The Handy Little Guide to Adoration
Michelle Jones Schroeder
ISBN 9781681923215
eISBN 9781681923222
ASIN B07GDTVMF5
This is the one of the ‘Handy Little Guide’ books from Our Sunday Visitor that I have read, it is available in eBook format and I believe it is one of 4 available digitally from the 9 in the series, though one of them is not available digitally in Canada. This is a pity. I want to state that this is a wonderful little book or booklet. It was a great little read, and reminder, it is one that could read repeatedly, and with new benefits each time. Second, I really wish this that others in the ‘Handy Little’ series were available as eBooks. After having read many in the series I want to read the others but almost never pick up physical books anymore, or if I do I scan them to make digital copies if I am very desperate to read them. Mainly due to my dyslexia.
The chapters and sections in this booklet are:
Read This First
The Nuts and Bolts of Adoration
Hectic Day, Gotta Pray!
What Am I Doing Here?
I Need Answers!!!
Bouncy Balls
Nothing to See Here
It’s a Mystery!
Prep Time
Dig Into Devotions
Conclusion
About the Author
The description of this volume is:
“Working mom Michelle Schroeder knows how busy we all are, so she packs a lot of info into this brief, easy-to-read booklet.
You will not only explore the nuts and bolts of Eucharistic Adoration but also discover great reasons and times to enter into the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist,
• When life is moving fast and you need to be refreshed
• When you just feel the need to be with Jesus
• When you need answers and direction from a loving God
• When you need focus in prayer
• When you’re experiencing spiritual dryness
• When you need to prepare for the Sacrament of Reconciliation
In The Handy Little Guide to Adoration you will learn, as Michelle did, the life-changing benefits of Eucharistic Adoration.”
About the author we are informed:
“Michelle Jones Schroeder resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She and her husband of twenty-one years are kept entertained and exhausted by their two hilarious children. After graduating from Louisiana State University, Michelle spent the first part of her professional life in marketing and management. After a few years at home with her kids, poor culinary skills led her to invent a kitchen product and start a small business. She is slightly obsessed with St. Pio of Pietrelcina and 1980s music, and is involved at Our Lady of Mercy Parish in Baton Rouge. She doesn’t have free time, but if she did, she’d enjoy a nap.”
It is one of three she has contributed to the series. The volume has both:
Nihil Obstat
Msgr. Michael Heintz, Ph.D.
Censor Librorum
Imprimatur
Kevin C. Rhoades
Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend
June 20, 2018
I only highlighted a few sections while reading this volume, they are:
“Let me start by telling you what I’m not. I’m not a religious scholar. I’m not a nun. I’m not a super-holy, close-to-perfection Catholic. I am a working mom with two kids and a husband, who does her best and fails often. I am a Catholic absolutely in love with Eucharistic adoration. It’s there I get to experience a direct, personal encounter with the living Christ.”
“Adoration doesn’t have instructions, and there’s no particular format to follow, which is why we are sometimes apprehensive. But that’s also what makes it so beautiful. It’s free time with Jesus, where we don’t have to think about kneeling and standing or finding pages in the hymnal. Adoration is our up-close-and-personal time with the holy Eucharist, where we can focus wholly on our relationship with God.”
“Some of my most Spirit-filled moments have occurred in the adoration chapel. I find peace if my mind is restless and clarity if my heart is troubled. If I’m really happy about something, it’s awesome to share my joy and gratitude with the risen Lord. As I’ve spent time there with God, I am able to listen more attentively to his directions and feel more clearly the gentle guidance he provides. It’s a unique feeling of being surrounded by his love in the midst of daily stress and chaos. I credit the time I spend in adoration with helping me grow in my faith and strengthen my reliance on and devotion to Jesus.”
“Everyone I know typically has more to do in a day than they can possibly accomplish. Some days we handle the stress better than others. There are plenty of good excuses we can make for why we can’t get to adoration, right? But what do we gain by avoiding God at these times? Those may be the times he really wants us to come to him, so he can calm us.”
“But, like all of God’s grace, it’s unfathomable. Our human brains are completely unable to comprehend the depths of his mercy. We simply cannot understand the sheer limitlessness of God’s love for us. That is exactly what makes it a beautiful thing to reflect on. Thinking about being loved by my creator, despite my weakness, despite my flaws, despite that I fall over and over, is really overwhelming.”
“Life is confusing and difficult, so I sometimes go to adoration because I need answers. Whether I’m worried about something, or am trying to figure out God’s will and how to live it, or need direction about a situation, I go to the chapel and start talking.”
“The Book of Psalms have become my go-to adoration activity when I’m in the desert, and I always stumble across something that gives me solace. Maybe it’s a misery-loves-company comfort when I read psalms that seem to share my anguish. Other times it’s hopefulness and perseverance that is displayed to me.”
I hope those quotes give you a feel for this volume. This volume has a lot of practical suggestions and recommendations. It offers enough that everyone is sure to find some things that help and work. But most of all it reminds us of the value of spending time with Jesus in adoration; even when it is difficult, distracted or even dry.
When I was in university, I was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, there was a series of booklets by the founder Bill Bright, called Transferable Concepts, and by reading them many times you could almost memorize them and the message so that you could share it. This volume and series remind me a lot of those books.
This book and series would be excellent for High School Students, College or University Students and older adults. It is easy to engage with. Michelle writes in an engaging manner and offers a lot of personal examples and includes a good serving of humour. An excellent little volume.
Books in the Handy Little Series from OSV:
The Handy Little Guide to Confession - Michelle Jones Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Holy Spirit - Michelle Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Lent - Michelle Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours - Barb Szyszkiewicz
…
Books in the OSV Pocket Guide Series:
A Pocket Guide to the Meaning of Life - Peter J. Kreeft
A Pocket Guide to Living the Divine Mercy - George W. Kosicki
...
Books in the OSV Companion in Faith Series:
For Those Who Grieve - Jeannie Ewing
Living in Peace - Father Jeffrey Kirby
The Beatitudes - Kathleen M Basi
The Lord's Prayer - T.J. Burdick
The Power of Forgiveness - Patrice Fagnant-Macarthur
…
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