Brother Francis Blog — Prayer

By Anne Metz

The Bible tells us to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Not only that, but the Bible reminds us to be thankful over 150 times! This is a perfect time of year to cultivate thankful hearts in our children. Here are four simple ways to do just that.

By Anne Metz

We hear the story of Pentecost during Mass every year, but let’s be honest, isn’t it possible that some children (and maybe even adults) in your family are not paying close attention to the readings? Make the story of Pentecost come alive for your family! It’s such a great story with incredible imagery - the Holy Spirit descends as tongues of fire, people speak in tongues, thousands of people are baptized - it doesn’t get much more exciting than that!

By Desiree Hausam

As Lent comes around this year, I am thinking hard about preparing my kids for this season. 

The lessons and the opportunities of Lent are something that, in the busy whirl of family life, is easy for me to gloss over. I’m not proud of that, but it’s my reality right now.

But, I was struck by our priest’s homily the other day with a reminder of how profoundly important it is to lean into this special season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It’s critical that we teach our kids to love Lent and how it teaches us to turn away from the world, even from things that are otherwise good, for the sake of learning to love our Savior better. The prayers and the sacrifices that we and our kids lift up matter. 

By Colleen Pressprich

Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are the three pillars of Lent, meant to guide us deeper into this penitential season. As adults, this can come naturally to us, but when it comes to explaining it to our children and engaging them in the activities, that can be trickier.