Be Still & Free Yourself From Distractions

"Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world." - Psalm 46:10

Last Saturday I went on a Jesuit retreat with my sister called "Hearts on Fire." It was a wonderful experience! I learned so much about St. Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuits, and met so many wonderful people. During the retreat the priests talked about Ignatian Contemplation. This is a very reflective type of prayer that allows you to focus on God, alone, in silence, and using your imagination to do so. It is similar to meditation, because it is not a vocal prayer, but at the same time it is different because you are not necessarily thinking of prayers while you contemplate.

To begin you might start with meditating on a decade of the rosary. After the meditation, follow up with reading a scripture verse from the bible. When I did this at the retreat I contemplated on the verses Matthew 8:23-27, The Calming of the Storm at Sea. By thinking about this scene you begin to place yourself in it with the disciples on the boat. Imagining the waves of the water crashing up violently against the boat you slowly think about how the surroundings would feel like, smell like, and taste like. Then you begin to think to yourself, "Where am I in relation to Jesus? ...Am I close? Far? Am I with the other disciples?" Maybe where you picture yourself to be in the scene could be a sign of how close you are getting to God in your prayer life. Nevertheless, it is truly just learning to be still in the presence of God.

Using your imagination can be wonderful! It allows our creativity to be integrated in prayer form. Father Jim Martin, author of My Life With the Saints, explains Ignatian Contemplation very well in the video below.

However, when you are in prayer, it is important to know that your imagination is not trailing away from God in self-refection. If you find yourself distracted maybe meditate on the rosary again or just try to empty yourself of all other thoughts. Just learning to be still and free from any thought all together is another great way of contemplating. It gives God the opportunity to answer your prayers in the peace and quiet of your heart.

This brings me to my next point...distractions. We all seem to have so many distractions in our lives! From school, work, relationships, social media, music, sports, finances, politics, injuries, illnesses, ...etc. All of these things have the potential to pull us away from God if we let them. By finding more time for prayer, mediation, and contemplation we are more likely to find ourselves seeking God's Will actively in our lives. Even in C.S. Lewis' book, The Screwtape Letters, he points out that the devil tries to create so much noise in the world so that we can no longer hear the voice of God.

In this video Ashley, a very well spoken young woman, offers her wisdom on "distractions" that lead us away from God. It is important to find some quiet time in your day and go to church on Sundays. Doing these small things will help increase your relationship with God in the long run. When people slowly move away from such things as prayer they become more distracted and tend to wander aimlessly without God's guidance. If you want to know what God wants from you, give God your time. He wants to talk to you too! If we can empty ourselves from this world and try to focus on Him--and Him alone--we will slowly, but surely, find His Holy Will.

Forgiveness and Healing a Broken Heart

"For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you." - Matthew 6:14

Have you ever been so hurt by someone that all you want to do is blow up in a rage, punch your pillow, and pretend it was them? Do you find yourself sometimes listening to music that correlates to the emotions you feel towards that person? If so, you are not alone. I can empathize with you in this case. It is hard to let go of something so painful when someone has wronged you. It usually weighs on your mind for a while, preventing you from moving on with your life. And this, my friend, is not good.

God doesn't want us to dwell on these things. By dwelling on the hurt someone else has caused you, you are the only one continuing to cause it. You can become your own worst enemy. By hardening your heart you are allowing hatred to find its way into the open wounds. This is how the devil works. He will try to keep infecting your wounds with hate so they never heal...which, in turn, just makes you feel more miserable, hurt, angry, sad, and even depressed.

By letting go of the pain and learning to forgive we start to feel peace in our own hearts. This is the peace of God that will bless you and heal you of all your anguish. Given time, the brokeness of your heart will slowly mend. You will find that it feels good to let go of the pain and surrender it all to God. He will see how you have been able to truly forgive that person with the love of your heart. In the same way, He will forgive you of your sins out of His endless mercy and compassionate love.

You may have heard the phrase, "forgive and forget." It is always good to forgive because it frees us from so much distress. But it doesn't mean that once you forgive the person all those bad memories will suddenly disappear. By learning to forgive means you no longer hold anything against that person for the harm they may have caused you. Instead, when those memories arise, pray for that person...because they probably really need it! Replace the hatred with love.

Someday, maybe even after that person dies and meets God face to face, they will see the pain they caused you and it will hurt. They will also see the love you showed to them with your forgiveness and prayers. Don't you think that they will be so happy to know that you still showed them love and mercy even when they were unworthy of it? ...Of course they will! This is just like us. We are so grateful to know God's unconditional love and mercy even when we don't deserve it. By forgiving others you not only live like Jesus but you are also healing your own heart from all the pain. It is so much easier to move on with life being free from all of the hatred and resentment.

This healing of the heart takes time and will probably not happen overnight. So when you are troubled go to God in prayer and ask for the grace to forgive and move on. Sometimes we let go of things and the very next day we take them back again. Each day is a new struggle and filled with new temptations. Once we seem to find peace the devil will try to stir up those painful emotions again when we least expect it. Don't give into these games the evil one will try to play on us. He is sneaky, and unlike you, does not know love. That is when you can replace the hatred you begin to feel again with love through prayer. Praying about it will also help you to rebuke evil spirits and cast them out of your life.

Just remember, God will help you get through these trials. He loves you ssssooooo much and doesn't want to see you hurting any longer. As stated in Psalm 34:18, "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." With patience, time, prayer, and love your heart will begin to feel whole again. All of those bad memories will begin to fade as you replace them with new ones---good ones. For just as God promised, "Behold, I make all things new."

Pursue Your Dreams

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." - Matthew 7:7

Today I'd like to talk to you about following your dreams! Everyone has dreams they want to pursue...even if they are realistic or not. God has placed certain desires in your heart. This is so you can pursue those longings and take action towards your lifelong goals. He has given everyone of us on earth a mission to fulfill in this life. The question is, do we know what that mission is? Are we aware of our passion and purpose? And if so, how do we go about it?

I don't have all the answers to those questions. As a matter of fact I'm still trying to figure it out myself. But I do know that if we want to be truly happy and live a successful life for the Lord that we must submit ourselves to Him and His Holy Will.

Have you ever heard the phrase, "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans"...? It is not that our dreams are funny in the least. If you feel called to do something, go for it! But it is in the way you go about it that must be taken into consideration. Making plans to follow a dream without God's help is not only unwise, but it is also really dangerous. The devil could easily influence you to make the wrong decision and, in turn, it could end up costing you your dream. Going to God in prayer and asking Him to make our dreams a reality is definitely how we should start when pursuing a goal.

After praying about it don't expect the answer to come right away, like a poof of magic. Praying is something we do in our time. The answer's come in God's time. Meanwhile, you should be concentrating on how to achieve your goal. As St. Augustine said, "Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as everything depended on you." Putting in the effort, for example, like studying to do well on a test...is what will give you the good grade. You can't expect God to just hand it to you. In order to pursue your dream it will take a lot of effort! But are you willing to go the extra mile to get there?

For example, one of my favorite movies is Rudy. In the movie Rudy wanted to attend the University of Notre Dame for as long as he could remember. Not only did he want to go to school there, but he also wanted to play college football for them too. He was a poor boy, not very well educated, and didn't have the best grades. It was a long shot, but even when everyone around him told him that Notre Dame was out of his league he ended up surprising them all. After a few years of attending Holy Cross he ended up transferring to Notre Dame with the grades he needed to get in! He also played football for them and dressed out for one of the games! That was all he needed. He was just happy to even be in that one football game.

The moral of the story is, don't give up on your dreams when others do. If you feel called by God to do something, then do it! Right now I feel called to pursue my master's degree after I graduate college next year. I know that I need to look into it now because it is so competitive. I'm also really looking forward to attending a Catholic university because right now I do not. I miss the fellowship of other Catholics around me on a daily basis. So, whatever it may be, I am willing to accept God's Will because I know He knows best.

Maybe you still don't know what your lifelong dream is. That's okay. If this is the case just go to God and ask Him. Don't worry. It might take a while but if you trust Him I promise that He will lead you to the right goal in life. Remember, He loves you so much and wants the best out of life for you! Also, you might want to check out some really good books by Matthew Kelly. He offers great advice about passion, purpose, following your dreams, and how to become the best version of yourself. Here is a video I found from one of his conferences called "What's Your Dream?" Enjoy!!

Praying that God will make your dreams a reality! (And please pray for me too, if you can. Thank you so much!) God bless! :)

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.

Prayer of the Rosary

"But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." - Luke 2:19

Hello dear friends in Christ! Today I wanted to let you know that I posted some videos on YouTube so you can have the opportunity to pray the rosary with me! The rosary is such a wonderful prayer that really helps you to mediate on the life of Jesus through the eyes of Mary, His holy mother. It is more then just repeating a set of "Hail Mary" prayers over and over again. It is a way to reflect on scripture and translate that into our own lives.

In the prayer of the rosary Mary intercedes on your behalf before the throne of God with your petitions. By praying this prayer you are given special graces in your life. The power of heaven will come upon you. It will strengthen you to become more holy and to grow in faith day by day. The rosary helps to lead you away from sin and brings you closer to God. Bishop Patrick Boyle once said, "No one can live continually in sin and continue to say the Rosary. Either he will give up the sin or he will give up the Rosary." With this amazing prayer it is as if Mary, the mother of God, walks you through her Son's life, taking you by the hand, to meet God Himself.

How wonderful is that!? I can personally attest to the amazing graces bestowed on our family through the power of the rosary. It can work miracles! If more people knew the true power of the rosary they would never want to stop praying it. Sometimes other Christians do not understand the rosary and its meaning. They might think we worship Mary, as Catholics, but that is not true. That is so far from the truth it almost seems laughable.

We, as Catholics, love Mary... just like you love your own mother. We go to her in prayer to ask for her help and intercession with our own intentions. Because she is holy, pure, divine, immaculate, and sinless she would never ask anything of God that would not please Him. Also, as in the Ten Commandments, it says to honor your father and mother. Jesus is Mary's Son. Although Jesus is God and is above Mary in that sense He still gives her the respect of a mother, like we all should. For instance, at the Wedding Feast at Cana Jesus changed the water into wine per Mary's request. It is very similar to asking your own mother to ask your dad to do something for you. You do this because you know he is more likely to do so if it comes from her then from you. So wouldn't you think that by asking Mary to ask Jesus to answer our prayers it would be so much more powerful!? ...Because it is! Going to Jesus/God/the Holy Spirit directly is always good too. And we should! Don't get me wrong... it is not a replacement for that. This is just a very formal prayer that helps you to reflect on the life of Jesus with Mary as your guide. As St. Louis de Montfort said, "When the Holy Rosary is said well, it gives Jesus and Mary more glory and is more meritorious than any other prayer." By praying the rosary you are given so many blessings and graces in this life. It is another great way to pray and it is sssooooo very powerful!

If you have more questions about the rosary go to this website: http://www.catholicbible101.com/therosary.htm 

My YouTube channel is @pray4peace4ever. If you would like to pray a rosary with me go to my playlist here: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEC07A54CE7147B8E  You can even chose what mystery you would like to pray with me -- Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, or Glorious. 

"Never will anyone who says his Rosary every day be led astray. This is a statement that I would gladly sign with my blood." - St. Louis de Montfort

Heaven Is For Real: Out Of This World — Literally!

"Jesus said, 'Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these'." - Matthew 19:14

Yesterday I finished reading the book Heaven is For Real. This book is amazing! I highly recommend it. It is a about a little boy's remarkable true story of his trip to heaven and back. Colton, the little boy, became extremely ill during a family trip. His parents, Todd and Sonja, rushed him to their local hospital on the way home. I do not want to give too much away but, as you already know by the title of the book, Colton had a near death experience at a very young age.

Little Colton gives detailed accounts of his trip to heaven in bits and pieces over the course of several years. He remembers almost everything, even to this day. But as a child it was probably harder for him to describe certain things. So as he grew up he was able to share more and more things with his parents about his amazing encounter with Jesus and other holy people. He even got to meet deceased family members that he never met on earth before.

I literally grabbed this book and could not put it down! I read most of it in the course of a day. Even though it is not a Catholic book it is still a very good Christian book. Todd, the father, is a pastor of a small church in Imperial, Nebraska. He writes very well and can relate a lot of the events to scripture passages from the Bible. If you haven't read this book go get it now! I'm telling you, you won't be disappointed. It is a very easy read for teens and adults. It definitely illustrates the power of God in an incredible way!

Also, if you are looking for other great Catholic/Christian books I recommend No Turning Back: A Witness to Mercy by Father Donald Calloway, How to Find Your Soulmate Without Losing Your Soul by Jason and Crystalina Evert, Queen of the Cosmos and The Visions of the Children by Janice Connell, and many more by the authors Matthew Kelly and Scott Hahn. All of these books will open your eyes to a new light in faith. But most importantly, as Colton describes with his testimony, God wants us to know that heaven is for real...and that is what we need to strive for. I hope this book and the others I suggested will help you on your spiritual journey. Take care and God bless!

God Bless America

"Jesus answered, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world'." - John 18:36

Hello dear friends in Christ! Today is the fourth of July. Happy Independence Day to the United States of America! It is wonderful to be a citizen of the land of the free and the brave. In this time, especially now, we as Catholics need to come together and pray for our beloved country. It is imperative. With the upcoming elections and so much going on in the world we need to humble ourselves before the throne of God and beg His mercy on us and the USA. On January 19, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI said, "It is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States come to realize the grave threats to the Church's public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural sphere." Our Catholic faith helps to inspire us all for the protection of human life and the dignity of every soul. Religious freedom in America is a gift. If we can no longer practice our own faith in our own country the common good and the American way of life will be in jeopardy.

This past Friday I went to a huge Mass in our diocese to pray for our country called "Fortnight for Freedom." Bishop Robert Lynch came to our local parish to celebrate the Mass and gave a wonderful homily explaining the dire situation we are currently facing. Even though we are praying that our country will open up to God's Holy Will we also need to be aware that it might not. If this is the case, if America does not have a change of heart, we must take the road less traveled by and continue to stand by God. We need to remember, like Jesus, our home of eternity is not here and not of this world. Ask yourself, am I willing to fight for what is right? Like true servants of Christ we need to flock to Him and take on the battle. You can see throughout history how many saints have suffered martyrdom for the Father in Heaven. Are we, as a country, willing to go that route if necessary? Would you lay down your life for your God? Jesus, who loves us so passionately, died on the cross for us. Could we possibly die for Him as well?

Needless to say, we need to fervently pray that our country will have a change of heart and stand by the Constitution, one nation under God. I certainly believe that America has the ability to change, for the better. But like I said, if it does not, for some reason, we need to pray to God for the strength to endure whatever comes. We need to ask Him for the grace to bare the unbearable and live life in America without fear.

One quote Bishop Lynch shared with us at Mass is from Archbishop Thomas Wenski. He said, "As Catholics, we help people not because they are Catholic, but because we are Catholic." Let us live that message and strive to help America through our prayers and sacrifices so we can become a holy nation.

If you would like to visit the Diocese of St. Petersburg website for the "Fortnight for Freedom" click here. If you would like to view Bishop Lynch's blog post click here. You can also download the PDF version of the Litany for Liberty and pray together with friends and family for America. God bless you on this July 4th and God bless America!!!