Sacrifice of Love

Praised be Jesus Christ! Really, praise to Him. Have you ever realized how amazing God is? Like, He's so amazing.

I woke up this morning...and prayed that I would not be grouchy. Five hours of sleep--but hey, that's okay, 'cause I'll just drink coffee and going to bed late was worth it. But---I couldn't get ready for school fast enough, so no coffee for me. And then I have this Forensics tournament today, which I'm not ready for AT ALL. But God has a crazy way of turning things around. I started off this day with Adoration at God Squad. 45 minutes of Adoration to start off my morning? Yes! Then I went to Mass during the morning. Fabulous. And I got a history paper over Pearl Harbor back, to discover a 99%. Win. English class was great, and we're starting on Readers Theatre. Win. That's been my day so far. God is awesome.

But that's not entirely what's on my mind right now. See, when I created this blog the other day, I needed a title. I opened my Bible, and gosh-I can't even remember what verse I opened up to. But somehow that verse made a strange connection to this JP II quote I learned on a school retreat last year. But let me back up and give the story.

I went on this school retreat, all girls from the junior class. The retreat was themed "Vocations." I sat down against a tree, by the cemetery at St. John's Clonmel, with this meditation packet that they gave us. I didn't know what I would pray about; I mean, I've prayed about both marriage and religious life, and really feel a calling to the latter. But I'm called to live in the Present Moment, so what more can I do in the way of a vocation? And maybe I'm not called to religous life, but to marriage? Anyways, I sit down and start looking over this meditation packet that I was given. I kinda read/skim, until this quote jumped off the page at me. "Do not be afraid when love requires sacrifice." (John Paul II) Bam. Holy Spirit Anvil? Yes. That quote launched me into my prayerful meditations, propelling my vocational prayers into a different direction. Yes, it's still important that I pray about my future vocation, and I do. But the vocation that I have--regardless of marriage or religious life--is vital for me to be aware of. The vocation to be a Sacrifice of Love. We are called to love with the love of Christ. How did Christ love? By dying for all people, friends AND enemies. How does Christ continue to love? By being a humble servant, offering Himself to us in the Eucharist. So, the question is, how can I love with the love of Christ? By being that Sacrifice of Love, so that all may be loved. By dying to myself daily for my classmates, friends, people I can't stand, teachers...you get the idea.

I can love by being humble.

Oh, how that hurts. Humility is tough. I wish I could be humble. I pray that I will have the desire--the true desire--to be completely humble. But I can try, even though I fail time and time again. Being a Sacrifice of Love. Sacrificing myself--my desires, my prideful thoughts, reaching out to others in humility--in order that all people encounter the love of Christ. So that when people encounter me, they may not really meet me, but encounter Christ. I definitely fail at this but hey, it's worth a shot. So that's the idea behind this whole blog. I try to be a Sacrifice of Love, even though I fail time and time again. God and Mary continually pick me up, helping me to try again. Throughout life, let us all strive for humility, so that we may each be that Sacrifice of Love to bring others closer to the Heart of Christ. Deo Gratias!