“My husband is deploying, do you know of any specific prayers I can say over him?”
“How do I trust God with my family’s stability when we move every two years?”
“I had a great community at my last military home, but this community is so different and competitive I feel like I’m sufficating.”
“I am a master at packing and unpacking, give me a house and I can make it feel like home in a month. But try to keep me someplace for more than two years and I get anxious.”
“The stress of having my spouse gone for deployments is hard in the beginning, but reintegrating them into the family is the hardest part of long separations.”
“Sometimes I feel so patriotic, that I could burst with pride!”
“I feel so guilty that my spouses career has been sidelined every couple years by my military career. Overseas, there are even laws in place that prevent them from working at all!”
“Is it okay to pray for specific things in war time? Some are easier than others to know God is clearly on the side of good versus evil, but what about when its not so clear?”
“My family of origin is having such a difficult time, and I can’t be there to help!”
“Why aren’t there good Catholic book to help and support us? The protestants seem to have the upper hand on faith related books.”
Well, ladies of the Catholic Church who serve the military (either yourselves or as supportive spouses), rejoice! Sophia Institute Press is leading the charge. We finally have a great book to add to our libraries that can give us the tools we have been seeking out for this crazy and wonderful life.
My community has always been or at least tied to the military in some way. I was born in Germany to a career military family. I married a man in active duty. He is currently working for the Department of Defense as a civilian. Three years ago, he deployed for a year. Two years ago, we moved to Japan to serve the military community there. Last October, we moved again to serve the military community in Italy.
I converted to Catholicism before the deployment. It was the civilian community who rallied around my family to help support us through that time. They didn’t really “get” it, but they did what they could to actively serve us and I will always be grateful.
These years overseas have been eye-opening to me to the pulse of the military especially as a mother. I have experienced being the child, the single woman, the spouse. But I think being a mother is the hardest and most rewarding. The strength and growing faith of these women, both active duty and spouses, is nothing short of inspiring. They are strong, they are open to welcoming in the newcomers, they know how to serve each other, and they are beautiful -especially when they are vulnerable with each other. This life of sacrifice offers plenty of opportunity for vulnerability.
Time and time again I hear women asking each other for their favorite saints and prayers for times in their lives and marriages that are unique to this lifestyle. There are some great ones, but we finally now have a book we can point too by someone who has really dug in deep and gets us. By Dawn’s Early Light is refreshing, honest, and will open up all the floods of feelings that are unique to the military life.
Each section of the book is full of stories, so even those who’ve never been anywhere near the military can understand better what their loved ones are going through. There are stories of faith, difficulties, victories, and saints and prayers under each category covered.
It is a powerful book, full of tools that each of us can use in our spiritual tool box. I will be lending out my copy a lot and requesting our library to obtain a copy. I hope to see in many parishes, military chapels, and personal libraries as word of mouth carries it along.
Stop by your local Catholic bookstore or click here to get your copy. Send a copy to someone who serves that is in your life today!
