Author: italiana@writeme.com

God is love, God can empower. What is the greatest commandment : Love the Lord with all your heart, mind and soul and love your neighbor as yourself. Love is the strongest force in this world. He will never leave us or forsake us. When people hurt you or disappoint you remember that you are loved passionately, completely and more abundantly than you could ever imagine by Jesus Christ. You are never alone and will never be alone. He is knocking at the door of your heart, If you haven’t opened your heart to him know he is there patiently waiting, thirsting for your love.

Sometimes we need silence, to sit alone. And sift through the noise of this often dark, noisy and pornified world. Yes, I just said pornified. As a woman the culture and images that are constantly displayed on tv, billboards, internet… you name it, the scantily clad images of what a sexy woman supposedly is, can really have an impact on and affect the pressure we as women place on ourselves. I have been told that I am pretty or attractive, but for a woman to  believe that within herself is often times hard.

You see, if we truly looked for beauty in the eyes of the soul how much more character would we have. Imagine the confidence in ourselves, in our souls not in our bodies as objects to be used or devalued as mere visual stimuli. This is a broken world and it takes an effort of real courage and strength on the part of both man and woman to demand more. To hold each other to a higher standard. A standard of grace, respect, dignity and that is where I believe healing will begin. When we begin to place faith in each other again and love one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. Not as an object, with the mindset of what can I get out of you or what pleasure can you bring me.

The only way to truly live and love is to give… to give kindness, to give of oneself in grace, the way Jesus gave all for us. As a woman I am always aware of the pressures of this world, but have found it is far better to stand alone, to walk according to God’s ways, to follow his law than to conform to the world which only brings heartache, confusion and pain.

If you have or are struggling with your value or worth. Always remember you are a child of God, more precious than diamonds. There may be people who come into your life that will never see that, but never doubt your worth. You are worthy of Love.

You are worth everything and more, so much so that God sent his only Son to die on a cross for you. You are set free in Jesus Christ, ask him in prayer to give you the gift to see your own unique God given beauty and to truly know your worth.

 

 

 

 

This lent challenge yourself to see others through the lens of Christ. In the words of Father Mark’s sermon from last Sunday “Don’t give up smoking this lent if you are going to be out robbing 7-11 convenience stores…” Lent is about doing something that will bring you closer to Christ. It is a time of personal reflection, growth and a sacred time to focus on your daily walk with the Lord. For some that may be giving up or sacrificing a pleasure. Maybe it’s refraining from the things and places of this world that lead to temptations, lust or make it difficult to have a chaste heart. St. Augustine said: “Do not say that you have chaste minds if you have unchaste eyes, because an unchaste eye is the messenger of an unchaste heart.” This calls to mind the great calling for each of us to view each other through the lens of Christ himself, with love for one another and respect for the dignity he created in the male and female person.

Maybe for you it will not be giving up a habit or practice in your daily life, maybe this lent you are called to be a doer. In your daily actions you can strive to make others feel loved, increase your prayer time or offer small acts of kindness in some way each day. This is a great way to spread the love of Christ and be a prophet of hope in this world.

Lent is a time to seek freedom, to grow in virtue and walk away from vice. A personal struggle for each one of us in our daily walk in this life. The beauty of this walk  is, if you are sincerely seeking Christ and his love, you will find freedom. You may have days that you stumble, but thats okay he is right there beside you. It is not an easy walk but one that is well worth it.

Remember whatever you do or sacrifice, no matter how big or small as long as you do it with love and your focus is on Christ, he will in return fill your heart with his peace and Love beyond abundance.

What will you do this lent to help you grow closer to Christ?

God bestows more consideration on the purity of the intention with which our actions are performed than on the actions themselves.
–St. Augustine

“A clean heart is a free heart. A free heart can love Christ with an undivided love in chastity, convinced that nothing and nobody will separate it from his love. Purity, chastity, and virginity created a special beauty in Mary that attracted God’s attention. He showed his great love for the world by giving Jesus to her.”
–Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

We all have layers, reminds me of a line from Shrek. Like an onion, if we peel away the layers we would see that each one of us has many beautiful traits, gifts and talents. You are a unique individual God created in his image and there is no one else like you! I often reflect on how each of us has experienced many things in this life, we’ve learned lessons along the way. We have crossed path’s with people that have blessed us or hurt us or for some reason just needed us.

I know in my life, I have always had a great joy in the Lord. When I came back to the Catholic Church in 2008 after about a seven year hiatus of church hopping in the evangelical world, I was filled with passion for my catholic faith! It brought me such comfort to come home to the faith I knew as a child. I was so hungry to learn more about my catholic faith, share it and address common misconceptions, like the one that Catholics worship Mary. I wanted to educate my inner circle on what catholics really believed.

I started to really get involved in serving the Lord through the ACTS ministry after my first retreat in 2011. That is when I started meeting many wonderful women that shared my faith. These new-found friends, my sisters in Christ, were an inspiration in how they understood and shared my beliefs. I was blessed to witness many examples of Christ’s love in how they served others.

As I continued to serve and grow, becoming more actively involved with each passing year I began to see even in a community rooted in christ that we can still hurt each other very deeply. A sad reality, that I guess is inevitable even within the church among its most devout active members and volunteers. We are all sinners called to be saints, that is why we need Christ. We never stop needing his strength and grace but it does sadden me that within the church there can be so much envy, judgement and gossip.

Gossip still divides and wounds. I still remember the shock, when I learned firsthand that a young woman and her mom whom I had served with on team, loved and prayed for was actively gossiping about me with her daughter. This happened during a very difficult and painful time in my life. I remember thinking how easy it is to judge others, when you really have no clue. No clue, what battles they have endured or sacrifices they have made. The irony in the christian life is we preach mercy, compassion and understanding.  Yet, how many of us truly do our best to live out each day in our relationships with that in the forefront of our minds.

It has taken strength that is not my own to forgive and pray for those women, my sisters in Christ. It is hard but I understand that is what Christ calls each of us to do. I hope that wherever you are in your walk with God you may be a witness to his love and when an opportunity arises to gossip or slander you will be courageous enough to choose love. To love your neighbor enough to build them up, to protect their honor and to pray for them.

 

Ephesians 4:29
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

Do you ever feel like your all over the place? One day your dreaming of traveling around the world. The next day your just trying to break away from social media and find the motivation to accomplish daily tasks. I know I do. Some days I just don’t feel like moving forward it’s almost as if I’m stuck! It’s those days that I have to remind myself, it’s okay to be where I’m at. Which for me can be frustrating but the only thing holding me back is myself. I have to remind myself that the only limitations we have in life is fear and the limits we impose on ourselves. If we pondered more often on our hopes and how they are secure in the Lord, imagine the peace our hearts would have. It is our own selves that limits our big God, he is limitless! I cannot even comprehend how great his glory and power is, as I am a mere and weak creature even though I try.

So remember, when you feel down and life is not exactly going your way just remind yourself that we can never have too much confidence in God. One of my favorite saints, St. Therese of Lisieux would say we obtain from him as much as we hope for! So let my hope in the Lord be limitless!!! What are your hopes? Whatever they may be trust they are secure in the Lord.

 

“We Obtain from God as much as we hope for.”

St. Therese of Lisieux

Love your kids, your family, your friends! Cherish. Everything! Hug everyone and mean it. life is too short.

These are my inmost thoughts as I am on my way to the cemetery as we bury my dad’s brother. My uncle he was so young, only 53. He was killed upon impact in a motor vehicle accident. It was a sudden loss.

I pray for his soul and for his closest family and friends.

That’s what’s beautiful about this life. The greatest gift we can give one another is prayer. It costs nothing and has impacts on others that we may never know. Never stop praying for those you love, it is a treasure in this life and the root of love.

Romans 13:10

Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Below is a portion of the lyrics from Lauren Daigle’s song:  First

I want to seek you, I want to keep you first, more than anything…

I want to know you, I want to find you….

You are my treasure and my reward, let nothing ever come before…

My prayer for you, is to fall in Love with God so deeply that you’ll never be the same, that you are always guided by his grace and blessed abundantly all of the days of your life. May you truly Live, laugh and enjoy God’s blessings…

“We seek TRUTH, but don’t WANT it ”

This is a line from a poem a friend of mine wrote. The other day I found myself reading this beautiful diverse poem again. This particular line jumped out at me because there is, truth to it. Literally. How many of us say we want to seek the Truth? Then when we find it, refuse it, deny it or even run away from the truth.

In this world and culture that we live in today it is common to choose the broad path, the convenient one. The Path that says enjoy for the moment. The cultural concept that says it’s okay to pick and choose what you believe, is so deceptive. We chase a place of freedom, a place where one doesn’t have to worry about consequences. Where you can have it your way. But we cannot live apart from God, He has written the truth in our hearts.

It is easy to choose the broad path, but if you listen to the quiet voice of God speaking to you in your heart you will hear him calling.  The unbelieving world hates the light. It requires discipline to walk the narrow path. It is the way of the few. The narrow way is the way of wisdom. No matter what you have been through and may be going through, know Jesus will make a way. It may not be the easiest path to walk on but you will have peace and a truth that will guide you.  You are walking on a path now. Where has your path led you up to this very moment? Is it the path that God wants you to live? Remember, there are only two ways to live, the path of righteousness or destruction. Which way will you choose?

John 14:6

“I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 8:32

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

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Time is not ours. Each day is a gift. We are all given the same twenty four hours each day. I am constantly amazed at how fast each day passes. The unexpected kinks that arise in the day, you know those things that throw what you had planned totally off. I used to let that stress me and at times get frustrated because I didn’t have time for this. Now I embrace the unexpected, it is as if God is saying to me “Surprise!” I have different plans for you. It is very freeing to let go and be flexible and just move with what comes. I am seeking God’s will, not my will. That can be easier said than done but the beauty of walking in faith, is to know that each day we have another opportunity to follow his will. Each and every new day is another chance to change your life.

I have adopted the most dear and special woman I have ever met in my life. This dear beautiful soul has a name, I call her Mamma but most know her by Maddie. She has shared with me a beautiful perspective in regards to this life we live. She always says, each and every decision that you make is so important, it is what brought you to this very moment.  She is right, each choice you make is what has shaped who you are. Whether they have been good or bad choices that left great memories or haunting scars, it all goes back to a choice. We all have free will and I have found that it is very important to pray and discern when you are walking through this life to be guided in your choices. After contemplating deeply on what Maddie shared with me, on how every choice we make literally makes a difference and affects our future. I told her, what about every prayer? Imagine, knowing how important your choices are, what if every prayer is the prayer that could change everything. I often ponder, is this the prayer that could make a life changing impact on someone, on me, on a loved one? Only God knows, but I believe each prayer is just as important as each choice we make. How will you spend your time? What will you pray for? What change are you seeking in your life?

 

Galatians 6:9

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

 

My name is Amanda and I am a Texas girl! I love the Lord with all my heart. I am going through some major life transitions, and have had a desire to start a blog for some time now. I am seeking God’s will for my life and I am on a journey,  just as you are. I am catholic and have a beautiful church community that has helped me meet many wonderful souls!

I Love creating, painting, drawing and cooking. I love to give and have a desire to feed people! I think I get that from my grandmother. I am dedicated to living a healthy lifestyle and believe we should be good stewards of our bodies. I weight-lift and exercise regularly as it is, as good for the body as it is the mind.

When reflecting on how crazy, unpredictable and busy this world is, it makes me seek God even more. You see, even when we think we have all the answers. We really don’t. Life can throw a surprise your way, a sudden loss or event that was unexpected can shake your world. I have come to realize, that until we truly let go of all things such as fear, worry and anxiety we cannot move forward to the live the life God wants us to have. He has created each one of us for a purpose. I believe it is our responsibility to seek his will and try to live out that purpose. I think it’s easy when you follow your heart. You know, you are on Gods path when you have peace. If you are in a period of your life where you are trying to figure out what to do. What choices to make, seek him. If you are confused, keep praying. I would tell you to pray without ceasing! When you have peace in your decisions and in your heart, God is guiding you.

Thank God for the people he has placed in your life. They are there for a reason. I know in my life, I feel called to Love. I have so much love to give! It is the heart God gave me, the need to pour love onto those dear to me. For me, praying for others and doing small acts of kindness helps me show that love to the people God has placed in my life. Oh yeah, and  feeding them is important too. Show those that are a blessing to you how much they mean to you and be a blessing to them!

What is God writing in your heart? Do you feel him calling you or drawing you to some ministry, or to a certain person? Take action, listen to your heart and trust God to guide your path.

 

“Make known to me your ways, LORD; teach me your paths.”

Psalm 25:4