1 John 3:22 says that whatever we ask for we shall receive. Taken out of context it can take us for a ride. The full context is that when we observe the commandments we begin to remain in God and when we live in God, we can then ask him for anything and we shall receive it.

Further, it says that in this journey we do not trust every inspiration but are called to discern every Spirit. Every Spirit that does not give glory to our Lord Jesus is the spirit of the antichrist. But instead of fearing we are then reminded that the one in us is more powerful than the one in the world.

St Elizabeth Seton was a staunch Episcopalian who became one of the keystones of the American Catholic Church. She suffered many deaths and setbacks and yet she loved the Lord. While in Italy with her dying husband, Elizabeth witnessed Catholic¬ity in action through family friends. Three basic points led her to become a Catholic: belief in the Real Presence, devotion to the Blessed Mother, and conviction that the Catholic Church led back to the apostles and to Christ. Many of her family and friends rejected her when she became a Catholic in March 1805. She founded the first American religious community for women, the Sisters of Charity. She opened the first American parish school and established the first American Catholic orphanage. All this she did in the span of 46 years while raising her five children. The thousand or more letters of Mother Seton reveal the development of her spiritual life from ordinary goodness to heroic sanctity. She suffered great trials of sickness, misunderstanding, the death of loved ones (her husband and two young daughters) and the heartache of a wayward son. She died January 4, 1821, and became the first American-born citizen to be beatified (1963) and then canonized (1975). She is buried in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Let us remind ourselves that no matter what we go through in life, God is willing to carry us through and He will accomplish much more that we can ask for or desire.

Prayer: Abba Father, we pray for the grace of endurance specially in times of trail. Fill us with wisdom to discern the plans you have for us. Amen