Father Euteneuer's Urgent Call for Prayer

The following is a copy of an email I received today from Human Life International (HLI).
Please read and then pray and fast as your state in life allows. God bless.

Spirit & Life®"The words I spoke to you are spirit and life." (Jn 6:63)
Human Life International e-ColumnVolume 05, Number 27 Friday, July 30, 2010

Critical Days Ahead: Urgent Prayer for Kenya Needed

Dear Friends of Life, HLI once again asks your prayers and fasting this week before the final vote in Kenya on a new constitution which would legalize abortion on demand in that previously abortion-free country. The vote will be next Wednesday, August 4th, and we will report next week on the outcome of the vote. Thanks to the efforts of Congressman Christopher Smith (R-NJ) we have now found out that the Obama Administration has spent at least $23 million in the effort to influence the outcome of another country's referendum. This type of political influence, since much of it has been given to openly pro-abortion groups, is prohibited by U.S. law.

PrayerKindly pray for the babies of Kenya before the Blessed Sacrament this week if you are able. Even if you only remember Kenya in your private intentions at the Sunday Mass this weekend you will do a great deal to help the efforts to stop this wickedness that is knocking at Kenya's door. Pray also to the Guardian Angel of Kenya. It is a strong tradition in angelology that countries, ethnicities and natural communities of persons (even families) have guardian angels just like individuals have. I have found that prayers to guardian angels of whole countries are powerful if enough people raise their voices in intercession for their protection. This clear and present danger merits angelic protection if ever there was a need. FastingIf you are able to offer some sacrifice or fast from food this week for the cause of Kenya that would add a special potency to our prayer. The Lord Himself said that some demons are only driven out by "prayer and fasting," so we must trust very much in this powerful spiritual force of protection against such a demonic evil as abortion.

Where sin abounds grace abounds all the more St. Paul said that grace actually flourishes when great sinfulness shows its ugly face. We know that one of the immediate fruits of this fight in Kenya (even before the vote) has been to shine the light of truth on the evil of abortion and to cause the reaffirmation of the basic culture of life of the Kenyan people. We pray that grace will continue to abound in this fight for the preservation of all that is sacred, not only for the Kenyan people but for the African continent which still remains largely free of abortion.

Thank you and God bless you for your charity in defending life - all around the world.

Sincerely,Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer
President, Human Life International

Holy Heroes Summer Faith Adventure

In addition to our parish's two-day summer Vacation Bible Study, we tried one here at home.

We used the Holy Heroes Summer Faith Adventure. It was great! The kids had a blast. If you'd like to try it for free go to www.holyheroes.com/

One day, as part of our snack for our VBS, we made these pretzels . This was one of their favorite snacks. The shape of a pretzel reminds us of praying hands. People used to pray with their head bowed and arms crossed over their chest.

I can't say enough good things about this program. The family that produces these videos inspires me! The crafts were great, the coloring pages interesting (and informative), and the videos about Bible history were very well presented.

In the past we've tried the Holy Heroes Advent Adventures and Holy Heroes Lenten Adventures. I love this company and my kids have learned so much about Christ, Catholic Culture, and Bible history. Holy Heroes is definitely one of the best things that I've found out there on the Internet that is solidly Catholic, educational, wholesome, and FREE!

Baby Mouse in the House!

The kids were fascinated at how small this baby mouse was in comparison to adults they had seen. We scientifically observed it for awhile before doing an experiment to see what our cat would do when confronted with such a tiny foe. Our hypothesis was correct. Cats eat mice. LOL.

Cave Trip, Grandpa's Birthday, and Our First Egg!

The kids with their Aunt Olivia at a local cave tour.

Grandpa's 60th Birthday celebration at our house. The kids got him 60 chocolate kisses, a gift card, and I made him a six layer chocolate cake (one layer for each decade).

Here was our first egg! Since this one, we've had about a dozen. We enjoyed omlettes the other night with biscuits and apple butter. Yum! It will be really nice when our 12 little chickens start laying eggs.

"The Grandkids"

My parents currently have nine grandkids. Here is the most recent picture of all of them together at Grammy and Paw-paw's house over the 4th of July weekend.

Northern Visit with Grammy and Paw Paw

Some of our activities included swimming, riding horses, going to the park, playing with the kittens, visiting the Science Central with Uncle Eric, and of course last and certainly not least napping.