There's no such thing as a small victory.

Yesterday, I was super sad. Like, I climbed up in bed and cried for a good hour sad. It was not pretty. I remember when I was crying to myself, I was afraid that this meant that I was going to be in a major depression for the rest of the semester, like last year. But somehow, I was able to reach out to a friend, and told her I needed to talk.

I never did that last year. I kept it inside until it hurt, and refused to tell anyone, including my mom and therapist. But this time, I reached out and asked for help.

I referred to my ability to do that as "a small victory", but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it wasn't small, in the least.

I could have decided to stay in bed crying, feeling sorry for myself, instead of reaching out and asking for help. I could have resorted to self harm, which I had in the past.

But I didn't.

That's no small victory. That's just... a victory. And it shows just how far I've come since this time last year.

There's no such thing as a small victory. Every victory is a sign of strength in its own way. Don't downplay your successes by calling them small. They're awesome, and I'm proud of you!

God is too. He doesn't require we succeed in big huge ways, every small success, He's so proud of us. He really is. He only asks that we try.

And if you don't succeed, He's right there, with a hand outstretched, ready to brush you off and help you try again. Reach out to Him. He wants to love you. Don't forget: saints are just sinners who got back up.

I'll be praying for you, warrior. Please pray for me!

A prayer request

Dear friends,

 

I know I haven't blogged lately, but I'm trusting that you will respond to the prayer request I have for you. A newly hired professor at my school lost two of his young daughters (aged three and six) on Tuesday by the means of a car accident. Please keep the souls of Olivia and Emma in your prayers, as well as their parents, Sean and Becca, and their surviving sister, Vivian. 

If you have even five dollars to spare, I urge that you donate it to this fund which is raising money to help with medical expenses, funeral arrangements, and other support that the family will need. Not all scars are visible, and this family is going to need the help of God and His people on earth.

God bless, and if you have a prayer request for me to post, please let me know!

46 Things to do for Lent!

 

"As Lent is the time for greater love, listen to Jesus' thirst...'Repent and believe' Jesus tells us. What are we to repent? Our indifference, our hardness of heart. What are we to believe? Jesus thirsts even now, in your heart and in the poor -- He knows your weakness. He wants only your love, wants only the chance to love you." -Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

'Twas the night before Lent... and we don't know what to do!

If that is you, I hope you find this post helpful!

For Advent, I came up with 40 different things we could do to prepare for the birth of Christ, and decided to do something similar for the upcoming Lenten season.

If you're anything like me, you have a really tough time coming up with what to do for Lent. I've been doing research for the past week or so, and decided to put my favorite ideas into one blog post (while giving credit to the original authors, of course!) as a resource for myself and for others.

1. 40 Bags in 40 Days
2. Choose 40 specific people (or 46, if you want to include Sundays) to pray for, one for each day of Lent.
3. Read about the saints whose feast days fall in Lent. Pray to them and ask for their intercession. 
4.   (from here)
5. Do the CRAK Instagram challenge!
6. Don't eat the last bite of your food (From Lifeteen)
7. Watch The Mission (from Here)
8. Fast from Facebook
9. Pray for those who will enter the Church at the Easter Vigil.
10. Do the Lenten Photo a Day Journey
11. Give up all drinks except water
12. Park at the very back of the parking lot (From Lifeteen)
13. Watch The Way (From Here)
14. Do a liquid fast 1x a week (From Domestic Fashionista)
15. Make your bed every day (From Catholic All Year) - - my bed is lofted, so this is actually a big challenge I will be taking up for Lent!
16. Do an audio retreat
17. Do the Lenten Boot Camp (or parts of it!)
18. Give up apps on your smartphone (From Lifeteen)
19. Watch Bella (From Here)
20. Fast from listening to music in the car (From Domestic Fashionista)
21. Go to mass one more time than you usually do (or even more!)
22. Read Pope Francis' The Light of Faith
23. Don't eat out (From Catholic All Year)
24. Read Pope Francis' Evangelii Gaudium
25. Give up your bed and sleep on the floor or the couch (From Lifeteen)
26. Give up texting and call whomever you need to talk to (From Lifeteen)
27. Watch The Song of Bernadette (From Here)
28. Give up TV and movies (or one of the others)
29. Do a daily Examination of Conscience. (I use Mea Culpa, an app from Apple)
30. Pray the Divine Office Daily (There are some great apps out there you can use on a smart phone or tablet... I love Laudate! It's also F R E E!)
31. Fast on more than just the required days
32. Give away 10 shirts, 2 pairs of pants, and a pair of shoes (From Lifeteen)
33. Read Pope Francis' Message for Lent 2014
34. Pray Lectio Divina
35. Make a list of forty people who have impacted your life, and write each one a letter (From Lifeteen)
36. When you wake up, jump out of bed, kiss the floor, and learn humility (From Lifeteen)
37. Wake up at a specific time every morning (From Catholic All Year)
38. Do Bob Rice's Forty Day Spiritual Workout. I use the iPhone app, but you can also sign up to receive daily devotions sent to your email right here!
39. Give up using the facebook and twitter apps on your phone or iPad and only check when you are at a computer.
40. Wear the same 4 outfits for all of lent (From Lifeteen)
41. Fast from wearing any stretchy pants (From Catholic All Year)
42. Everyday do 20 (or 100) pushups and offer it up for someone who’s sick (From Lifeteen)
43. Clean your house (or dorm, or bedroom, or bathroom!) every week (From Catholic All Year)
44. Leave a post-it with a positive message on it wherever you go (From Lifeteen) (Also... check out Operation Beautiful!)
45. Drink tea instead of coffee (From Catholic All Year)
46. Cut out all screen-time (phone, TV, computer) after dinner (From Lifeteen)

I hope that this is of some use to you! What are you giving up? Let me know in the comments! I'm genuinely curious and want to do a little project with the data I get :)