Catholic Sprouts

A Community For Catholic Families

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J1ST 073: A Year in Review//Embracing Weakness

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I am big on looking back…and then looking forward at the end of the year. I know this is way over done right now, but I find it helpful since I usually am to “stuck in the moment” to really understand what I am experiencing when I experience it.

So, today’s episode is a little personal as I look at the ways I have changed and grown and struggled this past year.  I hope you find it helpful!

With the help of a great book, Fire and Light by Fr. Jacques Philippe, I have been reflecting a lot on why this year of spiritual growth has been also so hard and even a little painful.

I fell like this year, more than any other, I have been forced to confront some hard truths about myself. I know I have taken a few steps in my spiritual life, but I also feel like I have seen, more clearly then ever, just how long the spiritual path is, and how far I have to go.

I was finally able to make sense of all of this with Fr. Jacques Philippe’s book. He wrote an incredible section on the need for spiritual poverty. I read directly from the book, and when I read that something clicked.  Yes, the closer you get to God the more you see your failing…and although I KNEW that, actually living it has been harder than I thought it would be!!

I also have been reflecting on what exactly it means to be hopeful and why hope, rightly understood, is so tightly linked to humility.  Lived through lots of humility this year!

Thanks for letting me share from the heart this week and I hope you are doing some similar self-searching!

Links mentioned in this episode:

Have a blessed final couple days of Advent!

Nancy

J1ST 072: A Year Later

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Hey there friends!

I am taking a break from all of the wonderful guests (I hope you loved hearing from them as much as I enjoyed talking with them!).

So, instead of having a guest, I am taking minute to share personally (yikes!). I am actually an introvert, and would rather talk about other people, but since it has been a year since we lost Max at 20 weeks.  That loss was a tremendously transformative event.  I talk about the amazing experience I had while loosing that baby in this episode: https://www.catholicsprouts.com/2017/12/j1st-022-on-still-being-here.html.

It has been a very full year since we lost Max. Life has kept moving forward, that is for sure! We suffered another miscarriage, and are now about 27 weeks along with another little boy.  I shared about that miscarriage in this podcast episode: https://www.catholicsprouts.com/2018/05/j1st-046-when-trusting-feels-foolish.html

Most profoundly, though, both my husband and I have really grown in a devotion to Mary. We aren’t perfect, but we are at the point where if we slack in our devotion for even a day, we FEEL it. I really feel like we depend on her. I thank our little Max in heaven and St. Maximillian Kolbe for helping me embrace this devotion.

If you have yet to listen into the Catholic Sprout’s Podcast, I really encourage you to tune in! Find all of the listening options here: https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-sprouts

In the episode I also discuss a major shift that I plan to take in the coming year. I plan to focus more on Catholic Kids and Catholic Families, and will be producing more content under the banner of Catholic Sprouts.  Find all of the listening options here: https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-sprouts

My first major project is a new Youtube channel! Crazy, right?!?  The channel is called Catholic Sprouts for Moms. It is a channel for Catholic Parents, where I hope to help you raise saints, and answer questions we all have as Catholic Parents.  I would love to have you jump over to Youtube and watch the first couple videos. Head here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC45d_VVnoX-VMYNy7OECo2A

And finally, if you are still looking for Advent ideas, head here! I’m obsessed with Advent: https://catholicsprouts.com/advent

Thank you for all of your love and support!!

Your sister in the small things,

J1ST 071: Building a Ministry with Jenna from Blessed Is She

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Hey there!

I am sure that you know about the amazing ministry, Blessed Is She. This beautiful ministry for Catholic Women has created so many incredible resources for us–communities, daily reflections, liturgical studies, beautiful planners, and so much more. It feels like Blessed Is She has just always existed (what did we do before their daily emails?) but the truth is that this ministry is only 4 years old!

That’s right, just 4 years ago, Jenna Guizar, a busy Momma, decided that we Catholic ladies needed a beautiful ministry, similar to the ones she had seen out in the Protestant world. She was right. Many women jumped in to help her, the team and the audience grew, and continues to grow to this day.

For all of these reasons, I was excited to bring Jenna onto the podcast so we all could hear about the girl behind Blessed Is She.

As Jenna shares in the podcast, Blessed Is She’s goal is to help women grow in Christ-centered friendships, and they have been an incredible force for building communities for Catholic women…all over the world! Blessed Is She runs a number of thriving regional Facebook groups (you can find your group right here), and encourages local members of the community to host what they call Blessed Brunches, where Catholic women can meet in person and grow in real friendship.

In the episode, Jenna also shares about how Blessed Is She has transformed her own life. Just like me, Jenna was not perfect before she started this ministry, and is still working on that perfection ;). She felt led to start this ministry, so she just plunged right in! She refused to be limited by fear and instead she went ahead with this big idea and has been fed and transformed along with many of the members of the community she founded.

If you are still looking for a beautiful Advent Devotional, I encourage you to check out BEARING LIGHT from Blessed Is She. It is an incredibly beautiful study for Catholic women that focuses on the Magnificat.

Also, Blessed Is She is up to something very exciting right now! Jenna and her team are currently in IRELAND hosting a Blessed Is She Wild retreat! Join me in prayer that the retreat is a success and they travel safely!

Finally, as I mentioned in the podcast, if you are still looking for an Advent resource for your family, I encourage you to check out all of the ideas I have right here: catholicsprouts.com/advent.

I hope you are well–and if you are in the US, have a blessed Thanksgiving tomorrow!

Your sister in the small things,

J1ST 070: Living Well During the Holidays with Sterling Jacquith

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Hey friends!

I just love sharing wonderful Catholic ladies with you here on the Just One Small Thing Podcast, and I have another great one for you today! Sterling Jaquith is on today’s podcast, and if you don’t already know and love her, you will after this episode!

Sterling is passionate about helping Catholic women in a variety of ways. If you aren’t already listening to her podcast, Coffee and Pearls, then you should start. It’s great!

Sterling also runs a THRIVING Facebook group to help Catholic families embrace minimalism and leave chaos behind, she works closely with up-and-coming Catholic female business owners, and she has a wonderful resource for all of us as we head into the holiday season. Because, while the holidays are a beautiful time, they can also be a very stressful time, and a hard time on our marriages.

One of the most powerful things that Sterling said in our conversation, which I’m sure you feel is true, is that the devil loves American holidays. He loves how wrapped up in *things* we get–things that aren’t God. He loves the materialism, the stress, and the way our relationships can suffer.

In the episode, Sterling offers 2 simple strategies to live better during this coming holiday season:

  1. Have a Code Word
  2. Avoid the Pottery Barn Syndrome

Sterling digs deeper into each of these concepts in her book, Be Merry and will be helping women prepare for the holidays with her Holiday Training Workshop, which will be held on November 15th, 16th and 17th. I really think that we ALL should consider signing up and attending this training. Wouldn’t it be amazing to stay focused on GOD and FAMILY this holiday season, and actually enjoy it?

To sign up, just head here: http://bemerry.pages.ontraport.net

I hope you find a lot of value in this episode!

As I mentioned in the episode, I also have some great resources for Advent and the coming year available right now! Check them out!

I hope you are well!

You sister in the small things,

J1ST 069: The Holiness of Budgeting with Mary Harrell

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Hey friends! Welcome back to another episode of the Just One Small Thing Podcast. I hope you have been enjoying all of the wonderful ladies that I have had on lately. It has been so much fun chatting with them all and tapping into their unique wisdom!

I have another great lady to share with you today, and I have a feeling that her message will be as challenging for some of you as it was for me!

Mary Harrell from Domestic Apologist is here today to talk about…budgets. I know…ugh, budgeting.

When Mary brought this up as the topic she would like to talk about, I thought, well, okay, if you really want to. If you are like me, you get that budgeting is important, you do it a little bit, but would never deliberately go out of your way to learn more about it!

Well, Mary challenged me on this point, and I bet she will challenge many of you as well. In the episode, Mary shares how she met her husband (really good story) and how they ended up needing to seriously budget. Because of the circumstances, he was able to convince her to take Financial Peace University and, according to Mary, what they learned in that course allowed them to not only buy the house they wanted, but have a better marriage and live better.

It’s really inspiring! In this episode, we also talk about tithing, communication, the specifics of successful budgeting, and lots of other great topics.

Once you are done listening I encourage you to connect with Mary at her blog!

Here are a few links mentioned in this episode:

Also, as I mentioned at the end of the episode, my Marian Themed Liturgical Planner is on sale right now! I didn’t order as many as last year (when I sold out) so if you want one, go get one!

Check them out here: Marian Planner Liturgical Planner.

Your sister in the small things,