Be Satisfied With Me

"Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you." – Psalm 63:3

Happy St. Valentine's Day!!! ❤ Today is the feast day of a wonderful saint who was a priest and martyr for the faith. St. Valentine is the patron saint of love, couples, young people and happy marriages. For many many years now, people have been exchanging Valentine cards to express their love and affection for one another. This goes back to a legend of St. Valentine. While he was in jail, on the eve of his death, he wrote a farewell note to the jailer's daughter and signed it "From your Valentine."

Although this day is meant to commemorate a great saint, it has become commercialized to the extreme.  Around the end of January you can't go into a store without seeing hearts, balloons, and dazzling cards with red and pink sparkles. However, these materialistic goods can be used as a kind gesture from the heart if given in moderation and for sentimental value. I personally love giving and receiving Valentine cards or eating Valentine cookies with friends and family. It's a time to show how much you truly care about those you love and hold close to your heart.

If you have a spouse or a special someone to share the day with it can be a lot more enjoyable! Maybe the two of you have a date planned for the evening or an outing with a group of friends. If you're a Catholic couple, maybe you'll spend it in Adoration with Jesus. Or maybe you'll stay at home and watch a fun and uplifting romantic comedy together. Whatever it may be, it is always nice to be with the one you love.

That being said, I do feel for all of the single folks out there. Not having a Valentine on Valentine's Day can be tough; especially when you see lots of other couples walking around, holding hands, and staring into each other's eyes. Everybody wants to be loved—and it's okay to feel this way. But it's not okay to dwell on it so much that it brings your spirits down. Remember, moping is not hoping.

One of my friends that I talked to last night emailed me a beautiful prayer today. It is a prayer written by St. Anthony of Padua and it's perfect for singles on Valentine's Day. After reflecting on this prayer, Be Satisfied with Me, I feel as though Jesus is asking for our trust and complete surrender as Catholic singles in waiting. He wants us to fall totally and completely in love with Him first before we meet the right "one." Although I know my greatest love is my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, there is a certain plan He has for me that only He knows. He has a plan for all of us! What we need to do is pour out our love for Jesus and then things will just fall into place according to His great plan. The more we plan on our own the more we could possibly be getting in the way of His bigger and better plan for us.

So whether you are single, married, divorced, or widowed let us give all of our fears to Jesus and have Him enlighten us with His hope and love. Let us be satisfied with Him and know that all things happen in His own good time.

Notre Dame Basilica Wedding

Be Satisfied With Me by St. Anthony of Padua

Everyone longs to give themselves completely to someone,
To have a deep soul relationship with another,
To be loved thoroughly and exclusively.

But to a Christian, God says, "No, not until you are satisfied,
Fulfilled and content with being loved by Me alone,
With giving yourself totally and unreservedly to Me.
With having an intensely personal and unique relationship with Me alone.

Discovering that only in Me is your satisfaction to be found,
Will you be capable of the perfect human relationship,
That I have planned for you.
You will never be united to another
Until you are united with Me.
Exclusive of anyone or anything else.
Exclusive of any other desires or longings.
I want you to stop planning, to stop wishing, and allow Me to give you
The most thrilling plan existing... one you cannot imagine.
I want you to have the best.
Please allow Me to bring it to you.

You just keep watching Me, expecting the greatest things.
Keep experiencing the satisfaction that I am.
Keep listening and learning the things that I tell you.
Just wait, that's all. Don't be anxious, don't worry.
Don't look around at things other have gotten
Or that I have given them
Don't look around at the things you think you want,
Just keep looking off and away up to Me,
Or you'll miss what I want to show you.
And then, when you're ready, I'll surprise you with a love
Far more wonderful than you could dream of.

You see, until you are ready, and until the one I have for you is ready,
I am working even at this moment
To have both of you ready at the same time.
Until you are both satisfied exclusively with Me."

Patiently Waiting For God's Will

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Hello dear friends in Christ! I'm so sorry I haven't posted anything on here for a while. I have not forgotten about this blog. My life has just been very busy! As some of you may know, my grandmother passed away in March. It was sad to see her go, but I am very happy that she is no longer suffering and is with God now. After the funeral I was completely consumed with my schoolwork, studying for finals, work, my friends (and their drama plus my own drama lol), family, and life. It has been very hectic, but I'm pleased that summer is finally here and I can relax a bit more.

I hope everyone had a great Easter season! During this time I've been trying to seek God's Will for me and my life. It has just been so hard with so many things going on all at once. I'm just praying that God will give me the patience I need in order to seek His Will and not my own.

Let me share with you a story about my sister. It's interesting because it is so important to know that sometimes what we think is the best plan for us may not actually be. God may truly have something so much better that He wants to give us, if we let Him.

Earlier in May I was helping my sister get ready for her senior prom. She wore this beautiful navy-blue dress with high heel silver shoes. She was absolutely stunning! Her date was a very lucky man that evening. The two had a great time dancing the night away. Then it came time to announce the senior class notables. My sister told me that she was nominated to receive the "most sincere" award. It's really funny because when I was a senior I got the same award from my class and it was a complete surprise because I didn't think I was even nominated. Since she knew that I received it before she was almost a shoe-in for it this time. However, when they called the name for "most sincere" it was not her name.

At first she was disappointed, but at the same time happy for the girl who did receive it. She knew that she wasn't going to let the silly award ruin her night. She was having so much fun with her date and all her friends! Still, in the back of her mind, she was thinking about it and lost in thought. She wasn't even paying full attention when they did call her name for prom court.

One of her friends was like, "That's you!!! Go!!" Still in shock, my sister went up to receive the award of prom princess. Instead of getting a notable award and a single red rose, she received an entire bouquet of flowers and a crown. Another girl ended up being prom queen... but that was fine. She didn't care. Her class did recognize her and crowned her as prom princess! What an honor! And the crazy thing is, she didn't even knew they had a prom princess. What a surprise!

So the moral of the story is... you may think you know what you want, and you may have good reason to believe so. But in the end, God always has the best in store for you, even when you have no idea what that could be! It is important to place your trust and faith in God and completely surrender to His Holy Will.

I have really been trying to surrender recently. And I'll tell you, it is hard. It doesn't come easy. But I guarantee it will be rewarding. Whatever it may be that you are waiting for (and trust me, we are all waiting for something) ...a job, an acceptance letter to a school, an answer to an important phone call, or something much bigger -- like your future spouse -- always, always, ALWAYS make sure you go to God first. Don't let your own judgment of what you think is best get it the way of what actually is the very best! Here is a great quote from Fulton Sheen that I really liked.

"Patience is power. Patience is not an absence of action; rather it is 'timing' it waits on the right time to act, for the right principals and in the right way." 

Trust in God. Let Him bring you through the unknown, which will give you strength. It will strengthen your faith, your prayer, and your desire to seek what He truly wants to give you.