Sweet Home Alabama...

Sweet Home Alabama…

It was very sweet to be back in Alabama for a few days. I had the pleasure of attending the Diocese of Alabama’s 181st Convention. Included in the convention weekend was spending time with new and old friends, watching my Bishop juggle, visiting with my fellow seminarians and having a ball! The Diocese of Alabama is a great a diocese. I am so blessed to be a part of it. I was updating my mother about the weekend and told her 10 times I love my diocese. In fact, it was hard to get focused on school after such an amazing weekend.

I am a big fan of Bishop Kee Sloan. You will see what I am mean if you take the time to listen to his Bishop’s address: www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7G-wP0C9_s&feature=youtu.be. Kee is passionate about our diocese and wants to work together to continue to grow the Kingdom of God. I can’t wait for the opportunity to work with him in a few years.

The highlight of the weekend was spending time with my St. Mary’s family. I preached three times and spoke at Sunday School. Whew, Sunday mornings are busy for a priest in training☺ It was an amazing experience and I am grateful that I was welcomed home with loving arms. The audio for my sermon is on my facebook page. I hope you enjoy it! It was a labor of love for the people of St. Mary’s.

I made it back to Austin safe and sound and jumped right back in to the week by officiating at Evening Prayer. I am working hard on a big paper that is due on Tuesday and a variety of other projects and scholarship applications. Visitor’s Weekend is around the corner and I am excited to help entertain a postulant from Alabama and his wife.

Lent is here, a time for reflection, soul searching, discipline and preparing. I have taken on several things including exercising more and increasing my prayer life. My challenge to increase my prayer life is to make my ordinary life a prayer time. I hope you will join me! Here are a few ideas:
1) Try saying the Lord’s Prayer while the coffee is brewing in the morning.
2) Pray for someone while you are walking from the parking lot in to work or even to the grocery store.
3) Make a list of all people in your life that you have hurt or have hurt you. Intentionally say their names everyday in your prayer life.
4) Be open to the power of prayer and remember prayer can happen all day long in every occasion.

I pray that Lent will be a time of meditation and reflection for us all. You are all in my prayers and thoughts.
Blessings to you all as the ride continues…Mary Balfour