Have you ever noticed on the back of a hotel door, they post information about your hotel rate as well as instructions of what to do in case of a fire? Ever since I was a member of the fire evacuation team at my former job, this is something that I always check out when I stay at a hotel. I want to share an actual description from one such hotel: Read More
God | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker - Part 13
On the Inside; On the Outside
Everyone knows about Saint Patrick — the man who drove the snakes out of Ireland, defeated the Druids in contests of magic, and used the shamrock to explain the Trinity to the pagan Irish. It’s a great story, but none of it is true. The shamrock legend came along centuries after Patrick’s death, as did the miraculous battles against the Druids. Forget about the snakes — Ireland never had any to begin with. No snakes, no shamrocks, and he wasn’t even Irish! Read More
Tonight, I want to share with you a powerful story:
I hired a carpenter to help me restore an old farmhouse. After he had just finished a rough first day on the job, a flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and now his ancient pickup truck refused to start. Read More
A farmer painted a sign advertising puppies for sale and was nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the eyes of a little boy. “Mister,” he said. “I want to buy one of your puppies.” “Well,” said the farmer, “these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money.” The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer. “I’ve got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?” “Sure,” said the farmer. And with that he let out a whistle. “Here, Dolly!” Out from the doghouse ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain-link fence. His eyes danced with delight. Read More
I was in 6th grade and about to take a big science test. But this test was not with just any teacher. It was with Sister Bernadette – the holy terror of my Catholic Elementary School. There was just something about her that gave me the creeps. I was a fairly average student back then, holding my own in all of my class subjects. But when it came to science, it just didn’t make sense to me. I couldn’t tell you the difference between a proton, a neutron, or a Klingon. I was terrified of this test! My Mom and Dad were always proud of my efforts to get good grades and I didn’t want to let them down. So just before the test, I wrote several of the answers on the top of my desk in barely legible pencil. I sat nervously as Sister started to hand out the tests. I didn’t want to get caught, but I didn’t want to fail either. Read More
“Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quite reflection will come even more effective action.” ~Peter Drucker
Some people lead. Other people follow. Are you a follower? John Angotti wrote these words of a song, quoting Jesus:
He said to me, “Come and follow me.” He said to me, “Come and follow me.
There you’ll find peace of mind if you just come and follow me.”
And this is what I now ask of you. Come and follow me. Due to my busy schedule, my blog posts do not appear as often as I would like. So the best way to keep up with me is to follow me on social media. There you’ll find peace of mind with my Daily Thoughts, Noonish Nuggets, PM Ponders, meditational questions, quotes that make you think, and a little bit of Deacon Allen humor.
Here is where you’ll find me:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DeaconAllenT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeaconAllenT/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deaconallent/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deacon-allen-tatara-965b1388
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DeaconAllenT
Google +: https://plus.google.com/b/113867639260645299889/+Deaconallen
In the words of Francis Chan, “We never grow closer to God when we just live life. It takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness.” I would be honored if you would come and follow me. Thank you.
Deacon Allen
While in deacon formation, one of our final steps before ordination was to meet with the diaconate board for final approval. The board was made up of both clergy and lay people and their primary responsibility was to make sure that we were prepared for ordained service to God’s people. I guess you could compare this to a final job interview – that lasted for more than four years.
The pressure was on, and I was feeling it. As I had mentioned before, I am a worrier, so this was an extremely stressful event in my life. We had a specified time to be there, so while I was waiting with my classmates, I felt pretty good about it all. One of my classmates emerged from his interview and stated that it was not so bad. But then another came out and said that it was a brutal experience. (They had two different groups interviewing us.) My stress level shot through the roof! I was feeling sick to my stomach, and apparently I was looking quite pale. Read More
With yesterday being the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, I’ve been thinking a lot about Mary. Every year, I’m blown away by Mary’s faith when she said “yes” to God. Especially as a young teenager, I can only imagine what her faith was like. Read More
Last weekend, my wife Stephanie and I along with our pastor took a group of 11 teens to the National Catholic Youth Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. Today, I wanted to share with you our experience of this powerful three day pilgrimage. Read More
May this story give you hope and the ability to realize all of the blessings that God has given. May your Thanksgiving Day be filled with love, happiness, and gratefulness. Read More
