Pray with Perseverance

 “The Lord Jesus urges you to pray often, and with perseverance.” St. Ambrose

My first grandson was born at the end of 2021. We had hoped the pandemic would be over by then, but it wasn’t. We had to get shots before we were allowed to meet him. We also had to wear masks. All our pictures with him as a newborn have us wearing masks. I guess he will have a good story to share with his children and grandchildren in the future.

It didn’t help that when he was four months old, my husband removed the mask to take a three-generation photo, and one hour later he was diagnosed with COVID. This placed them even more on high alert, which meant that our grandson’s baptism was pushed even further out. There was too much danger in gathering the family and risking potential illness. We even told them to get them baptized, even if we had to attend via Zoom. But they wanted the family physically present. And thus we prayed.

Finally, when he was one year old, we got the green light that he could be baptized. We spoke to a priest who is also a dear friend, and we made the arrangements to have our grandson baptized. By this time, he was going to be eighteen months old already. But we were ecstatic that it was finally going to happen. And then, unfortunately, the priest cancelled. He was not going to be able to make it to New York from South Florida after all. We were devastated, but we told our son and daughter-in-law that the important thing was to get their son baptized, it didn’t matter by whom. And thus we prayed.

Then, we were thrown a curveball. We found out that they were expecting their second child. It was a wonderful blessing, but the baptism got pushed to the back burner. They said, “we might as well wait until the baby is born and we will baptize them together.” And thus we prayed.

The baby was born exactly two years after the first one, almost to the day. We waited, and waited, to see if they would bring up the baptism again. Finally, we couldn’t resist any longer, so we asked our son, “Are you guys ever going to get these boys baptized?” His answer: “We are not in a hurry. After all, it took Jesus 30 years to be baptized.” We were appalled. Was he kidding us? Jesus did not need to be baptized. He just did it to teach us what we needed to do. And thus we prayed.

At that point, we became very specific with our prayer. We started praying to St. Monica and St. Augustine for their intercession. Why did we choose them? The reason is that St. Monica never gave up in praying for her son Augustine. She prayed with persistence. And God sent her St. Ambrose who played a crucial role in Augustine’s conversion. Therefore, we prayed for God to send a St. Ambrose to our son and daughter-in-law to get them to baptize their sons. And God answered our prayers. He sent them a St. Ambrose. Out of the blue, one day we get a text message through our family’s group chat: “Are you guys all available for a possible baptism date of May 18th?” My husband and I looked at each other, and our eyes must have reached our hairline. “Of course, we are available,” we answered. St. Ambrose turned out to be one of our son’s high school classmates who also lives in New York. He had just had a baby boy. They met for brunch, and he shared with our son and wife that they were planning to baptize their baby boy on May 18th at St. Ignatius Catholic Church. Right then and there, they decided that they would baptize all the boys together. And thus, we thanked God.

At that point, we began to pray to God to remove all the obstacles that could possibly come up to stop this baptism that we had been praying for three years already. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine that the obstacle could be one of us. But just two weeks before the baptism, my hubby was diagnosed with heart failure. At that point, we began to pray for a miracle, but we told our kids that it was very possible that Abu would not be able to attend the baptism. They asked us: “Should we postpone?” We both answered at the same time, “Absolutely not. The baptism must go on whether we are there or not.” We have been praying for this for too long. We were afraid that if they postponed, our grandsons would not get baptized until Jesus’ age.

The last two weeks have been like a rollercoaster. Heart tests and procedures. One day, “You are fine, you can go.” The next one, “It’s better if you don’t travel. It’s too risky.” In the end, Abu was not able to attend the baptism. But he was well enough that Abi (that’s me) was able to go with Bisabi (the boys’ great-grandmother). I was very sad that Abu had to miss it after praying so hard for this for three whole years. But if one positive thing came out from the pandemic, it’s video conferences. Therefore, Abu was able to join us from afar via video call. We both had the joy of seeing our grandsons baptized. Oh, what a joyous moment that was.

We persisted in our prayer, and God answered us, even though He took His sweet time. Thank You, St. Monica and St. Augustine, for interceding for us. And thank You, Jesus, for sending a St. Ambrose to shake things up and make the baptism happen. Even though Abu was not able to be physically present, he was definitely present technologically and in our hearts.

Welcome to our Catholic Family, Benedict and Dominic. May God always guide you and bless you.

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.

Perseverance in Spite of the Obstacles

“If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.” John 15:18

All my life I have felt called by God to write. As a teenager, I was part of the newspaper staff at my church groups. In high school, I wrote the stories that would go in the Yearbook. As a young mom, I wrote for “La Voz Católica.” And about ten years ago, I created a blog where I have poured my heart and soul allowing the Holy Spirit to guide me. 

This year, I was invited to apply to write for Catholic365, a larger platform with many followers. I thought it was a dream come true because I have a burning desire to serve God and Him alone through my writings, which means spreading His message of love to as many people as possible. I had high expectations, but unfortunately, the reality has been very different. I have come to realize that I’m swimming in shark-infested waters. I have encountered human misunderstanding, criticism and judgment. 

After all the negative comments on my posting about Pope Francis, I was very tempted to tell God: “Writing for this critical world is not what I bargained for. I never thought it would be like this. This is not what I signed up for. If I had known it would be this painful, I would never have accepted this invitation. You must forgive me God, but I want out. I will not serve You this way. I’m sure You can use me somewhere else.”

I have been praying a lot, and I have been receiving a lot of messages of support from my prayer communities. One of my Emmaus sisters sent me a 3-minute Ignatian retreat. The message I got from it was that the light of faith is a gift from God, and this light needs to be shared with others. Faith is my light which will guide my way and my words. Jesus’ love triumphed over death, and no matter what others think or say, my job is to trust Him and spread His love. 

This morning, I went for a walk on my own. I prayed the rosary, and I listened to this song by Chris Tomlin: Our God

Our whole purpose in this life should be to obey God, and trust Him no matter what obstacles we encounter. After reading the 3-minute retreat, and listening to the song, I realized that God needs me to write, in spite of the negative criticism, and judgmental comments of just a few. As the song says: “If our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what can stand against?”

God needs me to spread His message of love, and He will deliver it to those that need to hear it. Yes, in the mix there may be some that don’t want to hear it, and they will scream and complain, but I’m not writing for praise, I’m writing for Him. He has a goal and a purpose, and even though I may not understand it completely, my job is just to obey Him. 

Jesus said to His disciples, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first” (John 15:18). I should actually feel joy because it means that if they despise me, I must be following in Jesus’ footsteps. Jesus prayed for His persecutors. I will pray for those that criticize me, but I will not let them stop me. I will persevere in spite of the obstacles. I will continue writing for Catholic365 for as long as He needs me. And may all the fruits be for His Greater Glory. 

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.

St. Joseph, You are Hired

“Ite ad Ioseph! Go to Joseph with extreme confidence, because I do not remember having asked anything from St. Joseph, without having obtained it readily.” (1) — St. Pio of Pietrelcina

Writing has always been my passion, but when it was time to choose a career path, I went with accounting. I had always been good with numbers, and after I took my first accounting class, I knew that becoming an accountant would always assure me a job. After all, everyone needs an accountant, but not everyone needs a writer.

While I worked as an accountant, I wrote as a hobby. For about ten years, I was a columnist for “La Voz Católica.” I also started a blog which I shared only with family and friends. I also had a dream of writing a book, and I did. It took me about fifteen years to finish it, but I persevered and completed it. I hired an editor, and then I sent it out to four different Catholic publishing houses. One never answered me. Two told me they liked it, but they couldn’t publish it because they had just recently published a book on a similar topic. The fourth one seemed very interested, and I was hopeful. It advanced through the different layers, but it all crumbled when they asked me to put together a marketing plan. My plan was simple: share the book with all my family and friends, share it on social media, try to get some bookstores to sponsor a book signing, and advertise it in church bulletins and newspapers. The publisher didn’t think that my plan was strong enough, and thus they dropped me. I considered self-publishing the book, but I prayed about it, and I didn’t feel that was the path that God wanted me to take, thus I decided to concentrate on my blog.

Earlier this year, my friend Elsy sent me a message: “It came to mind your beautiful gift you are sharing with us to share with others on a larger scale.” She sent me the link to Catholic365.com, which was a website I had never heard of before. It took me a month to find the courage to apply. Then one night, I read this message on a Dove chocolate wrapper: “If you don’t do it today, you will regret it tomorrow.” I decided to push my fears aside. I put together the application, said a prayer, and hit the “send” button. I was completely surprised when they accepted me.

I prayed to the Holy Spirit to guide me in writing my first article. My husband proofread it, we made some changes, and sent it out for publication. When it was published, I shared it through all my groups, and I asked for people to share it with others. I needed that first “push” in order to get my article read. All my “angel” friends came through, and my article had about 450 hits. I even received a very encouraging email from the Catholic365 editor, letting me know that my article was “trending.” I didn’t even know what “trending” meant, but I figured it was a good thing, so I decided to send out a message of gratitude to all my groups letting them know that thanks to their support, my article was trending, and it made it to the top of the email that was sent out to their 12,000+ subscribers. 

After I sent out the message, and I posted it on social media with a picture of my “trending” article, I was told that my message didn’t sound very humble. I apologize if I came across as pompous or pretentious. It was definitely not my intention. On the contrary, if it were up to me, I would much rather remain in the background. I would even use a different name because publicity is the last thing I want. But I feel that God is asking me to be courageous, and bring people closer to Him. 

Unfortunately, we live in a world of influencers and social media. If I don’t share my articles, they will not be noticed, and they will not be read. It’s already happening with my second article. It’s hardly gotten any hits, and by the second day, it wasn’t even showing up on the Catholic365 web front page. I want to remain humble, but by the same token, if God’s messages are to be shared, they need to be read. How do I find the balance between marketing my articles and keeping a low profile?

I’m in the middle of renewing my consecration to St. Joseph, and last night, I was reading the journal that I have been keeping. As I was reading my notes, I realized that what I need is an agent to do the marketing for me. I will continue to write, and the agent can handle the publicity. And there is no one better for this job than St. Joseph. In the book “Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of our Spiritual Father,” the author, Father Donald H. Calloway, mentions that one saint who loved and revered St. Joseph in an extraordinary manner is St. Teresa of Avila. She was so convinced of the power and efficacy of St. Joseph’s intercession that she challenged people to put devotion to St. Joseph to the test. This is what she wrote in her autobiography: “I wish I could persuade everyone to be devoted to the glorious St. Joseph, for I have great experience of the blessings which he can obtain from God. I do not remember that I have ever asked anything of him which he has failed to grant… The Lord wishes to teach us that, as he was himself subject on earth to St. Joseph, so in heaven he now does all that Joseph asks.” (2)

I do not wish to put St. Joseph to the test, but I believe that he understands my predicament because he was the most humble of all men, and he always remained in the background. He always allowed the spotlight to be on Jesus and Mama Mary. And that is exactly what I want to do. I want the spotlight to be on God, never on me. I want to remain humble just like St. Joseph, and give all the glory to God. 

Venerable Mary of Agreda, a mystic who had visions about the lives of Mary and Joseph, once heard Our Lady herself speak these words: “That which my spouse asks of the Lord in heaven is granted upon the earth and on his intercession depend many and extraordinary favors for men, if they do not make themselves unworthy of receiving them.” (3)

After reading this, I wrote a letter to St. Joseph to let him know that I was hiring him to be my Marketing Agent and Holy Influencer. He must have accepted the job because to my complete surprise, my second article was trending this morning, and it was included in the email that Catholic365 sends out. I honestly didn’t think that it would make it this time. But St. Joseph came through just like St. Teresa of Avila promised that he would. 

I will continue to share my articles humbly, and I will brace myself for any criticism that comes my way. After all, when we are doing God’s work, we are going to be attacked and we are going to suffer. It’s part of the job description. But I know that with Papa Joseph by my side, he will protect me, and he will help me to grow a thick skin.

Once again, I want to thank you for all your encouragement and support, and if I have offended you in any way, I am truly sorry. It was never my intention to sound pompous or pretentious. I just want to be a humble pencil in the hands of God to spread His message of love to a little corner of His world.

“O Saint Joseph, you are a man greatly favored by the Most High. The angel of the Lord appeared to you in dreams, while you slept, to warn you and guide you as you cared for the Holy Family. You were both silent and strong, a loyal and courageous protector. Dear Saint Joseph, as you rest in the Lord, confident of his absolute power and goodness, look upon me. Please take my need into your heart, dream of it, and present it to your Son. Help me then, good Saint Joseph, to hear the voice of God, to arise, and act with love. I praise and thank God with joy. Saint Joseph, I love you. Amen.” (4)

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.

References:

1. St. Pio of Pietrelcina, as quoted in Jose A. Rodrigues, The Book of Joseph: God’s Chosen Father (Toronto, ON: Ave Maria Centre of Peace, 2017), 126.
2. St. Teresa of Avila, as quoted in Mark Miravalle, Meet Your Spiritual Father: A Brief Introduction to St. Joseph (Stockbridge, MA: Marian Press, 2015), 11-12.
3. Our Lady’s words to Venerable Mary of Agreda, as quoted in The Mystical City of God, vol. 3, The Transfixion, 166-168.
4. Father Donald H. Calloway, Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father (Stockbridge, MA: Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M., 2020), 262-263.

Reset, Restart and Refocus

“Remember, there is, even on this earth, a day of bright reward for all your prayers and faithful perseverance.” St. Mary MacKillop

I am so happy that January has finally come to an end. I don’t like the month of January because I have a history of bad things happening to me in January. When I was little, I recall being sick more than once on January 6th, the feast of the Three Kings. This was a very important day for children in Spain because that’s when we would get our toys. Being sick on this day was no fun. One year, I had the measles. Another year, I had to go to the emergency room because they thought I had appendicitis. It turned out to be just a stomach virus, but years later I did have to undergo surgery for appendicitis. Guess when it was? In January. I also had pneumonia one year in January and I ended up in the hospital. I have been sick with colds during the month of January more times than I care to remember. My wisdom teeth gave me trouble and had to be taken out during January. And this year, I had the hernia operation in January. So yes, January is definitely not my favorite month. Now, I can finally turn the page on January, and move on to February, the month of love.

I have also been disappointed at myself because in January, I did not keep up with my one and only resolution for this year. I have not persevered in the goals I set for myself. But no more excuses. It’s time to reset, restart, and refocus. I even got this message in a Dove chocolate yesterday: “Reset, restart and refocus as many times as you need to.” So I’m resetting my goal to persevere. I will restart and I will refocus.

When I shared at the start of this year that my resolution would be “perseverance,” Sue Jaca, one of “Our Guiding Light” pilgrims, told us about the three Ps: Prayer, Patience and Perseverance. This month of February, I will concentrate on those three words. In January, I did pray a lot because I was not feeling too good after my surgery. I could have been a lot more patient, though, but I don’t deal with pain too well, so I was feeling a bit impatient when two weeks had passed, and I was still feeling pain in my ribs. It probably would have helped if I had persevered in my walking. Everybody told me that for the pain to go away, I had to walk. But when I walked, the pain got worst, so I didn’t walk as much as I should have. Finally, on my follow-up appointment, 12 days after the surgery, the doctor told me, “You have to walk because that is the only way that those gases that have gotten trapped in your ribs will come out.” On day 13, I decided to go walk around the golf course. My husband was a bit concerned. He told me, “Are you sure you want to go to the golf course? It may be better if you just walk around the block.” But I know myself. If I walk around the block and the pain starts, I’ll go home. In the golf course, I would not be able to stop. I had to force myself to complete the walk. I had to persevere. Therefore, I went with him. I had to stop a few times to rub my ribs because they were really bothering me. When I finished the walk, I sat in the car, and the pain went away. And that was it. I have not felt the pain since that day. I call it my Miracle Walk. 

There is one area of my life, though, where I have truly been applying the three Ps. I have two grandsons, ages 3 and 1. They have not been baptized. I have been praying daily for the parents to take them to church and get them baptized. I have mentioned this to them, of course, but I have tried not to be pushy, and I have been waiting patiently for them to make the decision. I have persevered in my prayer, asking many saints, especially St. Monica, for their intercession. Yesterday, through our family chat, we received a big surprise. We got this text message in the morning: “Hi all! Would all households here be available for a possible baptism of the boys on the weekend of May 18?” My hubby and I were literally jumping for joy. Praise God that He has heard our prayers.

So, yes, definitely prayer, patience and perseverance will be my motto for this month of February, because God does answer our prayers, but we must be patient and we must persevere. If you have given up, then I suggest that you reset, restart and refocus.

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.

Persevering in the Little Things

 “The path from dreams to success does exist. May you have the vision to find it, the courage to get on to it, and the perseverance to follow it.” Kalpana Chawla 

Kalpana Chawla was the first Indian-born woman to go to space. When she decided to obtain a degree in Aeronautical Engineering, professors tried to dissuade her because there were limited opportunities for girls in India to follow this career path. However, Chawla was adamant that this was the subject for her, and she persevered until she obtained it. After completing her Engineering Degree in India, she came to the United States where she obtained a Masters Degree and a doctorate in Aerospace Engineering. She reached her dream of going into space in 1997 aboard the space shuttle Columbia. Her second flight into space took place in 2003, but unfortunately, upon returning to earth, the shuttle plunged into the ground killing Chawla and the other six astronauts. Even though her career was short-lived, she left a lasting legacy of inspiring children in India and around the world to pursue a career in space.

When I read Chawla’s biography, I was inspired by her courage and determination. Even though she was faced with many difficulties, she was determined to follow her dreams, and she persevered until she reached them. Being a woman in India, it must have taken a lot of courage to go against the flow. But she stepped outside the comfort zone, and she pushed against all the obstacles.

In life, it’s very easy to settle into a routine and avoid taking risks. But is that what God wants from us? We all have God-given talents waiting to be unleashed. But unless we have the determination to step out of our routines, and the courage to challenge ourselves, we will never unlock our full potential.

We first need to identify what is holding us back. Once we do that, we need to take small steps outside our comfort zone. Every small step we take or every little thing we accomplish should be a cause for celebration. We need to savor each achievement before we rush toward the next step. Each triumph, no matter how small, will give us an opportunity to renew our motivation and strengthen our determination.

We may find difficulties or setbacks in our path, but with determination, we can turn them into stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks. That is why it’s important to start small. We cannot aim for major life changes overnight. Making steady progress will help us to persevere in the long haul.

Even though Chawla made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the space program, her legacy lives on through her fellow astronauts and those she has inspired to follow in her footsteps. She is a guiding light for many students that look at her life and think, “If she did it, I can do it too.” We also have a guiding light as we strive to unleash our talents. God is that guiding light. With His help, we can achieve amazing things. By stepping out of our comfort zone, persevering in the little things, and never giving up in the face of challenges, God will reward us by helping us to achieve our biggest dreams.

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.

Stay with Me, Lord

“Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak and I need Your strength, that I may not fall so often… Stay with me tonight, Jesus, in life with all it’s dangers. I need You.” St. Pio of Pietrelcina

A few months ago, I received a prayer card with a prayer from St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), “Stay with Me, Lord.” I have been praying it after communion, but yesterday, it became my mantra before and after my surgery. I kept repeating, “Stay with me, Lord,” and I also added His Holy Parents to the prayer, “Stay with me Mama Mary. Stay with me Papa Joseph.” It helped me tremendously. 

Here’s a link to the full prayer:

https://padrepiodevotions.org/stay-with-me-lord/

I also have an amazing group of Prayer Warriors from all stages of my life. I have the “Encuentristas” group. This is a group that began when I was just 16 years old and attended an “Encuentro Juvenil” (Youth Encounter). Some of the best friends I have today, including my husband, I met through this group. We have a WhatsApp chat where we share meditations, news, events and prayer requests. It’s an amazing group with 72 members that covers the old guard like me (Encuentro #22) and the new Encuentristas (they are currently at Encuentro #220). 

I also have the Belen Emmaus group. When my son Rafi was a 9th grader at Belen Jesuit, Father Willie Garcia-Tunon (currently the President of Belen), decided to bring Emmaus to Belen. He realized that a lot of the boys attending the school did not come from practicing Catholic homes. He knew that Jesus had to touch the parents’ hearts first, in order for the boys to practice at home the values they were being taught in the school. Therefore, he gathered a group of parents that had already attended an Emmaus retreat at their parishes, and we started offering those amazing weekend retreats to the parents. I was part of that original group, and I met some amazing ladies that are still to this day my sisters in Christ. We also have a prayer iMessage group. 

In 2009, my then parish, St. Louis, offered a summer Bible class on “Ephesians.” I had always wanted to take a Bible class, but they are usually 28-week courses which I didn’t think I would be able to accommodate during tax season. A summer 10-week course was perfect. I took it, and loved it. I was hooked. I knew I had to make it work in spite of tax season. I signed up for Genesis in September and I accommodated tax season around it, because when God wants you to be part of something, He will open the doors and multiply your time. I have taken every course offered since then. Not only have I learned a lot about my faith, but I have met a special group of ladies, mostly retired so my hubby has named this group “the Old Testament,” LOL. We pray, worship, study and go to lunch together. 

I’m also part of the Wednesday Prayer Group. I was invited to join this group a couple of years ago. I only went once because they meet pretty far from my house, and activities in the evening are harder for me to accommodate. But I’m still part of their WhatsApp group. Even though I’m not an active participant, I was not kicked out. And I join in their virtual prayer requests, read their meditations, and watch their videos. They are an amazing group of prayer warriors filled with the Holy Spirit. 

And last but not least, I have “Our Guiding Light.” This group started a year ago on a Lenten Journey. I sent the invitation out to all my groups, and also posted it on my Facebook and Instagram pages. Therefore, this group has a holy mix of members from all the other groups, plus some that were invited by those people, and some that accepted my FB or IG invitation. Many of us don’t know each other personally, but God brought us together in a very special way. We did an Advent journey together and the theme this year is “perseverance.” I have no doubt that with each other’s support and the guiding light of the Holy Family, we will persevere. 

The day before my surgery, I asked all these groups to pray for me. I then told my hubby that he had to send an update to all the groups, in addition to our family and friends. When I told him I had five different prayer groups, his response was, what you have is a prayer mafia. And he is right. I have a spiritual prayer mafia, which is a very good mob that we all need to have in our lives.

Thank you my prayer mafia for all the prayers. And thank you Lord, Mama Mary and Papa Joseph for staying with me every minute during the surgery, during the night when I couldn’t sleep because of the pain, and as I recover, I know that you will continue to stay with me. 

Padre Pío, pray for us 🙏

Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.