"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine...Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you." - Isaiah 43:1,4

So, this passage from Isaiah (43:1-7) has really been on my heart lately. I encourage you to take some time to pray through the entire passage - there is just SO much truth on that page! I have heard it said that self-knowledge is the foundation of the spiritual life, and I feel that self-knowledge really does have so much to do in our spiritual lives. If we are unable to see ourselves as we truly are - that is, how God sees us - then we are going to struggle to go deeper in our relationship with Christ. This verse tells us so much about that identity - we are: Redeemed. Called by name. God's. Precious in the eyes of the Lord. Honored. LOVED. How many times do we allow ourselves to believe lies that tell us otherwise? I know how easy it is to fall into those lies. This week, I challenge you to read this verse to yourself over and over and over (as many times as you like) until you start to truly believe it in your heart. This is truth - speak this truth to the lies in your heart. Claim your identity in Christ.You are so treasured. 

Have a fantastic week! I am praying for you! Next week I will be going on a pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi. I would absolutely love to carry your intentions with me on my journey. Please send them to me if you have anything you would like me to offer the journey for. :) God bless. 

Jesus, I trust in You. 

"Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what He requires of you, and He will provide you with all these other things." - Matthew 6:33

I'm sure I've sent this verse before - it's one of my all-time favorites - but I thought it was really fitting for this week. I know a lot of people, myself included, are in the middle of finals week, and during this time it can be really easy to get completely absorbed in what we're doing. This to an extent, is a good thing. We should focus on studying, we should try to do our best, etc. However, this can get taken a little too far in that we forget that this isn't everything. Yes, they are important tests and we need to do our best, but in the end it really doesn't matter how we did on a couple tests. It all will work out in the end even though it might not seem like it right now. This goes beyond finals as well. How often do we get completely wrapped up in whatever is going on in our life, good or bad, that we forget to pray? This verse helps to remind us that we should put our relationship with God and our journey to the Kingdom before all else in our lives. If we do this, then God will provide everything else we need. He will help us with our tests or whatever it is we are dealing with in the moment. Ultimately, God provides. Put Him first and allow Him to provide for you. He loves you. 

The quote for this week comes from Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati: 

"To live without faith, without a patrimony to defend, without a steady struggle for truth, that is not living, but existing."

Have an awesome week! :) God bless! 

"Search for the Lord and for His strength; continually seek Him." - 1 Chronicles 16:11

I think this is a great verse for the beginning of Advent. Although it can be hard to tell with the commercialized way Christmas has become in our society, these four weeks leading up to the celebration of Christ's birth are such a sacred time and can be such a blessing to us if we truly enter into them. It is distracting in our culture, with stores start putting up Christmas stuff sometimes as early as Halloween and the constant commercials. But Advent is not a time to pretend it is Christmas already... In fact, it is here for a very specific purpose. Although society is trying to forget this, the real meaning of Christmas is the fact that the God who created the universe and created you and me became a real human being, came down to earth, and made it so that we can live forever! That is something to truly rejoice about!! But it is also something that needs to be prepared for. And I don't mean preparation in the sense of shopping, but rather in the sense of our hearts. Yesterday at Mass, father said that "everything worthwhile requires preparation." And I think this is completely true. To do well on a test, you study. And the same is true for this season of Advent. It is a time for us to prepare our hearts to receive the Lord of lords. As this verse says, it is time to search for the Lord and His strength. It is a time to remove all those things in our life that are distracting us. I challenge you to take advantage of this time of preparation. Take some time to make the way for the Lord in your heart. Spend time with Him. He delights in you. 

Today's saint quote comes from St. Alphonsus Liguori: 

"But one thing is necessary, and it is not beauty, not health, not talent. It is the salvation of our immortal souls." 

Have a fantastic week filled with the Lord's peace! God bless you! 

"The Lord gives his people strength. The Lord blessed them with peace." - Psalm 29:11

This is such a straightforward verse, but one that is really full of truth. The Lord will give us peace and strength. We need to simply trust Him. So this week, that is what I'm going to challenge you to do. Trust in Him, and allow His peace and strength to fill your life. 

Have a great week! God bless!! :) 

 

"The Lord will work out His plans for our life - for Your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don't abandon me, for You made me." - Psalm 138:8

This verse is simple, but can be really helpful in our lives. I think we have all heard that God will take care of our lives and make things work out, but how beautiful it is to be able to pray in faith that we truly believe that He will take care of us! There is one thing to hear something about God, but there is something else to believe that truth in faith. And I think this verse just gives us a beautiful example of how to make that happen in our everyday lives. This week I challenge you to step out in faith. Think about a truth of the faith that you have heard over and over, but haven't really taken to heart. This week, take the step of faith and proclaim it with faith! Radical faith will change this world. 

God bless you all! You are in my prayers.

"The Lord himself will fight for you, you have only to keep still." - Exodus 14:14

This is one of my all-time favorite Scripture verses. I think it is especially fitting during this midterm week, when many people are very stressed and have lots to do. With whatever trials you are facing, whatever battles may be in your life right now, whether they are large or small, we can look to this verse. The Lord will fight for us. He will help us. He is here in the midst of everything we are going through. All we have to do is be still and trust Him. We need to stay in His Presence and in His love. This week I challenge you to trust in Him. Much easier said then done, but allow the Lord to fight for you. 

The saint quote this week is from St. Therese of Lisieux: 

"Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love." 

Have a wonderful week! You are in my prayers!! :) 

"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." - Ephesians 2:10

This verse recently stuck out to me and I liked it so much I hung it up above my desk so I can read it every day. Not only does this verse help us realize our dignity and who we are in Christ, but it also helps us understand the mission He has in store for us. As the verse says, we are God's masterpiece. This doesn't mean we are just an afterthought or an accident of His, but we are His masterpiece! How incredible is that! A masterpiece is carefully planned, put together with so much thought and love, and after it is completed, it is admired by all, but especially by the one who created it. I told a story to the high schoolers at Totus Tuus this summer that my friend had shared with me. While she was at Adoration one day, there was a little boy in the pew in front of her. He was coloring and working really hard to make his artwork just right. When he had finished, the little boy held up his drawing and admired it. He smiled at it and held it up in different lights to truly admire what he had created. He delighted in it, and could see an expression of himself in it. In the same way, God looks at us, His beloved masterpieces. He delights in us and holds us up to see us in different lights. And He can see an expression of Himself in us! This is so exciting!! The second part of the verse addresses what we are called to do. Because we have become new in Christ, we are able to accomplish the good things that He has planned for us to accomplish. It is only when we find our identity and worth in Christ that we are able to work for His good. This week I challenge you to see yourself in God's mirror. Rather than focus on the how we see ourselves, let us see ourselves as the beloved children God has created us to be. 

This week's saint quote comes from St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower: 

"It is your arms, Jesus, which are the lift to carry me to heaven. And so there is no need for me to grow up. In fact, just the opposite: I must stay little and become less and less." 

May God bless you abundantly this week! I am praying for you! :)