“My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” Psalm 42:2
By: Sister Isabelle of Our Lady of Hope, O.C.D.
How grateful I am to God for His incomprehensible mercy. He has lead me in paths unknown to me. When I was reluctant to follow, He patiently waited for me to come. As a child, I remember being conscious of God’s existence, but it was not until my sophomore year in high school that I began to relate personally to Him. We were required to do a service project for school and I choose to visit the residents of St. Mary’s House, a local nursing home. During one of my visits two members of the Legion of Mary came to pray the rosary with the ladies there. They invited me to join them and I did. That was the first time I ever prayed the rosary. I had grown up in a Catholic home with devoted parents, the oldest of six children, but up to that point, our faith had never been central to us. After praying, we began to converse and the two lovers of Mary and Jesus told me about the scapular, miraculous medal, and the diary of St. Faustina. They also spoke of their own strong faith and relationships with God and Mary. I was the recipient of many graces that day and as they spoke I became more and more interested, athirst for God and His truth. I put on the brown scapular that they had given me and my life was changed forever. I began praying the rosary quietly on the way to school and to discover gradually the beautiful truths of our faith. Most importantly the gift of faith in the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist was given me.
All of this grace I attribute to the intercession of Mary, my hope. She reached down and drew me close to her heart and she has never failed to be my mother. She also helped my whole family come closer to her Son, introducing us to daily Mass and rosary. What a gift!!! In college, when I told my family of my desire to be a Sister, they were supportive even though it was painful. God lead me by the hand to the Franciscan University of Steubenville and it was there that I first met the Sisters. I saw in them something very attractive to me, something that I could not put my finger on, but the habit helped. I wanted to be close to Jesus and live a life singing His praises forever too. I wanted to receive His love and to love Him in return forever in the silence of Carmel. Reading St. Therese’s Story of a Soul lite a flame in my heart. I had such joy and excitement seeing how she loved Jesus and souls. I wanted to do the same! I wanted to love.
As my thirst for God grew, I began to spend more time with Jesus in Eucharistic adoration, dropping in many times during the day to be with Him. I could not get enough of Jesus in my life. However, I was a normal young woman, also attracted to the married life and I had hopes of being in the medical profession to help people. These desires as well as sin and human weakness made it difficult for me to choose religious life right away and it was not until my senior year in college that I made the commitment to come and begin candidacy. I realized that the greatest desire in my heart was for God alone and to do His will. I knew I would be the happiest belonging only to Him. I heard Him clearly calling my name and inviting me to be HIS bride. He spoke to me through my elders, my friends, priests, Sisters, and through His Word, “For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name” (Isaiah 54:5). How could I say no to Him, who is all goodness and love.
