“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body.”
(1 Corinthians 6 :19-20)
What have you done to your body? What have you done with your body? It is after all God’s temple, a home for His Holy Spirit. Have you given Him glory with it or insulted Him with His personal gift to you? Our culture is saturated with sexuality and abuse of our bodies, but we are called to live in a way that is not of this world, although we live in it. Many people feel that they own their bodies and that they have a right to choose what they do with their bodies, but clearly for the Christian, we do not own our bodies. They are on loan to us.
It is important to the vitality of our souls that we remember to act in a way that is more important for our spiritual health than the image of our bodies. “You don’t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body,” says C.S. Lewis. It is a difficult thing to do- stand out from the crowd, but with the hope of Heaven and Love of Christ we are compelled, comforted, and given strength to live the life we have been given.
Are you an image of chastity in the world? Is your body treated like God’s temple and do others see it you believing that? “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Phil 4:13
Love and warm wishes!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Friday, October 14, 2011
Ridiculously in Love?
A couple weeks ago I learned a secret about a friend of mine. It was something I was shocked she and many of my other friends had kept secret for quite some time because she was afraid of me. She was simply afraid that I would judge her. I was so hurt by learning about this whole thing and at quite a loss for what to do about it. How could she every think that I would judge her?! I texted another friend about that part and her response was not the one I was suspecting. She simply wrote back something like, “I guess that means that as Christians we need to be more obvious about sharing God’s love.”
Apparently that was just the thing. Friend #1 had thought that just because my faith is so deep that I would judge her, yet here is my other friend pointing out an excellent truth. We do need to care more about living out our Lord’s gospel of love. How often do we let moments slip by us that are opportune for such acts or words of love? How crazy has Christianity gotten that friends are afraid to share a part of themselves because they think others will judge them? This is not Christianity. The Christian lifestyle is one that is a manifestation of love, yet it has turned into one that is full of controversy and disputes.
Throughout the New Testament we learn that “God is love” (1Jn3), God loves us, everything God does is for love of us, and since we are made in His image- we are alive for the purpose of love. I believe it was St. Augustine who wrote, “We should preach the gospel at all times, and only use words when necessary.” What has happened to us? Christianity is not just a believe system or list of truths, but it is a lifestyle. A Christian is someone who lives the Christian lifestyle, although it must be remembered that Christ came to call sinners just as a doctor comes to heal the sick. Still though, what’s happened to us and how culture views us?
It was hard not to notice at World Youth Day just how many we, the youth, are. We are the youth, we are tomorrow, and we are followers of Christ. It is so easy for us to be our true selves with others like us but when it comes to truly preaching the Gospel we get scared. We go lame. If we are truly tomorrow and we truly want there to be a better tomorrow then we need to step up our game, pick up our cross, and rely on the strength of our Lord for guidance. Mother Angelic once said, “Unless you are willing to do the ridiculous, God will not do the miraculous.” How ridiculously in living out love are we willing to be?
and so to you, here is some love and warm wishes!
Apparently that was just the thing. Friend #1 had thought that just because my faith is so deep that I would judge her, yet here is my other friend pointing out an excellent truth. We do need to care more about living out our Lord’s gospel of love. How often do we let moments slip by us that are opportune for such acts or words of love? How crazy has Christianity gotten that friends are afraid to share a part of themselves because they think others will judge them? This is not Christianity. The Christian lifestyle is one that is a manifestation of love, yet it has turned into one that is full of controversy and disputes.
Throughout the New Testament we learn that “God is love” (1Jn3), God loves us, everything God does is for love of us, and since we are made in His image- we are alive for the purpose of love. I believe it was St. Augustine who wrote, “We should preach the gospel at all times, and only use words when necessary.” What has happened to us? Christianity is not just a believe system or list of truths, but it is a lifestyle. A Christian is someone who lives the Christian lifestyle, although it must be remembered that Christ came to call sinners just as a doctor comes to heal the sick. Still though, what’s happened to us and how culture views us?
It was hard not to notice at World Youth Day just how many we, the youth, are. We are the youth, we are tomorrow, and we are followers of Christ. It is so easy for us to be our true selves with others like us but when it comes to truly preaching the Gospel we get scared. We go lame. If we are truly tomorrow and we truly want there to be a better tomorrow then we need to step up our game, pick up our cross, and rely on the strength of our Lord for guidance. Mother Angelic once said, “Unless you are willing to do the ridiculous, God will not do the miraculous.” How ridiculously in living out love are we willing to be?
and so to you, here is some love and warm wishes!
Friday, October 7, 2011
Big Brother
While in Maryland this past summer, I joined a young adult group at the local parish, and although different off-topic discussions stick out in my memory, one comment in particular that was actually on topic that night, really sticks out to me: “It’s sounds really crazy doesn’t it? Catholics have dead people for friends.” …Or at least it was something to that affect. But it’s true. We have the saints who intercede for us constantly, and on occasion there are a few who even seek us out it feels like. After all, if they’re living with Christ Himself, then they’re truly more alive than we are now. Why can’t our Lord use them to still preach His love?
There’s a couple saints in my life who seem to be having an influence on me, and one in particular who I feel like the Holy Spirit is occasionally talks directly to me through: Padre Pio. Respected mystic from the early 20th century and a stigmatic. He suffered the wounds of Christ and is portrayed as helping Christ to carry His cross in my favorite sculpture of Pio in Roma. Last year at this time I had only heard that Pio was a “really cool guy.” In my search to better know and understand the saints and their teachings, I decided to ask for a daily devotional with the writings of Pio for Christmas. I have spent the last 10 months reading a verse or two of scripture followed by a piece of a letter from our big brother in the Christian family. ¾ of the time, the daily reading is exactly what I needed to hear that day. So often I have found comfort in his words that on more than one occasion I’ve been completely convinced that the Holy Spirit had him write these words down while he was alive for me to read in the future, especially when he addressed his spiritual daughter. These bits and pieces of his letters have left me hungry to know him better. No doubt, one who suffers from the stigmata is a worthy person to look to for guidance. He’s becoming a very influential spiritual mentor to me through his writings.
Another one who was introduced to me by one of my best friends is Therese of Lisieux. During my senior year in high school, this friend confided to me that Therese was basically her patron saint. She had prayed a novena to Therese for intercession for a healing of a horrible skin issue and with no medical reason, she was healed. I had mentally put Therese’s name in my mental filing cabinet of “Really Cool Saints to Remember” at the time and thought little more of it over the course of the next year or so. That is until this friend gave me a copy of the Little Flower’s autobiography for Christmas. How could I not read it? Although I found it dry and nearly unbearable at first, I eventually realized that these were her actual words. I was getting to know who she really was, and I soon tried to be engrossed as I could be in the reading style. Her messages of little acts of love and total desire for our Lord are inspiring ideas to me. I have found it shocking just how much this one idea of love is reflected in Bl. Mother Theresa of Calcutta. Probably the thing that shocks me most about this spiritual big sister is that she died at the age of 23. She was so close to the age I am now, yet so wise.
Two more saints whose influences are growing in my life are Theresa of Avila and John Paul II. Have you read any of the works by these people? If not, then you really should pull up Amazon right now and find something by one of these great spiritual brother and sisters that the Holy Spirit worked within so much that they’ve left lasting impressions on the Church. Christ gave us Himself to look to for an example of how to live, and then He gave us these people who were meant to help guide others closer to Him. He is continually reaching out to us in the Eucharist, Mass, and through people (and probably in more ways than we can notice), but are we seeing Him or seeking Him in these people? Are we ignoring what He’s done and is doing through them?
Love and warm wishes!
There’s a couple saints in my life who seem to be having an influence on me, and one in particular who I feel like the Holy Spirit is occasionally talks directly to me through: Padre Pio. Respected mystic from the early 20th century and a stigmatic. He suffered the wounds of Christ and is portrayed as helping Christ to carry His cross in my favorite sculpture of Pio in Roma. Last year at this time I had only heard that Pio was a “really cool guy.” In my search to better know and understand the saints and their teachings, I decided to ask for a daily devotional with the writings of Pio for Christmas. I have spent the last 10 months reading a verse or two of scripture followed by a piece of a letter from our big brother in the Christian family. ¾ of the time, the daily reading is exactly what I needed to hear that day. So often I have found comfort in his words that on more than one occasion I’ve been completely convinced that the Holy Spirit had him write these words down while he was alive for me to read in the future, especially when he addressed his spiritual daughter. These bits and pieces of his letters have left me hungry to know him better. No doubt, one who suffers from the stigmata is a worthy person to look to for guidance. He’s becoming a very influential spiritual mentor to me through his writings.
Another one who was introduced to me by one of my best friends is Therese of Lisieux. During my senior year in high school, this friend confided to me that Therese was basically her patron saint. She had prayed a novena to Therese for intercession for a healing of a horrible skin issue and with no medical reason, she was healed. I had mentally put Therese’s name in my mental filing cabinet of “Really Cool Saints to Remember” at the time and thought little more of it over the course of the next year or so. That is until this friend gave me a copy of the Little Flower’s autobiography for Christmas. How could I not read it? Although I found it dry and nearly unbearable at first, I eventually realized that these were her actual words. I was getting to know who she really was, and I soon tried to be engrossed as I could be in the reading style. Her messages of little acts of love and total desire for our Lord are inspiring ideas to me. I have found it shocking just how much this one idea of love is reflected in Bl. Mother Theresa of Calcutta. Probably the thing that shocks me most about this spiritual big sister is that she died at the age of 23. She was so close to the age I am now, yet so wise.
Two more saints whose influences are growing in my life are Theresa of Avila and John Paul II. Have you read any of the works by these people? If not, then you really should pull up Amazon right now and find something by one of these great spiritual brother and sisters that the Holy Spirit worked within so much that they’ve left lasting impressions on the Church. Christ gave us Himself to look to for an example of how to live, and then He gave us these people who were meant to help guide others closer to Him. He is continually reaching out to us in the Eucharist, Mass, and through people (and probably in more ways than we can notice), but are we seeing Him or seeking Him in these people? Are we ignoring what He’s done and is doing through them?
Love and warm wishes!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)