Author Archives: Paul and Anna Albert

DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?

Throughout scripture we see Jesus doing these amazing miracles. He makes the blind see (John 9), the mute speak (Luke 11:14), the deaf hear (Mark 7: 31-37). He feeds thousands of people with a few pieces of fish and bread (Matthew 14:13-21). He even raised the dead back to life (John 11). After Jesus’ death and resurrection the miracles did not stop, they continued through the apostles. One story in scripture that always strikes me is from Acts 3. Peter and John were on their way to the temple

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Blown Away!

It’s the 18th week of our mission in Haiti and still I am in awe of the Lord’s faithfulness. He promised that he would send us on mission to Haiti and he did. He promised us community and we are surrounded by families, priests, and parishes that love us. He ensured us that he would provide spiritually and physically. We live with a priest, so the sacraments are available to us daily, and we have never gone without (maybe no running water or power for a few days but he always made a way). Plus, the

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I got what I wanted for Christmas.

As Christmas was approaching this year, it didn’t seem like Christmas. First off, it’s hot in Haiti all the time. I’ve never celebrated Christmas away from Boston, where it’s always cold in the winter. But also, we had no decorations, no lights, no Christmas tree, no gifts, no Christmas cards, and no manger with the missing baby Jesus. Those things are usually part of Christmas for me so things felt a little off. As I prayed about it, I realized two things. First of all, we weren’t very

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Unity Creates Strength

Recently we drove to Port Au Prince, the capital of Haiti, to take Fr. Dave Pivonka to the airport for his flight back to the U.S. Like all trips to Port-Au-Prince, there are many stops because it takes all day to get there and back so you might as well get all your errands done. Nathaniel was pretty sick and we were able to get him an appointment for the same day. Our day started off at 5am. We met Mami Res, the mother of our priest Fr. Louis, at 5:30am at a gas station on the way to PAP. She

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Adjusting to Life in Haiti

It’s day 12 of Mission Haiti, and I’m running out of clean underwear. It’s ok though because we’re leaving to go home now, right? Nope, we bought one-way tickets to come here! Eleven days is probably the longest I’ve ever been on a foreign mission. I usually don’t have to worry about keeping clothes clean and making shampoo and toothpaste last because I usually leave after a week or so and just leave everything as donations. So right about now, it’s sinking in that this is going to

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God is Faithful (Part 2)

My missionary formation year at Covecrest (in Tiger, Georgia) was the greatest year of my life. And although I was hesitant to go because of my desire to only serve in Haiti, I can now say that full-time missions in Haiti would not be possible without the formation, healing, rhythm of prayer, and community that I received during my formation year. Waiting a whole year to see this desire become a reality allowed me to step back and see God’s faithfulness and involvement in every little detail

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God is Faithful (Part 1)

Has the Lord ever placed a desire on your heart or made known to you that he was calling you to something great, but it took months or even years to come to fruition? Maybe the Lord was trying to purify your desires, maybe the timing wasn’t right, or maybe the Lord felt that you needed more formation, an intense rhythm of prayer, and community. So about a year ago, I went on my first foreign mission trip to Haiti. While there, we did your typical mission trip things: built stuff, painted stuff,

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MY MOM MADE ME GO TO LIFE TEEN

My mom made me go to Life Teen.  Every time I reach some new milestone in life or have another amazing experience, I think about how it wouldn’t be happening if my mom didn’t make me go to Life Teen. When I was about to start high school, my parish decided that in order to get confirmed, all teens would have to go to Life Nights along with religious education classes. I did not want to go to Life Nights. During that first year of high school, I got to know the Lord in a new way. Through Life

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I Was Bullied.

2012-09_LT-Bullied

I know the wounds can be deep; trust me, I’ve been there.

I spent six years of my life terrified to walk into school. I spent six years trying to figure out what to wear, how to act, what to do in order for the bullying to stop. I started hanging out with the “cool kids,” but it only got worse, so I joined the sport teams and clubs, and that didn’t help, so I decided to just give up.

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“Behold Your Mother” – John 19:26-27

“The Virgin Mary. . . is acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the redeemer. . . She is ‘clearly the mother of the members of Christ’ . . .” – CCC 963 I have recently recommitted for about the 20th time in my journey with Christ to pray a daily rosary, but this time is very different. I’m entering this commitment with a new found respect and honor for our Blessed Mother. I don’t know what took so long for me to figure it out but Mary had a very important role in

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