Good Morning Digital Neighbors! Happy Sunday Phamily & Misfits, Friends & Refugees, Early Birds and Later Dayers, Conversants and Lurkers, ADD Irregulars, WSN Curators, and all you other free thinkers! Even if you aren’t a person of faith, what are your first thoughts or aspirations of the day? I know for some it is either their pilgrimage to the coffee maker or the toilet, but apart from those habitual activities what are among the first thoughts as the day unfolds. I imagine that for many it is wondering or recalling what they must do. Parents would be one of the exceptions, especially with infants and toddlers as their life centers upon parental care. Busy or not, what are your first thoughts or intentional acts?
In Catho-landia, there has been an ancient practice of the Morning Offering to begin your day. For years mine was in the bathroom and when the smart phone came along, I recorded it so I can pray long with myself. It is a simple practice and habit to start my day with the same desires and intentions. If you don’t have one, consider some prayer, quote or saying to become your morning focus. It can have a real impact on moving your day and attitude in the right direction. Here is the first part of my Morning Offering, enjoy!
My Morning Offering
I arise today through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through a belief in the Threeness, through a confession of the Oneness of the Creator of Creation.
I arise today through God’s strength to pilot me, God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me, God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me, God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me, God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me, God’s host to save me: from snares of devils, from temptations of vices, from everyone who shall wish me ill, afar and near, alone or in a multitude.
I arise today through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through a belief in the Threeness, through a confession of the Oneness of the Creator of Creation.
Dedication to Jesus
May I have the eyes of Christ that I might see with His clarity and insight. May I have the ears of Christ that I might listen with His compassion and understanding. May I have the mouth of Christ that I might speak with His honesty and integrity. May I have the hands of Christ that I might touch with His healing and presence. May I have the mind of Christ that I might choose and act with His wisdom and awareness. May I have the Heart of Christ that I might love with his courage and humility.
Today marks the three hundred and thirtieth birthday of the Frenchman François-Marie Arouet, better known by his nom de plume, Voltaire (1694-1778).
Born into a bourgeois family during the reign of Louis XIV, the “Sun King” (r. 1643-1715), Voltaire suffered tragedy at a young age when his mother died. Never close with his father or brother, Voltaire exhibited a rebellious attitude toward authority from his youth. His brilliant mind was fostered in the care of the Society of Jesus, who introduced him to the joys of literature and theater. Despite his later criticisms against the Church, Voltaire, throughout his life, fondly recalled his dedicated Jesuit teachers.
Although he spent time as a civil servant in the French embassy to the Hague, Voltaire’s main love was writing—an endeavor where he excelled in various genres, including poetry, which led to his appointment as the royal court poet for King Louis XV. Widely recognized as one of the greatest French writers, and even hyperbolically referred to by ...
Padre - Tom Miller invites you to a Coffee Talk, Speakeasies, Schmoozes, Tea Times, Afterhours and other gatherings.
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2026 Coffee Talk with the ADD Irregulars
Thursday, January 1, 2026
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Occurs every day starting 1/1 until 12/31/2027
Coffee Talk - Daily beginning at 6:00 AM Central Time Zone - USA
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Good Morning, Digital Neighbors, and Blessed Sunday to one and all!
Sundays are for gratitude, and few things impact our lives more than intentional gratitude. It is not enough to say you are blessed or that you are fortunate; the actual naming of our blessings plants them deep in the heart, transforming us as persons rather than leaving us with the bland “thankful for everything.”
Two years ago, I wrote this reflection on resentment and gratitude. In light of the celebration of our nation’s 250th anniversary, I think it’s worth revisiting. We can choose to be among those who are thankful for America or among those who find nothing but fault with it.
You cannot build a future based on resentments of the past. You cannot grow if you are mired in the injuries of yesterday. God and life do not call us to ignore such experiences, but He constantly calls us forward—to be more, to receive more, to live more. Heal those wounds and work through those injuries, but do not be defined by them, and do not try to ...
