Don't Lose Hope...Dreams Do Come True!

         "God would not inspire me with desires which cannot be realized."                                                                                                                                                                  St. Therese                                                                                                                                                            

     For some time in early January, I felt a nudge, again and again from St. Therese and St. Denis to come to France. I felt puzzled by the inspiration and kept wondering if it truly was coming from them or from my vivid imagination.

     My husband had surprised me last year with a wonderful pilgrimage to Spain, Portugal, Lourdes and Rome, but St. Therese and St. Denis were not part of it. 

     Therese had been my faithful companion in my spiritual journey since third grade, and St. Denis since I was born. He is my patron saint. 

     My sister Sarah and her husband had made a pilgrimage to France to visit the sites of these two saints, as well as many others. She told me that I too needed to go there one day… maybe Sarah was a part of this “inspiration,” after all, she was a mover and a shaker while here on earth, and now that she is possibly in heaven, making this pilgrimage could be a real possibility.

     Although my husband had truly enjoyed our trip, he positively hated the long flight and vowed to never do it any time soon. 

     How long is the flight to France, I wondered. I began to do some homework and found out it was a seven-hour flight. That’s not too bad. I then looked into pilgrimages going to the places I wanted to visit. That wasn’t difficult to find either. It seemed like I had all the information I needed to approach Jonathan with my deep desire to return to France.

     Besides doing my homework, I was storming all of heaven with my prayer request. I knew it had to be saturated in prayer and sacrifice. Hoping my husband was over jet lag by now, I asked God to nudge me when the time was right to begin the conversation of traveling again.

     Jon and I were out to dinner, and we were reminiscing about our pilgrimage last fall and how much we enjoyed it. Although we had visited France, we were unable to visit St. Therese and my patron saint, Denis. I then began to speak about my desire to go back to France and visit those places, and Normandy Beach as well. I told him the flight was only seven hours, so it wasn’t as bad as our last flights. 

     To my great astonishment and delight, he thought it sounded like a wonderful idea and told me to look into it. I couldn’t believe my ears! God was fulfilling this desire of my heart! This dream could have very well passed me by, had I not had the wisdom and trust to approach Jonathan and ask. 

     Nine years ago, when Avia Joy was born, I had to write a little bio about myself. In it I shared my passions, along with things I enjoy doing, and then my dreams: My lifelong dream is to visit the Holy Land one day and walk in the footsteps of Jesus. I’d love to travel to Rome and also visit Marian shrines throughout the world. But I am content for now, to make pilgrimages with dear family members and friends to local shrines.

     When I wrote those dreams so many years ago, it was my hope that at some point in my life some of them may be achieved. Never in a million years did I ever think that they would all become a reality.

     My husband and I are booked for a pilgrimage to France in the fall. This is another “dream come true.”

     We all have dreams and desires in our hearts: family, faith and health concerns, things we’d like to accomplish, places we’d love to visit, and hopes too deep and personal to reveal. God knows them all! He very well may be the One who placed them in your heart in the first place.

     Don’t lose hope! Persevere in prayer! Look to Him to fulfill your deepest desires. 

     It may not happen overnight, or even in a good number of years, but if the desire continues, keep praying! Place your hope in God, believing in Him and not in the person or persons involved with your desire. 

     Visiting the Holy Land was something I waited, hoped and prayed for probably for 30 years. When I first began to pray, I knew it was impossible at that time, but the desire remained. So, I continued to pray and praise be to God, it became a reality four years ago!

     There are so many other things that I continue to barrage God in prayer that are personal matters dear to my heart. I am unrelenting in my prayer requests, like the persistent widow in St. Luke’s parable on praying without becoming weary. I am convicted and convinced that God will bring about a favorable resolution someday, whether or not I live to see them or view it from eternity. 

     St. Therese was known for her audacious faith and trust in God. Let us join together to ask that she intercede for the desires that God has placed in our hearts, along with the grace and perseverance to stand fast and not falter!

     “Why does the Lord advise us to pray, when He knows what is needful for us before we ask Him? He wants our desire to be exercised in prayer, thus enabling us to grasp what He is preparing to give. That is something very great indeed, but we are small and limited vessels for the receiving of it. So, we are told: ‘Widen your hearts.’”                                                                            St. Augustine