7 Quick Takes Friday ~ Vol 77

— 1 — Jen Picked Me(!!): Imagine turning off your Kindle at night after reading #SOTG and waking up to find a personal email from the author, Jen Fulwiler, telling you that you won her contest! She is so nice and even indicated in her 7QTs that she is “familiar” with this blog. Oh, and she said she was going to visit and “browse the archives”. My first reaction was that of a Publisher’s Clearinghouse Sweepstakes winner. The people with the big signs show up at your door and you can’t think about the money because your house isn’t quite ready for guests. Please forgive me for any spelling or grammatical errors here in my blog house. I didn’t know in advance that I was going to have guests!

When I replied to Jen’s gracious email, I tried to not act like Billy in the movie Bolt:

Billy: “Bolt, I’ve admired you for such a long time and there is something I’ve always wanted to tell you if I ever get a chance to met you…”

Blake: “Ep, ep, okay Billy. That was horrifying. What you just did.”

A warm welcome to new readers landing here from Jen’s blog. Thank you, Jen!

— 2 — This Week’s Post: Give Him 3 Dates where I address this scenario:

Scenario: You go out with a guy, you both enjoy the date and he says he would like to go out again. But, you are not sure if you are feeling a spark or not. Should you go out with him again?

—3 — Big Exciting News: Marcus Guevara from Thirsting For Truth sent me his answers to my interview questions and this post will be up on Monday! You remember Marcus, right? He started the ministry, Thirsting For Truth and he created this amazing video. He also has a Go Fund Me project if you are inspired to use your Treasure to support his Talent. You can find Marcus via his website, Facebook and you can follow him on Twitter! Here is an example interview question and I am sure you will find his answer very interesting:

“Does your vocation of marriage to Dianne specifically feel as if it was God’s plan for you as if you were made for each other? Are you able to look back on your life and see God leading you through various sufferings and circumstances, towards Dianne? In other words, in your opinion, is God in the middle of our vocation or is it all just a roll of the dice?”

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— 4 — Not Alone Series: This week’s NAS topic was: If You Were Called To The Religious Life: While most of us feel called to marriage, it is important to see the beauty in all vocations! If/when you were discerning religious life, which communities interest(ed) you? What do you see as the positives of that vocation? Lots of honest discussion about this possibility. Head on over to Morgan’s blog to read about what the girls had to say!

— 5 — Spotlight On: This week’s spotlight is on Meriam Yehya Ibrahim Ishag. Please, please pray for her and all those suffering in Sudan. I was extra teary at Mass this morning giving thanks to God for the privilege of worshiping and receiving Him in freedom. Meriam is one of us and her plight may one day be ours. Her words to the judge who sentenced her to death by hanging were reminiscent of all the martyrs , “I am a Christian and I never committed apostasy.” St Josephine Bakhita (see #6), intercede for our sister Meriam! Here is her story:

Meriam Yehya Ibrahim Ishag (aka Adraf Al-Hadi Mohammed Abdullah) a pregnant Sudanese woman was convicted today (14 May 2014) of apostasy for converting to Christianity from Muslim – Sudan has a majority Muslim population, which is governed by one form of Sharia, an Islamic law, and the government rules that apostasy is a crime punishable by death – in this case, due to her pregnancy, the sentence will be delayed 2 years so she may give birth and then be hung until dead. Mrs Ibrahim Ishag was also convicted of adultery on the grounds that her marriage to a Christian man from South Sudan was void under Sudan’s version of Islamic law, which says Muslim women cannot marry non-Muslims – for this “adultery,” she was sentenced to 100 lashes. Amnesty International said Mrs Ibrahim Ishag was raised Orthodox Christian, her mother’s religion, because her Muslim father was absent during her childhood. But the Sudan government recognizes only the father’s religion in respect to the female child: a female child takes the father’s religion under Sudan’s Islamic law regardless if the father is present or even alive ([115]

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Meriam and her husband

— 6 — St. Josephine Bakhita: Pray for us! You can read her story here.

— 7 — Pope Paul VI to be beatified October 19, 2014: Which just happens to be mine and Gregg’s 12 wedding anniversary. Pope Paul VI, please pray for us and for this blog which is dedicated to you and others who have made such a profound difference in my life!

Pope Paul VI visits the Holy Land, 1964.

God love and bless you!

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For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!