Faithful Simplicity

Today a Catholic Update article was placed in all of our mailboxes at the parish titled "Faithful Simplicity" by Susan K. Rowland. I wish I had received this a couple of weeks ago, then maybe I wouldn't have wore myself out and given myself a cold from being busy and stressed out!

The author talks about how the topic of "simplicity" has become quite popular over the years, which shows that our lives have become far too busy and complicated. Isn't that the truth! I can admit that even I love articles about organizing or "simplifying" my life!

"We cannot have outer simplicity in our homes and schedules without inner simplicity. And, if we are at peace inside, if we lean on and learn to trust God for our needs, our outer lives will reflect that."

Rowland gives five tips for simplifying:

1. "Start by keeping a simple, 15-minute, morning prayer appointment with God." I always have intentions of doing this, but my morning always seems to slip away from me. I'd like to actually try, perhaps it's best to have accountability prayer partners for this!

2. Find out what "faithful simplicity" means to you. In the article she listed questions to help people try to figure it out, such as: having less clutter around the house? less to do? buying less? getting your finances under control? going out less and enjoying relaxation at home more? seeing friends and family you have been too busy to fit in? saying no to things you don't care to do?

3. "Ask a friend to help you clear your clutter...then reciprocate by doing the same at your friend's home." They'd have to be a really good friend to help out with something like that!

4. "Start a stream-of-consciousness journal...writing about your emotional issues gets a lot of anger and confusion out of your head and onto a harmless piece of paper. Writing about your worries is a great life-simplier. This exercise can help you clarify problems, or it may simply allow you to vent and let go of anger." I'm a big fan of journaling, it definitely helps me see how I overreact but also lets me see how I've grown over the years.

5. "Get rid of old projects...give these things away to a thrift store or toss them out." Some people are great about finishing every project they start...others, like me, aren't the best! I always want to finish things, maybe if I just had more time! :)

What's Your Habit?

Today I finally got around to reading the Spring issue of Church Life, an online magazine put out by the Institute for Church Life through Notre Dame. I haven't finished all the articles (I got caught up watching cute YouTube videos like this one). What I did read was a great article on prayer by Larry Cunningham. He was one of the professors I had during my summers at Notre Dame for Echo.

One line that stuck out to me was, "For the Christian, prayer is not a discrete act done now and again. It is a way of life." How many times do we make it a single act done once in awhile, perhaps when things are rough? It is difficult forming the habit of prayer, but once we do it, we come into the act of "remembering God" easily and keep Him at the forefront of our minds and hearts.

Larry gave these practical tips for developing the habit of prayer:

1. Begin each day by remembering God and asking for grace for that day.
2. Cultivate the spirit of gratitude for the gifts we have received.
3. Remember others, especially those in need, and "lift them up" before God.
4. One small gesture is to sign ourselves with the sign of the cross; it is both an act of faith in the Holy Trinity and a prayer which says that we do all things "in the Name."

On the first day of the summer class I had with Larry, he told us the simple act of remembering God was prayer itself. I was definitely a fan of that statement! Sometimes it's the simple things that will lead us into habits. Another youth minister I know would tell people to begin the day by quoting from one of the psalms: "This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad." On days I don't want to get out of bed, that simple sentence helps motivate me to get up and start my day.

I know I've mentioned the Liturgy of the Hours before on this blog...it's something I used to do all the time in college, but I also had my friends to keep me accountable in praying it with them. It's more difficult when you don't have that community to pray with (in physical terms, of course we are never alone in our prayer). It's definitely one of my favorite forms of prayer because it brings peace to my day, whether it's morning, evening, or night. Here's to starting that habit again and making prayer a way of life!

What is Normal?

Today during Mass, one of my prayers was "God, can you please help my life return back to normal?" But then I realized I wasn't sure what that meant! Are our lives normal? Can they ever be normal? If we're truly living them to the fullest, it seems not. But then again...what is normal? For some, doing crazy things like climbing mountains or white water rafting are normal! As a single woman in her mid-twenties, I don't think I have reached "normal" yet. Things change so often: situations with my job, friends, even my weekly schedule. Maybe change is normal and I simply have to pray for guidance and wisdom to sort through all of it.

And then again, maybe I don't want "normal" because that's when things can become boring...and who wants that!?

Just some thoughts for today...

10 Reasons I'm a Youth Minister (in Texas)

Sometimes we all need to remind ourselves of the reasons why we're in the jobs we are, whether it is your first choice job or your last choice. There are positives in everything. Here are ten reasons why I'm a youth minister. There are probably more, but I thought I'd start somewhere. And they are in no particular order!

1. Salary: Despite what some people think, I am paid for my job! I know it's not true across the country, but at least in Texas one can make a living and get all those bills paid.

2. Never go hungry: There always seems to be food around! All too often it's junk food and should be avoided, but it's there. Today, some breakfast leftovers from Friday turned into my lunch. Plus as a youth minister I always have a stash of snacks for youth group.

3. Conference Opportunities: My parish pays for me to attend awesome conferences, like the recent NCCL I attended in San Diego and the upcoming NCCYM in Orlando! The conferences motivate me, fire me up, get me networking with others across the country, and I get to see new sites.

4. It's what I love: I get to do what's most important to me, living out and sharing my faith. 'Nuff said.

5. Flexible schedule: While I do have to work some nights and weekends, I also get the luxury of sleeping in the days I work until 8 or 9pm. And Fridays and Saturdays are my off-days. Sometimes I wish I had a 9-5 job...but I don't think I'd be very happy there.

6. "My kids": I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, but I love working with high school students (and middle school is growing on me). They constantly remind me why I do what I do, and I love laughing with them. Today (on Mother's day) one of my teens said something about being pretty sure I'm not a mom, and I said the only "kids" I have are those in youth group!

7. Wonderful co-workers: They have my back and I've got theirs. We are the only ones who knows the true ins and outs of our parish life and we're there to vent to one another, but also to support and build up each other. And since I'm the youngest, sometimes they act like motherly figures, which I don't mind too often.

8. Never a dull moment: There's always something to work on, from publicity to planning, calendaring events to meetings, I do it all! It's also very overwhelming at times, but I cannot say I have a boring job. Some weeks it's like I have 10 jobs: Teacher, athletics director, web developer, publicity marketer, human relations, human resources, secretary, the list could go on...

9. Chance to be creative: Whether it's in lessons, talks, or bake sales, I love being creative in what I do and how I present things. I'm always up for trying new things in youth group.

10. I had a great youth minister when I was in high school and she is the reason why I wanted to become one. She nurtured the relationships she had with us, shared her faith, and taught us the important things about being Catholic and praying. That's what I want to do for the youth here and I believe I have a really good start. Thank you, Mary! You were a true inspiration!

High School youth group team 

Sun, Sand, and NCCL

This past week I attended NCCL - the National Conference of Catechetical Leaders - hence, the lack of posts. I have so much to think about, it's ridiculous. Especially how we can integrate the "modern world" into our faith lives (let's face it, everybody is already there and 5 steps ahead of the technology that parishes use), but at the same time, give them experiences of Christ.

I was able to get to the beach in San Diego one afternoon - wow, was it ever peaceful! It was nice to relax, but now I'm getting super stressed again. I think after this Sunday I'll be able to calm down and reflect on the conference more. This Sunday I'm selling roses after all the Masses as a fundraiser, but I haven't gotten many takers from teens to help out yet...oy.

I'll post more later, just wanted to give an update!

A Terrific Tuesday!

Today was an awesome day!

First of all, I finished the Hunger Games trilogy at 3:45am. I wasn't the biggest fan of how it ended, but it's alright. The books were fabulous and I feel as if I didn't do them justice since I whipped through them so fast because I always wanted to find out what happened next!

Bible study was fun; we didn't read the bible today, I let them talk about their weekend. Sometimes 8th grade girls just need to talk and an adult who listens. :)

There was a Groupon for Rangers tickets today, so I've got another game scheduled to go to! I bought tickets for 5 other friends and myself. I'm super pumped for May 15th!

And then at the grocery store, the cashier pegged me for a senior in college, until he saw my drivers license I had to pull out for the $5 wine I bought. That always makes a girl feel good!

Tonight is the first time in awhile that I have all to myself and I'm excited for the night in! I'm pumped to make dinner (my own version of chicken cacciatore) and to go on my run. Probably run first, and then dinner. Currently I'm contemplating the idea of taking a quick nap first, I was falling asleep at my laptop earlier! Three hours of sleep isn't very much to run your day on...oh well!

It's been a great day with a relaxing evening in sight. Just thought I'd share! :)

Nouwen on Writing

Things have been a little hectic, but now that the 7th grade Leadership retreat is done and tonight is the last official youth group session until the Fall, things should be winding down for the summer (whatever the heck that means for youth ministry!). So anyway, posts have been a little sparse. But today I simply want to share a quote from Henri Nouwen. I receive a daily e-mail with one of his quotes, and this was from yesterday:

Writing can be a true spiritual discipline. Writing can help us to concentrate, to get in touch with the deeper stirrings of our hearts, to clarify our minds, to process confusing emotions, to reflect on our experiences, to give artistic expression to what we are living, and to store significant events in our memories. Writing can also be good for others who might read what we write.

Quite often a difficult, painful, or frustrating day can be "redeemed" by writing about it. By writing we can claim what we have lived and thus integrate it more fully into our journeys. Then writing can become lifesaving for us and sometimes for others too.

National Princess Week

The Target Corporation has started a new tradition...they have created a "National Princess Week." It's kind of a neat idea, although most likely just a ploy to get dads to buy Princess things for their little girls. I know some people aren't the biggest fans of the obsession with Disney Princesses, but I think we can use it to our advantage.

In one way, with the commercialization of all the Princesses, it has led every little girl to believe she can be a princess. It doesn't matter where she grew up or what her family life is like, all she needs is a dress. Or maybe just shiny shoes. Or a simple paper crown. I had "Cinderella shoes" when I was 4; they weren't anything special, just shiny white shoes I wore for Easter! But they made me feel special.

A princess should carry herself with dignity and respect. As those little girls grow up, they lose sight of that. They trade their beautiful gowns for low-cut tops and their crowns for hook-ups with guys. What happened in-between? Were they told they could never actually be a princess? Or did they come to think the idea was silly? When I was in high school I was told I was still a princess because I am the daughter of the King of Kings. How cool is that? And today I still want to find my Prince Charming!

While Belle, Ariel, Jasmine, Cinderella, and the others all have their struggles, they do make it look easy to be a princess and fall in love with your prince. But we can look beyond the stories and fairy tales to our own lives. We don't have to give up being a princess because it's something that is only for little girls! There are a lot of positive messages we can give girls today about being a princess. It's time to write our own stories (or for the guys, help co-author them).

Why I'm Catholic: The Triduum

While the rest of the world goes about their normal weekend festivities, our Church blesses us with the holiest three days of the year and we are called to participate in the services that are so rich in tradition. These three days, the Triduum, have become a special part of my life ever since college.

Growing up I had no idea my dad attended the Holy Thursday Mass, and I didn't really know it existed. We always attended Good Friday together, and then either the Easter Vigil or Sunday morning Mass. When I was home for Easter one year, I went with my dad to the Holy Thursday Mass. It was then when I realized the holiness and power of the three days; they're not three separate liturgies, but one! How awesome is that?! And at all three we are given an intimate way of sharing in Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. A reflective look at how he served others while he was here and his very purpose for coming to earth, to become a victim for us, to conquer death, so that we might have eternal life with God. Wow.

Now I will not miss these three days for anything. The Triduum, to me, is a great reminder of how we are to live our lives and who we are to live our lives for. I'll admit, I even get a bit upset when I see people posting status updates about all the "fun things" they're doing over the weekend. I want to hit them in the head and remind them of this solemn time. Ok, now granted I went to Red Lobster with some friends on Good Friday...but we still kept our meal very simple (we split everything) and we were at church for almost three hours, I think that deserves some good fellowship and food, no!?

These two songs are absolutely beautiful. Both by Matt Maher. The first one works up to the great climax of the song when he is questioning and proclaiming, "O Death, where is your sting? O Hell, where is your victory? O Church come stand in the light, the glory of God has defeated the night...our God is not dead, He's Alive, He's Alive!" Those words put a smile on my face and tears in my eyes. Our God is so amazing - which leads into the next song. It's about the amazing thing it was that God became man. The line that gets me in this song is, "Oh glorious, beyond all measure, bending low to wash His traitor's feet, people just like me. Why would a king do such a thing?"

Happy Easter! He is risen, Alleluia, Alleluia!

Holy Week Inspiration

Here are two videos that I find to be quite inspirational during this Holy Week. The first is the song "This Man" by Jeremy Camp and the video includes scenes from the Passion of the Christ. I had my youth group watch it on Sunday, and when I was screening it beforehand it definitely brought tears to my eyes. The movie The Passion of the Christ makes the events seem more real and the suffering more real. I hope to find time to watch the whole movie this week (if I can find my DVD). The second video is simply a song by a little known Christian group called Rend Collective Experiment (yeah, weird name). But the song is touching. Enjoy the videos and I hope they help you enter into Holy Week a little bit more.