God

God

About

About the Author

Hope is a Catholic wife and mother on a spiritual journey to spread the Good News through blogging.

About the Blog

‘The Sky, Not The Grave’ was created to share Hope’s knowledge and love of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Bible, and the Holy Catholic Church.

The blog’s name is derived from the lyrics of one of Hope’s favorite hymns titled ‘It Is Well With My Soul’ also known as ‘When Peace Like a River’. Lyrics written by Horatio G. Spafford in 1873, music and setting by Philip P. Bliss in 1876.

“But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait, The sky, not the grave, is our goal; Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord! Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

It is well, (It is well,) with my soul, (with my soul,) It is well, it is well with my soul…”

RCIA

Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults

Would you like to learn more about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit?

Are you curious about how Jesus established the Catholic Church?

Do you have questions about Catholicism?

Would you like to explore the idea of becoming Catholic?

Do you have a loved one who is Catholic and you would like to know more about their faith?

RCIA is where you can learn more about the Catholic faith in a classroom setting with others who have the same questions you do.

To find out more about attending RCIA classes, contact the Catholic Parish in your area and ask them for information on RCIA. It’s as easy as Googling – catholic church in (your city and state). They may also have some information on RCIA classes on their website.

Not sure if you are ready for RCIA, but you are curious about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, or Catholicism?

Head over to my Resources tab at the top of this page. From there you can select the dropdown menu tab, Books. On that page, I have a wide selection of Catholic books listed that cover a variety of different topics. While I don’t sell them, I’m sure you could find them pretty easily at any online Catholic bookstore. Here is one of my personal favorites…

St. Thomas More Books & Gifts

https://www.stmcatholicgifts.com/

I pray you find what you are looking for. God Bless!

  • Hope

Meet Hope

Hello, and welcome to my blog!

For the purpose of this blog, I’ll be using my middle name Hope, because that is what I pray you will find here. I am a Catholic wife and mother on a blogging mission to fulfill my part of the Lord’s commission to each of His people to “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15).

Here I will share my knowledge and love of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit with you, my dear readers, in the hope that your faith and mine may be strengthened according to God’s will for our lives.

In my blog posts, I’ll explore the Holy Bible and the traditions of the Holy Catholic Church, and together we will learn and grow in devotion to the Lord, one blog at a time.

So, sit back in a cozy chair with a nice warm cup of coffee or tea, and take some time to enjoy this tiny piece of the world as I see it.

May God Bless You, Always!

  • Hope

Audio & Video

Hey everyone. I hope you are enjoying my site. Here are some podcasts, tv shows, movies, etc. that I have learned a great deal from. I hope the same for you.

God Bless,

  • Hope

Life Is Worth Living TV Series with Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

As I am new to this whole blogging thing, I wasn’t sure about the legality of sharing YouTube videos directly on my site. So, if you are interested in checking out some of the 128 episodes currently available for your viewing pleasure on YouTube, simply go to YouTube and visit the Vision Video channel. There you can type Life Is Worth Living into their search bar and easily find the series playlist. It’s totally worth it! I watch it often. Bishop Fulton J. Sheen is full of awesome insight! I’ve learned a great deal from him.

  • Hope

The Catholic Talk Show with Father Richard Pagano, Ryan DellaCrosse, and Ryan Scheel

I can’t get enough of this show! It’s my go-to whenever I’m driving somewhere. If you have questions about a certain topic concerning Catholicism, they most likely have an episode on it. I use Spotify via my cellphone and the speakers of my car to listen to it, but you can also catch their videos on catholictalkshow.com if you’d rather view them. I highly recommend checking out this show! One of my favorite episodes I’ve listened to a few times is 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Guardian Angels. So, think of a topic you are curious about concerning Catholicism and get cracking! Lovely listening.

  • Hope

The Chosen – TV Show

This is a fairly new tv show that depicts the life of Jesus and other biblical characters. Of course, being that it is television, they do take some license as they string together the lives of people to make it flow as a show. With that being said, it is pretty awesome so far! I’m unsure how other people are watching it, but I watch it through Amazon Prime. Currently, Seasons 1 and 2 are on there, and I am looking forward to the release of Season 3. So go catch up before Season 3 drops. Happy viewing!

  • Hope

Patterns of Evidence – Documentary Series by Investigative Filmmaker Timothy Mahoney

Hey everyone. I found this docu. series on Amazon Prime and thought it was so fascinating that I just had to share it!

Patterns of Evidence:

  1. The Exodus
  2. The Moses Controversy
  3. Red Sea Miracle
  4. Red Sea Miracle II
  5. The Journey Home
  6. Journey to Mount Sinai
  7. Journey to Mount Sinai II

Unfortunately, I could only find The Moses Controversy and The Exodus on Amazon Prime so far, but hopefully, they will put the others on there at some point. If you decide you would like to see more though, you can go to https://www.patternsofevidence.com/

These films are super fascinating and entertaining! If you love to learn, as I do, and wish you could be traveling all over the place right now but can’t, you should definitely check them out. Mr. Mahoney mosies all over the place, discovering evidence for all sorts of biblical events. I may have to re-watch them soon, myself! God Bless!

  • Hope

Alpha Film Series

Do you long for answers to life’s big questions? The Alpha Film Series is here to help you. Watch it on your own online or find a local Catholic church offering Alpha classes. Explore your questions about faith, with others looking for answers.

Episodes

* Alpha Film Series // Promo Video – Alpha

  1. Is there more to life than this?
  2. Who is Jesus?
  3. Why did Jesus die?
  4. How can I have faith?
  5. Why and how do I pray?
  6. Why and how should I read the Bible?
  7. How does God guide us?
  8. Introduction to the Alpha Day Weekend
  9. Who is the Holy Spirit?
  10. What does the Holy Spirit do?
  11. How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit?
  12. How can I make the most of the rest of my life?
  13. How can I resist evil?
  14. Why and how should I tell others?
  15. Does God heal today?
  16. What about the Church?

To find all 16 episodes with embedded subtitles, visit the YouTube channel Grace Tucson. Go to Playlists and find Alpha Videos. The above list will help you watch the videos in their designated order. God Bless!

  • Hope

Bible Project

Experience the Books of the Bible as short, artistically designed, videos. While unfortunately, the creators do not (to my knowledge) include the Books of the Bible Tobit, Judith, Maccabees, Wisdom, Sirach, or Baruch, the videos that they do have are totally worth a watch!

While taking a Bible class in college, I would read the Book of the Bible assigned for the week and then watch one of these awesome videos on that particular Book. It was really helpful for my understanding and cementing the information into my brain. If you are like me and enjoy being able to read, hear, and see the information you are learning, check out these videos. They are a great addition to any Bible study. Plus, the narrators have a great sense of humor. For example, when talking about the snake in the Garden of Eden in the episode titled Messiah, Jon asks his buddy Tim, “Now, why is there a talking snake in the garden?”

To watch these videos, go to the YouTube channel BibleProject and click on Playlists. There you can find playlists on the New Testament, the Old Testament, and many other great selections.

If you are new to Bible stories, I would suggest beginning at the beginning… with the Book of Genesis. Find it in the Old Testament playlist. Happy Viewing!

God Bless,

  • Hope