Say Yes to Holiness Newsletter #378
Inspiration for the week of August 3, 2026
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.
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:
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.
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!
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You can also watch the podcast on the Say Yes to Holiness YouTube channel
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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.