Faith, love, hope... my testimony and a description of my names.:)

So, I have this as a link off of my "me" page and not directly from my home page for a reason. I don't like for others to think that I am imposing my beliefs on them in any way. Nor do I feel that what i believe in is necesarily "right." Everyone is entitled to believe in what they like, and to formulate their own beliefs. By clicking on this link, you are now going to be exposed to my beliefs and testimonies. If you don't want to view this, simply click here and it will return you to the main page. If you stay, below is my testimony, as well as a description of my names.

Testimony

I was baptized into the Catholic faith in March of 1983, and I recieved communion for the first time in May of 1990. Although i went to a private Catholic school from 1st through 8th grade, i didn't really grow in faith at all. In fact, i think i rather grew away from faith. Church just wasn't fun for me then, and I was a little kid with a lot of issues.

However, I moved to Richmond, VA in the spring of my 8th grade year. We started going to church down here, and I still didn't feel that "connection" with my faith... at least in the Catholic church that i was going to. My freshman and Sophomore years of high school are a blur, up until one day my junior year that changed everything. I won't go into any detail whatsoever about this, but after that occasion. But I can't explain to you the feelings that i felt and the thoughts that went through my head after it. Like God was unreachable and that he didn't care to help, and "how could he let something like that happen to me?" It was at that instant that someone entered my life, who reintroduced the power of God and Christ into my life. My friend Sharon started inviting me to come to church youth group with her. In this, i discovered such a loving community, and in just seeing the amount of faith and love in that one room-- it was then, when i really realized that God had always given his hand to help me, but i had never accepted it. That year as well, I was initiated into the Catholic faith through the right of confirmation. I chose Germaine as my confirmation name. She was a saint that had a lot of things that happened in her life, and she turned to God, who taught her how to forgive and to grow in holiness. (see below for her story)

Even still as I am dealing with things that happen in my life, I choose to look to God for the guidance needed to overcome whatever the test at hand may be. In recent times this year, that has been coping with the September 11th attacks and the death of one of my great friends, who was a firefighter, along with the divorce of my parents, and the reasons behind that.

I feel like i should say that I am a Catholic by Confirmation, but a Christian by choice. I don't follow along with about 1/2 of the things that the Catholic church does, but i don't attend Catholic church masses. Rather, I attend masses with many of my other Christian friends. Such as with Sharon at West End Assembly of God when I am home. This testimony is in no way complete, as no testimony should be. I am still continuing to grow in my faith. So, next time you check back on this, there may be more

"Don't worry about tomorrow
He's got it under control
So trust in the Lord with all of your heart
And He will carry you through."
~Trust in the Lord, SEEK youth worship, 1999

My Names:

Laura: "A crown of Laurel Leaves"
Story of the Saint behind my name:
Saint Lawrence protected the Church’s money from the Roman Empire by giving it to the poor. When the greedy prefect of Rome demanded the Church’s treasures, Lawrence presented to him the poor and the sick, announcing, "This is the Church's treasure!" When he was martyred, he was roasted on fire. Keeping God's joy and good humor to the end, he told his torturers: "Turn me over, I'm done on this side!"

Elizabeth: "God has sworn"
Story of the Saints behind the name:
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton was a mother and an educator, and devoted her life to children.
Saint Elizabeth of Portugal was married to a king, and her spiritual life was often interrupted by politics and family arguments. She regained her inner peace by spending time in prayer and doing works of charity.
Saint Elizabeth of Hungary was a princess who married a prince. Concerned for the poor, she donated to them her portion of the prince’s income and then sold her luxurious possessions to give them more. After her husband died, she renounced worldly wealth, built a hospice for the weak and sickly, and invited the most wretched to dine with her.

Germaine (my Confirmation name): "kin"
Saint Germaine Cousin was a severely abused and neglected child. She turned to God, who taught her how to forgive her family and grow in holiness. She entrusted the sheep she tended to God's care while she went to daily Mass, and they were never attacked by wolves. One day when the rains flooded the river, a villager saw the water part so she could get to Mass. She died from her mistreatments at age 22; forty years later her body was exhumed and found incorrupted.

Saint stories taken from Saints Names and Meanings

more additions and testimony will come later!

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

~Ecclesiastes 3:1-8~
NKJB