At the Cross Her Station Keeping

Two of my favorite hymns of Good Friday for your meditation:

O come and mourn with me awhile,

And tarry here the Cross beside;

O come, together let us mourn:

Jesus, our Lord, is crucified.

Have we no tears to shed for Him,

While soldiers scoff and foes deride?

Ah! look how patiently He hangs:

Jesus, our Lord, is crucified.

How fast His hands and feet are nailed;

His blessed tongue with thirst is tied;

His failing eyes are blind with blood:

Jesus, our Lord, is crucified.

His Mother cannot reach His face;

She stands in helplessness beside;

Her heart is martyred with her Son's;

Jesus, our Lord, is crucified.

Sev'n times He spoke, sev'n words of love,

And all three hours, His silence cried

For mercy on the souls of men:

Jesus, our Lord is crucified.

A broken heart, a fount of tears,

Ask and they will not be denied;

A broken heart love's cradle is;

Jesus, our Lord is crucified.

O love of God! O sin of man!

In this great act, your strength is tried;

And victory remains with love:

for Thou, Our Lord, art crucified!

Lord Jesus, think on me,

And purge away my sin.

From earth-born passions set me free,

And make me pure within.

Lord Jesus, think on me,

With many a care oppressed;

Let me Thy loving servant be,

And taste Thy promised rest.

Lord Jesus, think on me,

Amid the battle's strife;

In all my pain and misery

Be Thou my health and life.

Lord Jesus, think on me,

Nor let me go astray;

Through darkness and perplexity,

Point Thou the heavenly way.

Lord Jesus, think on me

When floods the tempest high;

When on doth rush the enemy,

O Savior, be Thou nigh!

Lord Jesus, think on me

That, when the flood is past,

I may the eternal brightness see

And share Thy joy at last.

Lord Jesus, think on me

That I may sing above

To Father, Spirit, and to Thee

The strains of perfect love. Amen.

Pray with the Church During Quarantine

Hello dear sisters in Christ,

I pray you are staying healthy and safe during these uncertain times.  Although churches across the US and the world are closing their doors, many priests and religious are live streaming their Masses and prayers to the faithful.  Prayer is an integral part of vocation discernment so even though we may not be able to visit Our Blessed Lord physically, we should still spend time with Him in prayer and meditation at home.

A couple of wonderful communities are sharing their daily hours of prayer with us over live streams.

PC: Benedictines of Mary

The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles: Live Stream the Divine Office and Latin Mass

The Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles: Live stream Morning Prayer, English Mass, and Evening Prayer

May you keep very close to Our Blessed Lord during these trying times.  Remember He is with you always and that He has a plan for everything.  Let us offer our sacrifices and penances for the salvation of souls and the end of the Coronavirus.

God love you,

Sarah

Serving with the Sisters

Hello sisters,

In October, I was blessed to be able to volunteer with the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles for their annual Fall Boutique!  I just wanted to drop some pictures here and share a little bit about my time with the sisters.  It was very nice to be able to spend time working and praying with the sisters that I have grown up visiting for 10 years!

Cookies, cookies, and more cookies!!! We made, baked, and boxed so many cookies for the Carmel Kitchen bake sale!

Visiting a Catholic cemetery for the feast of All Soul's Day.

The Carmelite Sisters' marker with a statue of St. Therese. 💕

The grave of the co-foundress of the Carmelite Sisters of Los Angeles.

Ave Maria...  The statue at the end of the hall of my dorm wing.

I love getting up early when I'm at the retreat house because I get to pray with the sisters!  Evening prayer is beautiful too because you rest in prayer after a busy day. 

Ite ad Joseph!  A beautiful statue in the retreat house office.

I was privileged to run an errand with a sister to visit a friend of the community to collect succulents for a project.

It was quite a new experience and I had fun.  I didn't realize how beautiful succulents could be.

Sampling the cherry pie made for the Carmel Kitchen.  It was delicious!!

"Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in You!"

"The more you honor Me, the more I will bless you."

There were lots of beautiful items for sale at the boutique that were made by friends of the sisters.

This week was full of blessings and long days of work and prayer.  Even though I was very tired after each day, I was so happy and peaceful.  A week of volunteering with the sisters teaches you humility as you work for the good of others and the salvation of souls.

Have you volunteered with a community of sisters?  What did you do?  Please tell me in the comments below!  God love you!!

Take Up Your Cross

Copyright His Voice is Sweet

"Jesus, You are the star that leads me on..."

Sisters, today I would like to just share a few words of encouragement with you.  I don't know where you are in your discernment.  Maybe you're just starting, maybe you're in the middle of filling out an application, or maybe you're getting ready to enter the convent.  Wherever you are, it is important to keep your eyes focused and your will firm.

"My eyes must constantly attend to the voice of the Divine Crucified One." ~St. Teresa of the Andes

But in addition to keeping focused, we must move forward.  We are on a journey to Heaven.  Finding our vocation is just part of that journey.  So keep your feet moving.  Make that appointment to speak with your priest, send that letter that's sitting on your desk, or start reading that book on vocations you've been meaning to get to.  Make this new year a year of progress.

"Behold the handmaiden of the Lord.  Let it be done to me according to your word."

Yes, sometimes we have to wait for a response or wait out a trial, but other times, God is asking us to make a leap of faith.  He asks us to follow Him.  So do not drag your feet.  Put one foot in front of the other and take the necessary actions to pursue your vocation.

 Yes, the way to Heaven is rough, narrow, steep, and even thorny, but we can follow in the footsteps of Christ.  He has made a way for us to follow.  His yoke is easy and His burden is light.  And we are not alone on this journey.  We have Mary, the saints, and even each other to help us along the way.  So pick up your cross and follow Jesus.  Let's get moving!

"Since we see the way, let's run together..."

God love you!

World Day of Cloistered Life

Hello sisters,

Praised be Jesus Christ!  I recently learned that November 21st is World Day of Cloistered Life!  How exciting is this?!  It is a special day to remember and pray for all the cloistered religious who do so much for the Church without us even knowing about most of it!  Do you know any cloistered nuns or communities?  Maybe this day would be a good time to stop by and send your letter, prayers, or gift through the turn! 😊  If you aren't near the chapel of any cloistered community, visit your local adoration chapel because all cloistered religious are there in spirit praying with you just on the other side of the tabernacle door.  Most importantly, don't forget to pray for all the cloistered religious around the world who continue to keep the heart of the Church beating.  Their prayers, sacrifices, and good works do so much good for us, the Church and the world.  We will never know the extent of their effects until we reach Heaven.

There are lots of great resources at this link that can help you spread the word about this special day.