My Latest Ink

I just realized today that I never shared this. Just before my birthday in June, I decided to get a new tattoo (once you start getting inked, you're addicted. Seriously. I love tattoos). This is the latitude and longitude of where I am a missionary in Romania. I was actually able to find the exact latitude and longitude of our church, so I got it tattooed on my right foot. I'm a big fan of this tattoo. Every night when I am finished for the day and I take off my shoes, I have dirt covered feet and I see this tattoo. Makes me love all this that more.

Please pray for me. This missionary thing isn't always easy. It's been especially challenging lately. I'm going to Medjugorje in a few weeks. I'm looking forward to a week of spiritual rejuvenation. I'm praying that it's what I'm looking for right now.

A New Encyclical

Pope Francis just released his new encylical called Lumen Fidei or "The Light of Faith" and these are the things that stuck out to me when reading it. Catholic or not, I recommend you read it. It's awesome!

"There is an urgent need, then, to see once again that faith is a light, for once the flame of faith dies out, all other lights begin to dim. The light of faith is unique, since it is capable of illuminating every aspect of human existence. A light this powerful cannot come from ourselves but from a more primordial source: in a word, it must come from God. Faith is born of an encounter with the living God who calls us and reveals his love, a love which precedes us and upon which we can lean for security and for building our lives. Transformed by this love, we gain fresh vision, new eyes to see; we realize that it contains a great promise of fulfilment, and that a vision of the future opens up before us. Faith, received from God as a supernatural gift, becomes a light for our way, guiding our journey through time. On the one hand, it is a light coming from the past, the light of the foundational memory of the life of Jesus which revealed his perfectly trustworthy love, a love capable of triumphing over death. Yet since Christ has risen and draws us beyond death, faith is also a light coming from the future and opening before us vast horizons which guide us beyond our isolated selves towards the breadth of communion. We come to see that faith does not dwell in shadow and gloom; it is a light for our darkness." -Paragraph 4

"For Abraham, faith in God sheds light on the depths of his being, it enables him to acknowledge the wellspring of goodness at the origin of all things and to realize that his life is not the product of non-being or chance, but the fruit of a personal call and a personal love." -Paragraph 11

"Faith, tied as it is to conversion, is the opposite of idolatry; it breaks with idols to turn to the living God in a personal encounter. Believing means entrusting oneself to a merciful love which always accepts and pardons, which sustains and directs our lives, and which shows its power by its ability to make straight the crooked lines of our history. Faith consists in the willingness to let ourselves be constantly transformed and renewed by God’s call. Herein lies the paradox: by constantly turning towards the Lord, we discover a sure path which liberates us from the dissolution imposed upon us by idols." -Paragraph 13

"In the love of God revealed in Jesus, faith perceives the foundation on which all reality and its final destiny rest." -Paragraph 15

"Yet it is precisely in contemplating Jesus’ death that faith grows stronger and receives a dazzling light; then it is revealed as faith in Christ’s steadfast love for us, a love capable of embracing death to bring us salvation. This love, which did not recoil before death in order to show its depth, is something I can believe in; Christ’s total self-gift overcomes every suspicion and enables me to entrust myself to him completely." - Paragraph 16

"Once I think that by turning away from God I will find myself, my life begins to fall apart" -Paragraph 19

"Faith is not a light which scatters all our darkness, but a lamp which guides our steps in the night and suffices for the journey. To those who suffer, God does not provide arguments which explain everything; rather, his response is that of an accompanying presence, a history of goodness which touches every story of suffering and opens up a ray of light. In Christ, God himself wishes to share this path with us and to offer us his gaze so that we might see the light within it." -Paragraph 57

In My Deepest Wound

It is in those places that hurt the most - those deep wounds in my heart - where I have seen God and how He works. Keep the hope. It will not disappoint (Romans 5:5).

My 23rd Birthday

Today is another one of those days that sometimes I felt like I'd never see. Today I turned 23. That might not seem like a big deal to most people, but I'm someone who didn't expect to live to see myself graduate college (and that was over a year ago now!). Most of the time, I look at my life and think "Man, this sucks. I feel like I'm always depressed." But, it's days like my birthday that I get a reality check. I've got a degree from the most Catholic university in the United States. I've got friends who are some of the most amazing people I've ever met. I'm a missionary in an AMAZING country that I love so much. I've raised almost $35,000 to build an orphanage (only $30,000 more to go!). I've got a God who loves me more than I'll ever understand and who has sustained me in the times I've wanted to quit. He's never let me quit.

I leave for Romania on Sunday. I'm SO excited to finally get back after all this crazy crap with my shoulder. Four months later than I had planned, but God knew what He was doing. Please, as always, pray for me and the mission. You can see me post more often here (my mission blog).

Jeff Becomes a Priest

On April 6, 2010, I met a young man named Jeff after a night of praise and worship at Franciscan.

Click here to read the blog post about when I met him.

Today, he is being ordained a priest. That's so glorious! He is going to be an AMAZING priest! I ask that you pray for him in his new ministry.

Countdown to going back to Romania: 15 days.

Relapse

I promised myself that I'd always be brutally honest on here, so, here goes.

One week ago today, I relapsed. I cut myself for the first time after 17 months and 1 day of not cutting. There are about 10 things that lead to it that I'd rather not get into the details of, but I can tell you that it was bad. I cut myself 6 times in 5 days. It sucks to see the cuts on my legs and my arm, but they're healing, as is my heart. My heart has taken a huge beating over the last couple months, especially the last month. Last Wednesday, I'd finally just had enough.

I told Fr. Rick and he's been really supportive in helping me pick myself back up. I texted Fr. Greg, but got no response. I'm not sure right now that I could handle his response. I hate that I've let him down. I hate that I've let God down. I haven't gotten up the strength to go to Confession yet, but I'll get there soon.

I ask that you keep me in your prayers. I'm doing the best I can to pick up the pieces of my shattered heart. It's a process that's taking time.

I leave for 6 months in Romania in a mere 18 days. I'm praying I can get it together between now and then.

Today has been a good day and I'm determined that tonight be good too. You know, depression and addiction recovery SUCK about 99% of the time, but then you get a little break, like I got today, where God help you carry your cross and He lets you know that you really are gonna be okay.

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." -Psalm 147:3

"Always remember..."

It's 1:30am and I just got off the phone with the future saint, Fr. Greg. I've been having a rough time since my shoulder surgery and this is the first time we've talked in about a month. I called him about 12:15am and he didn't answer, so I sent him a text saying "Just trying to keep my end of the deal." (if you don't know what that means, it comes from the night I met Fr. Greg. He made me promise that I'd call him before I was allowed to cut myself). He called me back a few minutes later and he asked me what was going on. He let me ramble for like 10 minutes. There was so much shit that I just needed to get out. He's so good. He knows when to just let me talk and he knows when I'm looking for a response. So, after my word vomiting, he told me that all this stuff is going on because God is strengthening me. I rolled my eyes and he somehow knew it. He goes, "I know that's not what you wanna hear, but years down the road, you'll look at this time and think that if you could get through that, you can get through anything." So, I agreed with that, as much as I didn't want to. Haha.

Then he asked me if I would do something for him. He told me that self-injury has become an epidemic on college campuses and he asked  me if I would write a brochure that he could give to the students who come to him. He was like, "You've fought this heroic battle for the last 5 years and for the last 16 months, you've won" (He kept saying that I'm fighting heroically. I know he sees it that way, but I definitely don't). He told me that he thought it'd bring some healing to the emotional wounds left from struggling with the addiction to cutting for 4 years. So, I agreed. At this point, I don't even know where to start, but with the guidance of the Lord, I know it'll be what He wants. This quote kinda goes along with this new project: "Why didn't God take away the scars? Because it was the most powerful story. Jesus didn't cover up His scars. They were healed wounds. Our scars are a witness to the world. They are a part of our story. Healed wounds are symbols that God has restored us." -Louie Giglio

At the end of our conversation, I thanked him for putting up with me and he said, "Always remember, I love you." And that's when the tears started flowing. I told him that he had no idea how bad I needed to hear that right at that moment. And as soon as he said it, an intense peace came over me. The anxiety and all the feelings that were raging inside of me just calmed down.

It amazes me how when I feel like I'm one tiny thing away from crashing and burning, God shows up and brings me exactly what I need. And tonight, that was to hear someone say, "I love you."

Peace and blessings to you tonight.

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." -Psalm 23:4