Friendships

Humans are built on friendship, and relationships, which is why in Genesis God said it isn't good for man to be alone. Now we don't have to have tons and tons of friends because when you have a one good friend who you know cares about you, well you are on top of the world. When we hear someone loves us we feel better about ourselves we hang out with that person, and overall we love them and talk to others about how good of a friend they are. Am I right? So, think about this the God of all the universe loves you, and wants a relationship with you. Some people they are shocked, others they say  yes yes I know that already. So if we know this if we know how good God is and how much he loves each one of us why are we not shouting this from the mountain top, and telling everyone we meet how good God is? The answer to that may vary for each one of us, but it is the fact that we are constantly in a hurry, our thoughts are clouded with things we need to get done, and some of us don't want to stand out. Is that how a child of God should live? No, it isn't but all of this is part of our human nature. God doesn't want perfect children; although what he does want is us trying our best every single day to tell everyone about him because when they see or hear about the love God has for us they want what we have. Which brings me to Matthew 25:1-13 the parable of the ten virgins:

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’  Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

The oil in the parable represents our friendship with Jesus, which is something we cannot give away to others. So Jesus is the bridegroom here, and we do not know when he will come again in his glory. Through this parable Jesus is telling us to stay awake in a spiritual sense to nurture a relationship with him, to pray daily to him, and to spread his word to those of the world.  So today show others the love of God whether its actions or words. Show that Christ is in you.

Here is Christ in me by Jeremy Camp:

Thank You Lord for the grace to get through our worse days. Give us the courage the martyrs had so that we can serve you the best we can every day. Give us the grace to show that we have you in us.

God Bless,

Sarah

Judge yourself before others

We all judge whether its our friends, family, someone we meet; we are all prone to judgement on others. Why though? Why are we so prone to judgement on others? Well its part of our human nature. The devil will try to get us to think bad thoughts about someone, or point out their flaws but Jesus gives us a clear message in the Gospels to not judge. One of my favorite example of this is John 8:1-11:

while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.* But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.* So what do you say?” They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, [and] from now on do not sin any more.”

Jesus is telling us here to not go around judging people's actions, and instead look at yourself to see where you need improvement. The only one who can lawfully judge is God because he knows us better than we know ourselves, and his judgement is just. Unlike ours which is clouded by the stain of original sin, and the temptation of the devil. Jesus makes this clear when he says, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." What did the people do (starting with the Pharisees)? Left, they simply left because not one of them was perfect. 

Now did Jesus condemn well he could have because he is God; but he did not instead he forgave the woman, and told her to go and sin no more. This is exactly what he tells us to do when we confess to him in confession. To summarize Jesus is telling us not to judge people's actions, and their motives behind those actions. Now don't get me wrong here we all have our opinions, but we do not need to suspect and judge. We don't know everyone's story, and probably never will unless they tell us.

So, today ask god to give you the graces to hold judgement against others, and give you the graces to fight the tendency to judge. The opposite of judgement is compassion which leads to mercy and eventually forgiveness.

Thank You Lord for your endless mercy and forgiveness and give us the graces we need to steer away from judgement and towards compassion.

God Bless,

Sarah 

Living Out Our Faith in the World

From morals, to trust in God, to temptations to sin, our Catholic Christian faith is tested 24/7. The world will do everything it can to try to get us to abandon our faith, and morals. Why? Because we are not of the world we do not do the things most people in society do. The devil wants us to abandon God, because only then can the devil put us in whole of shame without hope. Of course we can't let him do this we need to keep fighting the good fight. We keep this fight going by keeping our faith, and living it out in the world. Although in doing this we have to remember that we cannot become like the Pharisees. So yes live out your faith, but do it in a humble way.

How do we live out our faith? Well we do what St. Francis of Assisi said to do, "Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary use words." What he means by this is to share the good news by our actions, not just our words. Because if we have faith without action, we become hypocrites. God doesn't want hypocrites. HE wants friends, who are willing to do his will, and share the good news throughout the world. Now, we don't need to do big big things to live out our faith. We show our faith in the little things we do throughout our day. Like Helping a stranger in need, giving a friend an encouraging text, letting people know you care, even just the smallest smile to someone can make their day. So, think what would Jesus do every day if he were in my shoes? Ask God to open your eyes to those who need you. Even the smallest little act of love towards someone could cause them to convert because when they see how we live out our lives as Christians they want what we have!

In the letter of James (James 2:14-26), James tells us about faith without works, "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,” but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead. Indeed someone may say, “You have faith and I have works.” Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works. You believe that God is one. You do well. Even the demons believe that and tremble. Do you want proof, you ignoramus, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called “the friend of God.” See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by a different route? For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

Today, think about how you personally have lived out your faith, and ask the Holy Spirit to point out the areas in your life, that you need to work on. We can't wait forever to finally decide to live out our faith because we never know when our end on this earth will come. We need to live out our faith through our actions as much as possible everyday. This and only this will please God no matter who we may displease in this world. By doing this we will not only grow closer to God, but we will grow in holiness, and become saints. Now this isn't as easy as it sounds, which is why we need God's grace. Where do we find his grace? In prayer, and most importantly in the sacraments. The sacraments are full of graces God is waiting to give us. So, when we can we need to spend time in front of the Blessed Sacrament, and talk to God ask him for his help. My point is to have faith with actions, and love God to fullest, by doing these things you will become holier each day!

God Bless,

Sarah

Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit enables us to do extraordinary things some of us would otherwise never think of doing. Just like he did with the apostles at Pentecost, we see this in the first reading (Acts 2:1-11):

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled,
they were all in one place together.
And suddenly there came from the sky
a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which they were.
Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
which parted and came to rest on each one of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven
staying in Jerusalem.
At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd,
but they were confused
because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
They were astounded, and in amazement they asked,
“Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?
Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?
We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites,
inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene,
as well as travelers from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs,
yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues
of the mighty acts of God.”

We all have the Holy Spirit within us, (no matter what age) who is waiting for us to allow him to work through us. This may not be as obvious as it was for the apostles, but we do have him in us just like we have Jesus in us. Some of us put the Holy Spirit in a box, and only let him work through us when it is convenient for us, but we cannot limit him. I did this for some of my life, I put him in a box, and it was a horrible decision. We cannot do this because we are his vessels and he can Only reach some people through us. By taking the Holy Spirit out of the box we help others in ways we cannot without the holy spirit, and of course by doing this we are doing God's will, and saving souls.

Today do one thing, ask the Holy Spirit to come, be willing to accept him, and open your heart. Then, God will do the rest! Holy Spirit, I ask you to give us the grace to be open to your will. Give us the grace to trust in you, and give us the strength to say yes to your guidance. Give us the courage and the grace to say no to sin. Lord, I pray for all the people in the world, that they may be open to you, and your will. Give us Catholics the courage to stand up for what is right, and to spread the Gospel like the apostles did.

Here is "Holy Spirit" sung by Francesca Battistelli:

Thank You Lord, for all that you have done for us. I pray for those who are less fortunate in the world. I also pray for all the souls in Purgatory, that they may be joined in heaven with you.

God Bless,

Sarah

Storms

Do you ever feel like you are in a storm? Storm as in bad events just keep happening, and you have just about no control. We all have felt this way. Questions come into our heads during this period and we think why is this happening, how did I get here, where is God, which is probably the most common question we ask. Just like any answers we look to scripture, so I want to focus on the Gospel of Matthew 8:23-27:                   The Calming of the Storm at Sea.
He got into a boat and his disciples followed him. Suddenly a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. They came and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm. The men were amazed and said, “What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey?”

Here the apostles are in an actual storm, and for one reason they followed Jesus into the boat. It is the same in our lives when we make our choice to follow Jesus we end up in "storms" where we feel helpless, and we are like the apostles calling out to Jesus asking him where he is, why he isn't helping. But in reality it is enough for Jesus to be with us because he gives us peace during difficult times. God tells us throughout the Bible that he is with us and to not be afraid. He also tells us that he will never give us more than we can take. So through these "storms" God allows our faith to be tested so that we can become stronger in faith, and closer to him. If we want to be followers of Jesus we need to have a lot of faith in him, yes it can be very difficult, but we need faith because without it we are lost. So, if we keep our eyes on Jesus instead of the "storm" we will be able to get through it.

Today I have two songs to go along with this post because I couldn't choose between the two.
So, here is "Just Be Held" by Casting Crowns:

And here is "Eye of the storm" by Ryan Stevenson:

Thank You Lord for being with us through all of lives. Give us the strength to keep our eyes on you.

God Bless,

Sarah

We are PRICELESS!

Let me tell you something...your are loved! You might be saying yes I know this already, but do we actually accept this? I mean I know in my life I put myself down at least once a day. We all have doubts and fears. Now Jesus tells us that he accepts us right? Think about that the God who we offend almost daily accepts us for who we are. Wow, I mean it is shocking sometimes especially because we know our past sins, and how imperfect we are, but he needs our imperfection because if we were perfect how would he use us? Because if we were perfect or believed we were then our pride and ego would easily get in the way. He uses us through our imperfection; he wants us to believe in only his perfection. Saint Francis of Assisi said, "If God can work through me he can work through anyone." This is so very true because we are all sinners yes, but God works through us sometimes we realize it sometimes we don't. Jesus loves us perfectly no matter what we do and he rejoices when we come back to him. Sometimes we think of a past sin or wrong decision, and we hold onto it thinking we have to "make up" for it, but in reality God let it go already, and forgave us already. God has also adjusted his plan for our lives, for our better good. So, be reminded God loves you and you are priceless to him. God wants us to share this and spread the word by loving others because if God loves our imperfect selves we can love the people we interact with in the world.
Here is one of my ultimately favorite songs "Priceless" by For King and Country

Thank You Lord for loving us perfectly. Help us to love one another as you love us. Give us the strength to stay fixed on you, and trust in you.

God Bless,

Sarah

Happy Mother's Day!

Today we celebrate Mother's Day! Mothers are like an angel in our lives, and I could go on and on with adjectives to describe them but I want to look at what makes them this way and how we can imitate their special virtues. If we look at Mary we see the best motherly example you could possibly get. Think of all the virtues The Virgin Mary had ok, and now compare those virtues to your mom. They are very and almost exactly similar right? Now look at yourself how many of those virtues do you have? Looking at these things and asking the Holy Spirit's guidance we see where we need improvement, which is good because God wants us to come closer to him and become the holiest we can be. This can take a while for most of us because we can be stubborn (I know this from experience), but God is waiting on us and being patient with us. So where do you need improvement? May I suggest writing these down and putting it somewhere you see it everyday, and asking God for the grace to improve and become holier every single day? Mothers are very amazing people, who are selfless, patent, loving, kind, and  I could go on and on. So, today do one thing thank your mother whether she is here on earth or up in heaven tell her how much you care for her, love her and think of her, and do this for Mary as well because her yes opened up a beam of hope for all of us. Jesus. 

Now, the only thing we should ever show our mothers is love, yes we all make mistakes, and we are forgiven but love is what we should show our mothers and Mary because it is what they do for us. So, we ask God today to let love take over our minds bodies and souls. Here is Love Take Me Over by Steven Curtis Chapman:

Thank You Lord, for giving us these amazing selfless people we call our moms, and thank you especially for Mary our heavenly mother, who carried your son in her womb. Give us the grace to become more like them and come closer to you. I pray today for all the mothers in the world, for those who know you well, and for those who don't, give them the graces they need to be like Mary, and give them the strength to conquer whatever is thrown at them.

God Bless, and Happy Mother's Day, 

Sarah

Halfhearted or Wholehearted...??

Today I want to look at a passage from the Old Testament, 1 Kings 18:21-39. Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you straddle the issue? If the LORD is God, follow him; if Baal, follow him.” But the people did not answer him. So Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the LORD, and there are four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal. Give us two young bulls. Let them choose one, cut it into pieces, and place it on the wood, but start no fire. I shall prepare the other and place it on the wood, but shall start no fire. You shall call upon the name of your gods, and I will call upon the name of the LORD. The God who answers with fire is God.” All the people answered, “We agree!” Elijah then said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one young bull and prepare it first, for there are more of you. Call upon your gods, but do not start the fire.” Taking the young bull that was turned over to them, they prepared it and called upon Baal from morning to noon, saying, “Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound, and no one answering. And they hopped around the altar they had prepared. When it was noon, Elijah taunted them: “Call louder, for he is a god; he may be busy doing his business, or may be on a journey. Perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” They called out louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears according to their ritual until blood gushed over them. Noon passed and they remained in a prophetic state until the time for offering sacrifice. But there was no sound, no one answering, no one listening. Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” When they drew near to him, he repaired the altar of the LORD which had been destroyed. He took twelve stones, for the number of tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the LORD had said: Israel shall be your name. He built the stones into an altar to the name of the LORD, and made a trench around the altar large enough for two measures of grain. When he had arranged the wood, he cut up the young bull and laid it on the wood. He said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it over the burnt offering and over the wood.” “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again. “Do it a third time,” he said, and they did it a third time. The water flowed around the altar; even the trench was filled with the water. At the time for offering sacrifice, Elijah the prophet came forward and said, “LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, LORD! Answer me, that this people may know that you, LORD, are God and that you have turned their hearts back to you.” The LORD’s fire came down and devoured the burnt offering, wood, stones, and dust, and lapped up the water in the trench. Seeing this, all the people fell prostrate and said, “The LORD is God! The LORD is God!”

There is a lot to take away from this passage, but in my opinion one of the most important things is not to be halfhearted (in other words lukewarm). Elijah tells us to follow whoever we think or believe that God is. He tells us this because if we are to follow the one true God then we cannot hold anything above him. He needs to be first on our priority list. So, the million dollar question is this have you made the decision to follow God wholeheartedly? The day I made this decision was probably the best day of my whole life, and a day which I will never forget. God is open and he is waiting for you to make this decision, and if you do he will be overjoyed because one of his lost sheep has come back and been found. Now do not think that life will be easy because it will not God did not promise this, although he promised to be there will us every single second of our lives.

So today I want you to pray, (and I will pray for everyone who reads this blog post) I want you to ask God to give you the grace and the strength to say yes to him like Mary like the saints like the prophets, and everyone else who has said yes to God. Ask the Holy Spirit as well to give you knowledge of God, and to help you to love him above all things.

Thank You Lord, for your unending mercy. Please help us to make the right choice and say yes to your will instead of ours.

God Bless,

Sarah