Happy 1st Anniversary, RPh! ♥

So here we are after a life-changing year that caught us blindsided and terribly disoriented, but deeply, wholeheartedly thankful nevertheless. Yes, definitely thankful. :)

The world is in our hands.

I remember creating this poem in my head exactly a year ago, while we were lying side by side under the big black sky, cramped in a blanket too small to protect us from the wetness of the grass beneath. And patiently we waited for the stars to appear--slowly, one by one, until their faint glow became distinct, until each twinkle came together to light up the night. Yes, that night, the world was in our hands.

Faith is the assurance of things hoped for.

"It's not religion that saves; it's faith."

I live for Sundays. I live for these words. I live for His words. No, it hasn't always been like this. It took me a long time to get to where I'm standing now and I know that I'm nowhere near the end, but I feel like I have learned so much, grown so much spiritually, and each passing Sunday only makes me fall deeper in love with Him and His love for me. 

"Trust God to reveal the things you'll need to know with regard to the future."

I have come to understand that salvation requires not religion and its discriminations, but pure faith. And it has been a long and difficult journey, but at this moment I am finally able to fully comprehend the phrase, "God is enough".

Because I don't need religions to tell me that I have to abstain from eating pork or celebrating birthdays, or that I have to pray the rosary to be saved. My Savior, Jesus Christ, will save me. No one else. Nothing else. He is enough--no, more than enough. Because He's bigger than any of the mistakes I have made, and His love for me is bigger than anything I--or anyone of us--can ever imagine.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 

that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." 

                                                      - John 3:16

Accept joy, even though you're afraid it might end one day.

 "If there is suffering, then it is best to accept it, because it won't go away because you pretend it is not there. If there is joy, then it is best to accept that too, even though you are afraid it might end some day."

                                                                        - Paulo Coelho