Miracle Moments

BEN IS 18!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:04:11 PST

Today is a day of celebration and Thanksgiving as my middle son Benjamin turns 18 years of age!

I am so grateful for the gift of his young life because as he told me yesterday, "I've been through a lot in my 18 years!" That he has, and yet he continues to impress us with his extraordinary strength of character and beautiful persevering heart.

This gifted young man has been through more tearful trials and tribulations than anyone deserves at such a young age. Yet he is the kind of human being whose divinely anointed soul has inspired the rest of us to believe in things that are beyond our human comprehension. Last week the Lord reminded me of that through a chance encounter with a teacher at Ben's High School.

This lovely gentleman told me he had recently interviewed Ben about his senior year service project in the Appalachian mountains this past summer. As he struggled to find the right words he paused before saying, "I have never heard a student describe his experience in such a profound way. I couldn't help but wonder why I did not have the opportunity to teach this young man."

I know exactly what he means. Sometimes I wonder why the good Lord has allowed me the grace of being Ben's mom. He is nothing short of amazing!

So yes, today we will celebrate and give thanks, because as I watch my son grow into adulthood, I stand in awe of his spiritual integrity and the wonderful wisdom that is a living witness to what really matters most...

Life, Love, Family and the radiating joy that flows from our heavenly Father straight into our very human hearts!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN-WE LOVE YOU!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY ROBERT McCALL!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 06:23:58 PDT

My father died suddenly of a heart attack in January 1998. I was in Cuba, covering Pope John Paul II's inaugural visit for television, when I received the shocking phone call. He had been driving alone near his home in Tampa Florida when he apparently felt chest pains, pulled over to the side of the road and died. It was a shock for all of us, losing him so suddenly and just when he seemed to be enjoying his life.

My dad was an honorable man who worked hard serving in the United States Air Force. A job that sent our family globetrotting every three to four years. We bounced from Germany to California, to Florida to Germany to Kansas to Florida, to California then back to Florida. My head still spins when I think about it. Duty also called my dad away from us. He spent one year in Thailand, one year in Vietnam and one year in Korea. I remember missing him terribly and not really understanding why he had to go away for so long. Since my German mother didn't drive, his absence was a real challenge for our family and it created a lot of stress for him.

Honest and straight laced, he was a friendly guy who never knew a stranger, but who always kept a tight reign on me and my siblings. His youthful rebellion after his parent's deaths educated him in what he would call "the school of hard knocks." So he wasn't about to let us make the same mistakes that he had made.

As a young teen I would often argue with him and he'd always tell me,
"Mary Lou you have more baloney in you than Carter's got liver pills." Somehow, he knew too much and I couldn't get away with anything. So I simply didn't try.

I have many vivid memories of our lives together, but I am perhaps most touched and surprised by his tender compassion toward my mother when she was suffering for so long with breast cancer. They had shared a pretty volatile relationship, but in the end, he served her with gentleness and unconditional love and she in turn humbly accepted his offering. It was a great example for me and a living witness to the sacrament of marriage and the vows, "In sickness and in health, 'til death do we part."

As I think about him today, he was a great example of prayerful perseverance when the going got rough and loyalty to the cause even when faced with the seemingly impossible. Time has a way of telling us the truth about our loved ones and truthfully, my dad accomoplished so much more in this life, than he was ever given credit for. And my siblings and I have been the beneficiaries!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DAD!

COMUNITA CENACOLO: HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHNNY!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Sat, 21 May 2011 17:26:58 PDT

My oldest son Johnny, turns 26 today and I am so grateful for the gift of his precious life.

I am also captivated by how God is cultivating my child's renewal and redirecting his focus. Johnny has been a member of Comunita Cenacolo for two years, entering "Our Lady of Hope" in St. Augustine, Florida in May 2009 and transferring to Borgoro Italy nearly a year ago. I can't believe how the time has flown!

I would like to share with you part of a letter he sent us this week...because I feel his unique life is becoming a powerful example for all of us.

"I wrote a letter to Mother Elvira expressing my desire to go/open the mission in Liberia. I've arrived at a certain point in my spiritual journey where I feel/hear/sense God calling me to my path. For me, it is 100% clear in my heart that the next step in my formation involves being at ground zero with the poor. Funny thing to me is, I really feel I stood for all this before with the band and all the rhetoric I was spouting. However drugs and anger made it superficial, and I never really did anything but complain. Now I feel that I can make it real. I don't think I'm ever going to have a "normal" life. Sometimes it makes me sad, but I know the truth for me is something more radical. Whatever talents I possess, I want to use them to give the less fortunate a step up."

I am deeply touched by Johnny's decision to give his life to God, rather than living his life for himself. He has finally embraced the gift that is available for each and every one of us. To hear God's voice and to know without a doubt, that God is speaking.

In this cloistered community where there is minimal noise and distractions from the outside world, Johnny has found his way out of the dark, deceptive lure of hedonistic consumerism. He has entered into the lovely light of absolute truth, finally understanding who he really is and why the good Lord put him on this earth.

What amazing integrity and faith...What an amazing gift to all of us!

BLESSED POPE JOHN PAUL II

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Wed, 18 May 2011 20:25:32 PDT

Twenty one years ago I took a plane ride with the man who is one step away from being declared a Catholic Saint, Blessed John Paul II. I flew with a host of network news people and other Vatican officials, aboard the Pope's plane to the former Czechoslovakia. It was both an honor and a privilege to be part of the papal entourage at a time when miracles were unfolding behind the iron curtain.

Being the girl that I am, I wore a suit I bought just for the occasion. A dark blue Ann Klein jacket and pleated skirt, which I dubbed "The Pope's suit." It's still hanging somewhere in my closet.

As you can imagine, it was an exhilerating experience watching this living saint move among the sea of humanity who came to hear his powerful message of solidarity and hope. In fact John Paul had been called the "Hope of the World" for boldly proclaiming the redemptive power of the cross to the suffering everywhere.

When we landed in Prague, I learned very quickly, that this exemplary figure of Christ, led an exhausting schedule. We hit the ground running, working until midnight and rising and shining long before dawn. For security reasons, the news people were required to arrive at least two hours ahead of the Pope at each and every one of his scheduled destinations. We would spend hours waiting for him to appear, because he often stopped-to speak one on one with his faithful followers.

That gave me plenty of time to read and absorb the pages and pages of embargoed speeches. Deeply intuitive and theologically inspiring, the tone of his messages were always based on the Gospel and the Ten Commandments, "May this decade of spiritual renewal for the nation help to form a generation able to appreciate the faith and the values which flow from it as gold tested by fire: as a powerfull force for the future, for the civilization of Love, truth and freedom, for the civilization which is so needed on our planet."

Charismatic and charming, I was amazed at how the Pope's contagious optimism had a way of making everyone feel connected, whether they had grown up in Czechoslovakia or Havana Cuba. He grew up under communism, in Poland, and so he understood oppression-and those forgotten souls who had been imprisoned by the depressive darkness of atheism. Though Czechoslovakia was only 30 percent Catholic, believers and unbelivers loved him, because he felt their pain and their courage.

Historians agree that Pope John Paul II's lasting legacy is the pivotal role he played in the fall of communism all across eastern europe in 1989. And he will long be admired for never abandoning his relentless quest for total freedom, warning the new democracies to avoid catching "the virus" of western consumerism. He told the Czechs they must not replace communisim with "secularism, indifference, hedonistic consumerism and practical materialism."

I followed the Pope to Czechoslovakia, Poland, Croatia, Cuba, Rome and the United States...and I watched this messenger of truth and Love, restore hope to humanity ...by building a path of reconciliation, dialogue and fraternal acceptance in union with the living God.

In life, as in death, he was a saintly man and so for me, canonization-will just be a formality.

EUCHARISTIC MINISTER, MY SON BEN

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 16 May 2011 10:11:43 PDT

My son Benjamin today became a Eucharistic minister. He's just 17. I find that extraordinary.

As I watched the priest confer the blessing upon Ben and a handful of Jesuit High School students, I marveled at the mysterious movement of our merciful God-in my middle son's life.

A year ago Ben was thinking about ending his life by jumping off a second floor balcony at school...And now today-he was at school, being inducted into a privileged group of ministers who will be giving life, by distributing the true bread of life, the Holy Eucharist.

I thought about Ben's difficult journey, from anorexia to recovery, but also how his journey of suffering has led him straight to the source of true lfe, Jesus Christ.

God gave Ben life, then renewed his broken life. Now Ben will be passing on God's saving love, by distributing the body and blood of Christ crucified, to countless Catholics who will be participating in the gift of eternal life, Christ's redemptive death.

It was a powerful, poignant image and one of those Miracle Moments that I will never forget!

"I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me..." Galatians 2:20crucified.

BLESSINGS TO MY SISTER!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Thu, 05 May 2011 13:19:56 PDT

Many moons ago when I was too young and much too emotionally immature, my older sister, shared a secret she had been keeping from our family for far too long. She was gay.

I remember reading the surprise letter she wrote me and not knowing what to think or say and so I did the worst thing possible-I said nothing. I simply didn't know how to respond or how to feel about the news. I didn't Love my sister any less, I just felt as though this was one more McCall family secret that had been buried.

Unfortunately though, I failed to show my sister the unconditional Love of Jesus Christ and I did not reassure her that I would always be there for her-front and center-no matter what. That silence created a great divide between Ela and me-even further than the many miles that separated her home in California from mine in New Orleans.

Through the mercy of God's everlasting grace...Time and trouble and tons of tears have brought us closer than I could ever have hoped for. We have an unbreakable bond that has been tested by many blazing infernos and an understanding and acceptance of one another that most sisters never seem to reach.

Today is her birthday and I am so grateful for her life...And for my mother who gave her life, under some very trying circumstances. God's mysterious maneauverings never cease to amaze me!

Over the years I've watched Ela evolve from the brilliant National Merit Scholar who shared a bedroom with me as a child, into a deeply introspective individual who has Loved me, my sons and her lifelong partner with a depth that few people are capeable of. She never, ever gives up-never!

She and I have always been as different as night and day...In our looks and especially in our way of thinking...But that's served us well...Stretching our minds and massaging our hearts...While lifting us into a new dimension...A higher level of eternal Love that is guiding us to that heavenly haven where God has always destined us to be!

Happy birthday and many blessings my dear sister-You really deserve it!

HRUSHIV UKRAINE: APPARITIONS OF THE BLESSED MOTHER

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 18:08:15 PDT

Twenty four years ago today, April 27, 1987 the Blessed Mother allegedly appeared in Hrushiv Ukraine with a warning and words of consolation.

She came on the Feast of the Ascension, exactly one year after the nuclear reactor disaster at Chernobyl saying "Do not forget those who have died...Chernobyl is a reminder and a sign for the whole world."

In 1990 while producing a television documentary in Ukraine, I visited Hrushi and interviewed a handful of people who had witnessed the apparition above the church of the Holy Trinity. In all some five hundred thousand witnesses claimed to have seen the Virgin Mary over a four month period.

Mary apparently told them she came to thank the Ukrainian people because they had suffered so much at the hands of a raging lion who had been prowling around seeking whom he could devour. She said their suffering would come to an end and one day Ukraine would become an independent state.

She then urged disciplined, Christian fortitude, "Forgive your enemies. Through you and the blood of the martyrs will come the conversion of Russia. Repent and Love one another...Teach the children to pray. Teach them to live in truth and live yourselves in truth. Say the Rosary. It is the weapon against Satan. He fears the Rosary. Recite the Rosary at any gathering of people."

The apparitions were significant because 73 years before the Blessed Mother appeared in the same village and warned, "There will be a war. Russia will become a Godless country and the Ukraine, as a nation, will suffer terribly for 80 years and will live through the world wars, but it will be free afterward."

Her prediction came to pass after decades of diabolical slavery to the notorious KGB. Ukraine became an independent, democratic state on August 24, 1991.

I ran across the notes I took while working in Ukraine and I was reminded of the power of peristant, persevering prayer in the face of the most outrageous, odds... And of the immensity of God's unending mercy and his desire to let us know that he is with us-even when everyone and everything seems to be against us.

So let us all remember the simple yet powerful words she proclaimed in that faraway village, "The eternal God is calling you!"

COMUNITA CENACOLO-A CALL TO PARENTS!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 09:49:14 PDT

We cried buckets of tears, carried heavy bags under our eyes from all the sleepless nights, harbored a heavy, broken heart that felt like it was going to burst-and then suddenly-without warning-relief.

Nothing could have prepared us for that moment, no one could have told us it was coming. We simply would not have believed them. On the day our sons or daughters entered community, we entered a profound feeling of freedom that we had not known could exist. We experienced a new sense of peace and joyful hope that somehow overrode all the past pain and fear. For the first time, in a long time, we felt like living, really living. When the doors of community opened, the door to a new way of life flew open.

This weekend I was reminded of that remarkable reality during a parent's retreat sponsored by Comunita Cenacolo. As I sat and absorbed the talks and the prayer, the testimonies and the teachings, I felt the continuing evolution of all the spiritual principles I have held dear.

Our children who are in community are learning a new way of life. The parents who are participating in the journey, are also learning a new way of life-by learning alot about themselves. I'll never forget the words I heard early on from one community leader, Joyce Aragno, "Your sons or daughters were not born addicts." She said it would be wise to assess our own culpability in this very cunning, baffling and powerful disease.

Nearly two years ago my son Johnny entered Our Lady of Hope in St. Augustine Florida. I asked him to commit to six months and I believed in my heart that God would take it from there. When I saw Johnny six months later he informed me he was choosing to stay because he knew it wasn't his time to go. Johnny said his journey was now between God and him. I was thrilled! However, I wasn't prepared for the spiritual journey that would begin-inside of me.

As I returned home I entered into my own private purgatory. I literally began to see my sinfulness through the eyes of God. I could no longer focus my attention on my son's addiction or his actions, I was now being asked to face the darkness of my own soul. As I surrendered, I clearly saw my own woundedness and the role I had played in Johnny's disease. The painful process of personal purging has been a sobering experience which continues to this day.

This weekend I left the retreat with a greater resolve to continue to look inward at the weaknesses that need renewal, while looking outward to the source of all healing, Jesus Christ. It is through the suffering strength of the cross that I have found my solace. It is through the gift of his resurrection that I am finding my solution.

And I have come to believe in the words of a wonderful Franciscan priest who spoke at the retreat...He suggested that perhaps God had called our children into community not so much for them, but for their parents.

Now that is something to pray about-and believe me-I will!

Visit the Cenacolo Website for more information -- and to provide support : http://www.comunitacenacolo.org/

BIRTHDAY GIRL KAT!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:43:15 PDT

My friend Kat is celebrating her birthday today enjoying God's hand in creation along the beautiful California shoreline.

She is spending a few days with my sister in Mendocino California which is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and nestled among an artist colony. They sent us beautiful pictures of the cliffs and white peaked waves and I wondered why anyone would ever want to leave that vision.

I'm so happy for her getaway because she's deserving of abundant blessings and lots of old fashioned merry making--having given others more heartfelt Love then I could ever describe. Their dogs, Sophie and Boris made the cut and are traveling with them, enjoying the perks of parents who like to spoil them-and everyone else. My kids and I know this firsthand!

So today we prayed for safety and lots of sunshine for the birthday girl, Kat...And we gave thanksgiving to God for giving her life and giving her to us so that our lives will be fuller and more fruitful-just by knowing her!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIRLFRIEND!

AMAZING RESURRECTION!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 09:31:24 PDT

I had the most amazing experience last night. I witnessed what appeared to be the resurrection of a dying woman.

I felt called all day to attend an evening women's 12 step meeting which I hadn't been to in a while. I really felt the urge to go, so after dinner I jumped in the car and flew up town.

A few minutes after the meeting started, a girl walked in who looked and felt vaguely familiar. Thin and wiry and dressed in jeans and a modern t shirt, she looked like someone I had known...but I wasn't sure.

I just kept glancing at her and then she spoke and shared some very eloquent words of recovery wisdom. As I listened I noticed her front teeth were decayed like the teeth of people I had seen who had been hooked on crack cocaine.

It dawned on me, this girl had an uncanny resemblance to a drug addict I had helped about two years ago. A girl I had blogged about.

I had been driving downtown on a Sunday morning when this young, emaciated woman fell to the ground in an empty lot. I thought she had been beaten up and so I offered her a ride. As we drove along I learned she was a crack addict, evidenced by her teeth, who was now prostituting herself for drugs. She could hardly stay focused but she admitted that her pimp had been beating her. When I tried to get her to go to the battered women's shelter, she fled.

I'm not positive this girl at the meeting is the same girl I helped, but there is an uncanny resemblance...And something deep within tells me that these two women are one and the same. I sure hope so.

That would mean that the girl I prayed for is alive and doing well. It would mean that somehow she beat the incredible odds...Death by a drug overdose or at the hands of her pimp.

I am so grateful that I responded to the call to attend the meeting and even more grateful that this young woman showed up. She gives testimony to the power of the 12step recovery program and she is living, breathing evidence that God is listening and healing the most broken human beings.

She may not know it, but to me, her life is truly an anointed gift from an amazing God who Loves her more than she will ever fully comprehend!

MY MIRACLE GUYS!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 10:12:25 PDT

I felt a great deal of Love from my sons this week. Caring compassion and outright concern. The kind of warmly inspiring qualities a mom wants to see in the men in her life. They were so sweet...taking me to dinner, asking me how I felt and embracing me tightly with lots of hugs and I Love yous.

My children have been tested by fire, scourged at the pillar, agonized in the garden of life...They have pulled through those trials with amazing determination and faith even in the face of fiercely overwhelming challenges...And they are turning out to be gentle, loving young men...The kind of guys every gal would like to know.

Zachary kept looking at me, "This too shall pass...I don't really know what that means, but isn't that what you always say?" "Yes," I laughed...giving him a big hug. And so it does...Time passes and with each passing moment, miracles are manifested in a myriad of surprising ways...and especially through my children.

I've lost a lot of people in my life and faced some ferocious odds...So I am eternally grateful for the gift of my five sons. They have been God's anointing grace in a world that weighs heavily on the human heart. They are the reason that everything feels right, even when things sometimes go terribly wrong.

Thanks guys-I Love you!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAC!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 17:36:55 PDT

My son Mac turned 22 on the 21st, and for the first time in years he was safe, sober and sitting inside-rehab.

It wasn't his idea of a Happy Birthday...However, that's what growing up is all about. Change and change and more change. Growing pains and painful growth. Giving up our reckless past and giving in to healthier choices.

I know Mac may not feel good about himself right now, but I believe his Spring will come. It will take time and tough decisions, tears and tiny baby steps...But every day is a new day with the promise of new life and the Love of Christ who is watching over him every step of the way.

On the day he was born, Mac kept me in labor all day...Entering the world just before sundown...Screaming at the top of his lungs...Announcing to the world that he had finally arrived-on his terms. I remember he was so tiny, almost fragile and much smaller than his older brother. Who would have guessed that one day he would be towering over the rest of us...Tall, dark and handsome...with protruding muscles and a beautiful head of curly brown hair.

I Love this kid and I get on my knees every single day and pray for his protection while giving thanks for the gift of his young life...A life worth living to the fullest, because that is what God fully intended.

And so it will be my prayer on this special day-that Mac will receive the gift of wisdom and the willingness to open his heart to the will of God...So that he can begin respecting his carefully crafted life almost as much-as the One who created it.

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you and before you were born I consecrated you..." Jeremiah 1:5

MIRACLES DO HAPPEN!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 08:24:32 PST

Miracles happen all the time...However, if you're praying for one, purification may need to come first.

Years ago as I prayed for a physical healing from the alcoholism that had crept into my life, I begged God for a healing. I spent hours in prayer, often in front of the Blessed Sacrament. I opened my heart, surrendered my will and pleaded for help.

One day as I immersed myself in his presence I clearly heard that I would not be healed "faster than will benefit your soul." It brought me little comfort because I wanted immediate release from the bondage of pure pain that held me prisoner to this awful disease.

I did not understand at that moment-that God had planned a glorious new life for me free from the pitfalls that had pulled me into the pit of hell. I did not know that he wanted to give me a healthy, wholesome way of thinking that would forever change the course of my life.

I was so immersed in the revolving drama of my life that I could not see the problems that I had unwittingly created and subconsciously craved. My entire mindset had to be renewed, refreshed and brought into alignment with the reality of the saving power of my higher power and his will for my life.

Through patient perseverance, tons of persistant prayer and the humility to be teachable, I have been purified, put back together and primed for amazing possibilities.

So please-believe in miracles and believe enough in yourself and in your God to allow the unfolding miracle to take root and to transform you into the healthy unique human being that you have always been destined to become!

ST. AUGUSTINE AND ST. MONICA

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 05:56:05 PST

St Monica and St Augustine

"It is impossible that the son of so many tears should perish."

With those words the bishop of Milan Italy, St. Ambrose, predicted that St. Monica's faith and fortitude would fuel a final showdown and lead to the baptism of her son, St. Augustine...And he was right on target.

St. Monica traveled far and wide, following her son to distant lands, praying incessantly on bended knee, storming the heavens in the unshakable hope that God would save her son's soul. In 386 A.D. at 35 years of age, the once morally corrupt alcoholic St. Augustine, saw the error in his ways and chose the high road that led him out of the darkness and into the light of heavenly Love.

It's a beautiful story and I keep it close to my heart as I pray for the healing of my own son Mackie. He fled Comunita Cenacolo two weeks ago and is now in a rehab facility here in New Orleans where he says he's committed to kicking the drug habit and healing his broken heart.

His father and I have pledged our support for an honest recovery because there is nothing we want more then to see our beautiful son healthy and happy and living the life that God has designed for him. So for now-we will also storm the heavens, as we take this unsettling process-one day at a time.

St. Monica went to whatever lengths necessary to support her son and to pray for his conversion, even traveling to distant lands to be near him in the hope that he would come to believe, "the truth which is in Jesus." Little did she know that after her death St. Augustine would become a priest, a bishop and one of the greatest Doctors and Saints of the Catholic Church...An anointed man of God whose spiritual insight would change the course of history.

In these challenging times I am holding fast to the example of St. Monica and to the belief in the power of prayer to perform miracles. I am also relying on personal recovery experience-knowing that when we begin fully cooperating with God he will transform our imperfections-into perfection!

"...My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."
2Corinthians 12:9

PRAY, PRAY, PRAY

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 09:45:12 PST

Sometimes I think too much...So that's when I know I have to start praying harder.

Immersing myself in the spiritual tools that work for me is the best solution to the traveling mind. Believe me, my mind can go to far away places and different time zones up and over reality into foolish fantasy faster than yes-how corny-a speeding bullet.

I was thinking today about all the things that have gone wrong for my son Mac. All the unsettling maneauverings by someone. Then the thought occurred to me-instead of dwelling on the obvious-I need to pray...Conscientous, consistant prayer...At morning Mass, with my prayer group, before the Blessed Sacrament and moment to moment.

When I communicate with God, opening my heart and my soul to the power of the Holy Spirit, I get answers...and I intuitively know what God expects of me...My whole attitude changes for the better...I become hopeful and happier and my external and internal vision becomes clearer. Inspired wisdom calms my mind and drives away the anxiety and unrest that seek to steal my peace.

It's easy to get caught up in the myriad of mental inquisitions that seduce our very sanity...It's so much more satisfying surrendering to the sweet, soulful grace of the living God...who alone can move mountains.

So here goes...

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace; Taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world As it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that you will make all things right if I surrender to your will; So that I may be reasonably happy in this life And supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen."

RADIO FOR THE BLIND

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 17:50:42 PST

I believe in giving back...So nearly every week I spend one hour reading for Radio for the Blind. I can't imagine what it must be like to not be able to read...So it's really the least I can do...Especially since reading is one of those God given gifts that I'm pretty good at. From week to week I never know what manuscript they're going to hand me...and truthfully, that's just fine by me.

Three weeks ago when the audio man handed me the magazine article I laughed out loud, "Is this a joke or a bad dream?" I received a long article on the "merits" of the booming "marijuana" industry in California. Young entrepreneurs are working diligently to push pot and all the support props into mainstream acceptance. Yes-this is happening in America...However, after all the family chaos it felt like the joke was on me.

Then last week I got an ugly look at life in Haiti...and the alarming increase in rape inside Haiti's earthquake camps. It seems the squalid campsites have become breeding grounds for all kinds of crime especially rape. Apparently there is virtually no security and very little recourse.

So yesterday, when I arrived at the station and the audio guy apologized as he handed me "People Magazine"-I cheered in thanksgiving. With all the darkness descending upon me, I really needed to read something light and easy...Lots of mentally mindless mush!

The cover article painted a happy picture of Hollywood sweetheart Jennifer Aniston who discussed her lovely life and her funny new movie with co star Allen Sandler, "Just Go With It! My sons and I gave it four stars as we laughed our way through this lighthearted comedy. Then I read about another charming actor, widower Liam Neeson whose seemingly sensible and low key life is wrapped around his two young sons.

Of course there were the mundane headlines about fun and fashion and foolishness...But I'm happy to report the hour flew by and I left feeling lighthearted and relieved.

It's just good medicine every once in a while to let go of the maddening, mixed up mind blowing fireworks for some old fashioned nonsense...like, Gossip Girls, which is as silly a series as they come, but one amazing escape into never never land.

Which by the way, never lasts long anyway...So enjoy it while you can!

GOD'S WILL

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:24:06 PST

Our kids are as different as night and day. With five sons, I know this all too well.

However, as I prayed for my son Mac today, I began thinking about his older brother Johnny who has been in Comunita Cenacolo for the last 21 months. Johnny, four years older than Mac, entered community on a six month commitment before deciding to stay longer-thus far almost two years.

I guess Johnny's journey in community has seemed much too easy for those of us watching from the outside. He has stuck it out even when the going got rough...Like right now. I recently received a letter from him in which he wrote, "I'm now three months into this kitchen, and I have to be completely honest, sometimes I feel like I'm suffering like a dog. The cooking, the cleaning, the late hours, no free time whatsoever, washing in a sink late at night, little sleep. It's heavy." Does that sound familiar to anyone? Hello mothers!

Johnny went on to say that he knows he'll be a better, stronger person...but that sometimes the isolation takes him to some dark places inside he didn't know existed. He says the key is to release the difficulties to God through prayer in order to remain strong. A valuable lesson for each and every one of us as we journey through our own lives.

Right now Johnny is living in community at a convent in Borgoro Italy. The house is called "Gioia" which means "joy". He says he's fasting twice a week on Wednesdays and Fridays and praying on his knees before the Blessed Sacrament at 2:00 a.m. every single day...Choices he made by his own free will because he wanted to push himself harder.

Johnny has written that it is the Eucharist that sustains him...and as far as I can see-it is also transforming him. You see the power of this community lies not in doctors or medicine or rehab related activities...The power to transform and change lives lies squarely at the foot of the cross, through the saving grace of God, who became man-to rescue us from our sinful natures.

My son Johnny used to sleep all day and then party all night. His soft, soulful heart got suffocated by the drugs and the drinking and the darkness that enveloped his soul. Community life has transformed him, by helping him to see himself as God sees him...Beautiful and gifted and worth saving from his self imposed hell.

The amazing saint, Padre Pio, urged us time and again to be one hundred percent vigilant at all times by humbling ourselves under the hand of the heavenly physician..."...don't ever fall back on yourself when the storm is raging...calm your anxiety by drinking at the fountain of divine Love, which you must do by faith and trust, by humility and submission to God's will."

Johnny is learning the art of surrendering to God's will, Mac is still holding on to his free will...and me-well I have been known to be a slow learner when I don't like the lesson. So-these days I too am choosing to let go and let God, allowing the Holy Spirit to teach me a lesson or too about myself as I seek to see my sons through these challenging circumstances while trusting completely in God's providential-will for our lives.

COMUNITA CENACOLO-ENDURANCE

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 12:13:35 PST

"Don't question in the darkness what God tells you in the light."

It's a tough one, however I'm trying to keep that thought front and center as I move through the moments.

My second son Mac left Comunita Cenacolo this week after entering just one week ago. He's not ready to surrender his will completely to the will of God and to those who have come before him and made the long difficult journey through recovery. Mac wants to do it his way, which by the way, has gotten him locked up in jails, institutions and more dangerous scenarios than I would like to remember.

Over the last few years we have tried inpatient, outpatient-everything humanly possible...So now, I will pray and completely surrender my child to the Lord...to the belief that there is a power greater than any demonic darkness that is hovering over his heart and holding him hostage to this very cunning, baffling and powerful disease.

I choose to believe that my God can do for my son what he cannot do for himself and I am asking that all the obstacles that have been placed in the path of his recovery-all the people who are keeping him locked in this dance with death-be removed, once and for all.

When he called me this week and wanted to come home, the hardest words I've ever had to say were, "I Love you but you cannot come home-you have to return to community and let them help you." As sad as I feel, I know my firm commitment to the proven process is critical when the going gets tough...and I imagine it's going to get a lot tougher. Not knowing where your child is, where he will end up or if he's alive is torture...yet-it's the chilling reality of this ugly disease.

When Mac agreed to enter community, an adult friend gave him a free pass to come home, telling him to call anytime and he would immediately fly him back home...and so that's exactly what Mac did. The temptation to leave was just too great and too easy for him to resist and community life was just too challenging for him to accept.

Recovery means revising our whole way of thinking and consequently our whole way of life. We have to heal from the deep wounds that triggered our addiction and let go of the old resentments that threaten to drag us back into it. It's scary territory-looking at all the old baggage we've been carrying around for years...However, when we successfully unload the weight-the freedom that follows is powerfully liberating.

I Love my son Mac with an unconditional, monumental mothers Love...and I believe in him in ways he may not truly understand...I will go to whatever lengths necessary to save his life...calling on legions of angels and saints to intercede on Mac's behalf while using every tool that I have in my arsenal of spiritual weapons to fight this difficult battle.

However, I will also hold fast to the belief, that ultimately, God is in charge and if I endure to the end he will not fail me or my precious child. So today and every day, I will rest my weary heart in the healing power of his heavenly Love, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that with God-all things are possible!

BLESSED BY WOMEN!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:51:18 PST

As I walked around the park early yesterday morning the bright and beautiful sun radiated through the clouds, beckoning me to look skyward...I watched in wonder as the pulsating hues of rose and blue and gold waves...spread out before my eyes...while the center disc merrily rotated in a circular dance. It was miraculously beautiful!

Eventually I'd look away-smiling to myself at the wonder of God's generous gift...and then suddenly there it was again, pulsating right in front of me...As if urging me to watch again and again...And so I did and it was then that I knew this promised to be a special day...And it was-Thank you Lord!

Later that afternoon unexpected kindness came a calling...Cradling my family in the loving warmth of my circle of prayer warriors. They delivered a generous surprise gift, wrapped in the bountiful Love which always flows from the heavens into their hearts and then straight into our home. They knew the boys and I had experienced a rough several days, worrying about a medical dilemma with my second son Mac..So they did what I've watched them do so many times before...They banded together and sent their faith inspired support to lessen the load by lifting the spirit.

I don't think they'll ever fully understand the impact of their actions...How could they-when giving to others comes so naturally to these girls that it almost seems too easy. However, I know the depth and the breath of their love-for their ladies who have been their friends and sometimes their foes-their prayer partners and often their crying shoulders...They are loyal to the core-and the kind of wonderful women whose simple acts of charity, become powerful catalysts for change.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, there's something about women...like Mary and Martha and Terri and Karen...Rosemary and Donna and all the other formidable females who find the time in their busy lives to Love the ones they know and live the messages they sow.

I think this quote sums these girls up the best, "There is in every true woman's heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity; but which kindles up, and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity."
-Washington Irving

HOUSE OF JOY!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 19:05:20 PST

Our family received an early Christmas present...A seven page letter from my oldest son Johnny. He is living in a convent in Borgaro Italy, just five minutes from Turin...which is home to the Shroud of Turin. Johnny is learning Italian and landscaping and the fundamentals of a God centered life.

Johnny is an excellent writer and he paints a beautiful picture of the day to day activities of his unique life behind the convent walls-which by the way-are lined with barbed wire. "Not to keep us in," he writes, "but to keep the outsiders from getting in. We are always free to leave."

He is living with the Sisters of Charity, an order founded by a French nun, St. Jeanne Antide and with ten other young men. They are a mixed group-Dutch, Italian, Irish, Slovakian and American. He says they all get along pretty well and even though most of them speak English, he prefers speaking Italian.

The house is called "Gioia" which means joy and there is a small grotto with a statue of the Blessed Mother and flowers which they call "Ave Maria." When Mother Elvira, the founder of Cenacolo, prayed for the desperate youth of the world, she received the inspiration for Community there. So you could say he is living in the birth place of the community.

Johnny says the grounds are serenely beautiful...There's a garden, a park and a fruit field. He and the other young men each have their work responsibilities, however there is also time for playing soccer and for some old fashioned exercise.

There are no computers or TVs or telephones, yet the rhythm of life is deeply satisfying. He writes, "When I first arrived I felt a lot of peace, like the right decision had been made. I had been mentally preparing myself for a really tough experience, but I see being here as if God is saying," "John don't worry, I know what's best for you, and I'm taking care of you now."

Johnny says he has more spiritual freedom, so he is now pushing himself harder. He fasts twice a week on Wednesdays and Fridays instead of once and he goes to adoration at two a.m. instead of 5:30 a.m. He says it's tough, "However, I have a good intention, and I really feel like I'm changing when I make uncomfortable decisions."

Johnny writes that he suffers every single day...mentally or physically...but "I appreciate it because, with God's help, I turn it into growth." And he's learning to accept himself, flaws and all, because "I am still loved by Jesus, if nobody else."

There is no better Christmas gift then to intimately know the unconditional Love of Jesus who came into the world to liberate each and every one of us from the darkness of our lives. There is nothing more satisfying than accepting this gift.

And so this Christmas I am so grateful for the gift of community and for the gift of my son Johnny whose powerful witness is filling our lives with authentic Christ centered hope and more joy than he will ever comprehend!

ADVENT DAY OF RENEWAL

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 12:56:07 PST

I woke up this week at 3:30a.m. and as I laid their thinking and praying...the thought suddenly occurred to me, "What was I thinking. What would possess me to agree to share the insanity of my sinfulness so openly in a public setting." Of course I wasn't thinking-about me. I was thinking about how I could respond to the call that God had put on my heart to help others who might be in as much pain as I had been in.

Tomorrow, Friday December 10Th, I'll be telling the faithful about my fall into the darkness of addiction and explaining how God has redeemed me through the power of his unconditional Love. My testimony is part of an Advent Day of Renewal at St. Francis Xavier Church in Metairie La. It's a day of praise and worship, hope and renewal...A time to remember that the reason for the season is the birth of Jesus Christ who came to this earth to liberate us from the pervasive power of evil that is clearly keeping so many humans in bondage to sin.

It's been my experience that every time I begin working on behalf of heaven, hell is just one step away-trying to trip me up. And believe me-I have been tripped plenty of times and fallen face first onto the hard cement. It's never been a pretty sight, however through a great deal of stamina and old fashioned prayer, my wrongs have been righted, the scars have been healed and my heart is now filled with joyful, unending hope.

I'm hoping to pass on that message tomorrow to anyone who will listen...and perhaps just one soul will see through my experience how to steer clear of the pitfalls that place us in the most precarious situations.

God is truly amazing and he has gifted me with so many blessings. It is an honor to be able to share on his behalf how someone so broken could be put back together so miraculously...Because let's face it...It's all about God-and when we simply turn our wills and our lives over to his heavenly power, miracles do happen!

OUR LADY OF JOY, HANCEVILLE ALABAMA

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 04:22:10 PST

High atop a hill in Hanceville Alabama, broken hearts are being healed and hope is being restored. Our Lady of Joyful Hope is a community of young men who are finding new freedom through a life of authentic truth. Once lost in the darkness of addiction they are now living in the light of Christ who is transforming them from the inside out...And their families, if they are open and willing, are being transformed right alongside them.

Recently, I spent three days with this community, listening to the young men, their parents and to the foundress, Mother Elvira, who flew in from Italy for the anointing of the new community house and the celebration that followed. Mother Elvira's life story is on par with Mother Teresa. She is an Italian nun who heard the call from God to snatch souls from Satan by delivering young men and women from the demonic grip of addiction. She gave up everything familiar, walked straight into the wilderness and wound up becoming a living legacy for desperate families everywhere.

For more than two and a half decades, Mother Elvira has inspired the renewal of the heart, mind and soul through the unconditional Love of Jesus Christ, profoundly evident in the Holy Eucharist and implanted in the hearts of those who openly embrace this simple yet powerful school of life.

It took a simple, humble woman to believe that God could and would conquer death...It took the persevering heart of a woman of faith to see the light of hope buried under the weight of total despair.

When I met Mother Elvira I marveled at her mystical quality. As we locked eyes it was as if she knew what was in my heart. Without missing a beat she said, "Do not cry when you see your son. Show him you are strong and joyful, otherwise he will become anxious and worried." Those were the exact words I needed to hear since I had just been feeling the weight of missing him...and wondering if it would be more healthy for me to show all my sons how sad I sometimes feel.

My oldest son Johnny has been living in community for a year and a half, entering in St. Augustine Florida before being transferred this summer to Borgoro Italy where I'm told he is almost fluent in Italian. We probably won't see Johnny until next year and as much as I miss him, I am so grateful that he had the courage to accept help and to submit his will completely to the will of God.

Johnny is on a spiritual journey that is liberating him from the evil that once held him in bondage. He is coming to know a new peace and a new freedom that is growing stronger with each passing day. As his mom, it is my responsibility to walk with my son, attending monthly parent's meetings and allowing the spirit of God to transform my heart and the heart of our family. Learning to live in this world without being consumed by it is a challenging task, but it's comforting to know that I am not alone.

Today the Cenacolo community has sixty houses around the world that operate on the principles of disciplined prayer, Mass, daily Eucharistic adoration, confession, work, community and family support. They are cenacles of prayer, pulsating Love and radiating a contagious joy that is life transforming...Healing individuals, families and entire communities.

Clearly, the Cenacolo message is counter cultural yet it is powerfully revolutionary...Changing the way doctors and lawyers, judges and the judgemental view the seemingly hopeless addict. They are witnessing firsthand that with God all things are possible...And sometimes downright miraculous!

MARY LOU MCCALL AND JUDY LANDRIEU KLEIN, ADVENT DAY OF RENEWAL

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 10:07:45 PST

Advent is a time of preparation and reflection. An opportunity to really think about the coming of Christ into our lives. It is also a time for us to bring votive offerings to the altar...our hopes and dreams, our challenges and our fears.

On Friday December 10TH you are invited to participate in an Advent Day of Renewal and Eucharistic Healing Service at St. Francis Xavier Church on Metairie Rd. Fr. Jose Lavastida, the rector at Notre Dame Seminary, will say Mass at 9:00a.m. and his homily will focus on the role of the Blessed Mother in our lives.

I will be sharing my personal testimony of my miraculous deliverance from the demonic darkness of alcoholism into the light of Christ's healing Love. Catholic Theologian Judy Landrieu Klein will tell her husband's riveting near death experience and the illumination of his soul.

The two of us will also share the amazing story of how God used our son's drug addictions to reunite us in a ministry aimed at healing women, families and society, JMJ Ministries.

Finally, the Day of Renewal will conclude with a healing service thanks to Fr. Jose and a team of prayer warriors. So mark your calendars! I truly believe that this anointed day will feed you spiritually, nourishing the body, mind and soul with the power of God's unconditional, redemptive Love.

As we prepare ourselves to celebrate the birth of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, say a prayer and ask God whether you should accept his invitation to come to his table and celebrate with the rest of us, his victory over death!

For more info: kleinmccall@gmail.com

THANKSGIVING BLESSINGS!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 14:51:00 PST

I have so much to be thankful for on this special day. It would take me all the way through tomorrow to write down how fully I appreciate the gifts in my life.

We've been in the kitchen all morning, cooking like the expert chefs you see on TV.
I don't take credit for any of the fancy footwork, because I'm so used to throwing things together in ten minutes, I forgot the deeply satisfying feeling of chopping, cutting and mixing natural ingredients. My God it smells amazing!

Ben of course is designing this delectable feast. He knows his stuff and the stuffing we put together promises to be the best yet. Homemade cornbread and crawfish tails mixed into a seasoned array of oil and butter. We made our famous "pink stuff" which my mom used to whip up thanks to my aunt who gave her the recipe many moons ago. Cranberries, pineapple, pecans, cool whip, marshmallows and sugar-Wow!

But it's the turkey that is so amazing. Ben rubbed it down with his personal mixture of herbs and oil and laid down a bed of vegetables and spices before setting the Turkey on top. It's already beautifully brown! His brothers are already chomping at the bit-to taste and devour!

As I think about it, this is what Thanksgiving is all about...Family, food and all the trimmings wrapped around a whole lot of Love, delivered on a platter of blessings that I will be feasting upon for a very long time!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHEF BEN!

miracle.moments.mccall@gmail.com — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 14:43:01 PST

My middle son Ben turned seventeen today...But honestly, it doesn't seem like he's that old. He's just such a wonderful kid that I have to think about the fact that he's a Junior in High School....It's the age that usually makes a mom cringe with worry...Yet with Ben...It's different. He's the quintessential middle child. Conscientious, dependable, smart, deeply sensitive-yet amazingly confident.

Ben has faced more challenges than any child should have to deal with. Some pretty serious parental and family issues...and then anorexia. Somehow though, he's still a straight A student with a 4.4 average...He works after school, socializes with friends and is now the chef Du jour in our home. Ben can and does-cook up some of the most amazing dishes that come from his growing repertoire of recipes. In fact- he's such a good cook that now I'm a little intimidated! Imagine that!

I can't imagine our home without Ben...He's the anchor that holds his four brothers together and the rock that remains firmly planted in all the right places. I knew from the beginning he would be a special son...I fought hard to hold on to his life in the early weeks of pregnancy...And he's fought hard to stay alive through the
ups and downs and many challenges of his young life.

My friend Penny visited the other day and she commented how he looked like an angel as he walked into the room. Smiling warmly, Ben chatted with her and kindly listened as she talked about teaching him to make meatballs and pasta shuta. He didn't rush off or make fun or roll his eyes...He gave her his full attention and respect...because that's who he is.

This Thanksgiving Ben will be in the kitchen roasting up the Turkey while I'll be standing on the sidelines counting my many blessings and thanking God for the gift of Ben who came to me on the wings of a prayer and through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The gift of his life is the kind of gift that keeps on giving because Ben keeps on growing more special with each and every day!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN-WE LOVE YOU!