Love's Revelation

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To love another, you must love Christ first,
because only from Christ can true love flow.
Realize that the love you share is fleeting,
but His love is eternal.

You will be selfish.
You will be unkind.
You will disappoint.
You are man.

But do not despair.
Seek Him.

He is selfless.
He is kind.
He satisfies.
He is Christ.

The reason you love is to
reveal Him to the one you love.
To secure her salvation,
bask her in His glory forever.

Seek first the kingdom of God,
and all these things shall be added unto you.
Matthew 6:33

The Love of Your Life!

A friend of mine recently posted on her Facebook this quote from Nicholas Sparks:

"A guy out there was meant to be the love of your life, your best friend, your soul mate, the one you can tell your dreams to. Send you flowers when you least expect it. He’ll call to say goodnight or just cause he is missing you. He’ll look in your eyes and tell you, you’re the most beautiful girl in the world, and for the first time in your life, you’ll believe it."

It got me thinking...

She dreams of knowing this man's name.

She wants to meet him right this minute.

But she does.

And she can.

His name is Jesus,

and she can meet him right in her own heart.

Jesus is the love of your life.

He is your best friend.

He is your soul mate.

You can tell him your dreams,

and he will help you attain them.

He sends you graces when you least expect them.

He'll come to you in the night,

bring comfort to you when you are alone.

He misses you when you separate yourself from him.

Come to know him,

and he will show you that you are the most beautiful person in the world.
And for the first time in your life,

you'll truly believe it.

Jesus is the love of your life.

Any other love is just a physical manifestation of his infinite, divine love for you.

Once you have it, nothing will ever separate you from it.

Not even death.

Children

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Our life as Catholic Christians is like a child learning to walk.

First, a child will stand up, support themselves with their hands on a table, and enjoy their newfound height. As soon as the child stands up, the parents begin encouraging the child to walk toward them. After some time, the child will reluctantly release his grip on the table and begin to walk toward his father or mother. Invariably, the child will fall down. How does the mother or father react to this fall? Do they yell at their child angrily,
"You're terrible! How dare you fall! You are a terrible child because you fell!"
No! The father will proudly pick up his child and tell him, "Try again!"
After many falls and much encouragement and help from his father, the child will finally walk.

Such is our relationship with God the Father. When we fall, God does not shake his head in disgust and get angry at us! He instead picks us up, brushes us off, and tells us to try again. He is proud of us for trying, knowing that we will eventually walk to him.

Never forget that God is our father. Our REAL father. He will never abandon us when we fall.

"For I was hungry and you gave me food..."

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On the way home from campus this afternoon, I stopped at the bank to drain more money out of my bank account. As I approached the building, I passed by a young lady standing up against the wall. She wore a lot of makeup, wearing a gray t-shirt that was a little too large for her thin frame. Her long brown hair descended to her shoulders in a rather unkempt manner, adding to her "rough" appearance.

As I passed by her on the sidewalk, she spoke up.

"Can you help me out with a few dollars?"

I stopped and looked at her.

"I need to get a hotel room for the night."

Rather reflexively, I lied, "Hey, I'm a college student, if I had the money, I'd give it to you; sadly, I don't."

She pressed me no further, and I walked away.

I have plenty of money in my bank account.

Later on the drive home, I began to ponder my decision. Why did I choose not to help? Her rough appearance had led me to believe that she must be abusing substances, and I certainly wouldn't want to contribute anything toward a destructive habit.

But Matthew 25:35 kept running through me head:

"For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me..."

I hoped she didn't notice the two crosses that hung from my neck. I hoped she didn't think:

Another Christian refusing to help me.

I judged upon her upon her appearance. But it's not my responsibility to judge. It's my responsibility to love and to be charitable...To welcome a stranger.

But I didn't and I wasn't.

I failed at being a Christian.

If I were fully confident she wasn't going to use the money on a destructive habit, I would have given willingly...But that's a moot point.

I judged instead of loved.

And that is unbecoming of the crosses around my neck.

A love poem for my Savior in the Most Blessed Sacrament

You shine down upon me,

a light in the darkness.

I gaze into your face,

you know my heart.

Every day I fall more in love,

every day you teach me how.

Draw close, my love,

you are with me when the world

leads me astray.

You come before me,

I gaze into your beauty,

then drop down, unworthy.

You pick me up,

my body trembles.

One touch and I feel

the warmth of your embrace.

Pour out your graces

into my heart,

pour into me your love

that shines forth.

Help me then to pour it out,

shine your love on those

who dwell in darkness.

The only greater joy

than to be loved

is to love.

There is no greater love

than you, my savior.

You are Love.

Acts of the Apostles

I am currently writing a paper on the conversion and ministry of Saint Paul...What an awesome thing to write about!

Reading through the entire book of Acts (which is my new favorite book, by the way), a few things really stuck out to me...

Every time I've read the Bible in the past, there has always been a separation between me and the people within those books. They're people who lived in a completely different society thousands of years ago, who have little to no connection to me. They're distant...Perhaps like God seems distant sometimes?

But reading through Acts has been a completely different experience. Reading about the early disciples has been an astounding experience. I read about these people...Peter, Paul, Stephen, Barnabas - all of them...and don't feel like they're distant. I feel like they're brothers. Literally brothers! It's a cool feeling...I wish I could describe it better, but I should be writing my paper, not writing on here...

It's amazing how awesome scripture can be when the Holy Spirit gives you the eyes to read it.

Besides the feeling of brotherhood that Acts has elicited, I also love how it's packed with examples of how we should react when we are persecuted. The vivid account of the execution of Saint Stephen, the first martyr, is one of these examples:

"They kept on stoning Stephen as he called out to the Lord, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!' He knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, 'Lord! Do not remember this sin against them!' He said this and died."
-Acts 7:59-60

I really don't think I could act with such humility, but what an example to take to heart!

If you haven't read through Acts, you should. It will only take a couple hours, and every minute is a joy.

Now back to writing that paper...

Enjoy

No words. Just this: