Resist Temptations and Believe in America

One Nation Under God

"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." - James 4:7

In today's world, being a good Catholic can be a really hard thing. You have all sorts of temptations trying to pull you down, away from your faith, and essentially away from God. When other people see that you are living a happy life and you are counter-cultural, they are not going to like that. In fact, they may be jealous of you since you are so in touch with your faith. They see that you are aware of something so far beyond the realm of this universe. This is when people, who have been influenced by the evil one, will try to make you question your faith and why you practice it. They will ask you all sorts of things to make you doubt yourself. And of course, relying on faith means that we, as Catholics, will not have all the answers. But that is what faith is! Like St. Augustine said, "Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe."

In America, I see that our country has been slipping away from God over time. Our government is currently not being run by someone who leads with values and integrity. There has been a shift in society of what is acceptable as morally right and wrong. What has happen to the America my grandfather fought for in the military? I cannot imagine that God is please with the decisions our president has made in the last four years. Especially with the decisions to fund abortions.

Last week the RNC came to my hometown, in Tampa. It was wonderful to see all the amazing people here who have the love of God in their hearts. These politicians spoke with enthusiasm of how our country will get back on the right path as one nation under God. Even the Vice Presidential candidate, Paul Ryan, attended Mass in St. Petersburg during that week. Radio station, Spirit FM 90.5, informed us that Cardinal Dolan was there to celebrate the liturgy at St. Mary's Catholic Church. The Cardinal even gave the final benediction for the closing of the RNC. It is so important that we pray for our country in these times ahead. Through prayer we will be able to resist all of the evilness that wants to overcome us in this nation.

Like I said before, just living a normal day to day life as a good Catholic-American can have its ups and downs. Many of us are spiritually attacked on a regular basis because we are following God. The devil is aware of this, so he targets us more often. If we are to live in a country that is far from God it will be much harder to resist these temptations. People will label you. You will not be the most liked. But who cares? Why does it matter what these people think anyways? They do not have the best interest for you. They do not want what you want. So it is best to ignore these people and just pray for them. Try not to start a discussion with them that will lead to a political/religious argument. God does not want strife among His people. He wants us to live in harmony, even with our differences.

It is important to note that God does not pick political sides. We as people, involved in politics, chose to be on God's side. If we are on God's side, then we want what He wants. If you hear the voice of God coming through any of these politicians then you know what they are saying is what He wants. If you have a relationship with Jesus then you'll know He wants us to chose life. He wants us to have religious freedom. He wants us to value the sacrament of marriage. And He wants us to have a good economy that will help foster the hope of living the "American Dream."

This election will truly put us to the test. The way we vote is not something to be taken lightly. Voting is not just filling in a bubble with black pen on a page. It is something that each and every person will be held accountable for, according to his/her own measure.

In the follow YouTube video this well-spoken young lady explains her thoughts about being a Catholic in this day and age. Even though we go through many temptations on a daily basis we can overcome those with prayer and fasting. Making sacrifices for God will demonstrate your submission to His Holy Will. Praying for those people who have hurt you is what God means when He tells us to love our enemies. They might be completely unaware of the blessings you are bestowing upon them. However, God knows, and He will bless them according to your petitions.

So go out into the world and resist all kind of temptations the evil one may be throwing at you. And believe in your country, believe in America! We must believe together as one nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you for reading my blog post. Take care. God bless you and God bless America!

Desert Days

"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil." - Matthew 4:1

So for a while now I feel as though I have been walking in the desert. I'm sure many of you have had difficult experiences in your life when you feel overwhelmed by stressful events. This period of your life is when you are out wondering the desert. You might feel alone, but God is there and He is very much present. These desert days may last for a short time in worrisome situations or could even last a long season. You may not know when you'll reach paradise, but you know that at some point you will get there when God is leading your way.

The best part is, is that Jesus can relate to us. He was tempted by the devil out in the desert. Even though we are put through temptations that could lead us down the wrong path...these are learning experiences that will help make us a better person in the long run. God knows your strengths and weaknesses. It even says in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 10:13, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will always provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

For the past week I have been very ill on top of being mistreated by certain people and enduring other chaotic events. Thank God I'm just starting to feel a little bit better after being so sick. But walking in the desert isn't easy. And I'm nowhere near out of it yet!

The desert is a very hot and dry place to be. You have so many elements impacting you all at once...like blazing heat, sandstorms, direct sun, no water, burning/stinging sensations, etc. Even though the desert is only a metaphor for hard patches in our life, the pain can be felt in a very realistic way. Sometimes the devil will trick us out in the desert with mirages of paradise. When we are at our worst we run towards it, only to find the vision vanish before us...because it wasn't real. These illusions are put there to bring us down. That is when we need to be strong and keep our faith in the Lord. We must know that He, too, was tempted and was able to get out of it safely with divine assistance.

So don't let desert periods in your life get your spirits down. There are plenty of things to do in the desert. Praying, fasting, offering up sacrifices to God will help you get through it. When the time comes you will feel more fulfilled to enjoy a happy period of your life with so many blessings and graces from God. Even if you feel alone, know that He is right there with you. At these moments you may see only one set of footprints in the sand...but that is the moment when He carries you. Many saints have gone through so many trials in order to get where they are today, a canonized saint of the Catholic church. In fact, there were even periods in Mother Theresa's life that were very dark and depressing. But on the outside she never let anyone see that because of the beautiful holy woman of God she was.

Even though I'm still out walking in the desert, enduring all of this pain and suffering, I feel for the first time, today, that I've been given a little rain to help me bear the heat of these difficult trails. It's just enough to lift my spirits some. Today I was able to have a great conversion with my good friend Jasmine. When you have a friend that will let you rant about your problems they are truly a good friend. Those kind of friends are perfect little outlets to help us endure the pain. But keeping that in mind, when our friends start walking in the desert we need to be there for them too. I also got a get-well card in the mail today from my friend Christina. That definitely put a smile on my face! :) So like me, when you are tempted...don't give up. Keep your faith in God because He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.