Visiting Mary - The Beginning and a Giveaway

When my husband and I were traveling through from Nashville to Chicago for a vendor meeting for our business, we purposefully stopped at the Shrine of Christ's Passion in St. John, Indiana. The owners of the shrine had visited our store and suggested we stop if we were ever in the area. The invitation took a couple of years to accept but once accepted, made a huge impact on us.
We are so fortunate for our Catholic Faith. We have people all over the world who share the same beliefs. We have people right here in the U.S. who have built or who work where others have built beautiful places to glorify our Lord and His Mother and the saints. We have people who cannot wait for us to accept an invitation to visit and to learn and to enjoy the journey that their lives have taken and that our lives may take when we simply take the time.
As Allen and I arrived and were looking around, we came upon one of the men who had been in the store and was the owner of the Shrine. He was dressed in clothes fit to work with the landscape crew and that is exactly what he had been doing. But, he stopped his work to take the time to tell us all about the Shrine (which you can read about in Visiting Mary: Her U.S. Shrines and their Graces) and to spend time with us and to share his faith.
And so it all began. Here at the table. Here with an invitation. To sit with Christ. To join Him in the Feast. The Feast that gives life. The Feast that gathers. He breaks the Bread and He invites us to the table. To share our story. To share His life. And we took our time to respond but we did accept the invitation. And the journey began. And the journey continues. Every day. At the Table.
God is good.

Remember, I am giving away a copy of my new book each week for the month of April. All you have to do is comment on this blog or on facebook or twitter and I will randomly draw a name each week for a free book.