Many people kept telling me I needed to write. I always felt called to write to share the spiritual lessons that God was teaching me in the midst of suffering, but I was thinking more of a book, not a blog. I never dreamt of blogging, but I felt called to share the spiritual lessons I was learning in a tangible way to others, because I knew how much I could have benefitted from reading about a fellow suffering Catholic’s spiritual journey during my own deep struggles.
In 2019-2020, my spiritual director at the time was eager for me to start blogging. I took it to prayer, and God confirmed His desire for me to write but made it clear that it was not the time yet. I would write for myself but not for others. I kept bringing the question of “when to start a blog” to God at weekly adoration. Suddenly, one Friday, I got a “yes, now” answer from Him in my heart when I was in adoration. I was surprised and chuckled because I didn’t know what was different about that Friday than the previous Friday (or any other day), but I went with it out of obedience and started figuring out how to create a blog site. If you know me, you know that technology and web design are not particular gifts of mine, so that was an interesting process!
While still in the process of setting up the blog, the Covid shutdown began, and then I saw a little more clearly what God knew all along- that was the time He wanted my blog to launch because that was the time when everyone was struggling in one way or another, as we were all being pushed out of our comfort zones. It was the perfect time to start publicly speaking the messages He was giving me in the midst of my own suffering because those messages were relatable to such a cross-section of people. Almost everyone at the time of the shutdown was unsettled, looking for the truth and comfort, and had extra time in their day for reading. And so it began, in God’s time!
How the Blog Got Its Name
The name “For the Greater Purpose” came to me during the first year of this illness, when I thought the title would be for a book. I knew that the suffering I was enduring had a greater purpose even though I only had a limited understanding of redemptive suffering at the time. What I was enduring didn’t have to be empty suffering if I united it to the cross, used it as a prayer, and was open to how God wanted to work through it. I knew the message of “for the greater purpose” was from God, but I needed to learn so much more about what that even meant. Some of the greatest gems of the Catholic Church are its teachings on the cross and redemptive suffering. I still have so much to learn, but God has shown me Himself and a beauty that I never before knew existed, all amidst some very unfavorable conditions. God has shown me that He doesn’t need a perfect situation to work- He isn’t bound by circumstances, and He can always bring good out of bad situations if we unite our sufferings to the cross and cooperate with His will, whether we can see the fruits of it or not. For many years, I did not see any tangible ways that God was using my situation, but He was all using it all along, especially with how He worked on my heart and understanding. I’m seeing some of the fruits now, though, as He uses my story to draw others closer to Him… something that’s happening via His grace even though I’m still in the midst of the trials.
Now
I’m trusting that God is bringing good out of my still bad situation, and I’m doing my best to cooperate with His plan. I spend time in prayer and adoration discerning what He wants me to share so that this blog is in conformity with His will, not my will. I’m sharing the lessons He’s teaching me- the things He is setting my heart on fire about and ways in which He’s stretching me to grow and to see things in a completely different light! It’s been a challenging yet freeing and rewarding journey, so I’m doing my best to authentically share how God has been and is still working on my heart. I still struggle with and work on many of the things I write about, as none of these spiritual lessons are a once-and-done type of thing, but I have grown a lot spiritually through this process, and I resolve to keep getting up by His grace every time I fall!
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