Shining Light From Within

Tomorrow, we have our diocesan deacon ordination.  We know three of the young men who are dedicating their whole lives to Christ in this step to becoming a priest. 

I always love going to ordinations, weddings, and final vows for religious.  You look at those participating in the sacrament and ceremony and you just sense this light of joy that radiates from them.  It's the feeling of content in knowing that they are following God's will for their lives.

When I go to youth conferences, I'm always drawn by those going to these conferences to get to know God better.  You see it on their faces in Eucharistic adoration.  You see it when they are witnessing to others in the halls and when they are fully engaged in the speakers.  It's a light and a peace that they give off that shows they are in tune with God's will.

I want that light.  I want it so badly.  And even though I'm incredibly happy for those getting ordained/final vows/married, I'm also jealous.  I sit there and wonder what God's plan for me is.  What pathway do I need to take to allow me to be open for God's light to shine through me so that I can experience what they have - that absolute joy? 

It's completely possible to discover.  A lot of prayer, Scriptures, Masses, Sacraments and alone time with God can bring it about.  It also takes being open to His will, which is something I struggle with.  I've talked about how God can't give us all the gifts He wants when we have our hands closed, clutching desperately onto our own plans for our "perfect life."  It's a struggle to let go of what you think will make you happy and readily accept plans that you don't even fully understand or know about.  Yet it pay off amazingly.  

I just pray that I can let go of my plans and let God take over with His amazing story for my life.  We are all put on this earth for a reason - none of us are mistakes.  God has a plan for everyone, and even though we don't understand,  it's going to be one incredible journey.

Congratulations to tomorrow's deacons!

God bless,

Chloe M. 

You are more beautiful than you think you are.  True Fact.  Some of you may have seen the beauty campaign that Dove put on, the commercials or youtube videos on True Beauty Sketches.  If you haven't seen them, then check this video out real quick:

In all reality, only four percent of women think they are actually beautiful.  As you may have noticed in the video, the things that the women described don't even cross the stranger's mind as he or she describes the same woman.  One woman complained about her weight, but the stranger's description didn't say anything about her face being round.  

Art students have commented on this video and describe this happening in a self-portrait class.  Each self-portrait was degrading to the artist because they drew themselves and they saw themselves - which was not in a good light.  But when the picture was drawn as they pretend to see themselves from the outside, the real semblance came out.  

We are too hard on ourselves.  We spend time thinking how pretty someone else is, how great that person dresses and how ugly we are.  This can be seen as young as grade school and continues all the way up the age brackets.  And those who we see as so amazingly beautiful may be struggling with their own self confidence, too.

Where is the root of the problem?  It is in the fact of comparison.  We can't look at ourselves and see the beauty of being created as a child of God.  All we can look and see is what we don't have, not what we've been blessed with.

One group who is trying to help women with seeing their own beauty, both inside and out, is Verily Magazine.

Their mission is to help you be an authentic young woman in the 21st century.  They shine in the midst of magazines like Cosmo and Glamour, who try to convince women that 

they are not skinny, pretty, or tall enough.  The first issue of
Verily comes out this June.  They also have an awesome website: www.verilymag.com.

Check them out - and know that you are more beautiful than you could ever imagine.

God bless,

Chloe M.  

-1-
We had an awesome Bible study
last Friday night where we were able to 

talk about the hardest aspect of defending
the Catholic faith was for each person.
It was a really great conversation - thanks
youth group!

-2-
I only have two Saturdays left this month where
I'll be working eight hour days.  In June my
schedule goes down to just two Saturdays
a month where I have to work - and it's only four hours!

-3-
I was at the gym watching TV and
ran across this special about the Hope Diamond.
Guys - it was awesome.  Plus, I realized how
much I love history.  Hmmm....college
major anyone?

-4-
Mother's Day is this weekend - are you
ready?  Remember to thank your mom
for doing all she does.  Lifeteen
has some awesome articles.
I especially liked the letter to Mary thanking
her for being our mother.

-5-
For snapchat users:  Research
has come out that shows that your photos
aren't actually deleted after ten seconds...
please use common sense and Christian
wisdom when sending pictures: Article

-6-
Do you know what is addicting?
Words With Friends.
Enough said.

-7-
Countdown to Freshman
Orientation: thirteen days!
Everyone in the blogging
world seems to be talking about
graduation....I'm just starting!

God bless,

Chloe M.  

What a Jar of Marbles Can Teach You. 

     There is an old e-mail, that I'm sure is circulating, that tells of an older gentleman who loved his Saturdays.  It was the one day of the week where he didn't have to get up and go somewhere and he didn't plan anything.  He loved Saturdays so much that he calculated how many Saturdays he would have left.  He knew there were 52 Saturdays in a year, and that his life expectancy would be around 75 years.  He multiplied the two numbers and got 3900. Then he realized that he was already getting old, and he guessed he had about a thousand Saturdays left.

     He went out to the toy store and bought one thousand marbles and a huge glass jar.  Each Saturday, he woke up in the morning and threw away one marble.  It didn't seem to make a difference at first, but slowly and surely, the jar started getting emptier and emptier.  Each Saturday brought with it new challenges and joys, each of which were more appreciated since the man now realized that with each passing week, the marbles quickly diminished.  He kept the jar close and always knew it would serve as a reminder to not let a day pass by without realizing it was a gift.

     How does this apply? As I'm typing this, I realize how busy I am.  Everyday, I get up and go to work, come home for lunch, go back to work, come home, go to bed, and wake up to start everything over again.  I looked at the calendar and realized that April is done and May is not only here, but it's also already 1/5 of the way done.  Where does the time go?  Blink twice and I'll be in college classes, and look again and I'll be in my twenties.

     The point I'm trying to make is that we need to live every day as if it is a gift - not just Saturdays, either.  Every day we have the ability to impact someone's life - and be Christ's hands and feet for them.  What a marble-ous opportunity.  
God bless,

Chloe M.  

   

-1-

Yes, I know how early it is right now.  The funnier
thing is that I actually have today off from work.
I woke up, looked at my phone which said 5:40 am
and somewhere in my weird mind that meant "time to get up."
I do not know why.  So I made cinnamon rolls. Which
are always the answer, right?

-2-

Guys, it cannot get any better than this: Resale Royalty
It's a new show on the style network that premieres on May 12th
at 9/8C.  It's about a family run consignment store.  It will probably turn
sour quick with language and junk - but the idea is fantastic!

-3-

The reason I took off work today is because
of a homeschool graduate blessing at Mass this afternoon.
The joint reception for graduates and first communicates
was supposed to be at the Church's playground and outdoor shelter.
But we got hit with that freak snow/rain/hail/sleet storm, so we'll
be inside playing board games....which sounds like my kind of party.

-4-

We also have Bible Study tonight with the youth group.
I love Bible Study.  It is usually the only time I get to see the youth
group because of my work schedule.  It also is the cause for the cinnamon
rolls I'm baking now.  Win-win, I tell ya!

-5-

I. Love. This. T-Shirt.  It is the most awesome
homeschooler shirt I've ever seen.  Inside the "13" is the
descriptions for yearbook - ie "class clown," "most
likely to succeed."  The awesome thing about being in a
homeschooled class of ones, I'm all those things tied into one - with
no competition! Bam!

-6-

It's a sad day in America when girls as young as 15

can get the morning after pill.  Regardless of what the media
has been saying (lying) about it, the morning
after pill is an abortifacient.  But this administration
doesn't want girls to be "punished with a baby" (Obama).

Without having to have parental permission
for the drug now, it's untold how many innocent lives will be
snuffed out without anyone noticing.
Mother Mary, protect us and shield us with your mantel.

-7-

It has not been a good week in the fix-it
department around our house. Thursday the refrigerator
filter broke and flooded our hardwood kitchen floor, and then
preceded to soak the basement ceiling.  The boys broke
their light/fan in their room when they decided to sword fight
the fan (they won!) and then Liam saw to it that Mom's sidetable
saw some damage.  I'm afraid now that I'm going to break something....like
my arm, with my luck.  This will be a very cautiuous weekend,
let me tell you!

Have a great weekend and God Bless!

Chloe M.  

-1-

I'm so sorry for the length of time that has
passed since I have last written a post.  Life
is SO crazy right now...and it just seems
like each week is flying by so quickly that all

I can do is hold on for the ride.

-2-
It's official!  I have graduated!  I'll
get my diploma from Seton Home Study
hopefully by next Monday,and my final transcripts
have been sent to my college!  It's exciting,
and yet at the same time, I hate change.
Ah well, it's part of life.

-3-
Is it just me, or is there something going on
every day in the month of May?  We've tallied it up
and on our schedule we have six graduations, one wedding,
one ordination, one big family birthday celebration,
and finals for the other kid's school.  Like I said....crazy.

-4-
I did a massive closet purge yesterday.  I have three big bags
to sell to our local consignment store and one hug bag to donate
to Goodwill.  My room is beautifully clean - it's amazing how
calming that is.

-5-
Last weekend we went to a debate between our
School of Faith teacher and atheists.  It was epic, and
made me appreciate my Catholic stance on morality and
God so much more.  And the fact that I stink at debating.
Oh well, we all have our weaknesses.

-6-
Does anyone have any good, more "modern"
books that they would recommend?  I have burnt through
so many books this week because every one that I
picked out either had profanity, immorality, or cussing while
doing immoral things....so any recommendations would
be much appreciated.

-7-
I ran across this couple's awesome story
through Life Teen - what a cool couple and
they have beautiful things to say about Catholic Marriage.
Check out one of his multiple posts here
and their blog here.

Have a blessed weekend, everyone!

Chloe M.  

It's So Easy to Give Up

It is very easy for me to get excited about something and then give up after it gets hard.  For instance, I would love to say that it is easy for me to read my Bible.  It isn't, though.  It takes a lot of effort on my part to stop what I'm doing, sit down, and spend some quality "you and me" time with God.   There are dry spots when I feel like just giving up, but I try to keep going because I know that it is in those times that I'm drawing even closer to God.

Giving up is easy to do, though.  Sometimes it's not just giving up on Bible time or morning Mass, though.  Sometimes it's giving up on Church, or on the Catholic faith all together.  Although this seems like a huge jump, it's not -  the whole process is a slippery slope that is so easy to slide all the way down on.  This is manifested in these facts:


 October 2008, The Cardinal Newman Society published a comprehensive study of practices and beliefs of current and recent students at Catholic colleges and universities. The study, conducted by the reputable Washington, D.C., polling firm QEV Analytics, found that:

-Nearly 1 in 5 respondents knew another student who had or paid for an abortion.

-46% of current and recent students—and 50% of females—said they engaged in sex outside of marriage.

-84% said they had friends who engaged in premarital sex.

-60% agreed strongly or somewhat that abortion should be legal.

-60% agreed strongly or somewhat that premarital sex is not a sin.

-78% disagreed strongly or somewhat that using a condom to prevent pregnancy was a serious sin.

-57% agreed strongly or somewhat that same-sex “marriage” should be legal.

-57% said the experience of attending a Catholic college or university had no effect on their participation in Mass and the sacrament of reconciliation.

-54% of respondents said that their experience of attending a Catholic college or university had no effect on their support for the teachings of the Catholic Church.

-56% said their experience had no effect on their respect for the Pope and bishops.
See?  It's pretty easy to give up on a faith that you have had for eighteen years.  It's time to fall in love with our faith.  It's time to make our faith our own - to make a commitment to stick with it through thick and thin.  If Mother Teresa could have dry spells in her faith life, you probably will to.  


The true test comes by what you do when you don't think you can hold on any longer.  When you don't want to get up and go to Mass, or go to confession, or pray any more.

Saint Catherine of Sienna said, in a conversation with Christ: ""Where were thou, my divine Spouse, while I lay in such an abandoned, frightful condition?" She heard a voice saying, "Daughter, I was in thy heart, fortifying thee by grace."  Christ is right there beside you - all you have to do is turn back and run to Him. 

God bless,

Chloe M.