A Walk with the Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots, Day 3

Posted on January 7, 2014 by paulcoholic

For Day 3 in our daily walk with The Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots we cover “this knot in my life…and all the rancor and resentment it has caused in me…’.

All right, resentment. Whether the rancor in life is caused by us or by others, the resentment that results is one character defect that we alcoholic own (Along with anger; there’s others, but resentment holds a “special” place in our wounded mind.)

Resentment means “to feel again,” as in to “sentiment” again. You hold a grudge. Someone wronged you and you feel it for years. The letting go of it is hard. But letting go is a must.

So we take a look at this knot. What distance that has transpired in time since its creation is unimportant. It happened, the knot was tied, and it still pains you all these years and has caused rifts between you and others.

Use this Novena to ask Mary to help you forgive. As tough as forgiveness may be, it is essential to your salvation (kindly say the “Our Father,” and really think about the passage near the end: “…and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive others who trespass against us.” God’s forgiveness of your sins is dependent upon you forgiving others…)

Mary can lead you to the softening of the heart, to the feeling that “what was done was done and the time spent dwelling on it is now over.” For some transgressions the time taken to the act of forgiveness may be long. But as long as you start along the path to forgiving the trespasser, your healing can begin.

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My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

A Walk with the Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots, Day 2

Posted on January 6, 2014 by paulcoholic

Today we cover “sins of egoism, pride, rancor and … lack of generosity and humility…” in our daily walk with The Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots.

These sins blind you. The more of your “self” that you are bound up in, the less you are open to God’s graces, the less you see Jesus in other people. You adopt a “me versus them” attitude, with the “me” feeling inherently superior.

And leave it to an alcoholic to feel superior to others, even with all the serious character defects these sins reveal.

Work on becoming smaller. To quote St. John the Baptist:

John 3:30 He must increase, while I must decrease.

via John – Catholic Public Domain Version of the Sacred Bible.

Becoming “smaller” is also the “Little Way” of St.Therese of Lisieux, who taught that one should do everything with love, even the smallest, most insignificant task. Nothing is too small for God if done with Love.

So perhaps do “little things” as if they were the most important things in the world at the moment.

They just might be, to someone.

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

A Walk with the Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots, Day 1

Posted on January 5, 2014 by paulcoholic

Last week I introduced you all to The Novena of Mary Undoer of Knots. (Well, some of you, a few have known of it 😉 )

I said this Novena just once, at the end of this past December (I did not post daily prayers). The “knots” I won’t bother bringing up, but as I said the prayers each day I noticed that the Novena might be best said for offering up different “knots” for each day.

To that end I am going to start the Novena over, each day specifically offering up “knots” that are seemingly special to that day’s prayers.

Today, Day 1: “this knot….and all the negative consequences that it provokes in my life…”

What specific “knot” in your life is the catalyst for all sorts of negative consequences? A deep examination of conscience, that “fearless and searching moral inventory” spoken of in Fourth Step of the 12 Steps Movements, is called for to get at a root cause of a number of negative incidents in life.

Take a look around your life. What seems to be the negative consequences that abound in it? Can you trace them back to a source (or sources)? Many sins are symptoms of deeper sins.

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)