Who is Jesus to you?
Sponsored
Catholic365 is sponsored by
Road to Purity
Inevitably life throws us storms. Sometimes the storm we face may seem like nothing more than a rain shower. Other times it may seem like a Category 5 hurricane. No matter the size of the storm or its scope, we always have two choices in how we respond. We may not be able to control the storm, but we can control our response to it: Discouragement or trust.
It is hard to see the sun peeking through the clouds when we are sinking in discouragement. Have you ever noticed that discouragement and depression seem to get darker with time? If it sinks into darker holes then it will never look up to see the sun ray trying to kiss your face to give you the promise of an end to the lightning,
We can allow our storms to cause a tornado or swirling jealousy revenge, anger, bitterness, or hatred. We can also allow the storm to usher in a time of peace through trusting the Lord. Remember the disciples when they encountered the storm that seemed to be on the verge of drowning them? They ran to Jesus and accused Him of not caring because he was sleeping. The Lord knew what the disciples were not allowing themselves to see. He knew peace could come in the midst of the worst storms.
“Neither death nor life….nor things present nor things to come…..shall be able to separate us from the love of God.” (Romans 8:38-39) This promise we receive in Sacred Scripture also includes times when it seems like Jesus is asleep while we are drowning.
There are 3 things we can do to ensure we have trust rather than discouragement in the storm: Pray, Read, and worship.
Pray: When the disciples were facing the storm, Jesus was asleep until they woke him up. Although Jesus may have been sleeping, he certainly wasn’t unaware of the storm. It took the disciples going directly to him to get him to speak peace to the storm. “Pray about it” seems like a cliché that rolls off the tongue but many never take a moment to actually do it. The disciples spoke up and went to Jesus. If you want to trust Christ, you must first go to Him and tell Him you’re afraid and you want to trust Him.
Read: It is always a great encouragement to include daily Scripture reading into your routine. Reading Sacred Scripture each day gives us fuel that we need to continue trusting God. It gives us a foundation for the day.
Worship: Let’s face it, without worship in our life then our faith is meaningless. Without a strong faith, it’s hard to trust. If you want to strengthen your trust, attend Mass. It’s the greatest form of worship.
The good news is that the storm will pass. The rain will stop. The winds will subside. The sun will come out again.
Amelia Monroe Carlson graduated from the University of North Alabama with a Bachelor’s Degree in journalism. Being raised as a Methodist during her early years, it was not until she entered college where she began to take her faith seriously. She was baptized as a Southern Baptist in Muscle Shoals, AL and began immediately serving in international missions and in the church.
During college, she became the Co-founder of an International Ministry, where she spent time traveling and speaking to church groups and in large conferences. She authored a Bible study and traveled abroad on mission work. She sat on the Mid-South Interfaith Conferences in Mississippi, where she defended the faith and discussed beliefs with leaders of various religions.
After a business trip to Washington D.C., where she was introduced to a former Baptist who converted to the Catholic Church, she was placed on a journey to enter into the Catholic Church.
Amelia is a military wife and currently residents with her husband and daughter in Tennessee. She is a nine time award winning journalist, receiving press awards for various categories including investigative journalism, best news coverage, and best single feature. It is her desire to help Catholics, particularly Cradle Catholics, see the beauty in their faith which converts see and appreciate the fullness of truth which the Church has held and guarded throughout history. It is her desire all Catholics fall as much in love with Jesus as she is, and love the Church to a greater capacity than they could imagine.
Amelia taught PRE for 4-6 grade at St. Mary Catholic Church in Bolivar, Tennessee from 2014-2016. She served as Youth Director at St. Philip the Apostle Catholic Church in Somerville, Tennessee in 2017-2018. She now teaches 7th grade (1st year Confirmation) PRE class at St. Philip. She's also a writer and frequent podcast guest on Our Warpath.
She has a strong devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Francis de Sales, St. Padre Pio and St. Maximilian Kolbe.
To contact Amelia for speaking inquiries at conferences, retreats, or parishes contact her via social media on Facebook (Amelia Monroe Carlson), Twitter (@2_catholic ) or send a text to: (731)518-6923.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ameliamcarlson
Twitter: @2_catholic (Catholic ministry account)
Twitter personal account: @ameliamcarlson
