Don't hide the desires of your heart.

Spiritual direction today.


I need more honest with myself and with others.  And, I need to allow people to help. And, so many of you have.  I've entrusted my desires to the Lord, and now its time to take action.  And to keep acting. 
As hard as it is for me to ask for help I must.  I am in a relationship with the Lord.  The Lord called me, can you help the Lord bring me to the monastery?
If you've already given, THANK YOU!!!!  If you haven't, please consider donating money to get me to the monastery.  You can donate to my paypal or if you'd like to write a check and mail it, click here for an address (its at the bottom of the post).  No amount is too small; remember the widow's mite?


Please share my blog and my story with others.  Share via twitter, email, facebook, word of mouth, etc.


I cannot do this alone.  I cannot pay off my debt without the kindness of others.  And, continue to pray.


The hardest thing for me to do is to ask for help.  It has never been easy for me.  I've always relied on myself.  I've entrusted myself to His care, but done it on my own.


As far as I am aware, there is to be no fundraiser for me at our parish.  I do not know the reasons, as I wasn't given any.  I hope that I might be able to share my story with our parishioners to give Glory to God.  But, as to when, I do not have an answer.


And, I will ask whomever asks about my vocation and when I am leaving, if they can help the Lord get me to the monestary by donating what they can.


I am looking forward to these last weeks as youth minister; my last day is Wednesday, June 6.  Being more relational with our teens and parishioners brings JOY to my face.  God is Good.


His timing is perfect.  I am not running a race with Jesus, I am walking in relationship with Him.

My vocation story on video

<video updated May 4, 2012>

Tonight, I was asked to give my testimony at a Life Night on vocations.  And, we recorded it.  Yay!

My pretty pretty dictionary & thesaurus

a Fortnight of Freedom ~ June 21-July 4

Our First, Most Cherished Liberty: A Statement on Religious Liberty


United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty


We are Catholics. We are Americans. We are proud to be both, grateful for the gift of faith which is ours as Christian disciples, and grateful for the gift of liberty which is ours as American citizens. To be Catholic and American should mean not having to choose one over the other. Our allegiances are distinct, but they need not be contradictory, and should instead be complementary. That is the teaching of our Catholic faith, which obliges us to work together with fellow citizens for the common good of all who live in this land. That is the vision of our founding and our Constitution, which guarantees citizens of all religious faiths the right to contribute to our common life together.


Freedom is not only for Americans, but we think of it as something of our special inheritance, fought for at a great price, and a heritage to be guarded now. We are stewards of this gift, not only for ourselves but for all nations and peoples who yearn to be free. Catholics in America have discharged this duty of guarding freedom admirably for many generations.


Read the rest of the article on the USCCB website

9th novena: St. Dominic

9th novena: St. Dominic. April 17 through April 25.


O Holy Priest of God and glorious Patriarch, St. Dominic, thou who wast the friend, the well-beloved son and confidant of the Queen of Heaven, and didst work so many miracles by the power of the Holy Rosary, have regard for my intercessions.
On earth you opened your heart to the miseries of your fellow man, and your hands were strong to help them; now in heaven your charity has not grown less nor has your power waned.
Pray for me to the Mother of the Rosary and to her divine Son, for I have great confidence that through your assistance I shall obtain the favor I so much desire: (mention your intentions). Amen.


My intention:
in Thanksgiving for ALL that He has done in my life, and to beg for a financial miracle to erase my debt

Melissa's ingenuity

One of my graduating teens has a blog.  She is so creative.  She left her camera recording during our setup for peer minister interviews.  And, this video is what she created.

5th Joyful Mystery meditation

I've been invited to speak at a Life Night on vocations, and share my testimony with their young people.  

I found my journals from Oct 2004 through June 2007.  I'm reading through them to see how my life unfolded by the grace of God's hand.

I just passed over this entry:

I'm meditating on the 5th Joyful mystery.  Jesus says, "Didn't you know I'd be in My Father's house?"  In other words, 'Mom, why didn't you look here in the first place?'  When we're searching for God, why don't we go first to Church instead of looking in all the wrong places.

Divine Mercy Sunday

This should come as no surprise, I have a HUGE devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  And, its one of my ALL-TIME favorite feast days -

I still remember when I first fell in love with Him, my ninth grade year.  Through none other than my confirmation saint - St Catherine of Siena.  May I Bathe in His Blood.  Oh, my sweet Christ, how I love thee!
May we all bathe in His blood of Love and Mercy!
Happy Feast!!

30 years of NET Ministries, a history

NET MINISTRIES TIMELINE from NET MINISTRIES www.netusa.org on Vimeo.

I served with NET USA 2002-2003 and 2003-2004.

I need to trust in Him...but it's so hard sometimes

Jesus looked at them and said, “For human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”
And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more, and will inherit eternal life.
~ Matthew 19:26, 29


How true this is?  Lord, I wish I had the patience to wait.


This evening one of my teens said, "Deepa, is the only thing standing in your way of entering money?"
Yes.


The only thing I have left is personal debt, everything else has been accounted for.  
That little grapevine fundraiser therometer to your right is actually only part of what's left.  I have exactly $10,083 left.  If nothing else happens, I can stay at my job until June 8, and I sell everything that I have left for what I'd like to sell it for, then I might just squeeze by and be able to enter, God-willing, on Friday, June 15th, the Feast of the Sacred Heart.


My van has to sell for at least $4600 over what's left on the loan ($4200).  I have to sell my Iphone 4 for the amount of my early termination fee which should be around $300.
And, then there's the techie items and such I have left ~ CrockPot, Food processor, Cooler #1, Cooler #2, iHome, Laptop, Digital Video Camera, Digital Camera, GOgroove FlexSmart, Kindle Fire, GPS, ipod nano, clothes and odds and ends.


Its stressful.  And, yes, I am worried that I won't have enough, or that I won't be able to sell my car or the other items for the amount that I need.  Aiyyyy!  


I trust in God.  I've been trying to do all that I can to prepare.  I trust that His plan is best.  But, I also freak out because work could totally tell me that I have to resign in May so that our assistant youth minister can take over for me.


I need to trust.  It's just that its getting oh-so-much closer and I am slowly stressing out.


Please pray for me.  And I for you.  Pray for a financial miracle of at least $1000 of this remaining debt to be taken care of by a donor or donors.  Because I'm not sure if my math is correct.  And, I honestly don't know how I'll get back to Summit if I have any debt remaining after my last paycheck.


Also, please share my testimony with others.  You never know if God has told them to give, but no one's asked.   


Thank you for listening.

Tagxedo and Turtles

We have these word clouds all over our religious education building for the 1st communicants.  And, they are CUTE!  Our DRE told me how she did them - Tagxedo.com  And, best of all, it's free.

The sisters posted one, and so I designed one too.
I chose it to be in the form of a turtle, just because I like turtles.

Snowball, Long-term Rental, and Insurance

Lent seemed like it passed me by.  It was so fast.  And for being my favorite season, next to Easter, it did go by quick.

Or maybe its because I basically realized I have about 10 weeks left.  Aiy. :)

So, there's a bunch of odds and ends to tie up before leaving.

I need to sell a bunch of techie things, including my car.
But, this also presents a bit of a problem.

I decided a long time ago that I was going to drive myself up to NJ.  See some friends one last time.  I booked a car rental through Kayak.com.  Who, I must say, is the best deal overall!  I got a mid-size car for a week for $384 with taxes.  And, this is one-way!  Other companies wanted to charge me over $1100 to take it from GA to NJ.

So, what if I get a buyer for my precious Snowball before June 8th?  What am I supposed to drive til then? 

The good news is that my current insurance company will still cover me, under a non-owner policy.

I wonder if anyone has an extra car lying around that I can drive during this interim, instead of trying to raise the selling price to cover a long-term rental.

If you know of such a car, let me know.  I'd need through June 8th b/c that's when I pick up my rental car to drive to NJ.

Things are rolling along otherwise.  I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  And, God is in control. :)

8th novena: Bl. John Paul II

8th novena: Bl. John Paul II. April 8 through April 16.


O Blessed Trinity We thank You for having graced the Church with Pope John Paul II and for allowing the tenderness of your Fatherly care, the glory of the cross of Christ, and the splendor of the Holy Spirit, to shine through him.
Trusting fully in Your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, he has given us a living image of Jesus the Good Shepherd, and has shown us that holiness is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life and is the way of achieving eternal communion with you.
Grant us, by his intercession, and according to Your will, the graces we implore, hoping that he will soon be numbered among your saints.
Amen.


My intention:
in Thanksgiving for ALL that He has done in my life, and to beg for a financial miracle to erase my debt

Summit sisters on FoxNews

Click on the picture below to watch and read the article that Fox News correspondent, Lauren Green, did on the Dominican Nuns in Summit, NJ! :)