Todd K Marsha - Living. Learning. Growing.

On Being a Catholic Writer | Crisis Magazine9/3/12 Many Catholic writers have balked at being called that. They were Catholic and they wrote, all right, but they didn't want to be read as if the point of their fiction was a religious…

Part of my quest to live a healthier lifestyle has involved reducing the amount of chemical assistance I provide my body each day. A few months ago I was taking an anti-inflammatory drug for my bruised kneecap, ibuprofen when needed for…

I’ve never read Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus but I’ve heard enough about the book to know men and women come at things from different perspectives, have different needs, and feel things much differently than one another. Still,…

Matthew 10:34-36  “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother…

I heard a great homily this past weekend at Mass. Unfortunately I was working as an usher so I missed little pieces here and there. Nonetheless, I was familiar with the theme since it rings so true in my own life. What we think we know is…

I can remember standing in front of mirror for twenty minutes back in grade school trying to get my hair just right. I often walked away frustrated due to a couple nasty cowlicks but looking back on it; I give myself an “A” for effort. As…

Almost two weeks have passed since I began an elimination diet. For nearly a fortnight I've eaten no grains, no diary and no sugar. Things have changed and mostly for better. The itching is gone. The bloating is gone. The gas is mostly…

I was actually “on schedule” leaving the house for the first time all week. Still I hurried to the gym so I wouldn’t lose any valuable time. The parking lot at Lifetime Fitness had been pretty empty this week, due to the first week of…

At the time of this writing, I’m a good four months away from my 42nd birthday. I’m told this is no longer old. I heard something about 40 being the new 30 (perhaps the new 20, even). That’s comforting but despite all this talk about age…

I was reading a post on Michael Hyatt’s site the other day and it really rang true for me. All my spiritual growth, along with growth in other areas of my life, has come from getting outside of my comfort zone. My decision to embrace…

Hi everybody, Unless we're talking about Stryper, how often do you get to rock out to some good 'ol contemporary christian music? There are some good riffs, don't get me wrong, but I didn't find myself banging my head until I checked out…

Hi everybody, When I heard Kari Jobe's interview on K-LOVE a while back, I was impressed with how relaxed and laid back she was. Then I saw this video of her singing her hit song, "Steady My Heart." I was so impressed with the emotion and…

The only way to know if Greek yogurt, dairy, quinoa, and other grains are to be forever banished from my diet is to go a couple weeks without them and see what happens. It’s called an elimination diet and, with the assistance of my…

In my post Foods That Make Me Sick, I talked about side effects caused by some foods only after I'd lost 100 pounds. With nuts, however, I was dealing with a doctor-diagnosed allergy from my youth that went away over time, then returned as…

I grew up with food allergies that I seemed to outgrow as I got older. As a young adult I developed a new one. Then, after losing 100 pounds, my food allergies took on a whole new meaning. Foods I'd grown up eating without incident were…

Something rather disturbing happened the other morning while I was on the elliptical trainer… I saw Jack fall off the top of an inflatable and land on his head. He was going to a play place full of inflatables that very day on a field…

Why can’t I appreciate praise that’s sincerely given and legitimately deserved? I went to see a dietician recently. I would imagine most folks who visit the dietician receive news they’d rather not hear and dread implementing the dietary…

It’s the challenge of the faithful to give, give, give but at some point we can give no more. At other times we give, but in the wrong way. Still, other times we give but give the wrong things. Let me show you some examples from my own…

I volunteered to speak at Mass this weekend as we begin our recruitment drive for the next Christ Renews His Parish retreats. I was nervous, although well prepared but I couldn't have been prepared for what happened as I sat in the pews…

I went to confession earlier this week as part of Christ Renews His Parish formation. Although the details of my confession are confidential, I have to tell you I've never felt freer in my life. My understanding of what confession is about…