Preparation for Religious Life

[TheresaMF]

Hello Phatmassers,

I've really enjoyed reading (and maybe posting once of twice on) your vocation board. It's great to have a group of people specifically interesting in and talking about vocations to the relgious life--very encouraging and informative.

An article I once read about discernment made a point that should be very obvious: LIVE. Don't just moon about the future, drooling over veils and scapulars and dreaming about religious names (as fun as that might be!). The most important element is simply living a holy life focused on God, attempting to grow in virtue and in love for Him. It's been really easy for me to forget that in the past, and easy for me to forget that now, despite a renewed trust in God and sense of His purpose. Many nights I would rather surf the net than work on fulfilling my duties in my family and job; many nights I would rather look up convents online than pray a rosary in my room. God can still call, and use your openness and search for Him, but valuable time, usable for eternity, is slipping through the cracks.

Recently, a paragraph from one of Sr. Carly's letters brought this point home:
[quote]A little word for my friends who are discerning religious life. Convent life is great. I love it beyond words, as there really aren't words to describe it. That's not to say, of course, that it is a cake walk. There are difficulties, from just the physical day from 5am to 10pm and being on the go nonstop, as well as the inevitable personality clashes and constant fallings that we all undergo. Last year, when I was at Christendom, I received a letter from my dear friend Amy, who is with the Hawthorne Dominicans. She told me, as I had mentioned to her my own discernment, to begin NOW to prepare my heart to grow ever closer to Our Lord, especially through the Eucharist. I tried to do so, and the wisdom of these words has hit me ever since I entered. It is NEVER too early to prepare your heart to receive Him. Even those little things-mainly work to purge your heart of selfish attachments . . . it's truly a path to which we are all called, but trust me . . . the more you work on it BEFORE you enter the convent, the better off you will be!![/quote]
So my question: what do you do to keep yourself LIVING for God now and not just thinking about the future? What advice have you heard? Saints you have read? Good articles you can link to? Anything that can help us prepare our hearts now to belong to the Lord, either in religious life or in the world.

[jgirl]

I moved back home in July after being gone for 5 years, so that I could pay more money on my student loans. Waiting to enter is a lot harder living with my parents than it was when I was away because my mom is trying to distract me.

I'm doing a lot of apostolic work right now. I may not be in the convent, but I can still serve God as much as I can, and that is helping me to prepare my heart. I teach 8th grade PSR (CCD) twice a week, help with a local youth group, and am the right hand girl for the Missionaries of Charity and their youth ministry/outreach programs. I'm really busy, but the busyness is good because it keeps me focused on the leap I'm going to take soon--hopefully in July.

[benedictaj]

Awesome post Theresa!!!!!!!!!!!!

[AlterDominicus]

[quote name='TheresaMF' date='Dec 21 2005, 07:50 PM']So my question: what do you do to keep yourself LIVING for God now and not just thinking about the future?  What advice have you heard?  Saints you have read?  Good articles you can link to?  Anything that can help us prepare our hearts now to belong to the Lord, either in religious life or in the world.
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The excitement of it "ALL". Sure you may run into a few bumps and brusies, a test for the Greater Glory of God to make sure that no matter what He puts you through, "you pull through" - In faith, hope, love so that at the end you GOD is still first. i've been through a heck of a whole lot more then normal people, and I have pulled through stronger and eager.

Its hard not to think about what God wants you to do. I mean, I cant help, "but" think about it! Because it is so beautiful, and so amazing to know that your future spouse is Christ! I mean to keep me up I do what I have done since my conversion and more to that, more prayer, enjoyable enviorment, standing up for what I believe in, helping, loving, caring and ETC!!!!

Frankly to say I cant wait until the day I enter my convent!

[DiscerningSoul]

[quote name='TheresaMF' date='Dec 21 2005, 07:50 PM']So my question: what do you do to keep yourself LIVING for God now and not just thinking about the future?  What advice have you heard?  Saints you have read?  Good articles you can link to?  Anything that can help us prepare our hearts now to belong to the Lord, either in religious life or in the world.
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I try to attend more then one mass a week, my mom thinks I am nuts going to two sometimes three masses a day. but what she doesn't understand, althou I think she is starting too, is that I enjoy being in church before our Lord and then to part take of his Holy Self, oh what joy!!
I do like to read about the saints also, its fun to even see what the staint of the day is.
and when you have nothing to think of, whisper or even shout out his wonderful name "JESUS!!"
Stuck at a red light? Why not turn the radio to that catholic station and listen to it.
No excuses. Live and Be with Jesus every moment!
Don't let a heart beat go by without uttering his name.

[AlterDominicus]

[quote name='DiscerningSoul' date='Dec 26 2005, 04:23 PM']I try to attend more then one mass a week, my mom thinks I am nuts going to two sometimes three masses a day.  but what she doesn't understand, althou I think she is starting too, is that I enjoy being in church before our Lord and then to part take of his Holy Self, oh what joy!!
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AGREED! Haha, but I do a little bit more then that...(other then mass I mean) That sometimes it is creepy....

[stuckinamo]

two prayers that i try to pray at all times are: "Jesus, be Lord of this present moment." and/or "Jesus and Mary, I commend my soul to You!" They are great one-liners to focus you during the day about what it is all about! They are short, but if you truly mean them when you pray them, P-O-W-E-R-F-U-L! Also, I'm sure you have all read it.... but if you haven't, read "The Story of a Soul", St. Therese de Lisieux's autobiography. It is PHENOMENAL and just really opens your eyes to ways to grow closer to our Lord and things we can do to serve Him simply in our every day lives!

[TheresaMF]

Apostolic works, daily Mass, and aspirations all sound like excellent ideas! (Although, do you really mean to say going to Mass three times a day?? Wow! I think you're only supposed to receive communion twice daily at the most under normal conditions, though, right?)

Stuckinamo's aspirations reminded me of a list of prayers by St. Alphonsus Ligouri that I found online some years ago.

[i]+My Jesus, You alone are sufficient for me.
+Lord, who am I, that You should desire so much to be loved by me?
+Here I am, Lord; dispose of me as You please.
+My God, I wish for You alone and nothing more.
+You are omnipotent; make me a saint.
+May I this day give myself wholly to You.
+O will of God, you are my love.
+O Mary, draw me all to God.
+O my Mother, make me always have recourse to you. It is for you to make me a saint. This is my hope.[/i]

At one point I had these printed out individually in a big font and stick-tacked around my dorm room. Perhaps I should do something like that again, now that I'm at home. Thanks for the good ideas--keep telling them, in detail too, because it can be the most inspiring to see how people are actually putting these principles into practice. After all, we all know we're supposed to "pray"!

Edited December 27, 2005 by TheresaMF

[DiscerningSoul]

[quote name='TheresaMF' date='Dec 27 2005, 01:01 AM']Apostolic works, daily Mass, and aspirations all sound like excellent ideas!  (Although, do you really mean to say going to Mass three times a day??  Wow!  I think you're only supposed to receive communion twice daily at the most under normal conditions, though, right?)

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Yes, I am aware of the two communions, and I take advatage of haveing both whenever possiable, But sometimes I just want to sit and listen to the message again, even thou I have to skip a communion, however I LOVE making spirital(sp?) communions whenever possiable, I have a chaplet for it also, you can make as many as your heart disires!

I have several blessed chaplets but my favorites are: Our lady of perpetual help, the infant Jesus, Spirital(sp?) communion, ROSERY(of course), Divine Mercy, and Immaculate Mary.

[tvu_srfan]

Hello. I'd just like to say that this topic has been inspiring to me in a way. I've been registered to Phatmass since July but I've never really posted untll today.

Love In Christ,
+Dory

[FutureSoror]

Welcome to Phatmass, Dory!

[benedictaj]

Bump!!!!!

[HisChild]

What a good post! I hadn't seen it because I signed up after the post began.

I still pray the 15 prayers of St Bridget of Sweden. Sometimes I'll pray them while I'm cleaning house or packing boxes for St vincent de Paul.

I've also been reading a lot of various saints books. I am almost done with Testimonies of Saint Teresa of the Andes. One thing she says that really edifies me: "The hearts of human beings love one day and the next day are indifferent. God alone never changes." (d25)

I'll be reading about Saint Teresa Margaret next.

In the car, I don't listen to secular music at all. For Christmas, I received a 66 CD collection of the Holy Bible (although it isn't a Catholic version, so it's missing a few books, of course. .but it was the best narration I could find, and I've listened to a few of them!).

I also have the Dolorous Passion on CD, so when I want a change. . I go there.

When I am on my way home from work, I stop at our Adoration chapel and pray Vespers, and adore.

Of course, I will pray the chaplet of Divine Mercy, and the Holy Rosary! And when I don't have to be to work early, I go to Holy Mass. . .although today, I slept in. (Still sick. . .please pray I'm well enough to work with patients tomorrow! )

I try to think of various things I will learn while in the monastery, to try to start practicing them now, such as custody of the eyes, not rattling off my opinion to co-workers or friends unless it's asked for, stuff like that.

And for me, especially since I am entering soo soon, if I get brought up short by some thing that I will have to give up, and I'm having more than a brief pause about it, I stop what I am doing and think about the whys. I thought about how I won't be able to sleep in anymore. Then I realized that I rarely am able to do that anyway, since my work schedule has me waking around 5am. So, it's not like I'm losing some freedom, I rarely have that privilege now! Then, I'm able to move on.

How about you?

[Andrea348]

[quote name='PCPA2Be' date='Mar 6 2006, 04:46 PM']custody of the eyes
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could you explain this please? i've never heard it before

thanks

[HisChild]

My first spiritual director, who was a sister, (I say was, only because she was killed in a car accident many years ago) explained it this way:

Too many people listen to, view/watch, or in general pay attention to what is neither any of their business nor good for them to do so. So, in keeping custody of the eyes, custody of the ears, custody of the senses in general, we are keeping our senses guarded from temptations of the world.

For example, let's say that you, in your spiritual desires, choose to keep yourself, insofar as is possible, recollected to God. Then, while you are at work, you overhear some nasty gossip, then divert your attention to either speaking with those other people, or even thinking about the gossip you just heard. Your mind is not where it should be.

Another example, you are walking through a shopping mall, and you see a good looking man. Your heart and imagination might be swayed to think of this man, perhaps even to the point of straying from chaste thoughts, even if you do not act upon them. Better to not fixate your eyes on the man at all.

Have you ever been walking with a friend or a family member, and someone just stares at you? Or strains to listen to what you are saying? And you think, 'gee, how nosy!' custody of the senses is basically, 'stop being nosy! It'll get you into all sorts of trouble!' LOL