To You, With Everlasting Love

During one of my youth group events a few years ago, we were handed a letter addressed to us from God. It was a beautiful compilation of Bible verses specifically talking about how much God loves us individually. At the time, the letter had really touched my heart.

A few years ago, I wrote my own letter similarly structured to the one I was given so long ago. This letter talks about not being afraid because God has everything in control.

I hope you will take this note in whatever context you need right now and read it with an open mind. Imagine that this letter appeared in the mailbox one day and was specifically addressed to you.

My Dear Child,

Do not let your hearts be troubled. (John 14:7) Peace be with you; my peace I give you. (John 14:27). Do not be afraid. (Luke 2:10) For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11) No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. I am faithful and will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation provide a way of escape that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)  Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them because I, the Lord your God, go with you; I will never leave you or forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6) I command you: be firm and steadfast for I will be with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9) So do not fear for I am with you, do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengten you and help you. (Isaiah 41:10) I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. (Ephesians 3:20) You can do all things in Me who strengthens you. (Phillipians 4:13) I have said these things to you that you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart, I have overcome the world. (John 16:33) You will never be alone because I am with you. (John 16:32) Stand firm in the faith. Be a person of courage. Be strong. (1 Corinthians 16:13) I love you. (John 15:9)

Your Faithful Father,
God

Your Sister in Christ,
Emily

Thy Will Be Done: Saying "Yes" When You Don't Understand

My life the last few months have looked like a whirlwind. Between going to scholarship competition, applying for college, doing schoolwork, dancing, writing essays for scholarships, family obligations and other events, there's been very little stability or peace. I prayed a lot throughout that time to God to help me find the place I was meant to be and the money to go there. Then, about a month ago, I found out that I got a very good scholarship to my top college. It was one of the biggest reliefs and joys ever. My future for the next four years were no longer a blank mystery; I had a place to belong, and I knew I could afford it. It was such an amazing feeling to know that God provided me the means to go to a great Catholic school where I knew I could grow in my faith and get the very best education. A few days after hearing I was awarded the scholarship, I committed to the school, and a lot of my stresses were relieved. I thought that this was God's plan, and I was happy and ready.

However, yesterday, I opened up my email to find a very life-changing piece of news. My college was downsizing and would no longer offer all the academic programs I was looking for nor provide housing. It was a complete shock. At first, I was very numb to what I just read. How could this be? I thought. God led me to this school and provided me with the money. How can all my prayers be answered only to be taken away in a single swoop? After rereading the email over and over, the reality set in. This was real. In just one moment, all of my plans were gone, and I was left in a harder position than I was a few months ago.

It was a very painful and raw moment. I cried a lot of tears, and I couldn't help but feel abandoned by God. My future for the next four years was no longer planned nor would I have access to as many scholarships at the other schools I applied to  as the school I had committed to. A lot of fear and stress and anxiety consumed me. My thoughts were wild and rampant; it felt like my life was falling apart. How could this happen to me? None of it made sense, and it still doesn't.

After a day of letting this reality sink in, I've been thinking greatly about who I am and where my faith is. I call myself a Christian, and I freely admit that God is a good God who loves all people. I go to Mass every Sunday and proclaim that I believe and trust in God. I consume the Precious Body and Blood of Christ knowing that He is my Savior who died and rose again for me despite my sins. I tell the people that I know God will take care of them in their time of need. Every time I pray the Our Father, I tell God that I want His will to be done.

Furthermore, I have been reading more books that will help me grow in my faith of God. One of these books is called The Robe by Lloyd Douglas. It is a tale about the solider who one Jesus' robe at His crucifixion and the pull he had to learning more about the man behind the robe. In the story, there are lots of tales about Jesus and the people around Him, people who - after Jesus' ascension - believed in God so much that they were willing to die for their faith. They looked to God in their times of need and throughout the pain. This act of faith and courage were an amazing inspiration for me.

After thinking about where I am in my faith and the way I want to live my life as a witness of God for others, I realize that while the news about my college is devastating, God has not left me. All my other actions in life show that I trust in God, so I ought to be able to trust God in this too. Trusting in God does not mean that I have to understand. I may never understand, but my faith in Jesus Christ allows me to hold onto the promises of God. Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For know that I have plans for you, says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and future." I have always trusted those words to be true. Although my situation has changed, God has not changed. God still loves me. He still takes care of me. He still has a plan for me. And while I may not understand it, I can trust God because He is everything that is good, lovely, perfect and true. He watches over His children.

Last night, I was listening to the song "Thy Will" by Hillary Scott. The song touches on a lot of what I am going through and what other people are going through. In the opening stanza, she sings....

I’m so confused 

I know I heard you loud and clear

So, I followed through

Somehow I ended up here 

I don’t wanna think 

I may never understand

That my broken heart is a part of your plan

In this time of trial, I am confused. I thought that going to this college was part of God's plan for me, but now in the reality of what happened, that is not where I will be ending up. The pain that I feel is hard, but I know that somehow, this could be part of God's plan for my future. He can use this for good.

Right now I have two choices: I can blame God and hold onto my hurt and anger, or I can trust in God to take care of this and move on with my daily life. The way I handle this difficult situation can be used to witness the beauty of God to the world. This is not the route that I would have chosen for me, but I am choosing to tell God what I say every time in the Our Father: "Thy will be done." I do not know where the next few days and weeks will take me, but I trust that my "yes" to God will open up doors that will lead me and the others around my closer to Him.

Please keep my situation in your prayers, and I'll keep you updated on where God takes me with this.

Your Sister in Christ,
Emily

Designs Need a Designer - Reason #5

Did you know that there are birds called data loggers which can fly about a year without landing once? (1)
Or did you know that if you took all your DNA and stretched it out, it would reach from the Earth to the Sun - about 98 million miles - and back hundreds of times? (2)

(Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4LXIAxwHWFepQKB5Jy65gACJDmhhA58oDdbtztTsH8SfItQBRdtxGM9bJJk2MsFenXIGG4aFzMjkkuxr2pNZWyb8SfnPlW-o-CocalMppCrOTYNH6MdfOD3NoZgzMttipl7Tk0_PrWw/s1600/dna+length.gif)

There's so many wondrous and mysterious facts about the world that it is difficult to wrap our minds around. It's amazing that things can work together in harmony so well. It's almost as if this world was not a mere accident. If the world was purely an accident caused from the right material, that would be the biggest coincidence to ever occur in history. Yet statistically speaking, the way the world was created is pretty much statistically impossible.

St. Thomas Aquinas' fifth proof discusses how the natural world always seems to work towards a goal. Things that are not knowledgeable even work towards a goal. For example, flowers just grow and bloom. Our bodies also inherently do not have knowledge in them; they just know how to breathe and grow. The natural world works in a way where everything compliments each other, where everything tries to attain the best possible result.

Since most things are not knowledgeable yet still work towards a common end, it is logical to assume that this is not merely happening by chance, but on purpose. We know that things that do not have knowledge cannot be moved towards a goal unless they are guided by someone with knowledge. This can be exemplified in our classrooms at school. A child can't be given a calculus problem and be expected to be able to solve it at first without the guidance of a teacher. In Summa Theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas gives the analogy of an archer and an arrow. An arrow cannot be guided towards the target without the assistance of the archer.

So knowing that most things in nature are not inherently knowledgeable and knowing that those without knowledge must be guided in some fashion, it is logical to come to the conclusion that there has to be a being out there who possesses the knowledge of the goals and ways of reaching those goals in which all the natural world is aiming for. This being is what we call God.

This concludes the five proofs of God! I'm really excited to have been able to take this journey of learning more about the logic behind God. Please note though that my belief in God goes way beyond these more formal proofs of God. I believe in God for a variety of reasons, but it is both a comfort and sort of cool to know that there is actual logic behind God too. If you are interested in more, I encourage you to read the exact words of St. Thomas Aquinas in Summa Theologica. PDF versions of the work are available online.

God bless!

Your Sister in Christ,
Emily

(1) http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/swift-bird-10-month-migration/
(2) http://www.sciencecentres.org.uk/projects/handsondna/4.8%20-%20Amazing%20facts%20and%20quiz%20questions.pdf

Gradation - Reason #4

When I first read about Aquinas' fourth proof of God's existence, I have to admit that it stumped me. I read it, and it completely went over my head and confused me. I had to go back and read the words over and over again to begin to understand. If the words that follow don't make sense to you, feel free to read Summa Theologica or look up summaries. Seeing the subject written in different words may help the most.

To begin to understand the gradation proof, I'd like to invite you to think about how we compare different things. For example, if we were talking about fruit - let's say kiwi and pears - and we were talking about which was better, I might say that, "Kiwi is the best because it has more flavor." Another person might say that a kiwi is less appetizing than the pear. You can see that the words more and less were used. Here's another example. If a person just took a piece of pizza out of the oven, they would say that it is more hot than a piece of pizza that had been sitting on the counter for an hour.

As humans, we tend to rank things using the words more and less. We use these words as a way to distinguish between the quality of something. This means that some things are better than others; there is a higher order.

So when we think about it, there has to be something that is the highest good. Something that is the most good and true and noble. In Summa Theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas states that, "the maximum in any genus is the cause of all in that genus; as fire, which is the maximum heat, is the cause of all hot things. " This basically means that the highest thing with a certain quality causes other things to take on a degree of that quality.

We know that there is some good and truth and nobleness in the world, but what is the highest degree of what is good and true and noble? This being is what we call God.

I know that the fourth proof of God's existence take some reflecting on to understand. I invite you to reflect and pray on it to more deeply understand what this is trying to say. After this post, I will be posting once more about the fifth proof of God before talking about some other things. I'm really excited to be delving deeper into my faith with you all.

God bless!

Your Sister in Christ,
Emily

The Need For God - Reason #3

The third proof of God's existence according to St. Thomas Aquinas is the need and necessity of God. When we look at the world around us, we see many things: people, trees, grass, animals, etc. From our experience, we know that these things don't last; they die throughout time. Everything in the world comes into existence and then ceases to exist. The world and everything in it is a contingent being.

At one point, we did not exist. In 1776, I did not exist to witness the formation of the United States. In 33 A.D., I was not in existence to witness Jesus' death on the cross and resurrection. We know that for every contingent being, there was a time of non-existence. 

It is impossible for things to have always existed; thus there could have been a time when nothing existed at all. From the previous proofs, we have seen that there had to be a first mover, a creator. If nothing exists, nothing cannot create something. There had to have been something out there to create the contingent beings and bring them into existence. This means that there has to be something out there that is not a contingent being - a being that just exists and does not cease to exist. 

This being exists because there is a need for it to exist. It is not created; it is the cause of creation. It is this being that we call God.

So far I have covered the first three proofs about God's existence. After I go through the next two proofs, I would like to write about some more personal experiences about my faith and possibly go into some of the things the Catholic Church believes and why.

God bless!

Your Sister in Christ,

Emily