presence, allowing Him to come to you.

Food for the Hands

“We are placed in our different ranks and stations, not to get what we can out of them for ourselves, but to labor in them for Him." — St. John Neumann

The farmer and the merchant in the parables in the Gospel sold everything. Not to lose everything, but to gain something infinitely greater. Likewise, every vocation, career, family responsibility, ministry, and daily task becomes an opportunity to invest ourselves in the Kingdom of Heaven.

We often ask: “What do I get out of this?” But the Gospel asks something different: “How can I offer this for Christ?”

When we begin to view our work, conversations, and responsibilities as opportunities to build God’s Kingdom rather than our own, then ordinary life becomes filled with extraordinary purpose.

For every hidden act of love can become another investment in the treasure that lasts forever.

This week, resolve to intentionally offer one ordinary task each day entirely for the love of Christ rather than for recognition or reward.

Food for the Feet

“When uncertain about God's will... fulfill the duties of your state in life... be faithful to prayer... maintain trust in God... love the people around us here and now." — Fr. Jacques Philippe, Interior Freedom

Sometimes we think finding God’s Kingdom requires extraordinary experiences, but Jesus tells us otherwise. He reminds us that the Kingdom is often discovered in the ordinary as we faithfully fulfill our responsibilities today.

By praying today. Serving today. Forgiving today. Trusting today.

It’s in the ordinary that we can find what is hidden. Because the hidden treasure isn’t far away, rather, it is seems to hidden because we overlook the ordinary places where Christ is already waiting for us.

This is how the Kingdom begins. It begins wherever Christ reigns.

So, the work we must strive to do each day is to allow Christ to reign in all of the duties of our life. In our prayer. Our service. Our forgiveness. Our trust.

But first let us ensure that He reigns in our own hearts.

This week, resolve to seek Christ intentionally in one ordinary moment each day that you might otherwise overlook.

Exhortation

“The only person who is free is the one who lives for Christ." — St. John Chrysostom

The merchant sold everything because he knew the pearl was worth infinitely more than all he possessed. And the farmer went and sold everything he owned in order to buy the field where he had found the treasure.

Jesus invites us to make a similar discovery in our own lives.

Because nothing compares to His Kingdom.

No possession, or success, or reputation, or earthly security.

Because when Christ becomes our greatest treasure, everything else finds its proper place, and the sacrifices of discipleship no longer appear to be losses. Instead, they become joyful exchanges for something infinitely greater.

So, this week, may each of us continue to seek the hidden treasure of God’s Kingdom, surrender whatever keeps us from possessing it, and do WHATEVER IT TAKES to become rich in the only treasure that lasts forever, so together, we can tell the Master of Death,“NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #264

“Healing and Hope through Faith: A Conversation on Anxiety, Trauma, and Spiritual Wellness with Catherine DiNuzzo”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #264

“Healing and Hope through Faith: A Conversation on Anxiety, Trauma, and Spiritual Wellness with Catherine DiNuzzo”

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The first topic was LEADERSHIP, and to dive into that topic, my guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Shawn Sommerkamp, Christian Leadership coach and founder of Motivationeer Coaching.

Christian Leadership Insights with Shawn Sommerkamp—1:1 Conversation with Founder of Motivationeer Coaching

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

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In this episode:

• Catherine’s transformative journey from aspiring teacher to Catholic mental health advocate

• The profound connection between faith, body, and mental health

• Why Catholic principles offer unique strategies for coping with anxiety

• The importance of integrating Scripture, prayer, and sacraments into healing

• Understanding trauma versus traumatic events with saints’ examples

• The significance of working through holes and wounds in our spiritual and emotional lives

• Practical resources: the companion workbook and its role in personal healing

• The power of surrender and trust in God’s plan, inspired by the Sacred Heart devotion

• The role of saints like Mary Magdalene and Ignatius of Loyola as guides in recovery

• How to combat stigma around mental health with faith-based approaches

• Personal stories of overcoming grief, trauma, and anxiety through prayer and community

• The importance of communication and understanding in supporting loved ones with anxiety

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction: Faith and mental health in today’s world
01:16 - Catherine’s journey from teacher to Catholic mental health advocate
02:19 - The biology of anxiety and faith’s role in healing
03:40 - Faith and counseling: intertwined paths for wellness
04:41 - How Catholic mass incorporates sensory grounding strategies
05:48 - Why secular counseling lacks what the Church provides
06:45 - The pervasive falsehoods about mental health and faith
08:18 - Saints as models for overcoming trauma and shame
09:17 - The analogy of swimming through life’s waves with God’s help
10:03 - Addressing shame around mental health struggles
11:57 - Filling holes with sand: understanding wounds and such filling with faith
13:48 - Building a strong spiritual basement for resilience
15:10 - Differentiating trauma and traumatic events
16:39 - Saints as companions in healing: Ignatius, Josephine Bakhita, Paul, and Mary Magdalene
18:26 - The empowering example of Mary Magdalene’s love and redemption
19:54 - Prayer, Scripture, and sacraments as anchors for mental wellness
22:35 - Using the companion workbook for personal growth and community
24:14 - The importance of resources in Spanish for broader outreach
25:31 - Challenges in reducing stigma and spreading faith-based mental health support
30:53 - God’s use of our vulnerabilities for greater purpose
32:29 - The practice of surrender and trusting in Sacred Heart devotion
34:48 - Inspiration from Philip Neri’s story and surrendering one’s desires
37:06 - Advice to younger self: “It’s gonna be okay”
37:59 - Resources and where to find Catherine’s work
39:04 - Final thoughts: You are not alone; faith and community are your strength

Resources & Links:

• Sacred Heart Mental Wellness

• Book: The Catholic Guide Through Anxiety

• Workbook Companion - Available in Spanish here

• Saint Ignatius of Loyola

• Saint Josephine Bakhita

• Saint Paul

• Mary Magdalene

Connect with Catherine DiNuzzo:

• Instagram

• Facebook

May this episode inspire you to embrace your healing journey with faith, hope, and love.

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Happy Sixteenth week in Ordinary Time!

We are well into the heart of summer, and if you happen to be a gardener, then you probably are seeing some pretty good growth going on in your garden. Unfortunately, this growth usually includes weeds—or at least that is what happens in my garden! LOL

The temptation is to focus on pulling the weeds, but by doing that, we often end up pulling out some of the good plants.

Now, this is very similar to one of our greatest temptations in the spiritual life, too—to spend more time worrying about weeds than tending the wheat.

Well, in this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus tells the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds. At first glance, we may think the lesson is about identifying evil in the world. But Jesus is pointing us towards something much deeper.

The Master refuses to uproot the weeds immediately because doing so would damage the wheat. Instead, He patiently allows both to grow until the harvest.

God exercises remarkable patience with us, too.

He sees every weed in our own hearts—our pride, impatience, fears, resentments, selfishness, and attachments—and yet He does not abandon us. Instead, He continually pours out His grace, cultivating the good seed He planted within us at Baptism.

Likewise, we are called to exercise patience with others, allowing God to work in His time rather than demanding immediate perfection from ourselves or those around us.

So, this week's Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet seeks to inspire, encourage, and accompany us into becoming rich, fruitful wheat in the Lord's field as we continue on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

"People often think of Christian morality as a kind of bargain... every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you... either into a heavenly creature or into a hellish creature." — C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Jesus reminds us that wheat and weeds grow together until harvest, and C.S. Lewis explains how that growth actually happens.

Every choice we make either strengthens the life of grace within us or strengthens those habits that draw us away from God. Holiness rarely comes through dramatic moments. It is usually formed by thousands of ordinary decisions made with love.

Every act of patience. Every act of forgiveness. Every prayer. Every sacrifice. Every choice to love instead of judge. Each one and every one of them slowly transforms us into the person God created us to become.

It’s the field of our soul is being cultivated every day.

The question is: What are we allowing to grow?

This week, resolve to make one deliberate choice each day that nourishes the wheat God has planted within you.

Food for the Heart

“Do not suppose that after advancing the soul to such a state God abandons it so easily... love is never idle... it is impossible for a soul that has come to this state not to go still farther." — Saint Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle

One of the consoling realities in today’s Gospel is that God never stops cultivating our hearts.

Even when weeds seem abundant, or when growth feels painfully slow, or when we feel discouraged, God continues His work.

Saint Teresa of Avila reminds us that authentic love is never idle because God is always inviting us to deeper conversion.

Sometimes His work comes through consolation., but other times it comes through trials, waiting, disappointments, or seasons when growth seems invisible.

Yet beneath the surface, grace is quietly strengthening the roots.

And just like the wheat in Jesus’ parable, we often will grow long before anyone—including ourselves—can even see the harvest, so we need to have faith and trust that God is working, and He will ensure that we go even farther.

This week, resolve to thank God for one hidden way He is quietly helping you grow in holiness.

Food for the Hands

“Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love." — Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

The servants wanted to pull up the weeds immediately, yet Jesus chooses patience.

Most of the time, holiness isn’t demonstrated through extraordinary deeds, but rather it is lived through countless ordinary acts of charity.

Like a kind word. A smile. A patient response. Listening before speaking. Choosing not to criticize. Praying for someone instead of complaining about them.

There are innumerable and seemingly insignificant acts that can become the seeds of the Kingdom because God grows extraordinary holiness through ordinary fidelity.

So, each day that we are attentive to doing the smallest right for love, we are allowing God to grow the wheat within.

This week, resolve to perform one hidden act of charity every day without seeking recognition.

Food for the Feet

“When uncertain about God's will... fulfill the duties of your state in life... be faithful to prayer... maintain trust in God... love the people around us here and now." — Father Jacques Philippe, Interior Freedom

While it may be tempting to spend our time trying to determine when God will finally remove all the weeds from the world, it’s not for us to know.

Jesus tells us that removing weeds is His work—not ours.

Rather, our task is much simpler—remain faithful today.

Pray today. Love today. Trust today. And fulfill the duties placed before us today.

Father Jacques Philippe reminds us that God’s future plans will become clearer for us when we faithfully embrace today’s responsibilities and trust His plan and the timing of the harvest.

And when the harvest eventually does comes, it belongs to God, not us.

Instead, our responsibility is simply to remain faithful while we wait.

This week, resolve to entrust one situation you cannot control completely into God's hands and simply remain faithful to today's duties.

(FYI—One of the best ways to remain faithful while you wait is by praying the Rosary. One of my favorites is the Daily Rosary meditation by the Holy Family School of Faith. You can find it here)

Exhortation

“One should not say that it is impossible to reach a virtuous life; but one should say that it is not easy.” — Saint Antony of the Desert

The wheat and the weeds will continue growing together until the Lord returns.

This reality should not discourage us, rather it should encourage us because the Master of the field has not abandoned His crop.

Instead, He patiently cultivates each soul by watering, pruning, nourishing, and waiting.

Our task is to not become discouraged by the weeds we encounter during the process.

Rather, our task is to keep choosing Christ, trusting that His grace is always stronger than any weed, and trust that His harvest will one day reveal the beauty He has been growing all along.

May you do WHATEVER IT TAKES to become the fruitful wheat the Lord planted us to be, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform with a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music options. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website and download some of the free resources.

Some of the FREE resources include a Spiritual Wellness Assessment, List of Recommended Books for Spiritual Reading, and a Rule of Life Planner Sheet.

This website is also where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or learning more about spiritual direction. If you are interested, make sure to sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

Finally, if you would like to support my work, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #263

“Freedom for Faith, Love and Service”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #263—”Faith, Love and Service”—Say Yes to Holiness Podcast

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Now that Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time has been released (and is available for purchase at Amazon), I have just started a NEW PODCAST SERIES that highlights different topics covered in the book by having conversations with a variety of guests.

The first topic was LEADERSHIP, and to dive into that topic, my guest on the Catholic Leadership Podcast was Shawn Sommerkamp, Christian Leadership coach and founder of Motivationeer Coaching.

Christian Leadership Insights with Shawn Sommerkamp—1:1 Conversation with Founder of Motivationeer Coaching

If you have yet to pick up a copy of Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time, I encourage you to do so, especially in light of all the wonderful reviews it has received. And if you do already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon—every review matters!

And if you are looking for more SPP book resources and content, you can find it at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Welcome to the latest edition of the weekly Say Yes to Holiness newsletter—designed to help inspire, encourage and accompany you on the path towards holiness.

Today is the Feast of Saint Henry. A special day for our family as today is the feast day for my husband’s grandson, Grant Henry, so I ask your prayers for Grant as well as for his mom and dad.

Today also marks the beginning of the Fifteenth week of Ordinary Time, and Sunday’s Gospel from Matthew 13:1-9 presents one of Jesus’ most familiar parables—the Parable of the Sower.

At first glance, we might think the story is about the seed or even the sower. But the real focus is about the quality of the soil.

Our hearts are that soil, and we must remember two things—1) the seed is always good because the seed is the Word of God; and 2) the Sower is always generous because God is generous and never tires of offering His grace.

But the question Jesus asks each of us is much more personal. He asks us to consider, “What kind of soil is my heart?”

Is my heart hardened by resentment? Or is it too shallow because I fail to nourish my spiritual life? Or perhaps it is crowded by worries, distractions, and worldly concerns?

Or is it the type of rich, receptive soil that allows God’s Word to take root and bear abundant fruit?

This week's Food for the Head, Heart, Hands and Feet will seek to help us answer the question Jesus poses to us as we also ask the Holy Spirit to cultivate our hearts so that the seeds Christ plants may grow into a rich harvest for the Kingdom on our journey towards holiness…

Food for the Head

“The harm that comes to souls from the lack of reading holy books makes me shudder... What power spiritual reading has to lead to a change of course, and to make even worldly people enter into the way of perfection." — Saint Padre Pio

So how to become good soil?

First, good soil must be prepared to receive the seed.

This is the power of spiritual reading that Padre Pio is referring, and why the practice has the power to lead to a change of course and make worldly people enter into the way of perfection.

Likewise, our hearts must be exposed to God’s Word and the teachings of the Church. We must be very intentional in exposing ourselves to both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Traditions so our hearts can be transformed.

It is these three—Sacred Scripture, faithful spiritual reading, and the teachings of the Church—that cultivate the soil of our minds and help us be capable of recognizing God’s voice amid the countless voices competing for our attention.

In fact, the more deeply we immerse ourselves in God’s truth, the more readily His Word will take root and shape the way we think, choose, and live.

So, the question before us is what will we do to ensure that this can occur?

This week, resolve to spend fifteen minutes each day reading Sacred Scripture or another trusted spiritual book, asking the Holy Spirit to make your mind fertile soil for His Word.

Food for the Heart

“If the heart wanders or is distracted, bring it back to the point quite gently and replace it tenderly in its Master's presence. And even if you did nothing during the whole of your hour but bring your heart back and place it again in Our Lord's presence, though it went away every time you brought it back, your hour would be very well employed." — Saint Francis de Sales

One of the greatest obstacles to becoming rich soil for God’s Word is distraction.

Jesus tells us that some seed falls among thorns and is choked by the cares of the world. Those thorns are not always great sins. Often they are simply the countless worries, anxieties, entertainments, ambitions, and interruptions that slowly crowd Christ out of our hearts.

In the face of this reality, Saint Francis de Sales offers us both encouragement and hope. He tells us that we need not become discouraged whenever our hearts wander in prayer. Instead, we need to simply return—gently and without frustration—to the presence of the Lord. And every loving return helps to remove another thorn and soften another patch of soil in our hearts.

So, remember, the Christian life is not about never becoming distracted. Rather, it is about continually allowing the Divine Sower to cultivate our hearts until they become receptive to His Word.

And as we do that, we become better soil for the Sower to sow His seed in our hearts.

This week, each time you notice your heart becoming distracted, gently turn your attention back to Jesus and simply whisper, "Lord, make my heart good soil for Your Word."

Food for the Hands

“Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love." — Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Healthy soil eventually produces fruit.

This is what a healthy soul does as well.

The evidence that God’s Word has taken root is not simply that we know more about our faith. Rather, evidence of God’s Word is when we become more loving, and more patient, and more generous, and more forgiving.

Saint Therese reminds us that holiness is rarely found in dramatic moments, instead, it is cultivated through countless small acts of love performed faithfully each and every day.

The Lottle Flower points out that every hidden sacrifice becomes another piece of fruit growing from the seed Christ has planted within us, and this is why we must strive to make as many small sacrifices as possible during our daily life.

This week, intentionally perform one hidden act of charity each day, allowing God's love to bear fruit through your ordinary actions..

Food for the Feet

“The ordinary acts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest." — Saint Thomas More

Saint Thomas More points out that the Christian life is not measured by extraordinary accomplishments but by daily fidelity. And Jesus confirms this when He tells us that good soil produces fruit “a hundredfold.”

But that fruit is usually grown one faithful step at a time in our daily words and actions.

Within the conversations we have, and the duties we fulfill.

The prayers we offer, and the forgiveness we extend.

The sacrifices we quietly embrace within every ordinary moment that eventually become an opportunity to bear fruit for Christ.

And the harvest begins wherever our feet are planted today.

This is the journey towards holiness.

For every YES we give to sanctify the ordinary acts of our day becomes one more brick we add to the path we are walking towards eternal life with our Lord in Heaven.

This week, choose one ordinary responsibility that you often rush through and perform it slowly, prayerfully, and entirely for the glory of God.

(FYI—One of the most beautiful ways to cultivate fertile soil is by praying the Rosary with the daily Gospel, as this allows Our Lady to teach us how to ponder and treasure God's Word in our hearts.)

Exhortation

"Love takes up where knowledge leaves off." — Saint Thomas Aquinas

The Parable of the Sower reminds us that the Christian life is not about accumulating information.

Instead, it is all about transformation.

For this transformation to take place, God is constantly sowing His grace by granting us His mercy, His truth, and His love.

But again, the question Jesus poses to us is whether our hearts are prepared to receive it.

So, this week, allow the Divine Gardener to till the hardened places of your heart.

Let Him remove the stones that keep you from trusting Him.

Invite Him to cut away the thorns that choke your spiritual growth.

And then watch what He can do with a heart that is fully surrendered to Him.

May you do WHATEVER IT TAKES to become rich soil for the Gospel, bearing fruit that will nourish your family, your parish, your community, and the world, so that together we can tell the Master of Death, “NOT TODAY!”

All the best,

Christina

PS—If you haven’t already, go check out my new book, Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase on Amazon.

Share Say Yes to Holiness

Below are the Latest Happenings In the Say Yes to Holiness Community!

Both the Say yes to Holiness and The Catholic Leadership Puzzle podcasts are now available on Fio!

Fio is a platform of a plethora of Catholic podcasts and music. I invite you to go and check it out by accessing it through my podcast links below:

• https://play.fio.fm/show/SayYesToHolinessPodcast
  

• https://play.fio.fm/show/TheCatholicLeadershipPuzzlePodcast

Check out my christinasemmens.com website.

This website is where I blog and where you can learn more about working with me or talking about spiritual direction. If you are interested in either, make sure to sign up for a FREE consultation. Hope to hear from you soon!

And if you would like to make a donation in support of the work associated with this endeavor, you can click the link below and subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness Substack.

Subscribe now

Latest Posts on the Women of the New Evangelization (WINE) blog:

Mercy, Peace and Exultation (April 12)

Harden Not Our Hearts (Mar 9)

Guest appearance on the Equipcast Podcast:

"When God Asks, How Do You Answer?: The Power of 'Yes' with Christina Semmens

Articles on the Catholic365.com Platform:

Recognizing the Path to Life

We Are All Eucharistic Missionaires!

Latest episode of the Say Yes to Holiness podcast...

Episode #263

“Freedom for Faith, Love and Service”

​Subscribe to the Say Yes to Holiness podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes of the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else you listen to podcasts.

You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel

Click Here to Check Out All the Podcast Episodes

The Say Yes to Holiness YouTube Channel

Episode #263—”Faith, Love and Service”—Say Yes to Holiness Podcast

In addition to podcasts, you can also find additional content like the Lenten Book Online Retreat—”Rooting Out Hidden Faults” by Father James McElhone on YouTube—Click here to be taken to the playlist

Update from The Catholic Leadership Puzzle

Solving the Parish Puzzle: One Person, One Disciple, and One Leader at a Time is now available for purchase at Amazon.

The book focuses upon how we each can help to create life-giving communities where we can become the holy men and women that God created us to be, and is a compilation of the work I have been sharing on The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack.

I encourage you to read the reviews below to help you determine if you should pick up a copy today…

“Christina's book is both thoughtful and practical. I appreciate the careful attention to crafting a solid plan for reinvigorating and reenergizing parish life from from the 'ground up' - in other words, she writes with wisdom and experience about starting small and engaging individuals and small groups who can then passionately spread this message like fire. Helpful resource for anyone seeking to help take their parish community to a place of deep spiritual, practical, and holy love for the Lord and for one another!”—Matthew Koscal

“This book is for anyone who wants to see their parish thrive. Whether you are a priest or lay person, read Solving the Parish Puzzle for clear guidance on taking an average parish to the next level of discipleship. What we have been doing is not working. It’s time for something new. Semmens lays the groundwork so we can put the pieces together.”—Carol Wiget

If you already have a book, please consider posting a review on Amazon as well.

To access the SPP book resources and find more CLP content, you can find it here at The Catholic Leadership Puzzle Substack

Share Say Yes to Holiness