Franciscan Media

Father, grant me the grace to remain calm and serene in the midst of turmoil in my own life so that I can reflect at least a little of Jesus’ peace. I ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

– from Stories of Jesus

God wants us to trust Him. That often involves walking in mystery. It also requires us to recognize the fact that God can always bring good out of evil. The Bible is filled with stories of bad, even evil, decisions, but somehow God’s will prevailed, and we ended up with a Savior.

– from Faith, Hope & Clarity

Anyone can find what is beautiful and true by living apart from ordinary life. Everyone is enlightened on the mountaintop. The harder choice is to live with the knowing right in the center of your life. In your daily chores. In the middle of a family. In places of commerce. The challenge is to find what is beautiful and true in ordinary life.

– from The Divine Spark

All the obstacles and trials of life, which we perceive as making us unhappy, are not impediments to real living. Instead they are ways of really living, opportunities to discover that real living involves real loving and real loving can be painful at times.

– from When You Suffer

We face so many challenges in life: poverty, distress, humiliation, the struggle for justice, persecutions, and many others. But if we open the door to Jesus and allow him to be part of our lives, if we share our joys and sorrows with him, then we will experience the peace and joy that only God, who is infinite love, can give.

– from The Spirit of Saint Francis

Maybe the highest form of spirituality is simply to bear patiently with our brokenness. In the midst of a world of emotional and psychological violence, perhaps we can at least refrain from violence of any kind toward ourselves.

– from Loaded: Money and the Spirituality of Enough