Survivor of '73

Dear Brother and Sisters in Christ,

I'll start this by extending my hope and prayers that all reading this, will have had a very Merry Christmas and will be blessed with future graces to come in the New Year!

As someone born a year after Roe v. Wade was made legal, I find it necessary to tell you we are all survivors of 1973! Normally, I do not try to use this blog as a platform for political discussion and this will not be a political discussion but a moral one.

We are God's hands. feet, mouths, etc. while we are on earth, we only have one shot while we are here so let's make it worthwhile.

I know if many of us saw the true horrors of abortion on an everyday basis we would do more to help and even though we don't always see this "hidden sin" as we should the effects of it are all around us.

It's in our family members and dear friends who are searching for their soul mates, it's in those who are lonely and need a friend, it's in those who are confused and could not find love so chose to look for it wherever they were accepted. Think about this.

We don't always see the implications our choices have on us or even on the world around us. Take this as an example, think of Hitler. Think of Hitler and all the madness, kaos, and killing that went with him and his ideals. This was death and destruction the world could see and still people chose to ignore it.

In today's society, the effects of abortion are astounding! Look at the loneliness, the confusion, the heartbreak, the illnesses that haven't been cured, the addictions, the abuse. Sure you may look at me for an instant and say, here's another one blaming all of the world's problems on one little political issue.

Well, that's fine, but that's not what I'm doing. These are all symptoms of the sickness that is abortion. This is how it has attacked and destroyed society. Abortion=death. Plain and simple. Death means without life. We are "living" in a culture of death.

Now think about this, many who are for this culture of death are the same people who believe in euthanasia or mercy killing based on quality of life. Quality of life? Is this quality? Is doing whatever you choose to be moral in a culture of death quality of life? So if I choose, I can kill my mother because I do not believe her quality of life is up to par. Well call it euthanasia, abortion or the latest word you want but if you had to explain it to a five-year-old, you would have to keep it simple and tell it like it is, death! So let's do ourselves a favor and look behind the curtain of abortion and take a good look at the destruction it has caused our society. Who are we to think this way? We have made ourselves gods in our own eyes and worship ourselves as the law makers. Where has the virtue of the Fear of the Lord gone? Where has the respect gone?

We who can recognize the truth are here to enlighten the minds and hearts of others and pray, pray, and pray more! God's work is never done.

I write this with urgency not because I am self-righteous or believe my way or the highway, but because I can recognize truth.
Your hearts can all recognize truth as well, it is called your conscience. If your conscience is even in the slightest aware of an offense of God even though you do not recognize it, your conscience does and immediately looks to numbing that voice. Music, Friends, Food, Drink, Drugs, you name it and you will try to numb it. This explains part of society's addiction problem.

See the problem is we've been brain-washed to believe that certain things are okay, or are "normal". This simply is not the case. There will always be a natural law of what is right and wrong and anything outside of this we'll know, this is what makes us human. Just as we know it is not right for others to starve at night while we go to sleep with a full belly, or why some of the rich walk around haughty and never bother to give back to others. These we know are wrong or are off-kilter and society says it is okay to agree with this. However, if we think of abortion, we think it is a woman's choice. Well, as a woman, I'd like to say it is also a woman's choice to have sex or not. As with rape, even though it is not her choice, God has allowed that life to come into the world for a reason. It could be to right the wrong of it's father. You never know, we;ll never know.

Now look at abortion this way, when's the last time you thanked your best friend's mother for having him or her and not aborting them? Think of your life without them. Now think of your spouse, what if their mother never had them or chose to abort? Where would you be today? Who would you be with? Would you be the same? Whether we think about it or not our human relationships can have long-lasting effects on those around us, whether good or bad. Now go and talk with someone who is desperately looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right but instead is opting for someone of the same sex out of desperate need for companionship? Think about it!

Those of you in my generation and beyond have been robbed of spouses, friends, co-workers, doctors, priests, nuns, brothers, sisters, daughters, sons, nieces, nephews, all for the sake of choice and convenience. If someone told me that the man I was supposed to marry was aborted and I would now have to remain alone, I would have been devastated. This choice is no better and no more moral than Hitler's choice of annhilating the Jews. The only difference is we do not have concentration camps, we have clinics. We do not have bodies rotting in the sun, we have bodies rotting in our clinics, trash, and hospitals. There is more convenience because we cannot smell it, we cannot see it, and we do not want to know about it! When we actually see the pictures of an aborted baby we are naturally disgusted and ashamed but still we do nothing! All I ask is you do your part and pray for the aborted babies and those in danger of being aborted and their mothers. Pray that they are given the peace of heart and mind that God wants this child in the world for a reason and it is not their choice to play god and say no. We all have the right to say no, but this does not mean it is the right thing to do.

So for all those who are struggling to find love, friendship, companionship, etc. Tell them, I also am a Survivor of '73 and you and yours are in my prayers.

Last Week of Advent...

Rose, I'd like to thank you personally for inspiring this! A dear friend of mine, Rose, told me about a Poem she read about Our Lady, and the last line simply said: Will You Prepare a Place for Her?

This really got me thinking the last few weeks. I've always tried to prepare a place in my heart as a Tabernacle for Our Lord, but rarely do I contemplate a place for Our Lady, especially as an expectant Mother waiting for the Messiah to be born.

I've really been thinking how can I help our Lady and prepare a place for her before she gives birth? Think about the Inn Keeper not being able to give Joseph and Mary a room but still providing them with the shelter of a stable. And even though it was a stable, Mary and Joseph humbly accepted this as the perfectly warm and dry place to give birth to the Messiah.

So I realized if the Lord can humble Himself to become flesh in a dirty, smelly, stable, then I should not be so proud to think that the humble crumbling Tabernacle that I've prepared for Him in my heart would not be satisfactory for Him and Our Lady.

It's not the material of the Tabernacle or Stable or Room, but the Love in which the place for Our Lady and Our Lord was prepared.

So my Dear Mother and Precious Christ Child, I offer you the cold, dark, lukewarm and warm places of my heart out of love for You and do with them whatever You see fit! Make them into something beautiful to lay before your throne! Glory to God in the Highest and Peace to His people on Earth!

God Love You All!

~Erin

If I could have my Heaven today...

If I could have my Heaven today, I would spend today in silence in Awe of God's creatures.

If I did not have my daily duties to accomplish, I would help and pray for those that need it.

If I weren't so tired, I could get more done for our Lord!

If I were smarter, I could think up new ways to spread God's love and mercy!


But since I do have daily duties to fulfill, and I am tired, and I am not smarter, I guess You will have to take over for me today

God! God says: "You should always let Me lead you, for only I know if tomorrow's duties exist or not. Give until it hurts, work

until your hands bleed, for you are My hands on earth, I speak through your heart and mouth, never doubt My inspirations, for

if they are not from Me, no fruit will they bear. Prepare a place in your heart for me where only I will dwell, everything else

does not matter for it passes away with time and wind. I am the only "I am" constant and secure, place all your trust in Me and

you will be as immovable rocks on the shore. Do not put off for tomorrow what you can do today, for tomorrow will happen

but only I know where you will spend your day and night. The time draws nearer every day when I will ask you: Did you see Me

in the crowd? Did you see Me in your struggles, in your friends, in your enemies? Did you feed me, give me drink, clothe me,

shelter me? Did you prepare a place for My Mother? All of these questions and more will be asked of you, do not waste time on

things that do not matter, I have your best interest at heart, even more so than yourself. Ask Me for an increase of virtues,

and I shall grant it, but you must Ask! Now go, and do My Will!"

May God bless and protect us all during this Advent and Christmas Season! Prepare a place for Our Lady and Our Lord! Will

your place be cold, lukewarm, or on fire for His Love? It is our choice!


God love you all!

Erin

Be Not Afraid...Again!

The Lord our Father loves each and every one of us very much! Even if we stray from Him, He wants us to come running back to Him with open arms, hearts, and minds. Those around us may push and spit on us, but what does it matter when Christ is for us? Try to shift the focus from them, to yourself, and then from "me to He". Keeping our eyes focused on God is the only way to make it and persevere until the end. For it does no good to reach the prize if it is thrown away at the last minute! We must persevere until the end! Remember, the road less travelled will be narrow and rocky and maybe not as pretty, but the destination is so much sweeter, Paradise!

It can be compared to being up very high and not looking down, if we look down we become scared. So it is the same in the spiritual life and not dwelling on hurts or injuries caused by others, feel the pain, forgive, and move on. Sometimes the first step in forgiving may be wanting to forgive. The actual forgiveness may come later, but stay with our Lord, our Father, our Lover, our Friend. He knows what will happen to you everyday of your life, and He's still interested to see what happens as if He's watching you for the first time! How awesome!

Pray, Pray, Pray!

Prayer is Hand to Hand combat!

"The best way to fight the devil is by staying close to Christ in Prayer."
"The weapons of our warfare are not of this world, but mighty through God."
2 Col 10:4

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, Have Mercy on us and on the Whole World!

Jesus, Mary, we love You, Save Souls!

Go with Christ,

Erin

St. Therese, God, and our relationship with Him...

Taken from "Archbishop Fulton Sheen's St. Therese:A treasured love story. Ch. 7, St. Therese, God, and our relationship with Him"




Archbisop Fulton Sheen speaking to a crowd in Ireland:

"My Dear Friends, in this meditation I am going to try to describe to you what it means to be a Christian and what it means to be a saint.


First of all, how did Christ come to be on this earth? Well, one day an angel came out from the great white throne of light and came down to a virgin kneeling in prayer and said to her, "Will you give God a human nature?" When she discovered that she was not to lose her virginity to give God a human nature, she agreed. So God then took from this woman a human nature through which He taught us , He governed us, and He sanctified us.

One day, maybe while we were yet infants, we were called by God and asked, "Will you give Me your human nature?" God wishes to continue the Incarnation. As Mary gave Him a human nature, He continues His Incarnation by us giving Him a human nature. Now this had to happen too to the Little Flower. From her earliest memories, she always wanted to be God's. So she always offered to Him her human nature. Now, not every one of us gives our human nature to God in the same way. She gave hers completely and totally.

Let me give you an example of a pencil. A pencil is very supple and flexible in my hand. If I want the pencil to write the word "God" it will write the word "God". It's totally subservient and obedient to my will.

Suppose, however, this pencil had a will of its own. When I wanted to write the word "God", it might write the word "dog". I couldn't do anything with it. And why? Because the pencil would not be completely obedient to my person. And so, not every one of us gives our human nature to God in such a way that He can use it totally and completely. We hold back!

Now suppose that a number of worldly people read this sermon up to this point. Suppose they saw a picture of this young girl who dies at 24 years of age and are struck by- well, certainly- the purity of her expression and a beauty to which one cannot be totally indifferent. What would the worldly person say about anyone giving oneself so completely to Christ that she writes out a wedding invitation?

They would say it's a waste! Think of the good she could have done in the world! Wouldn't she have been a wonderful wife?! Maybe she could have done social work!

That would have been their argument. But remember that, in the divine order, some lives have to be wasted, wasted from the worldly point of view.

Take, for example, Mary of Bethany. Our Lord was seated at the table in the house of Simon the leper and Pharisee for a banquet to celebrate Jesus' raising her brother Lazarus from the dead. Her sister Martha served the meal. Mary now enters with a jar of costly perfume made from genuine aromatic nard.

She stand over the feet of our Lord. She breaks the vessel of precious ointment. It was a custom very often among Jews to break a vessel of precious ointment over a dead body and then through the remains of glass into the coffin with the body. Well, she breaks this vessel of precious over the feet of our Lord, Jesus, and Judas who was there, sats, "Why all this waste? It could have been sold for 300 denarrii and given to the poor."

Our Lord immediately came to the defense of that waste, saying, "Leave her alone." And because Our Lord was within 10 days of the crucifixion, he added, "She done it for My burial."

In other words, there are certain things in life that we waste; we are seemingly prodigal about them. The Little Flower was that way about her own life, just as this pious woman, Mary, was prodigal about giving the precious perfume.

You see, gold that is hoarded makes one a miser. Knowledge that is selfishly possessed makes one proud. Flesh that is too cared for turns into lust. It is the things that are spent, wasted for God's sake that become remembered through history.

Now I often go out for a walk and I will say to the good Lord, "All right, now use me." Well, He does use me, and it costs me a lot of money generally, but He uses me. I'll run into people who need it badly or someone who is sick. But we have to offer ourselves as pencils. Let Him write poetry. Let Him write prose. Let Him scribble. What difference does it make? This is happiness!


Thank you Servant of God Fulton Sheen for your God-given wisdom!

Now, will you offer yourself as a pencil for our Lord today? Let Him use you as He sees fit!
God bless and protect you!
~Erin

On Bearing with the Defects of Others...

Taken from : The Imitation of Christ , Book 1, Chapter 16, pg. 36-38


There will always be defects in ourselves or others in which we cannot correct. These we must simply tolerate until God in His goodness sees fit to change things. After all, this may be the best possible way to prove our patience, without which our good qualities are not worth much.

Nevertheless, you must pray earnestly that God in His mercy will help you to bear these impediments with patience.

2. If once or twice you have warned someone and that person does not comply, do not contend further with such a one, but leave all in the hands of God, that His will be done and that He be glorified in all His servants, for He knows well how to turn evil into good.

Learn how to be patient in enduring the faults of others, remembering that you yourself have many which others have put up with. If you cannot make yourself be what you would like, how can you expect others to be as you would like? We wish to see perfection in others, but do not correct our own faults.

3.We want to have others strictly reprimanded for their offenses, but we will not be reprimanded ourselves. We are inclined to think the other person has too much liberty, we ourselves will not put up with any restraint. There must be rules for everyone else, but we must be given free rein. It is seldom that we consider our neighbor equally with ourselves.

If everyone was perfect, what would we have to endure for the love of God?

4. God wills us to learn to bear one another's burdens. No one is without faults, no one without a cross, no one self-sufficient and no one wise enough all alone. Therefore, we must support, comfort and assist one another, instructing and admonishing one another in all charity.

Adversity is the best test of virtue. The occasions of sin do not weaken anyone; on the contrary, they show the person's true worth.


Some advice from St. Therese:

To remain little is to recognize our nothingness. To expect everything from the good God and not to be too much afflicted about our faults, for little children
fall often but are too small to hurt themselves.

Christ's Peace be with you!
~Erin

Carrying your Cross, by Mother Luisita

A Letter From Mother Luisita About
Carrying Your Cross


My dear child,

In this life we shouldn't live without a cross. It is true that wherever we go we will find the cross. And woe to us if it were not so. God our Lord sends us whatever sufferings are beneficial to us so that we may be purified and practice virtue. How could we practice patience if the opportunity to be patient never presented itself? And it is the same with the other virtues. How can we enrich our souls if we never practice any virtue? According to the love that God has for us and the place He's destined in heaven for us, He provides us with the means to beautify our souls. Oh, my child, let us love the cross! Let's embrace it and see it as the proof of the love of a crucified God.

Our Lord Himself will be your reward. You will see what a prize He has prepared for you in exchange for your efforts in your work and for so many things that one suffers in this world. Wherever we are, we find Calvary and we learn how hard it is to go up that hill, but after we reach the summit, we possess heaven.

Forward, my child. Suffer with joy whatever the good Lord sends you. That's a very good thing to do. But don't suffer and complain. No. Not that. God our Lord loves you very much and awaits your little victories with affection. Don't expect to acquire sanctity in any other way than by conquering yourself and by doing little things which will enable your soul to attain the necessary strength to endure greater troubles.

It doesn't matter if we are trampled upon, if it becomes a means of raising ourselves up closer to God, and once elevated to God, may we remain that way. We have to be strong and valiant with ourselves and not let suffering get the best of us. All pain is transitory, and as Our Holy Mother Saint Teresa tells us, any pain that is not eternal, is no pain at all.

Sometimes it seems as if the crosses are falling from every angle and, indeed, life can seem a long martyrdom. It's not a matter of dying. Rather, it is a matter of living with contradictions and difficulties. Sometimes heaven itself will turn into bronze, but let nothing disturb you and nothing frighten you.

We grieve when Divine Providence uses the hammer and chisel to polish our souls, turning them into precious stones worthy to enter the building of the heavenly Jerusalem. Suffer, then, and wait. Pray and expect. Whenever we feel tired or exhausted, without strength and longing for a moment of rest...it is a great consolation to be able to say, My troubles resemble those of my Savior.

My child, don't worry. Rather, thank God infinitely for choosing you to follow Him in this manner. Let's praise Him in everything because all that happens is for our own good. Try to fulfill your duties the best way you can and do them for God alone.

If you examine the lives of the saints, you'll discover that there is no way to heaven except the road covered with thorns. At every step they pinch us and make us bleed. Let us bless our good God in every circumstance in our lives, and, smiling, let us look up toward heaven.

- Mother Luisita


Mother Luisita was declared Venerable by Pope John Paul II and founded the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles during the religious persecution in Mexico.

The Letter

Dear friend,

How are you? I just had to send a note to tell you how much I care about you.

I saw you yesterday as you were talking with your friends. I waited all day hoping you would want to talk with me too.

I gave you a sunset to close your day and a cool breeze to rest you and I waited. You never came. It hurt me! But still I love you

because I am your friend.

I saw you sleeping last night and longed to touch your brow so I spilled moonlight upon your face. Again I waited, and wanted to

rush down so we could talk. I have so many gifts for you. You awoke and rushed off to work. My tears were in the rain.

If you would only listen to me! I love you! I try to tell you in the blue skies and the quiet green grass. I whisper it in the leaves on

the trees and breathe it in colors of flowers, shout it to you in mountain streams, give the birds love songs to sing. I clothe you

with sunshine and perfume the air the nature scents. My love for you is deeper than the oceans, and bigger than the biggest

need in your heart!

Ask Me! Talk to me! Please don't forget me! I have so much to share with you! I won't hassle you any further. It is your decision.

I have chosen you and I still wait.

I love you. Your friend,
Jesus

Taken from a prayer card called *The Letter

On Putting Our Trust in God When Evil Words are Spoken against us...

Taken from the Imitation of Christ;Book 3;Ch.46:


Christ: My child, stand firm and trust in Me. What are words but only wind? They fly through the air but hurt not a stone on the ground.

If you are innocent, then you will gladly suffer such words for the love of God. If, on the other hand, you are guilty, determine willingly to make amends. It is a small matter for you to put up with a few words uttered in haste when you are yet unable to bear hard blows.

It is because you are still worldly and are eager to please others that you take such little things to heart. When you resent being corrected for your faults and seek shelter in excuses, it is because you are afraid of being despised. Search your soul carefully and you will discover that the world is still strong in you, as well as that impossible desire to please others.

For when you dread to be abased and humiliated for faults, it is clear that you are not truly humble, nor dead to the world, nor is the world crucified to you. Just listen to My word and you will not mind if ten thousand people speak against you.

Even if all the evils which the worst human malice can invent, were said against you, what harm can they possibly do to you if you pay no attention to them? They cannot take so much as one hair from your head.

But if you do not keep your eyes fixed on God, nor keep Him in your heart, then you will be easily upset by the slightest rebuke. Those who trust in Me and rely not on their own judgement will fear no human. For I am the Judge and the Discerner of all secrets.

I know how everything is done and I know both the one who inflicts the injury and the one whom it affects. Nothing happens without My permission and the power so to act, that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed(Luke 2:35).

I will judge both the guilty and the innocent but I will test them both beforehand.

Human judgement is often erroneous. My judgement is true; it shall stand and will never be overthrown. To many it remains hidden; and only to a few is it made manifest;yet it never errs nor can it err, though to the universe it may appear wrong.
So when you need to make a decision, always come to Me and do not rely on your own judgement.

Righteous persons are never dismayed by anything I permit to happen to them. Although they be wrongly accused it will not worry them much;niether will they be overjoyed if they be reasonably acquitted. They know that I am the searcher of all hearts.(Rev 2:23), Who judge not according to outward appearances nor by the way things look to humans, but by what I esteem praiseworthy.


I Will Not Remember

When Heaven Stands before me
And I am home at last,
I will not remember
The worries of the past;
I will not be aware of all
The trials of this life,
The many times I shed some tears,
The trouble and the strife,
For I will have before me
All the glories spread above.
The meaning of it all will be
Quite softened by His love.

Bonnie L. Nelson


May God bless, reward, and have mercy on us all!

The Advantage of not having everything our own way...

Taken from The Imitation of Christ:

It is good that everything is not to our own liking; for adversity makes people look into their hearts in order to realize that they are exiles and must not put their hope in any worldly thing.

It is good for us to run into opposition and have others think badly of us, even when our intentions are good. For these things help to humble us and rid us of pride. Then we seek God more earnestly, Who alone knows our inner most self, when outwardly we are ignored and discredited by others.

Therefore people should rely so entirely on God that they have no need for human consolations when adversity comes. When people of good disposition are afflicted or tempted or distracted by evil thoughts, then they understand the need they have of God and that without Him they can do nothing.

Then too they grieve, while they sigh and pray because of the miseries they endure. They grow weary of this life and long for death in order to be with Christ their Lord. It will also be clear to them that there is neither perfect peace or security in this world.

From St. Therese:

"On each fresh occasion of combat when the devil desires to challenge me, I conduct myself valiantly, knowing that to fight a duel is an unworthy act. I turn my back on the adversary without ever looking him in the face. Then I am ready to run to Jesus and tell Him I am ready to shed every drop of blood in testimony of my belief that there is a heaven."

Failure is not Fatal and Success is not Final...

God has graciously breathed new life into my spiritual life! Praised be God in all and for all! And now I can see and appreciate the dryness and valleys of my life with greater awe for our Lord! My retreat was wonderous and miraculous all in one and no words will ever describe it! I can only leave you with this: Failure is not Fatal;and Success is not Final.

In other words, we all fall and we all succeed in one thing or another but we and the world are ever-changing. The only Constant in life is God and His love for us. So this is why we all must continue to keep our eyes, hearts, souls, and love fixed on the Eternal. We must keep moving and not remain idle where our enemies may find us sleeping! In the words of Fr. Thomas Dubay, "We must not follow the Commanments to merely become eligible for heaven, but to excel on our way to heaven and in Union with God." What does this mean? It means I must not just go through the motions, but to really seek heaven as someone may seek for a lost treasure! This is the whole meaning and extent of our lives; to come back into full union and communion with our Creator! To long to be alone and sit in silence with our beloved and listen to the inner most secrets of His heart. This is love and longing as God wants us! Thank you Jesus for all You give us and all You take away! Now take my will and make it yours, forevermore my Lord! Only You know the depths of my heart and my mind, my strengths, my weaknesses are all for Your Glory! Mold them into what you made me to be, a Saint to Praise You in heaven!

Farewell for a few days...

Hello All~

If anyone reads this post, I'll be leaving for retreat tomorrow just for the weekend.
Please pray for me as I will be praying for all of you and your intentions.
May God continue to bless us all and our Country.

Amen.

To thank, to pray, and to persevere...

Today I'd like to thank you Lord for the pain I feel today.
I'd also like to thank you Lord for the joy I feel in pain.
It's strange for me to say this, because I always run from pain.
But today dear Lord, you allowed the light to penetrate my soul if only for an instance!
What relief to know it is still there!
The darkness is back, but to know that only a second of your light can give me the courage and strength to fight on!
You are so good Lord! You truly know our limits! And St. Teresa of Avila was so correct in saying:"From moment to moment, one can bear much"
Oh what words of truth! I never realized their truth until now!
Because in my ignorance I forgot that we truly are in God's hands and He is in control! The only thing we control are our choices!

So help me precious Angel, my Guardian so dear to make the blessed choices Christ wishes me to make! Help me make them for nothing but love of Him alone! How precious He is to me, and to know that He really does see the pain, the darkness and the lonliness we endure, they are all for a greater purpose, for this we can be sure!

So Lord, take my pain and comfort all those who are sick.
Take my darkness, and give light to those who need it.
Take my everything Lord and do with it what You will!
My trust in you is ever present even in my doubts!
So take it dear Lord and make it something better
Something that is worthy to lay at Your holy feet.
For I know I could never be a great saint,
but I want to please You as much as I was made to!
Take my heart Lord and make it whole in Your love
in Your suffering, in Your passion, in Your Eucharist,
in all your people.
Help us all to make each corner of our own world a better place for having been there.
And never let us brush aside any inspirations you may give us!
For all this I ask Lord,
and thank You as if I've already received.
I love You Lord, help me to persevere to the end!

Spiritually, I resemble a Prune!

Okay God,

What does this mean? I struggle to do the very smallest thing out of love for You! Does this mean my love is so little that I cannot feel it anymore? I do not feel love anymore but I choose to love out of love for You and because it is the right thing to do! Why such dryness Lord? I do not want Consolations but ask to feel a little of the burning love I once felt!

Where has it gone? Why is it gone? Have I done something wrong? Speak for your servant listens Lord! Come back into my heart Lord! I welcome You as if You are already there resting in my heart! I will continue to search for you Lord! Never leave my side!

Oct. 1st, St. Therese's Feast Day! Our Little Flower!

MOTTO OF THE LITTLE FLOWER

From St. John of the Cross

“Love is repaid by Love alone”


A Poem for St. Therese

God's little flower so beautiful and bright!
You were a feast for God's eyes at first sunlight
For you bloomed were God planted you
This proved that your roots were strong and true
For little flowers are just as important as the rose
For these gain humility much faster
And Heaven's ladder is open for the humble first
For the first must be the last and only little ones may pass
Gold molded you in the school of love and suffering
The two together could never be apart
For if one is missing
there truly is no love in the heart
God planted your seed with love
And you bloomed when suffering was sent from above
You became too brilliant to stay in the earth
So that's when God plucked you
And now you hold your place on His hearth.
Where He can gaze upon you each day
And you enjoy watching Your Master
plant new seedlings each day!

Happy Feast Day St. Therese! Pray for us!

The Sweet Joy of Suffering and Love!

It seems strange but the more little crosses I bear throughout the day, the more I realize just how much our Lord is there to help us if only we stop and ask! How many times do we try to take things on ourselves!? How can anyone expect to control the universe around them nevertheless their own life?

Surrender everything to our Lord and let Him turn those thorns into roses. The beauty and fragrance of the rose cannot be enjoyed without the ugliness and sting of the thorn. The more one suffers well the more one will thank our Lord for the opportunities to suffer well!

Only in this way will our hearts be able to make more room to love our Lord! Think about other instances of suffering and love. The pain and suffering a mother feels bringing her child into the world, The pain and torture our Lord went through on the cross, The pain and heartache marriages can cause, The pain of suffering our Lord sends, but in the end the Love always grows!

It's as if pain,suffering and love form a template for a spiritual masterpiece! How good our God is!

I also want to publicly thank my dear Patron, St. Padre Pio for his wonderful intercession as always and to ask for his perpetual prayers for us all!
Also, Happy Feast Day to St.Therese tomorrow, please pray for us! You are my bookends in this life as is my Guardian Angel towards my Lord! Never cease praying for us!

The Holy Souls...

Let us not forget our dear brothers and sisters in Purgatory.
I feel the urgent need to implore all of your prayers for their behalf!
For as we suffer on this earth, we at least are relieved a little of it during our sleep or slumber.
In the purgative fires of Purgatory, there is no rest, no moment when these poor holy souls are relieved of their suffering!
Cease not in your prayers! For how many more angels you will have praying for you and your family in heaven when they are released into their heavenly eternity!

Praise God, for the dressing room of Purgatory! For without it we would surely all be lost!

So let us all offer our earthly sufferings for those dear Holy Souls, and ask our dear Lord to live our Purgatory on earth! What difference would it make to suffer our entire lives in order to live in peace forever during our eternity! I would offer a thousand lives of earthly suffering for one eternal life filled with heavenly peace!

Be careful in not looking for suffering, because God will send us the crosses as only He sees fit! Praise our Lord whether in feast or in famine-only in this way will we be able to recognize Christ always walking beside us! For in order to follow, you must allow Him to lead the way!

I have learned in the school of suffering to thank and praise God for all my little sufferings and temptations. For how could I grow in my spiritual life without the cross of suffering?

Thank you Jesus for everything You give and take away! Please use our suffering for the conversion of sinners, the release of the holy souls in Purgatory, and the end of Abortion!

Mary, Mother most pure, pray for us always!
Ask Your Son to have Mercy on us all, and offer us as His instruments on this earthly pilgrimage!
St. Joseph, pray for us!
St. Rita, pray for us!
St. Padre Pio, pray for us!
St. Therese, pray for us!
St. Francis of Assisi, pray for us!
St. John of the Cross, pray for us!
St. Teresa of Avila, Pray for us!
All holy Angels and Saints, pray for us!

Grace comes knocking, Self Pity bars the door.

The signature of the Holy Spirit,is peace, deep interior peace.

PRAYERS FOR SOULS IN PURGATORY
There are more souls released from purgatory during the Consecration of the Mass than at any time. Christmas is the day of the year when most souls are delivered; then feast days of Our Lord, Our Lady and great saints. Souls receive much grace from prayers offered for them on their birthdays, day of baptism, anniversary of death.
The more we work for Poor Souls on earth the more others will pray for us, the more merciful will Christ be with us when were in purgatory.
Our Lady asked that we pray very much for the poor souls; that we pray:
5 I believe in God . . .

1 Hail Holy Queen . . .

1 Our Father . . .

1 Hail Mary . . .

1 Glory be to the Father . . .

1 Requiem (Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon them and may they rest in peace. Amen!)

PRAYER OF ST. GERTRUDE THE GREAT
A Prayer which would release 1,000 souls from Purgatory each time it is said.
Our Lord told St. Gertrude the GREAT that the following prayer would release 1,000 souls from Purgatory each time it is said.
Recommendations: Pray it at least twice, to at least release twice as many souls! After the prayer, ask the Holy Souls to pray for your intentions.

"Eternal Father, I offer thee the most precious blood of thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory. -Amen"

Our Lady said that if we pray the prayers "we'll deliver so many souls, so many souls!"
"The Holy wounds are the treasure of treasures for the souls in Purgatory."
BIBLE - 2 Machabees, Chapter 12. Verse 46:"it is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead,that they may be loosed from sins."
An indulgence, applicable ONLY to the Souls in Purgatory, is granted when the faithful devoutly visit a cemetery and pray for the departed.



Our Lord revealed to Saint Bridget:

The Seven our Fathers and Hail Marys In honor of His Holy wounds and His precious blood

"Know that I will grant the following five graces to those who recite every day for twelve years (or until their death, should they die before):

1. They will avoid Purgatory.
2. They will be numbered amongst the martyrs, as though they had shed their blood for the faith.
3. I will maintain the souls of three of their children (or relatives) in a state of santifying grace.
4. The souls of their relatives, up to four generations, will avoid Hell.
5. They will know the date of their death one month in advance.

Pope Innocent X confirmed this revelation and added that those who practice this devotion will liberate a soul from Purgatory on Good Fridays. How many graces can we thus obtain by accepting to dedicate 10 minutes each day to the Holy Wounds of our Lord...

I Adore Him!

My heart sings praises to my Lord!
For We have been saved by His cross!
We should not be sad or gloomy for we have been saved by His Cross!
Our crosses are but splinters in the wind compared to the cross of salvation!
All pain and suffering is transitory
Our Lord is changeless, He is the Rock and true North of our souls
So what else should matter?
Hunger? Thirst? Pain? Lonliness? No Never!
If only we would learn to rest in our Lord's arms as we should
He could truly take care of us as He sees fit!
For we are always like a dear stuck in a trap struggling to get out
and our Lord only asks for us to "Be still and know that I am God"!
It is only in this stillness and trust that He can truly work in our lives!
So what should we fear? Ask Him daily to rest in your heart and that He make it a sactuary worthy of His head to lay.
Oh if only others knew the peace and greatness of our Lord! There would be no hate in this world!
I wish to please Him as a Bride wishes to please her husband or a daughter her father! But even more so! I wish to please Him and do His will as if I were the only soul on earth and His will depended on me alone! For I know that this is how He looks at every single soul on earth!
He loves us as if we were His only creation! Wow! How awesome and what responsibility! For this is truly the meaning of life! It is only to please our Lord and do His will!
For nothing else matters! It cannot get much simpler than this and perhaps this is why no one has been able to answer this timeless question! We are only here to do the work of the Lord and do His will before we are permitted to come home to Him in heaven!
For only he knows how my days are numbered and when the great day of my homecoming will be! How I look forward to this day and pray that I will see His Holy face!
His heart magnificent beyond all others and love and mercy flowing through eternity!
Thank you Jesus for my peace of heart! I pray that you grant this to all your people and that sinners may come to know this through Your love and mercy!
Bless our world Jesus, and ask the Father to have mercy on us all by sending us His Holy Spirit! For only this, will save us from damnation!

Protect your little ones, Lord.
Bless your sick ones
Comfort your dying ones,
Console your mourning ones
and give peace to your lonely ones.
Help us all to be Your hands and Your heart in our daily lives!
I adore You dear Jesus, but help me to live this!

Love is such a little word...

Thank You Jesus for all You give
My words are not enough for the
power of Your Spirit!
My heart continues to throb and burn for love of You!
What can I do Lord?
I am powerless to resist it!
I am in love with my Creator
My ever-present teacher!

To You I owe all things!
I give You my will, my love and my life!
Do with it what You will!
Take my nothingness and I trust You will make it worthy in Your eyes!
I feel the need to let You rest in my heart always
so that I may help relieve Your burden of suffering.
I know I cannot do much Lord, but I hope my love for you is but a small drop of consolation if even for a second it would take away the pain You feel over the ingratitude and blasphemies thrown at You throughout the world.
Help my little light to shine and light the wick of others, an instrument in Your hands.
Never let me leave You Lord, only You know how weak I am!
Praised be God in all the tabernacles of the world, even until the end of time!

Love,

the little heart

Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows...

In her desolation she bathes with her tears His beautiful face, His gentle breast,His side that is man's comfort, His wounded hands and His feet all red with blood.

Again and again she holds tightly to herself His breast and arms, and has eyes for nothing but His wounds. And in this state of mind she wholly melts away in the kisses of a bereaved mother.

Therefore we ask you, Mother, by these tears, by your Son's cruel death and by the blood of His wounds, plant well in our hearts the grief that afflicted yours.

To the Father and the son and the co-eternal Spirit, to the most high God in three Persons,be everlasting glory, eternal praise and honor in this and in every age.
Amen.

Dearest Mother,

Help us to unite our sufferings to yours and your Son's help and pray that we may be able to suffer well as you did under the cross. So many times we complain while we are on the cross and sometimes it's even harder to watch from under the cross. So help us dear Mary to suffer well as you and Your Son did, and help us to do this if only it is Christ's Will. Thank you Mother for all your sufferings and for giving us your son, your one and only and our One and Only.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Why do we honor the cross? It is not because it is two pieces of wood or even because of the symbol it represents. It is because it is the very essence of our existence! It is where our Most beloved shed His precious blood, sweat, and tears, for US! For US! Do you understand how Awesome that is? His, yes, saved our souls from eternal damnation! Do you know anyone else who would do that for you? Sure people say in passing yeah, I'd die for you, but would they? Would they also suffer horrendous tortures for you? I seriously doubt it! No love exists like that on earth except that that comes from our Precious Lord!

So today, instead of just fulfilling your hour in Mass, really give Thanksgiving to our Lord for all He's done for you, and recognize it! Even if you had nothing, His love should be enough! For His love will always take care of you!
If you can, recieve our Lord in the Eucharist and the Precious Blood and savor it! Thank Him for being able to recieve such a precious gift every week or everyday how ever often you go!

Ask Him to fill you with His loving fire so that you may be an instrument to light the fire of others! Burn with zeal for our Lord! How many of us actually do that and live it? I can only hope that our Lord will see how pitiful I am and take constant pity on me to give me a bigger and better heart to love Him with! Ask Him to transform your love for Him into something bigger than yourself!
Let the Master work in your life and in your heart!
May God bless us all and bless our world with peace!



EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS NOVENA
Say for 9 Days
Jesus, Who because of Your burning love for us willed to be crucified and to shed Your Most Precious Blood for the redemption and salvation of our souls, look down upon us and grant the petition we ask for ...( mention here)

We trust completely in Your Mercy. Cleanse us from sin by Your Grace, sanctify our work, give us and all those who are dear to us our daily bread, lighten the burden of our sufferings, bless our families, and grant to the nations, so sorely afflicted, Your Peace, which is the only true peace, so that by obeying Your Commandments we may come at last to the glory of Heaven. Amen

An instrument of Peace...

Lord, please make me an instrument of Your Peace...always.

How is it than one day, I can be so bothered and the next filled with His Peace?
I'm sure it must be in my own flaws of personality and not totally following His Will that I find myself outside of His Peace instead of in it. Or it may be I am not fully aware of His presence even in my unsettling ways.

Lord, I ask that you help me with these imperfections in my life, that I may always be a comfortable safe-haven for You to rest Your weary head for all the sacrileges that You are offended by on a daily basis.

Make me a Sacred Tabernacle for Your Holy Spirit to rest in, not for my own desires but to give You rest in an ungrateful world. Thank you Jesus, for all you give and all that You take away, for I know that everything You do is only in our best interest! Jesus, Mary, I love you save souls!

The Right Words

Lord, give me the right words to say,
To broken hearts that come my way
To those that have been hurt before
That I not hurt them anymore

To those whose hearts have hardened up
To those who won't hold out their cup
That Lord, You long to overflow
With Love and Mercy
Lord let me know

That I might have the words to say
That I might plant a seed today
That glory would be given to You
In all I say and all I do

Lord, give me the right words to say
More hearts are breaking everyday
They're out there crying in the night
I long to help them see the light

But, fragile are those souls and weak
So this is why Your words I seek
And pray Thee give me words to say
That I, not one soul turn away.

Author Unknown

Perseverence in Prayer...

Perseverence in Prayer is most important in the Spiritual Life!

Even if our spiritual life becomes dry, it is even more important to pray during this time even if the only words we can utter are: Come Holy Spirit, or Jesus, I love you help me to love you more!

Usually if our Spiritual lives have become dry it is because we have not asked the Holy Spirit for guidance or we are not persevering in prayer.

We need to strengthen our spiritual muscles just as we need to get daily exercise.

If we don't strengthen ourselves spiritually......How can we expect ourselves to carry the crosses when they fall? Because they do fall, they always do!

In this way, we will be able to carry our crosses and carry them well, without complaint or looking like we're carrying a cross, always in sweet joy for our Lord!

If lifting our tiny crosses compared to His, can ease His pain a little what should we care? Afterall, we deserve the pain for all of our sins.....what did Jesus deserve except our perpetual love?
When the crosses fall remember Christ crucified and remain Silent!~St.Elizabeth Seton

"If you pray well, you will live well;if you live well,you will die well;and if you die well, all will be well!"-St. Augustine

Happy Birthday Mary!

Happy Birthday Dear Mother Mary!

Today our Kindergarten class all brought at least one flower from home for the Virgin Mary's Birthday! It was very sweet and you could see the smile on the Virgin's face as the children brought her flowers! We collected two vases and one small vase worth of flowers. We also made her a paper crown with flowers on it for her birthday and the kids sang Happy Birthday to her. We all celebrated at snack time with a cookie!

It's in these small things that I know Mary and Jesus truly adore about us, especially the children. Their love is so pure and full of hope! I'm sure this is what God must have been thinking about when He created Mary as the New Eve.
Who else could have carried Him? Surely not someone who would or could be defiled in any way! She had to be the most pure of lillies and as I heard last night, someone who could love Him back as He loves us.

Their mother-son relationship was a mystery in itself. Look at the Mysteries of the Rosary, Mary was invlolved in quite a few of them and if not I'm sure Stood by the cross. Think of those words "Stood by the Cross!" Would any of us have the strength to stand under the cross of our son? Mary Magdelane was weeping under the cross but Mary, The mother of our Lord, was standing! Can you imagine the unbearable sorrow she must have felt and had the strength to stand?! If this is not proof enough that She is a pure vessel, I don't know what would convince anyone! Her Fiat or Yes changed the world! So Mary, Here's my small pitiful Thank you to you, for being who you are and standing for us, and your son at the foot of His cross and ours!

I love you Mary! Help us to love Jesus More! Bring us closer to your Son under watchful eye, as only a Mother can have.
I give you my everything to present to your Son,Jesus!
Ask Him to make us as holy as He intended and to have perpetual Mercy on us!
Continue to pray for us Mary, our world is in need of your graces!
Please give us the graces we don't know to ask for and tell Jesus we adore and love Him!

Your loving daughter in Christ,
Erin

An Early Advent...

I'm not sure but almost every year around this time, I start anticipating the Christmas Season. Maybe it's the extreme heat this time of year in Southern California or maybe it's just my love of this season when it seems to be heaven on earth! But as I was sitting in Mass this morning, I realized it's much more than that, it's also my love for the Christ Child.

I admire so much that our wonderful Lord chose to come as a little child, the most humble way a God could come to His people! But still in His smallness He glowed with wisdom and love for His Mother and His Children! Yes even as a babe, He had Children, all of us! The mystery of Christmas has always attracted me, I love the beauty of the season. I just wish everyone would focus on Christ and not so much on the secular part of the season. Evne the trees die to themselves in the winter so that may be made new again during the Easter season.
Coincidence? I think not! Nothing in this world is a coincidence! Just remember that!
I love you sweet Jesus, in the infinite smallness and greatness of the Eucharist, Your Precious Blood, Your Sacred Heart, Your Birth, Your Death, Your Ressurection,Your Mercy, and Your Will.
Thank you for coming into my heart and dwelling there as a safe tabernacle. Never let me offend You and Never let me lose You!

Help us to love You more!
Christ the Eucharist, have mercy on us.
Christ the Precious Blood, have mercy on us.
Christ the Child, hear us , Christ graciously hear us!
Our Lady of Perpetual Help, pray for us.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.
Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us.
Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us.
St. Francis, pray for us.
St. Jerome, pray for us.
St. Augustine, pray for us.
St. Rita, pray for us.
St. Therese, pray for us.
St. Teresa, pray for us.
St. Pio, pray for us.
St. Jude, pray for us.
St. Michael, pray for us.
St. Mary Magdelane, pray for us.
St. Maria Goretti, pray for us.
St. John Bosco, pray for us.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us.

Earth's Trash, Heaven's Treasure

Prayer to the Virgin Mary
for an End to Abortion

O Mary, Mother of Jesus and Mother of us all, we turn to you today as the one who said "Yes" to Life. "You will conceive and bear a Son," the angel told you. Despite the surprise and the uncertainty about how this could be, you said yes. "Be it done unto me according to your word."

Mary, we pray today for all mothers who are afraid to be mothers. We pray for those who feel threatened and overwhelmed by their pregnancy. Intercede for them, that God may give them the grace to say yes and the courage to go on. May they have the grace to reject the false solution of abortion. May they say with you, "Be it done unto me according to your word." May they experience the help of Christian people, and know the peace that comes from doing God's will. Amen

God truly has a sense of humor!

I was laughing to myself today about my acceptance of God's call to me to the Carmelites. Not that I do not want to do it, but I just spoke to God the way I usually do, God are sure you're talking to me? Are you sure you want me for this? Didn't you see what I did yesterday or how impatient I was today? So I truly believe He has a wonderful sense of Humor, why else would He choose the most incapable and incompetant people for certain duties, it's beyond me, but I know because I realize this, anything He wants me to do, He'll have to do it through me because I am not capable on my own! Agghh! The very thought of myself without Him frightens me!

Then I cam across this entry in the book put together with St. Pio's letters:

He (God) chooses some souls. From among these, despite all my faults, he has also chosen my soul to help him in the great project of saving humanity. The more these chosen souls suffer without any comfort,the more the sufferings of our good Jesus are lightened.
Well, that's the reason I wish to suffer unceasingly, and to suffer without comfort; and from this I derive all my joy. This I can testify through the long experienceI have had of it, provided the one does not cease to cry out to Him.(304)_ From "Words of Light".

Then I opened the bible to this passage:

"Do you not know or have you not heard? The Lord is the eternal God, creator of the ends of the earth.He does not faint nor grow weary, and his knowledge is beyond scrutiny.
He gives strength to the fainting;for the weak He makes vigor abound. Though young men faint and grow weary, and youths stagger and fall, They that hope in the Lord will renew their strength,
they will soar as with eagles' wings; they will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint." Isaiah 40:28-31


Wow! That's all I have to say for today, what else could possibly be said other than I get the message loud and clear!?

Have a Wonderful evening!

Communication between the head and the heart...

After being inflamed with love for our Lord and enjoying my prayer life and Eucharistic life, the lights finally came on and someone is home! The problem is explaining it to my head, my heart is all for it, however, my head keeps having its reservations as I'm sure all vocations do. Ofcourse my first vocation is to be a good and (Hopefully) holy wife, but I feel I can do more through my prayers since my stamina and body don't always agree with how I should be spending my time helping others!?! Just slightly Bothersome!

I will continue to look into this and pray about it, but I also ask for your prayers as I open the door to the Secular Carmelites, I only hope to do God's will and not my own so I may decrease and He may increase!

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
St. Joseph pray for us.
St. John of the Cross, pray for us.
St. Teresa of Avila, pray for us.
St. Therese, pray for us.

The Gift of Life!

Life is and should always be an Indispensable Gift!

A little Gratitude for His Gifts, Grace, and Guidance.

Thanks is such a little word for all Your gifts of grace
For all your guidance dear Lord
No words will ever embrace
Your Fatherly love cradles me each day
Molds me into the soul
that you intended me to be
What else could I ever want dear Lord?
except Your perpetual gift of love
For anything I could ever want
was paid for in Your blood my Lord
So why do we not thank You more?
Is it because we know your Mercy's endless?
or because we are thankless?
Either way my God my heart swells with love
when I think of Your bitter agony on the cross
My words and feelings are at a loss
For I know my debt of love is endless
but please continue to look on me with tenderness
Because I love you so much my Lord
but please help me to love you more
because it seems you only made one flaw
and it was You made my heart too small
for how could I ever love you as I should
with such a tiny vessel misunderstood?
So help me sweet Jesus with everlasting grace
So I may one day repay my debt and see Your loving face.

A little late but worth the wait!?!?

A little late for St. Augustine's Feast Day today but I had to post it anyway~EVER ANCIENT, EVER NEW

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would have not been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.

~ From The Confessions of St. Augustine


PRAYERS OF ST. AUGUSTINE

PRAYER TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy.
Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy.
Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy.
Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy.
Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy.


"O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams."

Thank you Maryann for sending this to me!

Words of Fr. Corapi...Gotta love him!

Words of Father Corapi...
for all my politician friends and relatives and those who vote for them

"Catholic office holders, whether presidents, senators, congress men or women, or judges at any level must adhere to Catholic teaching or run the risk of separating themselves from the Body of Christ.

In such egregious and chronic cases of gross moral evil such as instituting and perpetuating abortion and the structures of sin that surround it, it is quite probable that such Catholic officials are excommunicated in virtue of the acts themselves.

A latae sententiae (automatic) excommunication is likely triggered when they vote for laws, funding, and structures that enable and perpetuate such obvious and egregious evil (Cf. Code of Canon Law, Canons 1364,1398; Canon 1329, par. #2).

They are in turn forbidden from approaching the sacraments as the result (Cf. Catechism of Catholic Church #1463)."

"It is not morally possible for any Catholic to support abortion, euthanasia, fetal stem cell research, human cloning, or same-sex marriage. There are no ways around this, no justifications whatever.

Why? For the simple reason that the Church holds these things to be intrinsically evil. They are evil in themselves, and no circumstances or subjective conditions can ever change that."

~Enough said, Thank you Fr. Corapi you always know how to get straight to the point and the heart of the matter!

Fr. Donald's Sermon

The following is from one of Fr. Donald's sermons and was printed on the invitation to his 50th anniversary as a priest. I came across it in my bible the other day and I'm not sure why, but I feel the need to share it with you.

For those that do not know me, Fr. Donald is first-cousins to my grandfather and is very dear to me having baptized and married my parents and also my husband and I. His wisdom alsways astounds me.

"On earth we are wayfarers, always on the go. This means that we have to keep moving forward. Therefore be always unhappy about where you are if you want to reach what you are not.

If you are pleased with what you are, you have stopped already. If you say, It is enough, you are lost. Keep on walking, moving forward, trying for the goal. Don't try to stop on the way or to go back, or to deviate from it."- Sermon 169,18

Prayer:

"Lord, guard us from all danger and carry us to Yourself. And you will be our strong support from childhood to old age; for when our strength is Yours, we are strong."

Confessions 4,16

St. Augustine of Hippo

Thank You, Jesus!

Today, I want to thank Jesus for trusting me with these sufferings. Even though it brings pain to my body, it is a sweet joy for my soul. I think because like St. Therese,(not that I am anything like her) I realize that I am a very simple soul who cannot offer anything worthy or great to our Dear Lord.

With this in mind, I pray everyday to be able to carry out my duties and obligations to the best of my ability and to do it with a grateful heart. Even in this prayer, my self-will is my constant enemy. The Lord knows how weak my will is and so I must constantly pray throughout the day through every task to be able to do His will.

He has allowed my focus to move from this earthly existence to my eternal existence, and becauase of this every choice has eternal consequences. I do not wish to sound so final but I am just writing how I feel.

So thank you Jesus for trusting me with these small sufferings and pains compared with your agony on the cross. Help me to never complain about them but to embrace them and thank you for them daily. They have turned into a sort of payment and living prayer for my debt of love for You.

I also thank you for these sufferings because they keep me humble and constantly remind me just how little I am and how much I depend on you for everything! Please take these small sufferings throughout the day and use them how You see fit my Lord, for only You know how to best use them and who am I to tell You how to use them?

Finally, keep my heart imflamed for love of You so that I never lose perseverance!
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in You!


"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroy, nor theives break in and steal. For where you treasure is, there also will your heart be."
Matthew 6: 19-21

God's theme for my Retreat...

Well, I just returned home yesterday from my retreat at Prince of Peace Abbey in Oceanside. This is the home of The Benedictine Monks who are filled with the spirit of Prayer, Peace, Perseverence and Penance.

I went on a private "somewhat silent" retreat with my mom and was a little nervous before leaving because this is the first retreat I've been on that wasn't planned or structured. Although we did have the opportunity to go to daily Mass and join the monks in prayer up to five times a day, there was no designated speaker for us to listen to.

So we went to daily Mass and took ample amounts of quiet time for spiritual reading, prayer, and walking the stations of the cross and enjoying nature. It was wonderful!

I felt I received a lot of peace on this retreat and that God spoke to me in the silence of my heart.

Since this is private, I will not reveal anymore but I would like to leave you with the running theme for the last few days for both me and mother that somehow the Lord wanted to stress this importance to us.

Perhaps it is because I am not as grateful for all the gifts He has so generously given to me or that I can be selfish and not give as freely as I would like to.
So I will take the opportunity now of admitting this to myself and to you before God and ask Him for His forgiveness.

I love you Lord, but help me to love you more in all the things I do, say, and think.

Theme of this Retreat:

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life and what you will eat, or about your body and what you will wear.

For life is more than food and the body more than clothing.

Notice the ravens:

they do not sow or reap; they have neither storehouse or barn, yet God feeds them.

How much more important are you than birds!

Can any of you by worrying add a moment to your lifespan?

If even the smallest things are beyond your control, why are you anxious about the rest?

Notice how the flowers grow. They do not toil or spin.

But I tell you not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of them.

If God so clothes the grass in the field that grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow , will He not provide much more for you, O you of little faith?

As for you, do not seek what you are to eat or what you are to drink, and do not worry anymore.

All the nations of the world seek for these things, and your Father knows that you need them.

Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.

Sell your belongings and give alms.

Provide moneybags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustable treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy.

For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

~Luke 12:22-34


May God bless and reward you!

The Still Small Voice...

Sitting in Mass yesterday for the Feast of The Assumption, I was reminded of God's call to our own Blessed Mother.
He did not come in the thunder, the wind, or anything else, but in a still small voice.
Sure He sent an angel, but Mary had to listen to that still small voice within her heart to say her "yes" to our Lord.
I can only imagine her joy when her Blessed Son brought her up body and soul into heaven and made her Queen of Heaven and Earth!

Kneeling in Thanksgiving after Mass, I asked Our Lord and Our Mother to help me to listen more intently to this still small voice and so knelt in silence.

There is nothing more consoling than kneeling before the tabernacle and the crucifix and not praying with words but with the heart. Praying with the heart is more than being silent it is not even saying or thinking of words in your head, but just making yourself available to "be in the True Presence of our Lord" .

The peace and consolation are unspeakable. It is a sort of contradiction in itself, because although He does not take away the crosses which are so vital to our sanctity, one can learn to love their crosses in the slience of His heart, because He gives an understanding or wisdom that makes it easier to accept the crosses and actually learn to embrace them because it is made known to one that it is only HE who knows best and if He knows best what do we have to fear?



Stay with me, Lord
Prayer of St. Pio of Pietrelcina after Holy Communion

Stay with me, Lord, for it is necessary to have
You present so that I do not forget You.
You know how easily I abandon You.
Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak
and I need Your strength,
that I may not fall so often.
Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life,
and without You, I am without fervor.
Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light,
and without You, I am in darkness.
Stay with me, Lord, to show me Your will.
Stay with me, Lord, so that I hear Your voice
and follow You.Stay with me, Lord, for I desire to love You
very much, and always be in Your company.
Stay with me, Lord, if You wish me to be faithful to You.
Stay with me, Lord, for as poor as my soul is,
I want it to be a place of consolation for You, a nest of love.
Stay with me, Jesus, for it is getting late and the day is coming to a close, and life passes; death, judgment, eternity approaches.
It is necessary to renew my strength,
so that I will not stop along the way and for that, I need You.
It is getting late and death approaches,
I fear the darkness, the temptations, the dryness, the cross, the sorrows.
O how I need You, my Jesus, in this night of exile!
Stay with me tonight, Jesus, in life with all it’s dangers. I need You.
Let me recognize You as Your disciples did at the breaking of the bread,
so that the Eucharistic Communion be the Light which disperses the darkness,
the force which sustains me, the unique joy of my heart.
Stay with me, Lord, because at the hour of my death, I want to remain united to You,
if not by communion, at least by grace and love.
Stay with me, Jesus, I do not ask for divine consolation, because I do not merit it,
but the gift of Your Presence, oh yes, I ask this of You!
Stay with me, Lord, for it is You alone I look for, Your Love, Your Grace, Your Will, Your Heart,
Your Spirit, because I love You and ask no other reward but to love You more and more.
With a firm love, I will love You with all my heart while on earth
and continue to love You perfectly during all eternity.
Amen.