Our featured single for the season of Lent!

As we experience life in this digital age, we may find ourselves surprised at how busy, sometimes even frenetic, our lives have become. It is good to recall that only one thing is truly needed; to return home to the peace and love of our Father's heart.

On November 22, 2016, during a morning meditation at Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis reminded his audience that, while it may be difficult, it is very important to think seriously about one’s life:

“It is the truth. Because if you do not take care of your heart and you always live far away from the Lord, perhaps there is the danger… the danger of continuing in this way; far away from the Lord for eternity.”

(Image - "The Struggle Is Over" - Anne Brennan Vela)

We live in a cultural milieu where it's fashionable to be independent and completely self-reliant. This proud, pelagian attitude is at odds with our lived human experience and is not working out so well. The truth is: we are totally dependent on our Father's love. And this love is shared with us freely, on a moment to moment basis. We need but open our hearts to see this wondrous, existential reality regarding the truth of our being and how this is so generously manifest in our lives via our Father's loving providence.

Image: "El Espiritu Descendiendo" by Sonia Guajardo ~ Reynosa, Mexico

Life in the high-tech world we live in today is complicated. But life in Christ is simple. It is also a choice... 'Mary has chosen the better part...' (Luke 10:42)

Our Father loves us and asks for only one thing... our heart... 'These people pay me lip service, but their hearts are far from me!' (Matthew 15:8)

All I Have To Do expresses the beauty and simplicity of the interior relationship with God... the quiet prayer of the heart.

Image Credit: "Cloistered", oil on canvas, Anne Brennan Vela

"Man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself." Pope John Paul ll

St. John Paul ll referred to this spiritual insight as... the law of the gift. In a culture that is consumed with taking, having, and using, this simple recipe for happiness and human flourishing seems virtually impossible and, for many of our contemporaries, so far out of reach as to call forth critiques of idealistic utopianism.

And yet, the truth is that God is simple and he dwells within us... which is why, in his Confessions, St. Augustine is able to say: "God is closer to me than I am to myself."

"Nothing is impossible with God." (Luke 1:37). What may at first seem impossible for man, becomes, with God, the easiest and most possible of all things because it is the very thing he was created for... Love! The giving of oneself... as a gift.

{Image for As A Gift taken from a painting by San Antonio, TX watercolor artist, Anne Brennan Vela, titled: Flower Gift}

The beginning of a new year gives everyone an opportunity to reflect on one's life; to evaluate priorities and to recalibrate where necessary. What is central... what is truly most important? Ultimately speaking, where does my life come from and what gives it meaning?

We believe our new song addresses this need to see life clearly and to recognize the fundamental role of God in human life... while at the same time manifesting the beautiful reality of our Father's mysterious, loving presence within his children.

In 1984, Cardinal Ratzinger reminded us that The Document of Puebla by John Paul ll pointed out that the preferential option for the poor is two-fold: for the poor... and for the young. Unfortunately, the "for the young" part has been almost universally ignored. The Father's Lullaby was written in response to the anxiety, stress, and spiritual turmoil young people have been suffering for the past three years due to the pandemic. The song, however, is not "age specific" and could be helpful for any person, regardless of their age, who needs a little help settling down before resting.

Image credit: "An Angel Calls" ~ watercolor by: Mariangela Holliday, Laredo, TX