God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but He does what is still more wonderful: He makes saints out of sinners. -Soren Kirkegaard- Will you have the courage to trust Him with all your heart? 
#surrender

Friendship is not a reward for our good taste in finding one another out but the instrument by which God reveals to each the beauties of all the others. They are, like all beauties, derived from Him, and then, in a good friendship, increased by Him through the friendship so that it is His instrument for creating as well as for revealing.
-C.S.Lewis

You are a princess worthy to be loved by a prince. Be patient and wait for the one God is preparing just for you.

A woman becomes beautiful when she knows she is loved.

Ladies, you are God's most cherished treasure. Let Him be yours too! Don't listen to the world, because the world will offer you 'treasures' which will lead you astray. Have the courage to follow Him who, by giving Himself totally to you, gives you everything you'll ever need...and more! :)
-Matthew 6:21

True beauty flows from a heart at rest. "Our hearts are restless until they rest in You Lord"
-Saint Augustine

Ladies, remember what Jesus said about the generosity of our Father? Have faith that He will give you more than what you ask for :) “You fathers, if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you, sinful people, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” 
-Luke 11:11-13

Do you ever feel like Peter in Matthew 14:22-33? Never listen to your fears but cling on to your faith and run to Jesus instead cause He's waiting for you with open arms. Put all your trust in Him who only wants the best for you and He won't let you drown. You can walk on water too. 
#truth

God created you with an immeasurable dignity and a holiness of heart. Each and every one of you has been given a beauty to unveil. You've been created with a unique purpose and the world needs you to radiate your faith and true beauty because "Every experience of beauty points to eternity." 
-V. Balthasar

"Holiness is not a matter of doing anything. It is a matter of letting it be done. Holiness is to conceive the love of God within and to bring it forth to the world."
-Christopher West

God wants to be loved by you. He wants to be your priority. From beginning to end, the cry of God's heart is "Why won't you choose me?" Look for Him, pursue Him because He longs to fill your heart and soul.

There is literally nothing you can do to out sin God's love for you. Sometimes we make the wrong decisions, like the prodigal son in today's Gospel reading (Luke 15:1-3, 11-32). But God in is infinite love for us gave us free will and so we are free to go and leave Him as we please. But always remember that it's NEVER too late to turn around and run back to Him! He will ALWAYS be waiting for you with open arms until you return. And whenever we do, Heaven throws a massive party because nothing can make Him happier :)

Ladies, your body is the most precious GIFT from God you've ever received because it means He has given you LIFE and has had you in mind even before the beginning of time. Not only, but He's LOVED you..already then! And...wait for it...He's you're body His home! You are a walking tabernacle! How incredible is that?! 
So love your body and take good care of it as you would with any gift you receive. But most of all appreciate it...because He DWELLS IN YOU!

How lovely to know that Jesus is truly present there among us when we gather together in His name to pray...:) Definitely makes you want to pray together more often! Let's encourage each other to do that!
-Matthew 18:20

"If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you."
-John 13:14-15 

Don't fear not being all you should or want to be. You were made for more and what you could be is your destiny. Expect a journey, not a miracle. Because it's on the journey we get to walk and spend time with Jesus. It's through the journey we become beautiful, because real beauty takes time grow. We get to stumble and fall, yet are raised up again through hope which is rooted in our faith, leads to peace and gives rise to pure joy. And so every journey will be full of miracles and every miracle will be the beginning of a new journey; with, through and in Christ. So hold on to His promises and keep on walking. You're not alone. We're all pilgrims on a journey to Heaven, our true home. #letsgo

Sisters in Christ, let's remember to thank God every day! For the big and small things, for the great and not so great....for He is GOOD! ALWAYS. Every day God gives you is filled with His love and blessings. Some days we may struggle to see that, but then all we have to do is ask Him to show us what He's prepared for us. He has a purpose for you, a plan, a loving thought behind everything that crosses your path. So remember to thank Him also for the things that went by unnoticed during your day :)
-1 Chronicles 16:34

Don't miss out on more lovely postings from Daughters of God!!  That's right, to *like* them on fb, just visit... :-) http://www.facebook.com/pages/Daughters-of-God/434260933295788?v=wall

By: Stephanie Guyla
After blogging for a year and a half on the topic of being a Catholic woman (and after almost 24 years of actually being a Catholic woman), I have come to the conclusion that the topic of fatherhood is a sore subject for almost every woman. This, of course, is not to say that there aren’t women out there who have great relationships with their earthly fathers and no problem at all relating to God the Father, but through my experiences, I have found that a majority of women (Catholic or not) need healing when it comes to their father.

The root of this goes all the way back to Adam and Eve in the Garden. It’s kind of shame that they keep getting blamed for everything, but Original Sin is quite a hurdle to get past. When Adam and Eve chose to eat of the forbidden fruit, this was a slap in the face to the Fatherhood of God.

Many people will say that the first sin was pride, which I will not dispute, but I have read many other sources which talk about Original Sin and the Father. Adam and Eve were basically saying that they didn’t trust their Father to provide for them. They thought they could do it better themselves (pride). They rejected the love that the Father had for them, and we are now inclined to do the same. We inherit this mistrust of the Father from our first parents. And, in the end, doesn’t every sin have the same root: we are trying to get something for ourselves, to provide for ourselves because we don’t trust the Father to provide?

In addition to all of this, we often find that our relationship with our earthly fathers leaves something to be desired. Our earthly fathers are meant to be an image of our Heavenly Father. Through our human relationships, we are supposed to learn something about our relationship with God. The plan was that earthly fathers would love us in such a way that led us to the Source of that love: God the Father Himself. With Original Sin, our relationship with God the Father was distorted, as was our relationship with our earthly fathers. Many of us have been left with wounds by our fathers or by father figures in our lives. This was not how God intended for us to live.

My insights into fatherhood, both the human and divine side, have led me to one very important conclusion: healing is needed! In the spirit of Easter, we should rejoice because even though sin entered the world and we have been wounded over and over again, the Father sent His only Son to bring us redemption and healing! Brokenness is not the end of the line. We are not meant to live in fear and hurt. We are meant to live in glory! And that live of glory can begin here on earth!

Over the past few months, I have been working on a very special project surrounding all of these insights. The Lord has provided a lot of healing in my life on the topic of fatherhood and I wanted to find a way to share the joy I have found. Today, April 15th, marks the release of my first eBook entitled Where I Belong: 30 Daily Reflections to Lead Catholic Women Closer to the Heart of the Father. This 68-page book, in addition to being the fulfillment of a childhood dream to write and publish a book, is my way of sharing all I have learned in a way which I am sure can benefit every woman. Each day, I provide a Scripture passage, a written reflection and a guided prayer exercise to help you to dive deeper into your relationship with God the Father. To get more info on the eBook, or to purchase it, CLICK HERE and you will be directed to my site. The cost is only $8.00 and any money I make will first be used to support my blog and my family (my husband and I are expecting our first child in a few short weeks!!!). 

Whether you buy the book or not, the most important thing I want you to take away from this article is that you are a beloved daughter of the Father. For some of you, this might be an affirmation and reminder of a truth you already live in, and for others, it may hurt your heart to think about this truth. But, no matter where you are in your spiritual journey, the Truth remains the same and there is always more to learn about being His daughter. Rejoice with me that we have a Father who loves us enough to sacrifice everything to bring us back to Him….FOREVER! Rejoice in the message of Easter!

May God be praised!
-Stephanie Guyla

Source: www.songofsongs610.com/ebook/whereibelong

http://dignitasmagazine.com
Since Dignitas was launched earlier this year, we have been blessed beyond expectation with encouraging responses from readers around hte globe who support our work and have promised us their prayers.  To those who have reached out to us we send our sincere thanks!  Your encouragement has not only reassured us that Dignitas' message is relevant and needed, but it has also allowed us to experience the powerful, encouraging reality of the Body of Christ. 

With this in mind, we set out to plan this fall issue with the desire to "pay forward" your gift of encouragement, and the exciting start of this new Year of Faith providing the perfect guiding theme.

In his Apostolic Letter announcing the new Year of Faith, Pope Benedict XVI called us to intensify our reflection on the content of the Catholic faith as it is "professed, celebrated, lived, and prayed."  Our hope is that in this issue of Dignitas you'll find articles that encourage you to deepen your understanding and practice of the faith.  To end this, we've covered a wide range of topics that concern our daily living of the faith, including articles on reexamining our fitness habits and the five non-negotiable issues that should guide Catholic voters.  We also feature inspiring articles about one college student's journey to the convent, and another woman's path to becoming an advocate for impoverished women in Ethiopia.

We pray that this Year of Faith be one of authentic spiritual renewal for our readers and for the whole Body of Christ!

In Him, The Dignitas Team

To read the Autumn 2012 issue of Dignitas, visit: http://dignitasmagazine.com

"To love at all is to be vulnerable.  Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken.  If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even an animal.  Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness.

But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change.  It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.  The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation.  The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers of love is Hell." 
-C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

I’d like to offer this book review in honor of our Blessed Mother, as it is currently her month – May!

I came across “Our Lady of the Lost and Found” lying around my parents’ house – which is the way I stumble upon many of good books. My mom was just finishing it. She said it was a good read, but perhaps the author, Diane Schoemperlen, could have benefited from a more thorough editing since it tended to drag in the middle. I was still pretty intrigued, so I picked it up.

The premise is basically this: what would happen if the Virgin Mary decided to take a break from all her interceding and grace-giving to vacation at the house of a middle-aged writer for a week? Or perhaps this: what would happen to a middle-aged not particularly religious woman in modern times if the Virgin Mary showed up at her doorstep asking to for a place to stay for a while?...

(Read the rest of my review here.)

~Rachel

By: John & Stasi Eldredge
This is an amazing book that gets at the heart of a woman's soul.  I highly recommend it as a way of discovering your captivating self.
Find it in most bookstores!
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Every little girl has dreams of being swept up into a great adventure, of being the beautiful princess. Sadly, when women grow up, they are often swept up into a life filled merely with duty and demands. Many Christian women are tired, struggling under the weight of the pressure to be a "good servant," a nurturing caregiver, or a capable home manager.

What Wild at Heart did for men, Captivating is doing for women. Setting their hearts free. This groundbreaking book shows readers the glorious design of women before the fall, describes how the feminine heart can be restored, and casts a vision for the power, freedom, and beauty of a woman released to be all she was meant to be. By revealing the core desires every woman shares-to be romanced, to play an irreplaceable role in a grand adventure, and to unveil beauty-John and Stasi Eldredge invite women to recover their feminine hearts, created in the image of an intimate and passionate God. Further, they encourage men to discover the secret of a woman's soul and to delight in the beauty and strength women were created to offer.

Published by Katherine Becker, a PhD student at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee studying interpersonal relationships and social support in health care situations, The Dating Fast offers Catholic women a Christ-centered approach to love and healing.  This guide maps out a 40-day fast from dating that provides frustrated women an opportunity to regain their clarity about romantic love. With each day structured with brief affirmations and practical activities—such as prayer, reflection, forgiveness, and thanksgiving—Catholic women will find a cleansing ritual sure to resolve the emotional trauma of painful pasts, and reaffirm an orthodox belief in romantic love.

"It's brilliant!  If you read and live this book you will discover a clarity that most people never have when it comes to relationships!"
     - Matthew Kelly, New York Times bestselling author

To discover more information about The Dating Fast or purchase your own copy of this beautiful book, please visit: http://web.me.com/slbec6/Katherine_Becker/home.html.