Session 1- What is a Vocation? (18min) 6 th Grade Girls Catholic Vision of Love Study Guide Video: Called: Discover Your Vocation o The questions we yearn to answer are: "Who am I?" and "Why am I here?" To find the answers, we need to begin with an understanding of the true desires of our hearts and how those desires align with the God who loves us more than we love ourselves. Main Points o God wants you to have a full life with complete joy o God has a plan for us. He made us for a purpose o God is calling us not just to do something or another, but to be someone o Vocation- relationship between who God is and who you are; it s not simply a job o Our identity is a child of God. God wants to have a close intimate relationship with you o God made us good, true, and beautiful and His plan for you is to bring that beauty, truth, and goodness to fulfillment. o Our vocation is about finding our true identity in God o Our vocation is to be in loving relationship with God and to be willing to let Him do with us what He needs to do because He loves us o God has a plan for my life; That plan will make me happy; I need to ask God in prayer o Jesus Christ, by the revelation of the mystery of the Father and of the Father s love fully reveals man to himself and makes his supreme calling clear. - Second Vatican Council o A call by God is a call of love from love Himself. o Because of God s love he wants to draw us into an intimate relationship with Himself, so that you can become holy according to His plan of love for you. o God wants our happiness more than we do o Father Traynor makes a distinction between the jobs he does as a priest and his vocation as a priest. Why is this distinction important? o What do you think would be personally fulfilling about the priesthood? What do you think would be personally fulfilling about consecrated life? What do you think would be personally fulfilling about married life? o Do you trust that God wants to bring you happiness in your life and that His plan for you will bring that ultimate happiness? o On the one hand, Father Traynor desired that God would raise up strong, holy priests for the Church. On the other hand, he had no desire to be one of those strong, holy priests. So he prayed a very courageous prayer: Father, if you want me to be a priest, I need You to give me the desire to be a priest! Why is this a courageous prayer? o Jeremiah 29:11 o John 10:10 o John 15:11 o John 5:17,19
Session 2- What is Discernment? (19min) o God has called each of us to specific missions, based on who we are and the gifts he has given us. But how do we discern that calling? We can start with the classroom of silence an exterior and interior place where we can discover the depths of prayer and learn to hear God s voice. Main Points o Your vocation is something that is hardwired into your very being o To discover your vocation is to discover who God created you to be o God has placed us right here, right now in this time and place to serve o You are part of His solution to the world s problems, part of His cure for the world s sickness, His light to the world s darkness o God knows me and calls me by my name. God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. Somehow I am necessary for His purposes I have a part in this great work: I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good: I shall do His work. - John Henry Cardinal Newman Some Definite Service o God has given you talents and abilities to serve Him in specific ways and only He knows what you can do if you can answer His call o How do we become holy? Prayer- need to find a quiet place (sanctuary) to hear God s voice o God doesn t want a long distance relationship with you. He wants to be near you o God often whispers into our hearts and in silence o To have an intimate relationship with someone 4 things usually happen- I know their thoughts, feelings, and desires, and they know mine o How do you make yourself known to God in prayer?- A.R.R.R. (Acknowledge, Relate, Receive, Respond) o 5 Other Important Things to grow in our relationship with Jesus- Scripture, Sacraments, Friendships, Service, Retreat o Have you ever asked yourself the questions: Why am I here? Why has God created me? What is my purpose? What does God want me to do? o Father Martin uses the example of a hammer to demonstrate how things are designed for a specific use, a purpose. To use it in other ways would be inefficient and frustrating. What does it mean that your vocation is something hard-wired into your very being? o Father Martin recommends finding a sanctuary, a place of quiet, where you can retreat every day in order to grow in your prayer life. When was the last time you were in a place where it was absolutely quiet? How would you describe your experience in that quiet place? Were you peaceful, or anxious, or bored? Were you aware of God s presence? YouCat: #342, 469-470, 498-499, 503-508
o Jeremiah 1:5 o 1 Thessalonians 4:3 o 1 Kings 19:11-13 Video- True Beauty: Becoming the Woman You Were Created to Be Session 1 The Heart of a Woman, Part 1, by Lisa Cotter o The differences between a woman and a man are deeply profound. God created them to be complementary. But often those differences can create a trap, ensnaring both women and men in sin. This study speaks frankly about the wonders and pitfalls of a woman's heart. Part 1 (3:17) Differences Between Men and Women o God made men to be very physical and visual o Women are more emotional and relational o There are some differences between men and women and when we deny these differences it makes it really difficult to understand why we do some of the things that we do Part 2 (5:10) Temptations for each Gender o The devil tempts men in their physical and visual natures All day long men are bombarded with visual images of women. They re being portrayed in a way that make men want to desire women to use them physically o The devil tempts women in gossip, create drama, and fights that are long and drawn out Tempted with emotional images (chick flicks, love songs, etc.); The devil tries to disrupt the emotional beauty in women s lives o Think of a time when you had an emotional reaction. Was it a positive or negative reaction? o God created men and women to be different. Our bodies are different, our behaviors are different, and our brains are different. Why do you think He created male and female humans? o In what ways are you glad men are not like women? In what ways do you wish men were more like women? o What are some behaviors of women who are enslaved to their emotions? o 1 Corinthians 10:13 o Proverbs 31:25
Session 2 The Heart of a Woman, Part 2, by Lisa Cotter o In Jesus we have the fullness of Love Incarnate never romantic, sentimental, or fantasyfilled, but a real love that is sacrificial, truthful, and life-giving. In this session, young women will see how the example of Jesus should inform what they need in a husband. Yet, more than merely an example, Jesus can also fulfill their truest desires and guide them to a man who is worthy of their hearts. Part 1 (4:59) o Women all have this dream of one day being a princess, but we all have this dream of this prince coming and rescuing us. The man of our dreams coming and finding us captivating, and pursuing us, and seeing us as someone worthy of seeking out and finding o We begin to grow impatient and then your best friend gets a boyfriend and then you start wondering when it s going to be your time. Then a cute guy comes to youth group and you think he s the one you re going to date, but he s not showing interest, so you begin to mentally stalk him by having him on your mind constantly. This leads to cyberstalking or creeping on Facebook. o This leads you to being attached to a guy who you re not even in a relationship with Part 2 (4:12) o There s a place in our hearts to think about and to hope and dream and look forward to in the future. You have to be careful that you aren t just trying to fill a void. o We think that a guy in our life is going to make things so much better. If we could just find him than our lives will be complete o If you asked married women if getting married fixed those deep desires of feeling lonely and insecure about life. Many will tell you no. o Why is this the case?- Because no matter how wonderful or holy your boyfriend or one day your future spouse can and maybe will be, they re not your savior. They can t fill that fundamental place in your heart that s from Jesus and for Jesus. Only He alone can fill that o If you re expecting your future spouse to do things that only Jesus can do then you re just going to end up being disappointed. o The devil wants you to believe that Jesus doesn t care about your heart or your loneliness and feelings of insecurities and does everything he can to prevent you from knowing that Jesus is thinking about you all the time o Mental stalking and creeping is using people to try and fill that void that we have in our hearts. It s using someone as a means to an end. No person should be used for a mental fantasy whether that s physical or emotional. o We have to be careful that we re not turning people into objects for our own use and pleasure Part 3 (6:26) Four Tips for Women o How do we make Jesus #1 in our heart? How do we make sure that He s the one filling up that first place? How do we make sure that we are not emotionally using people? How we re not trying to use them as a way to fulfill in an unhealthy way? o 4 Tips to Accomplish This
Guard your heart- our Holy of Holies is like our heart of hearts Say no to mental stalking and creeping Have good girlfriends Instead of mentally stalking guys, mentally stalk Jesus o Are things like mental stalking and Facebook creeping a problem and how do they affect you? o Is your heart pure? Or do you struggle with using guys emotionally? And have you been able to find that place in your heart where Jesus is #1? o Think of a confident, virtuous, and faith-filled woman that you know or have heard about. How do you think she is guided by her relationship with Jesus and her friendships with other women? What is the source of her strength? o What qualities would you like your future husband to have, if you are called to marriage someday? What help do you think young men need in their lives to develop the qualities you are looking for? o 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 o Romans 8:28 o Luke 7:44, 47-48 Session 3 Sisterhood, Part 1, by Sarah Swafford o For many women, friendships are rarely passive relationships, but "sisterhoods" that shape and form who they become. This first of two sessions on the topic explores how putting Jesus at the center of sisterhood changes how women relate to one another focusing on virtue through acceptance, support, accountability, and encouragement. Part 1 (2:55)- What is True Sisterhood? o An image of what Sarah thinks true sisterhood is, is at the foot of the cross. Except for John, the women (Mary and Mary Magdalene) were the ones there at the foot of the cross with Jesus at his death Part 2 (3:56) Roadblocks to True Sisterhood o Friendship of Mary and Elizabeth. Mary is told by the angel that she is going to have Jesus, so she goes to Elizabeth who is also pregnant with John the Baptist. They needed one another and God knew that o True sisterhood is: finding those women who are on the same page, path, and place as you Women that want to challenge you and make you stronger They help you grow in your good times, struggles, victories, and defeats Women that you re going to run towards the Lord with o Women have a great pressure to be perfect and then it turns into thinking that you re not enough. These fears paralyze you and prevent you from being the woman that you want to be
o What are some ways that you think true sisterhood can be lived out in your life? What are some qualities that you are looking for in a friend? o What does that idea of competition and comparing looks like in your own life? What is that pressure of being perfect? And how does that effect you in your own life? o Who are your best and closest friends? What qualities do they have that make them good friends? o What is one practical thing you can do to help find and foster good friendships, or to improve a friendship that you have now? o Why do the women at the foot of the cross give a good image for true sisterhood? o Luke 1:39-45 o Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 o Sirach 6:14-17 o Romans 12:9-21 o John 19:25-27 Session 4 Sisterhood, Part 2, by Sarah Swafford o YDISCIPLE's discussion of sisterhood continues as we consider how true sisters accept a woman as Jesus does as she is, without false expectations about who she should be. Ultimately, true sisters know that only in Jesus can a woman become who she is truly meant to be, and seeks to help her get there. Part 1 (4:17) Compassion o Greatest weapon for sisterhood- compassion o Compassion means to suffer with someone o Hurt people, hurt people o We re all broken and in need of Christ and his love o Christ wants you just as you are in all your messiness. Your pain, desires, struggles, etc. Christ wants to be in the struggle with us and true sisterhood is the same way o True sisters want you to come to them as you are Part 2 (5:03) Who Do You Want to Be? o Emotional Virtue is the bedrock of true sisterhood o The world has deemed all things popular and perfect to be things of the exterior. However, our bodies are the window to our souls. They re the icon in through which people glimpse our inner-most being o Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit o Anything exterior all flows from the interior life that you have. All women, you see their beauty from the inside shine out. o To know who you are in Christ and to be committed in that confidence or knowing that He loves you and that you re going to grow in virtue and strength. This is what you are looking for in true sisterhood o Ask yourself: Who do you want to be? What kind of person and friend do I want to be?
o Making the decision to focus on your inner beauty and strength that I know who I am in Christ, I know my worth as a person, but more importantly than that I know other people s worth too o Be who God created you to be and you will set the world on fire. - St. Catherine of Siena o God wants you to be you, not the world s idea of perfect, or bully s subpar image of you that you ve come to believe o Be that friend that you would like to have in your own life o Why is it so hard with the women of your life to have compassion and see pain in their eyes? Why can it be so difficult to feel loved and accepted by those women and even hard to feel loved and accepted by Christ sometimes? o What do you think prevents people from turning away from sin and giving their hearts to the Father? What are some of the obstacles that exist to becoming women of God and sisters in Christ? o Think of the friendships you currently have. How do your friendships bring you joy and help you to grow? How can you be a more compassionate and loving friend to those around you? o The Gospel message can be summarized with one sentence: God loves you just as you are, but too much to leave you there. What does this mean to you? o John 15:9-17 o Proverbs 31:30