WINTER 2011
My dear friends,
As Christmas approaches, we first think of the journey of
Mary and Joseph and the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ. What
a gift from the Father – the gift of His Son, our Redeemer.
Gifts! For some, that is the foremost thought as the
Christmas Season approaches. Anyone who knows me well,
knows that I love gifts and that will be the focus of my message
to you.
Imagine Christmas Eve for a two year old. It can quickly
become overwhelming when he sees the abundance of gifts under
the tree from parents, grandparents, aunts & uncles. And, as he
begins to open his gifts, the enthusiasm and noise of the adults
as they watch him open his first few gifts can become a little too
intense and cause him to cry and shy away from opening any
more presents.
As baptized Christians, we too have been given an abundance
of gifts but sometimes we fail – at least initially – to appreciate
them. During Jesus’ last evening with the apostles, he introduced
three gifts that would, despite his impending absence, make His
presence known on earth for all time. In their last fleeting hours
together, Jesus gave his followers His everlasting presence in the
Eucharist, in His word, and in His Spirit. All three make it
possible for us to experience the fullness of life in Him.
Unlike the two year old, we may sometimes be “under-
whelmed” by these gifts of love and life that have been made
available to us. Like the unopened gifts of the child, we may
set aside God’s gifts – untouched, unwrapped and therefore
unavailable.
Let’s reflect and “unwrap” the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The
gifts of the Spirit are wisdom, understanding, right judgment,
courage, knowledge, reverence and wander and awe. We were
given these gifts at the Sacrament of Confirmation. Do you
remember? These gifts of the Holy Spirit are graces that give
us the strength to live the moral life. Because of these graces,
we are open to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. How
blessed we are that the Holy Spirit so richly provides us with the
strength needed to be followers of Christ.
We do not receive these gifts as full-blown powers that
work in us whether we cooperate or not. If that were true every
confirmed person would be a saint! Rather, they are given to
us as graces to be used and nurtured and developed. They are
given to us as powers in potential. That means they have to be
activated by us. When we begin to use these powers in love for
the service of others, they grow stronger each day.
So this year, when you are deciding who you will buy gifts
for and what that perfect gift will be, consider sharing the gifts
of the Holy Spirit. Live your life conscience of these gifts and
see the abundant blessings you will receive
from others, and most importantly, our
Heavenly Father.
Merry Christmas and God Bless.
In the Service of the Lord,
Sister Dulce Maria Flores
17560
George O’Neal Road • Baton Rouge, LA 70817 • (225) 752-8480
E-mail:
•
The Sister Dulce Foundation, Inc.
Supporting the Cypress Springs Mercedarian Prayer Center
We have all experienced the financial hardships with our
economy today. In an effort to utilize our resources to the
fullest, we’ve decided to provide our newsletter digitally.
Besides being a more effective and economical way to share
information, you will now be able to easily forward and share
this newsletter. Can you think of someone in your computer
database who may interested and inspired by the work of Our
Lord through Sister Dulce and the events at Cypress Springs
Mercedarian Prayer Center? This newsletter just may be the
vehicle that reminds them of how Our Lord is alive and with
us each day of our lives.
Beginning in the Spring of 2012, we will email the newsletter
to the current email address that we have on file for you. Also,
the newsletter has been and will continue to be accessible from
our website at
If you do
not have an email account or do not have access to our website
or, if you just prefer to have a printed copy delivered to your
home we will be happy to comply with your request. Please
call the Center at 225/752-8480 and request to be placed on
the mailing list.
It is important to us that you continue to be connected to the
Center and to the work that the Lord is doing through Sister
Dulce. So many people have said that they were inspired by
the testimonies shared in the newsletter by those who visit the
Center and have been touched by Our Lord through Sister.
This inspiration has helped many find their way back to their
faith and to a loving Father who cares so deeply for each of us.
We will continue to provide inspirational material in our
newsletter and hope that you will forward and share the
newsletter with others seeking a closer relationship with God.
Newsletter going Digital Spring, 2012
