Making Visible What Was Once Invisible

"Love is invisible until it becomes charity" I heard that in a sermon last Thursday and then came up with a few reasons that our charity is important.

1- There is a specific word for "Charitable Love" in Greek: agape. (pronounced: a-ga-pay)

1- If we aren't charitable, then who can see our love at all? (that's pretty straightforward.) We can say "I love you" until we're blue in the face, but unless the other person sees something that proves it, what is the point of saying you love them?

2- You can't say you are in a relationship or even friends with someone if you are not charitable. A relationship like mine and John's couldn't have even started without charity. We started talking and helping each other through rough times and showing that we care about each other as friends and then it progressed into a beautiful relationship. Now, 2 and a half years later, we are still willing to stay up until 4am helping each other through anything. Nothing can replace those moments. 

3- I was in NYC recently, and there are a lot of people who are forced to live on the street and rely on the kindness of others for food and clothing. Well, I was sitting in Starbucks drinking my non-fat latte (with 1 splenda and a bit of cocoa powder sprinkled on top, mmmmm.), and there was a homeless man sitting outside. I wished I had something to give him. But as I sat there thinking about what it could be, two teenage-ish girls walked up and gave him a meal from McDonald's. He looked so grateful and so happy just for that little meal. It kind of restored my faith in humanity, because how many teenage girls (these particular girls were very typical - in Pink yoga pants, brand name/designer shoes, etc) would go and give a homeless man food of their own decision? It showed me that some people still are capable of love and that maybe this world wasn't as far gone as I had originally thought. I love how now that I think about this , the more I think I should have just given him my latte....haha. There's always next time.

4- "Faith without works is dead." We can't call ourselves Christians if we are not charitable. And charity can come in any form. It could be a kind word or gesture, generosity, praying for/with them, etc. Anything could effect them. You never know.

So be kind and charitable to one another. It will make you a better friend and a better Christian.


Here's a song that kind of reminds me of how easy it could be to help/save someone and be charitable toward them. Some of the lyrics are: "And we'll find that inside she's a broken heart that anyone can save."

God bless you all! Have a wonderful week! 

The Power of Love

In the past month or so, I've done quite a few things that I'm not proud of. It's been rough dealing with temptations of different kinds, sometimes giving in, and asking forgiveness from God and from others. Last night was one of the worst, but also one of the best. I'd done something that made me feel just plain awful. I was with John and we'd been talking a bit about it.
We were standing together and he wrapped his arms around me. He reached for his phone while holding me (which at first made me think "Um...okay..??") but then I heard one of my favorite old songs: 'The Way You Look Tonight' by Frank Sinatra playing from his iPhone. I had been crying already (hello, emotions.) but for some reason that made me cry harder. Maybe it was because I'd kind of been holding everything in and the combination of being in his arms, thinking about everything, and hearing that reminder of how blessed I am to have him in my life at the same time sent me over the edge. But he looked at me and said "Shh. Don't you cry." and wiped a tear off my cheek. We sat down and I cried for a little while longer while he held me and just whispered things to me occasionally. I know it sounds cheesy. I know some of you are probably rolling your eyes and saying "I don't care. Why is she posting this?"
Well, I'm posting it because of what happened next. Somehow, he can make me laugh when I'm feeling my worst. I was wearing a plaid shirt and jeans, so I looked like I should have been on a horse. He commented on that and said someday we'd go riding and he'd take a picture of me looking like that. His baby brother has this little rocking horse they store right by the crucifix in their living room. John took me over there to pray, but first he pulled out the little horse. Me, being emotionally drained and just exhausted from a week of school, thought he wanted me to sit on it so he could take a picture. As it turns out, he just wanted to pray over me by the Cross... I laughed so hard. Anyway, he prayed with me. We stood in front of the Crucifix and he had his arms around me. His words were comforting and the thought of God just taking both of us and using us for His Will was something I really needed at that moment.
Even though it was a pretty bad night, it had a wonderful ending, because I was presented to my God by the man I love. The power of His Love, and the sweet, encouraging words and gestures of John gave me this feeling that no matter how bad things may seem, I always have my Lord to run to, and my incredible boyfriend to lead me back to him. That is the power of love.

Wise Words From Blessed John Paul II

"Man can not live without love." I love Pope John Paul II. In my blog "The Splendor of His Love" I wrote a post based off of what he said to the youth on World Youth Day 2003. But this is just a simple sentence - it seems so straightforward and self-evident. Is it really as obvious as it seems? I don't think it is.

We hear all the time that love is important, but do we grasp the significance of God's Love for us? Think about it. Without His Love, we really wouldn't  be able to live. We were dead in sin. Christ came to conquer the twofold death (death of the body and of the soul - consequences of the fall) and give us life again. Without that Love, we would never have the chance to be with God. And life without God is not life. If we do not acknowledge the power and omniscience of our Creator, we are just as dead as if Christ had not conquered the grave.

God's love is most important for our lives, however, human/fraternal love is also extremely valuable. Our world is lacking so much in fraternal love. We are told to love our neighbors, enemies, families, friends, and most importantly, ourselves. If we do not love ourselves, we can not love anyone else. No matter how comfortable people say they are with themselves (body, voice, talents, intelligence, etc.) there is almost always something that they don't like about themselves. I struggle with hating myself a lot. I have to remember to remind myself that I can't say I love any of my friends unless I learn to accept myself for who God created me to be. I'm slowly getting better with it and through that I feel my connection with Him growing stronger. Getting back to the point here, I've heard so many stories of people committing suicide because they felt unloved and worthless. That shows how heartless people in our world can be. It may not always be that, though. It may be as simple as someone jokingly saying "you're so stupid". A lot of the time we don't realize how much impact our words can have on other people and how they feel about themselves. I'm not always the best with that; I'll joke around and make fun of people. I have to remember that what I'm saying could be the deciding factor to a person about whether they live or die. We all have to realize that we can effect someone's life for the worse just as much (if not more) as we effect it for the better.

In short, be kind to one another. Thank God for His gift of Love and of Christ. Man truly can not live without love.

May God bless all of you and keep you happy and healthy!
Blessed John Paul II, pray for us!

Plug For Another Blog Of Mine...

Hey, readers! I'm sorry to do this, but I can't think of any other way to get the word out...
John and I have a blog together now - The Splendor of His Love (here's the link). There's not a lot on there now, and it might be a little slow-going at first, but it'll be really good I think.

Also, if you know of anyone on blogger who you think would like either blog of mine, tell them about it! Please? And thank you!

Sorry about that. I know it's annoying when people are like "Read my blog!!" You don't have to, and I really appreciate that you do!
God bless you!

Once

So, there's this musical called ONCE... I saw it on Broadway last week and I can really only say that it was amazing. It's a love story, however it's not a typical one inasmuch as the two in love never end up together. But it's really moving and lovely. The music has a "complex simplicity" to it and gives the whole show a kind of personal touch.
One of the best songs is called "Falling Slowly." Though it may be the most simple and least modern, its lyrics are really interesting. (I have a shirt with the lyrics on it!)
"Falling slowly, eyes that know me
And I can't go back
Moods that take me and erase me
And I'm painted black
You have suffered enough
And warred with yourself
It's time that you won
Take this sinking boat and point it home
We've still got time
Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice
You've made it now"

Here's the whole song if you're interested:

The line that I find particularly interesting is "You have suffered enough and warred with yourself, it's time that you won." For someone who's constantly arguing with herself and trying to perfect everything I do, that was a lyric that stuck out. It's important to remember that we are exactly who God wants us to be. Yes, we do make mistakes that hurt Him, but ultimately we are perfect in His eyes. We should love ourselves. I feel like a hypocrite saying that, when I've struggled with hating myself for so long, but like I said in the description of my blog, this is primarily a reminder to me. It is something that I want to effect other people, though, because I know a lot of people have trouble loving themselves today on account of the ridiculous standards the world puts on all of us to "fit in", whatever that means. 

Anyway, I hope you liked the song. It's funny what you can get out of a musical, isn't it? I think so. God bless! 

Wherever You Fall, Whenever You Call

It's been a rough week - mistakes have been made, people have gotten angry and stressed, I've been scared. But in the midst of all of this, music has really helped. On the 8 hour car ride to New York City, I listened to most of the music on my iPod. One of the songs that I hadn't really listened to in a long time was "By Your Side" by Tenth Avenue North. The lyrics really hit me, just because of everything I've been dealing with. It reminded me how much I need God in my life. Things aren't always going to work out. Nothing in life is perfect. But God is perfect, and His Love never fails. He won't leave me. He won't leave you. No matter how many times we fail and let temptation get the best of us, God's Love and Mercy is always there. We are His children. He loves us unconditionally.

Here's the song:

Something about this song...it was just what I needed to get me back into the mindset I need to be in to continue in my faith. I hope it helped you or just makes you happy :)

Nice Little Reminders From God...And From Disney-Pixar!

Isn't it amazing how something completely unexpected can make you smile every time you think about it? I was at this little Catholic bookstore with John on Easter Monday and when we walked in it was really quiet and I wondered if they were actually open even though their door was unlocked. I saw this woman peer around the corner and she looked kind of angry...at that point I was ready to say "Sorry to bother you, I guess you aren't open today...Bye!" and leave. But what she said completely surprised me: "Do you want to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet with us?" I probably should have figured that would happen -  it was a Catholic bookstore at 3 P.M. Anyway, we said yes, and went in to the room where she and a man I assume was her husband were praying. It was a nice little reminder that my day should revolve around God. The woman kept talking to us after we finished the Chaplet; I think she was really happy to have two Catholic teenagers in her store, because she asked us if we could help her sell some things this week (Which, unfortunately, we couldn't...). John and I kept smiling about it, just because both she and her husband were so sweet. It was great.

**SPOILER ALERT! IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN "UP" , THEN THIS MAY RUIN THE BEGINNING**
On an unrelated note- I've recently gone back to Pixar and Disney movies. (You're NEVER too old for a Pixar movie!!) One of my favorites is the movie "Up." If you haven't seen it, go rent it. It's so sweet. The beginning basically goes through a man's life with the woman he loves. They met when they were little kids and became fast friends, even though they came from almost completely opposite lifestyles. Her family was loud and outgoing, while his was quiet and very proper. Regardless, they got married and grew old together. The whole slideshow of their life together is silent, except for some light piano music in the background. It goes through their childhood, wedding, and married life, all until the man's wife passes away. But just watching two people who love each other so much grow old together (and without children, because they couldn't have any) is so wonderful...even if it is an animated movie. Anyway, that's my little reminder of love from Disney-Pixar.

Photos From An Easter Photoshoot

Here are a few of the best pictures from an Easter photoshoot my friend Liz and I did. (***her blog)

 I couldn't get these in any kind of order,but these are my favorites :) Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!!

Easter Joy

Christ is Risen! What a glorious day. Christ conquered death and destroyed the plans of Satan. Satan thought he had hold of Christ, but Christ was so much greater than him. How amazing our Redeemer is! He died so that we wouldn't have to suffer eternal death. There is no greater gift than His, no greater Love. "Greater Love than this no man hath, than to lay down his life for a friend." I've always loved that verse, but it's especially fitting during the Eater season. We are free thanks to our Beautiful Saviour. Thank You, Lord, for your incredible Love. You are amazing! Alleluia! To all those who were initiated into the Church last night, welcome and congratulations! May God bless all of us as we continue to share the Light of Christ with the world. Happy Easter! 

Sometimes The Little Things Turn Out To Be Bigger Than We Thought...

Today started out really badly. I had no concentration in any of my classes. I was disappointed in myself because I found out that my GPA wasn't as high as I had originally thought/hoped. That kind of thing tends to hit me hard because I'm the type of person who beats myself up when I don't live up to the expectations I have for myself. It's something I've always struggled with. Even as a little kid I was super sensitive when someone criticized something I had done. Finding out that I hadn't been doing as well as I wanted to really hurt me. I go to school with people who cry when they get a B on something and put other people down for being wrong or disagreeing with them...that's effected me a lot, which I didn't always realize. I think to myself "What would they think if they knew how I do? Would my friends leave me? Would they make fun of me like they make fun of the others?" I've been holding myself to their standards and it's not good for me. It's gotten to a point where I've had health problems because of my anxiety and have considered medication. I have to learn to be myself and not care what everyone else thinks.  Even though people kept telling me my GPA was good, I wouldn't believe them because I wanted to do as well as them and because I'm trying to change schools.
During school I called my dad to remind him that I had an extra choir rehearsal and couldn't come home until later that usual and before I hung up he said "We went to Trinity today and you were accepted, so stop worrying and just accept that you were accepted." It took so much stress off of me knowing that I was able to go where I wanted to and I felt like I could relax and finish out the year, then never have to think about the things that have made me so upset for so long ever again. I think God really does want me to relax. Now I think (and pray) that things will get better. Thank You, God, for hearing my prayers! You are amazing.

A Perfect Day

Yesterday I was out with John (the most wonderful person I know...and my boyfriend) basically all day. We spent our time with his family mainly. The day started with him dressing up as the Easter bunny for his church and making a lot of little kids really happy. I went to help him out and to spend time with his baby brother. It was so fun to watch him with all the children that were there since he's so good with kids. They loved it. It sounds weird, but I was so proud to be his girlfriend right then...well, I'm always proud to be his girlfriend. After "Breakfast with the Easter Bunny", we headed to his house. We spent probably about an hour playing with his baby brother. We had a blast with him playing basketball, "wrestling", making soft pretzels, and just being ourselves with a little 1 (almost 2) year old. When we're around little kids together,  our attitudes just change completely. We don't care about how we look - we just have FUN.
Since John is graduating high school this year and getting his feet washed at Holy Thursday Mass, he needed a new suit. His mom and I took him shopping for one. He wasn't thrilled, but it was fun to take him to do something he normally wouldn't.
Afterwards, we all went to Confession. Next to the Eucharist, I think Confession is the most important Sacrament to me. I'm definitely NOT even close to a perfect person, and I don't pretend to be. But I know that when I walk out of the confessional, I am forgiven for everything I've done wrong. How incredible is that gift? It's mind-blowing. God's Mercy is never-ending and never-failing. To think that such an immensely perfect God could love someone so flawed and forgive me time after time after time is just so beautiful.
We went to dinner, and we were going to go to a movie. This is what I mean when I say that he is truly a wonderful man: we had planned to go and see "The Lorax" (we love going to see fun movies when we're together...I know it's dorky, but I don't care!) but on the way there I started to feel really sick. I've had a lot of stomach problems lately and it's been awful for me, because I'm terrified of throwing up. So, and this is really hard for me to talk about because it shows just how vulnerable I am, but I started crying. (I generally try to be a strong person, but that clearly doesn't always happen.) We ended up not going to a movie, but sitting in his car in the parking lot and just talking about life. I was still upset and felt like I ruined his day by getting sick, and I told him this, but he just put his arm around me and tried to make me feel better. We just stayed together, him taking care of me and trying to make me laugh and forget about how I felt. I have never felt so loved and secure.
I started to feel better and so we drove to a friends house where we were going to meet up with his family again and watch the basketball game.  My best friends were there which was a great surprise. We joked around and laughed together and simply had a wonderful time.

I really like this picture :)

All in all, it was a perfect day. I thank God for all of the relationships He has given me in my life (especially mine and John's), and the wonderful people He has blessed me with, and for the incredible gift of His Mercy and Healing in the Sacrament of Confession.