The Prayer Porch

Category: Porch Reflections

  • Reflecting on the Assumption: Trust, Love, and Purpose

    Reflecting on the Assumption: Trust, Love, and Purpose

    We pause today. We contemplate a mystery filled with light and hope. Today is The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. At the close of her earthly life, Mary was taken body and soul into the glory of Heaven.

    For Catholics, this day is a reminder of God’s promise to bring His people into eternal joy. For anyone seeking hope, it is a moment to reflect. It reminds us that life on earth is not the end. Mary’s story invites us to consider: What am I living for? What is my heart set on?

    Mary’s Assumption offers a glimpse of our created purpose. We are made for life, love, and fullness beyond what we can see here and now. We may not share Mary’s specific faith tradition. However, we can all be encouraged by her example of saying “yes” to the good, the true, and the beautiful.

    We honor her in this feast. We are invited to lift our gaze above the distractions of this world. We remember what truly lasts. Like her, we can choose trust over fear. We can choose love over self-protection. We can also choose hope over despair, knowing that every faithful step shapes the story of our lives.

    Mary, assumed into Heaven, draw my heart closer to your Son. Teach me to live with faith, humility, and hope, until the day I share in the joy of His Kingdom.

    For your reflection:

    • What distractions keep me from fixing my eyes on what truly matters?
    • In what small way can I say “yes” and choose trust and love today?
    • How does the hope of something beyond this life shape the way I live now?

    Mary’s story invites us to lift our gaze beyond this world and live each day with trust, love, and hope.

  • Quiet Acts of Ministry: Serving at Home

    Quiet Acts of Ministry: Serving at Home

    This morning, over steaming mugs of delicious lattes, my friend shared her excitement for an upcoming ministry trip. As we talked, I couldn’t help but think about what her days will hold. They will include long hours and deep conversations with people she has never met. She will pour herself out for others. I reflected on how ministry can happen in many places. Sometimes, it begins right where we are.

    It’s easy to think of ministry as something that happens in far-off places. We often consider it on mission trips, in church programs, or through big events. Often, ministry is as close as the person sitting across from us at the kitchen table or coffee shop.

    We can care for someone’s needs in so many ways. We can make a meal, mow a lawn, watch someone’s children, or tidy a space while they’re away. In doing so, we offer the love Jesus modeled. It will never make headlines, but it matters deeply to the heart of God.

    “Serve one another humbly in love.” – Galatians 5:13

    Service done quietly is still noticed by the One who sees all things. In fact, Jesus often served in ways that were simple and hands-on—washing dusty feet, breaking bread, and sharing meals. These moments weren’t grand gestures; they were grounded in presence and care.

    Maybe you can’t board a plane for a mission trip right now and maybe you never will. Each of us has a different calling. Your calendar or the season of life might be keeping you close to home. That doesn’t mean God can’t use you in powerful ways. Your living room can become a place of ministry and so can your front porch.

    The next time a friend heads off to serve far away, consider how you might serve right where you are. It could be as simple as a prayer whispered on their behalf. Perhaps a home-cooked meal could be waiting for their return. You might also consider doing a small project in secret to lighten their load.

    “And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” – Hebrews 13:16

    One saint who beautifully lived this truth was Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, known as The Little Flower. She never traveled on great missions or preached to crowds. Instead, she chose to serve God through the “little way”, doing small acts of love with great devotion. Whether it was a kind word or a hidden sacrifice, she believed nothing was too small to offer to God. A task done in silence was also significant to her. Her life reminds us that every simple act of service, when done in love, becomes holy. Ministry doesn’t always need a suitcase – sometimes it simply requires a willing heart.

    Who in your life can use a quiet act of kindness this week?
    How you can be the hands and feet of Jesus to someone right where you are?

  • Finding Peace in Silence: The Art of Listening

    Finding Peace in Silence: The Art of Listening

    There’s something about August that invites stillness. The hurried pace of early summer begins to slow. The gardens start to rest. The porch feels like a place to breathe again. It’s in this quiet, in-between space that we’re reminded of the gentle power of listening.

    Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen. Be slow to speak and slow to get angry.
    James 1:19

    In his book Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Many people are looking for an ear that will listen. They do not find it among Christians, because Christians are talking when they should be listening.” Those words have lingered with me. Because if we’re honest, listening, truly listening isn’t always easy. It asks us to quiet our own thoughts, resist the urge to fix, and offer the holy gift of presence.

    James 1:19 gives us a rhythm to live by: be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.

    What would our homes, relationships, and communities look like if we truly lived that way?

    Listening isn’t passive. It’s a practice of humility. It’s a way of saying, “You matter. Your story matters. I’m here.” When we slow down and open our ears, we create room for healing. We open our hearts for truth. Sometimes even God speaks through the silence.

    So as summer winds down, let’s lean into this quiet gift. Let’s sit beside one another with compassion and curiosity. Let’s listen more than we speak. And let’s trust that even in the stillness, God is at work.

    Lord, help me be quick to listen and slow to speak.
    Let me be a safe place for others to share, and give me the grace to hear with love.

    Sometimes, quiet moments offer the best space to reflect and be still. I created a simple coloring page for you. A gentle way to slow down and to help meditate on the beauty of listening.

    👉 James 1:19 Coloring Page

    Print it out. Grab your favorite crayons or pencils. Let your heart settle as you color. Let it be a soft pause in your day – a sacred little Sabbath moment.
    In what areas of my life is God inviting me to listen more deeply? Where can I use fewer words and have a more open heart?



  • The Love of a Father

    The Love of a Father

    Even if your earthly father is absent or gone, you are deeply loved by your Father in heaven. Yes, there’s cake too.

    There’s something sacred about a father’s love. For some, it brings comfort and strength. For others, it brings pain, absence, or longing.

    Maybe you grew up with a steady, loving father. Maybe you lost yours too soon. Or maybe you never really knew him at all. No matter your story, I want you to know this:

    You have a Father who has always loved you.

    He is a very present and personal God. He is not a distant figure in the clouds. He is a gentle, faithful, and full of mercy Father.
    A Father who doesn’t forget you and who never walks away.

    “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,” says the Lord Almighty.
    —2 Corinthians 6:18

    I hope this reminder meets you exactly where you are. If you’re walking through grief or gratitude, you are seen. You are cherished. You are held.

    And just because comfort often comes with something sweet, I’m sharing one of my favorite recipes with you. It’s a Chocolate zucchini cake I baked for my son’s birthday. A reminder that we are all being made new, day by day, grace by grace ✝️

    Something sweet ♥ Chocolate Zucchini Bundt Cake

  • Renewing Your Mind

    Renewing Your Mind

    A Reflection on Romans 12:1–2

    “Dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you. Give your bodies to God. Do this because of all he has done for you…”

    These verses are such a tender plea, an invitation to live fully surrendered. It is not out of duty, but in deep gratitude for all God has done. When we offer ourselves to Him, our thoughts, our habits, our choices – it becomes an act of worship. This act extends far beyond music or church walls.

    In a world that constantly tells us how we should live, look, and strive, Paul’s words gently remind us. Do not copy the behavior and customs of this world. Instead, let God shape us. He doesn’t demand perfection – He invites transformation. Slowly. Lovingly. From the inside out.

    This transformation begins in our thoughts. As our minds are renewed by truth and grace, we start to see ourselves and our purpose more clearly. We grow into the people God has created us to be: holy, loved, useful for His good and perfect will.

    Let this be a gentle nudge today. Take a moment to pause. Lay down what the world says we should chase. Offer our ordinary days to the One who makes all things new.

    In what areas of my life am I being called to live more set apart? Where can I be more transformed in how I think, act, or choose?

  • From the porch

    From the porch

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  • Abiding in Christ: A Path to True Fulfillment

    Abiding in Christ: A Path to True Fulfillment

    We live in a world that constantly pulls at our attention with promises of success, comfort, beauty, and approval. It’s easy to get swept up in the tide of more. There is always more to do, more to own, more to prove. But 1 John 2:15 gently reminds us: “Do not love the world or the things in the world.”

    This isn’t a call to rejection or isolation, but an invitation to remain. To abide. To root ourselves in something far more lasting, the love of God, which doesn’t fade with time or trends.

    The world offers quick fixes for joy. But God offers Himself – a steady source of life and fullness that no fleeting pleasure can match. When we delight in Him, truly enjoy Him, something shifts. Our lives begin to expand, not in stuff or status, but in peace, purpose, and love.

    Remaining in Christ anchors us in what is real. And from that place of belonging, we are free to live generously. To love others well. To walk lightly in a world that tempts us to cling too tightly.

    Let’s be people who are not consumed by what fades but who find joy in what lasts.

    Where do I feel my heart holding onto the world too tightly? How can I shift to abiding in Christ?

  • The Gift of Grace: Understanding God’s Unmerited Favor

    The Gift of Grace: Understanding God’s Unmerited Favor

    But whatever I am now, it is because God poured out his special favor on me and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace.
    1 Corinthians 15:10

    God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.
    Ephesians 2:8

    When we embrace the grace that comes only from Jesus, it changes everything In that surrender we stop trying to earn God’s love and instead respond to His grace with a life of worship. It is then that we see His grace cover our entire lives. No matter what we are facing, what we are walking in, what is hard around us, God’s grace covers it! It’s simply up to us to surrender to Him and receive His grace!
    Think about the times God grace has shown up in your life.
    Thank God for the unmerited favor He has shown you.

  • True Joy and Worship

    True Joy and Worship

    There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do now walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
    Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
    Romans 8:1-2

    But let all those rejoice who put their trust in you;
    Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them;
    Let those also who love Your name
    Be joyful in You.
    For you, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
    With favor You will surround him as with a shield.
    Romans 8:26-28

    When you think about your life, the challenges, the pain, the times when you felt emotional turmoil and maybe even spiritually lost, God was always with you. He has been with you the whole time. In worship, a lens shift happens. A beautiful shift, where the focus moves from our own insecurities and problems in the moment to His presence. The moment you enter worship, you start to see things more clearly through the highs and lows of life.
    When you choose joy, you experience true worship.
    When you choose worship, you experience true joy.

  • Trusting God Through Uncertainty

    Trusting God Through Uncertainty

    Sometimes the deepest kind of faith is found not in doing, but in being still. In choosing not to rush ahead, not to figure it all out, not to grasp for what isn’t yet clear.

    Resting doesn’t mean giving up. It means surrendering the timeline to the One who sees the full picture.
    When we pause, breathe, and allow ourselves to simply be, we make space to remember: God is still working, even when we are waiting.

    So if your heart feels weary or uncertain today, may you know this: you are not falling behind. You are simply being held. Trusting God’s plan doesn’t require striving—it often begins in stillness.

    What would it look like for you to rest in God’s timing today?
    Is there something you’re carrying that He may be inviting you to set down for now?

    In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.
    Isaiah 30:15