Dear John, We all need to feel “we are where we should be!” By that I mean we start out in life responsible for making many choices. Along with my choosing, I always add a prayer that I will be doing God’s will by accepting that choice for me and giving me the grace to see me through it. Hi, my name is Sister Rose Lima Frerick, OSF. My ministry at Franciscan Media is to thank you, our wonderful donors, and pray for your needs. As an Oldenburg Franciscan Sister, many of my choices were “made for me” following my vow of obedience. But at one point in my life, the choice of my next job and where I was to live were left up to my choosing. What an exciting moment! So, when the opportunity presented itself to work with Franciscan Media seven years ago, I was very happy. Not only are my fellow coworkers endowed with the spirit of St. Francis, but we have a common vision of sharing our faith and Franciscanism with not only each other, but with all our outreach to you and others. I’m consistently inspired by resources such as Faith and Family, which is both a regular column in St. Anthony Messenger magazine an online feature on Franciscan Media’s website. In Faith and Family, Susan Hines-Brigger, an executive editor for St. Anthony Messenger, shares her outlook on spiritual challenges both she and her family face. The result is always heartfelt yet entertaining, and I always come away with an appreciation of her faith and the faith we all share. Our Franciscan spirit reaches out to many folks. While I thank donors for helping us financially, I also include a short prayer request sheet, offering any donor special prayers that they might need. In other words, I include that person’s prayer in my prayers. This part of my job is so beneficial for me! I feel blessed and so gratified by their responses. Many (if not most) of the prayer requests are asking prayers not for themselves, but for family members, for world situations, for a special neighbor going through a tremendous amount of burdens. Almost any request one can imagine will come to me through handwritten notes, through emails, and sometimes by phone. God has been so good to all of us in allowing us to share the Franciscan spirit and help spread the Gospel as best we know how through all that our Franciscan Media has to offer. Franciscan Media needs to raise $80,000 by October to ensure that we can continue publishing the Franciscan Spirit, Saint of the Day, Pray+Pause, Minute Meditations, and Faith and Family online resources. Your generous support will help us continue sending 150,000 daily emails, helping people discern where they should be. Will you join my prayer that we will do God’s will today? I ask you to join me in spreading the Gospel in the spirit of St. Francis. I look forward to writing you a thank-you note soon. |
