Natural Family Planning International

7. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Lord, when you speak of peacemakers, I think of obedience. How peaceful this world would be if children obeyed their parents, and if Church members and the Clergy would obey and follow the teachings of the Church!

After her children had left home, a friend of mine regretted not stressing the Fourth Commandment when her children were still under her care. In many families the honor and respect due one’s parents is often missing. I had breakfast with an older man, a friend of my dad’s, whose son would not come to visit his mother when she was dying. There are many cases where child and parent are not talking or where one sibling will not talk to another sibling.

Please, Lord, help us as parents to instill in our children a sense of honoring their parents and respecting those in authority. Give us peace in our families.

May the bonding in breastfeeding teach our children how to love as they grow older and develop other relationships. May they also grow to respect and appreciate their friends and the elderly, especially their aunts and uncles and grandparents.

Help me, Lord, to remember that breastfeeding is only a start. There is also the truthful saying that “the family that prays together stays together.” The rosary is such a help to family life with Mary’s protection. Please, Lord, grant us our family peace. (anonymous mother)
(Sheila Kippley, 2005)

6. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.

Lord, you want me to be pure of heart. You want me to have that single-minded goal of holiness, to be one with you. In our marriage we have developed more spiritual goals in the past several years. We have learned about natural family planning and about generosity in having children. We have learned about your plan for spacing babies through breastfeeding. We are excited about our new knowledge. We also have become more excited about our faith.

I weaned our first three babies during the early months to please my husband. He wanted me to wean early so I could help out with the ranch work as soon as possible. With a change in attitudes, we decided I would nurse our fourth baby more naturally. I continued to help my husband with the ranch work, but this time our baby went everywhere with me. We rode the tractor together, checked heifers in the middle of the night together, and rode a horse together to move some cows. She helped me in the kitchen and loves to cook. She has been my helpmate and a joy.

At 26 months, she weaned naturally. Up to that time I never left her for more than two hours. My periods also returned at 26 months. She nursed often up until that last month.

When my daughter was 18 months old, my 92-year-old grandmother told me I should wean, that my baby was too old to still be nursing, that she needed to learn independence, and that I needed to live my own life so I could come and go as I pleased. At that time I was very upset with this advice. So I went to you, Lord, in prayer. I asked you to show me the way. You certainly answered me immediately. A few hours later I went to give my husband lunch out in the field, and I told him about my grandmother’s advice. I asked him if I should wean our little girl. He looked at me lovingly and said, “No. You two are doing just fine.” I thank you, Lord, for changing my husband’s heart also. He has become so supportive of my breastfeeding.

Please, Lord, give other new mothers the strength and support to be single-minded, humble and strong in doing what’s best for their babies and their older children. Give them the courage to be bold and to take their babies with them. Give them the courage to do what’s right for their baby. (anonymous mother)
(Sheila Kippley, 2005)

(A 30% discount is now offered on all Kippley print books at lulu through August 7 in recognition of NFP week and World Breastfeeding Week.  In addition, Sophia is offering a 25% discount on Breastfeeding and Catholic Motherhood through August 7.  The code for this discount is “motherhood.” Ignatius Press is offering Sex and the Marriage Covenant for only $6.00 through August 31.))

5. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Lord, our home is in turmoil right now. Our teen is most blunt about his extreme dislike for us, his parents. We are terribly hurt by his behavior. I know our situation is not unusual. I hear from my friends and acquaintances that their older children run all over them. Why do older children behave this way? Why are they so disrespectful of their parents? These children all come from good Catholic homes. When I expressed displeasure about our child without getting into any details, my friend simply said, “I know. I’ve been there. I know the feeling.” Her words showed she understood and I felt better. Another friend who was having a bad time with her daughter said to me, “I didn’t know it could hurt so much.” Sometimes the hurt can be so painful that you just want to throw in the towel. It gets to be pretty discouraging. Who would ever think that your command to love our enemies would apply to our own children.

I know of many situations, Lord, where you sent relief because of my prayer. Thank you. I have also found the sacrament of confession so helpful in erasing any grudge or despair I might have with regard to any of my children. Or during confession the priest offers spiritual advice that I need at the time. Sometimes during my confession I unexpectedly start to cry, but I am sure other mothers have done this too. I thank you for helping me to forget the past and to learn to love my children when they’re not very lovable. Forgiveness is so necessary in family life, but it can also be most difficult.

I have nursed all our babies and have thoroughly enjoyed their years at home. The bonding that begins through the breastfeeding has been a big help, but I soon learned that the bonding and communication and love has to be achieved in other ways as the children grow.

Lord, raising our children during the early years was easy. Their needs were so basic: food, comfort, and love. Please give my husband and me the graces to continue loving each child, even when it gets difficult. As they leave home, help us to keep up the communication with our children. Thank you, Lord, for your forgiveness in the sacrament of confession and help us to forgive others whenever we are injured…no matter how badly we feel. I thank you also, Lord, for time. With time, all things seem to be much better. Emotions heal with time. New activities and events take place. Family life has a chance to be renewed. Thank you, Lord. (anonymous mother)
(Sheila Kippley, 2005)

(A 30% discount is now offered on all Kippley print books at lulu through August 7 in recognition of NFP week and World Breastfeeding Week.  In addition, Sophia is offering a 25% discount on Breastfeeding and Catholic Motherhood through August 7.  The code for this discount is “motherhood.” Ignatius Press is offering Sex and the Marriage Covenant for only $6.00 through August 31.))