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.

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!!!

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.