Rosary Vs Radio

You do not need to be an executive to live a busy life. I am not an executive, but I cannot recall the last time I was bored because I had nothing to do. Work, family and my PhD keep me quite busy. Finding time for prayer and to creat the proper environment is always a challenge.

A few weeks ago I had my radio disconnected from my car, because it drained my battery and I did not want to spend money on getting it fixed. Since then my car has become exclusively a place of prayer and reflection; my little monastery on four wheels. I had prayed in my car before, but sometimes I'd just turn on the radio to catch up with some news or to listen to music. Besides for the rosary I can also do some spiritual reading, or better said spiritual listening, on my iPhone. I put on my headset and let it roll. My favorite 'readings' are those of Archbishop Fulton Sheen. He teaches sound Church doctrine without compromise, and challenges me without the slightest willingness to bend the teachings for my comfort.

Of course, prayer life cannot be limited exclusively to the car and there is a need to find time for prayer at home in family, and I do find time to pray at home. As a pater familias I need to be deeply rooted spiritually and the time spent with God cannot only be the time spend in prayer with the kids. If I want Christ to be the motor of my thoughts and actions, I need to get to know him and his heart, I need to get to know his Church and her teachings. So, why not use the car?!

Please, do not disconnect your radio in your car after reading this, but you might want to consider spending 15 minutes in silence with the Lord while you're on the road.

Motivating children

The past few days have been rather difficult. It is as if my children had decided not to pay attention to my wife or to me. This is when one is tempted to become “Daddy Iron-fist”, and threaten with all kinds of consequences and give out punishments. But you can catch more flies with a drop of honey than with a barrel of vinegar. All you have to find is what honey is for your children.

The “Yes Mommy, yes Daddy” campaign had worked in the past, so we put it in practice again and it is showing results now. The goal is to get the children to obey promptly. We have drawn a mystery of the Rosary on a piece of paper and every time our kids obey when they find it hard to, they can put a sticker in the circle. This is a great source of motivation for them, because they know that they are making Our Blessed Mother and Jesus happy.

They also like to prepare the same campaign for themselves by drawing their own little circles on paper. Maybe they are not good enough to pray the Rosary on, but the cross on the bottom bead clearly indicates that they do it for Christ.

God is just, and hell is a reality for those who refuse to live their lives according to God’s will. Justice demands that there should also be negative consequences for certain actions, but the better motivated children are the less need there is for punishment.

Women are usually better to find out what motivates children. We daddies are not so much. But, hey, nowhere it is written on their good ideas: for women’s use only! Why not learn from them what is good, and even help them when they lack motivation?