7 Quick Takes #6

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Happy Feast Day St. Francis De Sales!  

Let's kick off #7QT with one of my favorite quotes by this awesome Saint:

"Do not fear what may happen tomorrow.  The same loving Father who cares for you today will care for you tomorrow and every day.  Either he will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it.  Be at peace then, and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginings."

Boom.  Thank you St. Francis.

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Save all the babies!

Big shout out to all y'all who participated in the 2014 March for Life in Washington D.C.!   600,000 of you standing up for life during crazy cold weather?  Amazing.  I attended the March for Life in 2001-2004 with my high school (we even led the March my freshman year!) and it definitely made a huge impact on my life.  If only the media would pick up on just how incredible this event is....

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Deacon Dad is famous again

My Deacon Dad served at the Vigil for Life Mass at the Basilica and he even showed up on EWTN a couple of times.  Not that you need any help finding the 6'9" deacon... but just in case....

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I've officially begun the adventure that is teaching Natural Family Planning!  This is very exciting but also one of those out of the boat experiences and I ask for your prayers!  I've taught theology of the body for 3 years, so now I get to combine faith with science and hopefully share with couples why God's plan is the best plan.  One of my favorite parts of teaching NFP so far is having my husband right by my side.   Hearing him talk about why he is glad we use NFP and how he sees it strengthening our relationship just makes me love him even more.

If there are any NFP Teachers out there with some words of advice as we get started in this ministry, please share your wisdom and experience with us! 

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The Nominees are in...

I was shocked and surprised to see that I was nominated for "Best Under Appreciated Blog" for the 2014 Sheenazing Awards!  Thanks so much!  God bless the dear soul that nominated me :)    Click on that link to vote or just go check out the list of fabulous Catholic bloggers (and Non-Papists) and vote for them!  If you don't do anything else, check out Bonnie at A Knotted Life. This woman is  amazing! 

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Beauty & Body

Every now and then SoulPancake posts something that touches that special spot in my heart that causes tears, laughter, goosebumps or all of the above.  One of their latest videos did just that:

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The poem at the end... dang.  Lord give me the grace and strength to say I have a beautiful body (and mean it!)

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Still in my Mid-Twenties... right?

A week from today I'll be 8 years into my twenties.  Thirty is just around the corner, but it isn't here yet!  I remember writing a list when I turned 20 that had things I wanted to accomplish before I turned 30.  When I was thinking back to some of the things I put on the list I realized I've already accomplished several of them:  

• Study abroad (DONE)
• Help someone become Catholic. (DONE)
• Do mission work in another country (DONE)
• Get married. (DONE)
• Go to Rome. (DONE)
• Have an audience with the Pope. (DONE, bonus points for Pope Hand)

I need to try to find the actual list amongst my many journals, because I do have some time to get more things marked off.  I know one of the things I listed was to write a book, but we'll see what 28 & 29 have in store.  For now I'm content with just trying to be a better blogger :)

Birthdays are just a great time for me to remember that if God has done this much this far into my life, what other adventures are in store?

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Confessions of a Bride to Be

p a x

Beautiful.  

That's a word that's been bugging me a lot these last few weeks.

So many magazine articles and wedding websites talk about being a beautiful bride.  There's all sorts of exercise, diet, and beauty regimens out there explaining how to "look your best for the big day!"

The words "beautiful" and "bride" just seem to go together... but for some reason I feel like I'm in a battle for beauty.

Sure, I have the dress... I have the hair extensions, purchased the over priced teeth whitening kit, I've been trying to lay off the gummie bears, taken up walking in the mornings with my friend Noelle, and tried to continue Turbo Fire workouts.  Still, there's a part of me that just doesn't feel like I'm going to be the bride I'm "supposed" to be.

But what does this mean exactly?
Am I worried that the zipper won't zip all the way?  Sure.
Am I worried my hair and makeup won't turn out according to plan? Yeah, a little bit.

But I feel like the desire to be a beautiful bride goes a little bit deeper than those things.

As our wedding day gets closer I've felt the need to take this to prayer.  And one day as I was driving around I heard this song for the first time.  It's the chorus that caught my attention:

Would you let me see beneath your beautiful?
Would you let me see beneath your perfect?
Take it off now girl, take it off now girl, I wanna see inside.
Would you let me see beneath your beautiful, tonight?

While the song might be talking about something totally unrelated to my situation, I really felt like God's been putting something similar on my heart:

Would you let me see beneath your desire for beauty?
Would you let me into this desire to be perfect?
Cast off what you think you're supposed to be, and let me enter into your heart.
Let me make you beautiful.  

I've listened to this song over and over again, and I still feel God nudging my heart (because let's face it I am both a little stubborn and a little slow.).

The desire for beauty is a good thing.  But what I'm slowly starting to realize is that my desire isn't just to look great in my dress, have fabulous hair, flawless makeup, and the glow of a new bride (while all of those things would be nice...), what I really want is to be the woman God created me to be.

I don't want to just be beautiful for a day... I want to have a beautiful heart.  I want to be the wife and mother God created me to be.  I want to learn gentleness, humility, gracefulness, kindness, and strength.

Come to think of it, I'd like to be a lot like her:

"You are altogether beautiful, my darling, And there is no blemish in you.- Song of Songs 4:7

Our wedding is just 10 days away and I know that no matter what it will be a beautiful and holy celebration.  I also know that the Sacrament of Marriage is just one of the ways God is helping me to become the woman I'm supposed to be.  But the journey doesn't end there.

The quest for beauty is a quest for God Himself... God who is True, Good, and Beautiful.  

How wonderful would it be if I worried about the state of my soul as much as I worry about the beauty of my wedding day?

"Your adornment should not be an external one: braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or dressing in fine clothes, but rather the hidden character of the heart, expressed in the imperishable beauty of a gentle and calm disposition, which is precious in the sight of God."- 1 Peter 3: 3-4

Lord would You come into my desire for beauty and show me how this desire will lead me closer to You?  Help me to let go of what I think I'm supposed to be, and help me to allow You to make me who I was created to be.

be at peace
walk on water
be not afraid

d*