Crown of Creation

This past weekend I attended ‘Princess Diaries‘ that Toronto SFC hosted for all the sisters. I was excited to just be a participant and not have to worry about serving. But then a week before the event, Renee, the GTA West Head asked me if I could lead the Praisefest for Saturday night. And you know what happened that whole week before the event? PANIC.

I was so mentally drained from trying to figure out the dynamics of a worship, the order of the songs, the prayers that go before the songs, the appropriate songs, the transitions, and everything else in between. On Friday morning I reached some point of mental desperation and just exasperatedly told God that he really should have chosen someone else.

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To understand this more let’s look at the three  desires planted in every woman’s heart:

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a) the desire to be romanced
b) the desire to play an irreplaceable role in an adventure
c) the desire to unveil beauty

Those desires are often misunderstood which is why a lot of sisters end up broken. We turn to the wrong sources to fill the void. I myself sought those desires out in multiple people, men boys who had no other agenda other than to fulfill their own desires.

Fifteen minutes before the session ended (New Heartbeats) He granted me the grace and wisdom to finally see all the pieces come together. And when it finally sank in, I could not contain the peace, joy and love that was pouring out of my own heart!

He said,

“My dearest Therese. These desires are not something to be afraid of. Do not deny yourself these desires because each one will lead you closer to me. Do you not already know that every movement in your heart is known to me? I fashioned that very thing that beats inside of you. Unite it with my sacred heart and will understand better the plans I have for you, as woman.”

 

THE DESIRE TO BE ROMANCED, I placed in you so that you will come to me in Adoration. I will embrace every part of you in the silence. Come to me, and I will pour myself out to you. Do not be afraid to glance out at me for I long to look out at your face. Each time you come, the heavens rejoice. This is where you belong, this is where you are meant to be- here with me. My beloved I have waited for you and you are finally here! Have FAITH that I am here.

THE DESIRE TO PLAY AN IRREPLACEABLE ROLE, I placed in you so that you will come to the House of Worship and receive me in the Holy Eucharist. Come to me exactly as you are. You say to me, Lord but I am broken, battered, shattered.  And His reply: “But I NEED YOU. YES, YOU.” From the moment you receive me on your tongue you become the ultimate living tabernacle and you are NO longer broken, battered, shattered. I pour out my Holy Spirit within you, and my love which is far more precious than gold will bind you back together. There will always be HOPE.

THE DESIRE TO UNVEIL BEAUTY, I placed in you so that you will come to me in Confession. No sin you’ve committed, no sin that you are committing, no sin that you will commit can ever be too much for my cross. Nothing is more beautiful than a woman who humbles herself and acknowledges her weaknesses and limitations. All those layers you choose to hide behind, the masks you choose to wear around you will all be washed away. In every single instance, you come out as clean and pure just as I intended for you to be. I meet you with nothing but LOVE.

Wow. Praise the Lord. I could not contain myself in that tiny little seat. The Lord fulfilled ALL THOSE DESIRES in me within the past 24hrs! He granted me my trinity run; Adoration at Our Lady of Lourdes the night before, Confession before the last session, and Eucharist shortly after. The Lord loved me so much that He made straight my paths right before I stood before my sisters with a heart that was now READY AND WILLING.

“You, eternal trinity, are a deep sea. The more I enter you, the more I discover, and the more I discover, the more I seek you.”- St. Catherine of Siena

Amen.

Heaviness

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     “Why do we go to the gym? To exercise and become stronger. When you are standing in front of the weights and you are about to lift them, you don’t expect them to be easy to lift right? Of course not! You expect them to be heavy. You expect to struggle. But after you finish your set, you will return another day and lift heavier weights. It is the same with temptations. We should never expect the temptations to be easy, they will always be hard to overcome. However, whenever we are victorious, we will be ready to face heavier temptations. We should embrace temptations joyfully and know that we will become stronger because of them.”

     I honour those who are able to go to Confession immediately after they know they have sinned. It’s like applying alcohol immediately after you receive a wound (and a deep wound at that!). I have a tendency of intentionally waiting for the scheduled Confession times and I realized how cowardly I am! It would be understandable if the priest was unavailable or my schedule would not allow me to go, but the intention should be there.

     Lord, grant me the humility to place the salvation of others and my own as the top priority in my life.

     The Lord graciously paved a way for me to go to Confession right after I realized my sin. As I headed to the parish, I knew that the Lord would “slap me in the face,” in the way He would adjust my attitude towards my wrongs and remind me to be accountable for my actions. Honestly, there is always a small part of me that is extremely scared to own up to my actions (generally replacing accountability with excuses), because my humanity produces thoughts of the possibility that the Lord may not forgive me this time. We will never completely grasp His unconditional love for us and the length of His infinite mercy.

     The priest who received my Confession gave me the spiritual direction that was mentioned in the beginning (paraphrased of course). I’ve never looked at temptation in this way. I can then look at the evil one with confidence knowing that the Lord has allowed these temptations to come my way, only as a way for me to strengthen my faith and ultimately closer to Him. Praise God for temptations.

Lord, allow me to remain steadfast in spiritual battles. May I have confidence in your never ending mercy and trust in your immense love for me. Thank You for the times that I have fallen and most especially for allowing me the grace to come back to You every time.