Easter Tuesday

Today is the fifth day of the Novena to the Divine Mercy, that Christ asked us by way of St.Faustina to pray, which will lead up to the Feast of the Divine Mercy next Sunday. In speaking to St.Faustina Christ gave her a different intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

In St.Faustina's diary she wrote that Jesus told her:
"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy...On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces of these souls."

Day 1 (Good Friday) - All mankind, especially sinners
Day 2 (Holy Saturday) - The souls of priests and religious
Day 3 (Easter Sunday) - All devout and faithful souls
Day 4 (Easter Monday) - Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him
Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) - The souls of separated brethren

"Today bring to Me the Souls of those who have separated themselves from My Church, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. During My bitter Passion they tore at My Body and Heart, that is, My Church. As they return to unity with the Church My woulds heal and in this way they alleviate My Passion."

Most Merciful Jesus, Goodness Itself, You do not refuse light to those who seek it of You. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of those who have separated themselves from Your Church. Draw them by Your light into the unity of the Church, and do not let theme scape from the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart; but bring it about that they, too, come to glorify the generosity of Your mercy.

Eternal father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls of those who have separated themselves from Your Son's Church, who have squandered Your blessigns and misused Your graces by obstinately persisting in their errors. Do not look upon their errors, but upon the love of Your own son and upon His bitter Passion, which He underwent for their sake, since they, too, are enclosed in His Most Compassionate Heart. Bring it about that they also may glorify Your great mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) - The meek and humble souls and the souls of children
Day 7 (Easter Thursday) - The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy
Day 8 (Easter Friday) - The souls who are detained in purgatory
Day 9 (Easter Saturday) - The souls who have become lukewarm

Feel free to come back tomorrow for the prayers of Day 6 or you can visit here to see all of the days at once.

Easter Monday

Today is the fourth day of the Novena to the Divine Mercy, that Christ asked us by way of St.Faustina to pray, which will lead up to the Feast of the Divine Mercy next Sunday. In speaking to St.Faustina Christ gave her a different intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

In St.Faustina's diary she wrote that Jesus told her:
"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy...On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces of these souls."

Day 1 (Good Friday) - All mankind, especially sinners
Day 2 (Holy Saturday) - The souls of priests and religious
Day 3 (Easter Sunday) - All devout and faithful souls
Day 4 (Easter Monday) - Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him
"Today bring to Me those who do not believe in God and those who do not know Me, I was thinking also of them during My bitter Passion, and their future zeal comforted My Heart. Immerse them in the ocean of My mercy."

Most compassionate Jesus, You are the Light of the whole world. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of those who do not believe in God and of those who as yet do not know You. Let the rays of Your grace enlighten them that they, too, together with us, may extol Your wonderfulmercy; and do not let them escape from the abode which is Your Most Compassionate Heart.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls of those who do not believe in You, and of those who as yet do not know You, but who are enclosed in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. Draw them to the light of the Gospel. These souls do not know what great happiness it is to love You. Grant that they, too, may extol the generosity of Your mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) - The souls of separated brethren
Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) - The meek and humble souls and the souls of children
Day 7 (Easter Thursday) - The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy
Day 8 (Easter Friday) - The souls who are detained in purgatory
Day 9 (Easter Saturday) - The souls who have become lukewarm

Feel free to come back tomorrow for the prayers of Day 5 or you can visit here to see all of the days at once.

Easter Sunday!

Jesus Christ is risen today Amen. Alleluia. Oh how good it feels to say that word. Over and over again all day I could say that word. I hope you are all enjoying your Easter Sunday with your families!

Today is the third day of the Novena to the Divine Mercy, that Christ asked us by way of St.Faustina to pray, which will lead up to the Feast of the Divine Mercy next Sunday. In speaking to St.Faustina Christ gave her a different intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

In St.Faustina's diary she wrote that Jesus told her:
"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy...On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces of these souls."

Day 1 (Good Friday) - All mankind, especially sinners
Day 2 (Holy Saturday) - The souls of priests and religious
Day 3 (Easter Sunday) - All devout and faithful souls
"Today bring to Me all Devout and Faithful Souls, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. These souls brought me consolation on the Way of the Cross. They were a drop of consolation in the midst of an ocean of bitterness."

Most Merciful Jesus, from the treasury of Your mercy, You impart Your graces in great abundance to each and all. Receive us into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart and never let us escape from It. We beg this grace of You by the most wondrous love for the heavenly Father with which Your Heart burns so fiercely.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon faithful souls, as upon the inheritance of Your Son. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, grant them Your blessing and surround them with Your constant protection. Thus may they never fail in love or lose the treasure of the holy faith, but rather, with all the hosts of Angels and Saints, may they glorify Your boundless mercy for endless ages. Amen.

Day 4 (Easter Monday) - Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him
Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) - The souls of separated brethren
Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) - The meek and humble souls and the souls of children
Day 7 (Easter Thursday) - The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy
Day 8 (Easter Friday) - The souls who are detained in purgatory
Day 9 (Easter Saturday) - The souls who have become lukewarm

Feel free to come back tomorrow for the prayers of Day 4 or you can visit here to see all of the days at once.

Holy Saturday

Today is the second day of the Novena to the Divine Mercy, that Christ asked us by way of St.Faustina to pray, which will lead up to the Feast of the Divine Mercy next Sunday. In speaking to St.Faustina Christ gave her a different intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

In St.Faustina's diary she wrote that Jesus told her:
"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy...On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces of these souls."

Day 1 (Good Friday) - All mankind, especially sinners
Day 2 (Holy Saturday) - The souls of priests and religious

"Today bring to Me the Souls of Priests and Religious, and immerse them in My unfathomable mercy. It was they who gave me strength to endure My bitter Passion. Through them as through channels My mercy flows out upon mankind."

Most Merciful Jesus, from whom comes all that is good, increase Your grace in men and women consecrated to Your service, that they may perform worthy works of mercy; and that all who see them may glorify the Father of Mercy who is in heaven.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the company of chosen ones in Your vineyard - upon the souls of priests and religious; and endow them with the strength of Your blessing. For the love of the Heart of Your Son in which they are enfolded, impart to them Your power and light, that they may be able to guide others in the way of salvation and with one voice sing praise to Your boundless mercy for ages without end. Amen.

Day 3 (Easter Sunday) - All devout and faithful souls
Day 4 (Easter Monday) - Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him
Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) - The souls of separated brethren
Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) - The meek and humble souls and the souls of children
Day 7 (Easter Thursday) - The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy
Day 8 (Easter Friday) - The souls who are detained in purgatory
Day 9 (Easter Saturday) - The souls who have become lukewarm

Feel free to come back tomorrow for the prayers of Day 3 or you can visit here to see all of the days at once.

Good Friday

Today is Good Friday and Christians everywhere are mourning the death of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. If you can, take the opportunity to walk through Calvary with our Lord today.

Good Friday is also the day that begins the Novena to the Divine Mercy, that Christ asked us by way of St.Faustina to pray, which will lead up to the Feast of the Divine Mercy next Sunday. In speaking to St.Faustina Christ gave her a different intention to pray for on each day of the Novena.

In St.Faustina's diary she wrote that Jesus told her:
"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy...On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces of these souls."

So even if you are not Catholic or not familiar with praying a Novena, take a couple extra minutes these next 9 days and ask Our Lord for His infinite mercy.

Day 1 (Good Friday) - All mankind, especially sinners
"Today bring to Me all mankind, especially sinners, and immerse them in the ocean of My mercy. In this way you will console Me in the bitter grief into which he loss of souls plunges Me."

Most Merciful Jesus, whose very nature it is to have compassion on us and to forgive us, do not look upon our sins but upon our trust which we place in Your infinite goodness. Receive us all into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart, and never let us escape from It. We beg this of You by Your love which unites You to the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon all mankind and especially upon poor sinners, all enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion show us Your mercy, that we may praise the omnipotence of Your mercy for ever and ever. Amen.

Day 2 (Holy Saturday) - The souls of priests and religious
Day 3 (Easter Sunday) - All devout and faithful souls
Day 4 (Easter Monday) - Those who do not believe in Jesus and those who do not yet know Him
Day 5 (Easter Tuesday) - The souls of separated brethren
Day 6 (Easter Wednesday) - The meek and humble souls and the souls of children
Day 7 (Easter Thursday) - The souls who especially venerate and glorify Jesus' mercy
Day 8 (Easter Friday) - The souls who are detained in purgatory
Day 9 (Easter Saturday) - The souls who have become lukewarm

Feel free to come back tomorrow for the prayers of Day 2 or you can visit here to see all of the days at once.

My Scariest Life Change Ever and I'm Making it Right Now

It was 3pm on Saturday. I went to studio to get some work done, was there for approximately 30 minutes with four other girls there and I left. I couldn't do it anymore. It was awful. I hated it. I'd had enough.

I pick up my phone as I'm walking down flights of stairs to get out of the building. As soon as I hit fresh air I call home to talk to my parents. No one answers but I try again, I really need to get this off my chest. My mom picks up and she says she was on the phone with my grandma and was doing dishes. I asked her if she had time to talk and of course she says yes. Okay I say, I have something to tell you. I want to change my major. There. I've said it. It's out in the universe. Now finally someone else knows. And then the tears come, the sobbing, can't catch my breath tears.

I'm scared, I keep saying over and over again, this is scary.  I'd been wrestling with the idea of switching for months but I couldn't bring myself to do it. This is the end of my sophomore year. I've spent two years worth of money and time in this major and now I'm throwing it all away. What am I gonna do? All I know is I can't don't wanna do this any more.
  
Then of course there were other things going through my head. I was scared because I pay for college, and that's at least one more year that I'm going to have to find a way to pay for, one more year of living costs, one more year of not being in the working world. One more year of debt that I will be in. Does changing majors make me a failure? Because that's certainly what it felt like. Like I chose the wrong major to begin with so I lost, I failed. Will it look like I'm giving up? What will the girls in the interior design program say when they see that I'm not in their classes next year? Cassi wasn't good enough? Cassi didn't work hard enough? Cassi didn't want it enough? Cassi dropped out because she couldn't take it? Cassi failed? Just the thought of anyone saying that was enough to make me feel sick to my stomach.

When I first started not enjoying my classes I'd tell myself that I could go through four years of hell to have the rest of my future in a career that I loved. And that worked, for a while. Then I realized that I didn't like my classes. I didn't like the way my teachers didn't really teach. I didn't like my projects. I wasn't particularly fond of some cliques that had formed in my very small class. I don't feel particulary accepted by certain classmates and was an outsider in the interior design 'family'. I no longer loved the idea of being an interior designer for the rest of my life. I didn't like the idea of not being great at what I was doing. I looked at my educational life and working future and didn't see one thing that I liked. And that's when I knew. 

Recently we had a St.Lawrence Speed Dating event. Yeah just saying it seems funny. We listened to Fr.Steve give a talk (that will have to be it's own post), and then had about 8 dates, 3 minutes each. At the end of the evening we had a list of the guys that were there and could circle whomever we wished and if they circled us than we'd be 'matched'. Goodness it's so much less creepy than I'm making it sound (now I'll have to do another post on it just to explain better). So I started going through the speed dates in my head and remembering what the guys I talked to were like. I liked the 'idea' of some of they guys, they were really nice and fun to talk to but sometimes you just know that you aren't compatible. You know that if you were to go on the date that you'd be lying to the both of you so you pass on it because the 'idea' of the guy is better than the reality of what you and that date would be like.

I think it's the same with me being an interior design major. I loved the 'idea' of being an interior design major. In my head it was the perfect way to mix the best of two worlds, art and business. I'd be able to go through college saying I'm an interior design major. The idea of working at an architecture firm and doing huge projects was a great one. But I think I liked the 'idea' of being an interior designer more than I would actually like to be an interior designer. It just took me a while to figure that out.

I used to genuinely want to be an interior designer. I sure as heck wasn't expecting to ever begin to not want to be an interior designer. But then again I used to genuinely enjoy eating sandwiches of pickles and ketchup between two slices of cheese when i was little. I no longer enjoy eating those. Things change. It's a fact of life. 

I don't often say this but I think Marilyn Monroe said it pretty well:

"...sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."

Now that I've told my mom and a couple friends what's going on my heart feels so much lighter. I'm amazed at how heavily this whole thing had been weighing on my heart. So I cried for 30 minutes and then I couldn't stop smiling. So this is what it feels like to surrender to God's will. I'd been praying about it a lot lately and just hoping that God would give me the strength to make this life changing decision.

I've talked about this before but God has a very unique-to-Cassi way of communicating with me. God starts by planting this little tiny thought inside my head. I tend to overthink things, it's who I am. I don't make split-second decisions and I like to weigh the pros and cons and worry worry worry. Then after I've done the worrying and weighing for weeks/months and shaking the idea of that little thought in my head, God comes up to me and slaps me in the face and I'm like whoa! And then I pull the trigger. Deep inside I know what to do but sometimes my trust isn't where it should be and I get scared until I hear Him say 'I'm right here and I've been telling you over and over again what to do. Why aren't you listening to Me?'

So this is me, listening. No I'm not going to enjoy the interior design students talking about me behind my back and no I'm not going to enjoy having to pay more money and be in school for more years. But God will provide and I will be humbled knowing that others won't think as highly of me anymore:

But he bestows a greater grace; therefore, it says: "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." - James 4:6

Before his downfall a man's heart is haughty, but humility goes before honors. - Proverbs 18:12

If you're out there and you're reading this I'd like to ask a favor. Would you please pray that everything will work out for the better? That this will help me to grow in humililty. That I will be more open to listening to and following God's will for me and that this change in majors will be for the better? Know that in return I will be praying for you.

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Palm Sunday

This post is gonna cover a couple things since neither really merited their own post but they definitely have a recurring theme. So here we go, a couple things:

Thing 1:
On Palm Sunday afternoon I log on to the twitter world to see what's up. I was extremely taken back and hurt when I come across this tweet:

"Palm Sunday was my favorite growing up, mostly because the Catholic Church made everything else so depressing. #blessmefatherforihavesinned"

I was mad. I was mad and annoyed and grrrrr. How dare she talk about my church like that! How dare she talk about The church like that! How dare she talk about His church like that! Oh how wrong the misconception about the Catholic Church is and it breaks my heart. So I must pray for her, because if I don't I'd be afraid of what the devil could do with my feelings on this subject.


This particular tweeter was a few years older than me in high school. She was raised Catholic in a divorced family. I wasn't even friends with her and it pained me to see her leave the church. Even when I was in Junior High I knew that there was a truth in the Catholic Church that she would not be receiving in this new one.

So this new church had a rock band on 'stage' and was young and 'on fire'. Let me be the first to tell you that if you come to Lawrence, Kansas and visit the St.Lawrence Catholic Campus Center you will find some young 'on fire' Catholics. We don't have a stage, we don't have a rock band, but what we do have, is Christ Jesus in the form of the Eucharist. What we do have, is reverence for Our Blessed Mother. What we do have, is the Truth. And I don't know about you, but I have never felt depressed after going to Mass. I've felt overjoyed, remorseful, hopeful, and thankful but never depressed.

Thing 2:

If only everyone that came to Mass on Sundays could come to the realization that this guy came to:

It's Holy Week! Woohoo! Easter is right around the corner but in the mean time we have a whole week to finish preparing! I'll be doing my part by helping out with the Living Stations of the Cross on The University of Kansas campus starting at 2pm in front of Spooner Hall. If you're available I really hope you'll join us!