Living our Faith

Living out our Catholic faith can be a challenge in today’s society. Our culture severely lacks Christian morals. It is difficult and rarely convenient to stand up for our beliefs and the Catholic teaching. We can’t do it on our own either, it is crucial that we trust in the Lord and continually ask Him to guide us along our journey. The Holy Spirit will work through us… if we allow Him to and when we let Him freely move in our lives, it is truly beautiful what He can do.

            Before we can go out into the world though, we need to make sure we are right with the Lord. We can’t give something we don’t have. It is crucial that we examine our conscience and ask the Lord to call to our attention anything that needs to be addressed in our lives. I’m not saying we need to have everything figured out, because if you feel you’ve come to that point, you don’t have everything figured out. I am saying, however, that we need to make sure our intentions are good and pleasing to the Lord.

            We need to work fervently for the Lord everyday. Colossians 3:23 says we need to work willing at whatever we do, as though we are working for the Lord rather than people. We need to live out our faith with our actions, our speech, and our conduct.

            The Lord calls each and every one of us to serve Him in a different way. It is pivotal that we spend time in prayer discerning how the Lord is calling us to serve Him. We each have our own unique gifts and when used the way the Lord intended them to be used, it is a powerful thing. When we are where the Lord wants us, no matter how heavy and challenging our cross may be; we will have joy and peace in our hearts.

Now is the acceptable time. As young Catholics it is easy to put off deepening our relationship with Christ until we are graduated, moved out, attending a Catholic College, married etc. It is dangerous to procrastinate when it comes to our relationship with the Lord; we don’t know when we will take our last breath. Now is an acceptable time to the Lord. Come to Him as you are: with all your worries and problems, you don’t need to carry them on your own.                        

Looking at the lives of the Saints and following their example is an excellent way to deepen our relationship with God. While every person’s journey is different and unique, we can look at the Saints and some of their personal crosses. If you are struggling with depression for example, you can Google “Patron Saint of Depression”. It is inspiring to read about how Saints handled their temptation and the humility they conducted themselves with when carrying their crosses.

Satan diligently works to spreads lies. A lot of people have anger and hostility towards the Catholic Church, but the reality is they are just hurting and believing the lies. Our actions, conduct and our speech have a profound impact on the world. When we clothe ourselves in love we can reveal the truth and the love of God to others. Some people are so wounded and blinded by sin that they fail to see the love and mercy of God; we need to pray for them and that in God’s perfect timing He’ll show them the truth.

When we are trying to live out our faith, we should never be harsh, condemning or judgmental. Instead we need to show mercy and love towards one another. Our actions, speech and our conduct should reflect our beliefs. We should be slow to speak and slow to get angry. All of us are hurting people and we need to be gentle with one another. We are all temples of the Holy Spirit. We must pray always and continually ask for the Lords guidance.

God Bless! 
Megan 
P.S. Happy Feast Day of Saint Rita of Cascia! I encourage you to read her story if you don't know it! 

It is the Little Things

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, was a truly beautiful soul. She dedicated most of her life to serving the poor and dying. Because of her meek life and gentle spirit, she is my roll model. She said, "If you can't feed one hundred people, just feed one." Most of us cannot feed one hundred children, however if we can feed one, clothe one or let one know they are loved; sometimes the smallest actions have the biggest impacts. For example, something as small and effortless as a smile has been known to stop a person from committing suicide. Through her abundant self-sacrifices and small actions of love, she made a prodigious impact on so many lives, including mine. I've learned by her example, that the little things make a difference. By her piety and humility, I have learned that through small actions of love, we can change the world. 

God Bless! 
Megan

Enjoy the Journey

"Some enjoy beauty along the way, others only enjoy beauty at the destination." 

I have been the person who only "enjoys" beauty at the destination. Here is what I found: I was never able to actually enjoy the beauty when I arrived at my destination. I would get stuck living in the future. When I finally reached my destination, I didn't know how to live in the present. I would have all of these unrealistic expectations for my destination, so when I arrived, my destination was disappointing and depressing. I was confused, everything was supposed to be perfect. I was supposed to relax, let go of stress, feel good, be myself, the list of all the things I would be was endless. 

To help me live in the present, I asked God to help me acknowledge and be aware of the beauty that I am surrounded by and help me to fully appreciate it. I've found by doing little things to live more in the present makes a big difference. For example, waiting until we are done singing the "Holy" in Mass to put the kneeler down. Little things such as this, help me live in the moment now, but also when I get to my destination. 

God Bless and Happy Feast Day of Maria Bernarda! 

Megan Marie

Modesty Isn't About Rules, Modesty Comes From the Heart

I know girls who have endless rules about what makes a piece of clothing modest: skirts must come a minimum of three inches below the knee. Necklines must not go lower than two fingers below the collarbone. etc.

I'm sure they have good intentions, but they are missing the point...

Modesty shouldn't be laden with rules and regulations. True modesty comes from the heart. 

If we truly desire to please God, then when we dress each morning or purchase clothes, we should be asking questions like:

• Will my clothing honor God? "Do everything for the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31

• Is this feminine (or masculine if you are a male)? "A woman shall not wear a man's apparel, not shall a man put on a woman's garment; for whoever does such things is abhorrent to the Lord your God." Deuteronomy 22.5

• Will this cause men to think impure thoughts? No, we shouldn't dress to intentionally cause men to stumble. But modesty should be taken a step further, we should be cultivating humility, propriety and deference within ourselves. 
• Are my clothing choices going to distract people from seeing my character and my beautifully, unique personality? 
• Am I dressing as if I am a temple of the Holy Spirit? "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

I ask you to prayerfully consider and discern these questions. 

I love you all and God Bless! 

Megan

P.S. You are priceless and treasured! 

Healing Doesn't Happen Overnight

I was so confused. According to multiple Christian songs, movies, books etc. all you have to do is kneel down and pray and all of your problems will be solved. Your life will effortlessly transform into the unrealistic standard you hold yourself up to. 

Wrong.

Healing rarely happens overnight. Especially when we've been deeply wounded and we are stuck in a pattern of wrong thinking. 

I constantly have little revelations and more understanding of situations that leave me deep in thought for days. 

If we had one big revelation regarding all of our wrong thinking, wounds and denial, we would be overwhelmed. 

We heal at different paces because God knows exactly how much we can handle and exactly when we can handle it. When we have a lot of healing to do, we get one piece at a time to chew and digest, sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly. Some things are easier to forgive, heal and learn from and some things aren't. Sometimes it can take years to heal from something traumatic. We just need to patient with ourselves. Each of us has our own strengths and weaknesses.

Be persistent in your prayer. Even when it is hard and you feel like giving up. When you're in the middle of something, we often can't see how the Lord could possibly be moving and working in the situation. But He will show us how and why. Probably not right away, but in His perfect time, He will. 

I know life can be excruciatingly painful, but it is in the difficult times that we often come closest to God and our endurance will grow. 

I went through a few really painful years. Looking back, I can see that those years were crucial for my emotional and spiritual development. It was a long, slow, painful journey of healing. In fact I'm still healing. I don't know if I will ever be 100% healed. I will probably carry that cross my entire life. The difference is I'm stronger now and have more spiritual tools when my cross is heavy and I become weary. 

I look back with a thankful heart. I wouldn't be who I am if not for those years. I pray that I never have to go back to that emotional and spiritual state, but I see a little piece of the outcome and know it was all completely worth it. 

I remember feeling so hopeless, crying myself to sleep every night. For everyone who is there, I want you to know that I'm praying for you. Don't give up, because all of this will be worth it in the end. Just don't give up. 

I love you all! 

God Bless! 

Megan

Quick disclaimer: I'm not saying you shouldn't listen to christian music or read christian novels. Music and books can be wonderful healing tools. In my particular case, however, there were numerous songs, books and movies portraying that healing is instant and you'll never struggle with your problems again. Which is far from true and was very confusing to me.