Holiness from Calcutta

~ Laura ~ 5 Comments

If I had to choose favorite saints (because who can pick just one?), mine would be St. Joan of Arc, (soon to be saint) Mother Teresa, and St. Gianna Molla. Today is the day that will be Mother Teresa’s feast day! We don’t celebrate it officially yet because she’s not quite officially recognized as a saint. But who wouldn’t take the opportunity to talk about her?

Mother Teresa inspires me so much because she gave up so much to run after God. Visiting sisters in her order over spring break showed me how radically different they live which was crazy awesome. They get up at 4am to serve people, and constantly smile. It was so beautiful! Part of why I love Mother Teresa is because she followed God no matter what. People think you’re crazy? Ain’t nobody got time fo that negativity. Love ’em anyway! Sick people? Love ’em! Crazy people? Love ’em! Poor people? Love ’em! We’re all people who long to love and be loved. Her life is a beautiful example of what that looks like.

She embodied the whole Christian idea of loving all our brothers and sisters. No matter what. She would help anyone, love anyone, but never backed down from what she believed in. Maybe that’s part of why I like her too – because I need to work on that more (the whole being nice and loving with truth). And another funny thing? I did the Myers-Briggs four letter personality thing and it said I had the same personality as her. Now that’s a lot to live up to!

There are so many quotes from Mother Teresa that I love. Here’s a poster I have on my wall (which is one of my favorites).DSCN7165

Read through the meditation I thirst for you (which you can order brochures of for free, and I have a whole stack of on my desk), and read her 7 steps to a holier life (ha, I must really like her because this is hanging on my door as well). Okay, yup. She’s also hanging out on our suite wall. So you could say she’s pretty awesome. Also, check out these pictures.

 

Mother Teresa // Inspirational Quote // Friendship Gift // Quote Art on Etsy, $20.27 AUD

"We may never know all the good that a simple smile can do." - Mother Teresa

"Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We only have today. Let us begin." - Mother Teresa

Gah! Can you even handle the holiness here?!?! I just love her. What are some of your favorite quotes from her? The prayer she said everyday (Radiating Christ) has also become a favorite of mine:

Dear Jesus, help me to spread Your fragrance wherever I go.
Flood my soul with Your spirit and life.
Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly, that my life may only be a radiance of Yours.
Shine through me, and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel Your presence in my soul.
Let them look up and see no longer me, but only Jesus!
Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as You shine, so to shine as to be a light to others.
The light, O Jesus, will be all from You; none of it will be mine.
It will be you, shining on others through me.
Let me thus praise You the way You love best, by shining on those around me.
Let me preach You without preaching, not by words but by my example, by the catching force of the sympathetic influence of what I do,
the evident fullness of the love my heart bears to You.
Amen.

BOOM. Your day just got more holy. Now go out and be awesome!

To Life,

signature

 

 

 

P.S. Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’ or by email!

 

 

The time is now.

~ Laura ~ 7 Comments

In the last couple years God has opened so many doors for me. I could never, ever, have expected my life to be like this even 4 years ago. At that time, I was in musicals and plugging along in high school: not really passionate about much, or knowing where I wanted to go with my life. But then.

Then, folks, I found the pro-life movement.

It hit me when I was in a sea of people at the West Coast Walk for Life in 2011. There was something bigger than myself out there, and that was when I first discovered it. Since then I’ve been immensely blessed with opportunities to work with and for incredible people. I’ve read so many books. And I am constantly learning more online about all sorts of faith, life, and womanhood topics. Now I write about them. I’ve found my passion.

But I still couldn’t get over the fact that I have failed at so much.

This summer I worked more hours than I ever have before, but I also experienced boredom unlike I have before. It was kind of weird because I go, go, go. Being busy drives me and motivates me. I am a doer, a leader, and someone who gets things done. So it was unusual to have time on my hands. Looking back, I certainly know I wasted some of it.

Then I thought “What if my life ended tomorrow? What would I have to show for everything God has given me?”. It was kind of a paralyzing realization. I’ve read Matthew Kelly’s books, so the concept of becoming the best version of myself wasn’t a foreign concept. I knew we’re all made for greatness. But I never really did much about it.

Many people have made comments about how awesome the work I do is. And yes, I have served lots of other people and learned so much. But it’s all because of the opportunities God has given me. It was nice to hear, but it never really felt true. I was organized, sure. And passionate about life. But did you know how messy my desk can get? Or how I forgot to hand in an assignment? Or how I wished I could do so much . . . but never did it?

Well, that’s over.

It’s not because I had a revelation about making my life efficient and figuring out how to do ALL the things. Nope. I began praying a lot. I asked God to use me for whatever purpose he made me for, and for him to guide me in becoming the best version of myself.

And oh my goodness. I’m sitting here at almost 2am writing because I am just so dang excited about LIFE.

I’ve struggled a lot with making myself do what I already know I should be doing. I know I should take time to pray, and exercise, and eat better. And now I am.

Everyday of the week, I’m getting up at 6:15 to exercise before class or work which start at 9am. Because I can. And I should. I’ve signed up for adoration two times a week. Because I can. And I should. Classes are going pretty well without procrastinating on homework. Because I can. And I should.

Yesterday morning I got up before the sun, threw on workout clothes, and blasted some soul-searching “Edge of Glory” as I headed out of my dorm. I jogged around the track and for crying out loud I couldn’t stop smiling. The sun was gorgeous as it rose, the wind (which wasn’t too humid yet!) was blowing through my hair, music was blasting, and peace. It was so peaceful. When that peace happens, I know God has given me a little glimpse into what his will for me is.

He wills for me to be dare to live me life abandoning my will to his. He dares me to live life on the edge of glory, fearlessly pursuing the plans he has for me. He dares me to spend time on what really matters, and to never give less than my best.

I am done giving less than my best. That is not who I am. I am a daughter of God, and he has better plans for me than procrastination and wasted time. His plans are so great that I can’t even imagine where I’ll be in another 4 years. It’s exciting, terrifying, and more than anything? Exhilarating. Pursing excellence and greatness is exhilarating. You know that little burst of energy you get while running when you want to stop, but then the most epic song comes on and you’re ready for another mile? Yeah, that’s what it felt like yesterday morning. And it felt right.

Mediocrity isn’t enough. So this is my pledge to do better. To continue to do better. To strive for greatness. After all:

The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness. - Pope Benedict

To Life,

signature

 

 

 

P.S. Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’ or by email!

 

P.P.S. You know what’s really funny? After writing this last night, I slept through my 6:15 alarm for the first time. And now I’m cracking up because God has a sense of humor about the timing of this apparently. 🙂

NAS: We’re Baaack!

~ Laura ~ 2 Comments

We are back! As we get into the swing of things with NAS, what other ways can we be more involved at church or in our communities? Is there a parish ministry you have been wanting to help with or start up? What about that after school program for homeless kids? Has something been preventing you from getting involved? How do you think this will help you personally, spiritually and emotionally?

Helloooo everyone! I just love this group of women, and it’s so exciting to be back on a regular writing schedule 🙂

So much of the time, you wonder if you should do something. Or you really wish you could do something. You’ve been wanting to do it for a while.

“I should go to Mass during the week.”

“I should hang out with people more.”

“I should exercise more.”

“I should get involved with ________”

So why haven’t you? If you want a more vibrant community experience, make it happen! If you want to meet young people in your community, and you’re out of college, then talk with your priest to see what is already offered. If there’s not much happening, start it yourself. Maybe it’ll start small, but then people will invite friends and viola! Community.

Still being in college, it’s probably easier for me than for people out of college. I have friends who can meet up whenever we want . . . even for doughnuts at 2am. It’s so much fun, and one of my favorite things about this time in my life.

As young people who probably have time we can devote to things outside work, we have the power to give more of ourselves outside the home than people can at other points in their lives. It’s nice to be able to hang out with friends and have community that way, but I also really love being part of other things on campus.

I have served as president of Ravens Respect Life for the last year (and will through this school year). I also led a mission trip working with the Missionaries of Charity last spring which was incredible. Freshman year I volunteered with the Underground team (hosting Catholic events) and the team of girls who cleaned one of the chapels. Now RRL takes up a lot of my time (which I LOVE!), so that’s what I mainly devote my time to. It’s so much fun to grow with our team of officers, get to know them all, and challenge each other in our work.

I think it’s important to make those connections with people to grow personally, spiritually, and emotionally. Not all friendships last. Not every interaction is awesome. But being in a community with so many other people gives you an opportunity to form those connections. It forces you to grow, and to live for more than yourself.

When I get out of college, who knows where I will live or what it will look like . . . it would be a safe assumption that I’ll stay involved with pro-life things. But I also really love encouraging people to become the best version of themselves. So, we’ll see. Life is an adventure!

Thanks to Jen and Morgan for hosting 🙂

To Life,

signature

 

 

 

P.S. Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’ or by email!

 

7 Quick Takes – Vol. 56: Goals, Giving, and School

~ Laura ~ 4 Comments

— 1 —

Hello new school year! This week I road tripped out to school with my brother who will be a freshman here. It was lots of fun to see our beautiful country and rock out to a custom playlist 🙂

With the new school year starting, I’m jumping back into my goal posts! I’ve been wanting to work constructively on improving parts of my life, so I divided my goals into five different categories. Welcome to my first goal post of the school year – I hope you’ll stick around for more and we can encourage each other!

Each “take” focuses on an aspect of my life. Since it’s nearly the end of August, these will be my goals until the end of September.

— 2 —

Category 1: Prayer

DSCN6176

After reading this article, I was kind of dumbstruck. Duh. Keep yourself focused, self! So my goal is to eventually increase prayer time by establishing routines. Why? Because it will help keep me focused on what is really important.

1. Find a morning offering to say each morning and/or a good devotional to start my day with

2. Find a night time examination of conscience to say before bed.

3. Sign up for adoration twice a week and start going.

4. Do the Stations of the Cross on Fridays.

— 3 —

Category 2: Fitness & Health

2013-04-27 001 014

Because let’s face it: Being in shape feels awesome. At this point in my life, I have no excuse to not be in shape and take care of my body. So, let’s do this!

1. Look for a 5k to do before Christmas.

2. Find two new healthy snacks to keep in my dorm room instead of traditional unhealthy ones

3. Work out three times a week, and find a consistent time that works. (Sub-goal? Get a new MP3 player and music!)

4. Since my commitments start at 9am M-F, set a consistent time to wake up.

— 4 —

Category 3: Academics

DSCN5215

“It’s easy to procrastinate” says the girl who stayed up past 3am to finish a paper due in mere hours. I did it twice. I am not proud of that. But am proud to say I’ve never had to pull an all-nighter! The fact is that I need to be responsible. My classes challenge me enough themselves, so I need to rise to the challenge and take advantage of the opportunities to learn.

1. Write down assignments in my planner when I find out about them.

2. Check planner everyday.

3. Buy a stock of post-it’s to put each assignment on, and write them down. Why? It’s fun to tear it up when it’s done!

— 5 —

Category 4: Computer Usage

21a5d-papers-being-thrown

Being away from technology makes me happy. So why do I compulsively check my email probably 25 times a day? It makes me wonder if people really can become addicted to the internet and social media. My usage has improved quite a bit after cutting back on Facebook time by sorting “friends” into lists. Now I check those instead of my general newsfeed. There’s always room to improve, so here goes!

1. Put my laptop on my desk, and only sit there to be on it (unless I am taking it out of the suite to work on it).

2. Gradually check emails less. By the end of September, be checking them three times a day.

3. Check Facebook only twice a day.

4. Go to my Google Alerts for news instead of social media. Add two new alerts.

— 6 —

Category 5: Reading & Writing

DSCN6566

We all have a lot to learn. I love reading, and it’s something I want to devote time to. Sharing my life and things I learn through writing my own pieces is a great way to develop my thoughts and connect with people. The goals?

1. Find 15 minutes a day to read a non-school book. Focus on one at a time.

2. Write one non-link-up post a week here or for Live Action News.

— 7 —

Have you read The Giver? I remember checking it out from the library a couple times, but never ended up reading it. The trailer looks really interesting, so I definitely want to see it!

 

What do you think? If you’ve read the book, would you recommend reading it before seeing the movie?

And to end these quick takes . . .

I know there’s a lot going on in the world right now, so please remember to pray for peace. Pray for strength for those who are being persecuted. Pray for everyone who is starting their school year too! And don’t forget: We are the Easter people, and alleluia is STILL our song.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

To Life,

signature

 

 

 

P.S. Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’ or by email!

P.P.S. Did you read about my new approach? Head over and tell me what you think!

Changing my approach

~ Laura ~ 6 Comments

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted an opinion piece for Live Action News, or much of anything of the same genre over here. It’s not because my views have changed. No, I still am serving as president of Ravens Respect Life and had an internship with a life affirming medical pregnancy center this summer.

But it’s true that my view has evolved to some degree.

Looking back on my articles, I’ve written about how some people are kind of crazy, Planned Parenthood doesn’t follow the rules, Obama problems, doing the pro-life thing wrong, and medical standard being all sorts of crazy. While it’s good to be informed, and expose lies while holding the truth high as a torch for all to see, it is not good to do this at the expense of other people.

I don’t know that my writing has ever hurt anyone. It’s something I posted about constantly in the past – and I did notice quite a few people “de-friending” me. Was it because of my beliefs? With the sensitive subject matter, I wouldn’t be surprised. And while I still don’t shy away from confrontation and would be happy to talk about these issue with you anytime, the days of Facebook debates are over. They have been for a while, actually.

If you’ve ever participated in debates (because let’s face it, they’re not usually just a “discussion”) online about sensitive life issues, you know that rush of OWNING the conversation. You know when something is just so dumb, you have the perfect comeback that will have everyone and their mother rushing to find sunglasses because the light o’ truth is just that bright.

Um, wrong. Wrong answer. Please don’t do that.

I have. And I loved it. But it is no longer my approach.

Thinking about this more, I realize that there is no place for inflammatory language in this movement. I’m not a complete hippie, but isn’t love what this is all about? We love women so much that we have to show them that we deserve better than abortion and contraception. We love guys so much that we tell them to man up and take care of us women and stop abandoning their children. We love children so much that we will fight for their lives. We love abortion clinic workers so much that we want to expose the truth of their industry, and lead them to a better life.

But did you ever love someone so much that you shut up about your agenda for a second?

Think about it.

You don’t prove much by holding a sign and posting things on social media about “the abortion holocaust”. Whoohoo. You have hands to hold a sign, and you can copy and past links. Yay you! Well, not really. Did you talk with your family member who lost a baby to miscarriage? Did you offer sincere condolences when a loved one of a friend died? Are you praying for people who hate you? Did you give that homeless person a snack? Do you try to love all the people in your life, even if they disagree with you?

Newsflash: if we can’t love people without saying “But abortion!” “But you use contraception!” then we’re doing love wrong.

DSCN7063

Like Mother Teresa said:

“Each one of them is Jesus in disguise.”

Yup. Even people I disagree with. Even people who are mean. Because you know? I probably have been too. So I’m starting to approach this differently, and I’m starting now. I do want to live my life being that light – the person everyone knows will stand up for the truth. That’s important. I also want to be a person who others know will take you as you are and treat you with love and respect.

So I promise to not shove my burning torch of truth in your face, honestly.

Something Maya Angelou said seems appropriate here:

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

I want you to know in the fiber of your being, no matter who you are, no matter what you’ve done, no matter what you believe, that I believe in you. I believe you are capable of incredible things, and I believe you were made for greatness. My sincere hope is to communicate this better in the way I write.

I don’t want to write about how people are bad anymore. I want to inspire you. I want to use my life to show you how epic our calling to fearlessly pursue a higher purpose is.

This is what I’m doing today to start that. Will you join me?

To Life,

signature

 

 

 

P.S. Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’ or by email!